by Helen Langdon
In this series, Wizards vs Aliens has had to deal with the loss of some of its major characters on both sides of the ongoing war, as well as introducing new characters and upping the stakes in the battle for magic. And up until the most recent episode, “The Key of Bones,” it was doing so well. But this episode? Not so much.
In this series, Wizards vs Aliens has had to deal with the loss of some of its major characters on both sides of the ongoing war, as well as introducing new characters and upping the stakes in the battle for magic. And up until the most recent episode, “The Key of Bones,” it was doing so well. But this episode? Not so much.
In “The Key of Bones,” while under Lyzera’s spell, Simeon remembers that there’s a magical artefact which could either repair or destroy the Line of Twilight that separates the Dayside from the Neverside. So, it’s wizards vs aliens in the hunt for the skeletal hand of power. See, that’s quite a good concept, but it never feels like the stakes are all that high. Technically the characters have to go on a quest, but it’s more like an episode of The Crystal Maze than a matter of life and death, with riddles and games to solve. We’ve seen this kind of story before, and it feels dull when you’ve got all of space and magic to play with.
The whole episode feels like filler, trying to cram in minor plot and character details before the climax of the series. Lots of relationships are dealt with over the course of the story, but only superficially. Michael and Simeon somehow come to an understanding after solving a couple of puzzles together. Tom suddenly adores his grandfather. Tom has problems with Michael. Poor Ursula gets especially short shrift. OK, so she’s never really given that much to do, but usually it’s more than turn up purely to release the boys from a trap. Given that Simeon is her long-lost husband, so much more could have been made of that, beyond their love serving as a handy homing device and transportation system.
The whole episode feels like filler, trying to cram in minor plot and character details before the climax of the series. Lots of relationships are dealt with over the course of the story, but only superficially. Michael and Simeon somehow come to an understanding after solving a couple of puzzles together. Tom suddenly adores his grandfather. Tom has problems with Michael. Poor Ursula gets especially short shrift. OK, so she’s never really given that much to do, but usually it’s more than turn up purely to release the boys from a trap. Given that Simeon is her long-lost husband, so much more could have been made of that, beyond their love serving as a handy homing device and transportation system.
The Nekross storyline this week felt rushed, like they were trying to get the Macguffin to Lyzera and reveal her magic to Varg in the fewest moves possible. Her control of Simeon could have been stretched out over another story, giving more point to it and more reason for Tom et al to feel betrayed, but instead no, it’s off with Simeon and forget about the magic control.
At least next week’s season finale looks exciting, with everything crammed into it that this week’s story was missing. We’ve got hero of the past Caractacus Crowe appearing, Randall Moon becoming human, and Moon having to find a way to save the world without sacrificing Tom. Oh, and the evil Warlock returning, and a new ally for Tom to fight alongside (although Varg says he preferred Benny – will the audience?).
At least next week’s season finale looks exciting, with everything crammed into it that this week’s story was missing. We’ve got hero of the past Caractacus Crowe appearing, Randall Moon becoming human, and Moon having to find a way to save the world without sacrificing Tom. Oh, and the evil Warlock returning, and a new ally for Tom to fight alongside (although Varg says he preferred Benny – will the audience?).
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