It’s good to have you guys back.

This episode is fairly straightforward, as Adora & co are reintegrating into the plot on Etheria (which naturally means very different things to different characters).

We seem to pick up right after the end of the last episode, with Glimmer reveling in her old powers of teleportation (and Catra, much like Adora at the beginning of the series, being very disoriented by it).

They naturally teleported to the rebel camp…or at least, the last rebel camp they knew of, which has now been abandoned. They piece together what happened soon enough, but of course, they don’t know who’s been chipped, and that limits the accuracy of their guesses as to where the current encampment might be.

Glimmer: Maybe they went back to Bright Moon, or maybe my dad took them to hide out in Mystacor.

Catra: We can’t just traipse into your old hangouts and play nice with your pals. We don’t know who’s chipped.

Glimmer: Wow. You don’t trust the princesses? I am shocked.

Entrapta: Really? Seems very in-character for her.

Adora: Catra’s right. We should gather intel first, so we don’t fall into a trap.

They decide to head to the closest town to camp (which happens to be Erelandia) to get whatever news there is of the Rebellion.

But of course, it’s much worse than when they left.

But on the bright side, Etheria isn’t alone anymore.

Horde Prime: How many now?

Clone: At least a dozen occupied planets. We are stamping out the dissidents, but their message is spreading. They say they are revolting against the Horde in the name of the Rebellion, and of She-ra.

Horde Prime: My heart aches for these misguided children. Now more than ever, I am assured of my plan: To use the Heart of Etheria to bring peace to all the universe. But without She-ra, we must find another way to activate it. Find the dissenters and make an example of them. It is time to crush this spark of rebellion for good. Send word to our dear sister on Etheria.

Clearly, the Star Siblings have been busy spreading the good news about She-ra…

And this is where Wrong Hordak really proves his worth, as evidently, whether or not they’re connected to the hive mind, clones are never questioned, even by other clones.

Wrong Hordak: Brother, I hope you too are full only of love for Horde Prime, and have no crippling doubt eating at your soul.

Even if they’re acting very suspicious. Because all clones are above suspicion! And thus, if they stick with him and don’t cause trouble (as they’re just here to get intel), they might just get in and out without a fuss.

Entrapta: Nice job, Wrong Hordak! You blend right in.

Wrong Hordak: You appear to have a facial tic. Is it cause for concern?

Entrapta: Huh? Oh, I’m winking! It signals unspoken intent behind my words, in this case, our mutual deception of the Horde. Now you try!

Wrong Hordak: Oh…expressing facial emotion is a privilege reserved only for Prime.

Entrapta: Which is exactly why you should do it!

But when Adora actually goes up to one of the villagers and tries to ask him about the rebels, he immediately freaks out and refuses to talk to her.

Catra: Hm. No chip, but something is making the locals real skittish.

Glimmer: Ya think?

Catra: If these people are scared, they’re more likely to sell us out to Prime than tell us anything useful. We should just go.

Adora: Not until we find out if there’s any sign of the princesses here.

Bow: Leave this to me. You may all have magical powers and alien pets, but what we need now is the team’s resident regular guy!

Bow: Hey there! I’m just your average traveler passing through. Would you mind if I asked you a few questions about your lovely town?

Lady Villager: Uh, what is it you want to know?

Bow: Have you seen any princesses around these parts?

Lady Villager: Princesses? Where?

And then she nopes out of the conversation!

Bow: So, obviously at least some of our friends were here recently and…made an…impression.

Catra: A town that hates princesses? Should I buy property here?…is what I would‘ve said before I joined you. Go team.

Just because she likes one or two princesses doesn’t mean Catra’s changed her opinion on princesses in general…but she clearly has to keep reminding herself that she’s on the same side now.

But then they split up, with the OG Best Friend Squad going with Wrong Hordak, while Catra and Entrapta go with Melog (as he can make them invisible if need be), looking for signs of princesses.

Bow: After everything the Rebellion’s done for Etheria, how can people be afraid of the princesses?

Adora: We’ve been gone a while, Bow. Things are worse here than when we left. You can’t blame people for being scared of…them [clones].

They dodge into a shop and leave Wrong Hordak to deal with the clones, which appears to work out…but the shopkeeper is smart enough to be wary of strangers in cloaks, so they pretend to browse.

Bow: So, it seems like things have been pretty bad around here lately.

Shopkeeper: Things are bad everywhere. We’re all just trying to get through the day without any trouble.

Bow: So, what? You’re all just giving up and letting Prime take over?

Shopkeeper: Well, what else are we supposed to do?

Adora: Bow, be cool. Undercover, remember?

Bow: Well, I’m just a completely objective third-party observer, but Erelandia should join the Rebellion and fight back!

Shopkeeper: The Rebellion? The Rebellion is on the Horde’s side now. If it’s not clones attacking us it’s princesses!

Glimmer: No. No, it’s not their fault! It’s Prime’s chips controlling them!

Shopkeeper: Do you think it makes a difference to us?

I mean, she’s not wrong. And until Adora’s crew returned, the chipped princesses significantly outclassed (if not technically outnumbered) the rest, not even considering that the rebels don’t even have a leader to get them to focus on protecting the people. The Rebellion is in survival mode as much as the rest of Etheria.

and then glimmer just reveals herself to the shopkeeper. so much for subterfuge.

Shopkeeper: Oh! Queen Glimmer, I’m sorry. Please, I don’t want any trouble.

Bow: We’re not with the Horde!

Wrong Hordak: Someone is coming, brothers!

Adora: That’s not how winking works! Is someone coming, or not?

And she gets her answer when a gust of wind breaks a window!

Adora: Spinnerella! This isn’t you! You have to fight the chip!

Spinnerella: My fight is over. Lord Prime has given me peace. It’s time for you to join us.

Glimmer: Not today!

Glimmer manages to teleport them out of the whirlwind and into the alley where Catra’s posse’s been lurking.

Adora: Prime really did it. How are we supposed to fight our own friends?

Catra: It never stopped you before.

Catra, that’s really unnecessary. You don’t need to guilt-trip Adora when it was just as much your fault as hers!

But anyhow, Netossa shows up to fight Spinney, because in this show, that’s just what you do with the ones you love!

Netossa: Hey, guys! Welcome back!

Spinnerella: Hello, beloved.

They fight for a bit, but Spinney quickly gets the upper hand, so Glimmer takes Netossa with them and retreats.

Meanwhile, proper Hordak continues to have feelings about Entrapta, even when Prime keeps him busy.

Horde Prime: There is something I’m forgetting. It plays at the edges of my mind…Etheria. Long ago, I heard that name before, though it fell on different ears. […] I must access the memories stored in this version. The First Ones sought a new source of power on ancient worlds. Why? Why bend themselves to the whims of magic and myth? The fools took their secrets with them when they died. But I will find another way. Is there something wrong, Little Brother?

and of course he’s having flashbacks now, and entrapta’s theme is playing, but he has the sense to pretend otherwise.

Meanwhile on Etheria, Netossa’s not too happy that her fight was interrupted.

Netossa: Why’d you do that? I’ve been tracking Spinney for days! I almost had her!

Catra: Looked like she almost had you.

Because while Perfuma might have heard that Catra was with Adora’s crew, under the circumstances, you can’t really blame her for not passing along that important information.

Adora: Netossa! It’s a long story, but she’s with us now.

Netossa: Really?

Adora: Yeah.

Netossa: Watch out! A clone!

Adora: He’s, uh, he’s actually on our side, too.

Netossa: So the only person I’m fighting here is- my own wife.

So she finally settles down and explains the situation, including telling them all the other people who’ve been chipped: Mermista, Micah, and Scorpia.

Netossa: Prime is forcing them to attack the people of Etheria, to attack us. The other princesses are in hiding, trying to figure out what to do next, but I can’t wait for them! All I know is, I have to get Spinnerella back, whatever it takes.

Bow: We were gone. We weren’t here to help our friends. And the people we were supposed to be fighting for have lost all hope in us.

Adora: Horde Prime tore our home apart. He took our friends. He’s not gonna stop until he’s taken everything from us!

Glimmer: Netossa, I’m sorry. We should’ve been there. But we’re here now, and we’re not giving up. We’ve never faced greater odds than this, but for everything Prime has thrown at us, he still hasn’t managed to stop us! We’re going back for Spinnerella, and for the people of Erelandia, and to show Prime that Etheria’s not done fighting yet! We’ll need everyone’s help to pull this off, so?

Adora: We won’t let Prime win this one.

Entrapta: I’m in.

Wrong Hordak: I am honored to fight beside you, brothers.

Catra: Sure, why not? I have some experience taking out princesses.

Netossa: Thank you.

So they teleport back into town, and discover Spinney threatening the shopkeeper for “helping She-ra”.

Spinnerella: Prime rewards honesty from his children. Tell us where she is and you will be absolved.

Wrong Hordak: The rebels have been sighted on the outskirts of the woods. Come at once.

Clone: Where are the rebels?

Wrong Hordak: Right beside you!

So they head into town, Catra and Bow dealing with bots & drones, and Glimmer taking the villagers to safety. Which leaves Netossa and Adora free to focus on Spinnerella.

Netossa: Adora, what if, she can’t come back from this?

Adora: She’s still in there! She needs you to remind her who she is. And we need to remind Prime who we are.

Netossa: Spinnerella!

Spinnerella: Welcome back, beloved.

That naturally takes her focus off the shopkeeper, so Glimmer jumps in to rescue her.

Shopkeeper: Queen Glimmer?

Glimmer: We won’t abandon Erelandia.

Then Spinney pins Netossa, and She-ra’s clearly not attacking her with her full power.

Netossa: What are you doing?

She-ra: I’m trying not to hurt her!

Netossa: Stop holding back. She won’t!

So she finally hits her with her best shot, allowing Netossa to turn the tables on her.

Netossa: Spinney, stop! It’s me, Netossa. Please, I love you. Come back to me.

Spinnerella: Netossa?

Netossa: Spinney, is that you?

Spinnerella: Darling…

Of course Prime exerts his power to control her again, but she still retreats and leaves the town alone.

Netossa: She’s still in there. I saw her. We can get her back, I know it! […] It’s good to have you guys back.

Catra: She’ll, um, she’ll be okay. Spinnerella. After the chip, I mean. I, uh, have some experience.

Shopkeeper: Princesses-

Bow: Well, technically, I’m not actually-

Shopkeeper: I still think you sort are trouble, but thank you, for freeing our town. I don’t know what we can do, but if the Rebellion ever needs it, you can always find a friendly face in Erelandia.

I mean, Catra’s not a princess either, so…

And then She-ra replaces the Horde symbol with one of her own.

The whole “the Horde turns Spinnerella against the rebels” thing might be an allusion to her episode in the original series, where the Horde kidnaps Netossa and tells Spinnerella that it’s the rebels who are holding her, so she rains devastation on the ones she believes are holding her “best friend”.

Catra: I think Horde Prime is going to know She-ra’s back.

She-ra: Good.

Prime does indeed get the message…and decides to go to Etheria himself.

So Netossa leads them to the new camp, which seems to be the base Catra had in the Whispering Woods last season. I originally assumed Double Trouble just dipped after they got out of danger, but I can only assume they were the one who led the rebels there…

Perfuma: Show us your necks!

Netossa: Perfuma! They’re good.

Perfuma: Your necks!

Perfuma’s really been struggling…

Perfuma: Oh Bow! Bow, it’s really you!

Then a few heartwarming reunions ensue, if not as many as could be wished. Swifty jumps on Adora like a big dog, Emily races over to Entrapta (and Wrong Hordak is mesmerized).

Perfuma: I don’t wanna be in charge anymore!

And Catra’s the only one that nobody at the camp was waiting for.

She-ra: Hey, come here. It’s time for you to officially meet everyone.

Catra: You sure?

then frosta punches her

Catra: Are you serious?

Frosta: Deadly serious, horde scum!

She-ra: Frosta! It’s a long story, but Catra’s with us now, okay?

Frosta: Fine! But I still don’t like her face.

She-ra: She can live with that.

It’s about as warm of a greeting as she could’ve expected…

She-ra: Spinnerella got away, but we’ll get her back. We’ll get all of our friends back. There’s still a chance to save them. This war has only just begun.

Until next time…