Mekaneck's Lament

 is the 12th episode of the 2002 He-Man and the Masters of the Universe series. It originally aired on November 22, 2002.

Summary
Near Castle Grayskull the Masters are fighting Skeletor and his warriors. The battle is heated with Mekaneck's neck injured during a clash with Tri-Klops. Man-At-Arms issues the command to retreat, leaving the Evil Warriors to access the bridge that leads into Castle Grayskull. Mekaneck is told to stay back and act as reconnaissance, as the combined strength of the other Masters manage to destroy the bridge.

Back at the Royal Palace Prince Adam notices that Mekaneck is looking depressed. Mekaneck reveals just how useless he believes his own powers to be. Adam remarks that he was the one who located He-Man and King Randor when they were trapped in the abyss. Feeling better about himself Mekaneck visits Man-At-Arms to have his neck repaired. Later Adam bumps into Mekaneck leaving Man-At-Arms' lab, and notices that he is once again depressed. Man-At-Arms shows Adam his new invention, a reconnaissance device which Adam realizes must be the sorce Mekaneck's depression. A glum Mekaneck skims stones over a lake when he sees a small raft piloted by an old man heading his way. Mekaneck assists the man and reveals that he wishes that he had better powers. The old man states that he could grant him his wish but informs Mekaneck that he'd first have to retrieve an Amulet from the Sands of Fire as a way of payment. An unhesitant Mekaneck agrees to help the old man and begins his journey.

At Castle Grayskull the Sorceress tells Adam that the evil Count Marzo has returned. She tells him how many years ago Count Marzo attacked the Hall of Wisdom. Fortunately for Eternia, Captain Miro, father of King Randor, and his army managed to defeat Count Marzo. He was exiled to the Dark Hemisphere, while the Amulet, the source of his magical power, was placed far beyond the reach of man in the Sands of Fire.

At the Sands of Fire Mekaneck manages to retrieve the Amulet thanks in part to his neck-stretching abilities. Back at the lake Mekaneck hands the Amulet to the old man. The old man turns ignoring Mekaneck, and walks across the surface of the lake and vanishes in a flash of light. Out of sight the old man uses the Amulet to assume his true form as Count Marzo. He decides that the Royal Palace would be the best place to start exacting his revenge.

The Sorceress prompts Adam to transform into He-Man telling him that Count Marzo is in the Evergreen Forest. The pair immediately come face-to-face with Marzo, but with his Amulet and his savage hounds Marzo effortlessly defeats them. Marzo continues to make his way through the Royal Palace with great ease defeating the Masters that confront him. As Marzo gets closer to the throne room his hounds exhale a smoke that places all the any remaining defenders into unconsciousness.

Mekaneck making his way back to the Royal Palace and is shocked when Orko tells him of an evil wizard attacking Eternia. Orko manages to wake He-Man, as Mekaneck heroically charges towards the Palace. Using his neck-stretching ability Mekaneck is able to avoid the smoke clouds and catch up with Count Marzo in a matter of seconds.

Count Marzo recognizes Mekaneck, and begins to attack him just as He-Man appears. He-Man manages to distract Count Marzo long enough for Mekaneck to retrieve the Amulet and pass it to He-Man. He-Man throws the Amulet far away, into the seas of Eternia, as Count Marzo is captured by Mekaneck. Using his Sword of Power He-Man creates a tornado that sucks all of the smoke clouds up and into the skies where they disperse. He-Man comments that Mekaneck's neck is special, and Mekaneck realizes that he should have listened when Adam said the same thing.

Moral
He-Man: "Everybody's special. We each have our own unique talents and abilities. So instead of wanting to be like others, try and be the best you that you can be. Until next time."

Heroic Warriors

 * Battle Cat
 * Cringer
 * He-Man
 * Prince Adam
 * King Randor (non speaking role)
 * Man-At-Arms
 * Man-E-Faces
 * Mekaneck
 * Orko
 * Ram-Man
 * Stratos
 * Teela

Allies

 * Captain Miro (appears in flashback)
 * Council of Elders (appear in flashback)
 * Queen Marlena (non speaking role)
 * Sorceress

Evil Warriors

 * Beastman (non speaking role)
 * Clawful
 * Evil-Lyn
 * Skeletor
 * Trap Jaw
 * Tri-Klops (non speaking role)
 * Whiplash (non speaking role)

Villains

 * Count Marzo

Locations

 * Castle Grayskull
 * Eternos
 * Evergreen Forest
 * Hall of Wisdom
 * Sands of Fire
 * Snake Mountain
 * Valley of Geryon (mentioned)

Vehicles

 * Battle Hawk
 * Hoverboard

Artifacts

 * Basophil Amulet

Cast

 * Cam Clarke as He-Man/Prince Adam
 * Kathleen Baar as Evil-Lyn
 * Lisa Ann Beley as Teela
 * Garry Chalk as Man-At-Arms
 * Brian Dobson as Skeletor
 * Paul Dobson as Man-E-Faces and Trap-Jaw
 * Michael Donovan as Count Marzo and Captain Miro
 * Gabe Khouth as Orko and Mekaneck
 * Scott McNeil as Stratos and Ram-Man
 * Nicole Oliver as Sorceress

Trivia

 * This episode marks the first appearance of Count Marzo in the 2002 series.
 * When Mattycollector released an action figure of Count Marzo in 2010, it was modelled after his 2002 appearance rather than his orignal look from the Filmation series.