NEW ADVENTURES - 1990

The Pen Is Mightier Than the Sword ... Or Is It?

The Pen Is Mightier Than the Sword ... Or Is It? title card
E07

Official Synopsis

He-Man holds off a snarling white snow leopard with his sword in an arched hall.

Skeletor spots a painting in a shop while searching with Flogg for recruits, learns the artist Helm is visiting Primus, and buys it, promising that He-Man and his friends will pay. On Primus, Helm gives paintings to Master Sebrian and others as thanks for their hospitality. Skeletor and Slush Head slip in aboard a trade caravan, and Skeletor's spell turns a painted dragon into a real one that breathes fire. He-Man fights it and the scientists test the pigment. Helm recognizes the dragon as his own work, the scientists find that the paint dissolves in thinner, and Quagmi Swamp particles in the pigment point to Skeletor. A safety lesson about bright clothing at night closes the story.

Morals by closing safety lesson, paraphrased from the episode audio

The closing lesson is about visibility at night: wear bright clothes, add reflective tape strips on your arms, and remember that if you cannot be seen you can hurt yourself or others.

heman.org Episode Review

What do you do with a gift you cannot politely refuse? Helm, a painter visiting Primus, hands out paintings to the people who have given him a roof, and the story rests on the fact that a painting offered in thanks is about the best thing a villain could ask to have carried into a friend's home.

Skeletor sees it first. He and Flogg are in a city looking for recruits for the mutant space force, one of them remarks that they have found none, and Skeletor stops at a painting in a shop. Someone calls it a simple painting, and Skeletor answers that there is nothing simple about it. He asks who painted the dragon, hears that the artist stopped there on his way to Primus for a trade mission, and buys the picture while promising that the price will be paid by He-Man and his friends. Skeletor's intent is plain before a brush touches a canvas, and the pleasure that follows is dramatic irony: Helm gives Sebrian and the others paintings, among them a lovebird and a snow leopard, someone remarks that they float in the air as if they were alive, and Gleep, asked about them, describes a pigment with a chemical interaction that allows motion.

In plain words, the story is about a gift turned against the people it was given to, and about a maker who finds that his own work is no longer his. The line that carries it comes when someone tells Helm his creations are no longer his, that they are Skeletor's, and Helm answers that he cannot destroy any more of them because they are part of him. The title asks whether the pen is mightier than the sword; the story offers a brush in the wrong hands as its answer.

The comic engine is Skeletor and Slush Head getting onto Primus. They board a trade caravan after leaning on its captain with talk of how dangerous space can be for an old ship, then wait through an inspection down among the cargo, where someone complains about the smell and someone else points out that the lieutenant insisted on checking the whole ship. Skeletor says he just loves to force people into doing things his way, which makes it plain he is enjoying himself, and the spell that brings the dragon to life, with Slush Head gasping that it is a real dragon, lands as a good villain moment.

The defence of Primus is where the writing gets more interesting. Primus's sensors catch something breathing fire, the laser cannons are said to have enough power to stop the mutant mothership, and the monster is heading for the Oasis and Master Sebrian. He-Man goes after the dragon, and the lasers are said to work only when it does not see them coming; later the sword fails, and the guess that the creatures must be able to communicate and tell each other what to defend against is a neat piece of reasoning for a children's story. The scientists find that the paint dissolves in thinner, and someone points out Quagmi Swamp particles in the pigment, which points to Skeletor.

The weakness is how quickly the human drama is handled. Someone grows suspicious of the guest and there is a line about jealousy over Mara, but both threads are dispatched by a message passed on near the end that Adam is sorry for being suspicious, so neither shapes a scene. A dragon, a caravan and a chemistry lesson in one episode leave little room for anything else.

Verdict: a clever and imaginative entry, stronger on its central idea than its follow through, built around a villain scheme that is easy to grasp the first time you hear it.

Notes of Interest

  1. Continuity: The He-Man wiki says this is the first appearance of Artilla, Spinwit and Tuskador, and that the later flashback episode The Galactic Guardians tells how they joined the team.
  2. Homage: Per the He-Man wiki, Captain Tibbar is physically similar to Plundor from the Filmation episode Quest for He-Man.
  3. Continuity: According to the He-Man wiki, this is one of three episodes where Skeletor and Slush Head team up and travel to Primus, the others being Sanctuary and Council of Clones.
  4. Continuity: The He-Man wiki lists the painter Helm, the Denebrian Art Dealer, Captain Tibbar and all four painted creatures (butterfly, dragon, love bird, snow leopard) as first and only Jetlag productions appearances.
  5. Toys: Tuskador is shown as a human in the cartoon, but the He-Man wiki notes that his original action figure and his Masters of the Universe Classics figure give him more alien features.
  6. Voice cast: Alvin Sanders voices both Flogg and Tuskador here, Ted Cole voices Slush Head and Gleep, and Don Brown voices Hydron and Gepple, per the He-Man wiki cast list.
  7. Behind the scenes: In the safety moral, Mara tells Tuskador to wear bright clothes when walking at night, and Flipshot then crashes a speeder into him, according to the He-Man wiki.

Cast Appearances

Full roster →
He-Man
Good

He-Man
Skeletor
Evil

Skeletor
Flogg
Evil

Flogg
Slushhead
Evil

Slushhead
Prince Adam
Good

Prince Adam

Episode screenshots

Skeletor grins in grey and brown armor with his skull-topped staff behind him.
Skeletor grins in grey and brown armor with his skull-topped staff behind him.
Flogg stands with hands on hips, his purple face turned aside.
Flogg stands with hands on hips, his purple face turned aside.
Flogg faces a framed painting while Skeletor stands in a dark archway.
Flogg faces a framed painting while Skeletor stands in a dark archway.
A framed painting shows a black dragon among bubbles on a blue ground.
A framed painting shows a black dragon among bubbles on a blue ground.
Skeletor stands in a cave of twisted purple roots beside a figure in a purple hood.
Skeletor stands in a cave of twisted purple roots beside a figure in a purple hood.
A dark-haired man in a purple robe and blue hood smiles with half-closed eyes.
A dark-haired man in a purple robe and blue hood smiles with half-closed eyes.
A purple-robed figure paints on a canvas of yellow brush strokes on an easel.
Skeletor in armor stands beside the dragon painting on its easel.
Skeletor grins with red eyes glowing inside his grey armored helmet.
Adam and a man in orange sit on a couch facing an elder and a woman.
Adam and a man in orange sit on a couch facing an elder and a woman.
A blond man in an orange tunic with silver chest plate talks, sitting in a green armchair.
Adam sits in an armchair with his hands in his lap.
Adam sits in an armchair with his hands in his lap.
The blond man in orange raises a hand as he speaks.
The man in orange carries a flat case toward a seated white-haired elder.
The man in orange gestures to a case as a woman and the elder sit among plants.
A white-haired elder studies a board as a woman and the man in orange look on.
A white-haired elder in a blue robe smiles warmly from his green chair.
Hands hold up a framed painting of a white snow leopard roaring on an icy mountain.
A long-haired woman in white smiles gently, looking off to one side.
Two small figures walk across a grassy plain beside a deep crack in the ground.
Adam smiles under a bright sky with clouds behind him.
A blue round robot with one glowing eye raises a finger and holds a slate.
Adam looks ahead with a thoughtful frown while the robot's arm extends in front of him.
The blue robot's single green eye glows as it faces the camera on the grass.
The blue robot throws both arms up with its back to the camera.
A large spaceship sits on a landing platform at night under a starry sky.
Skeletor in skull-chested armor stands beside Slush Head in a blue suit and helmet.
Skeletor in armor looks sideways with a sly grin, a robotic claw arm behind him.
Skeletor beams a wide grin inside his grey armored helmet.
Skeletor in armor hands a folded paper to Slush Head while a claw arm swings overhead.
A tusked, bearded alien in a blue suit walks past a rabbit-like creature and a visored man.
Caged animals stand in a room with a white-furred creature and a purple beast behind bars.
A tusked golden-headed alien bends over a white-bearded creature in a ship's hold.
A visored man and a rabbit-like creature walk past cages holding animals.
Skeletor's skull face emerges in a faded overlay across a grassy slope.
Skeletor in armor holds a framed painting while Slush Head leans in beside him.
Two armored figures walk across the floor of a purple rocky cave.
Skeletor in armor raises both arms as blue energy crackles around his gloves.
Slush Head in a blue suit presses one hand against a cave wall with cables trailing overhead.
Slush Head in a blue suit presses one hand against a cave wall with cables trailing overhead.
Slush Head stumbles back with arms flung wide and a worried face.
Slush Head stumbles back with arms flung wide and a worried face.
A black dragon with grey wings stands in a cave facing two small armored figures.
The black dragon spreads its wings on a sunlit plain as two figures aim a weapon at it.
A tiered saucer-shaped tower floats against a blue sky.
Two men in blue suits, a bald elder and a small scientist stand at a hangar door.
A smiling bald man in a robe adjusts a device while a bespectacled scientist peeks in below.
A targeting screen shows a tiny dark dragon in the middle of the crosshairs.
A small scientist with glasses and tall yellow hair holds up a lens device.
Two white jet fighters bank through clouds in a blue sky.
The black dragon bares its teeth, its horns and yellow eye filling the frame against blue sky.
Laser cannons on a tower platform fire a bright beam across a landscape.
Orange flames swirl across the frame with sketched dark lines.
A bald man in a pale robe frowns and touches his chin.
The small dragon flies across a wide blue sky.
Adam and a white-haired elder stand beside arched windows in a large hall.
A burst of white rays radiates from a raised sword in a hall.
He-Man speaks with a gloved hand raised beside the smiling white-haired elder.
He-Man speaks with a gloved hand raised beside the smiling white-haired elder.
A blast throws up white puffs and blue shards on a grassy field.
The black dragon breathes fire over a red and white burst as it flies.
He-Man reaches toward the black dragon flying above him.
He-Man reaches toward the black dragon flying above him.
A red-haired man and a brown-haired man in blue suits sit at a console smiling.
Blue lightning crackles around the dragon as it breaks apart into dark flakes.
A small scientist with tall yellow hair collects a sample from the ground with tweezers.
Adam, the bald man, a woman, the man in orange, the elder and the small scientist gather outdoors.
The group stands together on the grass under a sunny sky as the bald man gestures.
Adam, a woman, the man in orange and the white-haired elder look on with concern.
A pink city of spired towers and a curving blue building sits along a raised walkway.
Adam talks with the man in orange in front of a framed butterfly painting.
The small bespectacled scientist squeezes his hands together, looking excited at a lab console.
A dish holds two black flakes with a wisp of vapor rising from them.
A cave mouth opens in a rust-colored rock mound among desert plants.
Skeletor in armor gestures with his staff in hand inside a purple cave.
Skeletor grins broadly in grey armor, his red eyes wide.
Slush Head sits dejected on the floor under a dark dome.
A figure in a blue suit stands in a flood of bright white light.
Adam talks with the man in orange at a lab console with a lamp bank above.
Adam faces the man in orange, a bald man and the small scientist in the lab.
Adam, the bald man and the small scientist stare down at something in the lab.
The bald man in a pale robe speaks with his hand raised.
Adam rubs the back of his head with one arm raised and frowns.
A butterfly with orange wings bursts out of a lab machine in a spray of vapor.
Orange flakes lie scattered across a pale blue floor.
The man in orange works at a lab console with his back to the camera.
He-Man holds his sword beside a console as the small scientist and the bald man look on.
A tiered grey building with spiral ramps stands under a blue cloud-streaked sky.
A tiny dark shape sits on a pale desert plain beneath a wide sky.
A cracked hole in a pale wall reveals a machine with three round lamps.
He-Man looks on grimly beside the man in orange in an arched hall.
The white snow leopard leaps down the steps as He-Man's boots show at the top.
The man in orange holds up a framed painting showing a man aiming a gun.
A black-armored figure in a dark helmet holds a crossbow in the hall.
He-Man speaks, looking aside with his bare chest and red harness in view.
He-Man looks ahead warily in the arched hall.
A golden bird glides through blue sky while pink rings swirl below it.
The golden bird flies upward with its wings spread wide.
The man in orange speaks with a worried look inside the arched hall.
The man in orange glances anxiously aside, his hand on a door frame.
The man in orange looks off with a stern frown and a clenched fist.
He-Man stands beside the man in orange, who holds a bundle of paintbrushes as flakes fall.
He-Man looks aside with a wary expression.
Skeletor in grey armor lunges forward with his arms spread, appearing faintly transparent.
A dark armored figure stands in a golden doorway of a pink room.
The man in orange and the elder watch a figure leap through a broken window.
Skeletor gestures on a grassy mound beside Slush Head, whose cable arms reach out.
The man in orange and the white-haired elder stand before tall stone columns.
He-Man speaks to the man in orange and the elder in front of the columns.
He-Man opens one hand as he talks under a bright sky.
A woman, the man in orange and He-Man holding his sword talk beside a column.
He-Man looks up and aside with a stern face against a cloudy sky.
A woman, the man in orange and the elder stand together outdoors with solemn faces.
Small figures walk down a road beneath a starry night sky.

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