Tears of the Sea

Beastmaster Episode Review

In which Dar needs new friends.

What Happened

Dar and Tao go to witness the manhood ceremony of one of Dar's old friends. Afterwards, Tusi's father feels the need to tell Tusi what really happened to his mother years ago: she drowned and her sister took over raising Tusi. The young man is upset and runs off, accidentally witnessing a murder while wandering around the jungle.

The killer spots Tusi and chases him over a cliff, where he falls to his death in the sea. Investigating, Dar goes for a swim and runs into a dolphin, who turns out to be Tusi's mother, transformed by the Sorceress' magic. Sanu explains that her son has been similarly transformed and they are now the tribe's protectors.

Dar manages to trick the killer into revealing himself, and when Gilan tries to escape in Tao's sailboat, he falls overboard and is killed by Suna and Tusi.

What We Learned

• Black pearls are bad luck. (Actually, we kind of already knew that because of that Scott O'Dell book we had to read in grade school.)
• So are sharks.
• There's always a guy who doesn't believe in the legends anymore because of the Tragic Death of a Loved One.
• Tao is a man who has learned to make the wind his friend.
• Kyra's mother was born in this village. They returned here after the Sula were killed. (This explains why she and Dar don't look like they came from the same tribe, and also where she grew up.)
• Tao's initiation involved reciting the many legends of his people. It took many suns. Some of the village elders fell asleep.
• Learning to trust yourself is the greatest leap into manhood.
• Goat's stomachs are excellent.
• Tao is very pale.
• Create fear and a weak animal will run.
• Gilan's a pretty good sailor for someone who's never actually seen a sailboat before.
• Pay attention to the crazy people.

Best Lines

Tao: "It's amazing what you can learn from someone everyone thinks is crazy."
Dar: "True. It's amazing what I've learned from you."
Tao: "Yeah. ... Huh?"

What Did I Think?

Good story with interesting guest characters. I would have like to have learned more about the Sorceress' interest in all this, and more than just a throw-away line about Kyra's past, but I guess you can't have everything.