She-Ra and the Princesses of Power Rewatch 4.2, "The Valley of the Lost"

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A new threat emerges as the fourth season of the series begins to move ahead.

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4.2, "The Valley of the Lost"

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

Synopsis

Not all are pleased to be in attendance.
Image taken from the episode, used for commentary.

Adora, Bow, and Huntara await Glimmer's arrival at a meeting she called. Glimmer teleports about, fetching others to the conference. Glimmer assigns a retrieval team to recover Mara's ship from the Crimson Waste. Perfuma is nervous about the assignment, while Glimmer frets at having to handle administrative minutiae.

Go, Speed Racer!
Image taken from the episode, used for commentary.

Adora, Bow, Perfuma, and Huntara proceed into the Crimson Waste. Perfuma attempts to be her usually ebullient self with Huntara; her overtures are rejected. The limits of her abilities are also noted; cacti seem to disagree with her. Huntara voices doubts about Perfuma--and about Adora, prompting some confrontation and competition between them. Perfuma, however, voices concerns to Bow, struggling to maintain her equilibrium. That Mara's ship has been dragged off from its previous location does not help matters. Nor yet does a request for a status update from Glimmer.

Something suggests this will be important...
Image taken from the episode, used for commentary.

Progress continues, revealing the location of the ship: the titular Valley of the Lost. The party enters it to search for the ship, finding it an inhospitable place and finding themselves observed. Huntara begins to act on a desire for revenge, but the certainty of pursuit suggests discretion.

The Horde is present and is looting the ship under Catra's direct supervision. Catra is confronted by a false Scorpia, and the entrance of the real Scorpia occasions confusion. The false Scorpia emerges as a shapeshifter, causing more confusion.

Huntara attempts to ply an old contact for information. They are betrayed by her, and pursuit is joined. It does not go well for the princesses; they only narrowly escape, their progress hindered by Glimmer calling in again.

This seems promising.
Image taken from the episode, used for commentary.

The shapeshifter introduces themself to Catra as Double Trouble and offers to take up employment with her. Catra is intrigued.

She gets to the root of things...
Image taken from the episode, used for commentary.

Adora inquires after Perfuma's difficulty. Huntara frets over her own failure. Glimmer calls in again, and Bow offers a fuller report of the situation. Glimmer offers to join them, and Bow determines how to find the ship. They proceed thence, with some doubts about Perfuma's abilities to do what needs doing. The others comfort her, emboldening her, and they attack to seize the ship. Melee ensues, and Adora is distracted by a more personal fight as the others secure the vessel. Perfuma works to raise the ship, struggling but successful.

Meanwhile, Adora concludes her fight. In its wake, her opponent escapes. Glimmer arrives belatedly, in time to see the mission succeed.

Catra and Scorpia, meanwhile, appreciate Double Trouble's performance. Catra continues to plot...

Discussion

The present episode continues the Arthurian pastiche of the characters in presenting Glimmer as suffering from some of the same relegation that Arthur himself endures. That is, rather than being an active participant in direct action, Glimmer is obliged to remain in her seat of power, attending to the administrative needs of her realm rather than taking direct, personal actions against its enemies--much as Arthur, formerly an engaged warrior, less and less often takes the field as such works as Malory's continue. Even in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, when Arthur is still "sumquat childgered" and eager to answer the Green Knight's challenge, he allows himself to be dissuaded from taking up arms when those in service to him are close by. And in Malory, while Arthur does some questing early in his kingship, he soon leaves it off, presiding over events more than participating in them--and when he does act in his own person after his expedition to Rome, it generally ends poorly. (The effort to reclaim Guinevere from Lancelot and to avenge his nephews' deaths come to mind as examples, as does the fight against Mordred.) Even in older medieval works, such as Beowulf, the king generally remains in the mead-hall; he has proven himself in youth and steps back to allow others to do so.

The clear impression, then, is that being the person in charge means being the person who stays behind. It is not an easy transition to make, and the ramifications of that transition--the loss of immediacy and the lack of connection--will doubtlessly have effects as the season progresses.