Take 73: Masters of the Universe (2026)
If at first you don’t suceeed…Thirty-nine years ago, Cannon Films took a stab at bringing the popular Mattel action figure hero, He-Man and expansive cast of characters to the large screen. If you remember Cannon Fims, you can probably guess about how well that went. The fact that most you either don’t remember or never heard of Cannon Films says it all. This time, Mattel teamed with Amazon MGM to produce their own take on the larger than life franchise. This time around, after a brutal attack on the Planet Eternia is waged by Skeltor (Jarod Leto), a young Prince Adam (before: Artie Wilkinson-Hunt, after: Nicholas Galitzine) and the Sword of Power are sent to the safety of the planet Earth to escape capture. Unfortunately, Adam is separated from the sword as soon as he arrives on Earth and spends the next 15 years on Earth with only memories of his home to sustain him. He receives a message that his sword has been found, and once he is reunited with it, Skeletor's forces become aware of his presence but so do Adam's allies. Reunited with his childhood friend Teela (Camila Mendes) his mentor, Duncas, Man-At-Arms (Idris Elba) and a motley crew mount a resistance against Skeletor and Adam is reluctantly forced to resume his role as would-be warrior— something he was,never that good at BEFORE his exile— if the people of Eternia are to stand a chance.
If feel as though my intro was like the ramblings of an excited kid and thst is exactly what it felt like watching this film. My age cohort grew up in the age of Sword slinger: we had Thundarr, the Barbarian, John Blackstar, a little later Lion-O, and of course He-Man.) At the time, He-Man and the Masters of the Universe probably was never my favorite (that would have been Blackstar which having seen sincee does NOT hold up well,) but there was still a love and respect for the him and the Masters of the Universe world. Definitely has my share of the toys and say ever episode as well as of the spin-off She-Ra: Princess of Power,) so this was seminal to my childhood. I avoided the 1987 film because I could already tell it strayed a little too far from tje source material. After seeing the first trailer, I knew this one was going to be different so I was on board early.
Aside from one of the recent Netflix animated shows, I had not revisited anything Master of the Universe since that 80s. It was really cool to be thrust right back into that world as soon as the movie started. This WAS the Eternia I remembered. This really did feel like the characters I knew from my youth translated to the big screen. I mean starting with the clothes worn by King Randor and Queen Marlena- spot on! Fistor was one of my favorite He-Man toys and there he was, in live action pretty much the way I rememebered with a modern update. The one that took me over the top was Trapjaw! Like, wow. His real world translation was possibly my favorite. For the first time, I saw him as a menace, something potentially nightmarish and something to be afraid of. Honorable mention to Mekaneck, and Mossman.
A lot was made about Nicholas Galitzine starring in this. In my opinion, he nails it. His Adam is dorky, but likable. It wasn't really a question if he could pull that part off. People thought he wasn't big enough to play He-Man. Who is really that can still be believable as both and can actually act? I thought he nailed it here too. The before and after is evident. He was ripped but not overly ripped. Though muscular, he moved smoothly we grand. A bigger actor would have plod around and appeared stiff which made him credible. I do wish there had been a character shift between Adam and He-Man like in the old cartoon but there is something to be said from NOT differentiating the characters for the overall story so dare I say maybe it is better this way.
The action was fun. One standout was the Man-At-Arms vs. Trapjaw fight. It was extremely well choreographed and for the first time possible ever, I saw ol’ Duncan as a bad @$$. Beast Man also befitted from a modern interpretation and so his live action potential was reached and was awesome. Finally, He-Man not holding back against Skeletor was the most satisfying fight sense Hulk vs. Loki and a joy to behold. In addition to the action, there are several laugh out loud moments. One of them funny enough, revolves around laughing and will be appreciated by fans of the original.
Even though there was so much to like, there were a few thingd that took me a little out at times. For one, we get NOTHING of Adam's formative years growing up on earth. Fifteen years go by and we get none of them. Who raised him?Evil-Lyn could have been more evil, but perhaps we’ll get more of that in the future. And the Sorceress. Visually, she was possible my favorite. Ans though I get in the modern landscape, conceptually the look had to be updated, but couldn't they have incorporated a little more of the original costume into her look?
As you can see, my gripes are pretty nitpicky. This is a testament to how much I actually liked the film if these are the only negatives I have for it. It was a lot of good old, nostalgic fun that has been updated for today’s audience without insulting the old-school fans. My score: 88.
Master or Disaster of the Universe. Give me your thoughts in the in the comments. And until next time…
