Stay Tune for The Lion Guard #LionGuardEvent

Although the Lion King is an amazing movie with fantastic music, growing up, I honestly wasn’t a huge fan of the movie. Don’t get me wrong it is a great film but I was a super girly girl, and I preferred movies like Cinderella, Snow White, and all the other princess based films. Therefore, when saw that I would be screening and doing a Q & A for Disney Channel’s The Lion Guard: Return of the Roar special event that premieres Sunday, November 22 at 7pm/6c on the Disney Channel, I wasn’t quite sure what my reaction was going to be. I was able to attend this event because Disney/Pixar, Disney Channel, and ABC sent me to Los Angeles on an all-expenses-paid press trip, in exchange for my coverage of this and others events, all opinions are my own.

Scroll to the bottom of the page for Free Lion Guard Printable Mask & Activity sheets.

However,  after seeing an advance screening of Disney Channel’s The Lion Guard: Return of the Roar, I love it and can’t wait until The Lion Guard series comes out in January and plan on watching all 26 half-hour episodes with, my daughter, Joy.  If you were crazy about the Lion King you are going to love the whole concept of  The Lion Guard: Return of the Roar and how it tied into the original movie. The Lion Guard: Return of the Roar brings viewers back to the rich world of one of Disney’s most beloved films, The Lion King. It introduces Simba’s son Kion, a playful lion who’s more than happy that his sister Kiara is the one destined to rule the Pride Lands. Yet Kion soon learns he has a destiny of his own. As the Lion King’s second-born, it’s his duty to lead The Lion Guard, the team that protects the Pride Lands and defends the Circle of Life. As the leader, Kion has been given the Roar of the Elders, an incredible power that makes him the fiercest in all the Pride Lands. To complete the Guard, Kion assembles a team of the bravest, strongest, fastest, and keenest of sight in the Pride Lands: Bunga the honey badger, Beshte the hippo, Fuli the cheetah, and Ono the egret. “’Til the Pride Lands’ end, Lion Guard defend!”

Below are two videos that will give you a breakdown of how both The Lion Guard and The Lion King intertwine together.

Family Tree: 

If you didn’t start off as a Lion King fan, it’s completely ok. I encourage you to take the time to watch Disney Channel’s The Lion Guard: Return of the Roar special event this Sunday, November 22 at 7pm/6c on the Disney Channel and I think you will become a huge fan like me. The music the music is phenomenal, and it always tied into a message that teaches children certain values on friendship and different animal habit in a fun and entertaining way. Plus, your child will discover fun Swahili words and there is a message gently weaved into every story.

Being that the show is based in africa Swahili expert Sarah Mirza share with us how all of the characters and catch phrases that you will eventually hear your kids sing over and over again are in Swahili.  So,  I thought it would be neat to share the different phrased below, so you can share the meaning with your kids when they are watching the show.

Song Titles:

Sisi Ni Sawa (We’re the Same)

Character Catchphrases:

• Kion: Hevi kabisa! Totally intense!
• Bunga: Zuka Zama! Pop up, dive in!
• Fuli: Huwezi! You can’t (catch me)!
• Beshte: Twende Kiboko! Let’s go hippo!
• Ono: Hapana! Oh, no!

Other Catchphrases:

• Elephant: Tembo
• Rhino: Kifaru
• Ostrich: Mbuni
• Child: Mtoto
• Welcome: Karibu
• Amazing/surprising/unusual: Ajabu
• Thank You: Asante
• (to) Build: Jenga

Fun Facts about the creators of The Lion Gaurd

In addition to screening the show, I had the opportunity to do a Q & A with the creators of the Lion Gaurd Ford Riley (Executive Producer), Christopher Willis (Composer), Swahili expert Sarah Mirza, singer/songwriter Beau Black and Dr. Jill Mellen. Below are a few Fan Facts about the creators of The Lion Gaurd.

Ford Riley (Executive Producer) – Executive Producer Ford Riley son Quinn was the inspiration behind him creating the Lion Gaurd. He explained how one day he heard his son Quinn playing with make-believe superheroes with his friends. The hero’s mission was to protect other as a group. Later Mr. Ford used the group of heroes traits and qualities for Kion and the other members of the ‘Lion Guard’ team.

Black Beau (Singer and Song Writer) – created Disney’s highly anticipated animated television movie “The Lion Guard: Return of the Roar” and subsequent series “The Lion Guard,” which continue the epic storytelling of “The Lion King.” In addition to writing the music for all of the songs featured in the movie and series, Black performs the series’ theme song and the songs “A Beautiful Day” and “The Lion Guard” from the TV movie. As he was creating the music for the Lion Gaurd: Return of the Roar, none of the songs, ever made it to the chopping block, and he was able to use all of them.

Dr. Jill Mellen ( Education and Science Director at Disney’s Animal Kingdom) – As the team created the Lion Gaurd Dr. Mellen wanted to stay true to representing the diversity of each animal.  Kids will learn about Africa through the stories The Lion Guard: Return of the Roar and the upcoming series The Lion Gaurd upcoming stores in the Lion Guard series will include a good hyena and a story about the hippo trails.

The Lion Guard: Return of the Roar premieres Sunday, November 22 at 7pm/6c

Click on the links below for the free printable mask.

(Once you get there wait a few minutes for the page to load 🙂

Fuli Mask http://movies.disney.com/the-lion-guard-fuli-mask

Kion Mask Disney Moviesmovies.disney.com/the-lion-guard-kion-mask

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