Episode 8: The Beast and the Bell
Original Airdate: November 2, 1991
Written By: Matthew Malach and Bill Matheny
Directed By: Don Lusk and Paul Sommer (Supervising
Direction: Ray Patterson)
In an open marketplace on an unnamed island at an unnamed
port, Ren and Niddler shop for supplies, attempting to bargain as they have
little money. A pair of merchants dismiss Ren for having little money, then go
as far as to mock him and push him into the harbor when he dares to high hat
them. They don’t know him to be the son of a king and really don’t care to hear
it.
On the Wraith, Ioz kvetches about Ren’s dawdling as Tula
worries more about strange feelings she’s been having. She’s shocked to spot a
screaming, horned face appear on the surface of the mast, but has no
explanation for Ioz, who doesn’t see it before it disappears.
Ren and Niddler return to the ship and get berated from Ioz
for their lack of ability to gain supplies. Ren thinks his bloodline and their
mission should be enough to get a discount, Ioz thinks real pirates don’t need
to bargain, they should just steal what they need. Ren gets petulant about
people not believing him and the compass goes berserk. Light starts shooting
out of the compass, severing lines and ricocheting off bulkheads, driving Niddler
off the ship and blinding the crew. The compass drags Ren to the bow, where the
light beam causes water to erupt, bringing about a visage of Primus. This image
of Primus tells Ren to go to the island of Banjamar and ring the Bell of the
First Sound, a magical device even more powerful than the Thirteen Treasures of
Rule. If he does so, he’ll be able to destroy all the Dark Water, thereby
saving Mer. After the image fades, Ren tells an incredulous Ioz and Tula and
orders the Wraith to set sail.
Amid stormy seas, Tula continues to voice her concerns about
feeling uneasy before Banjamar is spotted. The island has a broken ring of
stones orbiting it, from the waterline and up. Ren attempts to sail the Wraith
through one of the breaks, failing by bouncing the ship off the swirling stones
and sending Niddler overboard. Ren reinforces his desire to end the quest by
ringing the bell, stunning the others into silence, who are seeing this trip as
folly. Niddler climbs back aboard, covered in squid creatures called
‘amphicites’. Ren sees these critters as a way onto the island, as they are
filled with oxygen. Leaving the Wraith at anchor and placing the amphicites on
their heads, the crew swims underwater and below the ring of stones, to get to
Banjamar.
Ashore, Ren is eager to continue quickly, while Ioz is less
so. Two large-lobed, uniformed men with military forks spot Ren and pin him
with sonic beams emitted from their weapons. With a threat from Ioz, the men
capture the whole crew, calling them intruders.
Brought before a disbelieving elder named Kangent, Ren keeps
up with his exuberant need to follow the directives of the Primus image. When
he mentions the Bell of the First Sound, the soldiers and crowd gathered grow
restless and wary. Kangent has the crew brought to the “still room” as Ren
whines about no one ever believing he’s a prince. Once they’ve gone, a soldier
and Kangent discuss whether Ren may be telling the truth, except that Primus
would never have placed the Bell in jeopardy…
The “still room” is a prison cell where the sound of
movement causes bars of light to erupt from the floor. Stay still, and the bars
go away. Tula is pressed to use her ecomancer powers to keep the bars from
appearing, freeing everyone.
Ren is sure of where the Bell is being kept, having watched
how the crowd reacted to his mention of it earlier. Tula’s skepticism of the
whole adventure grows, but Ren plods on, continuing to believe the image of his
father. The crew is spotted by guards in their attempt to gain access to the
building the Bell is in, but Ioz uses a stolen sonic fork to allow Ren and Tula
in.
The Bell of the First Sound is a huge thing, easily dwarfing
any of our heroes. Hung at about 8 feet off the floor, Ren gets ready to strike
the Bell with a nearby sonic fork and rid Mer of Dark Water. Tula sees a design
on the outer side of the Bell that looks like a winged creature with the same
face that she saw on the Wraith earlier. She tries to stop Ren, but it’s too
late. He strikes, ringing the Bell and freeing the creature Kiroptus.
Thanking Ren, Kiroptus grabs him, monologuing about being
trapped for 17 years and also searching for the 13 Treasures. Ren is completely
confused until Kiroptus transforms his head into that of Primus, teasing him.
Ren is appalled at being tricked and vows revenge.
Kangent arrives in the building, shocked to see Kiroptus
free. Tula takes his sonic fork and attacks the creature, who wants Ren’s
compass. Ren gets free and Kangent calls everyone to join him under the Bell,
as Kiroptus will not touch it. Soldiers arrive with Ioz, and they drive
Kiroptus off, who then flies through the ceiling.
At the rooms of the Elder, Kangent apologizes for not
believing the impetuous Ren. Ioz blames Kangent, though he explains that Primus
requested that no one was ever to reveal knowledge of the Bell to any outsider.
Kangent then begins to explain the history of Primus, Kiroptus and the 13
Treasures.
The Thirteen Treasures of Rule are seals to the core of Mer,
where an evil entity called the Dark Dweller is said to reside. Some time ago,
he broke through the seal, and using his minion Kiroptus, had the treasures
scattered all over Mer. The Dark Dweller cracked the bottom of the oceans,
forcing out the Dark Water that now continues to plague the world. Primus’ goal
was to recover the Treasures and rebuild the seal, which brought him into
contact with Kiroptus. Primus discovered the power of Bell of the First Sound
and asked Kangent to help in imprisoning the creature.
Ren offers to help recapture Kiroptus, who is likely still
on the island, as he wants the compass and probably wouldn’t leave without it.
A plan is committed to play, using the compass as a lure, much like the first
time. Kiroptus hauls the Bell out of the building using an anchor to hook it,
casting it aside so he can nab the compass. Kangent makes a hole in the stones
around Banjamar with a sonic fork to allow Ren and Niddler to fly out to the
Wraith and retrieve their Treasures of Rule.
Kiroptus follows them out, where a brief melee ensues. Ren escapes on a
never-before-seen hang glider, returning to Banjamar. Kiroptus beats him back
to the Bell, so Ren runs off to hide, scooting into a nearby house. Kiroptus
follows him, using the compass to locate the treasures Ren carries. Ren leads him
into the house, triumphantly exclaiming to Kiroptus. Why? The “house” is
actually the real Bell of the First Sound, dressed up to look like a home. Ren
strikes the side of the Bell, which starts drawing the evil servant of the Dark
Dweller into the side of the Bell. Ren tried to regain the compass from
Kiroptus, who grabs Ren. Ren is now also being drawn into the Bell! Tula, Ioz
and Niddler are able to drag Ren free, Kiroptus is returned to imprisonment and
everything is back to normal.
With the Bell restored to its original location, Kangent
offers to throw a feast for Ren and his friends, while Ren asks to learn more
of his father, as well as the Dark Dweller.
Mutant Scum – A
few more peoples of Mer that look less than human appear in THE BEAST AND THE
BELL, most significantly the denizens of Banjamar. These folk have stretched,
lengthy earlobes and sallow colored skin. Kangent has a slightly feline look,
while a few others have three fingers. Not one of them back down when it comes
to fighting or seem stupid, which is a nice change. Also in the episode is the
first appearance of the amphicites, cool squids with a transparent sac of
oxygen within them. Seeing Niddler with one on his face as he swims underwater
is an animated sight.
When Do We Get to
Eat? Niddler is his hungry self, with numerous foodstuffs mentioned in the
very beginning and the very ending of the episode. Anyone for pooka looka pie?
Minga Muffins? Biperion eggs? Praja fruit? Still, Niddler has little to do here
but be the hungry monkeybird. There is some inconsistency in his being able to
fly with wet wings, but it’s all for the good of the story, right?
It’s All in the Art –
Banjamar is physically appealing, from the water. The orbiting “sound stones”
make the place seem like a prison is some ways, but it’s definitely interesting
to look at. Nice design.
Ahoy, skarpango
pirate! Welcome aboard, Kangent. Voiced by veteran actor Rene Auberjonois
(either known from Clayton Endicott III from BENSON or Odo from STAR TREK: DEEP
SPACE NINE, it’s up to you), the story treats the viewer to another of Primus’
old friends, though this one has a ton more information than a few of the last.
Kangent will be seen again, though not immediately.
This one feels like a mission directive from on high: tell
these kids something about Dark Water or we’ll do it for you. There’s a lot to
absorb in a short period of time, as usual. It’s not necessarily a bad thing
and it’s not really forced on the viewer, it’s just Ren being a brat that’s
grating. This is another episode in the rewatch that I don’t recall well. I
remember Kiroptus and I remember the title giving away the plot when it popped
on the screen – it’s pretty transparent. What makes the story lag is the lack
of Ioz, Tula and even the pirates of the Maelstrom. Yes, there isn’t even one
single appearance by anyone from their enemy’s ship, even at the marketplace in
the opening. Although the plot may suffer, there is a larger mythology
connected solely here, as the Dark Dweller has not even been mentioned in any
earlier episodes. If you look deeper at the rhyme from THE QUEST, you can start
to assume that the “other” searching for the treasures may not actually be
Bloth, which opens the show way up in potential plots and stories. So, while
the entirety of THE BEAST AND THE BELL may be exposition, it’s well desired and
in some cases, needed after seven episodes. Talk about a lengthy build!
I’ve given this one three out of five minga melons, only
because it’s got needed mythology. I’ll discuss the Dark Dweller’s appearance
in a later episode, when he becomes active in the story.
