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35. Sword In The Hole
William Overgard
Reviewed by Purrsia Pretty damn good, but not quite purrrfect

Panthro picks up a distress call from a ship called the Vertis, and so Lion-O, Snarf and Cheetara go to investigate in the Feliner. After getting no response from the crew on radio, they pull up beside the Vertis so Lion-O and Snarf can jump on board. Once inside, the ship is all but deserted. That is, until Lion-O finds a dining hall with a cup of hot coffee still on the table. For whatever reason, he sniffs the drink and promptly faints. Snarf follows suit. When they come to, they find they've been taken prisoner by the ship's captain, Shiner.
Though a mechanical arm on the Vertis tries to grab the Feliner, Cheetara breaks free. Worried that she's lost contact with Lion-O, she returns to Third Earth to get Panthro.

In the meantime, Lion-O is devastated to learn Shiner has the Sword and was smart enough to blind the Eye so Lion-O can't summon it. But why? Shiner's a mercenary, that's why. And who was he hired by? Mumm-Ra of course. Mumm-Ra delights in watching Lion-O squirm as he chants over the sword and then drops it into space where it's swallowed by a black hole. Afterwards, Mumm-Ra leaves and Shiner puts Lion-O and Snarf to slave labor in the engine room.

Before the Vertis can take off, Cheetara returns and drops off Panthro who, thanks to Shiner's gloating over the ship's intercom, knows right where to find his friends. Panthro rescues them easy enough but Lion-O regretfully tells him that the Sword is lost forever. But, where Lion-O has given up hope, Panthro has a plan.

A short while later, the 'Cats manage to commandeer the ship and order Shiner to steer it into the black hole. Luckily, Panthro's theory is right and they are not destroyed in the journey despite a large amount of turbulence. What they find inside amounts to an intergalactic junk yard, as if the black hole literally served as a giant vacuum with which to cleanse outer space of junk satellites, disabled ships, etc. They soon find what appears to be the command center and land.

However, instead of finding a person to be reasoned with, they're greeted by a computer called N.E.P.T.U.N.E. (Navy Engineer's Power Tower Under Nuclear Energy) that not only refuses to surrender the Sword of Omens but will not allow them to leave either. They're then forced into a room that serves as the retired space sailor's rest. Lion-O sits there sulking until Jaga appears to tell him to just call the sword already. Though Lion-O whines about the Eye being asleep, Jaga urges him to try anyway as the Eye sleeps only until needed. And of course, it works. Now they can escape confinement, and if Panthro can tinker with the computer controls enough, they can reverse the pull that dragged them in there and have it push them out.

Meanwhile, Cheetara is almost out of fuel and fears her friends lost forever in the black hole. Though Tygra urges her to return home before she runs out of fuel, she can't bring herself to leave. And lucky for the others she didn't, as shortly thereafter she comes upon the three of them floating and high-fiving in space. Sure, the Vertis was destroyed and presumably Shiner with it (although, he was shown to have escaped), but they made it out in one piece. Overall not too bad for an Overgard episode.

Fave Quote:

"Your friend talks to himself?" - Shiner to Panthro, thinking Lion-O's nuts as he chats away with a Jaga nobody else can see.

"It's no use resisting - you can't argue with a computer." - Panthro, resigned to N.E.P.T.U.N.E.'s ruling.

"I demand officer's quarters!" - Shiner, trying to negotiate with the computer anyway.
Canon Facts of Note:

**This episode is the first appearance of Captain Shiner. I think the only other place he's featured is briefly in the ThunderCats HO! movie.

**Who knew ThunderCats need no protective suits - or oxygen - in space. Yay Overgardian science!

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