Masters Of The Universe: Revelation does not reinvent He-Man, according to the series’ creator, Kevin Smith. Coming off the heels of the successful reimagining of She-Ra and the Princesses of Power, Smith’s He-Man series will be Netflix’s second animated Masters Of The Universe series. The project boasts an impressive voice cast that includes Chris Wood as He-Man, Mark Hamill as Skeletor, Lena Headey as Evil-Lyn, Justin Long as Roboto, Kevin Conroy as Mer-Man, and Sarah Michelle Gellar as Teela.
Based on Mattel’s toys and comics, the Masters of the Universe franchise began in 1983 with the original animated series titled, He-Man and the Masters of the Universe. Set on the planet Eternia, the show’s main premise is based on the conflict between He-Man, the alter ego of Prince Adam, and Skeletor, a blue-skinned humanoid with a bare-bone skull. The sequel series, She-Ra: Princess of Power, followed He-Man’s titular sister on the planet Etheria as she led a rebellion against Hordak, a ruthless tyrant who leads an Evil Horde of monsters, robots, and sorcerers.
Over many years, Masters Of The Universe has become a beloved property, and now Kevin Smith is hoping to stay true to the original IP with his upcoming Netflix series. In a recent interview with io9, Smith talked about how his show, subtitled Revelation, does not aim to reinvent. While he admires what Netflix previously did with She-Ra, that was not his objective. Read what Smith said below:
Our manifest was to be fanservicey. We did not have a kind of creative, let’s call it, freedom to reinvent the franchise the way that She-Ra did and did it brilliantly. [Noelle Stevenson’s] She-Ra cartoon played to a lot more people than it probably ever would have played to if they just kept it in its original incarnation. But She-Ra, even in its era, wasn’t as well known as He-Man and the Masters of the Universe so there’s more room for creativity there. And in fact, that’s what they were allowed to do.
Instead of a complete reimagining, Smith says his aim was to honor the original series with a slight adult-oriented spin. He adds that even if he were asked to reinvent the series, he wouldn’t have taken on that task. Smith elaborated:
To be honest with you, I wouldn’t have taken the job if they were like, “You get to reinvent He-Man and the Masters of the Universe.” I’m really not that creative. I would not be the guy you’d tap to reinvent something. But if you want to keep it going lovingly, true to the franchise and just growing up the characters a little bit so their conversations are a little more adult-oriented? [I’m your guy.]
During the interview, Smith also talked about how he and his team of writers drew a lot of inspiration from the MCU when crafting their Masters Of The Universe series. Smith says Marvel movies largely appeal to him because he grew up on Marvel comics, but now his kid can grow up on them too through the MCU, and they can share the experience together. This is exactly what Smith hopes to provide with Masters of the Universe: Revelation.
Fans of the original He-Man and the Masters of the Universe will be thrilled to hear that Netflix’s upcoming series stays true to its story and characters. However, Smith may run the risk of merely rehashing the original series without necessitating the need for a reboot. However, it is always comforting when a true fan is helming a beloved franchise. Masters of the Universe: Revelation is set to land on Netflix on July 23rd.
