The Forest Of Magi Oar - very curious episode. Written by one of the main writers of the original show, Peter Lawrence, and very close to his original episode “Good And Ugly”, where the characters presented as villains initially turn out not to be, and the clue is when the sword won’t attack them. It’s fairly obvious, I got it about halfway through first time.
There are lots of interesting touches here. Firstly, the voice casting - Richard Chamberlain I didn’t recognise at all. Of course I know him best as Aramis in the definitive Musketeer films from the 1970s (and their 1980s sequel), but I didn’t know of him doing any voice performances. I had to check IMDb when I saw his name at the end, and it was indeed the same bloke. Wow. Hector Elizondo on the other hand, I know from a number of things. Notably as Ioz in The Pirates Of Dark Water, and as that giant owl that guards that library in Avatar and The Legend Of Korra, and also as the most interesting character in the two Princess Diaries films (which I watched almost by mistake when looking to find Ella Enchanted, which again stars Anne Hathaway as a princess . . . what can I say!)
I liked the live paper effects, and there’s a number of points here. Firstly, when Zigg draws a golden outline of Virigor, it reminds me of BraveStarr’s “eyes of the hawk” power. Secondly, the short fat guy in the purple - whose name escapes me. I don’t know if it’s just the purple attire of the (paper) shuriken he wields, but he makes me think of the Purple Hordes in King Arthur And The Knights Of Justice. I’m sure there’s a character there who looks very similar to him. And of course the whole “image of Lion-O on lots of pieces of paper” effect for showing the big picture. I must admit as a writer of stories myself, I appreciate how what seems like a throwaway detail at the time can have huge significance down the line (especially in crime and thrillers!). I also use these same devices when talking to people sometimes, saying something seemingly random at the start and as my tale unfolds, people see what I’m getting at.
All in all it’s an episode with lots of good touches, but it doesn’t feel like it’s part of the main story, and it’s sort of introduced as if it’s meant to be that. So, altogether I’m not sure.
Into The Astral Plane - well, this one definitely IS part of the main story again, but at the same time, there’s a few too many flashbacks again at the expense of the here-and-now story. On the plus side, we do get some backstory for Tygra and Cheetara AT LAST! On the minus side, the whole bit about Grune and the lizards finding and ransacking the elephant village didn’t get enough attention, and when it did, a lot of it was comedic. Sorry, this is the wrong place for the comedy moments. We’re at a crucial point in the story, learning the whereabouts of the second stone, and the elephants’ lousy memories are just taking away from the suspense. While it’s perfectly fine to have comedy moments in suspense movies - as Alfred Hitcchock showed time and again - you don’t have the comic distraction during the suspenseful scenes, you have it between them. You don’t make them laugh at the exact same moment you’re making them gasp.
I did like the moment where the Thundertank saves the day, driven by Tygra. “Who said he could drive it?” asks Panthro - well, my guess is, having ridden upfront as much as he did, Tygra had plenty of time to observe Panthro’s actions in driving the vehicle. As for the prophesied betrayal - this is a difficult thing to talk about properly without referencing the next episode, I’ll take care. I must admit, first time around, that got me. Lion-O and Tygra have been at loggerheads since day one. But this time around, Tygra’s honesty about that just undoes it for me. If Tygra really had treacherous intentions, then surely he’d make sure not to voice anything antagonistic on the matter!
Overall then, as with much of this series - interesting ideas, but could have been a lot better.
