Pooh's Adventures of the Cougar King

Written by
 Directed by

**Pooh's Adventures of the Cougar King** is the twelfth episode of the series. It is based on *The Lion King.*

## Synopsis

While Pooh and his gang have a trip in the Crosier Network, with their bluebird friend Kessie, cougar cub and future king Curacao searches for his identity. His eagerness to please others and penchant for testing his boundaries sometimes gets him into trouble.

## Plot

The story of *The Cougar King* takes place in the Crosier Network, where a cougar rules over the other animals as king.

At the beginning of the film, JR, a jackalope shaman, anoints Curacao, the newborn cub of King Lyle and Queen Eliza, and presents him to a gathering of animals at Crosier Rock ("Great Spirits").  Pooh Bear finds an old metal spring, and decides to give it to his best friend Piglet as a best friend gift. After Pooh gives it to Piglet, Rabbit and Tigger tell Piglet that he should surprise Pooh with a bunch of honey.

Meanwhile, Lyle's younger brother, Smokey, realizes that he is no longer the heir to the throne and plots to kill Curacao.  Despite Tigger & Rabbit's attempt to collect honey, all honey pots break (because Piglet had been carrying all of those in one armful), and the honey is too dirty. Tigger says that since there is no honey left, they should go to Crosier Rock.

After Curacao has grown into a young cub, Lyle gives him a tour of the Crosier Network, teaching him the responsibilities of being a king and the chain of life, the delicate balance affecting all living things. Eventually, Eeyore, Pooh, Rabbit, and Tigger are ready for their trip.  The search party is aided by Piglet's scrapbook, in which he has drawn pictures of the previous adventures that they shared with their friends, including Francis & Lilly from Frogs, Blossom, Bubbles & Buttercup from Tinocchio, Mrs. Brisby from Tropicasia, Bugs Daffy Lola & Tina from The Wide World of Sports, Ickis Oblina & Krumm in Hawkules, and Eliza & Darwin in Night at the Zoo.  The critters use the book to guide them through the journey.

Later, Smokey tells Curacao about the Mammoth Graveyard, a place where Lyle has warned him not to go. Curacao asks his mother if he can go to the water-hole with his best friend, Sandy. Their parents agree, but only if Lyle's majordomo, the toad Wart, goes with them. Curacao and Sandy elude Wart's supervision ("I Got to be Wild") and go to the graveyard instead. There, the cubs are chased by Bonebeak, Herb & Chaulks, Smokey's buzzards who try to kill them, but are rescued by Lyle, who was summoned by Wart.

Afterwards, Lyle scolds his son for disobeying him (and was also implied to be angered with Wart for failing to keep watch), But then forgives and forgets. He then takes time to teach Curacao about the everlasting moonlight, who will guide him.  At camp Pooh, Tigger, and Piglet have made a fire and Tigger begins to tell a spooky story about Heffalumps and Woozles.  Meanwhile, Smokey gains the loyalty of the buzzards by claiming that if he becomes king, they will "never go hungry again." Plotting further, Smokey gathers more buzzards ("It Feels so Good to be Bad") forming an army.

The next day, Pooh, Eeyore Rabbit, Piglet, and Tigger go on a long journey thru the wood, and the jungle. ("Nothing's Too Good for a Friend")  Some time later, Smokey lures Curacao into a gorge for a "surprise from his father" then signals the buzzards to create a caribou stampede down into the canyon where Curacao is. Alerted by an insincerely dramatic Smokey, Lyle races to rescue Curacao from the stampede. He saves his son but is left clinging to the edge of a cliff, which results in Smokey flinging him into the stampede below, where he is buried into the some of the caribous' antlers, hit the ground with extreme force, and finally trampled to death by the caribou. Smokey convinces Curacao that he was responsible for his own father's death, and recommends that he flees the Crosier Network, never to return. To compound this, Smokey once again sends the buzzards to kill Curacao, but as Curacao reaches a tar pit, they let him escape, hurling threats that he will be killed if ever seen again. Smokey informs the pride that both Lyle and Curacao were killed in the stampede, and that he is assuming the throne as the closest of king.

Curacao collapses in a distant desert where he is found unconscious by Pooh, his gang, and Sam & Buck, a rabbit-moose duo.  This is where Rabbit's bluebird friend, Kessie, comes into our story.  Rabbit and the others were trying to explain that they were making a great welcome back party but they hit some minor bumps. Kessie doesn't mind, however, and is just glad to be back. She calls Rabbit "Rabbit," instead of "Rabbie." Rabbit is worried as Kessie replies that she's simply too old for "Rabbie." Nevertheless, he's still happy and that he tells her that she'll always be his baby bird. Kessie thinks she could stay for a little while.

Sam & Buck raise Curacao under their carefree "E' Lo Stesso" lifestyle ("I'll Be There For You").  Even with the buzzard flock and the animals on the brink of starvation, Smokey refuses to allow anybody to leave or do anything about it, descending into madness and insisting that he is still a mighty king. When Curacao has grown into a young adult he saves them from a hungry cougar who is revealed to be Sandy. Curacao shows Sandy around his home and the two begin to fall in love ("I Will Always Be with You").

Sandy then tells him that Smokey's tyrannical reign has turned the Crosier Network into a barren wasteland; she demands that Curacao must return and take his rightful place as king, but Curacao refuses, still guilty about supposedly causing his father's death. JR arrives and persuades Curacao to return to the Crosier Network, aided by Lyle's presence in the stars. After some advance from JR and the ghost of his father, Curacao, followed by Sandy, Pooh, Kessie, Sam and Buck, returns home.

Once back at Crosier Rock, Curacao (with Sam, Buck, Pooh, Kessie and Sandy) is horrified to see the condition of the Crosier Network. After seeing Smokey strike his mother, Curacao announces his return. In response, Curacao confronts Smokey and the truth about Lyle's death which is revealed by an overly confident Smokey who forces Curacao over the edge of Crosier Rock, just as a lighting bolt starts a fire below. As Curacao dangles over the edge of Crosier Rock, Smokey whispers to Curacao that he killed Lyle. Enraged, Curaco leaps up and pins Smokey to the ground, forcing him to admit the truth to the pride. A raging battle then ensues between the buzzards and the cougars, Pooh, Kessie, Sam, and Buck which results in Curacao cornering Smokey. In the midst of their fight, Smokey tries to surreptitiously blame everything on the buzzards for, but the buzzards overhear his conversation with Curacao. Curacao orders Smokey to flee the Crosier Network. Smokey pretends to leave but turns to attack Curacao, resulting in a final duel. Curacao eventually triumphs over his uncle by flipping him and kicks him over a low cliff. Smokey survives the fall but finds himself surrounded by the now resentful buzzards. The buzzards surround their traitorous fallen leader, and attack him and maul him to death, as flames rise around them.

With Smokey and the buzzards gone, and with the rightful king in place, the Crosier Network is restored which is turning green with life again.  Rabbit lectures Kessie that was a very very dangerous thing to do, yet thanked her for saving them. They come to a mutual agreement that even though Rabbit cannot be her "Rabbie," anymore, he will still be her very good friend, Rabbit. As they leave and Tigger and Piglet follow, Pooh remains to "clean up" the mess that erupted on the rock. The film concludes with JR presenting Curacao and Sandy's newborn cub into the air, thus continuing the Chain of Life.

## Trivia

### Story Behind the Story

In a hometown of mine, Glen Haven, there is a string of trails that lead in and out of Mount Crosier, which I call the Crosier Network. There, I have a break on a climbing stone that I named Curacao's Rock, after my cat Curacao. Also, this network had a realistic, Lion King like feel to it, and I had to face my coming-of-age problems like in that story, so I combined these elements.

### Pooh's side

In this non-play episode, Kessie is an old friend of Pooh's, who had grown up, to Rabbit's surprise.

### Connections

* 1997 was the same year *Pooh's Grand Adventure* was released, and *The Lion King Muscial* premiered, *A Winnie the Pooh Thanksgiving* and *The Lion King II: Simba's Pride* are both released in 1998, and the video game *The Lion King: Simba's Mighty Adventure* and *The Tigger Movie* are both released in 2000.

## Cast

Jim Cummings as Winnie the PoohJohn Fiedler as PigletPaul Winchell as TiggerKen Samson as RabbitPeter Cullen as EeyoreTara Strong as KessieHaley Joel Osment (cub) and Mark Hamill (adult) as CuracaoEmma Watson (cub) and Tina Fey (adult) as SandyTom Hanks as SamMartin Short as BuckTony Jay as SmokeyHelena Bonham Carter as BonebeakGilbert Gottfried as HerbFrank Welker as ChaulksKiefer Sutherland as King LyleDom Deluise as WartPeter Falk as JRAlfre Woodard as Queen Eliza

### Songs:

* Great Spirits
* I Got to Be Wild
* It Feels So Good to be Bad
* Nothing's Too Good for a Friend
* I'll Be There For You
* Landslide/The Song That Doesn't End/The Sign
* I Will Always Be with You
* Great Spirits reprise
* End Title Song: There Ain't No Mountain High Enough by Michael Bolton & Kelly Rowland
* Exit Music: Why Does Everything I Whip Leave Me? by Hans Zimmer

## Full Movie

   [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wWFITlIf6zc]