Mozenrath has got to be one of *the* best villains in the Aladdin TV series ... and that's saying a lot, because normally I don't particularly like the other characters Disney create for series' based on their movies. But Mozenrath's a special case, and on this page you'll learn a little more about him and I might even be able to scrape a few images and possibly some sounds together so that you can see what he looks like (though that's him in the picture above, of course) and hear what he sounds like. I shall see what I can find. But for now, enjoy!
Okay, a little bit about Mozenrath. He is a young (he looks about the same age as Aladdin, possibly slightly older) sorcerer, very powerful and the ruler of the Land of the Black Sand, one of the kingdoms of the Seven Deserts. He became the ruler of the Land of the Black Sand when he overthrew the previous owner, Destane, and stole his power and his throne, turning Destane himself into a lowly mamluk, one of his servants. Mozenrath wears a gauntlet on his right hand, which is the source of his power, but there is one catch with the power it gives him: the gauntlet feeds on him, which means it will, eventually, kill him. Therefore, Mozenrath is a great collector of magic (particularly big blue genies!) in the hopes that it won't kill him quite as quickly. He naturally hates Aladdin (as do all the villains in the series) for constantly ruining his schemes. There are only nine Mozenrath episodes (so far) in the series: The Citadel introduces us to him, then there's Black Sand, The Lost City of the Sun, Vocal Hero, The Wind Jackals of Mozenrath, Two to Tangle, The Secret of Dagger Rock, The Book of Khartoom and The Hunted (those are in no particular order, by the way.) His pet and most likely familiar, is a slippery flying eel named Xerxes, who is constantly by his side. His voice is provided by actor Jonathan Brandis.
There is much mystery and many rumours surrounding Mozenrath's past. One idea put forward by Mozenrath fans out there is that Destane 'hired' him, if you like, to use like Mozenrath used Aladdin in Two to Tangle -- that is, Destane meant to transfer his spirit to Mozenrath's body in order to continue living, but Mozenrath overthrew him before Destane could complete his task. Another view is that Mozenrath *is* Destane and lied about overthrowing him to win Aladdin's respect. If you ask me, I very much prefer the first view. The other question some ask is about Xerxes: where did Mozenrath find him, and what makes him trust his slippery accomplice? But whatever happened, Mozenrath now rules the Land of the Black Sand and will not be overthrown very easily.
Now about the episodes Mozenrath appears in: in The Citadel, we are introduced to the young sorcerer when he comes to Agrabah in search of a hero. He needs someone to rid his citadel of a magic-eating monster, the Thirdac. He finds Aladdin and kidnaps Genie in order to make Aladdin help him -- if Aladdin doesn't help, Genie becomes Thirdac chow. In The Wind Jackals of Mozenrath, Aladdin and Princess Jasmine venture into the Land of the Black Sand in order to capture a weapon that could spell Agrabah's doom should Mozenrath be able to use it. All is going well until Iago, having been left behind with Genie and the magic carpet, begins to suspect they've gone on a treasure hunt without him and talks the Genie into going to look for Aladdin and Jasmine, getting them *all* into some very serious trouble. In The Secret of Dagger Rock, Mozenrath ambushes Aladdin and Jasmine on one of their romantic carpet rides and demands to have their genie. Foolishly, he releases Jasmine, with the order to have the genie delivered to him by nightfall. He expects the Sultan to send his finest guards to rescue Aladdin, but doesn't count on the challenge he has in Princess Jasmine when she returns with them.
So why do I (and so many other people) love Mozenrath? For me, it's because he's really not your typical villain. He's young, very smart and while probably not quite so dashing as the hero, is still really not bad to look at. He really had to work for what he's got, and is still the only villain I've seen who really comes close to defeating Aladdin and his chums. He is however, rather greedy, and this is what gets him into trouble most of the time. Still, this is one villain I'm sure Aladdin would rather not tangle with. But will Mozenrath ever take over Agrabah?