Tough Luck

Tough Luck is the tenth episode of the second season of Ben 10, and the twenty-third episode overall.
==Synopsis==
Gwen's Lucky Girl powers return when she buys a magical stone at a magic convention in Las Vegas. However, Hex is after the same stone, and after his niece breaks him out of prison, the two set off to retrieve the stone.
==Plot==
A mysterious teenage girl walks through a prison taking down police, easily opening the doors in front of her with magic powers. She opens her bag, and it seems to be the source of her magic. She breaks down the door of a cell using a spell and sees Hex, who waits for someone to let him out. He addresses her as his niece, and her name is Charmcaster. She has come to not only let him out of prison but to deliver his staff to him. In a quick result, they easily get out from the prison's hold.
On a highway, a bus is about to fall off the cliff. Four Arms saves it, but the elderly people want Four Arms to carry them off the bus. In the RV, Gwen searches the internet for magical items and artifacts, which reminds her of Lucky Girl. Ben enters and he complains that he deserves to have a day off from being a hero. Max says that he should be grateful for the power that he has been given. Ben recaps Gwen's way while she was Lucky Girl. His insult makes Gwen throw a pillow at Ben's face. Ben continues and he says that the elders in the bus offered him to come to a magic convention in Las Vegas. Ben was not interested in their offer, though Gwen overhears what he said.
Somewhere, Hex and Charmcaster stand near a fire. Hex recites a spell, and it reveals to him the Lost Keystone of Bezel and pinpoints to him its location. Charmcaster seems to want to leave, but Hex tells her to stay. With no choice, she stays, afraid that her uncle might hurt her.
Ben, Gwen, and Max arrive at the magic convention in Las Vegas, Nevada. Her expectancy of the event doesn't seem to be satisfied, but Ben seems to enjoy what he's looking for so far. Max tells her to look around some more, in case Gwen finds something that she might like. She spots a booth that offers magical charms, and a specific one seems to catch her attention. Before she finishes explaining to Max about the charm she bought, screaming is heard from outside.
A man is hanging from a rope attached to a flying helicopter, and it seems that the helicopter is breaking down. Ben transforms into Stinkfly to save the man, though the situation worsens after the blades pop off. Gwen finds that Max doesn't notice the blades heading his way, and she immediately goes after to push him out of the way. Mysteriously, the charm in the bracelet sparkles, and she pushes Max out of the way just in time. Her amazing stunt intrigues him. Immediately, she knows what she's just been given.
Stinkfly continues to hang on under the helicopter, and he uses his slime to create threads that can hold the helicopter in place. Stinkfly stops the helicopter, but the man is ready to fall when they see that the rope holding him is burning. He falls down, but Lucky Girl comes to the rescue and catches him just in time. The crowd cheers for Stinkfly and Lucky Girl's teamwork. Stinkfly is amazed by Lucky Girl's return and even seems to be happy about it.
In the RV, Gwen gets more information on the charm, figuring out that it's related to the Charms of Bezel. Ben thought that she destroyed all the charms, though she explains that it's the legendary Lost Keystone of Bezel. It can greatly enhance one's skills and magical powers ten times.
They head back to the Magician of the Year convention, and they watch the upcoming event. As the announcer tells the audience that the next contestant is about to attempt for the crown, Ben gets an idea. The magician on the stage calls for a volunteer, and Ben is the first to come up and do it. He puts Ben into the box, and in a matter of seconds after the man chants Abracadabra, the box glows green and Wildmutt bursts out, immediately causing the audience to cheer for the magician's act. Max and Gwen are the only ones in the crowd to ignore Wildmutt. A cloud of red dust hovers above the building, and it directs to the stage, where Hex then appears. He sees Gwen, and he orders her to hand over the Lost Keystone of Bezel.
Hex realizes that the audience is looking for magic tricks. So, to go along with the subject, he uses magic that threatens them. Lucky Girl comes to stop Hex and Charmcaster. Hex grabs a hold of Lucky Girl's Keystone but gets thrown by Lucky Girl. Charmcaster then opens her bag to release little objects, which then grow into Rock Monsters. Wildmutt comes to try and pin her down, though her strength in magic overcomes Wildmutt's advantage over her. Hex gets back up on his feet and causes feedback that throws Max and Lucky Girl into a hedge maze. More Rock Monsters then stop by their feet and then transform to chase them. Luckily, they are able to get out of their sight.
Hex and Charmcaster come in, and he orders her to track them down. Max, however, is being chased by the giant Rock Monster, but Wildmutt is just in time to save him, though he reverts back into Ben. Lucky Girl finds Charmcaster and takes her bag away. Charmcaster tells Gwen that she's innocent and that she wants to get away from her uncle. Gwen is suspicious of her claims, though she immediately goes on her side after learning about Hex's threat of what he might do to Max and Ben if she doesn't hand the charm over. Charmcaster opens her bag and releases bats that drop him into a nearby pool. Little does Gwen know that she had been fooled, and Hex realizes that Charmcaster was smart to act innocent. The eclipse is near, and Hex readies the ritual to recreate the five Charms of Bezel and gain their powers and abilities once more.
Gwen puts herself down after realizing that she was fooled, but Ben warns her that Hex must be stopped before the charms are recreated. Hex must go to the highest point of the city, where the ritual will be performed.
Hex recites a spell, and the Keystone rises to the sky. The eclipse draws nearer, and time is short. Ben insists for Gwen's help, just enough to cheer her up. Ben still can't activate the Omnitrix, though Max finds another way to get up the building. Gwen and Max head to the window washer's platform, while Ben finds another way to the top.
Lucky Girl comes up to interrupt Hex's chant, and she appears to have arrived at the top by levitation. Charmcaster does not buy the trick that Lucky Girl is attempting. Hex pulls off her act to find Max holding her up. Though they find that Lucky Girl has no known magical powers and abilities, Ben comes along with his hoverboard. He hits Hex in the head, though he ends up being pushed off to the edge of the board. Lucky Girl tries to pin down Charmcaster, though Max and Lucky Girl end up on the roller coaster.
Ben continues to hang on for his life, but the Omnitrix has recharged enough to go into Active Mode. Hex knocks him off, and Ben attempts to transform into Four Arms, but he transforms into Wildvine instead. Wildvine extends his arms to hold on to buildings. Charmcaster throws the magical orbs onto the coaster tracks, putting Max and Lucky Girl in danger. Luckily, Wildvine is able to grab a hold of them.
Hex tells Charmcaster that he'll continue the spell from there, though it seems that she turns on him. She says that she needed a master magician to perform the recreation ritual. Hex tries to grab a hold of his staff, though with no success. From there, Charmcaster continues the spell to complete the five Charms of Bezel. Charmcaster isn't afraid of Lucky Girl, though she is able to activate the staff. To finish the job, Wildvine destroys the newly created charms, and drains Charmcaster and Hex of all of their magic. Gwen realizes that the Keystone may have lost its power, and she may not become Lucky Girl again, but Ben tells her that there are other ways to be a hero. She rides the hoverboard to show Ben a fine example, but little does Gwen know that the Keystone of Bezel still has power left, after showing itself to glow.
==Noteworthy Events==
===Major Events===
*Charmcaster breaks Hex out of prison.
*Gwen dons her Lucky Girl persona again.
*Team Tennyson meets Charmcaster.
*The Charms of Bezel are recreated by Hex and later destroyed by Wildvine.
====Character Debuts====
*Charmcaster
*Harold
*Mildred
*Edith
*Amazing Alan
==Characters==
===Main Characters===
*Ben Tennyson
*Gwen Tennyson (flashback and present; flashback was a cameo)
*Max Tennyson
===Antagonists===
*Hex
*Charmcaster (first appearance)
===Other Characters===
*Harold (first appearance)
*Mildred (first appearance)
*Edith (first appearance)
*Amazing Alan (first appearance)
==Aliens Used==
*Four Arms (off-screen activation)
*Stinkfly (off-screen activation)
*Wildmutt
*Wildvine (selected alien was Four Arms)
==Spells Used==
===By Charmcaster===
*Fallum Quarca Daminigan
===By Hex===
*Takara Doroteen Aghosto
*Baruban Hestida Zerzam
==Quotes==
==Naming and Translations==
==Cast==
==Continuity==
*There are several callbacks to Lucky Girl in this episode.
**Ben mentions Gwen destroying the Charms of Bezel after fighting with Hex in the New Orleans cemetery.
*Ben uses the hoverboard gifted to him by Tetrax in Hunted.
==Allusions==
*The signboard outside the magic convention states "Soto sings tonight", which is a reference to Alex Soto, the supervising producer and director of the Original Series. 
TL (229).png|Alex Soto reference
==Errors==
*In some shots when Ben rides on the hoverboard, the Omnitrix's dial faces the wrong way.
TL (1098).png|Omnitrix dial error
==Trivia==
*In a stark contrast to Gwen's first appearance as Lucky Girl, Ben actually welcomes her assistance this time. In fact, Ben and Gwen do not really have any arguments in this episode at all.
*The signboard outside the magic convention has the dates "July 6, 7, 8" mentioned on it, which means the events of this episode take place on one of those dates. 
==References==
===Production Material===
====Backgrounds====
===Cartoon Network===
es:La suerte regresa
pl:Co za pech
pt-br:Má Sorte
ro:Ghinion
ru:Неудачи
Category:Episodes
Category:Ben 10 Season 2 Episodes
Category:Ben 10 Episodes
Category:Episodes Directed by Scooter Tidwell
Category:Episodes with Flashbacks