Episode X - Jack and the Lava Monster
- Episode aired Nov 5, 2001
- TV-Y7
- 22m
IMDb RATING
8.6/10
921
YOUR RATING
Having made his way through a cave filled with booby-traps, Samurai Jack faces a giant lava monster that used to be a viking warrior in days long past.Having made his way through a cave filled with booby-traps, Samurai Jack faces a giant lava monster that used to be a viking warrior in days long past.Having made his way through a cave filled with booby-traps, Samurai Jack faces a giant lava monster that used to be a viking warrior in days long past.
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Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaThe viking's human form was a warrior with a lavender outfit and a blond mullet, giving him a resemblance to He-Man from He-Man and the Masters of the Universe (1983).
Featured review
"Do not worry, I have not yet begun to fight!"
While journeying through a cold desolate windblown tundra, Jack hears an eerie voice in the distance that challenges and calls out to him. Mistaking it for a "familiar evil" when he sees the scorched landscape nearby, the samurai races to find the source of the voice, which leads him all the way through a treacherous underground volcanic death maze, and when he eventually meets the Lord of the volcano, a hulking behemoth of living rock and crystal that immediately attack him with a mace and a huge steel sword that he moulds from his own arms. And at first Jack defends himself until he wounds the beast, which then states that he's finally found a worthy opponent, and Jack then refuses to fight for no reason and is even willing to let himself be struck down until the strange being shows him a vision of the distant past which reveals why it's so vital that they fight by the honourable code of the warrior. And it's a different kind of a battle in this one because although what Jack is facing may look like a monstrous brute it's actually a very noble soul that's fighting for its very peace in the afterlife long denied by a cruel curse placed upon him long ago when he was a mighty human warrior not too different from Jack who fell foul of Aku's evil magic one fateful day after being helpless to watch as his kingdom was destroyed. Only instead of being sent into the far future, the Viking prince was condemned to spend eternity imprisoned in the heart of the volcano, which over the long centuries he gradually became a part of and could manipulate as an extension of himself, and so he forged the deadly labyrinth inside the volcano as a way to ensure that only the very strongest of warriors could stand any chance of reaching him and hopefully defeating him in honourable combat, which will break the spell. The lava warrior puts up a great fight and lasts a lot longer than most who dare to cross blades with Jack, but the battle can only really end one way and defeating the warrior is really an act of mercy, and the 'monster' falls but is triumphant because he's finally free to pass on to the Norse heaven of Valhalla. And it's a bittersweet happy ending as his lava body explodes and he's briefly restored to a mighty young warrior once again before he quickly withers into a man so old that he can no longer hold onto his own sword... The ancient warrior thanks Jack and passes away. The samurai then watches in awe as horse riding Valkyries descend on a ray of light and carry him up into Valhalla, and his cheesy grin of happiness that he gives as they're doing so is priceless! Before leaving Jack honours the warrior's memory one last time by finishing the legend story on the obelisk and etching out an image of him restored alongside the word "Free." This is a straightforward episode but I love it, it turns what Jack's enemy is supposed to be on its head in an interesting way and the end of the story had a flawless delivery, and you feel all the emotion of it. I love all of the fiery atmosphere and all of the sequence of Jack making his way through the many pitfalls of the volcano, a sequence where he can't go back but can only run forward for his life through a gauntlet of lava, spikes and chomping stone teeth. It feels very much like a classic video game fire level! I also love the little touch of comic relief when Jack hovers in midair for a moment before plummeting downward. It's a bit cartoony but it fits right in. I also love the animation style of the flashback that's told in images that look like scratch drawings on a rock. And the episode is solid as one too as for me everything that's in it comes together to make a little story that's perfectly excellent. Brilliant stuff, what a show man. x
- Foreverisacastironmess123
- Dec 29, 2016
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Details
- Runtime22 minutes
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