He-Man and the Masters of the Universe The Heirs of Grayskull Television 

Five Thoughts on He-Man and the Masters of the Universe‘s “The Heirs of Grayskull”

By | August 19th, 2022
Posted in Television | % Comments

Welcome back to Multiversity’s coverage of Netflix’s CG animated He-Man and the Masters of the Universe reboot, which has returned for its third and final season.

1. Krass to the Bone

Last season had a plot twist of Krass (aka Ram Ma’am) falling for a devil’s deal that had her turn to Skeletor to bring back her father. In a way, from the beginning she was always going to be the group’s Judas if there was going to be one, because she had the most insecurities, making her an easy target for manipulation. Which Skeletor is obviously a master at. Her new color is green, a reflection of the sickness inside of her. She tries to threaten Skeletor back when he pushes her, but it’s hard not to see how childish and naive she is. But she serves as a great metaphor for people to understand the importance of accepting life for what it is, no matter how much it hurts. But I’m sure that’s a lesson yet to be learned as we’re just on episode 1 of season three.

2. The King and His Son

After two seasons of finally building up to a cathartic moment where father and son can stand side by side, and be cheered by their people, King Randor has a new role to fulfill… dad. With his son taking center stage and a leadership position, King Randor has to develop his new identity and purpose in life. There is a really cute moment when Prince Adam gives instructions to his crew, confidently heading out to go save their friend, where King Randor hesitantly asks if he can tag along. That reminds me of a dad going with his kids to their first big concert, wanting to be cool, but really just wanting to be near.

3. Skeletor’s Ghost is Even More Dangerous

Having merged fully with the power of Grayskull, there is a twist on the title of the episode, the “Heirs of Grayskull.” It’s interesting because upon first look you would assume that means Prince Adam, his father, and maybe even his merry crew that shares his power. But as Skeletor says in the beginning of the episode, it was always meant to be him. So maybe the power itself is neutral and it’s how you wield it? Interesting questions, and now with Skeletor in ghost form, He-Man has even less options to defeat him than before: all his fancy power moves mean squat when he can get blasted with pure power itself. What I like about this is that the writers are elevating the challenge for He-Man every season, where brute force will not be enough.

4. A King’s Lesson

There is a powerful moment when Prince Adam is upset at the fact that he is limited and confused at how he can help bring Krass back. For all his muscles and might, he is no closer to saving her. He throws his sword in frustration, and his father takes that moment to console him and pass on his wisdom. He says “One of the hardest part of being a king is that even with all the power you have at your disposal, not everything can be fixed with the flick of a switch.” Prince Adam says it’s not fair… and that right there is the first important lesson his father has taught him: that life is unfair, but it’s how you rise to the occasion that determines who you are, and what kind of king that Prince Adam might strive to be. (Someday: for now he’s still a kid going on adventures, and has many lessons to learn.)

5. Meanwhile… Winter Has Come. Literally

While He-Man, Cringer, and King Randor make their way through underground caverns, Duncan and Teela find themselves taking a ship to the winter. They are attacked by a giant mechanical crab thing (which I didn’t know were winter creators), but what I like about this is how they keep expanding the world by showing different environments and creatures to battle. They are overmatched until -WHATTTTTTTT. OMG, the ending has a beautiful surprise. Sorry that was a real-time reaction. I cannot spoil it for you, you’ll definitely want to watch the episode to see who shows up at the end of season 3, episode 1!

We’ll continue our coverage of the season in our Boomb Tube column, which goes live every Monday afternoon.


//TAGS | He-Man and the Masters of the Universe

Henry Finn

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