TV Review – Masters of the Universe 200X – Episode 20: “Buzz-Off’s Pride”

Posted on February 8, 2023 in Reviews, TV

Original Air Date: 22nd March 2003
Writer(s): Christy Marx, Randall Littlejohn
Director: Gary Hartle

“What’s going on here?”

”None of your business, now buzz off.”

“That’s LORD Buzz-Off to you!”

This is probably one of the most Filmation-y episodes we’ve had so far in the 200X series, and centers around a trio of cartoony giants trying to steal a magic gem that makes fruit and veg deliciously ripe. Yup. Early in the episode, Buzz-Off crosses paths with one of them on a fruit collecting mission, and gets well and truly mocked and slapped around for his trouble. The remainder of the show sees the Andreenid leader trying (and failing) to control his temper about the incident, and – as the title may suggest – continually letting his pride get in the way.

It might just be me, but Buzz-Off hasn’t exactly been the most likeable character since his first appearance, and has pretty much been bickering with, sniping at or generally mistrusting everyone he comes into contact with. As such, having him as the central protagonist for this latest episode is more than a little underwhelming, and to be honest, his actions here don’t exactly change that initial perception of him.

Interestingly, it’s probably the giants themselves who provide the most entertainment value here, despite being little more than hulking, destructive plot devices. The sequence with them making their move on Veridas and the The Crystal of Prasinus is a ton of action-packed fun, and the writers’ choice of having Ram-Man joining He-Man and Buzz-Off in their attempts to save the day only ramps up the carnage. They also look fairly cool, if a lot more cartoony than the usual villains we’ve seen to this point.

It’s also, interestingly, the second consecutive episode where Skeletor and the rest of the Evil Warriors are entirely absent. I’m not entirely sure what the thought process was behind this decision, although knowing what’s on the horizon, it may simply be an attempt to flesh out the ranks of Skeletor’s upcoming ‘Council of Evil’, but more on that later…

This is a fun enough episode in principle, but the ropey choice of lead character ended up sapping a lot of the enjoyment out of the proceedings – for me, at least. The leader of the giants, Azdar, provides some good comedy value with his incessant belittling of Buzz-Off, and I suppose there’s a solid enough moral message at the story’s core about not letting your negative emotions get the better of you, but compared to some of the absolute bangers we’ve been getting recently (not to mention the episode that’s right around the corner) this feels like a bit of a waste of time, if I’m honest.

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