Written by David N. Weiss | No. of episodes 13 | |
Created by Brian D. Brown
Eric J. Danenberg Production company(s) Shephard Films
Focus on the Family |
The Story Keepers is an animated Christian video series produced by Zondervan from 1995 to 1997 in America and Ireland. It tells the story of a Christian leader and his family's adventures living in Ancient Rome whose mission is to keep Jesus's stories alive during the 1st century. The series consists of thirteen episodes, and features two full-length movies that are compilations of the last four episodes.
Contents
Main characters
More characters
Recurring characters
Episodes
- Breakout - A young street juggler named Cyrus is captured during a church raid and sentenced to being thrown to the lions. Anna convinces Ben to launch a rescue operation. *Note*: "Breakout" is the pilot episode of "The Story Keepers". - (U.K. Transmission Date: 01/12/1997)
- Raging Waters - Zakkai and the kids must smuggle a scroll containing a story about Jesus to a church across town, and use the aqueducts to do so. Things seem to go swimmingly until Zak is captured by a Roman centurion named Tacticus. - (U.K. Transmission Date: 01/19/1997)
- Catacomb Rescue - Ben and the gang must help a missionary named Ephriam escape Rome, but first they need to secure travel papers for him. When Nihilus and Tacticus come searching for Ephriam, Ben and Anna lead the gang through the catacombs. When Anna and Justin are trapped in a cave-in with an injured Tacticus, they learn the value of loving their neighbor from Jesus' parable of the Good Samaritan. - (U.K. Transmission Date: 01/26/1997)
- Ready, Aim, Fire! - Zak's uncle Mordecai has come to visit, and Zak goes overboard trying to impress him. Meanwhile, Nihilus and Nero have plans to renovate the city via fire, and Tacticus must find a way to stall them and give Ben and his church a chance to escape. - (U.K. Transmission Date: 02/02/1997)
- Sink or Swim - Justin learns about a slave ship where his and Marcus' father, Joshua ben Judah, may be imprisoned, and Ben agrees to help Justin search the ship. But the gang is caught off-guard when the ship is suddenly called out to sea to do battle with a rebel slave ship. - (U.K. Transmission Date: 02/09/1997)
- Starlight Escape - Rome has become too dangerous to hold large meetings, so Ben, Helena, and the kids travel to Ostia with an old guide named Milo. It's no easy journey as they are hunted by Roman patrols the entire way. Ben and Helena use the long trip to tell the kids the story of Jesus' birth and the visit of the Magi. - (U.K. Transmission Date: 02/16/1997)
- Roar in the Night - Marcus has befriended two lion cubs who have escaped from Nero's cruel animal trainer. He is determined to find a way to keep the cubs out of Nero's clutches, but that may mean having to release them in Africa instead of keeping them. - (U.K. Transmission Date: 02/23/1997)
- Captured! - Cyrus is captured by a patrol while showing off his acrobatic skills, only to be sold to a local merchant who is impressed by Cyrus' talent. Cyrus finds himself living the good life, and when Ben & co. try to rescue him, he refuses to go back to the bakery. Helena tells the children Jesus' parable of the Prodigal Son and encourages them to pray for Cyrus. - (U.K. Transmission Date: 03/02/1997)
- Trapped! - Tacticus' faith is discovered when he refuses to participate in the mandatory worship of Nero at the emperor's birthday party. Ben and the gang enlist the help of Empress Sabina's servant Miriam to rescue Tacticus. - (U.K. Transmission Date: 03/09/1997)
- Tricked By A Traitor - The local miller reveals Ben's operation, sending him into hiding. In order to flush him out, Nihilus threatens to burn down the bakery—with Helena, Justin, Marcus and Cyrus still inside! Ben and his family are living in the catacombs, planning their escape to Shem Hadar. Meanwhile, Nero's soldiers, led by Nihilus and Capella, are searching the catacombs for them.
- Tried And True A soldier finds a hole leading to the catacombs where Ben and the other Christians are hiding so they plan an attack. In attempt to escape Zak triggers a barrier that traps Ben, Justin and Marcus with the soldiers and are captured and Ben awaits execution. Helena plans to free them by smuggling a group of Christians ,Cyrus parents among them.
- Caught At The Crossroads Cyrus is reunited with his parents, who insist on helping Helena rescue Ben and the boys. The attempt is almost successful, but when Ben is recaptured and sentenced to crucifixion, it's up to Capella to save him—even at the cost of his own life. - 10 through 12 shown as a special episode/movie (U.K. Transmission Date: 28/02/1998)
- To The Ends of The Earth - Ben and the gang are finally on their way to Shem Hadar. But their trek takes them across the desert to avoid a port where the Romans are still searching for Ben and Tacticus. When Nihilus shows up, bent on vengeance, Tacticus faces one last battle with the gang's most ruthless enemy. - (U.K. Transmission Date: 01/07/1998)
Movies
Collections
References
The Story Keepers Wikipedia(Text) CC BY-SA