The Two Guards are posted to two doors in Jareth's Labyrinth, one leads to the next area of the Labyrinth and the other to 'certain death.' They present Sarah with a complex riddle she has to solve before she is allowed to pass the doors they guard.
The guards were puppeteered by Steve Whitmire and Kevin Clash with the voices of Anthony Jackson and Douglas Blackwell. The Creature Shop fabrication team consisted of Cheryl Henson, Ricky Eyres, Rollie Krewson, Polly Smith, Bernard Kramer, and Geoff Paige.
Role In The Film[]
Sarah encounters the Two Guards within the Brick Maze. They demonstrate the magically changing nature of the Labyrinth. Sarah is surprised that they appear in an area that was a dead end a moment ago, and then is surprised again upon seeing that the way out of that area from which she came is suddenly blocked.
The Two Guards present Sarah with a version of the Knights and Knaves logic puzzle. One of the doors out of the area leads to the castle, while the other leads to 'certain death'. In addition, one of the guards is a truth teller, while the other always lies, and only a single question can be asked. Sarah considers, then asks, 'Would he tell me that this door leads to the castle.' By involving both guards, Sarah gets the same answer regardless of whether the truth teller or liar is asked. In other words, either the truth teller truthfully tells her how the liar would lie, or else the liar lies about how the truth teller would tell the truth. Sarah knows to do the opposite of the answer she's given, which allows her to choose the right door. Of course, in the Labyrinth the right way isn't always obviously the right way. Considering the guards themselves explained the puzzle to Sarah, it's doubtful - and maybe logically impossible - that they gave her an accurate representation of the 'rules'. Sarah goes through the door, and immediately falls through a trap door into the Shaft of Hands.
After the helping hands drop her into the Oubliette, Jareth comments that she shouldn't have made it that far, indicating that the right door was indeed a path that got her further into the labyrinth.
Appearances In Other Media[]
Novelization[]
Sarah names the Two Guards, Alph and Ralph. Sarah names the guard on the left Alph and names the guard on the right Ralph. The Two Guards aren't named in the film, however the Creature Workshop Team for the puppets is labeled 'Alph and Ralph' in the end credits.