Kevin Smith Reboots Masters of the Universe with New Netflix Series | TV/Streaming

“He-Man and the Masters of the Universe” was one of the most popular animated shows of the ‘80s, running initially from 1983-85 but then repeating endlessly. The characters actually debuted in 1981 with a series of toys by Mattel and then appearing in comics in the early part of the decade, but the series is what most people of my generation remember. At its core, it’s a simple good vs. evil tale with the muscular He-Man on one side and villainous Skeletor on the other. Trying to appeal to all brands of genre nerds, it’s a hybrid world of both fantasy and science fiction, incorporating old-fashioned sword & sorcery ideas onto stories of other planets and races. “He-Man and the Masters of the Universe” was the biggest project in this franchise, but far from the only one as children’s books, comics, toys, and even a live-action film with Dolph Lundgren followed. He-Man ruled the ‘80s and played in repeats into the ‘90s. There was even a resurgence of sorts in the ‘00s with new toys from Mattel and new comics from Image, but these didn’t really catch on with a wider audience.

What’s interesting is Smith and company’s decision to return to the tone and narrative of the ’83-’85 series. It was conceived as a way to pick up the characters from that original series and continue their stories, and the five episodes do a pretty engaging job with that goal in that mind. A massive battle in the premiere shakes up the entire power structure of Eternia, turning Teela (Sarah Michelle Gellar) into the lead for the next few episodes, as she races to bring the broken pieces back together, culminating in an episode five cliffhanger that is legitimately great. The nine-year-old me who watched the original series would have lost his mind.

I’m not sure if that toddler Tallerico would have noticed the voice work here, but it is stellar. Smith and company got a fantastic group of people together, including none other than Mark Hamill as Skeletor. (Of course, animation fans know that Hamill is a vocal master, including doing one of the best Jokers in Batman history.) He’s joined by Chris Wood as He-Man, Lena Headey as Evil-Lyn, Alicia Silverstone as Queen Marlena, Diedrich Bader as King Randor, Stephen Root as Cringer, Griffin Newman as Orko, Henry Rollins as Tri-Klops, and so much more, including cameos from Tony Todd, Justin Long, Harley Quinn Smith, Dennis Haysbert, and, of course, Jason Mewes. I choose to believe this means Silent Bob is now in the Masters of the Universe.