Faker
He-Man - Masters of the Universe (Mattel) - Series 2
Rated 3.50 stars by Karl T. Face
Cue the Eiffel 65. I'm not going to harp on the ineffectiveness of the disguise here, as it's been done to death by better writers than myself. Even if the cartoon had him flesh toned, all other media was garish to some degree. Frankly, he wasn't even a robot in the cartoon, so that's a different continuity anyway. What we have here is a blue He-Man with orange hair, wearing neon orange Skeletor clothes. The "robot panel" sticker on his chest is, sadly, mostly hidden, but it's got a reel-to-reel tape on there. That's charming as hell. Accessories are pretty limited for a simple redeco- just the sword. This would've been a great opportunity for the axe, given the more brutal nature of the character, and he'd look slightly less like a retread. That said, the colors and parts do play well...[See More]

Prince Adam
He-Man - Masters of the Universe (Mattel) - Series 3
Rated 4.25 stars by Karl T. Face
Superman may get some flak for his insufficient disguise, but this guy makes him look like The Chameleon. 3 waves in, the MOTU line started dropping "story" characters like Orko and Prince Adam. It was nice to see, although Adam (and later,most of Randor) was just He-Man with clothes. But hey, the show pretty much did the same. And the lavender pants and white shirt may just be painted on, but with the softgoods vest covering a lot of the chest detail, it actually looks pretty damn good. An elastic belt holds the thing closed, with a tiny yellow buckle. Articulation is the usual Big Five plus spring-loaded waist. You all know what to expect. The downside is that you can't really holster his sword on his back. At least you could fake that with the original harness. And you'd probably want...[See More]

Zodac
He-Man - Masters of the Universe (Mattel) - Series 1
Rated 3.50 stars by Karl T. Face
This guy probably drinks with Metron and the Watcher. Zodac didn't do much back in the day. Introduced a story or two, breaks his vow of non-intervention a couple times, and that was about it. On one occasion, he oversaw a battle between He-Man and Superman. Dude got around in his few appearances. His presence in the series bible (series 1 was unquestionably closer to the storybooks) meant he still snuck in early. Unfortunately, he was a bit out of place there. Among the various fantasy warriors was this 50s spaceman with copious body hair and a ray gun. Now, I can appreciate that on its own, but here, he comes across as either too dull or too weird. At least he's a good weird. The flared boots and gloves lend a fun retro touch, the angular chest plate and bizarre helmet mesh well, and...[See More]

Screech
He-Man - Masters of the Universe (Mattel) - Creatures
Rated 3.50 stars by Karl T. Face
Y'know what kids loved in the 80s? Animal sidekicks. Every team had one, a lot of toys came with them, many were big enough to be toys on their own. Usually sporting impractical arms and armor that never appeared in media. Here's one now. Screech was Zoar's opposite number, the evil pet of Skeletor (or Evil-Lyn, depending on continuity). To that end, they pulled a Panthor and duped the hero's stuff in evil luchador colors. Either way, it's an eagle. Reused from Big Jim, if I'm not mistaken. It's a good sculpt for the era, apart from the oddly large feet. The wings and back are rubber, and even today, can freely be flexed to flap the wings with a press on the back. Sadly, the talons are open slightly too far to fit a figure's wrist, so she (?) gets the same slightly art-deco perch as...[See More]

Slime Pit
He-Man - Masters of the Universe (Mattel) - Playsets
Rated 4.50 stars by Karl T. Face
The Horde was spooky. Their logo was a bat monster. They had two bloodsucking freaks and a Bigfoot on the payroll. And while most 80s villains used mind control here and there, only Hordak used dinosaur skeleton puke to do it. Our boys from Etheria favored smaller bases, and the Slime Pit was the little one. A very 80s fantasy set piece, it's a stone wall behind an empty pool, topped with scrollwork and bearing Hordak's face. A massive reptilian skeleton clutches the wall from behind, poking a hand through the it along the floor of the pool. The skull peers over the top. Paint is entirely airbrushing: a few black shadows, and a lot of brick red on the wall. The bones get a dusting of brown as well. The Slime might be more famous than this thing. It's the classic 70s recipe, now in a...[See More]

Attack Track
He-Man - Masters of the Universe (Mattel) - Vehicles
Rated 4.50 stars by Karl T. Face
As MOTU vehicles go, the Trak is possibly the least screen-accurate thing in the series. I suppose ground transport for more than two was a necessity for the show, but oh well, the animated design was boxy, plain, and boring. This thing is what Eternia is all about! First off, to hell with any sort of neutral colors. You get Play-Doh blue and candy-apple red, with orange and yellow accents. Stickers include lightning bolts, condor heads, gargoyle heads, and exhaust pipes spewing electricity. The front end, sort of like a camper van on the show, is shaped vaguely like a nondescript sort of drake, while the usual trapezoidal control station rises up slightly behind it. The seat rests against a blocky engine compartment, with a couple of dinky cannons mounted near the top. Pretty average...[See More]

Trap Jaw
He-Man - Masters of the Universe (Mattel) - Series 2
Rated 4.25 stars by Karl T. Face
What can I say? It's Trap Jaw. This was easily the weirdest thing we'd seen so far. Animal people, sure. Cool armor, maybe a skull head. And then here comes a shirtless steampunk pirate with a prosthetic arm and a casque helm with a Zipline grommet. He has a laser rifle and a metal jaw. Comes with a GITD ring for some reason. New legs, new arms, new head. They really went all out within the confines of the medium, and it's a pretty striking color combo too. The paint is well applied as always. You all know the articulation, I'm sure, but we also get a hinged jaw, which is nice. And of course, a swivel at the "wrist". I do wish the robo-arm was bent like everyone else; it feels so stiff and awkward. Because of that bland pose, the attachments- the classic hook, a fairly fancy laser that...[See More]