Welcome to season 1, episode 5 of the re-imagined world of He-Man and the Masters of the Universe. Things have been pretty action-packed to now, and things are about to get weird.
Spoilers ahead.
1. Uh what did I just watch?
In an early scene Evil-Lyn and Kronis are conspiring against the newly super-powered Skelator takes a hot bath in toxic waste. First we see half his torso covered in goo so we know that he’s naked, and then we cut to a reverse shot where both Evil-Lyn and Kronis are literally framed by his naked legs like a scene from The Graduate. Kronis stops speaking mid sentence with his jaw open as they both stare at his crotch area. Then Evil-Lyn literally closes his mouth for Kronis, and then Skelator gets dressed while he’s talking. I’m really not making this up.. Did we really just see a big-dick joke in a kid’s show?
Apparently it’s really important for the creators to let you know that Skelator is hung more than your average skeleton.
2. I’m sorry but what
I’m still flabbergasted a bit so none of this show is making sense to me all of a sudden. Am I supposed to be looking out for double-entendres the entire series?
Is the Sorceress of Grayskull watching over Teela secretly a stalker? I am just reading too much into this now, maybe I’m overreacting. But seriously. A dong joke. In a kid’s cartoon.
A dong joke.
3. The meaning of being a hero
What I like about this incarnation of He-Man is that he’s really not a man yet. But he is also going to be a good man, because he’s a good kid. He has his heart in the right place, which makes his destiny to assume the mantle of He-Man more satisfying. It does add a King Aurthurian twist that didn’t exist before.
He convinces his friends to go help soldiers who are trapped under fire. His friends say it’s not their problem, and he says simply “What if it was.” He implores them to use the Power of Greyskull, for good. He’s like Peter Parker and King Arhur in one.
4. He Finally almost kinda said it! (not really)
These writers are really having a great time teasing me. All season I’ve been waiting for Prince Adam to shout “BY THE POWER OF GREYSKULL.. I HAVE THE POWER” with a booming voice of confidence. Each episode we’ve gotten a version of it that is short or altered. And this time he says By the power of greyskull.. We got almost the whole sentence out, and this time he whispers it. I guess when he finally does shout it full force it really will be a moment that deserves it. I like how they’re subverting the He-Man tropes to actually develop characters. Good writing for a Kids show.
5. Teela Teela she’s on fire
What makes the show interesting is that each character has their own story arc with an emotional character development they must complete that is unique unto themselves. While Adam is the long-lost prince meant to fulfill his destiny, Teela has been reimagined as the true street Urchin who is making it on her own agency. She initially doesn’t want to re-use or depend on the POWER OF GREYSKULL to protect herself, she ends up accepting her destiny and proceeds to blow away a pack of demon dogs that even the four of her friends couldn’t handle while powered up. She has a really high ceiling, this one.
