Why can’t the regular logos look this good, DC?
He-Man & The Masters of the Universe #1
DC Comics (September, 2012)
Here’s an interesting note. To my knowledge, there has never been a MOTU comic with “He-Man” in the title. All of the comics were just “Masters of the Universe“, although there was a magazine with the full TV show title.
“The Seeker” WRITER: James Robinson PENCILER: Philip Tan INKERS: Ruy José and LeBeau Underwood COLORISTS: Richard & Tanya Horie and Carrie Strachan COVER COLORIST: Dave Wilkins ASSISTANT EDITOR: Sarah Litt EDITOR: Kwanza Johnson
On the planet Eternia, a woodsman named Adam has dreams of another life and another person. After being visited by a falcon, Adam leaves his ailing father with a neighbor in order to uncover the truth behind his dreams…and finds Beast Man!
What they got right: Despite what I’m about to say in the “got wrong” section, I like the idea of a mystery where the hero learns his dreams are actually a past life. Watching him connect the dots is interesting. The artwork is also well done.
What they got wrong: Actually, they added a little too much detail to the flashback scenes and He-Man’s harness. See the accurate harness on the cover? In the pages they decided to add to it. It doesn’t look very good. My big complaint, however, is that this is a story that didn’t need to be told. I’m already having flashbacks of my own–to Thundercats: The Return. And with this being the same writer who recently gave us Cry For Justice (and I can’t say I like what I’m hearing about Earth 2‘s treatment of characters–and no I don’t mean Alan Scott) I’m not going to be surprised if the Heroic Warriors of old aren’t suffering similar fates. (Poor Teela. If they chained Cheetara to the wall to be a rape toy for the Mutants, what have they done to you? I fear the answer.)
Plus Skeletor rules Eternia now and the forces of good have to reclaim it? That isn’t He-Man’s story. That’s She-Ra’s story! That’s why the two shows were so different and yet so interesting. He-Man protects the land while She-Ra and her friends are the rebels trying to stop the evil ruler. It’s two sides of the same coin, and I wish they hadn’t gone there.
Recommendation: Robinson is supposed to be a good writer and he may show it here. This issue at least was pretty good, if only for the Adam/Beast Man fight which would be my Best Scene nominee if it wasn’t so long a scene (partly thanks to modern panel use). I may save it until it’s ready for Friday Night Fight usage. As far as the comic…at least worth a look for the artwork.
BW Media Spotlight 
I read my issue #1 today. I like the artwork and the story. I was intrigued by this mystery of how Adam is now a simple woodsman. As I would learn shortly thereafter today while reading issues #2 and #3, this is not truly the case. At first, I thought this would be a new retelling on the origins of He-Man. The fight scene with Beast Man was spectacular. Beast Man actually looked quite scary in this issue instead of being the bumbling fool that he was depicted as in the Filmation cartoons.
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