Techtite's TV Reviews!

"Some may say that this...series' strength is in its less childish perspectives. Yet it is such lack of childishness which is also this series' biggest flaw."

---from the review

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Sidebar ::

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Commercial versus "review" Nobody can fault Cartoon Network for trying to keep their sponsor's commercial promos from looking like "buy this kids; they paid for this cartoon to be aired at all!" However, what's up with that short "review" of Morrowind for the X-box? The host of Cartoon Network's anime show is told by his computer that, gee, she's found this cool game. Gee, what's it's name, asks the host. Gee, they trade only the best things to say about the game back and forth. Gee, do you think this isn't a real review of the game, and just a commercial plug? In fairness, I must admit that --Gee!-- Morrowind is a nice game, for either X-Box or PC. In equal fairness, they "only" rate the game an 8, as if that is going to keep young impressionable viewers from going out and buying the game tomorrow. However, let's be honest, and keep commercials as commercials, during the commercial breaks. Thanks.

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He-Man and the

Masters of the Universe (2002)

A Review by Techtite

(review posted September 2nd, 2002)

My lament for Cartoon Network --which I voiced last year, in my review of Justice League-- still stands; for every great show they release, the majority of the network seems like 3 hours of classic cartoons, 3 Hours of so-co cartoons, and 18 hours of, quite frankly, garbage. So you can imagine my bittersweet reaction to hearing the network's plan to air a remake of the classic 1980's fantasy series, He-Man and the Masters of the Universe, in the form of a thoroughly modernized (and totally different) anime version. Admittedly, this remake does have a fair share of ingenuity...though not unlike the villain Skeletor, it seems to distinctively lack the heart its predecessor had.

At least its series premiere starts off on the right track, opening the He-man saga where it should have begun long ago; at the beginning. This includes a prologue set long before Adam was even born, when Adam's father, Randor, defends the mystic elders from an evil sorcerer named Keldor. One amusing touch; Keldor hits himself by mistake with his own evil flesh-eating potion, making him forever more...Skeletor! For his heroism, the elder mystics appoint Randor King of Eternia, prophesizing that he will rule for a generation of peace, though when that peace is threatened, one hero will emerge to defend his land from all harm. While this prologue is short, it's quite a good beginning.

Jump ahead a generation, where Randor's son Adam is celebrating his 16th birthday. Both Adam and Teela --seen in the 1980's series as young adults-- are just kids, and unaware of Skeletor or the threats that await them; a nice beginning for a fresh new series. Along the way, we're introduced to differently animated yet still familiar characters: Man-of-Arms, Cringer, Orko, and other heroes on one side, with Skeltor, Evil-Lyn, Beast-man, Lockjaw, and other memorable villains awaiting their time for revenge at snake mountain. Admittedly, this stage-setting isn't 100% identical to its predecessor's roots --in the original series, Skeletor was skull-faced due to being from a parallel dimension, not due to some "freak accident"-- and yet all the main characters are familiar faces.

Some may say that this remade series' strength is in its less childish perspectives. While I would agree with this to a point, it is this lack of childish "magic" which is also this series' biggest flaw. One of the original show's best moments each episode, was when Adam held aloft his magic sword and said, "By the Power of Greyskull, I have the power!" Lighting bolts of energy came from the right, left, and up above, converging upon the sword until with a clasp of thunder, Adam became He-man, with the background singers singing, "He---MAN!" all the while. Sure, it was childish, though it was also childishly FUN. A remake should take this cool light show and computer enhance it with a flourish; this series acts too "mature" to bother. While I admire a cartoon that doesn't condescend, it's still important to have fun, right?

Regardless, such minor faux pas could be easily forgiven if superb scripts were there to back it up. That's tougher than you might realize, when writers for the original series include Fantasy authors like Christy Marx, Paul Dini (who would later help write the way-cool Batman Animated Series of the 1990's) and Star Trek's own D.C. Fontana. I admit I haven't seen all 26 episodes yet, though when I hear rumors that Skeletor will eventually create some sort of "Council of Evil," I just have to groan. If you're going to rip off cartoon ideas, the Superfriends' gratingly droll "Legion of Doom" is not the best place to start. However, I hear equal rumors that authors like Christy Marx are indeed making a comeback to this new He-man saga, penning episodes for the new series. As for now, I can only judge the series by its premiere episodes...which, indeed, are written extremely well.

However, there is definitely a life to the overall story which is lagging. It's a gift to make any character seem lifelike with even the littlest effort. Consider how cool Empire Strikes Back made Yoda look, when by all accounts he was, in reality, a latex hand puppet. As for the heroic lead in He-Man...I haven't decided yet. Adam seems a bit too much of the brat to be worthy of being He-man; a big contrast from the original series, where regardless of his antics to hide his secret, Adam was always a bright, responsible young hero, power sword or no power sword. Meanwhile, Teela appears to be portrayed as a tomboy cliché; far from the strong yet feminine, pre-Xena persona in the first cartoon. I would've hoped a new anime series would pursue a romance subplot for the young teens, a la Wildstar and Nova in Star Blazers, or Teela and Lion-o in Thundercats. I think it will be long wait before such humanized subplots happen here.

Due to my fond memories of the original, I am inclined to give this series a fighting chance...for a few more episodes. However, it deserves mentioning that without the original series as a cornerstone, this remake's premiere would not coax me to tune in again. It gets a small crater on escrow, only because it is still one of the best animated new series on the Cartoon Network (which isn't saying much, I know). However, unlike Justice League, I doubt I will be giving this series any "Cartoon of the year" awards anytime soon. Time will tell.

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