Comic Info
Comic Name: He-Man and the Masters of the Universe (Limited Series)
Publisher: DC Comics
Writer: Keith Giffen/James Robinson
Artist: Pop Mhan/Philip Tan
# of Issues: 6
Release Date: 2013
He-Man and the Masters of the Universe (Limited Series) #1 Variant
Reprints He-Man and the Masters of the Universe (Limited Series) #1-6 (September 2012-March 2013). Adam is a woodcutter but has dreams of bigger and better things…and a mysterious man named He-Man. When inspired to seek his dreams by a falcon named Zoar, Adam sets out for adventure…and finds the life he has been living might very well be a lie.
Written by Keith Giffen and James Robinson, He-Man and the Masters of the Universe Volume 1 collects the six-issue mini-series produced by DC Comics. Based on the popular ’80s toy series launch in 1981 by Mattel. It is the second He-Man series produced by DC Comics following a 1982 three issue limited series entitled Masters of the Universe after an appearance with Superman in DC Comics Presents #47 (July 1982).
I grew up on Masters of the Universe. I was already into Star Wars and with Star Wars slowing down with the release of Star Wars: Return of the Jedi, new action figures were needed to keep me entertained…enter He-Man. This mini-series isn’t great, but it does capture some of the fun of the old He-Man.
When He-Man was first released, the mini-comics did not resemble the story that most are familiar with. He-Man was a guy with a powerful sword and a chestplate that gave him power. Reading this volume, I couldn’t help noticing that it felt like these original mini-comics were the basis for Skeletor’s false world…and that was fun for me. The fun however ended as the series progressed.
He-Man and the Masters of the Universe (Limited Series) #6
The story became an odd El Topo type event where Adam just keeps meeting Skeletor villains and battling them…getting better and more memories back as he went along. This isn’t a very inspiring or modern telling of the story. I had hoped that the story would be jazzed up and made creative. Though I love Masters of the Universe, I realize it was very gimmicky and often not very inspired. I wanted a really new, modern take on it while still holding to the traditions that made it fun as a kid.
Despite my criticism, I still have a soft spot for this series. I can imagine the cheesy cartoon and rushing home from school to catch it (it aired at a time that I never got to see the beginning unless it was vacation time). With He-Man restored and the story progressed, the series provides hope that there can be some fun with the characters. The series was picked up after this volume but He-Man and the Masters of the Universe 2: Origins of Eternia doesn’t contain the next issues in the series but a collection of one-shots and webcomics that were released during and around this mini-series run. The third volume of He-Man and the Masters of the Universe picks up the continuing series.
Related Links:
He-Man and the Masters of the Universe 2: Origins of Eternia
He-Man and the Masters of the Universe 3
He-Man and the Masters of the Universe 4: What Lies Within
He-Man and the Masters of the Universe 5: The Blood of Grayskull
He-Man: The Eternity War—Volume 1
