Background and History
The series focuses on the escapades of the eponymous "Gummi Bears", anthropomorphic bears who are the last remnants of a once-great civilization of Gummis that fled the land centuries ago when humans, jealous of the advancements and magical skills of the Gummi Bears, forced the species into exile. Now regarded by most of humankind as fairytales, the show's main cast of Gummi Bears (six in number at the outset of the series, increased to seven during the second season) live in the vast subterranean warren of Gummi Glen in the medieval kingdom of Dunwyn, thus suggesting that the show takes place somewhere in Europe, most likely England.
The Gummis of Gummi Glen are:
The Gummis' modern adventures begin when they are discovered by a human boy named Cavin, Sir Tuxford's squire, who happens to have a Gummi Medallion, found by his grandfather, Sir Gawain, many years earlier. After he accidentally enters the colony's underground home of Gummi Glen, they capture and interrogate the boy as to how he gained the medallion. During the questioning, Cavin escapes after Tummi inadvertently gives him Gummiberry Juice to drink, but refuses to cause any harm and attempts to befriend the reclusive bears. Impressed by this civilized behavior, they make him swear to keep their confidence and make him a privileged friend of the colony. The medallion magically unlocks the colony's Great Book of Gummi, an essential reference guide to the forgotten knowledge of the Gummi Bears. Inspired by its writings, the colony resolves to rediscover their heritage and help defend Dunwyn against evil. Later, another human from Dunwyn accidentally learns that the Gummi Bears are real: the young daughter of the King Gregor, Princess Calla. She also promises to keep the Gummis' existence a secret. In subsequent seasons the Gummis would befriend or be discovered by other friendly humans.
The main antagonist of both Dunwyn and the Gummis is Duke Sigmund Igthorn, a renegade noble with an army of ogres lead by Igthorn's two body guards Zook and Gad, from the neighboring province of Drekmore. Toadwart is Igthorn's dwarf ogre sidekick who is frequently abused by his "Dukie". Unfortunately, in stopping Igthorn's attempt to bombard his enemies with a grand catapult, the Gummi Bears alert him to their presence. Igthorn will stop at nothing to discover and exploit their secrets to become invincible and capture Dunwyn Castle. Chief among his primary goals is gaining a reliable supply of the Gummi Bears' vital strategic substance, Gummiberry Juice, a magic potion that endows Gummi Bears with bouncing abilities, but gifts humans or ogres with momentary super-strength as well as other numerous uses, including serving as fuel for machines.
In addition to combating Igthorn's ambition, the Gummis regularly encounter other evil humans and magical beings ranging from wizards to gods, all the while attempting to hide their existence from the world at large. One of the show's main recurring storylines outside the schemes of Igthorn is the mystery of the ancient Gummis, who are now scattered all across the world, but who have left advanced technology behind them.