Time is Running Out/Get Past the Tenth Planet

Time is Running Out

The planet Drule is still falling apart, and Mozak's voiceover laments the environmental collapse.  Then the tea party members of the Drule council make fun of him.  Zeppo talks with Throk's voice and complains about the rebels.  Mozak tries to explain who the rebels are and what they're after, but Throk cuts him off and tells him about their new super weapon.  Mozak gives him an awesome "Another one?"  Then a guard comes and tells them a battalion has been defeated by the rebels.  Throk comes up wioth the brilliant idea that they must be getting weapons from the Galaxy Alliance, based on no evidence whatsoever.

Dorma and Baki watch wounded rebel fighters make their way back to the stronghold.  Dorma vows to work from the inside.  She brings up Mozak as their best hope, and promises to arrange a meeting.

A Drule base on another planet in the Drule solar system is under Captain Larro.  He is told that the Voltron force is approaching, and he orders the magnamines released.

Crick vectors the team in, and Jeff comments on how quiet it is.  Then they get a distress signal--Crick's picked up the approaching mines.  Jeff's doing some weird "Challenge, stage 1" thing.  The mines swarm around the subunits and they shoot them down, but one attaches to Ginger's mecha.  The air team disconnects, but it stays attached to her fighter.  She's starts to freak out.  The other air team mecha try ramming her ship, but it doesn't work.  Cliff tries to pry it off with a utility arm, but now the others have to cover the Turbo Terrain Fighter.  Jeff sends Cliff and Crick through the minefield to the planet.

Captain Larro watches, and decides not to detonate the mine--he wants her to return to the Explorer.  And he somehow knows it's a her.

Ginger's having a freakout, and tells them about a ship that blow up when she was a kid and gave her nightmares for years. 

Captain Larro gloats.  Then the radar operator points out two ships have disappeared, and Jeff announces "Challenge Phase 4."

The land team flies in low over the planet's surface, and they see remote laser blasters.  Hutch starts shooting, and alerts Larro to their presence.  Larro takes it well; he detonates the mine on Ginger's ship.  Her mecha FALLS IN SPACE and the air team follow, with more mines in their wake. 

Ginger manages to pull up and crashland on the Explorer.  Garro is sure there will be no voltron without her mecha.  Then he deploys more magnamines after the Land and Sea Teams.  Crick was apparently underwater somewhere.  They surface and lead the mines away.

Hawkins is notified that the other teams are retreating.  The rest of the air team is clustered around the unconscious Ginger in her hospital bad.  And . . . she has amnesia, and she's reverted to the time the ship blew up when she was a child.  Hoo, boy.

Hawkins runs onto the bridge, followed by Jeff.  He's upset.  Cliff and Crick leave the planet.  Larro's XO offers to release the robeast, and Garro really likes that idea.

Mozak is being driven to his office--which looks like his house from the earlier episode.  He walks to the front door, and Dorma and Baki approach him.  He recognizes Baki and Mozak gets the two of them out of sight.  Dorma explains her position, and Mozak says he should have Baki arrested, prompting Baki to draw a weapon on him.  Dorma forces him to lower it, and then begs her father to help ON HER KNEES.  Mozak's middle name is apparently Zod.

The Explorer sends the remnants of the Air Team, Jeff rallies the others in Ginger's room, and Ginger recognizes him.  She refuses to be left behind--it would be too much like her traumatic childhood event.

The other teams are facing the robeast.  The air team launches, and she exhibits some pretty horrible TBI symptoms.  They aren't improved any when she crashes into the robeast and spirals out of control with the 'beast chasing her.  Jeff bails her out and gives her the chance to go back, but she is adamant.  The other teams separate, and they form Voltron.  Ginger has a scary moment docking her mecha to Voltron. 

Voltron forms the blazing sword--and is immediately covered with magnamines.  Hawkins is angry that they brought Ginger.  Jeff apologizes, and says she has something to prove to herself.  Then Voltron cuts his way through the mines.  They fight the robeast, and Ginger registers and energy surge just before the robeast fires, allowing them to dodge.

They get the robeast in a full-nelson, and get both covered in mines.  Captain Larro sees the robeast returning, and doesn't see Voltron at first.  His XO points it out to him.  Voltron separates from the robeast outside the base, and severely damages the robeast with the solar combat spear.  It crashes into the base and destroys it before Larro can detonate the mines.  With the destruction of the base. the mines fall away.

Voltron stands over the wreckage of the base.  Ginger is feeling better now.  Then we get the Voltron commercial.

So, my abiding memory of this episode is that I came down with chicken pox the same day this episode aired for the first time.  I was sick for a week.  My sister had them first, so I blame her.

Get Past the Tenth Planet

The Galveston homeworld has collapsed 18%, and the rate is accelerating.  Corsair is presiding over a council meeting, and demands that Caponero eliminate the Earth Forces.  Tes tries to urge them to surrender.  Caponero is convinced they haven't lost yet.  Tes counters that they don't even have time left to build migratory ships.  Then a messenger arrives to tell of more guerilla activity.

Sirk and Bakke are watching the wounded come back from a failed operation.  They discuss the arrival of the Earth fleet at the 10th planet, and Sirk decides that the guerillas need to link up with the Earth forces, as well as rescuing Teles.

The Galveston base on the 10th planet watches the approach of the Earth battle machines, and they launch the magnetic mines.  The Rugger Teams are preparing to attack the base when they detect the mines approaching them.  Aki doesn't take them seriously at first, and he orders the teams to destory them.  Destruction ensues until one of the mines attaches to Patty's ship.  They separate, and Patty's already showing signs of distress.  The individual Air Team ships try to knock it loose.  Walter pushes them aside to use the Land Rugger utility arm, but he is unable to detach it.  Aki sends Walter and Keats to sneak off to the 10th planet and destroy the base that launched the mines.  Beginining their approach to the planet, Walter suggests that he and Keats' should take their machines on separate courses.

Meanwhile, the Galveston Commander is told that the Sea and Land Ruggers have disappeared, but he isn't worried.  He's willing the ships to return to the Rugger Guard.

Aki actually suggests that, then Patty tells him that this may be the Galveston plan.  Aki has an idea . . .

The Galveston commander watches them gradually retreat.

Aki calls Ise to tell him that they're stalling for time, and to hope that Walter and Keats can storm the base.

Walter leads the Land Rugger over sensor-studded ground, sure they're being stealthy--until Nagato opens fire on the sensors.  That triggers an alarm in the Galveston base, and they detonate the mine.  Patty's mecha begins to spiral out of control, and the other Air Team ships fallow, tailed by more mines.

Aki manages to get Patty somewhat alert; she steers her ship into a crash-landing.

The Galveston commander gloats.  He says Land Rugger is next, and orders them to find Sea Rugger--under he sea.  He deploys mines after both of them.  When the Land Rugger first begins firing on the mines, they forgot to animate the energy beams for a couple of shots.

The Air team and Ise are standing around Patty in her hopsital bed.  Hey, she doesn't have amnesia!  And she urges the team to go out and fight.  She tries to get up, but falls back in bed.  Ise and Aki rush to the bridge.  Ise is ready to withdraw.  He orders Walter and Keats to pull back.  Walter grudgingly agrees, and Keats follows.  The Galveston Commander gets all excited and orders his XO to contact Caponero.

Tes is being driven home.  When he arrives, he sees someone there.  It's Sirk.  With Bakke.  He brings them inside so they won't be seen together.  Tes asks if they want to see Teles.  He has no power to ensure that.  Sirk is convinced he's the only one that can save Galveston.  Tes tells them that as Home Secretary, his job is to suppress the rebels.  Bakke draws his weapon, but Sirk forces it down and she actually drops to her knees to implore Tes' help.

se deploys the Rugger teams.  Land and Sea teams go, and Aki find the rest of the Air team around Patty's bed--she just took sleep medication.  She insists on going.

The battle attacker engages the Land and Sea Ruggers.  The Air Team then launches.  They fight through the mines, but Patty collides with the battle attacker.  Aki decides to form Dairugger.  The formation sequence is slightly extended to focus on Patty a little more.  The mines swarm after them, and they form the sword.

Dairugger is covered in mines.  Then Ise calls him, who urges him to withdraw.  Aki says they're going to buy time destroying the base to allow the Rugger Guard and fleet to attack the Galveston homeworld.  Covered in mines, Dairugger is losing energy as it fights the battle attacker.  Aki decides to attract mines to both of them--he gets the battle attacker in a hold and charges the base.  The Galveston Commander is angry.  Dairugger hits the battle attacker with the lance and sends it crashing into the base, destroying it and killing the commander before the mines can be detonated.  With the base's control system destroyed, the mines are deactivated and fall off of Dairugger. 

Patty finally succumbs to the sleep meds and Aki flies Dairugger back to the fleet to dock.