Ultimate Book of Spells, or UBOS, is a Canadian children's animated television series which began production in 2001. The series aired on YTV in Canada, Toon Disney in the United States and on CBBC and Pop in the United Kingdom, and ran for 26 episodes.
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Overview
Cassy, Verne and Gus are three gifted students who go to an enchanted school where they learn about magic and how to use it. One day they receive a strange talking book in the mail. The book says his name is UBOS (Ultimate Book of Spells) and together they must journey to the center of the Earth to stop Zarlak. Zarlak is a powerful wizard who is stealing all of Earth's magic so he can ultimately escape his prison, at the center of the earth, into which he was banished after a great battle. This begins a journey of a lifetime for the three students - one they will never forget. They have to juggle school life and fighting the forces of evil with only each other and UBOS for help. UBOS is actually Cassy's great-grandfather in disguise, as proven by several episodes, for example, after witnessing the legendary battle which ended with Zarlack's banishment, UBOS says to Cassy, "Come, my child". just like her great-grandfather. In another episode, UBOS said that Cassandra the seventh helped "m(e) - I mean, your great-grandfather" to Cassy and finally admitting it to Verne whilst not being himself.
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Characters
Main
- Cassandra (Cassy) (voiced by Janyse Jaud): The leader of the trio, and junior witch. She has a soft spot for animals and flowers but can become angry when taunted and when someone insults her family. Her ambition is to become a sorceress, as sorceresses are far superior to witches. She also wishes to become a trained healer, because she thinks it to be very rewarding. Her ambition leads her to strive at the top of her classes, and will sometimes use magical shortcuts to keep her place at the top. It is revealed in "Three is a Charm" that she is the great-granddaughter of the great wizard who defeated and banished Zarlack. She is also a master pilot of the "Scoot Zoomer", the means of transport for many students. Cassy's family symbol is a purple diamond which is also the colour that her family members frequently wear.
- Gus: He is half Elf and half Wizard. He is quite confident and sometimes acts childishly. He at first looks down on Verne due to his "mortie" status, but Verne manages to redeem himself by saving Gus's life. It is revealed in "Magical Quest" that he is related to a werewolf. Because he is half elf he is attracted to anything shiny, and when he sees something shiny, he says "Ohhhh sparklies". This usually makes Verne have to pull on his hood to keep him out of trouble. He has the ability to imitate voices without the assistance of magic. Gus's family symbol is a green star which is displayed on his shirt. His goal is to become a full wizard.
- Verne (voiced by Cathy Weseluck): He is a mortal (also known as mortie), but he displays magical powers and can naturally mend electronic devices. Because of his mortal status, he is called a "mortie." At some points, he is quite cowardly and is surprised by almost anything that involves magic. He is quite skilled at Techno Magic which is good for putting ordinary electronics and/or mechanical devices together to make useful gadgets. At times, he will mess up a spell that does not involve Techno Magic, often with embarrassing results. However, his magical talents sometimes proves greater than his friends, he is often referred as "Gifted" throughout the series. He came to the school on a scholarship, initially repulsed by the idea of magic and wanting to do nothing with it. He shares a room with Gus. It is later discovered that he is a descendant of the great wizard Merlin because they have the same face and Verne's middle name is Ambrosius which is also Merlin's last name. Verne is given the symbol of three wands united by Cassy later on in the series. Unlike the rest of the Wizards at school with a standard magic wooden wand, Verne's wand is made from a retractable car aerial. In the episode "Eclipsed" a fortune teller told him that he was destined to become a very important wizard.
- UBOS (voiced by Ron Halder): An elderly looking book that has the power to teleport the three to the centre of the world where they must stop Zarlak. At some point he tends to be quite grumpy (mostly when Cassy stuffs him in her backpack) and hits the three on the head when he's scolding them. It is revealed throughout the series that he is Cassy's great-grandfather. UBOS is also the title character of the series.
- Toy frog prince: As described, he is a prince who was cursed by Zarlack to look like a toy frog and confined at the magic school the Vonderland. He is the friend of the trio and UBOS. He stays with Gus and Verne in their room. Although he refuses at first he is seen travelling with them to defeat Zarlack in some episodes.
- Zarlack: An evil wizard and the main antagonist, who seeks world domination. He desires to get his hands on UBOS so that he will have enough power to not only escape his prison but to destroy and rule the world.
- Rowce and Snerrot: Zarlack's henchmen whom he often loses patience with. They have the power to combine to become a two-headed dragon, but like most henchmen, are rather dimwitted.
Others
- Ilsa: A 12-foot-tall (3.7 m) giant girl whose father is a big man (literally) in Vonderland. She was roommates with Cassy for a short while. Due to her size, Ilsa had trouble fitting in.
- Lucretia and Borgia: Evil fraternal twins who try to make trouble for the main characters. Their father used to serve Zarlak but defected before Zarlak's defeat, thus avoiding punishment for his crimes.
- Miss Crystalgazer: The Headmistress of Vonderland. She can transform into a cat at will.
- Professor Saysme Another Teacher of Vonderland, he is a young man with a top hat and teaches age regression magic.
- Professor Beagleboyce: The librarian of Vonderland.
- Miss Mayday: A ghost in charge of scoot-zoomer driving tests.
- Scrimpy: An imp who calls out to the trio for help when Zarlack attacks his village.
- Flaherty: A leprechaun who was forced into helping Lucretia cheat, by tinkering with Cassie's scoot-zoomer while racing, before he was freed.
- Wingo and Jingo: Two mischievous gremlins who were cast into a cuckoo clock for 100 years after losing a battle with Vonderland's builders. They are allowed to come out once a century to play while the whole school is put under a sleeping spell.
- Steps the Dragon (voiced by Michael Dobson)
- Prince Erbert (voiced by Michael Dobson)
Other voices
Episodes
In the U.S. DVD release of this series, "Solo Sorceress" is not the final episode and occurs significantly earlier in the play order.
See also
- CBBC
- List of BBC children's television programmes
- BBC
References
External links
- Ultimate Book of Spells on IMDb
- Ultimate Book of Spells at TV.com
- UBOS Theme tune on YouTube
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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