Masters of the Universe

Origin of the franchise

In 1976, Mattel's CEO Ray Wagner declined a request to produce a toyline of action figures based on the characters from the George Lucas film Star Wars. Upon the commercial success of the film trilogy during the next few years and all related merchandise, Mattel attempted to launch several unsuccessful toylines, none of which captured the public's imagination or made a significant dent in the toy market.

In the race to design the next hit action figure, Roger Sweet, a lead designer working for Mattel's Preliminary Design Department throughout much of the 1970s and 1980s, realized simplicity was the key to success. According to his book Mastering the Universe: He-Man and the Rise and Fall of a Billion-Dollar Idea published in 2005, Sweet knew that if he gave marketing something they could sell, he would have won 90% of the battle (although this is not officially acknowledged by Mattel and is disputed by some other contributors).

The earliest storybooks and much of the original backstory were written by Donald F. Glut. Two other designers, Mark Taylor and Jill Barad, have also taken credit for creation of the superhero.

"The only way I was going to have a chance to sell this [to Wagner] was to make three 3D models—big ones. I glued a Big Jim figure [from another Mattel toy line] into a battle action pose and I added a lot of clay to his body. I then had plaster casts made. These three prototypes, which I presented in late 1980, brought He-Man into existence."

"I simply explained that this was a powerful figure that could be taken anywhere and dropped into any context because he had a generic name: He-Man!"

—Roger Sweet

Roger Sweet presented the He-Man concept to Ray Wagner at the Mattel Product Conference, in the form of the aforementioned three large three-dimensional plaster prototype models, which Sweet dubbed the "He-Man Trio". These prototypes were molded from an extensively modified Big Jim action figure, and had some painted formed sheet wax outfit parts. The He-Man Trio models were a barbarian, a soldier, and a spaceman. Out of the three concepts, the barbarian version He-Man was chosen to be the basis of the toyline (this original trio-prototype idea was released around thirty years later as the figure Vykron, and the barbarian concept on its own as Vikor, in the 'Masters of the Universe Classics' line).

In 1980, the rights-holders of Conan the Barbarian began negotiating the character's toy rights with Mattel. They entered in an agreement the following year regarding characters from the Conan movie. Upon Mattel introducing a toy line starring He-Man, the rights-holders sued the toy company claiming the character was a copy of Conan. Mattel eventually won the lawsuit. Taking in consideration that the Conan character was created almost 50 years prior to the development of the He-Man franchise, it is likely that the Masters of the Universe borrowed many aspects from Conan, but it appears that it was not intended to be a toyline for the film after legal agreements were dissolved. Additionally, Roger Sweet has claimed also to have been "real impressed" by the paintings of fantasy artist Frank Frazetta when creating He-Man. and the barbarian sculpt was based on an illustration by Mark Taylor. The decision to change He-Man's hair to blonde was made by Mattel's Tom Kalinske. To further expand on this initial barbarian theme, Mattel hired comic book writers such as Donald F. Glut and artists like Earl Norem (who painted covers for the Marvel Comics Savage Sword of Conan since issue #16 in 1976) to create additional characters and their backstory, posters, package inlays, box art and mini-comics to be distributed with the action figures.

Series overview and main characters

From these early concepts, Mattel would finally produce the original 'Masters of the Universe' action figure toyline in 1981. Released as 5 1/2 inch action figures, the lore of Masters of the Universe would first be explored through minicomics that accompanied the toys through the duration line. The two primary characters, 'the most powerful man in the universe', He-Man and his nemesis, the evil skull-faced sorcerer Skeletor, were the first released in action figure form, along with other core characters of the entire series; He-Man's allies, Man-At-Arms, Teela, Battle Cat, and Stratos, and Skeletor's henchmen Beast Man and Mer-Man. He-Man was given his power by the Goddess/Sorceress of Castle Grayskull and would defend his planet Eternia from the evil forces of Skeletor (originally described as an evil warlord/demon from another dimension). Set in a hybrid world of sword and sorcery and technological sci-fi, they would battle over the possession of the 'Power Sword', as He-Man tried to stop Skeletor from his ambition to rule Eternia and discover the Secrets of Castle Grayskull.

After the original toy releases, DC Comics would adapt the franchise into special insert appearances in their regular comic series and a three issue mini-series in 1982. These issues introduced elements to the series, such as He-Man being the secret alter ego of Prince Adam, son of the royal family of Eternia; as in Adam's father King Randor and mother Queen Marlena. However, the Masters of the Universe franchise would become much better known through Filmation's He-Man and the Masters of the Universe cartoon series; debuting in the fall of 1983, running 130 episodes through two seasons until the end of 1984 (primarily featuring various moral-themed encounters between He-Man, Skeletor and a wide and expanding cast of heroic and villainous characters; with the notable addition of the childlike Orko. With the release of the "He-Man and She-Ra: The Secret of the Sword" movie in spring 1985 (introducing He-man's twin sister She-Ra, and her arch-villain Hordak on the planet Etheria), Filmation produced 93 episodes of the She-Ra: Princess of Power series, which ran until the end of 1986, along with the He-Man & She-Ra: Christmas Special.

Various children's books, magazines, comics, read-along records/cassette tapes and other merchandise were also released worldwide around this time, with much of the content based primarily on the Filmation He-Man and She-Ra series. Masters of the Universe, a live action movie was released in 1987 by Cannon Films, starring Dolph Lundgren and Frank Langella. The later action figure minicomics continued the adventures of He-Man and She-Ra past the end of the two Filmation series; but popularity had waned by the end of 1987 and a planned continuation of the original toyline under the heading of 'The Powers of Grayskull' (set in ancient Eternia, featuring the villain King Hiss, and He-Man's ancestor He-Ro) was started, but eventually scrapped.

He-Man would be brought back in 1989, in an entirely new, and space-based cartoon series and toy line known as the 'New Adventures of He-Man'. Under the name 'He-Man', Mattel released an entirely new line of action figures, featuring only He-Man and Skeletor as the main returning characters to join the battle between Galactic Guardians and Space Mutants on the planet Primus. Jetlag Productions would go to produce 65 episodes of the New Adventures cartoon, while minicomics and a few adventure magazines were also created for this new series. Ultimately though, the series would not be as successful and the entire franchise would go on a hiatus for more than a decade (although a series about the son of He-Man was pitched in 1996 by Lou Scheimer, but rejected).

After some success with a 'Commemorative Series' re-release of the classic action figures in 2000; Mattel relaunched the toyline with all new action figures, playsets and vehicles, sculpted by Four Horsemen Studios in 2002. As part of the relaunch, a modern updated animated series was also created by Mike Young Productions, lasting for 39 episodes; featuring He-Man and his ensemble of heroic warriors, now called the 'Masters of the Universe', battling Skeletor's minions and later King Hiss and his Snake Men. Several volumes of comic books were also produced to go along with the series by Image Comics and MVCreations. Although popular with longtime fans and collectors (with mini-statue figures being released by NECA until 2007), the new series failed to catch on with a larger audience and was cancelled in 2004.

From 2007 to the present, a new assortment of Masters of the Universe action figures has been released under the banner of 'Masters of the Universe Classics'. Primarily geared towards the collector's market, the series took into consideration all aspects of previous Masters of the Universe lore, with characters from all previous incarnations (and also featured a continuation of the original minicomics line, produced by Dark Horse Comics). DC Comics would soon follow suit, and relaunch a new grittier, contemporary version of the Masters of the Universe franchise, releasing various new comic book series from 2012 until present; featuring crossovers with the DC Comics Universe, and a new origin for She-Ra, culminating in Hordak's conquest of Eternia. The current ongoing series is entitled 'He-Man: The Eternity War'.

History and versions of the franchise

As with many toy franchises which have been transferred to several different media there are a number of story differences between the various versions of Masters of the Universe. Complicating matters further, several media have made implicit attempts to change details to realign with other versions, with the result that internal discontinuities arise.

Original action figures releases (1982-1988)

Created by Mattel in 1981, the 'Masters of the Universe' toyline was first released as 5 1/2 inch action figures in 1982 (as opposed to the 3 3/4 inch size used by Kenner Star Wars and Hasbro's G.I. Joe). Brief descriptions of the characters would appear on the toyline's unique packaging and box art (with illustrations by Errol McCarthy, William George and others); however, the lore of Masters of the Universe would really first be explored through minicomics that accompanied the toys through the duration line. The two main characters, He-Man (the muscular blonde hero and most powerful man in the universe) and his arch-enemy Skeletor (the blue-skinned, skull-faced master of evil and sorcery) were the first released in action figure form, along with other core characters of the entire series; Man-At-Arms (He-man's friend and scientific master of weapons), Beast Man (Skeletor's master of beasts and main henchman) and Battle Cat (He-Man's large green, Tiger-like companion).

Later on that year, first wave of action figures in 1982 would also include Teela (a heroic female warrior, and an essential character through most of the Masters of the Universe franchise, serving as a potential love interest for He-man), Mer-Man (an aquatic henchman of Skeletor, master of the seas, featured in most He-Man incarnations), Stratos (a bird-like winged warrior and one of He-Man's main allies) and Zodac (an ambiguous neutral 'cosmic enforcer' character, who appeared far less in the series than the other characters released at this time). Also alongside the first wave of figures were the Battle Ram and Wind Raider vehicles and the Castle Grayskull playset. Additional waves of action figures, creatures, vehicles and playsets were released every year until 1987; totaling 70 distinct figures in all (including 24 creatures, 12 vehicles, 6 playsets and 10 accessories) with the final two overseas releases from the original line coming from Italy in 1988. Other major characters introduced in these early waves of action figures and minicomics included He-Man's heroic allies Ram Man, Man-E-Faces and Zoar (an alternate falcon form of the magical Sorceress of Castle Grayskull); along with Skeletor's evil warriors Tri-Klops, Trap Jaw and Faker (evil robot clone of He-Man). Many of the original characters, vehicles and playsets, including Castle Grayskull, were designed by Mark Taylor & Ted Mayer. The final production sculpt of the 1982 He-Man action figure was done by Tony Guerrero.

Early mini-comics (1981-1982)

All of the original Mattel action figures came with minicomics that told stories involving the characters, with 49 distinct comics being issued from 1981 until 1987. In the earliest series, featuring the original four minicomics made by Mattel (written by Donald F. Glut with artwork by Alfredo Alcala), He-Man is introduced in 'He-man and the Power Sword' as a wandering barbarian, leaving behind his jungle tribe on Eternia; a world dealing with the aftermath of a Great War that has devastated the civilizations that once reigned, but has left behind fantastical machinery and weapons. The events of the Great War opened a rift between dimensions, which allows the evil warlord Skeletor to travel to Eternia, and he has now set his sights on obtaining both halves of the power sword (split in two in these early stories) and gain entry into the ancient Castle Grayskull, the 'fortress of mystery and power' (depicted, in these early comics, as being inhabited by the ghostly 'Spirit of Castle Grayskull'). Whoever attains control of Grayskull will gain the power to become Master of the Universe. To prevent Skeletor from achieving his goal, He-Man has been given special powers, armor and weapons by the Sorceress (referred to as 'The Goddess' in early stories, appearing to have green skin in her debut appearance and Caucasian skin thereafter, she is shown wearing 'snake armor' similar in appearance to Mattel's first Teela action figure; instead of adorning her later more familiar bird-like attire). He-Man (not yet with the dual-identity of Prince Adam), is supported by several heroic allies, such as his loyal pet Battle Cat (without the dual form of Cringer), Man-At-Arms, the Eternian master of weapons (clean-shaven, without moustache), Teela, (often shown with long blonde hair and accompanied by a horse in these early depictions), and Stratos, the winged warrior. Skeletor, in-turn, enlists the help of the brutish Beast Man and aquatic Mer-Man to battle He-Man and his heroic warriors. Vehicles introduced in this early series include the Wind-Raider and Battle Ram.

The second series, consisting of seven minicomics, released in 1982, were produced by DC Comics, written by Gary Cohn and featured artwork by Mark Texeira. This second wave of comics would introduce the Eternian Palace and Royal Court with King Randor and Queen Marlena (yet unnamed, looking decidedly older than in the later series), along with the heroic warriors Ram Man, Man-E-Faces, the mystical bird-creature Zoar (not yet an alternate form of the Sorceress) and the vehicles known as the Attak-Trak and the Talon Fighter of Point Dread. Skeletor was joined by the evil warriors Tri-Klops and Trap Jaw, portrayed as inter-dimensional bounty-hunter types. The primary characters of Prince Adam, Cringer, Orko, and Evil-Lyn did not yet feature in the series, although the storyline of Teela being the daughter of the Sorceress and adopted daughter of Man-At-Arms was first introduced.

DC Comics - 1980s series (1982-1983)

He-Man and company would then make appearances in the actual pages of DC Comics, starting with DC Comics Presents issue #47, followed by a special insert comic in many DC's titles from November 1982, finishing up with a three issue mini-series at the start of 1983 (all written by Paul Kupperberg, with artwork by Curt Swan and George Tuska). In the first two tales of these notable DC publications, Superman ends up joining with He-Man on to combat Skeletor and his minions. This series would introduce Prince Adam and his transformation into He-Man into the series (although Adam was originally portrayed as a blue vest-wearing womanizer, rather than his more wholesome later character and would transform inside 'Cave of Power' instead of his famous 'By the Power of Grayskull!' line). Other entries into the series mythos, such as Zodac the neutral cosmic enforcer, Stratos' home world of Avion, and Adam's mother, Queen Marlena, as an astronaut hailing from Earth, were also partly introduced in these early DC issues.

He-Man and the Masters of the Universe (1983-1984)

The animated series He-Man and the Masters of the Universe was created by Filmation and made its television debut on September 5, 1983 with the episode 'The Diamond Ray of Disappearance', through 2 seasons, totaling 130 episodes until 'The Cold Zone', airing on November 21, 1985. The series was produced by Lou Scheimer (who also provided the voice for Orko, King Randor, Stratos, Trap Jaw, Tri-Klops and many others), Gwen Wetzler and Hal Sutherland; and featured the voice talents of John Erwin (He-Man/Adam, Beast Man, Ram Man, Whiplash and others), Alan Oppenheimer (Skeletor, Man-At-Arms, Battle Cat/Cringer, Mer-Man and others) and Linda Gary (Teela, The Sorceress, Evil-Lyn, Queen Marlena and others).

The series is set in Eternia, which is ruled by King Randor and Queen Marlena (the latter was born Marlena Glenn, an astronaut from Earth who married Randor after she was marooned on Eternia by the crash of her spaceship). Their son is Prince Adam, who pretends he is lazy, clumsy, careless, irresponsible and almost as cowardly as his pet tiger Cringer (who transforms into Battle Cat). However, Prince Adam possesses a magic sword, and when he holds it aloft and says the magic words, "By the power of Grayskull...I have the Power!!!" Prince Adam is transformed into He-Man, "The Most Powerful Man In The Universe". Prince Adam's secret identity of He-Man is known only by the Sorceress of Castle Grayskull (magical bird-like guardian of Castle Grayskull who often takes the form of Zoar the falcon), Man-At-Arms (veteran soldier, scientist, inventor and most trusted ally; also known as Duncan) and Orko (a floating childlike Trollan magician, often used for comic relief). Rounding out the main cast of heroes is Teela, the Captain of the Royal Guard (who is the adopted daughter of Man-At-Arms and secret child of the Sorceress), who serves as a teasing and semi-antagonistic love interest of Adam and He-Man throughout the series. Stratos (the flying leader of the birdpeople of Avion) and Ram-Man (a dim-witted bouncing warrior) also feature in the series with semi-regularity. Appearing with less frequency in the series are He-Man's recurring allies Mossman, Fisto, Man-E-Faces, Mekaneck, Sy-Klone, Zodac, Lizard-Man, Melaktha, Dree-Elle, Montork, Squinch and the Widgets and Granamyr the Dragon.

He-Man's nemesis, the powerful skull-faced evil wizard Skeletor wished to rule Eternia and conquer Castle Grayskull; often seeking ancient and mysterious artifacts to try and stop He-man and his allies. Skeletor usually hosts his rogues gallery in his bone-filled throne room inside Snake Mountain. Skeletor's most dangerous counterpart is the cunning sorcerer Evil-Lyn, and most his frequent sidekicks are the often bumbling, master of beasts, Beast Man and the equally bumbling weapon-armed Trap Jaw. His original henchmen in the cartoon also included Tri-Klops, Mer-Man and his purple pet feline Panthor. Other rogues would make a few appearances later in the series such as Webstor, Kobra Khan, Clawful, Spikor, Two-Bad, Modulok and Whiplash (appearing the most out of the later henchmen). Several memorable heroes and villains would appear only once or twice in the Filmation cartoon, such as Faker, Jitsu (called 'Chopper'), Count Marzo, Evilseed, Batros, General Tataran, Shokoti, Negator, Icer, Fang-Man, Strong-Arm, Plundor, Delora, Hawk, Roboto and Adam's grandfather King Miro to name a few.

Despite the limited animation techniques that were used to produce the series, He-Man and the Masters of the Universe was notable for breaking the boundaries of censorship that had severely restricted the narrative scope of children's TV programming in the 1970s. For the first time in years, a cartoon series could feature a muscular superhero who was actually allowed to hit people (although most of the time wrestling-style moves were utilized instead of direct violence), though he still couldn't use his sword often. The cartoon was controversial in that it was produced in connection with marketing a line of toys; advertising to children was itself controversial during this period. In Britain, advertising regulations forbade commercials for He-Man toys to accompany the program itself (either before or after the episode, as there were no in-show commercials). Similar to other shows at the time (notably G.I. Joe), an attempt to mitigate the negative publicity generated by this controversy was made by including a "life lesson" or "moral of the story" at the end of each episode. This moral was usually tied to the action or central theme of the episode. In the United Kingdom, where the episodes were usually edited for timing reasons, these closing "morals" were nearly always edited out of their original broadcasts.

The cartoon series was also remarkable because it was one of the first animated series produced directly for syndication, as opposed to most other syndicated cartoons of the time which were re-runs of old Saturday morning cartoons. The most notable production fact of the series was that it was the very first animated series where a bulk quantity of 65 episodes were produced so that the series could be stripped across 13 weeks. Writers on the show included Larry DiTillio, David Wise, Ron Schultz, Sam Schultz, Marc Scott Zicree, Robby London, Michael Reaves, J. Brynne Stephens, Robert White, Don Heckman, Douglas Booth, Rowby Goren, Tom Tataranowicz, Robert Lamb, Antoni Zalewski, Jeffry O'Hare, and many others. The series is also noted for featuring early script-writing work from Babylon 5 creator J. Michael Straczynski, and Paul Dini of Batman: The Animated Series fame One episode, "Battle Cat," was written by Star Trek's D.C. Fontana.

The series, although still popular, would not be renewed for a third season. Instead Filmation opted to create the She-Ra: Princess of Power Series, and deliberately crossover the existing He-Man and the Masters of the Universe characters and continuity into the new series. The original He-Man series would end and She-Ra begin with animated movie The Secret of the Sword, released theatrically in the spring of 1985, featuring most of the main characters from both cartoons. The two animated series, would however, join up one last time for He-Man & She-Ra: A Christmas Special in December 1985; in which two children from Earth end up accidentally on Eternia and are protected by Skeletor, who in a rare act of kindness, is overtaken by the Christmas Spirit. The very last appearance of Filmation's He-Man and Skeletor was in one of the final She-Ra episodes, entitled 'Assault on the Hive', airing December 13, 1986.

She-Ra: Princess of Power (1985-1986)

In 1985, Mattel and Filmation decided to diversify the Masters of the Universe line beyond its traditional realm of "male action" in the hopes of bringing in a young female audience as well.

Mattel's toyline Princess of Power featured almost exclusively female characters, all of whom featured an emphasis on hair and clothing, with "real" hair and partially softgoods costumes. Essentially, the line attempted to fuse the appeal of Masters of the Universe with Mattel's successful line of fashion dolls, Barbie.

The 'Princess of Power' toyline ran from 1985 to 1987, for which Mattel would release 22 action figure/dolls (with 12 creatures, 2 playsets and 16 clothing accessories). Apart from the main Princess of Power line, the preeminent villains of the She-Ra series, Hordak and the Evil Horde (originally created by Filmation in collaboration with Mattel), were released by Mattel under the Masters of the Universe branding. So, Hordak and the other male Evil Horde characters (Mantenna, Leech, Grizzlor and Modulok), although featuring heavily in the She-Ra cartoon series, were also sold as a new group of villains battling He-Man on Eternia, with the mini-comics debuting them as such. The character Catra was the only Evil Horde villain to be released in the first wave of the Princess of Power toyline, with Mattel downplaying her connection to the Horde (she is later joined in the toy-line by fellow Horde-Villainess Entrapta).

In conjunction with the new action figure line, Filmation created a new animated series titled She-Ra: Princess of Power, with She-Ra as its feminine warrior-woman heroine. Filmation had the task of revealing that Prince Adam had a twin sister, Princess Adora, who was first introduced in the animated feature The Secret of the Sword in the spring of 1985. This film was a compilation of what would become the first five episodes of the cartoon series, first airing 'The Sword of She-Ra Part 1: Into Etheria' on September 9, 1985. The series would run for 2 seasons, and 93 episodes from 1985 to 1986. She-Ra: Princess of Power was produced in lieu of continuing He-Man and the Masters of the Universe for a third year; however, He-Man often appeared in special crossover episodes of She-Ra to aid his sister, and many other characters from He-Man and the Masters of the Universe, both heroic and evil, also appeared in multiple crossover episodes. She-Ra would also feature in 13 of her own minicomics (packaged with the figures), along with several children's books, comic magazines, and read-along record/cassette-tape books.

She-Ra was born as Princess Adora on Eternia, Prince Adam/He-Man's twin sister and daughter of King Randor and Queen Marlena. Adora is kidnapped by Hordak and Skeletor as a baby and taken to the world of Etheria (the main setting of the She-Ra series), which is dominated by the Evil Horde. She is raised and brainwashed by Hordak and his powerful confidant Shadow Weaver, to eventually become Force Captain of the Horde. After encountering her brother He-Man (who is on a mission from the Sorceress to find her on Etheria), she eventually acquires the Sword of Protection, becomes She-Ra and joins the Great Rebellion fighting to free her planet from its tyrannical ruler Hordak. Just as Prince Adam transforms into He-Man with the use of his Sword of Power, Adora transforms into She-Ra via her Sword of Protection, a replica of He-Man's sword featuring a smooth blue gem in its hilt. Adora's transformation into She-Ra is similarly triggered by holding her sword over her head, and by uttering her own unique invocation; "For the honor of Grayskull... I AM SHE-RA!". Unlike He-Man's sword, however, She-Ra's possesses the ability to transform into different weapons and accessories, such as a lasso, a shield or a flaming blade, when commanded by She-Ra. Similar to He-Man and Cringer/Battle Cat, She-Ra also transforms her horse Spirit into the flying unicorn Swift Wind.

Hordak rules Etheria from his dreaded base known as the Fright Zone, enslaving the people through his legions of Horde Troopers and his Force Squad. The Force Squad, lead originally by Adora and now by Catra; consists of the goofy Mantenna (whom Hordak loves to torment), beastly Grizzlor, energy-draining Leech and scorpion-woman Scorpia. The Horde was later joined by others including Skeletor's former henchman Modulok, the robotic Multi-Bot, the future Snake Men Tung-Lashor and Rattlor and others. Several major villains from the She-Ra cartoon did not receive an original action figure release, such as the aforementioned evil sorceress Shadow Weaver, or brutish Scorpia; nor did other recurring evil characters such as the mischievous Imp, the octopus woman Octavia, the Horde zoo keeper Vultak, Hunga the Harpy and the robot Dylamug. The overarching inter-planetary supreme leader of the Horde, Horde Prime, who held leadership over both Hordak and Skeletor was also introduced during the She-Ra Filmation series.

The premise of the She-Ra TV series was the reverse of the He-Man cartoon, where the heroes are actually rebels countering an evil establishment (rather than Skeletor trying to conquer Eternia). The Great Rebellion, hidden within the Whispering Woods, is led by Queen Angela and her daughter Glimmer, with the main cast of the Princess of Power cartoon also featuring Adora/She-Ra's steed Spirit/Swift Wind, the main male heroic character of the series, Bow, the timid owl-like Kowl, the inept magician Madame Razz and her wise-cracking sidekick, Broom. Also appearing in many episodes are the small imp-like forest-dwelling Twiggits (mainly Sprockett, Spritina, and Spragg) and the mystical character Light Hope, who served as a 'Sorceress of Grayskull-type' guide to She-Ra, residing high atop Mount Skydancer in the Crystal Castle. Throughout the series recurring characters and members/allies of the Rebellion included Adora's swashbuckling love interest Sea-Hawk, the flirtatious Frosta, magical Castaspella, butterfly-like Flutterina, the mermaid Mermista, peacock-like Peakablue, Perfuma, Netossa, Sweet Bee, Sorrowful the dragon, the elephant warrior Snout Spout, and the comet warriors Granita, Rokkon and Stonedar. Some of the other popular one-off heroes and villains were Spinnerella, Huntara, General Sunder, False-Face, Colonel Blast, the Red Knight, King Micah, the Meteorbs and the Star Sisters. She-Ra: Princess of Power would air its final episode 'Swifty's Baby' on December 5, 1986; with no real conclusion or finale for neither the She-Ra nor He-Man Filmation series.

Later mini-comics and 'The Powers of Grayskull' (1983-1987)

Series three of Mattel's minicomics would follow a more similar canon to that of the Filmation animated series, sometimes taking stories straight from episodes of the show in 1983. Series four in 1984, would also follow Filmation's continuity, but showcase new stories featuring the introduction of Princess of Power villain Hordak and the Evil Horde (focusing more on Hordak's attempts to attack He-Man and invade Eternia, rather than anything She-Ra/Princess of Power related). Series five and the final series, six, in 1986 and 1987, would continue on the adventures past the animated series and its sequel in the She-Ra line, introducing new characters not seen in the cartoon series such as Stinkor, Rio Blast, Clamp Champ, Dragstor, Extendar, Blast-Attak, Ninjor, Scare-Glow, Snake-Face, Sssqueeze, Mosquitor and the Energy Zoids (along with live action movie characters Blade, Saurod and Gwildor). More importantly, the main storyline included the new major villains known as the Snake Men. Kobra Khan, Tung-Lashor and Rattlor (previously appearing in the He-Man and She-Ra cartoon series with Skeletor, and/or as members of the Horde), were now under the leadership of the ancient Eternian King Hiss, whose snake men army rose from Eternia's past, joining forces with Skeletor to once again rule Eternia. Other notable storylines included the introduction three-towered fortress of Eternia, and the suggested origin of Skeletor as Keldor; all leading towards what would have been a continuation of the series in the 'Powers of Grayskull' line, before being discontinued. Issues from series 3 through 6 were often edited by Lee Nordling, included writing by Steven Grant, Michael Halperin, Tim Kilpin, Phil White, and Christy Marx; and often featured the artwork of Bruce Timm, Jim Mitchell, Chris Carlson, Alfredo Alcala or Larry Houston.

The proposed exploration of the distant past of Eternia, dubbed "Preternia", forms the basis of what was originally to be the next incarnation of the toyline, entitled The Powers of Grayskull. However the toyline was canelled very early on, with only a few toys released (like the dinosaur-themed creatures Turbodactyl, Bionatops, Tyrantisaurus Rex and the rare Italian-only released giant figures, Tytus and Megator). The main story information originates from the final mini-comic The Powers of Grayskull—The Legend Begins!, which was intended as the first of a three-part series, however only this issue appeared.

The proposed storyline was to focus on Ancient Eternia, which was populated by many creatures, including the aforementioned cybernetic dinosaurs and giants. When the Sorceress and He-Man arrive, followed by Skeletor, they find King Hiss leading an attack on a village in the hope of drawing out "The Elders", using some of the cybernetic dinosaurs to their advantage. Hiss serves an "unnamed one" and agrees to unite with Skeletor on the basis that he might be an emissary. Seeing Skeletor's interference, the Sorceress allows He-Man to enter the battle but, "for reasons that will be made clear to you in the future," he had to be disguised. He finds himself overwhelmed, but then a shadowy figure appears who turns the odds with a powerful wand. The stranger then sends the Snake Men back to their base and all the time travellers home. The Sorceress describes the intervener as "the Greatest Sorcerer of all" and He-Man is left asking, "But who is he?". No further story information is given, and it remains unclear how the giants mentioned and released as toys would fit into the story. However, some marketing press releases and prototypes have shed further information.

The wizard was to be He-Ro, an ancestor of He-Man. Raised by his mentor Eldor and discovering special powers in a cave, He-Ro would have led the fight against the Snake Men. According to the mini-comics' writers it was intended that the central antagonist would be Keldor, a character revealed similarly late in the line to have been He-Man's uncle and also strongly hinted to have been the former identity of Skeletor. Whether or not Keldor was also supposed to be the "Unnamed One" Hiss served is not clear, although in an interview writer Steven Grant vaguely recalls that the intention was that the Unnamed One would be a greater evil who, as the Emperor was to Darth Vader, was intended to be the one who caused Keldor to become Skeletor.

Other comics, books, magazines and international publications (1983-1988)

Generally going along with the established Filmation continuity, Marvel Comics would also release a younger-skewing Star Comics Masters of the Universe series that ran from 1986 to 1988 bi-monthly and produced 13 issues. Comics strips could also be found at this time in newspaper syndication, and various He-Man adventure magazine issues containing Masters of the Universe related comics were released in the United States, United Kingdom, Germany, France, Finland, Argentina, Brazil, Spain, Italy and others. The 'He-Man and the Masters of the Universe Magazine', was a U.S. based fan club magazine featuring puzzles, fan letters, feature stories and comic strips (running 16 issues, 1985-1988; She-Ra also with a similar magazine, running 6 issues). This magazine also famously featured a create a character contest (resulting in the Fearless Photog character) and very well rendered covers and posters by artist Earl Norem. Egmont's London Editions in the United Kingdom, published 72 issues biweekly of their 'By The Power of Grayskull... Masters of the Universe' comic magazine from 1986 to 1988 (also publishing 14 issues of 'For the Honor of Grayskull She-Ra' and 3 specials). The series is often noted for expanding the origins of many characters, and introducing the character 'Scrollos'. Egmont also ran a monthly comic magazine entitled 'Masters of the Universe Adventure', which ran for 18 issues before turning into a 'New Adventures' themed magazine 'He-Man Adventure' for 10 more issues. Original comic-book content was also created in Germany by Interpart/Condor Verlag for 18 issues, Ehapa Verlag for 21 issues (even appearing in their Micky Maus comics) and also by Mattel itself. Both the German and British comics were often translated to provide content for other countries (although Argentina and Brazil provided some original content in their comics as well).

Masters of the Universe and Princess of Power featured in many children's books in the 1980s as well. One of the main producers of these titles was Golden Books, which published several series of hard and softcover children's books from 1983 to 1986 (with the earliest four books being more in line with early minicomics, rather than the cartoon series; and a later book notably introducing the character of Goat-Man). World I.P. also produced annual Masters of the Universe and Princess of Power storybooks from 1984 until the New Adventures line in 1990 (with the 1984 edition written pre-Filmation, notably naming Orko as 'Gorpo' and King Randor as 'King Miro'); and Euredif France produced several Maîtres de l'Univers volumes as well. Also notable in the 1980s were the various combination book/record/cassette-tape read-along/tell-a-tale adventures produced by Ladybird Books out of the U.K., Remus out of Germany, by Kid Stuff Records out of the U.S., and by Mattel themselves.

Games, other media and Power Tour (1983-1987)

Various video game adaptations of the franchise have been released. Masters of the Universe: The Power of He-Man was released by Intellivision for Atari 2600 and Intellivision in 1983. Two games, Masters of the Universe: The Arcade Game and Masters of the Universe: The Super Adventure, were developed by Adventure Soft and released by U.S. Gold for Amstrad CPC, BBC Micro, Commodore 64 and ZX Spectrum in 1987. A video game based on the movie, Masters of the Universe: The Movie, was released by Gremlin Graphics for Amstrad CPC, Commodore 64, MSX and ZX Spectrum in 1987.

Various board games were released in the 1980s and FASA produced The Masters of the Universe Role Playing Game in 1985. Throughout the 1980s a wide array of He-Man merchandise was released, including colouring books, activity books, a Panini Sticker book and much more. Also notable was a complete Masters of the Universe audio-only adventure LP record, which was released by Kid Stuff Records in 1983; written and produced by John Braden, complete with a new He-Man theme song and original voice acting. A series of audio cassettes were also released in Germany by Europa, consisting of 37 episodes of over 40 minutes in length, with an additional 10 Princess of Power tapes, and 5 specials (these introduced Anti-Eternia, with its own evil version of He-Man in episode 11). Home video releases of Filmation's animated series were produced by RCA/Columbia on VHS and Betamax for 11 volumes with red framed box art, before switching to their Magic Window brand with the 'The Secret of the Sword' movie in 1985, for 12 additional He-Man and the Masters of the Universe volumes and 10 She-Ra Princess of Power VHS releases. Golden Books, Germany's Ocean and Select and various others also released Masters of the Universe video content in the 1980s.

There was also a Masters of the Universe 'Power Tour' Live stage show, showing across the United States, with 19 consecutive performances at New York's Radio City Music Hall. Directed by Tony Christopher, husband and wife Jack and Leslie Wadsworth portrayed He-Man and She-ra, while Khalos Planchart and Eric Van Baars played lead villains Hordak and Skeletor, respectively. The production also featured lesser used characters such as Rio-Blast, Clamp-Champ, Snout-Spout, Rokkon, Ninjor, Blast-Attak and songs by an original character, Songster (performed by Doug Howard).

Live action film (1987)

In 1987, a live action He-Man film was made by Cannon Films entitled Masters of the Universe. The release date in the United States was August 7, 1987. The film starred Dolph Lundgren in the title role of He-Man, Frank Langella as Skeletor, with Courteney Cox, Robert Duncan McNeill and James Tolkan in supporting roles (as Julie Winston, Kevin Corrigan, and Detective Lubic, respectively). The other characters from the original cartoon to appear in the film are Evil-Lyn (Meg Foster), Man-At-Arms (Jon Cypher), Teela (Chelsea Field), Beast Man (Tony Carroll), and the Sorceress (Christina Pickles). The character Gwildor (Billy Barty) is included, apparently in place of Orko, because the special effects of the time would have been insufficient and too costly to create him. Skeletor's henchmen Blade (Anthony De Longis), Saurod (Pons Maar) and Karg (Robert Towers) were also introduced, in place of other more familiar villains from the series.

Many viewers reviewed the motion picture by comparing it to the cartoon, when reality it was an adaptation of the toys only, which initially depicted He-Man as a barbarian with no secret identity (the early mini-comics story did not include Prince Adam or Orko). Ed Pressman was interested in the property before the cartoon was even aired and Filmation had no involvement whatsoever in the film.

In the movie, Skeletor has finally conquered Eternia after stealing the Cosmic Key from the locksmith Gwildor, which allows him to gain entry to Castle Grayskull. The villain imprisons the Sorceress of Grayskull within an energy-draining field which gradually transfers her powers to him. After a failed attempt to rescue the Sorceress, the heroes He-Man, Man-At-Arms, Teela and Gwildor escape to the planet Earth using Gwildor's prototype Cosmic Key. Stranded on Earth, they are faced with the task of retrieving their Cosmic Key (which has fallen into the hands of several unwitting humans) and getting back to Eternia before Skeletor can gain the full power of Grayskull. Skeletor sends his minions to Earth with the mission of recovering the Cosmic Key prototype, and chaos ensues as the war between good and evil is transferred to Earth.

Numerous parts of the previously accepted history of the series are omitted in the film, including all references to Prince Adam, as well as Randor and Marlena, in fact it is implied that Castle Grayskull itself is the ruling point of Eternia rather than any royal city. The story concentrates more on the science fiction elements of the franchise rather than the fantasy. Aside from The Sorceress and Skeletor there is little reference to magic powers, with most of the characters relying instead on futuristic technology. He-Man himself uses a gun in some scenes in addition to his Power Sword, and he only displays superhuman strength in one scene, when toppling a huge statue. Although He-Man twice utters his catchphrase "I Have the Power" while holding the sword aloft in the iconic manner, he does omit the prefacing clause "By the Power of Grayskull".

Although Mattel had hoped that the movie would boost sales of the toyline, it instead had no effect on the line's falling sales, and the MOTU toy line was finally discontinued in early 1988 under immense financial difficulties. A sequel to the film was written, but by 1989, Cannon Films was in such severe financial troubles that it could no longer afford to pay the license fees to Mattel. Thus the script was transformed into the action film Cyborg, starring Jean-Claude Van Damme.

The New Adventures of He-Man (1990-1991)

In 1990, several years after the financially disastrous ending of the original Masters of the Universe product line, a second He-Man animated series titled The New Adventures of He-Man, was created by Jetlag Productions to promote Mattel's short-lived attempt to revive the MOTU brand with a new toyline, simply titled He-Man. The new series is radically different from the original fantasy-oriented milieu, shifting to an almost purely science fiction setting which sees He-Man transported to the futuristic planet of Primus. As He-Man leads the heroic Galactic Guardians, Skeletor bases himself on the mutant world of Denebria, forming an alliance with Flogg and his band of Evil Mutants, who are hellbent on conquering Primus for themselves. The series contains clear continuity links to the original Masters of the Universe, and was intended as a continuation of the existing mythology, although some fans see it as a separate canon from the original series due to the differences in style and character portrayal.

Other than He-Man and Skeletor, the Sorceress of Castle Grayskull is the only character from the original series to make regular appearances, acting as a guide to He-Man. Several other characters are featured in the pilot episode, including King Randor and Queen Marlena, who learn of the dual identity of Prince Adam and He-Man. Teela also makes a later appearance in the series Other main characters introduced in this series are He-Man's new allies, the wise sage Master Sebrian, his assistant Mara, and the lead Galactic Guardians Captain Hydron and Flipshot. Other frequently appearing heroic characters included the young shepherd girl Drissi, her little brother Caz, Grot the gardener, councilman Werban, the cyclops Meliac, the Scientists (Alcon, Gepple, Krex and Meldoc) and the remaining Galactic Guardians Sagitar, Tuskador, Spinwit and Artilla, with the final members Kayo, Vizor and Nocturna rarely featuring in the show (although they did appear in the comics and series intro). Skeletor's other allies in Flogg's band of Evil Mutants consisted mainly of Flogg's incompetent second in command Slush-Head, Skeletor's new love interest Crita, and other mutants such as Quakke, Staghorn, B.H., Hoove, Karatti, Optik and Lizorr (with the last few mutants rarely appearing or featuring in the cartoon series).

The majority of the cartoon episodes were written by Jack Olesker, resulting in a tight continuity, which was almost entirely lacking in the earlier Filmation series. Neither the New Adventures animated series or toyline were nearly as popular as the originals, lasting sixty-five episodes, with a few waves of less popular action figures; totaling 28 distinct figures in all (including 7 vehicles, 2 playsets and 2 accessories).

The New Adventures of He-Man series was also featured in its own series of 4 minicomics, and in a monthly comic magazine entitled 'He-Man Adventure' (which ran for about 6 issues before returning to adventures on Eternia), and was published by Egmont's London Editions Magazines in the U.K.; World I.P. also produced a New Adventures themed annual in 1990. These publications differed somewhat from the animated series; one change being the character Darius, who did not appear in the cartoon series at all, in a major role as leader of the Galactic Council.

Hiatus (1992-2001) - Proposed new series, commemorative releases and pop culture

The Masters of the Universe franchise would not produce any new media for over a decade, although a new series was pitched by Lou Scheimer to DIC Entertainment in 1996. The series was to feature He-Ro (alter-ego Dare), now the son of He-Man, as a sequel to the original animated series; but remained unproduced.

During this hiatus, Masters of the Universe also began a following on the early days of the internet, with sites developed by Kevin Herbert (one of the first), Adam Tyner (with the Scrolls of Grayskull newsletter), Busta-Toons (with focus on the Filmation animated series) and many others; eventually ending up with the expansive He-Man.org site being created. Various popular internet memes were also created with Masters of the Universe being reviewed by popular YouTube channels, parodies such as Unemployed Skeletor or Wil Wheaton's "Skeletor Reads Angry Tweets" segment. Masters of the Universe would also appear many times on the Adult Swim stop-motion comedy series Robot Chicken (which introduced comedic character Mo-Larr). Both He-Man and Skeletor are often mentioned in pop culture, as seen on the long running animated series, The Simpsons on a few occasions.

In 2000, however, Mattel did act on the growing nostalgia for the 1980s action figures, by re-releasing replicas of many of the figures, under the banner of the Masters of the Universe Commemorative line. BCI Eclipse LLC (and later Mill Creek Entertainment) would expand on this, later releasing all episodes of the Filmation He-Man and the Masters of the Universe on DVD in Region 1 in 2005/2006; followed by She-Ra Princess of Power and JetLag's New Adventures of He-Man Series. Each volume contained an extensive array of special features including original documentaries produced for the DVD set, featuring interviews from many series creators and writers such as Lou Scheimer, Larry DiTillio, Paul Dini and others.

Toyline

In 2002, Mattel launched a new Masters of the Universe toyline with sculpts designed by the Four Horsemen. The new toyline was made surprisingly faithful to the original line, with the characters gently "re-imagined" and updated in terms of sculpting detail rather than radically reinterpreted. 60 action figures were released in all, with 10 creature figures, 7 vehicles and 3 playsets (8 smaller scale figures were also produced in a McDonald's Happy Meal promotion).

One point of contention for many fans of the original Masters toyline was the redesign of He-Man's Power Sword. According to the Four Horsemen, this was due to their original re-sculpts being intended for a continuation of the original storyline in which Skeletor had obtained both halves of the Power Sword (hence the new Skeletor figure's dual blades with clear "good" and "evil" hilt designs), necessitating a new sword to be built by Man-At-Arms and endowed with the properties of the original by the Sorceress. However, Mattel decided to reboot the continuity for a new generation of children, and thus the "new" Power Sword design became the "original" version for the new continuity. Another issue was the over-reliance on releasing alternate versions of He-Man (13 in total), Skeletor (10), Man-At-Arms (5) and a few other main characters, rather than further classic, re-imagined and original characters from the accompanying animated series (such as Randor, The Sorceress, Clawful, or Chief Carnivus, to name a few); making many of the non-He-Man or Skeletor figures hard to come by for both collectors and children. These factors likely contributed to the cancelation of the line in 2004 and ultimately not achieving the success of its' 1980's counterpart.

The line's faithfulness to the original series made it very popular with collectors, however, suggesting it would have been better served as a collector-based line, akin to DC Direct. This theory was borne out in the wake of the discontinuation of the mass-market toyline, with NECA taking the rather unprecedented step of continuing the toyline through action figure sized mini-statues scaled and sculpted to be aesthetically compatible for display alongside the Mattel toys. NECA would produce 22 'staction figures' in total, allowing fans to fill out their collections with other Four Horsemen redesigned characters that had yet to be produced as figures when the toyline was canceled. According to a December 8, 2005 interview with a Mattel representative on he-man.org, NECA offered to produce fully articulated action figures for Mattel without taking any credit, but permission was denied. Instead, NECA was only permitted to produce nonarticulated statues, which they did from 2005 to 2007.

New animated series - Mike Young Productions

A new animated series was produced to accompany the toyline, made by Mike Young Productions and lasting for 39 episodes; with the series making its' premiere on Cartoon Network's Toonami on August 16, 2002 and airing its' final episode on January 10, 2004. This series involved much tighter continuity and a somewhat greater depth of characterization than its Filmation predecessor. A similar but slightly modified premise to the original Filmation series, this version He-Man (Prince Adam) was part of an ensemble of Eternian heroes/protectors known as officially now as 'The Masters'. Under Man-At-Arms this team originally consisted of He-man/Adam (with pet Cringer/Battle Cat, no longer able to speak), Teela, Orko, Stratos, Ram-Man, Mekaneck and Man-E-Faces, and later joined by Buzz-Off, Roboto and Sy-Klone. King Randor, was now a general (rather than king, from an Eternian royal lineage), pronounced ruler of Eternia by the Elders of the Hall of Wisdom, which have gone into hiding inside the depths of Castle Grayskull. Skeletor, now confirmed as Keldor, finally breaks through the great barrier wall (after decades of trying), and attacks the Masters with his evil forces; mainly consisting of Evil-Lynn, Beast-Man, Mer-Man, Trap-Jaw (now formerly Kronis), Tri-Klops (now a scientist), Claw-ful (now very dim-witted) and Whiplash (now of the Caligar race). Backstories of occasional characters such as Fisto, Moss-Man, Webstor, Zodak, Two-Bad (now formerly two bountry hunters known as Tuvar and Baddhra), Stinkor (finally making an appearance in cartoon continuity as Odiphus) are all expanded upon. On-and-off villains Count Marzo and Evilseed return, while new characters such as Dekker, Carnivus, Ceratus, Lord Dactys, Prahvus, the Faceless One and the giants Chadzar, Belzar and Azdar are also introduced in this series.

Later episodes of this series were re-titled Masters of the Universe vs. the Snake-Men, and sidelined Skeletor as chief villain in favor of King Hiss, leader of the reptilian Snake Men (Kobra-Kahn, General Rattlor, Tung-Lashor, Snake-Face and Sssqueeze), with He-man and many of the characters now bearing a new 'Snake-Armour' look. He-man's ancestor King Grayskull and his Sorceress wife Veena also debuted in this season against his nemesis Hordak (now an ancient sorcerer). Hordak and the Evil Horde were to be the main antagonists for the third season if the show had continued, but it was not renewed. The 40th and final episode was produced as a comic-book 'special feature' on the last DVD set of the series; which were released by BCI Eclipse in 2008 (and later Mill Creek Entertainment in 2009 and 2012).

Comic series by MVC and Image Comics

From 2002-2005 Image Comics and MVCreations published several series of comics and one-shots that mirrored tales of the 2002 Mike Young Productions show; the comic series elaborated and added to the mythos by introducing characters that never made it in after the 39 episodes of the television series. The first issues were seen in the summer of 2002 in the form of special promotional/preview issues, with three mini-series continuing on after; 'The Shards of Darkness' in fall 2002, followed by 'Dark Reflections' and 'Rise of the Snake Men' in 2003. After delving into the back-stories of Skeletor's henchmen Beast-Man, Mer-Man, Trap-Jaw and Tri-Klops in a four issue 'Icons of Evil' series, a short-lived ongoing series, solely produced by MVC, continued on for eight issues in 2004. Along with these, a handful of special or 'pack-in' one-shots and trade paperback collected volumes were also produced.

Video games

A game based on the 2002 series, He-Man: Power of Grayskull, was developed by Taniko and published by TDK Mediactive in October 2002. A follow up developed by Savage Entertainment and published by Midas Interactive Entertainment, He-Man: Defender of Grayskull, was released for PlayStation 2 in February 2005. An Android and iOS game, He-Man: The Most Powerful Game in the Universe, was developed by GlitchSoft and published by Chillingo and Mattel in late 2012; later followed by He-Man™ Tappers of Grayskull for the iOs.

MOTU Classics, Super7 and other collector's toy series (2008-Present)

In 2007 a new incarnation of Masters of the Universe was announced, with the first action figure, King Grayskull, released at San Diego Comic Con 2008. Based on the look of the original 1980s MOTU toys, this new toyline was aimed primarily at the adult toy collector market, often available only through subscriptions (from MattyCollector). Sculpted by the Four Horsemen, these toys were updated versions of previous figures as well as characters that never before had an action figure made of them; such as Filmation's Queen Marlena, Fang-Man, Lizard-Man, Count Marzo, Granamyr and many others. The toyline featured many re-designed and updated action figures from the original action figure line from the 1980s; but it also included characters from She-Ra Princess of Power (Adora, Madame Razz, Scorpia, Shadow Weaver and others), the New Adventures of He-Man (Mara, Crita and more) and the Mike Young Productions series from 2002 (Faceless One, Chief Carnivus, King Chooblah, Ceratus and others). As the line progressed, characters from all versions of MOTU lore were included from such things such as prototypes and concept art (He-Ro, Eldor, Demo-Man, Gygor, Vykor and others), box art from vehicles and model kits (Sky High and the Fighting Foe Men), mini-comics (The Goddess, Geldor and Procrustus), and other books, comics and media (Despara, Scrollos, Strobo, Goat-Man and more). There were also newly created figures, exclusive to the Classics toyline, such as Draego-Man, Cy-Chop, Castle Grayskullman and others. In February 2010, the figures of He-Man and Skeletor were available as Toys R Us exclusives packed in two-packs with Superman and Lex Luthor respectively, from Mattel's DC Universe Classics action figure line; with this dual line expanded to include two-packs featuring Aquaman/Mer-Man, Hawkman/Stratos, Bizarro/Faker, Supergirl/She-Ra, and finally Green Lantern/Zodac.

Masters of the Universe Classics surpassed the original 1980s toyline in terms of length, running continuously for 7 years with over 150 different figures produced since its launch in August 2008. Along with the Classics series, MOTU Minis and Giants figures were also released in 2014 and 2015. In 2016, Mattel ended production on the MOTU Classics and MattyCollector.com's Club Grayskull series, with the production company Super7 now taking over the Masters of the Universe license. Super7 has thus far produced several 3' 3/4" figures (in the style of the classic Kenner Star Wars action figures from the late 1970s-early 1980s) and many figures in the style of the small pink M.U.S.C.L.E./Kinkeshi also from the 1980s. The upcoming Super7 releases are from their new animation special, "The Curse of the Three Terrors" (in the style of the 1980s MOTU figures), a new Masters of the Universe 'Ultimates' line (which consists of 'deluxe' re-releases of Classics figures), and the continuation of the previous Classics and Club Grayskull lines.

Dark Horse Mini-Comics, Books and other new media (2012-Present)

Starting in 2012, Dark Horse Comics produced mini-comics included in Mattel's Masters of the Universe Classics line of toys, continuing the series of mini-comics first introduced in the original He-Man toys of the 1980s. The mini-comics were written by Tim Seeley and drawn by Wellinton Alves, with covers by Eric Powell. The Dark Horse mini-comics finished off the story that was supposed to have been the direction of the original action figure line, before it was cancelled. These 8 mini-comics have dealt with the The Powers of Grayskull/Preternia line, with He-Man going back in time to battle King Hsss, finally bringing He-ro, Eldor, Tytus and Megator into the storylines and introducing other new Classics characters such as Sir Laser-Lot and the Mighty Spectre, among others. The mini-comics also joined into the later New Adventures of He-Man continuity, and incorporated the proposed Dare, son of He-man (He-Ro II) series. Seeley stated that these Dark Horse / Mattel line comics were intended to blend the different He-Man continuities and select the best stories and ideas from MOTU history. With the 2016 closure of the 'Master of the Universe Classics' line, however, it is unknown if a continuation, or any future mini-comics will be produced.

Dark Horse Books continues to produce various hardcover anthology books with collaborative efforts from Val Staples, James Eatock, Josh de Lioncourt, Danielle Gelehrter, James Shull and others. Volumes include the 'Art of He-Man and the Masters of the Universe', 'He-Man and the Masters of the Universe Minicomic Collection', 'He-Man and She-Ra: A Complete Guide to the Classic Animated Adventures' and the upcoming 'He-Man and the Masters of the Universe: The Newspaper Comic Strips' and 'He-Man and the Masters of the Universe: A Character Guide and World Compendium'. iOs and Android games like He-Man: The Most Powerful Game in the Universe and He-Man™ Tappers of Grayskull have also been released.

For many years now, websites such as He-Man.org and Wiki Grayskull, podcasts such as Masters Cast and the annual Power-Con convention, have also all served and promoted the Masters of the Universe brand.

DC Comics - Current series (2012-Present)

A Masters of the Universe comic book series was relaunched by DC Comics in 2012, first appearing as a series of digital comics. This was quickly followed by a six issue mini-series and all new revised origin issues for He-Man, Skeletor and Hordak. After a crossover mini-series with superheroes from the DC Comics universe in 2013, an ongoing series ran for 19 issues through 2014, before being replaced by the 'He-Man The Eternity War' 15 issue series in 2015/2016. This introduced a new back-story for He-man's sister She-ra (as Despara), Skeletor (as the half-Garn son of King Miro), Hordak, and the Snakemen; moving the storyline further along, with a new Horde invasion of Eternia and He-Man taking the Eternian throne, amongst other new developments. The current DC Masters of the Universe property is a crossover series with another heroic 1980's action figure line, ThunderCats.

New film

Grayskull: Masters of the Universe was an announced science fiction/fantasy film based on the toy line. According to Variety, it would be produced by Joel Silver, and written by Justin Marks, and employing visual special effects to a large degree, as was done with the 2007 war film 300. Warner Bros. announced that John Stevenson, director of Kung Fu Panda, was slated to direct the upcoming feature. On 12 May 2009, it was announced that the scripting duties had been handed to newcomer Evan Daugherty, with John Stevenson still attached to direct. In September 2009, Sony took over the rights from Warner Bros. to produce the Masters of the Universe live-action film after Mattel and Silver couldn't agree on creative direction for the film. Sony and Escape Artists' Todd Black, Jason Blumenthal and Steve Tisch were now developing the project from scratch for Columbia. In April 2010, Sony hired screenwriters Mike Finch and Alex Litvak to draft a new script. Deadline reported that Jon M. Chu was in talks to direct the film. Original He-Man actor Dolph Lundgren did an interview with IGN about possibly appearing in the film as King Randor. On October 12, 2012, Richard Wenk was hired to rewrite the script for the film. On March 28, 2013, Chu said that the film was still early in its development and that it would not be campy, but rather a dramatic origin story. On October 7, 2013, The Hollywood Reporter reported that Terry Rossio would write the film; Todd Black, Jason Blumenthal and Steve Tisch were assigned to produce it. The film would be set on Eternia. The site also reported that Chu would not direct the film.

On February 26, 2014, it was reported that directors Jeff Wadlow, Mike Cahill, Harald Zwart, and Chris McKay were on the short list to direct the film. On April 9, 2014, Schmoes Know reported that Wadlow would direct the film, but The Hollywood Reporter announced that he was merely rewriting the script. Columbia Pictures Senior Vice President DeVon Franklin tweeted that Jeff Wadlow had completed the script. Franklin later tweeted a photo on his Twitter page of Battle Cat. On August 19, 2015, Variety reported that Christopher Yost would rewrite the script. Mike O'Hearn announced on his Instagram account that he was in training to star as He-Man. However, he then quashed the rumor, saying he only wanted to do the part and was not cast for the live-action movie. On January 22, 2016, Deadline reported that McG would direct the film and also oversee a rewrite of the latest script by Alex Litvak and Mike Finch, while Escape Artists’ Todd Black, Jason Blumenthal and Steve Tisch were now on board as producers. On June 24, 2016, Kellan Lutz tweeted on his Twitter page that he had a meeting with both McG and Mary Viola about taking the role of He-Man. McG told IGN that the role of He-Man had not been cast yet, but that Lutz was being looked at very closely for the part. This draft of the script would be set on Eternia, but not exclusively there. In addition, pre-production had moved on to doing makeup testing.

Mattel toy line releases

The action figures themselves were often repaints and head-swaps of existing characters, outfitted with different equipment; for example, Stinkor was originally a color-swap of Mer-Man wearing a re-colored version of Mekaneck's breastplate. For much of the original line, there were limited molds. Two chests, hairy and smooth, one belt/pair of shorts, and three sets of arms and legs (smooth muscular, evil 'claw' fingers/toes, and hairy). Teela had her own mold, which was later duplicated for Evil-Lyn. When the second wave appeared, several new molds were used (Ram Man, Man-E-Faces, and Trap Jaw all had new mold pieces). Wave three incorporated the same torso for Whiplash and Buzz-Off. New legs were shared with Whiplash, Buzz-Off and an early release of Clawful. Wave Four saw the introduction of more unique body parts (i.e. Leech, Mantenna, Sy-Klone and Two Bad) with Moss Man and Stinkor being the only new characters to be entirely created using old body parts. Wave 5 featured completely unique parts for almost every new character, while the final waves largely returned to the "classic" look of shared sculpts.

Each 1982 action figure featured 5 points of articulation (poseable head, arms and legs), removable armor, a weapon accessory and a spring-loaded "Power punch" at the waist. All 8 characters featured the twist waist action, but it was Wave 2 that saw the introduction of additional action features unique to the character, such as Tri-Klops' rotating visor and Ram Man's spring-loaded legs. Each figure would also come packaged with a mini-comic. The line debuted in 1982 with just four figures to begin with: He-Man, Man-At-Arms, Skeletor and Beast Man. Later that year the remaining four characters from Wave 1 were released. They were Stratos, Teela, Mer-Man and Zodac. Each figure came with removable armor, a weapon and mini-comic. The Comet Warriors, Stonedar and Rokkon, arrived in the UK a full year before the rest of their wave 5 counterparts. This may have been due to their appearance in the UK Masters of the Universe fortnightly magazine in 1986. Originally Beast Man was going to be He-Man's archrival, Stratos was an Evil Warrior and Mer-Man and Tri-Klops were both intended to be Heroic Warriors. This changed by the time of their release.

Princess of Power (1985-1987)

In 1985 Mattel attempted to broaden the success of Masters of the Universe, by releasing a line of toys aimed at girls. Many of the Princess of Power characters would eventually be incorporated into Masters of the Universe Classics.

He-Man (1989-1992)

Mattel revamped the Masters of the Universe concept for this 1989 toyline, which had more slender-looking action figures, and a storyline which featured He-Man and Skeletor taking their adventures beyond Eternia, into outer space.

Fuerza T (2003)

In 2003, Tops Toys, an Argentinian toy company, used the molds from the vintage Masters of the Universe figures and released eight characters in Argentina.

Masters of the Universe modern series (2002-2004)

Mattel attempted to revive the long-dormant franchise with a new toyline, which was sculpted by Four Horsemen Studios.

NECA Masters of the Universe modern series - Mini-Statues (2005-2007)

Four Horsemen Studios continued the 200X toyline in the form of non-articulated 6" scale resin statues, which were designed to fit in with the 2002-2004 action figures. They were released by NECA, under licence from Mattel.

Mini-Masters and Giants (2014-2015)

In 2014, Masters of the Universe Minis were released via the Mattel toy collector website, Matty Collector. The figures were packed in sets of two with a hero versus a villain. Also included was a build and connect Castle Grayskull playset.

Masters of the Universe Giants In the fall of 2014, a brand new 12" Masters of the Universe toyline was released. This time the figures were 12" versions of the original 1980s toys.

Masters of the Universe Classics (2008-2017)

This is the legend (abbreviations) for the CODES used in the subsequent tables:

Mattel Masters of the Universe Classics (August 2008-December 2009)

Mattel Masters of the Universe Classics (2010)

Mattel Masters of the Universe Classics (2011)

Mattel Masters of the Universe Classics (2012)

Mattel Masters of the Universe Classics (2013)

Mattel Masters of the Universe Classics (2014)

Mattel Masters of the Universe Classics (2015)

Mattel Masters of the Universe Classics (2016)

Super7 Masters of the Universe Ultimates (2017)

Super7 Masters of the Universe Classics (2017)

He-Man and the Masters of the Universe / Club Grayskull (2016-Present)

In 2016 Masters of the Universe Classics was accompanied by an additional toyline, featuring designs and characters from the Filmation cartoon series. These were also sold on Mattel's webstore MattyCollector.com. The toyline was continued in 2017 by Super7.

Mattel He-Man and the Masters of the Universe (2016)

Super7 He-Man and the Masters of the Universe (2017)

Super 7 Retro Masters of the Universe (2016-Present)

In 2016, the toy company Super 7 licences the MOTU characters from Mattel to release new 3' 3/4" MOTU action figures, in the style of the toys produced in the 1980s by companies like Kenner.

Super7 Vintage-Style Masters of the Universe (2017)

In 2017 Super7 release a new line of action figures, based on the style of the original 1982-1988 MOTU toys by Mattel.

Possible future action figures releases

Mattel/Super7 intend to release as many action figures as possible as part of the current Masters of the Universe Classics/He-Man and the Masters of the Universe toylines. The following is a selection of characters that they own the rights to make toys of: