Das Märchen vom Frosch und der goldenen Kugel (2022)

The brothers Gai and Teo are con artists. Their scam is to swindle the dowries of princesses looking to marry. Their next target is Princess Griseldis. The charming Gai is supposed to pose as a prince and woo her so he can coax some riches out of her father, King Theoderich. But Gai is not her only suitor, so the princess sets the princes three tasks to find “the right one” for herself and the kingdom. Gai struggles, because he can no longer keep his feelings in check. He has fallen in love with Matilda, Griseldis’s sister, and now has eyes only for the younger princess. Teo tries to salvage what he can from the scheme and steals a golden ball. But the brothers are caught as they flee and banished to the Shadow Forest. Even Matilda no longer puts in a good word for them, since Gai turned out to be a con artist who apparently had only been playing with her feelings. Once in the Shadow Forest, the two meet the fairy Fingerhut, who wants to help the love-struck Gai. She has a soft spot for the lovelorn and wants to use magic to give him the strength of a bear. Unfortunately, while the spell is taking effect, Gai is distracted by a frog that is causing a commotion on his brother’s shoe. As a result, Gai is transformed into a talking frog. To turn back into a human, Gai would have to be kissed by his beloved. So it works out very conveniently that Matilda, searching for him, is playing with a golden ball at the edge of the Shadow Forest, and shortly afterward it slips into a deep well. Gai retrieves the ball from the depths in exchange for her promise that he may dine with her at the same table, drink from her cup, and sleep in the same bed as her. But when she grows tired of him, she throws the nasty frog against a wall, and he turns back into Gai—unconscious, hovering between life and death. Matilda is distraught, and King Theoderich hopes that Quercus, ruler of the Shadow Forest, can help. But first, he must put an end to their years-long enmity.