Long-running fanfic serial that appeared in almost every issue of
The Eye Shield fanzine. When
TES launched in December 1995, its editor
Paul McIntosh revealed that, despite the programme having been axed by
CITV, "
adventures at Knightmare Castle are still going on". For
watchers experiencing withdrawal from televised quests, Adventure Time was conceived as an interactive story that would continue to dream up "
the latest goings on in the dungeon, with a typical suspense ending" in each issue. Fans were then encouraged to write in with suggestions for the next instalment: "
You may decide to kill off the dungeoneer, or you may wish to whip up a glorious victory."
Three quests ran their course during the magazine's original
run of nine issues. In addition to Paul's own ideas, they included offerings from half a dozen readers - Robert Nowlan (Issue 2), Ben "
Pooka" Maydon and James Clarke (Issue 3),
Jake Collins (Issue 8), and the most prolific contributors, Chris Griffin (Issues 3, 4, 5 & 6) and Tim
Morris (Issues 3, 4, 5, 7 & 9), the latter of whom also provided illustrations.
Treguard was joined in the
antechamber by both
Pickle and
Majida, while the dungeon was populated by familiar faces such as
Mildread,
Motley,
Hordriss,
Fatilla,
Elita and the recently
returned
Merlin and
Mogdred, plus original character Queen Kalina, the self-styled "ruler of
Level 1" who had taken over
Mount Fear.
Brangwen was joined by a "brand new
wall monster" named Phelheim, and there were new
challenges as
well as old favourites like the
Great Corridor of the Catacomb,
bomb room,
minecart ride,
Block and Tackle,
falling bridge and
Corridor of Blades. Other threats included
goblins and
hobgoblins,
cavernwights,
skull ghosts,
Khah the cobra,
Medusa and the
Automatum.
When Jake Collins resurrected TES as an electronic fanzine in 2001, he also took over as the sole author of Adventure Time, continuing the series from where it had left off almost four years earlier. He remained in charge of the story until the end of 2008, writing a total of 36 chapters.
Morghanna,
Owen and
Smirkenorff joined the existing cast of characters, and dungeoneers also had to face the giant snake and
scorpion,
catacombites, a
gargoyle,
spectral weaponry,
Blockers and the
Dreadnort. Rooms and challenges from all eras of Knightmare were used, from the wall of
Jericho,
stained glass window room and
Merlin’s throne room to the
Descender,
Causeways and
Fireball Alley. The usual format took a break from Issues 26 to 33 when it was replaced by eight interactive quests in the style of Dave Morris' gamebooks, each one based on a different series of the show.
In 2009, Jake handed over the reins to
Ross Thompson who contributed the final six chapters of the "fourteen-year quest
season".
Gumboil,
Sylvester Hands and
Brother Strange made their Adventure Time débuts, and the return of
Lord Fear and
Lissard began a story arc involving a
power struggle between the various sorcerers. There were additional tests and hazards in the form of
Ariadne, the
monster’s stomach, a
sleeping
dragon, the
Oracle of Confusion, the
Spindizzy,
Play Your Cards Right, a
troll and Lord Fear's
skeletrons. When this phase of the dungeon finally drew to a close, there had been 25 quests in total, with 18 deaths and 7 victories.
A second season of Adventure Time, subtitled 'Opposition Rising', began in 2010. Co-written by Andy Marshall, Ricky Temple and Louise Brockhouse, it featured no fewer than 20 original characters, several of whom had previously appeared on the
Knightmare Roleplay Forum and in the authors' fanfic series 'The
Fire & Ice Chronicles'.
Malice,
Skarkill,
Snapper-Jack,
assassins, white
wolves,
stormgeists and
Miremen were also among the dangers in this final series, which visited such locations as
Dungarth, the
Tower of Time,
Wolfenden,
Winteria,
Witch Haven and the
Rift of Angar. Seven instalments were published,
but it was absent from the last two issues of The Eye Shield due to unforeseen circumstances, so the third quest - to
free Sidriss - remained unfinished.
Links to every chapter can be found at the
Knightmare Fanfic Compendium:
I. Paul McIntosh et al. (1995-1997)
II. Jake Collins (2001-2004)
III. Jake Collins (2005-2008)
IV. Ross Thompson (2009)
V. Andy Marshall, Ricky Temple & Louise Brockhouse (2010-2011)
In August 2013, wall monster Phelheim made a surprise appearance in the second season of the
Knightmare Audio Series, voiced by Jake Collins. It remains to be seen (or rather, heard) whether any other Adventure Time characters will find a new
home there.
