Review: Masters of the Universe Origins Teela

Teela, heroic "warrior goddess," is a capable female fighter imbued with the spirits of great warriors long deceased. She roams the deserted landscapes of Eternia atop her unicorn charger.

Teela first met He-Man after she had been captured by Skeletor and Beast Man in order to become Skeletor's bride. She was taken to Castle Grayskull where she was later freed by He-Man and Man-At-Arms. The Spirit of Grayskull tasked her to be the guardian of the castle in a later adventure.

Teela was originally released in the later half of 1982 as part of the first wave of eight action figures of Mattel's Masters of the Universe collection and was the first female figure in the line.

The action figure was originally supposed to be two seperate characters, the Sorceress/Goddess and a female warrior, Teela. The two characters would later be combined into one figure as Mattel believed there would not be enough demand for two female action figures in the initial wave.

Castle Grayskull: Stygian Moat

A true legend among Masters of Universe fans, the original Stygian Moat was created by Mark Taylor for Castle Grayskull over 31 years ago! When he made the original prototype of the castle, Mark also designed a cardboard playmat to represent a moat. Unfortunately, in order to keep costs down, this playmat was never even considered for inclusion with the retail playset.

For years it was believed that Mark's original artwork had been lost forever, however a small black and white photocopy of the moat was recovered by The Power and Honor Foundation. An enlargement was made and Emiliano Santalucia re-colored it, using old reference photos in order to remain as true to the original as possible.

Review: Masters of the Universe Origins Beast Man

Beast Man is an anthropoid ape-like being who hails from the Vine Jungles of Eternia where he is the leader of a tribe of other beast men. Only known as Beast Man, his true name if he even has one, remains a mystery.

In addition to his savage strength, Beast Man is the able to summon various wild creatures and command them to do his bidding. Beast Man is of relatively low intellegence and unlike Skeletor's other minions, such as Mer-Man, is completely sub-serviant to Skeletor, remaining his closest and most loyal henchman.

Beast Man was one of the first eight characters to be created for the Masters of the Universe toy line by Mattel in the early 1980s, and one of the first four figures to be completed and released (the other three being He-Man, Man-At-Arms and Skeletor).

Beast Man's first appearance is in the mini-comic He-Man and the Power Sword where he is depicted with red skin covered enitirely in red fur. In his next outing in Vengenge of Skeletor, he has become orange with only his armor colored red, matching the action figure.

Meanwhile at Skeletor's Crib...

Let's see what's going on at Skeletor's place...

Hey!! Kids Comics: Masters of the Universe Mini-Comics 3

Masters of the Universe Mini-Comics 3

Year: 1981

Cover artist: Alfredo Alcala

"Battle in the Clouds"

Writer: Donald F. Glut
Illustrator: Alfredo Alcala

Publisher: Mattel

Issue: Series 1 --- 3 of 4

Plot: Mer-Man finds out that that He-Man's super-suit and weapons are the sources of his great strength and powers. Desiring them for his own, he teams up with Skeletor to defeat He-Man and steal his powers and weapons.

Review: Masters of the Universe Origins Man-At-Arms

At the very center of the Universe, at a dimensonal crossroads, lies the planet Eternia. Centuries ago Eternia was a paradise of high technology and wondrous magic. Its people flourished in splendor and peace reigned supreme.

That is until greedy forces from a dimension of evil found this spectacular land and craved it for themselves. This demonic invasion brought about the Great Wars. The aftermath of this centuries long battle of attrition left the planet in wastes and the inhabitants sank back to a barbaric age. The advanced technology and powerful sorcery of the ancients was lost, with what few artifacts there were remaining from that time viewed with suspicion and fear by the remanat population.

However, the ancient secrets of invention have not been entirely forgotten. There are those who have kept the knowlege of technology and weaponry, handing down this knowlege from generation to generation, guarding it judiciously, and only bringing it into play for the defense of Eternia.

The greatest warrior of each generation is entrusted with the secrets of forging machines, both technologial and mystical, and given the abilty to create both devices of war as well as those of peace. This highly skilled creator and master of all weapons is known only as the Man-At-Arms!

Hey!! Kids Comics: Masters of the Universe Mini-Comics 2

Masters of the Universe Mini-Comics 2

Year: 1981

Cover artist: Alfredo Alcala

"King of Castle Grayskull"

Writer: Donald F. Glut
Illustrator: Alfredo Alcala

Publisher: Mattel

Issue: Series 1 --- 2 of 4

Plot: Once again Skeletor finds his way into Castle Grayskull (this time by using the two halves of the magical Power Sword as a key) and a battle with He-Man inside the castle follows.

Vintage Castle Grayskull: Restored & Customized

Priced at $19.99, Castle Grayskull was released as the flagship playset of the original Masters of the Universe line in 1982 and was marketed as being "The Fortress of Mystery and Power for He-Man and his Foes."

Yes, you read that right. The castle, as originally envisioned, could be occupied by either side. It most certainly was not the good guys' clubhouse. Heck, even the original box art features an assault by the good guys on a castle controlled by Skeletor! Not the mention, Beast Man is over there helping the heroes...