Douglas Booth

Lou Kachivas

Squinch the Widget wants to be big like He-Man; so why not ask Skeletor for some magical help? Sure, that's a great idea... moron!! Now He-Man is captured, leaving only the second-tier heroes and a shame-faced Squinch to rescue him.

The Widgets (Kando, Squinch, Lara), Prince Adam (He-Man), Orko, Cringer (Battle Cat), Teela, Man-at-Arms, King Randor

Skeletor, Beast Man, Evil-Lyn, Panthor

Eternian guards

Basher, Attak Trak

It turns out that in a high enough wind, you can fly Widgets like kites. This is what we learn when a windy storm visits the Widget fortress, pulling Kando and Squinch into the air on a rope. Lara manages to tow the unlucky fellows back to safety, but then a gigantic tree is felled by the storm and lands right across their front door. An angry but ineffectual Squinch goes out with a cute little hatchet to try and break the thing up, but his more sensible compatriots fire off the He-Signal, alerting a strolling Prince Adam, who was taking a walk through the nearby forest and quickly transforms into He-Man to offer aid. Orko is there, too, for no better reason than to remark to a jealous Squinch, in answer to his spoken wish that he were big like He-Man, that the Trollan's magic can't help him there.

Squinch ponders this comment into the night, long after He-Man has tossed the tree away and departed; and finally gets the truly abysmal idea of getting some magical help - from Skeletor. He sneaks out of the Widgets' fort and over to Snake Mountain, where Beast Man catches the little squirt skulking around and brings him into the bony presence. A surprisingly reasonable Skeletor hears out Squinch's request for help (albeit with much derogatory laughter), but wants to know what's in it for him; when the Widget offers the Evil Warrior a mere handful of depreciated Widget coinage, old Bonehead is ready to slap him in the dungeon. Evil-Lyn, however, has a better idea, which she whispers to her boss. Lyn then hands a pretty little jewelry box to Squinch and asks him to give it to He-Man, promising that she actually really likes He-Man and that he will love the thing that's inside the box (which Squinch is advised not to look at). Once this task has been completed, well, maybe the sorceress can work an embiggening spell on the little runt. An overjoyed Squinch (the poor dope) rushes off to follow the wicked witch's instructions.

Coming right home, Squinch fires off the He-Signal again, and when a (presumably exhausted and sleep-deprived) He-Man shows up on Battle Cat, hands him the box. The unexpecting hero opens it, and he and his tiger are surrounded in a choking cloud of green gas, which sends them both to sleep. Skeletor and crew, who have been gleefully waiting in the bushes, pop out to take their new prisoner back to Snake Mountain in the Basher, pausing only to laugh in their sap's face.

Horrified, a delegation of Widgets rushes off to the palace to alert Teela, Orko, and Man-at-Arms that the protector of Eternia has been put out of action. A guilt-ridden Squinch admits to the collected company that it's all his fault, and comes clean about his deal with Evil-Lyn. Moved to pity by his pure, unadulterated stupidity, the heroes forgive him and get on with a rescue plan. Teela - saddled with the well-meaning "little giants," Orko and Squinch - will penetrate Snake Mountain in a desperate bid to free He-Man, while Man-at-Arms will rally Eternia's royal guard to defend King Randor and the throne (because we all apparently realize that what Skeletor wants today is the kingdom of Eternia, not the secrets of Grayskull).

Teela's stealth mission into the enemy base is discovered almost instantly by Evil-Lyn, who taunts the trio and ties up the captain and Orko. Squinch dodges a blast from Lyn that breaks a tiny hole in the brick wall at his back, behind which (the villain has imprudently revealed) lies He-Man's energy prison. The tiny Widget is the only one small enough to squeeze through the hole (though we could argue that Orko is comparable in stature and has also proven himself capable of flattening to a sheet or rolling into a tiny cylinder), proving that his size is finally helpful - until Lyn, in a cruel ironic twist, grants the Widget his wish and magically transforms him into a giant. Orko quickly reverses the spell, however, and Squinch squiggles through the hole.

On the other side, He-Man directs his rescuer to throw the switch that's powering his cell bars; then the freed hero punches through the brick wall and confronts Evil-Lyn. Lyn decides now would be a great time to check on Skeletor, and opens a portal to the royal palace; but the heroes shove her aside and jump through in her place.

Just how are things going at the royal palace? Well, not so good: the Eternian royal guard - which apparently comprises three soldiers, one of whom was a coward - did not stand up to the attack of Skeletor and his minions, Beast Man and Panthor, and he's got King Randor chained up. Skeletor and his crew quickly respond to the heroes' entrance, even though (through some magical hiccup) the teleportees end up arriving in the palace kitchen. The battle doesn't last long, as the villains essentially stand still and allow themselves to be walled in with rubble from the kitchen walls and roof. Panthor makes a valiant effort, pouncing at He-Man, but the hero grabs the cat and tosses it in with Skeletor and Beast Man, along with a lot of flour and water from the kitchen stores. Orko provides a quick heating spell and - voila! - a loaf of villain bread. Instead of tasting this dubious concoction, He-Man tosses it out the hole in the roof.

Afterwards, He-Man and Squinch meet in a hallway of the palace for a heart-to-heart, where Squinch says that he's learned he is "not the wrong size after all." The actually giant, musclebound oaf agrees, telling the Widget that it's who you are on the inside that counts - making Squinch a metaphorical giant.

End with a Joke: Orko momentarily tricks He-Man and Squinch into thinking he's a giant, by using a spotlight to cast a huge shadow of himself over them. "You're not a giant, Orko," remarks an amused He-Man: "you're just a big clown."

• Squinch: I'm gonna clear this tree away - all by myself. / Kando: The wind must have blown away his brains. Squinch, you're a Widget - you aren't He-Man.
• Evil-Lyn (of Squinch): For one so little, he has a lot of courage. / Beast Man: Or not much sense; even I know better than to ask Skeletor for favors.
• Man-at-Arms (to Squinch): You were too blinded by your own selfishness to see. / Lara: Oh Squinch, you made a mistake - but we still love you. (kisses him)
• Lara: Squinch is gonna rescue He-Man and then you'll be sorry! / Skeletor (cackles): This small one is amusing.
• Skeletor: You'll pay for this, He-Man! / He-Man: So you keep telling me, Skeletor; but when are you going to learn that evil never really can win?
• Squinch: Maybe I'm not the wrong size after all. / He-Man: That's right, Squinch: it's not how big your body is that counts, but how big you are - inside. And by those standards, you're a real giant.

• Evil-Lyn, hands on hips, laughs with her head thrown back: Laying some major BS on Squinch
• Evil-Lyn laughs, head back: A couple of times, enjoying the success of her trap; and later, celebrating having tied up Teela and Orko
• Skeletor laughs, head back: At Lara's seemingly empty threats
• He-Man punches the viewer: To break through a brick wall in Snake Mountain

One partial (missing Cringer/Battle Cat sequence), one full

Brought to you by Squinch and Orko
In a rare bestowing of the PSA duties on a non-toy-based character, Squinch the Widget advises us of the lesson he learned this episode: that we shouldn't care about our body shape, but how we are inside and how we act. With little basis in fact and absolutely no proof, Squinch theorizes there are a lot of people out in the world "who'd like to be just like you." Orko shows up to heartily agree.

Appearance of the Widgets

• The Widgets - again? Yep, it's the second episode in a row to feature the little guys; and they are once again making use of the He-Signal to call He-Man, this time just because there's a tree down in their front yard. Don't they know any landscapers? Squinch later uses the signal again, with even less cause.
• We get another look at Prince Adam in his pajamas: a simple white wife-beater and matching pair of shorts. He's in his bedroom, last seen in MU083 (though Adam wasn't in it at the time). The last time we saw Adam in his pajamas was way back in MU066, at the beginning of the season (though he was also sporting some golden bracers then).
• For only the second time in the series (the first time being MU043), we are shown the secret panel in Adam's room behind which he keeps his power sword.
• Skeletor demonstrates here a laser cage which is actually capable of keeping He-Man imprisoned - something he's barely ever been able to do. (In fact, recall He-Man's boast in MU081's "The Arena" that Skeletor hasn't "invented the trap yet that can hold me.") Maybe we can assume that our hero is still a trifle weakened from Evil-Lyn's magical gas.
• Panthor appears for the first time this season - indeed, for the first time since MU042, when he was amusingly acting as a jailer for some chained minions. This time he hangs around long enough to be rudely manhandled by He-Man (He-Man-handled?).
• Evil-Lyn claims that her "magic crystal" informed her of the heroes' approach. We've never seen her consulting such a thing before! She also shows the ability to conjure ropes (which we have seen her do before, in MU022), make a space portal, and - ironically enough - actually make Squinch bigger.
• Skeletor freezes people with his havoc staff, something he also did in the recent MU087.
• Note that Skeletor takes the throne from Randor and chains up the king, but the queen is nowhere to be seen. Where is Marlena? Was she taking a nap?
• We end up in the royal palace's kitchen, which has been visited before (for instance in MU071, when Teela was trying to bake a cake). The backgrounds seem different than in previous visits, leading us to assume there's been a makeover - and they'll need another one after this episode, since He-Man and Teela wreck the place!

• You might think that there should be some evidence of the Widgets' new mayor, Jacob the fisherman, in their fort; but in fact, based on air dates, this episode was actually shown before MU091, in which Jacob was elected to that office.
• Anyone with knowledge of Widget history should be very confused by Squinch's unquestioning trust in Evil-Lyn. This is the same Widget who was tricked by the sorceress in MU012, discovering the flirty "Nadira" was Lyn in disguise and was only after his coridite. Squinch should know better on multiple counts here - really, why go to Skeletor in the first place with any expectation of positive results?? It's hard to retain any respect for old Squinchy after watching the opening minutes of this episode.
• You'd think that, rather than trying Skeletor and Evil-Lyn, Squinch's first thought would be to visit the Sorceress at Grayskull; but we are in the midst of a lengthy Sorceress drought. The character hasn't appeared since MU083's "Into the Abyss" - a nine-episode run! (We won't see her back in the picture until MU094.)
• Instead of moving on Grayskull after he's captured He-Man, Skeletor announces his intention to visit the royal palace and wrest the throne from King Randor - a somewhat odd choice showing the villain's vacillating ambitions. (On a related note, see my calculations on how many times Skeletor has actually tried to conquer Grayskull, in the lore section for MU085.) Even stranger, Man-at-Arms, learning of He-Man's capture, immediately concludes that the royal palace will be Skeletor's target rather than Grayskull.
• Home invasion strikes again! "I discovered this secret entrance to Snake Mountain long ago," says Teela, leading the heavy-hitters Orko and Squinch inside on a rescue mission. Possibly she's entering the same way she did in MU068, when a solo Teela managed to spy on an Evil Warrior conference without being detected - she's not nearly so lucky this time. Or perhaps she's using the secret entrance that Zanthor showed He-Man in MU062's "Golden Disks of Knowledge" - though that's unlikely given that we don't see any waterfalls. Also missing here are any alarm systems, like the ones Skeletor has used in the past (MU066, MU062, MU052, MU029, MU015 - this list of only the times people broke into Snake Mountain and there was an alarm system in place should give you an idea of just how often the characters are breaking into each other's bases!).
• Maybe Eternia needs to review their hiring practices for the royal guards: after one roar from Panthor, the guard at Duncan's side declares, "It's no use, Man-at-Arms! They're too strong for us," and runs. Way to defend king and country, nimrod!
• Skeletor brings an oddly skimpy army to conquer the royal palace, apparently under the (as it turns out accurate) impression that without He-Man, he won't need much help to take over. He takes out the royal guard and chains up the king with only Panthor and Beast Man at his side.
• Earlier in the episode, Orko made a comment about his magic being unable to make Squinch big. It was, in fact, this comment that gave Squinch the terrible idea that sets the plot in motion. But then when Evil-Lyn has made the Widget oversized, Orko is easily able to make Squinch smaller again. Do you just do shrinking, Orko, and not the reverse?
• "Come on everyone," Orko declares, "my magic will lead us right to the palace!" But the heroes don't appear to need Orko's magic at all, as they simply dive through the space portal that Evil-Lyn has already opened. On the other end of the portal, we see the kind of result that Orko's magic would normally produce, as the heroes end up in a cabinet of the royal kitchen. So was this Lyn's fault, or Orko's? It's unclear.
• The way the final battle in the kitchen is animated, the villains seem strangely lethargic and unresisting: they just stand around and let He-Man and friends wall them in and bake them into a loaf of bread. It's almost like they wanted to see what would happen to them this time. It is an unusual result! Wouldn't you like to know how it feels to be made into a loaf of bread?