Excited for Masters of the Universe? Then Here’s 10 Powerful He-Man Media You Need
Posted on June 5, 2026
by Eric S
For a franchise designed to sell toys that is centered around an apparent Conan the Barbarian knockoff, Masters of the Universe has had a surprisingly lasting impact on popular culture. He-Man and co. hit the ground running in 1982 with a line of successful 5 ½” action figures, but really cemented their place in the zeitgeist the following year with the groundbreaking animated series (without which, we’d never have He-Man or Skeletor memes—so, it’s kind of important). Masters of the Universe (or MotU, as the cool kids who are tired of typing out “Masters of the Universe” say) had the trappings of a fairly standard ‘80s sword and sorcery franchise, but its world was populated by so many memorable characters that truly stood out among their contemporaries (who could forget Stink-Or? Or Mantenna? Or Clawful? Who could possibly forget Fisto?).
While there was an attempt to bring MotU to the big screen in 1987, its huge departure from the source material has given it a rather divisive legacy, hovering somewhere between “so bad it’s good” and “so bad it’s bad” (although, you can’t convince me that Frank Langella is not giving one of the best performances of the ‘80s as the evil Skeletor—perfection, chef’s kiss, no notes!).
With a new movie out this week, MotU is jumping back into the mainstream for the first time in four decades—and long-time fans are waiting in anticipation to see if the second attempt at live-action will do justice to the beloved franchise. Now is a perfect time to dive into the history of He-Man and his colorful band of friends and enemies, and luckily for all of us, we don’t need a magic sword or the power of Castle Grayskull—a library card will more than suffice.
For more great comics, movies, books, and cartoons, make sure to check out the offerings of your local branch as well as the hoopla and Kanopy apps.
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