Character Relationship Map: Animals United

Characters

• Lion (voice) (played by Georg Thomalla) — protagonist
• Pig (voice) (played by Horst Sachtleben) — supporting
• Owl (voice) (played by Rosemarie Fendel) — supporting
• General Zornmüller (voice) (played by Charles Regnier) — supporting
• Mouse (voice) (played by Bruni Löbel) — supporting
• Donkey (voice) (played by Thomas Reiner) — supporting
• Polar Bear (voice) (played by Anton Reimer) — supporting
• Marabou (voice) (played by Anita Bucher) — minor
• Kangaroo (voice) (played by Erich Kleiber) — minor
• Narrator (voice) (played by Klaus Havenstein) — minor

Story Analysis

Animals confront the failure of human leaders by taking responsibility for children's safety and demanding responsible governance.

Plot Progression

1. Failed Peace and Animal Resolve — Human peace conferences repeatedly fail while preparations for conflict continue. Seeing the consequences for children, the animals decide that they must act.
2. The Difficult Journey — Lion helps call an international animal conference, and word spreads to creatures around the world. A storm strands the Polar Bear and others on an ice floe, but they survive and reach the meeting.
3. Debate Without an Answer — The 366th human conference makes no progress amid formal statements and procedural disputes. At the animals' meeting, disagreements about authority, obedience, sacrifice, and war reveal the limits of...
4. A Drastic Protective Measure — The animals decide to take children away until governments commit to governing responsibly. They explain that their purpose is to protect children from becoming soldiers, not to act out of hostility t...
5. The Demand and Its Shock — A public announcement reveals the children's disappearance and makes their return conditional on a binding commitment from governments. The adults react with fear and calls for their children, while t...