These are some of the best of the earlier episodes, and it was very hard to narrow it down to just three.
Sleeper Awakes
This episode is one of Kshin’s finest. The character of Kshin could at times be incredibly annoying if not handled properly, but when he was the focus of a good episode, it was always one of the show’s high points. And this is such a high point. The “conquer your fears/believe in yourself” morals were incorporated into an episode of just about every cartoon there was around that time. Thundercats had Mongor and Snarf Takes Up The Challenge, Visionaries had Feryl Steps Out, King Arthur And The Knights Of Justice had Assault On Castle Morgana, and BraveStarr had The Good, The Bad And The Clumsy. But for me, Defenders Of The Earth’s episode trumps all of these. Kshin’s feelings of inadequacy at the start of the episode are quite beautifully done. He is young and insecure, and is the natural choice for the emotional focus of this moral. And his size is used here to great advantage, when it turns out he’s the only one small enough to get inside the robot (although the animation of his entrance does make it look like Rick could have fitted in too!).
With the exception of the Phantom, all the characters are used to good effect, although I suspect there was another scene of Flash with his alien friends that was cut for time. Mandrake and Lothar’s loyalty to each other is beautifully illustrated here, when Callistro threatening Lothar is the one thing that provokes Mandrake to call forth this intense power (I’m thinking that the two episodes featuring the character of Doctor Dark belong before this in continuity terms, in which we see what the Crystal Orb Of Konos is), and Lothar pushes his muscles to the limit to break the magical circuit. This may be the only time we actually learn what L.J. stands for (Lothar Junior), although I can’t swear to it. Exactly what the earthquake experiments are for I’m not quite sure, I suppose it’s just to keep them away from the Annihilator robot rather than aid its release but it’s not specified. Also, exactly what Jedda’s “Pendant Of Mystery” is was never explained. It only appears in one other episode (Revenge Of Astra). I do wonder if it’s some prototype idea for the Necklace Of Oros. Of course, the exact extent of both Jedda’s and Mandrake’s powers was a little variable from one episode to the next - especially Jedda in the earlier episodes before they settled on making her a sort of telepathic Dr Dolittle.
Also, more moments for Ming as Blofeld in this episode!
The Lost Jewels Of Tibet
This episode has so much action it could easily have been a two-parter. Mandrake is the focus here, and his old flame Atascadero is very much the female version of Indiana Jones. Their banter is fun, and the expression on her face when he tells her she’s put on weight is priceless. The fact that the crystals turn out to be eggs of a dragon is kind of weird but it sort of manages to work. Not quite sure why mummy dragon left her eggs with the people of Earth though . . .
The episode does also include one of my favourite “stupid lines”. When Rick says he’s surely never going to have to face a volcano - er, remind me where is it you live again, Rick? The Phantom too is used to good effect here, with his sworn duty to help guard these crystals - he’s genuinely ready to mutiny against the other Defenders to keep that oath. Although exactly how that all ties in to his heritage is unclear, as the first Phantom came about 500yrs ago, and the jewels have been around for 1000yrs. Basically anything in Africa or Asia is pretty much all his or his ancestors’ domains. (Actually that’s my one problem with the Phantom in general in the series - he’s not very well integrated into the team, he’s the one who takes a back seat first in episodes focusing on other characters, and his episodes tend to sideline the others almost entirely.)
Still good though!
Like Father, Like Daughter?
Nothing to do with the Phantom and Jedda which is probably what everybody was imagining it would be the first time they see that episode title. This episode puts Flash at the emotional centre, and really goes into his backstory a bit. I’m not sure if Kastra and her husband Prince Tebrock are meant to be Aura and Prince Barin - some sources do refer to them by those names when talking about this episode. The only flaw with that idea is that we do see a very different looking character actually called Prince Barin in another episode. But I digress. A prince by any other name . . .
Ming’s plans in this episode are big. Nothing short of the enslavement of all humanity. The mind neutraliser is very well handled in the plot. It does work, but to get everyone on the planet it will need a lot of energy, so all that process makes perfect sense. What makes less sense is when Mandrake appears as Ming and tells Dr Janus to give the plans to the Phantom. Why not just go in alone and get him to hand them over to himself? Or if he wanted some muscle backup, magic him to look like an Ice Robot or Man of Frost? He does it in other episodes with Lothar and even Flash. Still, the quibble is a minor one. Fundamentally, the story structure works, and just about everyone has their moment. Flash and Kastra are at the emotional centre of the story but the other characters are all used to good effect.
