She-Ra and the Princesses of Power Rewatch 5.3, "Corridors"

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Some hope presents itself as what seems to be Act I of the season concludes.

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5.3, "Corridors"

Written by Noelle Stevenson, Katherine Nolfi, Josie Campbell, Laura Sreebny, and M. Willis
Directed by Roy Burdine and Christina "Kiki" Manrique

Synopsis

Again, the lime green is a bad sign.
Image taken from the episode, used for commentary

A young Catra flees through the corridors of the Fright Zone. A young Adora seeks to comfort her, only to have her lash out. The current Catra reminisces over the event as she watches the Horde bombard a planet before stalking through the corridors, monitors in tow. She tries to evade them, encountering Hordak once again. They confer briefly.

Adora, Bow, and Entrapta pilot Mara's ship towards Glimmer's location, preparing for their encounters. Bow tries to rein in Entrapta's tinkering tendencies and Adora's fractiousness--until the ship begins experiencing problems.

Seems a time-honored tradition.
Image taken from the episode, used for commentary

Glimmer tests the limits of her confinement. Catra interrupts her, and Glimmer asks why she risks the continued contact. They begin to bond, if hesitantly, over their regrets.

Aboard Mara's ship, which Entrapta has christened Darla, repairs ensue. Problems rapidly multiply, however, defying early efforts to correct them.

Catra begins stalking the Horde-clones, two of which proceed to a long-distance teleporter. Horde Prime, through a clone, summons her to what soon reveals itself to be a ritual. He confronts her regarding the launch of Mara's ship from Etheria, and he tasks her with gathering information from Glimmer. And he demonstrates the ritual to chilling effect, so Catra does as she is commanded--ostensibly. Glimmer talks her down, however.

Aboard Darla, Bow tries to find Entrapta; she has left the ship to effect repairs. Bow has trouble processing events--and more problems emerge.

It's a hell of a catch.
Image taken from the episode, used for commentary

Horde Prime commends Catra for her contributions. She stalks off, returning to memories of her youth with Adora in the Fright Zone. Her possessiveness of Adora is manifest again, and she once again stalks off, remembering. The weight of memory pushes her to effect Glimmer's escape from Horde Prime's ship, using the teleporter she found earlier to send Glimmer back to the newly repaired Darla. Adora and Bow rejoice in her return, and Catra faces the rebuke of the Horde via the ritual Hordak had endured.

Discussion

As noted.
Image taken from the episode, used for commentary

The ritual in which Hordak participates is, of course, reminiscent of Christian baptism. The Horde-clones chant rhythmically while their presiding Prime looks on, and the ritual ostensibly serves to "restore" Hordak to "the light" since it will "cast out the shadows" of Hordak's "burden" through his (partial) immersion. Along with Horde Prime's later dismissal of Catra with "Go now in peace," the Horde as refiguration of organized Christianity appears to be emphasized--and, in a series that makes much use of medieval/ist tropes, it does not come off as a particularly pleasant thing.

I have noted the relative dearth of organized religions in at least some mainstream medievalist properties, and I have to think that some of the same impetus is at work in the present episode; I have the sensation that no small part of the presumed primary audience and inferred peripheral audience has difficulties with organized religion, generally, and organized Christianity, more specifically. Certainly, the Crusades that the Horde evokes--more strongly in the present episode through the more overt reference to Christian practice--present no few problems, not least because of their continued misuse by execrable factors. So that seems to be at work.

She-Ra and the Princesses of Power Rewatch 5.2, "Launch"

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Plans get well and truly underway as the final season of the series moves ahead.

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5.2, "Launch"

Written by Noelle Stevenson, Laura Sreebny, Josie Campbell, Katherine Nolfi, and M. Willis
Directed by Roy Burdine and Jen Bennett

Synopsis

One way to ensure an audience...
Image taken from the episode, used for commentary

Horde Prime broadcasts a message to Etheria, one proselytizing himself to the world and calling for the surrender of She-Ra to him. Adora herself continues to suffer exhaustion from her exertions, and Bow tries, with limited success, to allow her some time to rest.

While she does, the other princesses try to plan out a method for finding Glimmer. Entrapta's contributions, while enthusiastic, are not helpful, and her history of focus on machines over people is a point of contention. Still, her expertise is recognized, and recognized as needed.

It does not look comfortable.
Image taken from the episode, used for commentary

Glimmer remains a prisoner on Horde Prime's ship, with Catra continuing the watch her despite Prime's orders. Hordak confronts her until he is taken over by Horde Prime; after, he escorts Glimmer away.

Adora sleeps fitfully, dreaming of Etheria and Horde Prime. She wakes to follow a vision of She-Ra gleaming in the darkness.

The other princesses help Entrapta to triangulate signals from the Horde to be able to find Glimmer. Communication issues interfere. The lack of tactical acumen shows in the attempt.

Horde Prime shows Glimmer a series of artifacts from worlds that no longer exist. He tries to cozen her into helping him acquire She-Ra and the Heart of Etheria weapon. He also shows her that Micah lives, offering to preserve her friends in exchange for her aid. Glimmer rejects the offer.

Typical escort mission...
Image taken from the episode, used for commentary

The princesses' mission proceeds with difficulty. Entrapta's inattention to her surroundings triggers local alarms, ensuring that a fracas ensues after an emotional eruption. The mission succeeds, revealing the location of Horde Prime's ship--and incoming Horde forces.

Adora, following the vision, finds herself transported to the site of a portal. She confronts her incapacity and rehearses her choices and their consequences, and she arrives at a decision--and wakes back in her tent with new purpose. And she makes her escape from Etheria, with Bow and Entrapta, to retrieve Glimmer. Micah leads the effort to cover their escape, successfully and fabulously.

Fabulously, indeed.
Image taken from the episode, used for commentary

Discussion

The penultimate scene, in which Micah poses as She-Ra to draw the Horde's attention away from the launching ship, attracted no small attention online after the final season was released. While some viewers, backward, might look at the tactic as shameful or as an indication that the series is "pandering," others, more aware of medievalist antecedents, might point out Eowyn's participation in the Battle of the Pelennor Fields as a possible referent. Still others, more aware of medieval antecedents, might point out the repeated use of such a ruse in the chivalric tradition from which the series appears to borrow. Marion Wynne-Davies points out at least one such example in Malory's Lancelot, and Debbie Kerkhof later expounds on no small number of examples thereof. And other medieval understandings--the Norse Loki and Þorr come to mind, and others' minds are no doubt more comprehensive than mine--point to similar examples.

Such complaints as get voiced all too often reflect a limited, inaccurate understanding of the medieval European. This is not to say it was a heyday of progressive thought, certainly, but there is all too much misunderstanding of what was at work then, and no small part of that misunderstanding is deliberate. And if it is the case that a children's show can help people to better understand what was and what is, and who they are, then that has to be accounted to the good.

She-Ra and the Princesses of Power Rewatch 5.1, "Horde Prime"

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The final season of the series gets off to a disheartening start.

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5.1, "Horde Prime"

Written by Noelle Stevenson, M. Willis, Josie Campbell, Katherine Nolfi, and Laura Sreebny
Directed by Roy Burdine and Mandy Clotworthy

Synopsis

A planetary blockade in three dimensions? Clearly a better class of villain.
Image taken from the episode, used for commentary.

The greater Horde armada surrounds Etheria. Its constructs make planetfall, sending out scouts and troops that begin to assail the populace--and that Adora, Bow, Swift Wind, and the princesses fight against. Adora, lacking She-Ra's power, is less effective against the onslaught, though not for lack of trying. Her efforts attract the attention of the titular Horde Prime.

While Adora recovers from injuries sustained in the fight, she dreams of her experiences and of Horde Prime, seeing a golden figure. When she starts awake from the dream, she is greeted by her broken sword and moves to survey the ongoing rebellion. Matters are grim, with many injuries and much fatigue. Bow and Entrapta report problems with Mara's ship and Glimmer's location, and Adora presses them to work more diligently. She also enters an ongoing discussion among Micah, Shadow Weaver, and the princesses about using the Heart of Etheria against the greater Horde; the idea is vetoed once again. Adora volunteers to take a team to act on intelligence reported during the meeting.

The underlying sickly green is a giveaway.
Image taken from the episode, used for commentary.

Glimmer wakes in captivity aboard Horde Prime's ship. She surveys her surroundings briefly before finding herself without her accustomed powers. Catra observes her briefly.

On Etheria, Swift Wind and Scorpia confer about their just-completed mission. They find themselves in accord, and Adora considers her lost abilities as a counterattack approaches; she charges in.

Catra finds herself summoned to Horde Prime. He confronts her with information taken from Hordak's mind, and she dickers for her continued existence. Seemingly at the same time, Adora dreams again, attempting to follow the golden figure as it stalks off; she wakes again after her reckless assault on the counterattack, having been paralyzed by Scorpia. Bow upbraids her recklessness, but Adora stumbles onto a workable idea to trace Glimmer's location, and they purpose to follow up on it. They proceed to capture one of the Horde clones.

Is Glimmer the canary, here?
Image taken from the episode, used for commentary.

Glimmer rails against her captivity, and Catra taunts her. Glimmer, however, knows that Catra is also a captive and confronts her with that. They are interrupted by a summons to dine with Horde Prime.

Adora and her companions interrogate the captured clone, who displays a religious devotion to Horde Prime. The clone also affirms that an attack on the rebellion is coming, one heralded by a sign from Micah and in progress before they can arrive back. They do manage to evacuate successfully as the dinner with Horde Prime proceeds--including tacit threats against Etheria, attacks against which Prime shows Glimmer and Catra to compel Glimmer to divulge information about Adora. Glimmer argues for Adora's life, successfully.

This is not the face of confidence.
Image taken from the episode, used for commentary.

Adora realizes her incapacity as she is rescued by her companions once again. Bow reaffirms their group commitment, though, and Adora successfully captains the rebel forces through their evacuation, leading them to a place she has seen with Razz and in visions--where they can be safe, at least for a time.

After the dinner, Horde Prime confronts Catra about her own attachment to Adora--and her seeming uselessness to him.

Discussion

While the season was released before the killings of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor, it is difficult not to rewatch the episode against the context of those killings and their painful, pointed reminders of systemic racism--and the greater Horde is overwhelming in its whiteness (despite the voice actor in question, Keston John), as well as being an invading, conquering, rapacious group. The Saxon connection noted in the previous commentary seems to apply, here, then, although the correspondence remains inexact--largely because of the heavily religious overtones imparted to the invasion by the words of the captured clone.

The religious fervor, however, also rings of common depictions of the European medieval. Common understanding pegs it as a particularly devout time, one governed in large part by centralized, organized religion. And there is some truth to such understanding; the Catholic Church in medieval Western Europe did exercise no small amount of influence on daily life. It was not quite as pervasive as is commonly held, of course, and the religion at work was not the same as most modern iterations, as casual glances at various works attest. (Chaucer and the Land of Cokaygne come to mind as examples.) Even so, there seems to be something of the Crusader mentality about the Horde as it approaches Etheria.

It is not something that creates a favorable impression.

She-Ra and the Princesses of Power Rewatch 4.13, "Destiny, Part 2"

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In the final episode of the season, matters do not seem to improve, setting up well for the fifth and final season.

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4.13, "Destiny, Part 2"

Written by Noelle Stevenson, Katherine Nolfi, Laura Sreebny, Josie Campbell, and M. Willis
Directed by Christina "Kiki" Manrique

Synopsis

Scorpia gives great hugs.
Image taken from the episode, used for commentary

In Bright Moon, Adora sends Swift Wind with Bow and Entrapta to retrieve Glimmer; she heads to the Crystal Castle to confront Light Hope and stop the Heart of Etheria. Meanwhile, Glimmer and Scorpia stalk through the Fright Zone, encountering Lonnie, Rogelio, and Kyle; the three allow Glimmer and Scorpia to pass, noting their own dissatisfaction with affairs in the Horde.

Hordak attempts to kill Catra for her betrayal. She flees until she can find a position from which to counterattack; she does so successfully, leaving him disabled and trapped.

Glimmer and Scorpia reach the Black Garnet, and Scorpia connects with the gem, summoning and displaying power. As she does so, the Heart of Etheria begins to come online, with all of the princesses suddenly swelling with might and Light Hope preparing to discharge the weapon.

Double Trouble confronts Catra, revealing their betrayal, in turn; knowing of the superweapon, Double Trouble throws in with the princesses. The confrontation leaves Catra shaken, badly, as Scorpia and Glimmer proceed through the Fright Zone in power. Scorpia pleads with Glimmer to spare Catra, and Glimmer agrees.

It does not look easy, no.
Image taken from the episode, used for commentary

Adora reaches Light Hope, and the Heart of Etheria powers up. The hologram reveals that she, not Hordak, pulled Adora to Etheria. Adora resists the activation, albeit with substantial difficulty.

Glimmer arrives where Catra and Hordak linger, defeated. She is there when the Heart of Etheria begins draining power from her and the princesses in preparation for firing; the princesses are caught out in the field, and their power channels itself to Adora, who continues to resist. Light Hope transports Etheria back into normal space.

It is a decisive statement.
Image taken from the episode, used for commentary

Glimmer tries unsuccessfully to thwart the Heart. Adora continues to try to convince Light Hope not to fire the weapon, and, in the end, she shatters the sword of She-Ra to prevent the Heart of Etheria firing.

Adora wakes to find the sword destroyed and Light Hope flickering out of existence with words of thanks. The Crystal Castle is darkened.

Such a smile...
Image taken from the episode, used for commentary

Bow tries to reach Glimmer, only to see her and Hordak taken by Horde Prime, whose ships fill Etheria's skies. Glimmer wakes on Horde Prime's ship, where he rebukes Hordak and takes Glimmer captive--at Catra's sudden emergence and suggestion--in advance of taking Etheria as a weapon for his own.

Discussion

If the episode is to be regarded as continuing the Arthurian pastiche that is legible in so much of the series, then I have to wonder if the arrival of Horde Prime and the incipient invasion of Etheria do not partake of either the attempt by Rome to reassert dominance over Britain (as in Malory, the Alliterative Morte Arthure, Geoffrey of Monmouth, and elsewhere) or the invasion by Hengist and Horsa at the behest of Vortigern--or both, given the pastiche. Certainly there is some of the Saxon-story in the present episode, with Horde Prime having arrived at Etheria at the summons of Hordak, not unlike Vortigern inviting Hengist and Horsa to aid him in subduing the "less advanced" Picts and Scots; too, Horde Prime betrays Hordak, not unlike the manner in which Hengist and Horsa turn on Vortigern. But there is also somewhat of the Roman assertion in the manner in which Horde Prime regards Glimmer; even before Catra's emergence and intercession, he regards Glimmer as a (lesser) royal, while he afterward asserts a claim of overlordship of Etheria--not denying Glimmer's rule, but placing his above it.

As with many things, there are other available antecedents. But it is clear that the medieval Arthurian antecedents are in place, and they do resonate with the long- and earlier-established invocations and refigurings of Arthurian legend that pervade the series. And it may well be the case that a similar end comes, with the Arthurian figures achieving victory over the outside forces that plague them--though it must also be remembered that few of the most notable at the Round Table survive the end of that fellowship...

She-Ra and the Princesses of Power Rewatch 4.12, "Destiny, Part 1"

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Near-misses punctuate the penultimate episode of the season.

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4.12, "Destiny, Part 1"

Written by Noelle Stevenson, Katherine Nolfi, Laura Sreebny, Josie Campbell, and M. Willis
Directed by Jen Bennett

Synopsis

It's shocking, truly.
Image taken from the episode, used for commentary.

The robot Emily cavorts in Bright Moon's gardens while Scorpia looks on and Shadow Weaver disapproves. Scorpia asks Shadow Weaver about her situation, meeting with annoyance before Glimmer returns, averring her need for Scorpia's aid, asking her to connect to the Black Garnet. The request startles, but Glimmer presses ahead with her plan amid news of Double Trouble's escape.

On Beast Island, Entrapta conducts Adora, Bow, Swift Wind, and Micah to the center of the island. She notes Glimmer's absence, and she exults in the nature of Beast Island. Bow tries to persuade Entrapta to return to Bright Moon with them; Entrapta indicates her knowledge of the Heart of Etheria and rushes off to demonstrate it.

In the Fright Zone, Catra attends to her morning toilet. She is interrupted by Lonnie, Rogelio, and Kyle; she receives their report well, and their comments about Scorpia's abandonment less so. Catra rages against Lonnie, Kyle interceding, and the three being dismissed. Double Trouble makes an appearance, reporting on the princess's movements and the vulnerability of Bright Moon.

That does look about like it.
Image taken from the episode, used for commentary.

In Bright Moon, Shadow Weaver argues against Glimmer's plan with Scorpia. She presses too far, though, and Glimmer moves her aside in high dudgeon.

Catra watches Horde troops strike out, and Hordak confronts her. He sees the value of her plan, however, and delights in it, commending her for her efforts.

On Beast Island, Entrapta shows off her findings in the central facility, whence the signal proceeds. The facility contains substantial information, including about the Heart of Etheria weapon project and the princesses' entanglement in it. Too, She-Ra's sword is not a control mechanism for the weapon, but for the wielder. Adora panics at the revelation, and Bow points to some small hope.

Glimmer and Scorpia confer about their respective situations. Entrapta has reservations about the plan, but Glimmer is able to connect with her and persuade her to assist.

Adora's group makes to return to Bright Moon. There is difficulty in their egress; they are attacked, and Entrapta resists departing in favor of staying with the machines she loves, but is persuaded at length by the prospect of inspecting Mara's ship.

Oh, this bodes ill.
Image taken from the episode, used for commentary.

Double Trouble infiltrates Hordak's sanctum, leading him to the idea that Catra has betrayed him, rather than Entrapta. Hordak moves in wrath against Catra.

Adora and her group arrive at Mara's ship, with Entrapta and Micah both disbelieving. Double Trouble signals Glimmer, and she and Scorpia leave for the Fright Zone as it empties of troops--and even in the moment that Adora and her group return home. Shadow Weaver tells them of her departure, and Hordak attacks Catra for her perfidy.

Discussion

With matters hastening towards completion in the present episode, little if anything new comes to attention in terms of how the series integrates medieval/ist tropes into itself. Interestingly, however, it makes pointed comments about inevitability and destiny; namely, She-Ra is intended to serve as the focus of a weapon she is used to control, rather than over which she has control. It is possible to read into the comments some reflection on militarized cultures such as the traditional concept of the medieval European, with its focus on chivalric deeds of martial prowess, as well as on the military-fetishizing culture contemporary to the series's development and release, with its increasingly militarized police forces and excessive valorization of those who are or have been in uniform. In both cases, fighting seems not to be a choice but an expectation, one imposed upon people; in both cases, fighting is presented as a primary good, if not the only good, with an avoidance of conflict seen as undesirable. And while it is the case that some fights need to be fought because some adversaries or antagonists will not listen to sweet reason, making violence the first recourse has detrimental effects on which the present series, in its present season, and a bit in its present episode, only lightly touches.

Unlike many, it questions the value of fighting, even though it hinges on a violence that seems entirely appropriate and necessary. And how much of it, ultimately, stems from one person, insecure in himself and his masculinity, trying to impress another who is not?

She-Ra and the Princesses of Power Rewatch 4.11, "Beast Island"

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Things thought lost are found, and not all to the good, as the fourth season moves towards its end.

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4.11, "Beast Island"

Written by Noelle Stevenson, M. Willis, Josie Campbell, Katherine Nolfi, and Laura Sreebny
Directed by Mandy Clotworthy

Synopsis

One can almost hear the doom.
Image taken from the episode, used for commentary.

Adora, Swift Wind, and Bow continue towards Beast Island in Mara's ship. They discuss the wisdom of their choices as they go, and Bow frets about the consequences of their disobedience. Swift Wind voices apprehension just before the ship loses control and begins to fall to the ground. They touch down just offshore of the foreboding Beast Island.

The three proceed to the island, Adora relating the horror stories told of the place by the Horde. They find evidence of Entrapta's arrival, and Swift Wind complains of a strange noise that the other two do not hear. Bow realizes that Beast Island is a dumping ground, and Adora grows concerned regarding her sword--but they proceed, even so.

He has looked better, admittedly.
Image taken from the episode, used for commentary.

Strange beasts begin to stalk them as they proceed, and others proceed to attack. Adora finds herself unable to transform into She-Ra, and the trio flees with difficulty. Swift Wind hears the strange sound again as the attack continues. They are saved by the sudden emergence of Micah, Glimmer's father, who had been believed dead.

Meanwhile, Glimmer searches for Light Hope in the Crystal Castle. She initially has some difficulty, but manages to secure an audience with the hologram.

Micah rejects the obeisances of the trio before checking to see if they are real. Introductions are interrupted by more interference from the local fauna; they explain their search for Entrapta once circumstances allow, and Micah notes knowing her. He also warns them against following her, noting that a signal from the center of the island--her seeming destination--has a suppressing effect on the mind. Further conversation is interrupted by more sign of local fauna; they proceed while conferring, soon coming into peril from said fauna and the pervasive signal.

She does know how to make an entrance.
Image taken from the episode, used for commentary.

Amid the attack, the group begins to succumb to the signal. Adora returns to confidence and determination, and she is able to transform into She-Ra, rescuing the others from the pernicious transmission. The fauna, however, continues to be problematic--until Entrapta arrives.

In the Crystal Castle, Glimmer manages to get information from Light Hope that she can use to activate the Heart of Etheria. Scorpia is the key.

Discussion

There seems something of Tolkien's Mirkwood and Radagast the Brown in the present episode's Beast Island and Micah. A darkened region fraught with peril on all sides and a somewhat...differently thinking magician are parallel tracks between the two, and it is not to be wondered at that a series would make use of such prevalent pop-culture images--especially given its already-established recourse to the medieval and medievalist. (Nor is it unexpected that a member of the Tales after Tolkien Society would find a way to make a series a tale after Tolkien, really.) And while the parallels perhaps follow Jackson's reinterpretation of Tolkien more than Tolkien, himself, the chain of transmission seems clear enough to point at, or at least to suggest.

Related to Micah's appearance in the same vein as Tolkien's Radagast is the often-medieval association of mental illness and life in the woods. It is to the woods, for example, that Lancelot flees after his violation by Elaine and rejection by Guinevere; it is to the woods that Yvain takes in his great sorrow. (It might also be noted that both do so after breaking agreements with important women in their lives, not unlike Adora and Bow entering the woods with some mental and emotional difficulty after disobeying Glimmer.) While Beast Island is not precisely a forest, it partakes of many of the same tropes associated with "the deep, dark woods," and many of the technological constructs resemble trees in outward form. And it is to such a forest-like place that Micah and Entrapta are exiled by the Horde, the former becoming, and the latter becoming more divergent from typical standards of behavior and understanding. It is a bit of a modification of the trope, but it is still one that resonates, helping the series continue to partake of the medieval it often employs.

Getting Started for #Kzoo2021

𝔄s a follow-up to "Notes from the 2020 Society Annual General Meeting," CFPs have been submitted to the International Congress on Medieval Studies and the UPenn CFP list. Details are below:

Legacies of Tolkien's Whiteness in Contemporary Medievalisms

A roundtable session at the International Congress on Medieval Studies at Western Michigan University (www.wmich.edu/medievalcongress) examining the continuing effects of Tolkien's depictions of race in medievalist works.

Much criticism directs itself towards racial studies and postcolonial readings of the works of JRR Tolkien, arguing whether his works should be regarded as racist and what attitudes contemporary readers would be well served to adopt in response to them. Much attention in popular media has directed itself towards the use of medieval and medievalist works such as Tolkien's by white supremacist groups to offer themselves pseudo-intellectual and pseudo-historical support for their execrable agendas. The session looks for ways in which contemporary medievalist work (hopefully) unintentionally supports such efforts and what can be done to oppose them as things deserving all opposition.

Deadscapes: Wastelands, Necropoli, and Other Tolkien-Inspired Places of Death, Decay, and Corruption

A paper session at the International Congress on Medieval Studies at Western Michigan University (www.wmich.edu/medievalcongress) examining depictions of what comes in the wake of war and death in works in the Tolkienian tradition.

Many of the "standard" fantasy works, ranging from the epics through Arthuriana into Tolkien and beyond, make much of grand wars fought on massive scales. They also, at times, look at what is left behind when the war is done, the graveyards filled and memorials erected. The session looks at how such things are constructed in works in the Tolkienian fantasy tradition and what functions they serve for readers in the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries.

For both, short proposals are welcome; please send to talesaftertolkien@gmail.com on or before 15 September 2020. Proposals from graduate students, those outside traditional academe, and traditionally underrepresented groups are especially welcome; please let people in your circles know who might be interested!
We hope to see you at the 'zoo!

She-Ra and the Princesses of Power Rewatch 4.10, "Fractures"

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Characters' tragic flaws are laid bare as the fourth season moves toward an end..

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4.10, "Fractures"

Written by Noelle Stevenson, Katherine Nolfi, Josie Campbell, Laura Sreebny, and M. Willis
Directed by Jen Bennett

Synopsis

It's the kind of face I've seen too many times...
Image taken from the episode, used for commentary

Glimmer, working with Shadow Weaver, attempts to interrogate the imprisoned Double Trouble. It does not go well for the queen. Nor is it pleasing to her that Adora returns and summons the princesses to a meeting.

At the meeting, Adora and Bow relate what they have learned from Razz and Mara--namely, that the Heart of Etheria will destroy the planet if it is used. Shadow Weaver argues in favor of using the weapon anyway, with Glimmer convinced that she and the others can harness the power the Heart has collected. It seems to her the only option for fighting the Horde. An argument ensues.

The color evokes pus, thus infection, implying Catra's sickness.
Image taken from the episode, used for commentary

At a Horde base, Catra monitors events. The Horde has been advancing well, though soldiers are weary. Catra seeks Scorpia, to no avail, and she abuses her soldiers in the continued effort to conquer Etheria.

Perfuma seems to have taken the point.
Image taken from the episode, used for commentary

In Bright Moon, simulation after simulation indicates that the Heart of Etheria cannot be used. Bow tries to comfort an upset Glimmer, to no avail. Continued discussion is interrupted by the sudden appearance in the chamber of Scorpia. Melee ensues as the rebel leaders try to apprehend her, and Scorpia tries not to fight back but not to be captured. At length and with difficulty, she is restrained, even as she claims to be in search of aid for Entrapta.

Catra continues her survey of Horde forces, hoping to find Scorpia and growing increasinly certain that she is being mocked by those under her command. She confronts Lonnie over the issue, becoming increasingly erratic as she fails to make contact with Double Trouble.

Seems to be a fair bit of her mother in her.
Image taken from the episode, used for commentary

Scorpia is taken into captivity and questioned. She speaks about Catra before expanding on her desire to retrieve Entrapta from Beast Island. Shadow Weaver affirms the terrible reality of Beast Island, and Adora, Bow, and Swift Wind purpose to retrieve Entrapta so as to shut down the Heart of Etheria--above Glimmer's objections. After an argument, Glimmer commands them to remain on site, despite their own objections, insisting on her prerogative as Queen.

Scorpia is escorted to confinement, marveling at the beauty of Bright Moon. The unfamiliar gentleness of the surroundings confuses her, but she begins to form connections with both Perfuma and Frosta. Meanwhile, Catra briefs Hordak on her subordinates' progress. He is pleased by the report, made amid a ruined post; Catra breaks down in tears after.

Deserted and betrayed?
Image taken from the episode, used for commentary

Adora, Bow, and Swift Wind sneak out of Bright Moon, aided by Frosta. Their departure is marked by an unhappy Glimmer, who has learned of the Horde's plan and hardens her heart against them as they make halting progress in Mara's ship. She purposes to access the Heart of Etheria herself.

Discussion

If I look at the episode as continuing the Arthurian pastiche that I have seen in so much of the rest of the series, I have to think that the present episode partakes of Malory's depiction of the falling-out between Arthur and Lancelot, with Glimmer in the former role and Adora in the latter. (I have spoken to both at various points in the rewatch, with Glimmer's connection to Arthur in 4.1, 4.2, and 4.3; Adora's partial correspondence to Lancelot is mentioned in 1.11, 1.13, and 3.1.) Despite Glimmer's desires and status as monarch, her closest companion, Bow, departs with her mightiest warrior, Adora, just as Arthur is left by Guinevere and Lancelot. The suggestion of romantic tension between Glimmer and Bow--she holds his hand in both of hers, stroking it with a thumb; the gesture bespeaks a different intimacy than simple friendship--reinforces the parallel. And Glimmer is led into a rash decision as a result of what seems to her to be a betrayal, purposing to call upon overwhelming, overwhelmingly dangerous, power held by what can only be considered an untrustworthy guardian--not dissimilar to Arthur being roped into besieging Lancelot late in Malory. So there is that to consider.

It may perhaps be more apt to analyze the present episode as the exposure of the protagonists' tragic flaws. Both Glimmer and Adora are convinced of their rightness, and they are acting towards ends that can be viewed as good ones; saving a friend and saving a kingdom both count. But both pursue their agendas through less than upright means; disobedience and betrayal are not good, but neither is recklessness. Did either listen to the other, matters might well have been different, but both are too proud, it seems, to bend when they need to. Whether they will break...

She-Ra and the Princesses of Power Rewatch 4.9, "Hero"

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Time shifts and warnings are issued as the fourth season begins what appears to be its third act.

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4.9, "Hero"

Written by Noelle Stevenson, Josie Campbell, Katherine Nolfi, Laura Sreebny, and M. Willis
Directed by Mandy Clotworthy

Synopsis

"It's Mara."
Image taken from the episode, used for commentary

Madam Razz fusses about to make her home ready for company. She had expected Adora, but Mara arrives at her home. Razz welcomes her warmly and invites her to bake a pie with her.

A sudden shift sees Razz alone in her home just before Adora comes to call. After a bit of confusion as Adora rattles off her present problems, Razz recalls a weapon associated with Mara and resumes making pie as Swift Wind arrives; he evidently makes a habit of checking up on Razz. The horse is not helpful initially, and Razz calls them along as she goes about her pie-making.

It looked a little different, then.
Image taken from the episode, used for commentary

Razz takes off through the forest, Adora and Swift Wind following in hope. They lose track of her, and she shifts back to her experience with Mara. Their initial meeting is tense, though Razz quickly defuses the situation and piques Mara's interest. Light Hope takes a harsher view, though Mara convinces her to withhold sanction.

Quite different, indeed.
Image taken from the episode, used for commentary

Razz shifts back to her time with Adora, who catches up to her. The later She-Ra investigates the area, finding the marks of Mara's presence and anger--and a peculiar crystal, about which she asks; Razz reports that the crystal was left by Mara for Adora. Adora continues to ask questions, not all of which Razz can answer as she shifts through time once again.

This time, a rampaging beast assails her, and Mara, arriving, transforms into She-Ra to save her. The efforts are unsuccessful, but Razz calms the attacking animal, to Mara's amazement. Razz begins to acquaint Mara with the local fauna, establishing the connection between her and Etheria that begins to work wonders in the world. Mara questions her mission and the Heart of Etheria Project to which she is assigned.

This is not a victory.
Image taken from the episode, used for commentary

Razz returns to Adora's present and Adora's questions about events. Adora begins to puzzle out the time-shifts as Razz continues to talk through her disjointed wisdom. Razz takes Adora back to her home as the latter continues to press for information. She shifts again to a time when the wounded Mara arrives at her home as strange magical exhalations spread with the activation of the Heart of Etheria. Mara resists the Project with little success.

Razz shifts back to Adora's present once again and rushes towards Mara's ship, shifting back into and out of a chaotic past as she does so. Bow, working in the ship, is startled by Razz's arrival; Razz reemphasizes the need to talk to Mara, and Adora realizes the crystal is the container of Mara's message. She plays it, and images from the past proceed with Mara's rejection of her "destiny" as She-Ra and the seemingly corrupted Light Hope. The terrible promise of the Heart of Etheria begins to become clear, and Mara takes Etheria into another dimension to prevent great harm from befalling. And in her message to Adora, Mara makes clear all that she can of events in her time and the lingering peril--and she comes to her sudden end.

Discussion

Madam Razz features heavily in earlier episodes in the series, notably 1.3 and 3.5. Of the first appearance, I comment that

the Razz of the title is an interesting figure. She is evidently not in the best presence of mind, but she is also evidently possessed of some power. In the episode, she easily scales the First-Ones ruin, for example, and calls her broom to her hand through an unseen force. She also effects escape from the Horde. As with the mirroring between Adora and Catra, there is ample antecedent for the device of the kooky mentor-figure, but I cannot help but thinking of the many hermits that appear in such chivalric works as Malory's, or even of the (predominantly female) anchorites of the Middle Ages. Such facets of medieval life are perhaps not as familiar as the knights Adora evokes or even of the triumphant archers that Bow re-presents, but that lesser familiarity does not make them any less "true" medievalisms than the other parallels.

I find, after rewatching the present episode, that there is a more direct parallel to Razz in medieval and medievalist work, one that follows the generally Arthurian pastiche at work in the series--Merlin. Razz's magical abilities are more notable in the present episode than previously. In addition to the broom-work and uncanny mobility seen before, she is able to calm a rampaging beast, explicate the nature of magic on Etheria, and light fires with a gesture; the more overt workings mark her more firmly not only as a hermit-mentor, but as one with otherworldy powers even by the standards of the setting.

Too, the present episode makes clear that the aforementioned mental difficulties are the results of Razz's perception shifting between timeframes--if it is not she, herself, who does so, experiencing the disparate times simultaneously, relative to herself. What comes to mind is the description of Merlin living backwards that appears in White's The Once and Future King and the Disney animated movie that derives from it--not medieval works themselves, clearly, but just as clearly trying to borrow from the medieval to inform and contextualize their storytelling. Indeed, the temporal displacement / blending allows Razz to inform Mara of what she needs to do with regards to Adora, the "future" existence allowing for some control in the "past," even as it points out once again the problems of time-travel.

What I said some months ago still applies, as well:

That such a one--refigured, yes, but so are the knights and nobles--appears in the episode can be taken as a suggestion that a more nuanced, detailed, and accurate idea of the medieval can be used well as an underpinning for the works of popular culture. Given the struggles against misuse and misappropriation of the medieval that pervade popular culture and academe, any such efforts have to be welcome.

She-Ra and the Princesses of Power Rewatch 4.8, "Boys' Night Out"

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Shenanigans ensue as the men of She-Ra take center stage. Because of course they do.

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4.8, "Boys' Night Out"

Written by Noelle Stevenson, Shane Lynch, Josie Campbell, Katherine Nolfi, Laura Sreebny, and M. Willis
Directed by Christina "Kiki" Manrique

Synopsis

Such cannon. Much blast. Wow.
Image taken from the episode, used for commentary

The Horde presses its wave of assault, Hordak leading the way. Ruin and destruction follow, with the rebellion doing what it can to hinder the advance and evacuate the locals. Conditions are not favorable for them as they are for Hordak.

Their excursion promises to be glorious. Or a travesty. One of those.
Image taken from the episode, used for commentary

After, the rebel leaders confer about their current circumstances. Matters are grim, and Glimmer continues to rush out as Mermista mourns her fallen kingdom. The conference concludes sharply, leaving Bow, Swift Wind, and Sea Hawk alone. The last purposes to take the three of them out together, and the proceed thus.

Hordak surveys the results of his work, and Catra confers with him regarding their progress. She tries to have him return to the Fright Zone; he sends her home, instead. She reluctantly agrees, complaining after he leaves.

Bow, Swift Wind, and Sea Hawk find themselves in a tavern. Bow finds himself distracted, and Sea Hawk tries to enliven things through an impromptu musical number. The three are taken from the tavern at sword-point, ostensibly as part of Sea Hawk's plan to reunite the rancorous princesses. The kidnappers, though, are not the ones on whom Sea Hawk planned.

The three find themselves restrained aboard ship our of sight of shore. They try to make contact with the princesses, who find themselves distracted by their own concerns. Glimmer and Adora argue, hindering contact, and their captors reveal themselves as Sea Hawk's former crewmates, who seek vengeance on him, as well as bounties on their heads.

Catra considers her situation and tries to make contact with Scorpia, to no avail.

That doesn't look like a pleasure yacht.
Image taken from the episode, used for commentary.

Bow, Swift Wind, and Sea Hawk are told they are bound for the Horde. They are transferred thence, but Mermista finally receives word of their disappearance. She marshals Glimmer and Adora to assist in their recovery, and they effect it after a brief melee and another musical number.

In the Fright Zone, Catra realizes Scorpia's defection. Nor are matters easy among Glimmer, Adora, and Bow, and Adora purposes to find Mara's weapon.

Discussion

Much is made in the episode of friendship, possibly speaking to another cartoon directed towards girls and young women that has enjoyed renewed interests after an initial appearance in the 1980s. Intentionally or not, it also evokes the fellowship--felaweshipe or felawscipe or other spellings, and, generously, the comitatus--that appears in so much medieval English literature. In both Chaucer and Malory, much is made of the increasingly close companionship, not without internal strife and struggles, that emerges among those who journey and fight together--and, yes, with sexual overtones available if not always sounded, as is true of most things. It is in some respects the driving force of the larger narratives in some of the more notable medieval English works, receiving attention from far more erudite scholars than I. As with many things, of course, there are other depictions of it than the medieval, but there are many medieval, and the emphasis of the present episode on friendship and its failures seems to help tie it to the medieval/ist.

This is more so in the relationship between Glimmer and Adora. As I've asserted repeatedly in this rewatch series, something of an Arthurian pastiche is in play, particularly with Adora; Glimmer seems more and more solidly a parallel to Arthur as the series continues. Adora partakes of both Lancelot and Gawain, with more of the former emerging in the present episode; she is clearly the mightiest of the warriors in service to Glimmer, and a rift is growing between her and the monarch she is pledged to serve. More, it is growing in part because Adora transgresses some of the distancing that has to take place between a leader and followers in situations where the leader must send others to die, much as Lancelot's violation of social norms occasions the separation between him and Arthur that emerges. Matters between Glimmer and Adora are not as overtly sexually charged--despite Malory's protestations about love not being then as when he wrote, relationships around Lancelot grow fraught because of sex--but that does not make them any less intense, especially when it is considered, as it must be, that the two of them are adolescents despite their offices and achievements.

Being a young adult is not easy for many.