Episode 26
Germ Wars
Based on: Faxanadu and Abodox …Well okay, not really

We open up with narration telling us Captain N just got back from Kongoland with a strange looking prehistoric rock. Kevin’s examining it with a magnifying glass and acting like it‘s the coolest thing ever. It apparently looks just like the moon rocks he studied back home that, Kevin exclaims, were over a billion years old. Kid Icarus is impressed by the age. He says that’s even older than his Uncle Methulilus. Gameboy does a scan of it revealing that it’s 99.9 % organic and .1% unknown substance. Kevin kinda shrugs it off saying that’s what he thought too. Obviously he’s not a mineralogist.

Simon and Lana then walk into the room. Simon picks up the rock and starts spinning it on his finger like a basketball. Suddenly it stars glowing and freaks Simon out. He drops it but it doesn’t fall. Instead, it floats over to Kevin. There’s a huge flash of light, and when Kevin turns to face the team again, he’s got blue lines across his face. Kid Icarus calls it static.

Next we see, Kevin is lying in a bed as Dr. Light takes his temperature. He’s caught a video virus, which is basically the equivalent of a real world common cold. Dr. Light then says he wants to get a life force reading. Gameboy hooks up to Kevin. Gameboy’s screen switches to a display that shows the outline of Kevin’s body and what appears to be two power bars similar to the Megaman games. Lana suggests that he just get some sleep and Kevin says that he does feel extremely tired.

The narrator comes in with “Meanwhile in Kevin’s body...” We see a pea green and tan Kevin running though a tunnel. Since we never get a good explanation of what this Kevin is, I’m simply going to refer to him as Antibody-Kevin. He’s panting hard and seems to be exhausted. He pauses for a moment and says to himself, “I think I lost him.” Naturally he didn’t and we get to see who this “him” is.

What we see is Viroid, the nastiest looking villain to ever grace the series. He appears to be some insect parasite riding around in a vehicle that is either made of or resembles organs. I remember finding this disturbing when I was a kid.

Viroid starts firing laser blasts at Antibody-Kevin. Antibody-Kevin uses his Power Pad to dodge them. He says that Viroid must not know who he’s dealing with. He introduces himself as Captain N, the leader of the N-Team. Viroid isn’t impressed. He starts shooting again. Kevin dodges and returns fire with his Zapper but the shots bounce off like they’re nothing. Kevin takes off running.

Inside the weird craft, Viroid is approached by his servant, a small floating virus-like creature called Cell. Cell comments on how he should just finish him off. Viroid tells him he needs to learn to enjoy the hunt as much as the capture.

Back in the outside world, Kevin is taking a turn for the worse. His power levels are fluctuating wildly. Someone comments that it looks like Kevin is fighting for his life. Dr. Light says that he might not win this time. Even Simon is concerned (“But he’s the Game Master! Uh, I mean, what’s the problem? It’s just a little video virus.” Nice cover there, Belmont.). Light points out that since Kevin’s not naturally from Videoland, his body doesn’t know how to fight the Videovirus off. Princess Lana leaves the room and puts a call out to all the videoland worlds asking for anybody who can help.

Back inside Kevin, Antibody-Kevin is having a hard time staying one step ahead of Viroid. Obviously desperate, Kevin is just about to pull a trick we’ve never seen before. He actually pushes the A button on his control pad, but before we get to see anything happen, Cell shoots his leg with a weird ray. It turns his leg blue and apparently really really hurts. Kevin cries out in pain and Cell takes a moment to laugh at him. Kevin tries to run, but his blue leg isn’t working anymore. It stays rooted in place. Viroid grabs him with a hummingbird tongue like tentacle of his organ vehicle and lifts him into it.

Outside, the N-Team watch as Kevin’s life force drops half way. Light points out a large red dot that’s appeared on the picture of Kevin. He explains that the virus has established a strong hold inside Kevin’s heart. Everyone is all torn up about it. Kid Icarus fires a boxing glove arrow that pounds it’s fist against the ground in frustration. Simon actually starts crying and says that it’s too bad there’s not a warp zone inside the kid. That gives Lana the idea to fight the virus from the inside.

Kid Icarus gets the idea to use his shrink arrow on the team. Dr. Light cautions them and gives them a map of Kevin as well as a communications device. Kid Icarus warns them all that the last time he used the arrow, it only lasted an hour. He fires the arrow into the air and it rains down magical sparkly stuff that shrinks them and puts them into a bubble where they enter Kevin though the ear. Duke, Light, and Gameboy stay behind to watch over Kevin. As they pass the eardrum, the bubble dissolves and they start to fall. Simon’s quick whip work saves the team, until Kevin turns his head. Then they all end up tumbling far down into another section of Kevin. Finally hitting what passes for ground inside a person, Simon finds himself tangled in the gum Kevin swallowed earlier. He makes a joke about being in a sticky situation.

Then we cut to Viroid and Cell. Viroid is watching the N-Team on some form of viewer. He’s not impressed. Cell keeps bothering Viroid until he gets to look though the viewer. Viroid pulls out a container of stomach acid, planning to release it on the team.

Megaman and Kid Icarus finally get Simon out of the goo. Lana figures out that they’re in the stomach, judging by the map of Kevin. Then the acid starts to flow. Megaman actually calls Dr. Light to ask him what it is. I’ll cut Megaman a break here. He’s probably not very familiar with human anatomy. Dr. Light of course tells them to get out before they’re digested. The N-Team runs to a huge pile of blue blocks (I have no idea what they are) and starts to climb to safety. Apparently they didn’t get all the gum off Simon, though. A rather large hunk of gum sticks him to the blocks. Kid Icarus fires an arrow that cuts him loose and they keep climbing until they reach the top. There, they realize that there’s no way out. Megaman takes a hunk of the gum off Simon, blows a huge bubble with it and they all float to safety but they drop the communications device in the acid as they make their get-away.

Naturally, Viroid is mad. He yells at Cell and then tells him to go to Plan B. Then he yells again when Cell doesn’t know what Plan B is. He tells him to unleash the fat cells. Then we see Antibody-Kevin strapped down to a table. Now half his torso is blue. He tells Viroid that they’ll never beat the N-Team. Viroid then zaps Antibody-Kevin again, turning the rest of his torso blue, not too mention hurting him quite a bit.

Back in the real world, Kevin’s life force has dropped to dangerous levels. Dr. Light tries to contact the N-Team, but of course, it’s no use. King Melvis, the Elvis impersonating ruler of Faxanadu, then comes up on the viewscreen. He knows of a possible cure. On his world, there’s a magical elixir said to cure all evil, but it’s a dangerous quest to get it (Isn’t it always?).

Gameboy and Duke, being the only members of the N-Team available, show up on Faxanadu. King Melvis tells them that the potion was stolen long ago by dwarfs and hidden in a deep dungeon. He wishes them luck and they go on.

Duke and Gameboy set out on their quest. At the dungeon, they’re first met with a group of porcupine-looking enemies that Duke can’t even touch without getting hurt. Gameboy bounces a ball around on his monitor for a little bit, looking sort of like pong without the paddles, and them launches a flurry of small white balls at the creatures knocking them all away. Duke and Gameboy then go see a doctor and Duke gets his paw bandaged before they go back out again. This time they encounter a really weird hard to describe creature that chases them around in circles until vanishing in a pixilated poof. I don’t know what they did to beat that thing, and I’m not going to ask. It leaves behind a small gem.

Duke and Gameboy take the gem back to town and give it to a shopkeeper who points at a suit of armor. Back in the dungeon, we get to see Duke wearing a suit of armor and looking as proud of himself as a dog in armor can look. If you’ve never seen a dog in a suit of armor, then you people really don’t know what you’re missing. It’s a great image. Duke confronts a minotaur-like creature that shoots lasers at him though his horns. The lasers bounce off Duke’s armor and Duke pounces on the creature, knocking it off the huge staircase. Then he winks at Gameboy.

Meanwhile back at the Palace of Power, we get a very VERY obvious mistake. Kevin still seems to be hooked up to Gameboy. Whoever can explain how this isn’t really a mistake gets a cookie (Provided they go to the store and buy it themselves.).

Inside Kevin, The N-Team is confronted by the fat cells that are shooting what seems to be pure fat at them. Ick. Making matters worse, Megaman’s blasts just make the creatures bigger. Lana gets an idea. She jumps out from behind her cover and runs. They shoot at her. The others picking up on her idea, all go in different directions and provide targets for the fat globs, ducking out of the way just in time. As the fat creatures shoot, they get smaller until they’re no longer able to fire back. Then they take off in fear.

Viroid, like any villain worth his salt, is getting mad at his current defeat. He tells Cell to release the germ squad. Shortly after, the N-Team is confronted by three blue versions of Captain N with spiked hair. Taken both by surprise and not able to really put up much of a fight against three versions of Captain N anyway, they’re captured and taken to Viroid’s lair.

Viroid gloats and then has the germ squad drag in Antibody-Kevin. He’s now completely blue except for his head. Viroid tells the N-Team to leave now or he’ll infect them all. The N-Team actually admits defeat here. They’re captured, helpless, and facing enemies they can’t beat. They tell Antibody-Kevin they’re sorry but they have to go. He says that his own body has already turned against him, he doesn’t want them to give up too. Viroid then drops the imprisoned N-Team down what seems to be a waterfall. The cage shatters at the bottom and the N-Team each takes different paths.

Back on Faxanadu, Gameboy and Duke finally find the elixir. Good for them.

Inside Kevin, Viroid is starting to gloat. He’s already got his germ squad and Cell with him, and wants to gather the rest of his minions so he can thank them for a job well done. Lana then sneaks around behind him and runs into his floating base/vehicle/weird looking organ to free Kevin. She tells Kevin they’re getting out of there, but Cell sees them and alerts the others. We get another real quick mistake. Kevin for a moment is no longer blue. Viroid asks Lana if she has a thing for lost causes and she tells him they’re her favorite kind. Then Viroid says she’s going to join her Captain. Perfect Cue: Simon, Megaman, and Kid Icarus make their move. Simon jumps in kicking one of the germ squad and whips two other members, causing them all to do a pixilated poof. Megaman then comes up behind Viroid and destroys two more germ squad members. Remarkably, there are still quite a few of them standing in the back doing nothing. Kid Icarus flies in and… well. He doesn’t do anything but help surround the baddies. Viroid says he’s not yet defeated. He fires a blast at Antibody-Kevin and Lana, but she deflects it with a small hand mirror. The reflected shot hits Viroid and he disappears in a pixilated poof, leaving Cell behind. Simon walks over to Lana and congratulates her on a job well done. She hands the mirror back to Simon and tells him:

“I never thought I’d say this, but vanity does have its advantages.”

Antibody-Kevin then says that he knew they wouldn’t let him down as he collapses. Lana tells him he’s going to have to fight. Then they start to grow larger. Simon asks what the quickest way out of Kevin’s body is, and Lana yells that they can’t leave him like that. Antibody-Kevin tells them that they have to go, but whatever happens, the N-Team will always be his Videoland family. As the N-Team leave in an energy bubble, Cell goes up to Kevin and asks him if he holds a grudge. Kevin gives him a weak smile.

Outside of Kevin, Dr. Light hooks the elixir into a machine and twists and turns some dials. An alphabet comes up on Gameboy’s monitor. Kevin sneezes and the magic bubble comes out just as the N-Team resize to normal. Dr. Light asks the N-Team what Kevin’s magic mantra is. Megaman says that they don’t know. They’ve never had to use it. Lana says that it’s always something personal about the hero. Megaman guesses N-Team. Kid Icarus guesses Game Master. Simon suggests that he’s always had a thing for Lana. That gives her the idea. She types the words into the machine and then the elixir flows into Kevin and his power levels go back to normal. He wakes up wondering what they’ve been up to.

After a bit of explaining, he says he doesn’t have the slightest clue what they’re talking about. Then he says they just have to hear the dream he had. It was all about the N-Team being his family. The monitor on Gameboy now shows the word "family," suggesting that was his magic mantra. Kevin then sneezes and a feather comes out. He adds, at least he thinks it was all a dream.

My thoughts: When I was younger, I really didn’t care for this episode. The villain and the fact that it was in Kevin’s body sort of creeped me out. Now that I’m quite a bit older, I find this to be one of the better episodes. For one thing, we get a very unique villain. Gameboy and Duke, who usually seem to get sidelined, get quite a bit to do and Duke even gets to wear armor. If that wasn’t enough, this gives us a view on some of the inner workings of Videoland. Even people are like game worlds here and need passwords. Kevin even runs on a power limit that we don’t normally get to see. It’s never really made clear who or what Antibody-Kevin is or if everyone on Videoland has their own appropriate version. He looks and acts just like the Game Master but the real Kevin didn’t have any memory of what happened. It’s an intriguing idea that I wish would have been followed up on.

Featuring
Kevin Keene/Captain N
Princess Lana
Simon Belmont
Megaman
Kid Icarus
Gameboy
Duke
Dr. Light
King Melvis
Viroid
Cell
Germ Squad