Diamond Ray of Disappearance


 * For the artifact of the same name, see The Diamond Ray of Disappearance

Diamond Ray of Disappearance is a first season episode of the animated television series He-Man and the Masters of the Universe, produced in 1983. It was the first episode to be screened (airing on September 5, 1983) but was the fourth episode in the production order.

The episode focuses on Skeletor's discovery of the legendary "Diamond Ray of Disappearance", a jewel that sends who or whatever it is aimed at into another dimension.

"Diamond Ray of Disappearance" was written by Robby London and directed by Lou Zukor and despite its place in the production order it is made clear on screen that it is intended as an introduction to the show. At the beginning Skeletor summons many of his recurring minions to Snake Mountain and introduces them to the audience. Despite this introduction to the forces of evil, no such introductions are given to the heroes, although Stratos and Ram Man are both brought in for the final confrontation so that all of the main characters can be introduced.

Synopsis
Within Snake Mountain, Skeletor introduces Beast Man to his latest acquisition, the Diamond Ray of Disappearance. Skeletor then commands his minion to activate the Transport Beam, a ray that teleports the rest of Skeletor's warriors to the fortress. Once Mer-Man, Evil-Lyn, Tri-Klops and Trap jaw have arrived, Skeletor demonstrates the specific powers of the Diamond Ray by making a nearby creature vanish, before informing the Evil Warriors that he will use the ray to take over Eternia.

Meanwhile, at the Royal Palace, Orko is entertaining King Randor, Queen Marlena, Prince Adam, Man-At-Arms and Teela with his egg trick. Teela hears laser fire and rushes to the window, where she spies Trap Jaw on a War-Sled attacking the palace. While Teela and the Royal Guard pursue Trap Jaw, Prince Adam and Cringer leave the palace and transform into He-Man and Battle Cat. Teela confronts Trap Jaw, who soon gets the upper hand until He-Man arrives and defeats the villain by destroying his current arm attachment.

Meanwhile, Skeletor and his forces launch an assault on the now-defenseless Royal Palace. Skeletor demonstrates the Diamond Ray on a nearby falcon, not knowing that it is Zoar, before sending Man-At-Arms, King Randor and Queen Marlena to another dimension; only Orko manages to escape to warn He-Man.

He-Man journeys to Castle Grayskull and contacts the Sorceress through her magic viewing glass. She reveals that the Diamond must be crushed, just as the Evil Warriors manage to break their way into the castle. He-Man holds off the Evil Warriors with the aid of Battle Cat until Teela, Ram Man, and Stratos can join him.

The Evil Warriors fall one by one at the hands of the Heroic Warriors, but Skeletor keeps a safe distance. After destroying a horde of Hover Robots, He-Man confronts the villain, and when Skeletor attempts to use the Diamond Ray on him, deflects the blast with the Sword of Power, causing Skeletor to drop the diamond into a crevice in the ground. He-Man widens the crack and pulls out the magical stone. He begins to squeeze it, but starts to fade into the other dimension. Just in the nick of time, he manages to break it; He-Man returns to normal and his friends are safely transported back to Eternia. Skeletor leaves, vowing revenge.

Much later at the Royal Palace, everyone is waiting for Prince Adam to come to the throne room on time. Unfortunately, he rides in on a broken Zoom Chariot, making a sizable hole in the palace wall.

Moral
He-Man: "In today's story, Skeletor was looking for a shortcut, a quick way to riches and power. You may know some people like that, always looking for a quick way to get ahead of everybody else. Well, it doesn't work that way. The people who succeed are the ones who work for what they want. So don't be fooled by those who say they have a sure thing. There's always a catch to it. Don't sell yourself short. The right way is the best way. Until later."

Heroic Warriors

 * Prince Adam/He-Man
 * Cringer/Battle Cat (non-speaking role)
 * Man-At-Arms
 * Orko
 * Ram Man (non-speaking role)
 * Sorceress
 * Stratos (non-speaking role)
 * Teela
 * Zoar

Allies

 * King Randor
 * Royal Guards
 * Queen Marlena

Evil Warriors

 * Beast Man
 * Evil-Lyn
 * Mer-Man
 * Panthor
 * Skeletor
 * Trap Jaw
 * Tri-Klops

Locations

 * Eternos
 * Royal Palace
 * Castle Grayskull
 * Snake Mountain

Vehicles

 * Battle Ram (mentioned)
 * Sky-Sled
 * War-Sled
 * Zoom Chariot

Technology

 * Hover Robots

Artifacts

 * The Diamond Ray of Disappearance

Cast

 * John Erwin as Prince Adam / He-Man and Beast Man
 * Alan Oppenheimer as Skeletor, Man-At-Arms, Cringer and Mer-Man
 * Linda Gary as Teela, Evil-Lyn, the Sorceress and Queen Marlena
 * Lou Scheimer (credited as Erik Gunden) as Orko, King Randor, Trap-Jaw and Tri-Klops

Behind the Scenes

 * Script was approved on November 30, 1982 and final script revision was completed July 12, 1983.
 * The initial designs for the character of He-Man during early production were based on that of Hercules from Filmation's 1977 cartoon Space Sentinels.
 * He-Man tells Teela to 'Put your Battle Ram in high gear and head back home' even though she arrived on a Sky Sled. This line made more sense in the original script in which Teela did arrive on a complete Battle Ram instead of just the front part.
 * In the original cut, there were a couple of extra scenes after King Randor, Queen Marlena and Man-At-Arms disappear. The vase that Orko levitated earlier falls on Orko's head, deflecting a ray of disappearance meant for him. Orko then manages to escape through a window. Outside, he crashes into a tree, breaking the vase and he teleports away to warn He-Man.
 * This is one of the three stories edited into the direct-to-video movie 'The Greatest Adventures of All' which had a special premiere at Mann's Chinese Theatre in Los Angeles. The other two adventures being Teela's Quest & Colossor Awakes.

Continuity

 * As the first broadcast episode most of the important characters from the series are introduced, along with the places and concepts that will define the series. Unlike later episodes which show Castle Grayskull as having a number of mystic defences, however, this early episode sees Skeletor being able to enter the castle with only a grappling hook and magic from his axe.
 * The original five Evil Warriors summoned by Skeletor will only appear together as a group twice more: in Prince Adam No More and Three on a Dare.
 * Part of the animation seen during Evil-Lyn introduction will be seen again on Skeletor's viewer in Castle of Heroes.
 * Orko's egg trick would be seen again as part of a flashback in The Secret of Grayskull.
 * The footage of Man-At-Arms arguing with Orko with his arms folded was used again in Here, There, Skeletors Everywhere.
 * Part of Trap Jaw's aerial attack on the Royal Palace was used again in Quest for He-Man.
 * The shot of the three Eternian towers exploding would be seen again in Quest for He-Man and Return of the Gryphon.
 * The animated sequence of Prince Adam leaping into the bushes to become He-Man with Cringer meekly following him, is seen again in The Taking of Grayskull.
 * The animated sequences of Teela running, leaping onto a Sky Sled and taking off is re-purposed from a scene in which Andrea Steele does the in Visitors from Earth.
 * Most of the footage of He-Man arriving at Castle Grayskull and commanding the Jaw-bridge to lower was seen again in Double Edged Sword.
 * The fight sequence between He-Man and Beast Man was previously seen in The Cosmic Comet, although it was originally animated for this episode.
 * He-Man's dodge and throw of Mer-Man would be reused in Evil-Lyn's Plot and again during his fight scene with a Gorgon in A Tale of Two Cities and against Ollo in The Time Corridor.
 * The shot of He-Man struggling to break free from Tri-Klops' grasp would be reused in A Tale of Two Cities with Garn trying to break free from He-Man and in It's Not My Fault, when Rago's guard tries to escape from Man-At-Arm's grip.
 * He-Man's reaction to the rock creature and his subsequent fighting stance were used again in Evil-Lyn's Plot.
 * The animation of Orko wiggling his fingers is seen again in A Friend in Need.
 * Teela's shocked expression as she confronts Trap Jaw will be seen again in Wizard of Stone Mountain when a disguised Lokus tells her about Mallek.
 * The sequence of Teela putting her hand to her mouth and giggling will be seen again in The Return of Orko's Uncle.
 * The shot of He-Man turning to Teela after using his sword will be used again in Revenge is Never Sweet.
 * The Diamond Ray of Disappearance briefly appears again in the 2002 He-Man and the Masters of the Universe episode Turnabout.
 * The animated sequence of Man-At-Arms igniting his light saber, only to have it blasted out of his hand will be seen again in the episode The Gamesman.
 * Footage of the Royal Guards on their Sky-Sleds is reused from with bare legs instead of the usual green leggings is seen again in the episode The Time Wheel.

Errors

 * As King Randor and Queen Marlena assure Man-At-Arms he shouldn't be worried about Teela, the royal couple is standing further away from each other in the overhead shot but very close together in the next close-up shot.
 * When Zoar/The Sorceress is speaking telepathically with Man-At-Arms, Orko has five fingers on his hand instead of the usual four.
 * In the shot of Stratos and Ram Man's first appearance, Orko is missing the letter 'O' on his tunic.
 * When Ram Man attacks Skeletor's Hover Robots, the same Evergreen Forest background is used in both shots.
 * When Stratos ties up Evil-Lyn in her own cape, his beard disappears for a few frames.
 * Near the end, He-Man is widening a crack in the ground into which the Diamond Ray of Disappearance has fallen. But the crack remains the same width. It is only implied to change by a slight camera move to the right and He-Man's legs moving.
 * During the epilogue, when Man-At-Arms is standing next to the royal thrones, his hands are flesh colored instead of green.

The He-Man and She-Ra Blog

 * A brief review #005 - "Diamond Ray of Disappearance"
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 * FILMATION ART: Royal Palace interior.
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 * FILMATION ART: Skeletor's axe.
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 * TWENTY-SEVEN years ago at 4.20pm...
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