Wow episode 9
9 Shattered Dreams
Still mid-fight. The Shaman knows the Winx's team name. He's got feathers! His mohawk is feathers not hair.
Fighting. Tecna's got her cool forcefield. Shaman summons a phantom snake. Flora uses her traditional vines. The Shaman is defeated and tied up in the pink RV where Aisha announces that they're going to find the people he took. She uses magic that sort of looks like her Morfix, it's not goo but it's pink light, on one of the Shaman's stones trying to crush it. I'm not sure if the threat is of destroying the Shaman's stone or that it might explode, but the Shaman caves and says it was the queen of the world of dreams who took Yu. The queen doesn't tell her minions why she wants the talents, only which ones she wants. Flora says she can see in his face that he's telling the truth. Magic or just Flora intuition? Anyway, Shaman doesn't have the pocket watch and he can't just open a portal for them like the one he sent Yu through. This guy's pretty useless now. But Flora's intuition says he's still hiding something.
Before they can question their captive further, there's knocking... on the roof? I'm guessing Lorelei.
Yep, but not on the roof. WAS she on the roof? I can totally believe she was. Anyway Aisha looks terrified and says, “Hide the shaman!” which is not a sentence you get to say very often.
Tec and Musa try to muscle the Shaman into hiding as Lorelei hollers at them. They leave the Shaman alone in the RV and go running out to keep Lorelei away from their captive.
Now that he's alone the Shaman's shadow stretches and grows a crown and some spiky shoulders. It's Tinx's first semi-appearance! She's glad to have the kung-fu talent but wants to know why the Saman hasn't returned. He admits that “Jim” stole the watch from him and Tinx is enraged. Very cool shadow form, all thin and spiky as she looms over the shrinking Shaman. But what comes out of her mouth is pretty classic Icy. She is very disappointed, she wants another talent by tomorrow, and she wants him to steal the same one the Winx will be looking for.
How does she know about the Winx? How does she know Dreamix leads them to talents? How does she know it'll lead them to a talent she'd also want to kidnap? Is Dreamix 'her' transformation, since it's obviously connected somehow with the world of dreams?
Anyway the Shaman got his stones back in the scuffle with Tec and Musa, and he teleports away.
Lorelei bursts into the pink RV and finds it empty. She demands to know why she couldn't come inside before. Musa realizes how the Shaman got away.
Just then, Dreamix! The magic homes in on England, a stately home where an adorable little moppet heads for a piano. Her music is gone but the stereotypical butler (named James, not Jeeves) can't tell her where it is.
The girl's name is Madeline and her parents come in and suggest she practice for the performance tomorrow. They're very stereotypical “parents who I'm sure love their kid but don't listen to her.” Madeline practices piano halfheartedly.
It'd be awesome if her true talent is, like, rock music.
Back in the RV Lorelei demands to know their next target. When Musa admits it's London Lorelei does her own, “Find! That! Talent!” So the pink RV drives to London.
Lorelei may not be a Winx, but her clothes match with theirs.
Team pink RV arrives, with camera drones in tow. So, time to lose the drones and Lorelei! Stella has a cunning plan. She announces Lorelei is ready to be the star herself, and she and the cameras run off to stardom. She narrates herself to the studio audience. Ace is unthrilled to have lost the Winx.
Now that there's no cameras Bloom joins the rest of the girls at Madeline's house. James the butler is walking a quartet of pugs and of course gets tied up in leashes.
Stella magic-quickchanges them into professional dogwalkers and James is happy to hire them. As the girls play with the pugs, a downcast Madeline leaves the house on her way to perform. Her parents tell her not to worry, they're sure she won't disappoint them. She says they're right, “as usual.”
Stella recognizes the talent they're after and is excited to see a girl with a big dream! Only, this is one depressed looking kid. Like, a lot. Please tell me family therapy will feature somewhere in this episode?
James reaches into his pocket to give Madeline something, but her parents call her away. The limo leaves.
Musa says it looks “more like a broken dream.”
James is holding... a guitar pick?
The Winx decide to split up. Aisha, flora and Musa will follow Madeline while the other three stay on pug duty.
At the concert hall, Madeline waits backstage humming her song. Musa approaches and introduces herself. She asks if she can help, because it's still super clear how sad Madeline is. But Madeline just shrugs. Musa talks about her own music, how she's played since she was a child, how she likes playing vthe music she loves. Madeline droops. Musa asks what Madeline's dream music is. Madeline admits it isn't the piano, but that her parents are so happy when she plays that she feels like she has to do it.
The announcer introduces Madeline and she heads for the stage, only to cry, “No!” and run off. The girls chase her, but the moppet gets away. Musa assigns Flora and Aisha to find Madeline while Musa covers for her.
Only Musa's idea of covering for her is getting Lorelei to play. Not MUSA playing. Musa goes out on stage in her dog-walk clothes and announces an intermission followed by a surprise guest.
Back with the pugs, the Winx reunite to search. Musa can detect Madeline's aura, I guess 'cause she's a fellow musician, so they know Madeline is close by.
Detective montage! The girls are suddenly wearing tan plaid & leopard print detective coats and making deductions in fake British accents. We are in England, therefor, Sherlock Holmes! Appropriately, Tecna's accent is the best and she cracks the case by remembering the butler wanted to give something to Madeline. They burgle the fellow's coat and take the guitar pick, then end the odd interlude and get back to normal.
The four pugs sniff the guitar pick and lead the girls to an awesome treehouse.
Ha! Madeline is indeed playing rock music, on a pink guitar. She says James is the only one who's heard her play, and Musa says it's time for the rest of the world to hear too.
At the concert hall Lorelei bashes the piano and giggles and hums to herself.
Back at WoW, Ace says she's awful and begs for commercials.
So Lorelei doesn't really have all the talents she thinks she has.
Backstage Madeline now has a new hair color and a cute leather jacket on over her very proper skirt and blouse. She heads for the stage... and the Shaman dusts her and grabs her. He makes himself appear as a bunch of Shamans all over the rafters.
Quick transform!
But the girls can't decide on strategy! Musa finally figures out a vibration that messes up the illusions and gets Madeline back.
Then she glows and says, “have you ever listened to the silence?” and blasts the Shaman. I liked this. It's positively creepy and her voice actress really nailed a sort of otherworldly anger.
The Shaman gets pulled through a portal.
Madeline is fine. Lorelei is ushered off the stage and Madeline comes out with her guitar. She starts on the piano then grabs the guitar and does a long riff that the audience loves. Back at WoW central, Madeline has made the finals! Madeline thanks Musa and gives her the guitar pick, then runs to hug her parents, who aren't mad after all.
Are the girls getting special tokens from the talents they help? Musa got the guitar pick and Flora got Vinchenzo's special ice cream recipe. Naoki gave Tecna his code for hacking the camera drones. Will these items be significant later?
Also, Madeline's folks took her change if instrument so well, it really doesn't match with how miserable Madeline was before.
In Neverland specters sweep over the trees and coalesce into... there she is!
Pointed ears. Black lipstick, which really works. Less eye makeup than the Trix ever had. A spiky crown with red vines twining around it. She's wearing a tattered tunic and leggings, not a gown, but with a long Cape of Evil. Her hair is black and pulled up into a big bun like the Disney Tinkerbell.
The poor Shaman cowers as Tinx berates him for failing to bring Madeline. She summons the crocodile man and gives it the Shaman's magic stones. The crocodile man eats them! Cool. Shaman is “downgraded” stripped of his magic. I guess he's a normal human now. Then Tinx summons her “warriors" who are just vague zombie-like shapes, and orders them to “get rid of the Winx, once and for all.”
Like we've never heard that line before.
But I like Tinx. Despite her Icy-like lines and costume nods to Disney Tinkerbell, I like her. Maybe it's just the art style; she is very pretty.