Masters Of The Universe: Revelation

I still remember one summer weekend back in 1985, i was at the home of our neighbors known as The Ostwalds. Their youngest son Claes took me to his room to show me his Grayskull Castle, where he also had figures from He-Man And The Masters Of The Universe such as He-Man, Orko, Skeletor, Battle Cat and a few more. It was the coolest toy castle i have ever seen at that time, and i was a big fan of the cartoon series of He-Man. Claes actually owned several VHS tapes of He-Man, so we watched them over and over again, as we both thought it was the greatest cartoon series. We used to play with the toy characters, pretending to be in the world of Eternia. This was a glorious time for cartoons, since we had several really good cartoon series coming out. But He-Man And The Masters Of The Universe was the best, no doubt about that. The story of the series takes place on Eternia, a place of magic, myth and fantasy. The lead character is Prince Adam, the young son of Eternia´s rulers, King Randor and Queen Marlena. Whenever Prince Adam holds the Swords Of Power aloft and proclaims "By The Power Of Grayskull, I Have The Power", he transformed into He-Man, the most powerful man in the universe. I can easily say that He-Man was one of the best Saturday cartoons to watch on TV, and when it was not airing, i would borrow some of Claes VHS tapes of He-Man. And in 1987, The Cannon Group released the film adaptation, based on the character of He-Man in the film Masters Of The Universe. The film was a box office bomb, but i enjoyed the film the first time i watched it, back in 1988. Dolph Lundgren as He-Man was a perfect choice, Frank Langella as Skeletor was also a really good choice, and of coure Meg Foster as Evil-Lyn. Even if there were some problems with the film adaptation, i think director Gary Goddard did a pretty good job, capturing the different characters from the cartoon series. I bought the Blu Ray a couple of years ago, so i still watch this film now and then, just to have a good nostalgic 80´s moment. For a while i was hearing rumors that director, and actor Kevin Smith would be involved in a new cartoon series of Masters Of The Universe, and it is finally released on Netflix. Since i was a big fan of the original cartoon series, does this new series turn out to be even better than i expected, or is Masters Of The Universe: Revelation even worse than any of us could have imagined?

He-Man, Teela, Orko, Cringer and Man-At-Arms, are all guardians of Castle Grayskull in the battle against Skeletor, Evil-Lyn, Beast-Man and the legions of Snake Mountain. But after a final battle forever fractures Eternia, it´s up to Teela to solve the mystery of the missing Sword Of Power in a race against time to prevent the end of the Universe. Her journey will uncover the secrets of Grayskull at last.

I have seen a lot of different opinions online about Masters Of The Universe: Revelation, and i will only express my personal opinions about these 5 episodes. To see all of these classic characters from the 80´s return, is actually a fun nostalgic moment for fans of this genre. And when it comes to capturing the feeling of the 80´s, i do think that there are moments in these 5 episodes where we get a sense of the classic cartoon series. There are some big changes made of course, and we can´t expect to have this new cartoon series to look exactly like the 80´s did, and i don´t have a problem with that. So how does He-Man work in this updated version? I would have to say that he still have that magical touch that we are familiar with, that includes the muscular strength and the powerful personality. But this series is not focused on him, but the universe of these characters. So if you expect to see a lot of He-Man, you might be disappointed. But i have no problem with this, since there are so many characters in Eternia, and since the old cartoon series focused mostly on He-Man and Skeletor, Masters Of The Universe: Revelation tries to go in a different direction. I actually think it is a good idea to let the character of Teela get a lot more space in Revelation. If you watched the original cartoon series of the 80´s, you might remember that she was one of the female characters that were tough. In Revelation, you can clearly see that she have become even more stronger, and is not afraid to take on any challenge. Two interesting details, is that Rollins Band singer Henry Rollins does the voice of the character Tri-Klops, and i have to say he does a really good job. The character of Tri-Klops is of course pretty cool as well. Legendary actor Tony Todd also does a great voice work on the character Scare Glow. Masters Of The Universe: Revelation may not please all the old school fans of the old cartoon series, but if you go into this series with an open mind ( that is exactly what i did ), you might find yourself enjoying these episodes for going in a different direction, than in the old cartoon series. Times changes, and sometimes it is good to develope a franchise, without being disrespectful to the old series. I had a good time with Masters Of The Universe: Revelation, even if i prefer the old cartoon series ( probably because of nostalgic reasons ). Directors Adam Conarroe and Patrick Stannard have brought back the classic characters from Eternia for a new generation to discover these legendary heroes, and villains as well. Well worth checking out, no matter if you are a fan or not of the classic cartoon series from the 80´s, the legacy of Eternia lives on.

Rating: DDD