I was delighted to see that the King Features Syndicate team up series, “Defenders of the Earth” is now available for streaming on Amazon Prime, and even more delighted to find that, for the most part, the series actually holds up better than other shows from the era.
If you’re like me, the instant you hear this series is available for streaming, you immediately looked for the one where the gang went back in time and teamed up with Prince Valiant (yes, that one). The Prince Valiant crossover episode was Season 2, episode 10, “Terror in Time.” The fact they don’t mention Prince Valiant is in it is maybe the most surprising oversight of whoever wrote the episode descriptions.
There’s another episode with a surprising appearance by another character from King Features Syndicate….but that one you’ll have to find for yourself!
The start of the episode is really hard to watch. Flash was always the more relaxed parent. Now they rewrote him into “my son can take it, he is the one and only son of Flash Gordon”. Rick’s tried and has a shitload of work and a test to study for but nooo, Flash won’t leave him alone. Shouldn’t at least school come first?
I do like Lothar standing there with Kshin. Lothar is also saying Flash should give Rick the day off but Flash is wondering what could have gotten into Rick…
Rick’s got an F and is rude to his teacher. We also learn he is usually a straight A student.
Rick’s friend Jerry, who changed his pants while walking down the hallway with Rick, gives him drugs. The name of the drug is not mentioned, just “drugs”. “It will help you to get through whatever you’re going through”. Yeah, sure.
Kshin’s school holds an Anti-Drug lesson. Kshin once again proves to be in a bad group of friends. The tall guy, Kevin, tries to give him drugs, because “everyone gets high” and when Kshin refuses, the three of them walk off to get high. No mention of Audie and Marty, the Honorary Defenders. I guess Audie, who was one grade above the older kids, could be in college now, but what about Marty? Why is Kshin hanging out with these douchbags? And ten-year-olds get high now?
Flash is a jerk in this episode. “oooh you want to talk to me, must be girl trouble… I’m busy now, let’s discuss your romantic life a little later”. And Mandrake just laughs, too. I hate it when characters get a complete personality rewrite. This is not the Flash we know.
“YOU’RE SORRY?! THIS COULD COST US OUR LIVES! THIS COULD BE THE END OF THE DEFENDERS!” Uh, STOP putting so much pressure on a kid!!! You are the adults here, it is YOUR job! Your kids still go to school, they’re still in training. Uh, this just makes me really angry.
This is not the mansion. Looks like they have rooms at Monitor too? Anyway, Kshin witnesses Rick doing drugs but doesn’t tell anybody.
Rick is getting really angry and irritiated with Kshin and for once, that’s on Rick, not Kshin.
And that’s the wakeup call!
Zuffy HUGE!
Ming gets crazy while Rick is strong enough to destroy the drug he still has and returns to normal.
We do get a nice ending scene where Flash and Rick talk about their problems, Flash apologizes and Rick admits needing help. Flash says this is a team effort and they walk off.
Kshin found a new friendgroup and again Kevin and the other two offer them drugs. They tell him no.
After Kevin runs off, Kshin, a completely random new girl and Kevin’s two friends from before are standing together. Both girls wear the same outfit. Kshin then addresses the viewer and tells us to say no to drugs.
Well… I do think the message is important and Kshin is being the good guy here, learning about drugs, saying no to drugs and trying to help Rick. Well, he should have told an adult immediately, but he’s 10, so he gets a pass. It is a bit weird that 10 year olds are getting offered drugs but other 10 year olds repeatedly, but since the show is set in the future, who knows. Rick’s problem, especially if we’re supposed to believe this goes on for a while, is quite serious. But the complete rewrite of Flash’s character makes it really… unwatchable for me. Also, I feel because Rick’s the smart one, he should know what drugs do and that they’re NOT helping. Of course even he could still turn to them in such a situation but… because usually, Flash would not behave this way, it just kind of feels wrong. Like it was done just to present drugs and the “say no” message because they had to bring this up in one episode so they made the best they could. At least, as with Eric’s drinking problem, it does not go away at the end of the episode but instead, both mention getting help. I do wish there was an episode for each of the kids to show what kind of pressure they all have to deal with sometimes, with school, parents, expectations, family legacies, wrong friends, and so on. I’m sure the writers could have come up with something for each of the kids (and/or even the adults).
Rick’s not wearing his jacket in this scene which I like. They really should like the jackets off indoors. Rick also says something and Flash turns around and answers to Jedda who hasn’t spoken at all. Maybe a leftover from Jedda Gordon who was originally speaking?
Suddenly Rick grabs his jacket from… where? Anyway, the two Doctor Dark episodes are so far apart and suddenly Mandrake gets strange feelings from the Well of Essence and thinks it’s related to Mara. Immediately Rick runs off.
Noted: LJ NOT wearing rope.
Rick now asks for the rope and suddenly LJ has one.
LJ thinks this is a bad idea…
I agree. Rick only holds the rope with one hand. It’s not very secure.
They find Mara in a cocoon and somehow drag her up and bring her back to Monitor.
Garax takes a hit for Ming while Dark gets the 2nd crystal.
Mandrake helps Mara to leave the cocoon and she tells them Dark also survived the fall.
They are told the location of the 3rd crystal but not the other two crystals. Or perhaps this happened off-screen since we, the viewer, already know Ming and Dark have them.
The 3rd crystal is on the planet Frigia where Flash has been before. Yeah… but originally, wasn’t Frigia on Mongo?
Unfortunately Ming gets the crystal. I wish they’d made it so all three crystal would have been found by someone else - and then each team/person would have to try to get the other two crystals.
Rick asks Dynak to notify “Flash and Mandrake” - I guess this is Kit Walker speaking, becaue otherwise it would have been “Dad and Mandrake”.
I love the return of the winter outfits. They should have given Mara an outfit too. Or does she not feel the cold?
We see the lid being opened and then in the next seen both Lothar and LJ are just standing there waiting for - what? And the lid is still closed.
Rick and LJ carry Flash, Lothar carried Mandrake. Maybe the Phantom should have carried Flash instead of the two boys.
Jedda is frozen in panic or so it seems. Mara senses they’re still alive. Jedda is acting extremly worried while the others carry them inside. It’s not unusual for her to be worried but I guess this is Jedda Gordon being extremely worried about her father.
She’s also standing close to Flash when he and Mandrake are eating chicken soup to heat them up.
So now they’re what, allies again???
Doctor Dark just kicks Ming away and betrays him - and then the Defenders show up.
8 tigers.
Lothar gets hurt and the planet is about to explode. Everything has to leave except Mandrake and Mara who take on Dark.
This is pretty graphic for a kids show.
They all changed into winter clothes again.
Or not?
I don’t think Ming is such a considerate leader. With the planet exploding, I guess HE would be first in line to board the ship and then, MAYBE, if there was time, take the ice robots.
Mara has to stay in the Amber Keep forever as the new Shadow Lord but promses to never forget Rick. It’s kind of an open ending that leaves open to possibility for Mara to turn at some point. However, she never does.
I did like the episode. But I think it should be placed much earlier in the show, closer to the first Doctor Dark episode. It seems so random that later on, suddenly the get a signal from Mara or that Ming took that long to look for the crystals. Ming trusting Doctor Dark also didn’t make sense. Him pretending to trust him for his own reasons, maybe. I do like Mara. I think a possilibity for the show would have been to make her younger and then becoming the Shadow Lord but needing some training and guidance, and therefore she could have become Mandrake’s “assistant” (as Kshin is sometimes called). I think Mara having to come into these kind of powers and having to train and gain knowledge wouldn’t have made her too overpowered. Dark could have been a recurring villain for more episodes, the hunt for the crystals would have also taken several episode and Mara being raised by villainous siblings and having to learn to adjust to normal family life could have her making mistakes that are more justified than Kshin just being annoying. But that’s just something they could have considered. That way, we wouldn’t have needed Kshin. Also something that indicates that this is a way earlier episode is the fact that Jedda Gordon and Kit Walker are potentially standing in some scenes. The earlier episodes were much heavier with this than the later ones. “Rick” just storming off to save Mara and just climbing into the well, no matter if LJ warns it’s dangerous, that’s kind of what I imagine Kit Walker to do. The actually showdown between Mara, Mandrake and Dark… well, the orb took back the power Dark stole and that was it. I was hoping to see a bit more of a showdown between the three of them.
Michael Jordan once described himself as having a “competition problem.” I like the idea of characters like Flash and Dale having something similar, but on an even greater level.
Strange as it may seem to us ‘normal’ folks, it’s possible that the Gordons feel most alive in the heat of battle. When Rick was younger, he may have suspected that his parents loved adventure more than they loved him. And even if he was incorrect, that’s something that a kid shouldn’t have to ponder.
I think there’s a moment in DoE when Rick tells Kshin something to the effect of, “To you he’s Flash Gordon; to me he’s Dad,” in reference to all of the admiration that Flash has gained as a result of his adventures.
Phantom
Tunnel vision.
While the Phantom may have spent a little more time with Jedda during her childhood than Flash spent with Rick, he sometimes loses sight of her occasional need for normalcy, as evidenced in episode 2.
This is understandable. Kit Walker knew at a very young age that he would be the next Phantom, and he probably grew up super focused on the family legacy.
Jedda is a different person, however. She’s devoted to heroics too, but this girl also wants to have fun. She prefers the village over Central City. She’s drawn to suave bad boys as well. And given her great athletic skills, she’s open to physical challenges, whether they come from friend or foe.
Though the Phantom has a very nice bond with Jedda, he may forget, at times, that she needs balance in her life.
Hadea
A sense of entitlement.
By now, Hadea’s character has been covered extensively in several DoE 101 lectures led by myself and others, so I won’t spend too much time reiterating the basics (or getting into the more advanced stuff seen in fanfiction). In short, when we meet her, she knows what she wants, and she decides to take it. Of course, this proves to be a mistake.
Ming fools the Eternals into thinking they were attacked by the Defenders. Now three giant robots are trying to kill them.
Kshin is doing some sort of training in the battle simulator room. But turns out it was a real training because the robot certainly is real. Also, Kshin kind of cheating since Zuffy was inside the robot. But the other young Defenders laugh about it. Not sure if this is for fun or a real training exercise. I guess if it was real, the adults would be present and Kshin would hopefully get lectured.
Flash tells them the space station is under attack which is weird. Attacks happened before and Dynak always sounded an alarm. This time, however, Flash had to come to the training room and get them personally. He doesn’t seem to be in a hurry.
Of course they took Kshin and Zuffy with them… :/
Rick complains that they’re being left out of the action. Jedda says Flash knows what he is doing and explains it further. Classic Kit Walker/Jedda Gordon moment right there.
Flash defeated one robot but Ming’s one step ahead. Reminds me of earlier episodes. By destroying one, the other robots get stronger.
We learn about the history of the Eternals.
Mandrake, Lothar and the Phantom are at the Magic Palace.
Apparently Mandrake is a club member here and they’re watching a show. Mandrake is quite arrogant and rude, yawning and saying he should teach his fellow club members new tricks.
I wish they had the Phantom wear a suit as well. He could still wear the mask and cover his head.
Is Kshin even wearing a seatbelt?
I mean, they do crash later on.
LJ makes it through ok but the robot takes everything with him. Hopefully, nobody was in there but there are lights in some windows!
After 9/11, this kinda feels… wrong. And afterwards, they all leave. They don’t take care of LJs crashed ship, nor of the people in that building. Let’s hope they went back later on once all robots were defeated.
That’s not helping at all. The Phantom didn’t even try to call for the power of ten tigers. But Mandrake really stands out in this episode, facing the robot head on, dishing out illusion after illusion while the others are quite helpless. In the end, Mandrake gives the illusion of freezing cold, so the robots adapts to the “weather” and overheats itself.
Two down, one to go. Unfortunately the other robot is now too strong!
The robot’s main target is to pick up a call from the Eternals and find them, so they trick him to go into the black hole were he can’t return from.
It’s quite cute to see Kshin holding Mandrake’s hand.Mandrake even says to the others, that if that doesn’t work, it was nice working together with them. (or something amongst those lines)
I don’t get why they took the risk though. If they weren’t sure if it would work or not, at least send the kids away and then distract the robot, not back yourself into a corner. I highly doubt the robot would want anything with Kshin, so at least he would be safe. We saw at the beginning to the episode that primarily, the adults were the target. But, of course it did all work out and Ming lost.
I did enjoy the episode, it was fast paced, had some nice moments and some action and everyone was involved. Mandrake stands out in particular, for everyone was like “Mandrake, get away from there” and he was like “no, that’s how we do it” and he did it and defeated the robot while the others were trying to push the giant thing around (The Phantom not even trying to summon his powers). If was a good plan of Ming’s but thankfully, it did not work. Kshin was in the episode, and the entire scene with him refeating robot added nothing and could have been cut, but other than being scared now and then he didn’t do much, so it was ok.
One episode where the drawing style is noticeably different. Just look at LJ from this and from last episode.
Rick’s new invention does not quite work yet. LJ makes quite a few jokes about it which is quite unusual. But it’s all in good fun between them. Rick clearly is frustrated. I always found it annoying that they did not stand that much apart from each other but where still shouting like crazy.
Uh-oh, Ming interferes!
Ming implats a chip to make sure he knows LJs thought at all times. In order to save Rick, LJ has to sabotage the Defenders. If he doesn’t, Rick is history. No chance to get out of this because Ming can read LJs thoughts.
Rick is not responding but they have to leave urgently. I liked this scene where Mandrake notices something is going on with LJ but LJ lets him think he’s just worried about Rick.
LJ is going what he is told but is placing everyone in great danger because their weapons won’t function.
They realize it’s sabotage but who could it be? Kshin is shown here but he barely features in this episode.
We learn once again that LJs full name is Lothar Junior. Later Dynak tells the adults who reprogrammed her and they are all shocked.
But LJ are also making demands of his own and wants to see Rick. He uses Rick’s invention to get out of this mess.
Only nine of ten tigers appear.
This manoveur is called “follow the leader” and is mentioned again in another episode.
He chip is taken out - so they do have a medical room, too?
I wish there would have been a scene between LJ and Lothar too.
But I do love their friendship!
I do like the idea of forced sabotage and Ming controlling one of the Defenders who has to do what he says in order to keep someone else safe. However, I feel like the others should have been more at risk - going into battle with non-functioning weapons and such and maybe LJ having to make a decision to save Rick or to save the rest of the team and the innocent people of New York City (which were getting attacked in his episode). The adults should have talked with LJ and made sure he is ok afterwards. Of course it was not his fault but I doubt “chip gone, all good” applies here. Surely this must have been more dramatic for LJ? I do like the friendship between Rick and LJ and the fact that Mandrake noticed something was going on and initiated a conversation.
We learn this is Abbeville, where Lothar grew up. While he is a prince in the original Mandrake comic strip, here he apparently is not.
But he gets a hospital wing in his name. Of course his surname is never mentioned. We know from the reboot Defenders of the Earth comics that it is Kehwabe.
Some citizens of Abbeville.
We meet Lothar’s old friend Jacques and his daughter, Felize.
And his son Jean-Pierre, who is up to no good. Sailors spot a seaserpent and apparently this young man has a serpent tattoo - coincidence? I think not.
Lothar’s Defender logo on his shirt is missing. The details on his vest are also gone. And I feel like his accent is extra thick in those scenes.
LJ wants to help Felize and runs off with her without telling anyone.
That does not go well…
LJ is acting possessed and has to take a sacrifice. Apparently Mandrake, Kshin and Lothar share a room. Kshin and Lothar sleep in their clothes. They didn’t even get a proper bed for Kshin. I get it, maybe it’s so hot that they would not need sheets. But to sleep in their daywear?
Thankfully, Kshin wakes and speaks to LJ which wakes everyone. Mandrake tries to stop LJ but is taken down quicky.
So is Lothar, who slept in his shoes. LJ then takes Kshin hostage and runs.
Mandrake tries to comfort Lothar - if I were him, I’d be more worried about Kshin! I mean, LJ was standing with a knife over Lothar - if he is willing to do that to his own father, he surely would not stop with Kshin!
Lothar also knows his way around a lab. I do think that is something that Rick could have also done but… I guess they wanted to do a Lothar centric episode, so Lothar has to shine.
The adults are supposed to be fed to the serpent.
Jedda and Rick are are their only hope now. They find out the serpent is mechanical and someone is stealing the Trilithium medicine.
Mandrake manages to break the hold over LJ and he collapses in Lothar’s arms. “All is well”, Lothar gently says. This scene I really like.
Some of these faces really look—
Is it me or does LJ have unusually brought shoulders in this episode?
Uh, his episode…. I wanted to like it because it’s Lothar centric and he only deserves the best but… it feels more like an LJ episode. I wish there were more Lothar centric episode. I didn’t like the plot and Kshin never felt in an awful lot of danger. Everyone was worried more about LJ. In the time that has passed since LJ took Kshin and they were analyzing stuff in the lab, god knows what could have happened to Kshin. I did enjoy the scenes between Lothar, Mandrake, LJ and Kshin, that clearly showed them as a family, even sharing one room. LJ running off with Felize without telling anyone was just dumb and well, again, I didn’t like the plot.
The Amazoness Quartet make their first appearance, the Phantom keeps a lion calm which surprises Curly and a scared Shemp and Korra tries in vain to make her moves on Rick.
This story is M rated for a reason for what you’re about to read, so read at your own risk. Rick has a flashback of the assault done to him and Jedda and LJ face Rick to get to the bottom of why he has been distant from the rest of the team.
Since@marzena-doe mentioned wanting to see more of the wedding on TV, I thought I’d re-post this old image — which thrilled her back when Zetarok created it. This scene was part of the House of Mongo comic series.
While the TV wedding was only an illusion, Jedda and Krotan get married for real in this one — which there’s no mistake of in the scenes that follow…
Of course, at this point, Krotan has changed for the better, largely due to his bond with Jedda. And, naturally, in order to marry Krotan, Jedda had to make two of the biggest decisions of her life. The first was to follow her heart and move to Mongo. But before she could do that, she had to have a serious talk with her father about leaving the Phanton legacy behind.
Us J/K fans really, really wanted to see this kind of character development and radical decision-making on the TV show, rather than perpetually being told that Krotan is bad and Jedda is the next Phantom. It was very nice to reexamine their bond in this series. The illustrators did an amazing job.
Jedda worried Kshin’s dead… WELL… with this temperatures… of course he’s not dead but it could have been very likely!
Yes, he gave Zorelda he molecules without even asking questions…
And we have Suramong… maybe he once gave MONGo its name? I mean, the word part of his name…
Zorelda he calls “his beautiful thief” - maybe Zorelda wasn’t always a witch but has gained powers over the many, MANY years she was trying to bring Suramong back? That would explain why he eliminates her so quickly later on - maybe fearing her powers would become dangerous for him?
Once again, Krotan is terrified…
That poor horse is standing rather… stangely. Looks like it’s running but it’s actually just standing there.
Still think it was too early to get rid of her!
Oh how the mighty have fallen…
Too many to count!
Why would they shoot the moleculizer into space!? That thing is dangerous!
And pity that they did not work together with Krotan. That would have been interesting. Instead, they leave him behind in the cell. The ice dungeons also don’t look that icy anymore… (For comparison, see the first episode where Mrs Gordon and Rick are held there)
They also have to deal with the fact that if they take down Suramong, they will have Ming to deal with again!
Suramong gives Krotan one chance - he has to find the Defenders or he will die. Well, they should have taken him with them to prevent him from working with Suramong!
Flash has to fight for his life in order to get the moleculizer. Lothar even says it out loud “ Flash will get murdered”.
Suramong states he is the original evil force of Mongo with limitless powers. And it is looking bad for the Defenders… Just imagine how powerful Suramong AND Zorelda would have been!
Looks like both Suramong (and Ming) can’t be near the singing of the Zuffoids. It IS consistent that their extinction is mentioned in several episodes over the course of the show and we finally learn why.
Also, Rick staying behind with Kshin and the Zuffoids … I guess it was originally Kit Walker staying back, who as the Phantom’s son would be good with animals. I think they needed Jedda because of Krotan showing up again. But it could have also been LJ staying back.
At least Krotan decided against working for Suramong and tries to warn Jedda. But she’s had enough and has him put on ice. Fair enough I guess.
Guess who’s back!
The snowbeasts will protect the Zuffoids from now on. Kshin gives Zuffy the option to stay behind with the others and look for his family. He tearfully says goodbye.
But Zuffy has already found his family! (Also, Mandrake has no eyes in this scene!)
I did enjoy the episode. Kshin is featured more prominently but wasn’t too annoying. The furry creatures being the thing that defeats the bad guy is usually not my kind of ending but it somehow works here. Getting rid of Zorelda I found strange but I guess she really had no further place in this plot. They could have written another episode and drawn this out even further… The Defenders really were helpless against Suramong but did their best. But he was described as having limitless powers so it made sense. I would have enjoyed Krotan working with the Defenders in the end and maybe coming a sort-of-ally (helping whenever something is in it for him and otherwise staying away from destroying the Earth). But I’m happy with what we’ve got (Krotan knowing Suramong would kill him if he finds out but warning Jedda nevertheless). Ming coming back was not really a surprise. Some things, like Rick staying behind, didn’t really make sense. I mean, they were only outside of the city gates. Kshin wasn’t all alone in the cold. He could have waiting on his own. But maybe, in case everything goes wrong, they wanted to have someone there who would be able to fly himself and Kshin back to safety. After all, they did not know yet who they were dealing with. But yeah… mostly, I would have liked to see more of Zorelda or learning more about her and Suramong.
The Defenders are scattered all around Mongo. Mandrake wishes he had brought his winter tux. Yeah, you should have dressed up for the weather!! Also, aren’t you worried about Kshin??
Lothar’s shirt has the wrong color. LJ was really scared earlier which was nice to see. They all know they might freeze to death if they can’t find help soon. And yet they were clever enough to listen and watch first and to not walk right into Zorelda’s hut.
Suramong is afraid of Zuffoids and will waste away soon…
Yup. They should have left Kshin at home.
Zuffoids are known to be extinct but there are still robots about who hunt them.
Spotted: Brown-haired Jedda!
Red-haired Flash!
Flash climbs in with the bomb, risking his (and Rick’s) life in his attempts to stop Krotan from destroying Earth.
LJ nearly gets electrocuted but is fine afterwards.
Even Throg is shocked on how evil Krotan is and agrees those plans are more evil than anything Ming has ever done.
No chance but surrendering for them. That’s an interesting situation. Also, is that Rick who is standing next to Jedda instead of the Phantom? (Note: Rick’s with Flash on the rocket)
Throg betrays Krotan and helps the Defenders. That, too, is really interesting.
Now Mandrake is finally worried about Kshin.
And Krotan’s back to be a whining kid again…
Again - this could have cost innocent lifes, too!
We see more of Rick’s t-shirt than usually It has the DoE logo on it.
A very exciting episode. We do learn that there’s trouble ahead with Suramong and Zorelda and Krotan’s out for revenge now, no matter the cost. It was interesting to see the little groups of Defenders working together and each doing their part of stop Krotan and finding their way home. I do think the episode was really fast paced and each Defender had their moment/did their part. Very little was shown of Kshin, which was also a good idea. I do wish that they would have had them worn winter outfits because I have the feeling that after hours in the freezing cold there would have been some sort of consequences to their health. Flash and Rick falling into icy water and seconds later are completely dry and ready to head home is also a bit unrealistic, but oh well. Overall, I did like the episode.
They were in front of the palace at the end of last episode but are now what? Outside of Ming City? Anyway, Krotan reminds Jedda again of how the mind bombs work.
The Phantom is very, very worried. Both Mandrake and Lothar actually suggest Jedda went to Mongo willingly - “I’m sure he didn’t force her” - uh yeah sure! Even Rick disagrees with them.
The palace looked competely different last episode.
Apparently the people of Mongo, all men, are forced to cheer for Krotan. They do look like earthlings.
Jedda gets her little friend to bring her the keys. I guess this was added because unlike Jedda Gordon, Jedda Walker does not have the power of telekinesis.
They did not bring their winter outfits. But they brought Kshin. Yay.
I thought Ming ran out of ice robots and Krotan wasn’t sending supplies anymore?
“Krotan now rules!?” Uh - didn’t you check what is happening on Mongo??
We learn about the weapon masters of Beta 2. The Defenders are heading there next.
Krotan’s own people don’t want him to rule. Throg helps Jedda.
This is dangerous. Couldn’t you leave Kshin at home??
Mandrake uses telekinesis and Flash decided to use Krotan’s wedding gift, a giant robot, as a trojan horse and hide in there.
A taste of their own medicine for the weapon masters of Beta 2, maybe. But what about other lifeforms on this planet??
Krotan acts like spoiled child in some scenes. I do wonder how old he is? Ming called him a child as well in the first episode of the arc. But… I guess most people would be a bit careful with a creature like this.
It’s not the best gown… I’ve seen her in better outfits.
I think it’s the right amount of mind bombs. If I remember correctly, both Rick and Flash had not arrived yet at the time the bombs were planted.
The wedding is on the outside, in the cold?? I guess Krotan wanted to show off his giant robot…
They really gave us a hint on what’s going on. When Jedda says “I do” you hear her voice but her lips don’t move.
Also “Emperor and Queen” - it should be husband and wife. You’d need separate ceremonies for getting crowned. And… shouldn’t it be Emperor and Empress?
We go from this…
… to this
because of this…
Also, Flash puts Krotan on his knees. Sadly, the Phantom is not involved in rescuing his own daughter. Probably because it was Jedda Gordon getting taken originally, not Jedda Walker.
But we do get a nice reunion scene.
They just left the robot to wreck havoc. What if there were people in these buildings? Not just guards but servants and slaves!
And again Krotan has a backup plan.
Interesting episode I always enjoy when watching it. I enjoy seeing Krotan on screen and seeing Jedda on Mongo. But as an adult, some scenes where he forces her to go along with his plans are harder to watch because while there might be attaction, she’s still a prisoner and being forced to go along with everything and he seems a lot interested in power and less in her as a person. I do believe one or two small scenes between them that showed him in a better light wouldn’t have hurt. He would still be the villain, of course. I do wish we would have seen more of Mongo, the royal life, the palace, THE WEDDING. And of course, were were Krotan’s sisters? And wouldn’t the rebels also try and stop him gaining power? And Ming seemed to a ruled with an iron fist - so was it only when Ming left for Earth and Krotan gained more freedom and power that the people learned to fear him? There’s so much they did not explore here and I wish they had.
