The Power of Grayskull: The Definitive History of He-Man and the Masters of the Universe

Dir: Randall Lobb, Robert McCallum

2018

****

Anyone familiar with the Netflix documentary series The Toys that Made Us will see similarities with their He-Man episode and Power of Grayskull: The Definitive History of He-Man and the Masters of the Universe but latter is far more informative than the former. If you’ve not seen either than go straight to Randall Lobb and Robert McCallum’s feature length exploration that is a satisfyingly comprehensive, revealing the origins of the characters, to the bitter end of the franchise. Designed in the wake of Conan the barbarian and under the shadow of Star Wars, He-Man's surprising popularity spawned a multi billion dollar empire that included toys, comic books, cartoons, live-action movies and a (twin) sister spinoff show - She-Ra - and continues to appeal to a ravenous fan-base today. The Toys that Made Us covered the toy aspect of He-Man rather well (although I find the narration excruciating) but Power of Grayskull goes further and explores the ethos of the Masters of the Universe and just why the film and cartoons were so different from the toys and comics. It is quite refreshing in that it interviews only those that were involved in the creation of He-Man and no celebrity fans. It also features interviews with Dolph Lundgren and Frank Langella who talk in great detail about their roles and the production. If that wasn’t surprising enough, Langella insists that his character in the film remains one of his favorites of his career. Their interviews actually answer many questions I’ve had since childhood, and even though I’ve somehow grown to love the 1987 adaptation, it is nice to finally understand where everyone was coming from. I have argued – seriously argued! – with childhood friends about the origins of He-Man, so it is nice to finally hear it from the horses mouth as it were. It’s even nicer knowing that I’ve been right all these years. The only sadness I felt during this wonderful piece of nostalgia is that He-Man could and should have been so much more than it already was. The film is full of tasty facts that will amuse even the most casual of He-Man admirer and there are quite a few revelations. I’m sure I’m late (by about 30 years) to this particular party of outrage, but Stinkor and Merman were in fact the same toy – different characters made from the same mold – and I had absolutely no idea. The original creators, all very passionate about the characters and world they created (as they should be) do bad-mouth many of the later characters that I actually quite liked as a child but I can see why they were pissed off in retrospect. Who knew there were toy makers on the other side of the world that were angry that I was playing with Ram-Man and Fisto in my bedroom instead of exclusively a naked man in furry pants and a blue Skeleton. In all honest though these guys are gods to me. They created a very important and fond part of my childhood, and even though my Grandma gave them a lot of money, I will be eternally grateful for the magic they created. Unlike many toy makers, these guys became passionate and protective of their creations and they fought for them when they had to. They don’t laugh off their creations either, as they are all still very active in their character’s evolution. Randall Lobb and Robert McCallum learned many lessons from their 2014 feature documentary Turtle Power: The Definitive History of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles – it’s also a good film but a little premature as the Turtles are ever-evolving, indeed a history up to 2014 was out of date pretty much as soon as it was released. I’m pretty sure He-Man will come back in some way or another but this is a good closer for one chapter and an opener for another. I had loads of toys that I loved playing with as a child but He-Man is the only one I kept and the only one I truly cared about. I cried as an adult when I found my Fisto’s leg had fallen off, to be fair I was very drunk, but I was still upset. I’m actually planning a He-Man-themed tattoo as well – I kid you not. He-Man was more than a toy, he was an inspiration, a hero, a form of escapism that wasn’t about violence but about control of power (in a good way, not in a multi conglomerate way). When I was seven years old I had the power and I’ve been trying to get it back ever since. Hopefully the He-Man tattoo will help, watching this excellent documentary certainly did.