To be a Warrior

To be a Warrior is the fifth episode of Season 2 and eighteenth episode overall of the Nelvana Redwall TV Series.

Summary

Rocks and rubble trap Matthias, Orlando the Axe, Jess Squirrel, Basil Stag Hare, Cheek Stag Otter, and Jabez Stump inside a cave. Mattimeo, Auma, Sam Squirrel, Jubilation Stump, Tim Churchmouse, and Tess Churchmouse race over to the scene to help.

Log-a-Log and the Guerilla Union of Shrews in Mossflower (Guosim) hear the rocks rumbling in the distance.

Slagar the Cruel basks in his victory, believing he has killed Matthias and his friends. Then he sees Mattimeo and the escapees headed towards the cave. The young ones begin digging out the adults, and Slagar requests members of his gang.

At Redwall Abbey, Abbot Mordalfus, Rollo, Cornflower Fieldmouse, Constance, and Foremole review the tablets retrieved from the tomb of Abbess Germaine and determine its writing is Loamscript, an ancient language. John Churchmouse enters, feeling healthier after his altercation with Slagar's gang. He deciphers the Loamscript, which reveals a riddle. Everyone goes to bed except Cornflower, who asks the Tapestry of Martin the Warrior to provide strength.

Matthias, Orlando, Jess, Basil, Cheek, and Jabez awaken in the cave and discuss their next steps, primarily how to get out. Mattimeo and the escapees continue to dig from the outside as Slagar looks on.

At Redwall, Mordalfus, Cornflower, Constance, Foremole, and John believe that the riddle could provide directions to Loamhedge Abbey and talk through the puzzling words. Rollo provides an insight that reveals there is much more to the riddle than it seems.

Matthias, Orlando, Jess, Basil, Cheek, and Jabez struggle with the cave's depleting oxygen and inability to make any progress on getting out. Mattimeo, Auma, Tim, Tess, and Sam continue to work on removing rocks, but they notice Jube and Cynthia Bankvole are missing, and have actually been re-captured by Slagar's gang. Mattimeo hopes to charge the vermin, but Slagar arrives and forces the escapees to surrender.

At Redwall, Mordalfus offers a delicious cake prize for the Redwaller who can solve the mysterious riddle. Rollo, Constance, and Cornflower come up with a potential solution, which is overheard by Queen Warbeak, who flies off to investigate.

With the escapees back in chains, Slagar attempts to beat Mattimeo into submission and fails. He asks Skinpaw to move them along.

The Redwallers consume the cake as Warbeak and her Sparra fly high around the Abbey. They locate yet another riddle. Warbeak agrees to make a charcoal rubbing of it.

Matthias and his comrades continue to run out of oxygen inside the cave. He experiences a strange vision of Martin the Warrior, who attacks him with Orlando's battle axe. Matthias awakens, spots the axe, and uses the end to poke a hole through the rubble, providing much needed air. He hears voices outside - it's Log-a-Log and the Guosim, who also hear Matthias after he calls for help. The shrews work to free them from the cave.

John Churchmouse translates the Loamscript on Warbeak's rubbing, which is revealed to be a map and a poem. Cornflower determines that Loamhedge is in a southerly direction, and Warbeak suggests flying copies of the poem to Matthias with members of the Sparra tribe.

Matthias, Orlando, Jess, Basil, Cheek, and Jabez update Log-a-Log as to what's happened with the young ones, and he volunteers to assist them with his Guosim.

At an encampment, Mattimeo vows to get his fellow captives home safe as Slagar's gang enjoys a meal.

Official Synopsis

Mattimeo and his companions race to the landslide beneath which their parents are buried, and are seen by Slagar who sends fellow Slavers to recapture them. Within the cave Matthias and the pursuers are close to suffocating while above them-- and unknown to them-- Mattimeo digs frantically. And Slagar watches.

Beneath Redwall Abbey, John, father of the captured Tim and Tess, helps decipher the ancient Loamscript-- but it contains more questions than answers. They work on, unaware that solving the complex riddle will give them an answer to where their young ones are being taken. The answer indicates the South-- and Warbeak and her Sparra squadrons take copies of the partly-solved riddle and fly South to try and find Matthias.

Mattimeo is recaptured by Slagar and cruelly forced to abandon his dying father--it forces the last step in his transformation which chills even Slagar with its cold intensity. Mattimeo has become a warrior as, behind him, his father Matthias is released by Log-a-Log and his shrew army-- and prepares to again take up the pursuit.

Differences from Mattimeo

• After Slagar lured Matthias and the rest into the cave, the cave was pitch black; in the episode, the cave had a natural glow in its walls.
• After the slavers recaptured Mattimeo and the children of Redwall, it was Vitch who told them that hunger would make them more obedient, not Skinpaw.

Featurettes

Segments include:

• "Games"
• "Medieval Children's Toys"
• "Character Spotlight: Cheek"
• "Redwall Trivia: Guosim is another name for what Mossflower Wood creature?"

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Streaming

To be a Warrior is available for streaming on Nelvana's official Treehouse Direct YouTube channel.

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de:"Misslungene Flucht"