Polaris Psyche is dying, and Empath with the help of the Smurfs use a life-extending formula plus the "mindlink" to help restore Polaris' life. However, the cure ends up turning Polaris' skin blue, so he experiences firsthand what it is like to live as a Smurf.
This story provides the following tropes:
- Alliterative Name: The Long Life Elixir.
- Death's Hourglass: Psyches go through "degeneration" a year after they have been released from the collective consciousness of the Psyches, and the only cure for them is to return to the collective. That is, until Empath presents Polaris with the alternative, the Long Life Elixir.
- Fantastic Racism/Persecution Flip: Blue-skinned Hefty harasses white-skinned Polaris in this story, especially after his skin turns blue.
- The Klan: Hefty forms the short-lived Order Of The True Smurfs, complete with robes and hoods, to keep the Smurf Village free of "star-faces" like Polaris.
