In the spirit of last week's contest, I will be taking you back in time to the year 1987. Other kids and I are all seated glued to a monochrome television, all our attention is fixated on a character described as "one who is faster than his shadow".
It is none other than Lucky Luke, with its signature opening song, "Beng!-beng!-Lucky Luke". A song that gathered young people in front of the screen, and you would hardly see a kid outside when Lucky Luke was aired. All noise and all games stop, we are all inside.

The Lucky Luke character-a creation of Maurice de Bevere, was at a time when it wasA lonely cowboy, accompanied by his horse and dog, going around the wild west, enforcing law and order by chasing down bandits and criminals. believed that cartoons were safe for children. Back then, catoons were created mostly in the traditional way. Imagine each frame being manually drawn by an artist's bare hands.
Adding ink and having the character transfered to a transparent sheets and placing each movement over a moving background. Taking about 10 months to create a 22-minute cartoon from conceiving the idea to drawing each frame, editing with voice over, music, sound effects and publishing the frames running together. Computer-aided animation has cut this time down to 6 months.

Lucky Luke's Logline

A lonely cowboy, accompanied by his horse and dog, going around the wild west, enforcing law and order by chasing down bandits and criminals.

Cast /Characters

Lucky Luke:

_{^{Screenshot...Lucky Luke shooting his shadow}}
The main protagonist in this cartoon is Lucky Luke, he is a skilled cowboy and gunslinger who is faster than his shadow and always has good luck smiling at his every move. He is easily recognised with his white hat, red vest on a yellow shirt with a twig in his mouth, often riding a white horse.

Jolly Jumper:

_{^{Screenshot...Jolly Jumper ready for action}}
Lucky Luke's talking, trusted and intelligent horse known for its loyalty, always available to help LuckyLuke in intelligent ways. Jolly is fast. A white horse with brown spots and a yellow mane.

Rantanplan:

_{^{Screenshot...Rantanplan sniffing and walking}}
Always sniffing the ground and following behind, less intelligent compared to Lucky Luke's horse which always puts it into trouble due to its lack of understanding but even at this, this dog is still loveable, always having good intention and trying to help but failing most if the time.

The Dalton brothers:

_{^{Screenshot...The Dalton brothers}}
These are four brothers Joe Dalton, a hot-headed leader with a violent temper among the four. We also have Jack Dalton and William Dalton. And finally, the tallest but dim-witted Averell Dalton, responsible for many of their failures. These brothers are outlaws known for robbing banks and breaking out of prison.

Some notable characters are:
Ling Song
Rattlesnake Smith
Judge Bean
Lowriver

The Plot

Throughout the series, it has always been Lucky Luke vs. the Dalton Brothers or other sets of banditsbandits who terrorise the wild west. Their plans to rob a bank, escape from prison or cause chaos in the Wild West are constantly thwarted by Lucky Luke, the quick-drawing cowboy with his horse and dog. Often all wrapped in a comedic misunderstanding and mishaps that end up well in the end.

Themes

This lonesome cowboy is always having an adventure involving good vs. Evil, with Lucky Luke representing justice. At the same time, the Daltons embody outlaws in an action-packed chase with shootouts, comedic moments filled with humour, witty dialogue, satire, slapstick humour and plans against Lucky Luke that boomerang for the Dalton brothers.

Conclusion and Invitation

Lucky Luke was a good pastime, keeping kids glued to their TV screens. Beyond the bang-bang gun shorts, it has a storyline that shows how justice prevails as luckyluke always gains victory over the evil Dalton brothers. It also teaches loyalty and friendship, and the value of intelligence.