The History of Masters of the Universe: 1982 Edition

Well look who's here, ayyyy fans, welcome to another toy

history

lesson, but before we open up the plastic

history

books, I want to tell you about the current He-Man and Masters of the Universe toys available on the Big Bad toy store. Get the modern classic style super-poseable figures based on all your favorite characters, as well as new versions of the classic 80s style, everything old is new again at the Big Bad Toy Store. Well, the patreon tribe decided this history of DS toys through the latest Patreon poll, we are going to Eternia to find out the history of the

1982

edition

.

The idea of ​​​​this fantastic world of witchcraft with swords and science arose for the first time in 1976, when Mattel CEO Rey Wagner rejected a young man who was trying to make a movie about sword witchcraft. and science and was looking for a company to produce toys to accompany the movie that young man was George Lucas that movie was Star Wars and that guy who was kicking himself was Rey Wagner after seeing Kenner like Star Wars the lines are selling like hot cakes at the end from the 70s and early 80s maybe the expression sell like hotcakes doesn't do it justice maybe the expression should be changed to sell like Kenner Star Wars figures to put things in perspective Wagner decided it was Mattel's turn to give them to children the toy concept that was put together by lead designer Roger Sweet, inspired by the art of packaging designer, Mark Taylor, and approved.

The original working title of Lords of Power was rejected due to its religious connotations and the line was baptized. Wow, I mean, it was called Masters of the Universe. It was bad at all to realize that, just great. Toys weren't enough for kids in the '80s and part of the reason Star Wars toys sold so well was because of the synergy between the movie and the toys. Mattel sought out Fglu to create a series of mini comics that would be included in the initial toys due to delays in DC's regular comic series that wouldn't hit stands until November of that year and an animated series that wouldn't debut until September. from 1983 and which would become the Filmation series we all know and love.

But before Luz Shimer and her team brought their charming brand of children's adventure and lore to the brand, He-Man's world was a much darker and wilder place, much like Conan's homeland of Sumeria. the barbarian Wonderful idea the Conan rights holders thought of. too and unleashed an army of savage lawyers against Mattel. This is Skeletor's work. The disputes arose from an agreement the rights holders had with Mattel over the production of a line of toys for the

1982

film Conan the Barbarian starring Arnold Schwarzenegger. Mattel finally won. The lawsuit because nothing is stronger than what he knew, not even Conan the Barbarian, although the similarities cannot be argued before he was a lazy Prince who held aloft his magic sword to transform himself into the most powerful man in the

universe

in the mini comics that he- The man was a wandering barbarian traveling through a war-torn Eternia and emerging from an interdimensional rift is the evil Skeletor whose mission is to unite the two halves of the sword of power that will allow him to enter to Castle Grayskull and become master of the

universe

Unlike the Kenner Star Wars line or the recently released Hasbro GI Joe a Real American Hero line, which featured three and three-quarter inch figures, the Masters of the Universe line was all about With power, these figures would stand an imposing five and a half inches tall. and wide, okay, it's not quite five and a half inches wide, but we're certainly more muscular than anything that was released before bulging muscles and a ready-to-pounce squat stance made the Masters of the Universe some of the most intense and powerful looking toys ever created.

While most children's toys featured happy or blank faces, the Masters featured grimaces, growls, or no facial expressions in the most terrifying way possible, even the hero He-Man, the character who had become a symbol of virtue and honor, he had a frown. If he was using all his power to carry Grayskull on his back, the box art wasn't exactly cheerful or beautiful depictions of a wild environment that seemed more appropriate for the cover of a Conan novel than a toy box that the figures also used. some elements from previous 12-inch GI Joe dolls or Mego figures with harnesses and removable armor pieces and each featured a Play function, a spring in the waist that allowed each to deliver the most powerful punch in the universe as with the line initial. from GI Joes several parts were reused in each figure to offset costs.

Eight figures were released in the first year along with two vehicles, a beast, and a playset. The first year was divided into two releases. The first wave included a modest four figures, two heroes and two villains and a beast, there was the man, the most powerful man in the universe more or less and also the most humble man in the universe. It featured a removable battle harness, a battle ax shield and half of the Power Sword colored in gray to closely match his other accessories below, why are you, Duncan or rather the man-at-arms, as it is better known, which is a term used to describe a heavily armed soldier and was he heavily armed?

It featured removable leg, arm and chest armor and a battle mace and even though I was a man of arms, I could take on Skeletor's evil forces unarmed thanks to his spring-loaded waist, I just had to take on you with my own hands, demons, loyal companion, battle cat, another cost-saving measure was also launched. from Mattel who reused the tiger mold from their line of 10 inch Big Jim figures from the 70's and also had 2 villains released in the first wave and kids needed villains for their heroes to fight well. I'm sure there were quite a few parents who weren't too excited to buy their sweet, innocent '80s kids Lord of Destruction Skeletor, who features a terrifying skull face years before such images became the norm. norm in children's toys.

Where did you buy this for the child? Skeletor featured a removable battle harness on the other half. the Sword of Power this time in purple that could be combined with half of Heman and the chaos staff full of magic and the fourth figure released was the hapless beastman, Skeletor's savage minions or as I like to call him skin-faced , included a removable torso. armor, a pair of spiked bracelets, and a whip, he should have included a brush and some shampoo too, given how often He-man threw him into a mud puddle, although later in 82 the four remaining figures were freed, added the evil ocean warlord Merman. for Skeletor's forces, he also didn't come with any shampoo, but did include removable armor and a sword.

The following figure is quite strange. He is Zodac, the cosmic enforcer who was originally an evil servant of Skeletor, although his packaging says he is an enforcer in the In the DC Comics and Filmation series we would learn that I cannot use my powers to change things in a world of good and evil. Zodac was unique not only to the

masters

of the universe but to all toy lines for being in the gray area, the observer in the middle who tried it. to maintain a balance of harmony between the two extremes by preaching perception over power, the beauty around us is protected before it is too late, it is rare for toys to have a character who started as a villain and then transformed into neutral despite not having any real characters.

Change in toy and minimal changes in packaging When you don't have a dog in the fight, apparently you don't need as many accessories, so Zodac only included removable armor and a small laser; Later more heroic

masters

were released 82 there was the warrior Winget who provided He-Man with some air support. Note that Stratos did not include any real weapons, only a harness and removable wings, despite not having any weapons, Stratos could be useful by giving Skeletor's henchmen that he arrived with a wretch. The landing and final figure of 82 was the captain of the guard, his Teela, the adopted daughter of a man-at-arms.

I had the honor of adopting you as my own daughter despite it being a toy line aimed primarily at children. Mattel included a female figure because girls. having the power to call Tata is Eternia's greatest warrior and, like Scarlett in the opening year of GI Joe Teela, was a valuable reminder to young children that heroism is not gender, age or even species specific in Eternia Teela included a removable headdress shield and The Staff, as with GI Joe, the villains did not get any vehicles in the initial year, the two that were released were intended for He-Man and his friends, there was the battle RAM which could hold two figures and featured a missile launcher on the front. could be detached from the rear, giving not only Stratos the power to fly and some more air support with the Wind Raider.

Now it's pretty impressive when someone can summon a horse by whistling, but how many can summon a flying vehicle in the same way that the Wind Raider features moving elements? wings, rudder and wheels to let it roll on the ground. It also had a hook to catch even the largest fish. This is where I give you the hook. The final 1982 release was one of the most iconic games of all time. Castle Grayskull has become a part. of pop culture history is now the well-known home of He-Man and the source of all of his power, but in 1982 it was the creepy Castle Fortress of this small line of very intense looking action figures.

Skeletor will try to take over Castle Grayskull and, if a toy line needed a good story to keep kids' attention. That, in a nutshell, was the Masters of the Universe defending Castle Grayskull from Skeletor in a world of magic and technology. It was a simple medieval city concept that fueled the imagination of many young Masters of The Universe defended the castle, but Grayskull was much more than just a castle: it was a magical and mysterious character in itself, complete with a face and as many faces as Skeletor's. The front featured a giant skull with a black wash to accentuate the shadows and looked worn and moldy, another rarity in the world of toys, where everything was supposed to look new and shiny right out of the box, it looked as if it had been would have been left in the backyard for five years, it also served as a game and carrying case with tabs that could seal it with figures inside and a handle for easy carrying inside were several different play features there was a training device to practice the most powerful strike in the universe additional weapons with a weapons rack to store them and various weapons built-in gimmicks like the mounted laser cannon that works with the elevator jaw bridge that is activated by inserting the energy sword and boy, what I'd like a trap door right now, it's funny, you should mention that a trap door is activated by moving the throne, which looked like some kind of cosmic zodiac space chair. and various stickers to make this spooky game even spookier again.

Remember this is before the cult visionaries into supernatural humanoids and other creepy, creepy or terrifying toys that would follow in the years to come. Masters of the Universe was an instant hit that galvanized everyone at Mattel. to say with a sigh of relief, thank goodness man came along, thank goodness, although the initial incarnation of He-Man and the Masters of the Universe would not last as long as its main competitors, GI Joe and Transformers, the line would still continue . would enjoy huge success, countless figures, more games, an entire line of spin-off toys, and a show this time aimed at girls and a live-action movie starring one of Hollywood's most in-demand stars at the time. 1983 would build on the success of The Starting Year with more memorable characters, this time with completely new gameplay features and less reuse of parts, but that's a story for another episode.

Thanks for watching the history of Masters of the Universe 1982 Edition. Leave a comment below if you have a lawyer in your memory. I'd like to share it, and if you like what I'm doing here, consider supporting the channel on Patreon as a thank you. You'll have access to exclusive Patreon-exclusive videos, like this week's in-depth review of the original 1982 Wind Raider, if you want. If you're in the mood for more lawyers in history, check out the Battle a He-man blog on WordPress, an amazing resource for Masters of the Universe history and box art images, feel free to share the video and join in to the tribe, subscribe until next timetime, friends, remember.

You have the power, goodbye, my nerdy friends, you must stay.