The Quest - Recap: Light Bulbs Galore

Recap and review of The Quest - Episode 5 and Episode 6 - Under Seige / A Traitor in Saenctum:

Welcome to the recap and results for The Quest Episode 5 and Episode 6, "Under Seige" and "A Traitor in Saenctum"! Last week's episode featured the elimination of Jasmine! Tonight is a double episode, so that means two Paladins will be banished from Everealm! Which Paladins will it be? And will Verlox make his move? It's war on the forces of Everealm!

SHREKIN' BALL

So an ogre is apparently on the loose, and that means our Paladins have to work to contain the threat. Sir Ansgar declares it's training time, which is basically Shondo's time to shine. And also Andrew's, as they're basically the two strongest guys in Everealm, among the Paladins. I mean, I guess Patrick is a powerhouse too, but he doesn't have the agility to match the other two frontrunners. Basically, I'm going to be stunned if Shondo and Andrew aren't among the final three.

What follows is possibly the silliest scene in the series so far, as the Paladins are tasked with assembling scorpions to combat the threat, although neither team assembles its scorpion in time, leaving Sir Ansgar to fight off the ogre on his own. It's essentially one man against a giant, juggernauting Shrek, and it's far from a compelling fight. It's the first moment in the series where I genuinely felt like something didn't go like it was supposed to.

Anyway, the first challenge has Lina and Christian as team captains who are tasked with breaking down a door with their teams, using the scorpion (which they must assemble).

So Christian chooses Patrick, Bonnie, and Adria (offending Andrew, who doesn't get why his boy Christian wouldn't pick him), while Lina chooses Andrew, Leticia, and Shondo (offending Adria, who has no idea why Christian wouldn't pick Shondo). The two teams then are made to construct a barricade to create a makeshift defense. Surprisingly, Lina proves to be a capable leader, as her team constructs a barricade with greater efficiency than Christian’s team, which gives them an advantage in the final round, as one team must break through another team's barricade. In short, each team has a battering ram, which leads to some controversy, as it's implied that Christian knew his team would not be able to win the challenge, and made it so that his allies on the other side would vote to save him if he failed in the Fates' Challenge. This seems like an absolutely ridiculous plan, but then I remember that Christian is the virtual Houdini of this damn competition, finding ways to survive despite landing in the Bottom 3 again and again.

Credit: ABC

MAKER'S MARK

Patrick, Christian, Bonnie, and Adria compete in the Fates’ challenge, as each Paladin must select a cage and then make their way through an obstacle course while carrying the cage with them. Ultimately, it's a neck-and-neck race, as Christian and Patrick maintain the lead with Adria not far behind. However, Patrick is able to just edge out Christian, rescuing himself from banishment. Now, the remaining Paladins must choose whom to banish among Christian, Bonnie, and Adria.

In the final judgment, the Paladins are uncertain about which of the three remaining finalists deserve to be saved. On the one hand, Bonnie failed out loud in the challenge; on the other hand, she displays the heart of the One True Hero. Similarly, Adria has the qualities of the One True Hero in much the same way Bonnie has, while Patrick actually seems to stick up for Christian by reminding his fellow Paladins that Christian has survived elimination three times. However, this turns out not to be the case, as Patrick actually suggests that Christian's time might be up.

Ultimately, the Paladins make their choice and...

CHRISTIAN is eliminated from THE QUEST!

Leticia is Christian's only backer, as the remaining Paladins divide their loyalty between Adria and Bonnie, and I'm not entirely sure they're wrong to, given how Christian has performed since this competition began.

So we're down to seven as the Paladins return to Castle Saenctum. However, despite the adorableness of Bonnie singing a song for Sir Ansgar, we end up with a weird light appearing out of nowhere, as the Paladins all hide and try to figure what the hell is going on.

ORBS, ORBS, ORBS

We're into the night's second episode, as a stranger has managed to make his way into Castle Saenctum with orbs under his sleeve, because of course this would happen. The orb, called a spile, freaks out Crio and Sir Ansgar, who instructs the Paladins to try and figure out who's controlling things. Naturally, it's the Grand Vizier who spots the mysterious figure in the courtyard, leading to Ansgar and the other paladins circling around the villain to capture him. Ansgar is able to neutralize the spile in short order, prompting me to wonder what, exactly, the threat was in the first place.

It turns out that the stranger is someone Sir Ansgar knows well, a man named Heras. More troubling still, there are seven other orbs missing from Heras's belt, meaning the Paladins must search their quarters to find the orbs, although we're not really given any sort of explanation for why the orbs would be there. But it's just as well, as this makes for a pretty interesting challenge. Well, except that there are seven Paladins remaining, meaning each Paladin can potentially find an orb and be safe from elimination. But the "every man for himself" nature of the challenge is interesting, since it isn't the usual team-based challenge.

And it turns out I was silly to doubt the fairness of the challenge. Yes, there are seven orbs for seven Paladins, but the Paladins weren't meant to find all seven, as Sir Ansgar’s men have found three. This is because they have the assistance of a bird called the Eye of Centon, which sounds like a bit of a cheat, except it leads into the actual challenge this week. As it turns out, the Paladins will have to find orbs with the same efficiency as the Eye of Centon. Once they find an orb, they must bring it back to Sir Ansgar to be destroyed. The Paladins who are able to do so will be spared from the Fates' Challenge and will avoid elimination.

It's an interesting challenge, as it comes down to Patrick, Andrew, Leticia, and Adria. Ultimately, Patrick is able to discover an orb in a random pile, and is able to spare himself from the Fates' Challenge for a second straight week. I have to admit that I'm more than a bit surprised that Andrew has landed in the bottom, since he's not exactly the sort of guy I would have expected to be at risk for elimination. Not only is he insanely into this fantasy setting, but he's been among the most consistently strong performers in the competition.

Credit: ABC

DUEL OF THE FATES

So Lina gets "The Mark of Observation" for discovering the first orb in the challenge, making it her second straight mark after earning a medal in the previous challenge. However, intrigue abounds as the traitor responsible for the orbs reveals that Verlox has other servants within Castle Saenctum, and if it's not the Grand Vizier, I'll eat my hat. As for now, Sir Ansgar discovers a map in the traitor's bag and asks the Paladins to decipher its meaning. Unfortunately, the Paladins are unable to make sense of the map. Crio arrives with pieces of the map to presumably assist the Paladins, but it's still a tall order trying to make sense of what the traitor is trying to convey with the map. Ultimately, this leads to the Fates' Challenge, as Andrew, Leticia, and Adria enter the hall to face their destiny.

In short, the Bottom 3 Paladins must use swords and a bright light to pinpoint where on the map Verlox's army is hiding. It's a far more interesting challenge than it sounds, in that it spreads the bottom three contestants across an even playing field.

In short order, Andrew solves the puzzle first and is able to secure his safety from banishment. This leads Leticia and Adria to face banishment, and I'll be stunned if it's anyone but Adria.

True to form, the Paladins seem relatively set in their decision. When it comes time to file in, only Bonnie and Patrick stand behind Adria. Andrew, Shondo, and Lina choose Leticia, meaning she will be safe from banishment.

ADRIA is eliminated from THE QUEST!

I'm actually going to miss Adria, since she seemed to be all-in on the fantasy setting in a way that not all of the Paladins have been. That said, of the bottom 3, I think this decision made sense. Bonnie and Patrick are going to be in danger for forging an alliance they couldn't sustain, so I'll be more than a little bit worried about them, should they find themselves in the Fates' Challenge again.

As for this week's cliffhanger, we learn that Sir Ansgar knew Hadras from their time a soldiers together, fighting side-by-side. Turns out, Sir Ansgar had a pregnant wife who died before giving birth, which is a bad enough memory to relive without having to stomach the latest development: a fire has broken out in Castle Saenctum, and it might mean that Verlox has finally arrived.

So what do you think of the results? Did the right Paladins go home? And are the remaining Paladins ready for Verlox? We'll find out next week, as The Quest continues!