The Minotaur

Beastmaster Episode Review

In which there is a monster.

What Happened

Zad announces that the local villages will sacrifice five men and five women each month to his new pet: the Minotaur, a gift from the Ancient One. His Terron warriors are also out scouring for monster-bait, and they snatch Tao and dump him into the labyrinth.

Dar manages to follow Tao in. While the interested Sorceress looks on, he finds and frees a young woman named Melora, who tells him that the Minotaur is not evil. A miserable half-beast, he is cursed with the desire for human flesh. Deciding to intervene, the Sorceress appears to Dar and promises to help him if he will bring the Minotaur to her.

Also trying to get his hands on the Minotaur is the slaver Baha. He stops them in the forest, threatening to kill Melora if Dar doesn't tell the Minotaur to come with him. The Sorceress appears again, transforming the Minotaur into a man and sending him to safety with Melora.

After sending Baha back to his empty life, the Sorceress promises Dar that they will meet again and vanishes.

What We Learned

• Don't mouth off at the nasty soldiers, particularly before the opening credits. It only draws their attention and gets you fed to the Evil Beast of the Week.
• Baha needs to get a life. Really.
• Tao's worried about what the Terrons are doing in the Mydlands, but is glad they aren't waiting for them to wake up so they can ask.
• Normal life is banal, boring. It's the little things, dark corners and mutations, that spice things up.
• Magnificence should be with those that appreciate it, otherwise, it's wasted.
• Tao is trained in several forms of deadly combat. Sort of.
• Fortunate or otherwise, most people are fools.
• Steven Grives really does make Zad more interesting than the average warlord.
• The Ancient One is curious to see how one wretched life reacts to another.
• The Ancient One doesn't take the Sorceress seriously.
• Don't leave the defenseless damsels out in the forest unprotected when there are bad guys wandering around.
• Needs and desires are imperfections in the Ancient One's world.

Note

Another example of shifting around airdates: Last episode, in "The Slayer," Baha talks about Zuraya, mentioning that Zad once requested "An angel from the heavens." In this episode, we hear Zad derisively telling Baha that he doesn't need shiny stones, but perhaps Baha can find him an angel.

What Did I Think?

The Minotaur is not at all what's expected. Unexpected is good. The biggest problem are all the scenes of Tao whirling around at sounds the audience can't hear, looking at empty tunnels the Minotaur is definitely not popping out of. Not interesting.

That, and the fact that I never could figure out how Dar was getting in and out of the labyrinth past the world's most idiotic guards.