Beastmaster III: The Eye of Braxus (1996)

Don't you hate when a film series randomly changes to Roman numerals?

After time-travel portal hopping, it's a bit of tonal whiplash to go back to a straight S&S film. The cheap television budget removes the rest of its charm. Marc Singer still looks great in the role (he hasn't worn a shirt in three movies), but it's hilarious to me that his right-hand companion Ruh has turned from a black panther to a Bengal tiger to now a fully-fledged lion. Continuity has never been this franchise's strong point, but that's the least of its issues.

This made-for-TV movie marked the end of the film series proper, though it continued on the small screen for three seasons as a syndicated TV series.

1 Shroud of Agony out of 5

Beastmaster 2: Through the Portal of Time (1991)

It's Beastmaster meets Back to the Future, if the poster is any indication.

Taking a completely different tack than its predecessor, an interdimensional pathway has been opened up leading to 1990s Los Angeles. And it's quite a culture shock! Especially for the viewer. This is a much more tongue-in-cheek, non-serious film, but the gamble pays off as it's a new take on the usual sword and sorcery tropes. I understand why people might despise this new direction, but it's a novel way to evolve the material. The Highlander influence is strong.

2½ ferrets out of 5

The Beastmaster (1982)

One of the better sword and sorcery flicks regards Dar, a babe born unto a cow (!), who gains the ability to telepathically communicate with animals and wages battle against an evil wizard. Visually, Marc Singer looks the part, which is half the battle, while Tanya Roberts accompanies him as the beautiful slave girl. With such an intriguing premise, I don't know how they manage to make a number of these movies so boring. They could have easily shaved a half hour off the runtime to make it more palatable. Anyway, take the good with the bad.

3 eagle screeches out of 5