Deep Thoughts :: Masters of the Universe

I can still remember the first time I laid eyes upon the Masters of the Universe.

The year was 1982.

For some reason I received a present from an aunt out in California. It was early in 1982, or perhaps some time in the summer. It was definitely before Fall; I know because I wanted (and got) Beastman for my birthday that year, so by November '82 I was certainly well aware of the Masters of the Universe...well...universe. Well enough to know what baddies I needed to add to my collection anyways.

The present I received early in 1982 was the He-Man and Wind Raider gift set. At first I honestly didn't know what to make of it. Was this a doll? I certainly wasn't used to such large action figures (Star Wars dominated my toy collection up until that point, and having completely missed the Mego boat but having an older sister into Barbies, I knew clearly the distinction between dolls and action figures. This 'He-Man' was nearly nude, am I expected to provide pants?) Was it a baby toy? (He-Man's simplistic construction, rubber head and wobbly leg joints, coupled with the fact that my aunt was notorious for sending me toys much more suited for toddlers even though I was about to turn eight had me wondering...)

But the packaging showed some pretty fantastical stuff; warriors and monsters with massive bladed weapons couldn't possibly be for babies, or girls, right? I don't recall if the set came with a mini-comic but if it did that hauntingly beautiful Alcala imagery certainly hit me full force too (I know the comics swept me away eventually, I just don't remember if it started here or later.)

And by gum, the vehicle was pretty darn neat, with it's wind-up winch and stickers and such. And He-Man...okay he was a hugely muscled nearly naked nordic specimen of manhood...an odd choice for a child's plaything indeed...but boy was he armed to the furry-shorts-wearin' teeth!

I think I dig this thing!

Masters of the Universe consumed my toy collecting for only a couple short years. I had Greyskull and Skeletor and Panthor and Zoar and Clawful and Man-At-Arms and what seemed like a ton more. I played with them outside in the dirt and in the snow and at my cousin's house and with friends; and once I even duct taped old Castle Greyskull shut and checked it as my luggage on a plane trip to Grandma's (you should have seen the people at the luggage turnstyle when a green skull-faced castle popped out and began rotating past them.)

But as fleeting as childhood is, those moments of toy-obsession can be all the more fleeting; by 1984 my interest in MOTU was waning and I was moving away from such 'childish' toys and into more mature themed toys like Transformers and Go-Bots.

I believe Clawful was the last new MOTU figure I ever received, and some time in 1985 I was offered a bunch of money for my 'toys I wasn't playing with anymore' and sold my whole MOTU lot to Dad's coworker's kid.

I don't regret it at all. I wouldn't have changed my mind at the time (I was too young for nostalgia) and I'm glad the toys went to a kid who got to enjoy them. And hey, I made some money which I turned right back into more toys at the time anyways - many of which I do still own.

Yet somehow something that my 7 to 9 year old mind mused over daily, be it during playtime or afternoon toon time or during school with erasers-not-toys; somehow those two years of direct almost daily contact have turned into a lifetime of fandom even though all those original toys left for new adventures long ago.

A Psychologist could have a field day culling the reasons that period in my life cut such a deep groove in my psyche. All I know is that the toys and themes present in the Masters of the Universe left a mark on me in ways not even Star Wars (a pre and post MOTU obsession) or Transformers (post MOTU) or even Batman (still to this day) can truly contend with.

Of course I have since gathered together more original MOTU toys in my adulthood than I originally owned as a kid (in retrospect I realize I did not really own that many - it just seemed that way to me at the time,) and I have a handful of Masters of the Universe Classics (mostly favorite childhood characters, plus one or two oddballs.) I also have hundreds (maybe thousands) of toys of different genres and from different eras, and something shiny and new or retro will invariably pop-up tomorrow or the next day to catch my wandering attention.

But all others will always pale in comparison to the Sci-Barbarian He-Man and his Future cum Medieval ilk and the lasting effect they had on my impressionable young mind.

Buzz-Off!

I arrived home today to find on my doorstep one of the coolest MOTU Classics figures yet. Buzz-Off!

I did not have the original as a kid. Which I always felt was sort of ironic, because although I am known far and wide as 'Bubba' today, at the time I was known by all and sundry as 'Buzz.' My cousin had him though, so maybe I was content with that because we usually combined our collections for massive playtime adventures. I have of course since rectified my lack of an original Buzz-Off (who can be seen in this ridiculous video I made a couple years ago.)

But I digress.

This is the brand new MOUTC Buzz-Off, the most recent mattycollector.com sold-out-almost-immediately offering. And he is everything MOTUC can and should be.

the head/face sculpt is exactly the way Buzz-Off should look in the minds of anyone who played with the original as a kid. As is the rest of the figure for that matter.

Buzz-Off even comes with his cool bee-like aviation helmet!

Bug-eye sunglasses are in this year.

The only real difference from the original, which is a nice addition in my opinion, are an extra set of insect legs on his back ala the 200x version of Buzz-Off. A nice new detail that punches up his buggy factor without being obtrusive or off model.

Buzz-Off comes with an axe weapon like his original counterpart and a large axe staff like his 200x counterpart (not shown.) The wings and extra 'legs' are ball and hinged so they can move in all directions. A very nice touch!

Buzz-Off is truly one of the best MOTUCs to date. His design works perfectly with the updated aesthetic while maintaining all the best of the original Eternian 'Heroic Spy In The Sky.'

Now Buzz-Off!

And I think to myself, what a Wun-Dar-ful world!

As a previous owner of an actual honest to God Wonderbread (or Savage) He-Man, the announcement that Mattel was going to recreate the infamous "dark" Master in their MOTUC line really pleased me. The fact that I had to sign up for the 2010 subscription to get him? Not so much.

But whaddyagonnado? Gotta feed my Frankenstein.

So I signed up. And here he is in all his glory, Wun-Dar (as he is known in the MOTU Classics mythos.)

Buried in the sands of time, or in some Mattel lawyer's file cabinet under "silence orders," the true reason behind a dark haired, black clad He-Man may never be known. What I can give a 100% Toyriffic guarantee to is the fact that an original figure with this coloration did exist.

Appropriately, the one I owned also had the black Zodac armor. So while there is infighting between MOTU fans and "experts" as to whether or not this was the case with the original mysterious release, it's here on Wun-Dar and that makes me happy.

Wun-Dar comes with a sword and a Zodac type gun as well. Both in black and silver. Wun-Dar digs the Raiders.

Since I didn't get into MOTUC until this year, Wun-Dar is (so far) the only He-Man I have. Which is fine by me! Of course I'd be remiss if I didn't mention the undeniable Conan vibe this guy gives off.

Even though he's the same exact figure, Wun-Dar seems a lot more of a badass than the blonde He-Man.

In addition to his sword and gun (and black Zodac armor,) Wun-Dar also comes with a loaf of bread (a nod to his Wonderbread legend) and his very own"half" sword reminiscent of the swords of the original line.

"I have the Wun-Daaaaarrrrrr!!!!!!"

Tobes of Hades lit by flickering torchlight

An ardent Masters of the Universe fan, I had until recently not taken the plunge into the MOTU Classics line. Primarily, I was turned off by the difficulty in obtaining them from Mattel's exclusive online shop Mattycollector.com. Toys, and all residual actions regarding toys, should be fun. I've been caught up in the "gotta have it" fervor of the past, and just had no inclination to get into it again.

But through a recent toy trade I finally came into possession of two MOTUC figures - Skeletor and Mer-Man (more on him later.)

Skeletor was one of the first releases in this line, so I am sure you've read and seen plenty about him, so I'll just show off some groovy pics I took.

I will say that he is impressive in person. A little bulkier than DCUC figures, but still in the same general scale - kind of like how Arnold Schwarzenegar is in the same scale as you and me. Which is how the Masters Universe should be - these guys are built!
Skeletor comes with his goat head staff, a "full" sword and a "half" sword ala the original MOTU release.
The MOTU Classics Skeletor is everything he should be, amped up just a bit. The perfect marriage between modern action figures and an eighties character we all grew up with. This action figure is what we THOUGHT we were playing with back in 1983!

I really want Scareglow, the next offering going on sale in mid November. Skeletor will be re-released soon as well, with the only change being the packaging. So if you missed out on him the first time around, and you are an opener, avoid the scalpers and pick him up when he becomes re-available.

There has been a lot of talk about the price of these guys as well, but now that I have one in hand I can say that it's worth it. I would never be a completist of this line at the going price, but getting a few must-haves is certainly worth the pursuit.