NEW ADVENTURES - 1990

A Plague on Primus

A Plague on Primus title card
E36

Official Synopsis

Skeletor looms over the kneeling He-Man, gripping his staff.

Skeletor unveils a fear gas that turns any man into a cowering wreck and leaves Mutants and women untouched, and Crita is told to lead the attack on Primus. Flipshot and Caz bring an abandoned ship through the shield, a stowaway spreads the gas, and the men of Primus fall to it. Prince Adam changes into He-Man before it reaches him and plays the coward for Crita's benefit. Master Sebrian, coaxed into remembering, names the fountains of Enos as the source of the antidote, and He-Man and Gleep go in search of it while Mara and Drissi lead the women against Flogg's invasion. Skeletor is waiting with a trap, and the Mutants are thrown off the planet. A sunscreen reminder closes the story.

Morals by closing safety lesson, paraphrased from the episode audio

Mara and Drissi catch Flipshot sunbathing and boasting about his tan, and the closing lesson is about sun safety: too much sun can lead to serious skin problems, so wear sunscreen or a hat, stay out of the sun at midday when the rays are strongest, and remember that you can burn even on a cloudy day; too much sun also ages the skin faster.

heman.org Episode Review

What does a fear weapon say about the people it cannot touch? In "A Plague on Primus" Skeletor unveils a gas that turns any man into a cowering wreck, and the demonstration is a small piece of cruelty: a victim is reminded that he is the meanest street fighter in all of Gorn City, is told to put his fists up, and answers with a frightened no. Crita, who is handed the job of leading the attack on Primus, learns the catch that matters, which is that the gas has no effect on Mutants or on women, and she decides on the spot that she can single-handedly defeat the men of Primus. The premise is worth building on.

The trap closes through an ordinary mistake on the heroes' side. Flipshot and Caz come home late with an abandoned ship drifting in space, admit when pressed that they checked it out, sort of, and bring it toward Primus for analysis. A voice announces that it is time for the stowaway to deal with those two fools, the shield opens, and a later voice reports that the planet is in a panic and that one more pass would be wise. The scene has the good grace to put the blame on carelessness among the heroes rather than on a brilliant enemy.

Put in plain words, the story is about whom a planet can count on when its usual defenders are out of the fight, and the answer is the people the gas could not reach. Master Sebrian is affected like every other male on Primus, and the antidote sits somewhere in his memory until someone talks him through it, telling him to relax and concentrate. The word that comes out is Enos: the healing waters of the fountains of Enos are the cure. The fountains are hard to find, so He-Man trusts the way of the magic to lead him and Gleep there, while Mara and Drissi lead the women against Flogg's army, with a bleak aside that everything depends on whether he returns.

The cleverest decision is made before that journey begins. When Crita finds him, He-Man cowers, begs her not to hurt him, and is declared finished by an extra potent dose; once she has gone he tells his friends that he knew if he could fool Crita she would tell Skeletor, and that Skeletor must go on believing the gas works. It pays off when the pair arrive and Skeletor is waiting, mocking the hero's weakened condition and how he can hardly stand, until the hero calls on Gleep. Skeletor's indignant complaint that this is the kind of trick he would pull, and that fooling him is not nice, is the best line in the story: a villain offended to find the other side playing his game.

Gleep gets a payoff afterward, in an acceptance-speech routine that thanks the people who made it possible, and the water arrives in time for a line about turning the ice back into water and raining on the Mutants' parade. Back on Primus, the credit goes to Gleep and the women of the planet.

The weakness is how loudly the theme is announced. A race early on ends with a remark that the ladies had no chance, answered with a pointed reply about egotistical males and a promise to win the next ones, and near the close someone asks outright what you think about women flying spaceships and defending planets. The likely reason is a message-of-the-week habit that wants the point unmistakable in a short slot, but the story had already made it by letting the women hold the line, and the speech only repeats it.

Verdict: a good-natured, lightweight adventure with a clever bluff at its centre, and a rescue that belongs to the people the villain thought he had counted out.

Notes of Interest

  1. Toys: According to the He-Man wiki, the fear gas gun Crita uses in this episode later came packaged as an accessory with her figure in the classic Masters of the Universe line.
  2. Toys: The wiki's page on Crita adds that she was created for the cartoon and never had a figure in the original toy line, which makes her the only female villain in the series, in the wiki's description.
  3. Continuity: The He-Man wiki lists the Colossus as making its first Jetlag Productions appearance in this episode.
  4. Continuity: The Scientists of Primus do not appear in the story, but Gleep briefly mentions them, per the He-Man wiki.
  5. Continuity: The wiki lists Optikk as a non-speaking cameo on the Mutant side.
  6. Voice cast: Venus Terzo voices both Mara and Crita, and Ted Cole voices both Spinwit and Gleep, according to the He-Man wiki cast list.
  7. Edit history: The wiki's errors list says Quakke's opening line about pitchers of lemonade is animated with Skeletor's mouth moving instead.
  8. Behind the scenes: Per the wiki, the closing moral has Mara and Drissi reminding a sunbathing Flipshot to wear sunscreen or a hat.

Cast Appearances

Full roster →
He-Man
Good

He-Man
Skeletor
Evil

Skeletor
Flogg
Evil

Flogg
Prince Adam
Good

Prince Adam

Episode screenshots

A man with teal spots on his clothes clutches himself and cringes.
A man with teal spots on his clothes clutches himself and cringes.
A man clutches his head, face twisted in fear.
A man clutches his head, face twisted in fear.
A man hugs a wall, trembling away from a looming shadow.
A red-haired mutant woman looks on beside a figure's blue arm.
Skeletor grins and grips a large blue weapon.
Skeletor grins and grips a large blue weapon.
Skeletor holds the weapon while the red-haired mutant woman touches her face.
Skeletor holds the weapon while the red-haired mutant woman touches her face.
A purple race track curves along a green landscape under a bright sky.
Racing hovercraft speed along a track marked by tall posts.
Four small racers speed along a purple track above a grass infield.
A woman in a flight helmet leans forward over her racing craft, hair streaming.
A woman in a helmet races while another helmeted figure looms at the right edge.
A rival racer in a brown helmet speeds past a hooded driver.
A man in blue holds a golden trophy cup at his chest.
Adam speaks to two women, one dark haired and one blonde in pink.
Adam speaks to two women, one dark haired and one blonde in pink.
A white spacecraft flies near a blue planet.
A brown-haired pilot in a blue suit jerks a thumb back, looking worried.
The red-haired mutant woman peers out from behind a raised hatch.
The mutant woman sprays a thick green gas cloud inside the cockpit.
Two pilots cower in their seats while the mutant woman stands over them with a weapon.
A purple-gloved hand presses a round panel on a metal console.
Adam sits in a stadium crowd between a blonde woman and a dark-haired woman.
Adam sits in a stadium crowd between a blonde woman and a dark-haired woman.
A man drinks from a golden trophy cup atop his racer.
A man in a blue racing suit lifts a golden trophy cup, smiling.
An old white-haired man covers his face as green gas drifts over him.
Adam raises an arm and shouts, glancing sideways.
A white streak of light crosses a packed stadium crowd.
Two tall maroon pillars stand in front of a grassy field.
A pink spaceship banks across the sky trailing white gas.
The mutant woman clenches her fists at the controls beside a cowering man.
A small white ship flies through scattered clouds.
He-Man stands bare chested with fists at his sides in the stadium.
He-Man stands bare chested with fists at his sides in the stadium.
A white ship trailing green gas dips through the sky.
A woman's boots step down a long ramp.
He-Man grimaces, wrapped in swirling green gas.
He-Man grimaces, wrapped in swirling green gas.
A distant group stands before a domed building across a flat green field.
A blonde woman comforts He-Man, who has his eyes shut, as a small robot waits behind.
A dark-haired woman watches two kneeling figures while the mutant woman sits beside a teal robot.
The mutant woman stands over the small teal robot below the stadium seats.
A dark-haired woman watches an old man with a wooden staff cover his face.
A dark-haired woman looks worried, mouth slightly open.
The small teal robot's single eye glows beside its pink arm.
A red-armored man sits holding his face as the mutant woman walks past.
A dark-haired woman clasps her hands beside the small teal robot.
He-Man looks to the side with a stern expression.
He-Man's fist rises at left as a dark-haired woman and a blonde woman face him.
He-Man sits at the controls of a ship beside the small teal robot.
The small teal robot sits in a pilot seat with a gloved arm on the controls.
A dark cavern chamber holds a large toothy creature at its centre.
Skeletor raises a hand to his chin beside Flogg, who glares from under his hood.
A purple spacecraft with a round red hatch moves through a starfield.
Two small figures stand before a glowing purple crystal in a tall chamber.
A red beam strikes a planet and bursts into a pink flare.
Flogg grins in the pilot seat of a purple ship.
Flogg grins in the pilot seat of a purple ship.
A fleet of small ships streaks through a dark starfield.
Two grey pilot seats face a control panel, with two heads showing above.
He-Man gestures with an open hand beside the small robot in a ship cabin.
Tall pale pillars of water stand before jagged blue mountains.
A small ship flies past a blue rock under a pale sky.
Skeletor laughs with his fists pressed to his chest.
A blonde woman and a dark-haired woman stand before empty stadium seats.
Two maroon shapes hover above a misty meadow.
The mutant woman points ahead from the edge of a ship.
Flogg grins from under his hood, showing sharp teeth.
Flogg grins from under his hood, showing sharp teeth.
Slush Head stands over a man lying on the grass clutching his head.
Slush Head stands over a man lying on the grass clutching his head.
Two white ships fly beside a small craft in the middle of the sky.
A white-gloved hand grips a control stick.
A large brown walking machine fires on a smaller one, causing an explosion.
Armed figures run toward dark attack craft in a purple hangar.
A woman in a flight helmet watches intently from her cockpit.
He-Man runs across the grass with the small robot beside him, red beams overhead.
Skeletor sits under a purple canopy on a brown vehicle among rocky peaks.
He-Man kneels clutching his head while the small robot gestures.
Skeletor strides forward with his staff beside two armored men.
Skeletor laughs, red eyes wide.
The small robot's round blue body fills the frame.
The small robot hovers with one arm raised before a rocky cliff.
He-Man stands with a hand on his hip, scanning the rocky landscape.
He-Man gestures with an open hand before the tall pale waterfalls.
A boulder with a claw and a distant figure tumble down a green slope.
He-Man holds his sword before him among tall blue standing stones.
He-Man stands at the foot of a tall blue rock holding his sword low.
Skeletor stands among boulders holding his staff in a rocky clearing.
Blue rocks crash down on Skeletor as pieces burst apart.
Water cascades down tall columns before a rocky mountain.
He-Man stands beside the small robot, looking down at it.
He-Man looks to the side with a slight smile.
A yellow lens sits in a blue panel as mist drifts across it.
A damaged ship trails red smoke as it falls through the sky.
A blonde woman in pink looks out through a clear canopy.
A woman in red sits in a cockpit wearing a blue helmet.
A white domed craft with a round hatch, seen from above.
Three bright suns glow in a rain-streaked sky above palm trees.
A brown-haired man in a blue suit crouches in the falling rain.
Slush Head sits on a ship above a fallen man in the rain.
Slush Head sits on a ship above a fallen man in the rain.
A man in a winged helmet and jet pack stands in the rain, hand at his chin.
Two men crawl on the wet grass in the rain.
A mutant's boots stride across wet grass past a dropped weapon.
A large tusked purple ship floats upward in the sky.
A crowd of women and men heave a white craft overhead.
He-Man walks with a crowd, a blonde woman and the teal robot among them.
A dark-haired woman and a blonde woman stand among a smiling crowd.
A raised fist holds a small ship above the cheering crowd.
Mutant ships speed away along the track, headlights glowing.
A man in a blue suit flexes his fists in a cheering stadium crowd.
A cheering crowd raises fists and laughs.
He-Man smiles and looks off to the side.
A man sunbathes on a beach while two small figures stand at the water.

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