The following information is from the Adventure Time comic book series. It may not be part of the same canon or continuity as the animated series. |
Adventure Time #53 is the fifty-third issue of the Adventure Time comic book.
Synopsis[]
Jake successfully fools Ghost Princess of the ghost realm and must escape with the cure for Finn, but could this have been a ruse all along to teach Jake a lesson?[1]
Plot[]
An adventurer has just rescued a baby from the beast of teeth and eyes. However, the baby springs from his arms to its mother, causing him to stumble and fall off the cliff. He floats back up as a ghost and is met by Death, who thought he would die differently. The adventurer expects to be taken to paradise, but Death says that because of choices made in life and other factors, he will go to the 27th Dead World. The adventurer doesn't know what that means, so Death tells him that he'll be wandering an infinite plane forever, which the adventurer is unhappy with. Hunson Abadeer appears and says he has options, offering him to come to the Nightosphere. The adventurer finds it unappealing, but Hunson tells him that he'll become a demon and serve him, saying that it's better than doing nothing. At that moment, the (self-appointed) Governor of the 27th Dead World arrives. He tells the adventurer that he and other ghosts have made Ghost-A-Rica, where ghosts can have fun. The adventurer decides to go there, and he and the other ghosts have a good time.
This is actually a flashback told to Jake and the ghost by the Governess, who says that her husband wasn't always a tyrant. Jake thinks she could have made up the story to keep him from stopping the Governor. The Governess says it's why he has to stop him and continues the story.
The Governor, Death, and Hunson are watching an archer and waiting for him to accidentally shoot himself. Hunson is eating cake, which bothers the Governor, who is unable to eat since he's a ghost. Hunson then shows off a large pot that was meant to help him with consuming souls, but it only takes youth instead, so he offers it to the Governor. The Governor asks why a ghost would want youth, and Hunson replies that enough youth could bring a ghost back to life. Unable to resist, the Governor decides to take it and goes to try it out per Hunson's suggestion.
The Governess tells Jake that the Governor is now obsessed with youth, no longer caring much for her or the other ghosts. Jake is appalled by that kind of behavior and says he doesn't know anyone like that, even though the ghost points out that Jake has kids. The Governess tells Jake to take the elixir and return the stolen youth, forcing the Governor to see the error of his ways. Jake points out that the guards are still after him, two of which are on the other side of the door (and one is very motivated). The Governess tells him where the room is and where to exit. Wishing him luck, she goes into the hall and distracts the guards and the Governor by giving them a false location. With everyone gone, Jake hurries to the room and enjoys the apparent easiness. However, he sees how big the pot is and questions how he can carry it. Despite not having his powers, he manages to lift the pot and readies himself to get back home, starting with descending the long staircase.
After a while, Jake makes it to the bottom. Unfortunately, he is confronted by the Governor and his guards. The ghost who asked for his help apologizes to Jake for ratting him out. He admits he only wanted Jake and Finn to come and fill the pot so the ghosts would stop being slaves. The Governor tells Jake to hand over the pot and have his youth drained. Jake refuses and hits him with Finn sword, declaring that the youth goes to Finn, who deserves a long life. He adds that he's doing it for the enslaved ghosts, and the first ghost cheers. In response, the Governor tells all the ghosts that the first to drain the youth from Jake and Finn sword will be allowed to come back to life with him and everyone's service will end. Jake runs as fast as he can with the pot, every enslaved ghost hot on his trail. He wishes he had a way out of the situation, only for the 27th Dead World to bring him to the gate, no longer on lock down. However, the Governor was also brought there. As he drains Jake's youth, he explains that the land was meant for souls to wander endlessly. It gives them hope by putting them where they want to be, then takes it away. Finn watches in horror.
The Governor adds Jake's youth to the elixir and tells the guardian that he'll be coming through soon. The guardian doesn't care. Old Jake tells the Governor to enjoy being alive. He says that he grew tired of quests, but he did this one even though he didn't have to. He could have spent that time with his family. The Governor is moved and realizes the Dead World wasn't toying with Jake, but with him. He sees that he abandoned his people and returns Jake's youth. The first ghost says this was always the plan, but Jake tells him it wasn't. With the ghosts no longer taking youth from the living, Jake leaves the underworld with the pot. Finn congratulates him on his way out. Jake then demands his stretchy powers back from the guardian, who shoves them into his mouth.
Later, Jake and youth-restored Finn walk back to the tree fort with the pot. Jake is telling one of his kids over the phone that he went to the land of the dead and would like to spend time with them. They plan to meet the next weekend. He guesses if they should find every single person who lost their youth, but Finn thinks they should put an ad in the paper and let them reclaim it at their house. Jake agrees and asks Finn if he wants pasta, and Finn say yes.