List of Gogs episodes

Main article: Gogs

This is a list of all the episodes of Gogs. The claymation animated television series began as a little-known show on the Welsh television channel S4C in 1993, complete with Welsh language subtitles and credits. The show was translated for English language audiences and received international attention and acclaim when it was shown on BBC2 at Christmas time in 1996. The following listings are for these latter, more important showings.

In 1997, a second series of a further eight episodes were aired specifically for an English-speaking audience, and were aired in the UK, US and Australia.

Gogs ended in 1998 after running for these two series, and a total of 13 episodes. Episodes were generally around five to six minutes long.

There was also a 30-minute long special, Gogwana.

Selected episodes were made available on VHS. All 13 episodes are now available on a single DVD released 9 April 2001.

Summary

Series Episodes Originally aired DVD release date
Region 2
1 5 1993 9 April 2001
2 8 1996 9 April 2001

Series 1 (1993)

Title Original airdate Length #
"Episode 1.1: Fire" 21 December 1993, 8.50pm 1
The pilot episode tells the audience the names of the characters of the programme, including the Gog family clan and their main antagonist Ray the T-Rex, in the form of cave paintings. At the beginning of the episode, the Gog clan are huddled together at night on a cold, bleak, windswept landscape. The Gogs are getting up to their usual revolting, uncivilized activities and hitting each other. A freak storm breaks out, terrifying them all, except the crazy infant, Girj, who finds it all amusing, causing the mother Ogla to kick Girj off screen. The storm causes a withered tree to be hit by a bolt of lightning which then sets it on fire, giving the Gogs the inspiration to make fire for the first time. Dim-witted teenage caveman Ogo quickly and unexpectedly turns to scream right at the camera as his hand is burnt by putting it into the fire. As he screams, grandfather Gogas hits Ogo over he head with his club, and the clan go to sleep around the warmth of the fire. They awaken sleepily to a hungry T-Rex named Ray descending on them, and as the Gogs scream and flee they leave behind the teenage daughter, Igi, who is almost eaten. Ogo saves the day when he holds a flaming torch to Ray's private parts, causing Ray to dart off quickly in pain. As Ogo basks in his clan's praise, he quickly loses it again as he blows the flame out, which was the last remnant of the fire they had, and as such the secret of fire is lost. The rest of the clan beat up Ogo for this, and the next night they remain cold without fire like the night before.
"Episode 1.2: Stone Circle" 23 December 1993, 6.45pm 2
The second episode begins with Ray the T-Rex still searching for the Gogs, his pride (and private parts) wounded. Meanwhile, the Gogs have moved from the barren windswept plateau to a lush, bright, and gargantuan-sized primeval rainforest buzzing with all manner of bizarre flora and fauna. Baby Girj is having a tantrum, screaming and pooing and weeing on the forest floor, causing the rest of the clan to shove rocks in their ears to drown out the sound, and vomiting at the stench. Mother Ogla wipes Girj's bum on a banana leaf, and then throws it in husband Oglas's face. The day consists of many similar antics, until grandfather Gogas comes up with the idea of building Stonehenge. The plan collapses when a giant, prehistoric forest spider latches onto Oglas' face, causing him to drop the first stone on his father Gogas. Nevertheless, the Gogs persevere, and although dozens of similar mishaps upset the construction, Stonehenge is built – which is in fact revealed to be an elaborate swing to keep Girj happy and stop his tantrums. Although it does indeed keep Girj happy, it nonetheless makes him louder than ever in his excitement, driving the rest of them mad.
"Episode 1.3: Hunt" 24 December 1993, 8.20pm 3
As the rest of the family sit around on a plateau, father and son team Oglas and Ogo decide to go on a hunting trip to the rainforest to fetch food for the hungry clan. Not surprisingly, the trip is a disaster full of misadventures, as Oglas and Ogo are not adept hunters. After they leave, a brontosaurus keels over dead next to the rest of the clan on the plateau, who then promptly feast upon it. Meanwhile, in the rainforest Oglas and Ogo bump into a red-skinned Therizinosauridae who beats them up with kung fu. They flee, only to bump into Ray the T-Rex, prompting more running. Oglas and Ogo escape Ray by jumping off a cliff but not before losing their clothes which Ray catches in his jaws. They land in the brontosaurus' rib cage and are trapped inside like a prison, naked, exhausted, beaten up and hungry, helplessly looking on at the rest of the clan who are soundly sleeping off their hearty brontosaurus meal.
"Episode 1.4: Cave" 25 December 1993, 3.00pm 4
The clan are sat around on the plateau as grandfather Gogas chases after the mole. Ogo snots everywhere and all over the rest of the clan, and Oglas beats him up for it, and Ogla breastfeeds Girj to stop him from screaming. A windstorm kicks up pace and the clan use giant leaves as a windbreak. Ogo climbs a tree to fetch such a leaf, but at the top of the tree he is attacked by a pterodactyl hiding in the leaves who picks him up with its claws and carries him off. Gogas throws a rock at the pterodactyl, which then drops Ogo down a hollow tree stump. The pterodactyl swoops down on Gogas but Gogas knocks it out with his club, and loses his clothes as he swings. A tornado bears down on the clan, and as they look on in horror, Oglas' brain puts on a hat and vacates his head. Baby Girj escapes by following the mole down its hole. The rest of them take refuge in the tree stump to find a large underground cavern beneath, but Ogla gets stuck in the tree stump. After the mole saves Girj, Gogas again attempts to whack it with his club, but the mole steals the club and hits Gogas with it.
"Episode 1.5: Earthquake" 26 December 1993, 11.20pm 5

Series 2 (1997)

Title Original airdate Length #
"Episode 2.1" 1997 6
"Episode 2.2" 1997 7
"Episode 2.3" 1997 8
"Episode 2.4" 1997 9
"Episode 2.5" 1997 10
"Episode 2.6" 1997 11
"Episode 2.7" 1997 12
"Episode 2.8" 1997 13

Gogwana (1998)

Title Original air date Length #
"Gogwana" 25 December 1998, 1:27 pm 28 minutes 14
Gogwana was a half-hour-long special and the final installment of Gogs, with bigger vistas and special effects than the previous television series. This short film begins with a panoramic view of a wild and bleak landspace replete with all manner of creatures from Earth's history, many of which did not actually exist in the same environment or even the same time period. The Gog family clan are sat huddled together around a fire in a cave, getting up to their usual repulsive habits, until a fiery earthquake forces them to flee. As they leave the safety of the cave, their old enemy Ray the T-rex takes the opportunity to attempt to eat them. The baby Girj is almost eaten but saved by being carried upwards on a monolithic rock forcing its way out of the ground. The Gogs climb up a rocky cliff, and as Ray snaps at their heels, a rock falls on Ray's head, knocking him out. The land in turmoil, the Gogs have no choice but to move on, deciding to follow a bright light in the sky.

Whilst walking through a desert, the Gogs wear fur on their feet to protect them from the scorching sands, although grandfather Gogas has none – so he jumps onto two furry creatures and uses them instead. The Gogs find the hollow carcass of a wayward wooly mammoth and take it for a new home, although even the Gogs find the fly-riddled rotten insides undesirable. Daughter Igi watches as vultures circle ahead, and befriends a baby vulture when it hatches from the egg. That night we see the dreams of grandfather Gogas, in which we see a glimpse of his past; how his son Oglas was conceived, and how Gogas' late wife was carried off by an army of diminutive, skull-wearing cannibals.

As the Gogs continue to follow the shooting star in the sky, Ray the T-Rex continues his pursuit. The Gogs end up at a lush and verdant oasis, and enter a cave, only to discover it is the lair of the skull-wearing cannibals. Meanwhile, Igi remains outside, chasing the baby vulture who has escaped. She enters the cave only to find her family in a big cooking pot with the fires just lit by a guard, and being the smartest she runs off to hatch an elaborate escape plan. Just at that moment however, the cannibal's slave-like chef is revealed to be Gogas' long-lost wife he presumed dead, (she is also Oglas' mother), and she and Gogas recognize each other. When the broth is taken to the cannibal king, a freed Gogas bursts forth, club in hand, and he takes his revenge, with the help of his family.

Meanwhile, Igi has used the air from volcanic vents to blow up the remains of a dead dimetrodon, and in so doing created a makeshift hot air balloon. As the rest of the family are chased by the cannibals, Igi saves them with her contraption and the Gogs sail away to safety, Gogas reunited with his wife and Oglas with his mother. However, the cannibals have domesticated flying pteranodons, and are in hot pursuit. A battle occurs in the skies. The Gogs are saved by the baby vulture, who attacks the cannibal trying to cut through the vines holding the carriage to the inflated dimetrodon. Igi unravels makeshift wings for the carriage and cuts the vines herself, but not before setting off a fuse. Within a minute the volcanic gases in the inflated dimetrodon explode, killing the cannibals who had swarmed over the balloon. After a brief scuffle with Gogas, the cannibal king falls into the waiting jaws of Ray the T-Rex, who had been watching everything from ground level.

The shooting star finally leads the Gogs to Garden of Eden-type place, and includes a scene between Oglas and Ogla which is not unlike Adam, Eve, the Serpent and the forbidden fruit. The episode ends with the Gogs looking up at the sky, and they scream as they realise the shooting star is heading straight towards them.

External links

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