Plot so thin, it passes unnoticed.

Boring, over-political, tech fuzed mess

A film of deceptively outspoken contemporary relevance, this is cinema at its most alert, alarming and alive.

The joyful confection is coated in a sparkly gloss, bright enough to gleam from the darkest, most cynical corners.

'The Mysterious Cities of Gold' is a Japanese-French animation series. Set in 1532, the story follows the adventures of a young Spanish boy named Esteban who joins a voyage to Peru in search of the lost cities of gold and his father who has gone missing there. On his way, he and his friends set examples in honesty, courage and generosity which we can only applaud. Thanks to the creators of this series, we can all sail with Esteban and his friends through the treacherous Straits of Magellan; visit strange creatures of Galapagos Islands; marvel over the breath-taking beauty of Macchu Picchu; fly on a condor over Amazon rain forest; flee the marauding soldiers of Francisco Pizzaro and have wonderful adventures in an exotic realm.

Today, I have just gotten a hold of all the episodes of Taiyô no ko Esteban from a friend. He has told me that he has seen this show when he was a child and he is glad that he has taped them. I watched two episodes so far and going to watch the third one. It is a very exciting and interesting show. Usually, I have no interest to watch shows or read books about the sea, the desert, and life in the 1500s but this is an exception. Also, it's anime so it will make this show a little better than the greatness it already is. Children from the 1980s who has watched this series most likely has thought of this show as inspirational to them. Other than Teenage Mutant turtles which was around during that time and other shows that wouldn't encourage children to do good. Also, I thought that the characters were well designed and the plot is well written.It is quite a shock when I heard from a review that Saban, the company that owned the American rights to it lost the episodes to a fire which will cause Nickelodeon to never air it again. Saban should get a hold of new episodes or get one from friends who have recorded it on VHS and convert them to whatever format they want to have Nickelodeon or another television channel air it again. The children of today need this show! It's just too good. As for others who were lucky enough to already seen it or others who got a hold of it just recently to remember the episodes so clearly, I have a message for you.Keep the spirit of the Mysterious Cities of Gold in your heart. Please.

This show is easily a childhood memory for me. I recall watching this on Nickelodeon back in the 80's. Everything about this show was simply breathtaking. From the characters, to the storylines etc. I thought the Golden Condor was a cool ship too. I even recall dreaming about riding in it with Esteban and company! From what I hear from many, this show was supposed to be rather intense, but it was edited for Nickelodeon. Still, it was a pretty deep show at that time for Nickelodeon. The folks who made this show also did other wonderful 80's toons like "Ulysse 31", and "Spartacus"(Another show I watched on Nick). I hope they put this on DVD here soon, because I would love to see it again since it's been nearly 15 years since I last watched it.This show gets a perfect 10!

I watched this back in the early 90s when I was quite young and wow what a great series it was. An interesting storyline, it tells the story of a boy named Esteban who is renowned in Barcelona during the 1500s for being a child of the sun and having strange powers. He is then looking for the Mysterious Cities of Gold along with another child (an Inca girl named Zia) who also has the same medallion as him, both having a supernatural connection. Other characters include a boy from South America named Tao as well people from the old world Mendoza and co who are interested in seeking the cities.The series was a great childhood anime as there are memorable characters and the storyline offers a philosophical and paranormal touch entwined with a balance of history. The MCOG is an anime that was very unique and it's a shame that there are no others like it today.