GIANT Picture Book (Heroic Warriors) illustration #16

Golden Book published a great deal of Masters of the Universe material during the eighties. Two of the most notable and yet rarely seen books are the Giant Picture Books; oversized quality publications printed on thick quality paper featuring artwork by Fred Carrillo. One book focused on the Heroic Warriors, whilst the other focused on the Evil Warriors. Here I present, from the Heroic Warriors book, the two pages focusing on the Sorceress. I love the fact that we see the Sorceress transforming into the falcon form of Zoar, posed in the exact same way she would be in the Filmation series. I like the fact that the text refers to the Sorceress making Prince Adam aware of his power to become He-Man, rather than simply stating that she gave him that ability.


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The fake beard...

For some reason I always loved this piece of animation of Madame Razz from the season two She-Ra episode "The Inspector". Even though we had seen this spell casting sequence numerous times throughout the series, I love the way in which they decided to end the sequence with Madame Razz sporting an incredibly self-assured look upon her face, as she holds the fake beard. I also like the use of different colored pencils on this piece of layout artwork, with the red representing the existing stock, and the blue and black representing the movement and new stock.


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Ridiculous detail!

I have been purchasing animation art from the He-Man and She-Ra series for the last fifteen years! One thing that many collectors will miss out on are the pieces of artwork and cels where it appears that there is not much on show. Here is an example of a piece of She-Ra animation art, from the season two episode "One To Count On", in which this appears to be the case. However, upon inspection, you will see that even for such a tiny piece of animation, the Filmation artists were still required to illustrate every little detail. Bear in mind that both Bow and Glimmer are in the distance during this shot, with Clawdeen in the foreground. Dare I say there is an element of cuteness about the way in which they are illustrated.


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He-Man versus Trap Jaw!

Here I present a page full of panels from the lengthy deleted action scene from the season one He-Man episode "Golden Disks of Knowledge" featuring He-Man, Beast Man, Evil-Lyn, and Trap Jaw! In this page of assembled panels you can see that it was originally staged for He-Man to have a physical fight with Trap Jaw. Keen-eyed observers will notice that the fight between He-Man and Trap Jaw strongly references a fight between Man-At-Arms and one of Rago's guards from "It's Not My Fault", and the fight between He-Man and Garn from "A Tale of Two Cities". It is somewhat amusing to see Trap Jaw thrown about so much in the space of a few seconds!


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GIANT Picture Book (Heroic Warriors) illustration #15

Golden Book published a great deal of Masters of the Universe material during the eighties. Two of the most notable and yet rarely seen books are the Giant Picture Books; oversized quality publications printed on thick quality paper featuring artwork by Fred Carrillo. One book focused on the Heroic Warriors, whilst the other focused on the Evil Warriors. Here I present, from the Heroic Warriors book, the second of the two black and white illustrations focusing on Stratos, resized for you to enjoy! This illustration beautifully showcases Stratos' ability to swoop down and save his friends; in this case rescuing Man-At-Arms from a fire-breathing dragon!


(click on the image to see it at full-size)

Deep in the caves...

The Masters of the Universe minicomic "King of the Snake Men" featuring artwork by Bruce Timm also features some of the most beautifully colored panels ever to see print! In this introductory page we see Skeletor and Kobra Khan descend into the caverns below Snake Mountain. Not only are the background colors spectacular, but the coloring and highlights on the characters are also beautiful.


(click on the image to see it at full-size)

Narwhal by Timm!

Here is a fantastic character turnaround of King Narwhal from the season one She-Ra episode "Black Snow" by Bruce Timm. What is always interesting to note about Bruce Timm's model sheet concepts is that even though his is adhering to the Filmation character guidelines, his evolving style of illustration shines through. What makes this piece even more interesting is that the concept is illustrated in red pencil, which was frequent in layout artwork, but not in model sheet concepts.


(click on the image to see it at full-size)

Doe-eyed Adora.

"Book Burning" from She-Ra's first season was not only notable for featuring one of the most striking plots of the series, but also because it featured some noteworthy pieces of animation. In this illustration, from a sequence in which the heroes sneak into a Horde vehicle, we can see Adora illustrated in a unique fashion. I always loved the visual moments in the series when the characters would look slightly off model, but in a good way! We rarely, if ever, got to see Adora's face from this angle, so I love the fact that we see her given a somewhat doe-eyed look.


(click on the image to see it at full-size)

GIANT Picture Book (Heroic Warriors) illustration #14

Golden Book published a great deal of Masters of the Universe material during the eighties. Two of the most notable and yet rarely seen books are the Giant Picture Books; oversized quality publications printed on thick quality paper featuring artwork by Fred Carrillo. One book focused on the Heroic Warriors, whilst the other focused on the Evil Warriors. Here I present, from the Heroic Warriors book, the first of the two black and white illustrations focusing on Stratos, resized for you to enjoy! Here we see an amazingly action-packed illustration with Stratos looping around a destructive blast from Evil-Lyn!


(click on the image to see it at full-size)

A brief review #039 - "Trouble in Arcadia"

As many of you will know, in 2010 I published The unofficial cartoon guide to He-Man and the Masters of the Universe. At 300+ pages the book features 700+ pieces of trivia, 460+ deleted scenes, 360+ examples of animation reuse, 380+ quotes, 50+ abandoned episodes, and a LOT more! It is the book that NO fan of the Filmation series can live without! BUY IT NOW!

As an incentive, here is my brief review and rating (as they appear in the book) for "Trouble in Arcadia"...

In this character-heavy episode, not only do we get to see Prince Adam captured and made to work in a mine, but we are also treated to an interesting look at the dynamic between men and women. And as a clever running race against time sub plot, we see the Sword of Power's durability pushed to the limit. What this episode achieves most of all, through both its writing and direction, is craft the perfect relationship between Prince Adam and Teela. They clearly care a great deal for one another, as is evidenced with their embrace as they are reunited. Of the two Teela is written the strongest; David Wise giving her fantastic dialogue and scenes opposite Queen Sumana. 7/10

Now, may I ask; what is YOUR rating?