A Brief Note on Skeletor

Greg and I got in on the ground floor of the He-Man hype, back when there were only about 6 figures or so.  I particularly remember He-Man, Man-At-Arms, Stratos, Beast-Man, Mer-Man, and of course Skeletor.

We dug them all:  He-Man was Mr. Macho Hero guy.  Man-At-Arms with his asymmetrical armor and computer brain/helmet.  Aerial Stratos with his evocative name.  Evil henchmen Beast Man and Mer-Man were even cool.

But the coolest was Skeletor.  Just look at him!

Mind you that these speculations occurred long before the cartoon and the movie (as well as “outgrowing” action figures) soured the lot of us on the He-Man phenomena.  Still, I was impressed with how well Skeletor was handled in both mediums.

Before the figure line exploded into a million fragments, Greg and I had an unspoken understanding.  We would each have a He-Man.  We had to own a He-Man, he was the hero for crying out loud.  Past that, we tried hard not to duplicate figures.  He got Beast-Man, so I got Man-At-Arms.  He got Mer-Man, so I asked for Stratos.

Greg got a Skeletor first.  I never owned the original above.  I ended up with a later “gimmick” Skeletor.  Battle Armour Skeletor.  He had a barrel-shaped piece in his chest that would rotate when smacked, going from pristine armour to one with a gash and then two in it.

These days I am not a big fan of action figures with mechanical or electronic gimmicks.  The late He-Man figures are partially responsible for this dislike.  I must admit that at the time I enjoyed Ram Man and Fistor and Crab Man and the zillion other gimmick figures.

Recently I discovered that the Masters of the Universe was being repackaged with a new cartoon and a new toyline.  After one look at him I knew in my heart that I must possess a Skeletor.  All the old charm is there only better.  Too bad the feet have five toes.

The package he came in gave Skeletor a title in 3 different languages.  Apparently in English-speaking realms Skeletor’s proper title is “Overlord of Evil.” 

When in Spain and Latin America Skeletor may be addressed as “Amo De Los Villanos” or “friend to lost villains”.  This refers to his little-known charity work in those regions.  Skeletor spends a great deal of time helping Latino villains from other times and dimensions find their way home.

In France Skeletor is entitled to the rank “Chef Supreme De L’Enfer” or “supreme chef of Hell”.  He won this by entering his Diabolically Chocolaty Brownies in the Evil Cooking School Bake-Off held triennially in Paris.

And now you know the rest of the story.