German East Africa, December 1916

"German East Africa, December 1916" is the fifth episode of The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles, and the fifth episode in season one. The episode originally aired on ABC on April 1, 1992. For home video, it was paired up with "Congo, January 1917" to become Oganga, The Giver and Taker of Life.

The episode pairs nicely with the follow-up episode ("Congo, January 1917") as it is the continuation to both the storyline in 1916/1917 (the mission across the Congo is told in two parts: the first part, traveling westward, and the second part, the return trip), and to the bookends segments (Jones is in the hospital waiting room and tells the first part of his tale to a fellow patient, and then tells the second part of his tale to his doctor).

Opening Bookend
Old Indy has a bee sting and is waiting in the urgent care waiting area of a hospital with several other patients. Before his turn comes, a new patient is wheeled in through the emergency entrance - a young African-American girl, who was shot as an innocent bystander in violence in a bad neighborhood. One of Indy's fellow patients, Mike, grumbles at having to wait longer, and that treating the girl won't matter much since she is not going to amount to much in life given her economic class. Indy disagrees with him and relates a story about another child who started off in a bad circumstance.

Closing Bookend
After relating the story, Jones announces that the boy he saved grew up to be Barthélemy Boganda, the first prime minister of the Central African Empire, going to show that you never can tell what greatness a child can reach. At that point, one of the medics comes out to ask for blood for the girl. Jones can't donate as he is the wrong blood type, but Mike, moved by Jones' story, raises his hand to volunteer.

Cast and characters

 * Sean Patrick Flanery as Indiana Jones
 * Ronny Coutteure as Remy Baudouin
 * George Hall as Old Indy
 * Bryan Pringle as Zachariah Sloat
 * Michel Duchaussoy as Major Boucher
 * Isaach De Bankolé as Sgt. Barthelemy
 * Friedrich von Thun as Albert Schweitzer
 * Jacques Sereys as Colonel Mathieu
 * Jacques Vincey as Captain Lafleur
 * Hubert Saint-Macary (as Hubert St. Macary) as Lt. Arnaud
 * Jurgen Muller as Major Kleist
 * J. Leon Pridgen II as Jeffers
 * David Lenthall as Mike
 * Holden Hansen as Paramedic
 * Ben Pont as Dutchman
 * Laurent Ragor as Army Doctor
 * Gerard Arichi as 2nd Army Doctor
 * Maryon Fletcher as White Nun
 * Louise Abukutsa as Black Nun
 * Mark Kaigwa as Ubangi boy
 * Sean McCabe as Machine-Gunner

Locations

 * New York City, United States
 * Hospital


 * French Equatorial Africa
 * Cape Lopez
 * Franceville
 * Lambaréné
 * Port-Gentil
 * Congo (Belgian Congo)
 * German East Africa
 * Tabora
 * Bonga
 * Chinde

Production

 * Produced by: Rick McCallum
 * Created by: George Lucas
 * Music by: Joel McNeely
 * Written by: Frank Darabont
 * Based on a story by: George Lucas
 * Directed by: Simon Wincer & Carl Schultz (bookends)

Home video
In 1996, the episode was edited into Oganga, The Giver and Taker of Life, which was released on VHS in 1999 and DVD in 2007 (as part of The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones: Volume Two, The War Years).

Memorable Quotes
Mike: "I'm sorry I ever met you!" Old Indy: "Yeah, I have that effect on people."

Companion Historical Documentaries

 * Congo: A Curse of Riches