Fearless Photog and the Create-A-Character Contest

Posted on February 22, 2026February 24, 2026 by Adam McCombs

I don’t recall being aware of Mattel’s 1985 Create-A-Character contest, or Fearless Photog, the winning entry by Nathan Bitner. I was first introduced to it when I started frequenting the old He-Man.Org forums. Since I haven’t really covered the topic yet on Battle Ram Blog, I thought it was about time that I rectified that situation!

In 1985, Mattel announced its create-a-character contest. The earliest mention of the contest I’ve found dates to September 4, 1985, in the The Crowley Post Signal:

The first newspaper ad I’ve found for the contest dates to September 8, 1985. However, I understand that at least some of the ads were also slipped in as a loose flier into newspapers. Those kinds of things don’t always get preserved in newspaper databases, so it’s possible it could have been advertised a bit earlier than the date I found.

Here are the contest rules. The October 10 deadline makes me think that the ad must have gone out earlier than September 8, but then again maybe they wanted to limit the number of entries with a tight window of time.

OFFICIAL RULES-NO PURCHASE NECESSARY

On plain paper no larger than 8 x 11″, draw your new MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE character and handprint on the back of your drawing your name, address, phone number. and age, the character’s name, its special physical features and actions it can do, and if it is heroic or evil. Have your parent or legal guardian write and sign the statement: “My child and I agree to abide by the official rules of this contest. If a parent or legal guardian does not sign this statement, the entry will be eliminated from further judging. Include with your entry 2 proof-of-purchase seals or UPC codes from any MATTEL TOYS MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE items or on a separate 3 x 5 paper, name 3 different MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE action figures.
Mail to: MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE CHARACTER CONTEST, PO. Box 3317, Syosset, NY 11775. Enter as often as you wish, but each entry must be different, mailed separately, and received no later than October 10, 1985. No responsibility is assumed for lost, late, or misdirected mail. Every entrant will receive a gift of a MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE Comic Book. One book per individual no matter how many entries are submitted. Allow 8-10 weeks for receipt of comic book.
Entries will be screened and judged for semi-finalist selection by National Judging Institute, Inc., an independent judging organization whose decisions are final Judging will be based on judges’ perception of: appeal of action features and accessories (0-30 points) originality of idea (0-25 points); appropriateness to MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE theme (0-20 points); appearance-how clearly do the drawing and description present the character (0-15 points); ease of manufacture (0-10 points). 1,005 semi-finalists will be selected from among all valid entries. 5 finalists will be selected by a panel of experts using the above judging criteria. Semi-finalists will receive a MATTEL TOYS MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE FRIGHT ZONE” Playset. The 5 finalists’ characters will be rendered in color by MATTEL-selected artists and described by MATTEL-selected writers to appear in Sunday Comics on December 8, 1985, whose readers will be asked to vote by telephone for their favorite character. Votes will be tallied by National Judging Institute, Inc. The entry receiving the most votes will be the Grand Prize winner. In case of ties, duplicate prizes will be awarded. Credits shall be given or not at MATTEL’s option in those entries published In the Sunday Comics.
The Grand Prize winner will have his or her character produced by MATTEL TOYS and will
also receive:
a) A Trust Fund valued at $100,000 upon maturity to be used as a college scholarship, or however deemed fit by the winner, and paid out in 4 equal installments of $25,000 per year commencing upon the winner reaching the age of 18.
b) A MATTEL TOYS MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE toy collection worth $200, MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE video tapes, and a video cassette recorder.
c) The right to be Honorary President of MATTEL, INC. for one day, including a 5-day trip to L.A. for a family of 4, round trip coach airfare, ground transportation, hotel accommodations, meal allowance and sightseeing.
The remaining 4 finalists will each receive:
3) A MATTEL TOYS MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE toy collection worth $200.
b) A Trust Fund valued at $50,000 upon maturity, to be used as a college scholarship, or however deemed fit by the winner, and paid out in 4 equal installments of $12,500 per year commencing upon the winner reaching the age of 18.
Only one prize to an individual. Prizes may not be exchanged or transferred. All prizes will be awarded and winners notified by mail. No entry will be returned or acknowledged nor will correspondence be entered into with any entrant about the entries.
Each entry must be the sole, individual, unpublished original work of the contestant, Judges may disqualify any entry known or found to have been previously published or produced or to have been a winner in any other contest. Parents or legal guardians of winners will be required to sign an affidavit of authenticity, eligibility and release. Entry constitutes permission to use entrant’s name and likeness in any planned promotional activity associated with the MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE CREATE A CHARACTER CONTEST without further compensation. By entering the contest, each entrant acknowledges and agrees that his entries and all rights of copyright in copyrightable materials contained therein shall be deemed as works made for hire, and become the sole and exclusive property of and are hereby assigned to MATTEL, INC., which thereby has the right to alter, adapt, and modify, copy, publish, promote and otherwise use any and all rights pertaining thereto in any way for any purpose, the entrant’s character, name and description without compensation or payment (other than the gift referred to in paragraph 2) to the entrant.
Contest is open to children who are US. residents, 12 years of age or younger as of September 1, 1985, except children of those engaged in the design, manufacture or sale of toys, present and former employees and their families of MATTEL, INC., Its affiliates, subsidiaries, advertising agencies and Don Jagoda Associates, Inc. Contest void wherever prohibited or restricted by law. Taxes on prizes are the sole responsibility of the winners. 9. For a list of the major winners, send a self-addressed, stamped envelope to: MATTEL MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE CONTEST WINNERS, P.Q. Bax 3356, Syosset, NY 11775.

So the prizes were quite good – a $100,000 trust fund for the winner, plus $50,000 for the runners up, as well as $200 worth of Masters toys. The grand prize winner would also get to be the honorary “Mattel President” for a day, and be flown out to LA with their family.

Mattel selected five finalists and published pictures of their creations (professionally redrawn by Bruce Timm) in early December 1985. They asked fans to call in and vote for their favorite of the five as a way to choose the winner. The finalists were:

Fearless Photog, a character with a camera for a head
Netta, a human net character
Compactor, an evil character with suction cups all over his body
Eye Beam, a living eyeball with human arms and legs
Brainwave, a character with a giant brain with a powerful crystal

The Albuquerque Tribune actually did a little story on the finalists in a November 28, 1985 story:

The story, which focuses on Brain Wave, also summarizes all of the finalists:

Youngster’s ‘Brain Wave’ nets $50,000 prize
By CLAY BAILEY Scripps Howard News Service COLLIERVILLE, Tenn.

“Brain Wave” already has earned 9-year-old Eddie Stafford of Collierville a $50,000 prize. And
that could double.

“Brain Wave” is Eddie’s entry in the Masters of the Universe Create a Character Contest, sponsored by Mattel Toys.

The entry reaped benefits this month. The company selected “Brain Wave,” a warrior who uses a crystal in his brain rather than muscle to overcome evil, as one of five finalists in the contest. Eddie now is eligible for the grand prize, which would mean an additional $50,000.

“I just sat down and started doodling,” the excited youngster said. “Sometimes I let my imagination run wild, but I sort of restrained it. I didn’t think I would make it to the five finalists. It took me about a day.”
“Brain Wave” uses cosmic power packs to energize the crystal, which “stuns or destroys” his enemies.

“Brain Wave” is vulnerable only if the energy packs on his wrists are removed, or if his hands are tied behind his back.

The selection of Eddie as a finalist “shocked the fool out of us,” said Donald Stafford, Eddie’s father.
“We really didn’t expect it,” added his mother, Lynn Stafford. “We thought it was good, but the competition in a nationwide contest is so steep, we just didn’t think he’d win.”

Eddie’s creation will be published along with those of other finalists in newspapers nationwide on Dec. 8. Readers will be asked to vote by telephone for the best of the quintet.

Other finalists include Nathan Bitner, 11, of Naperville, Ill. His creation, “Fearless Photog,” focuses on villains with a camera-shaped head and drains their powers.

The only female finalist, Josette D’Ambrosi, 9, of Brooklyn, N.Y., created the one female super-hero, “Netta.” “Netta,” a large net-shaped figure, traps Evil Warriors for the classic hero, He-Man.

John Rowe, 11, of West Elizabeth, Pa., designed the only evil figure that made the finals. His creation, “Compactor,” traps victims in his vise-like chest.

The fifth finalist, Ricky Ardmore, 11, of Eatonville, Wash., sketched a heroic figure in the shape of an eyeball with hands and legs. “Eye Beam” is a seeing-eye guardian for He-Man. The finalists will begin receiving the $50,000 at age 18. The money will be paid in four annual installments.

The winner of the contest will receive $100,000 in four annual installments of $25,000 beginning when the child turns 18; a five- day trip to Los Angeles and bragging rights for supplying the idea for a future Masters of the Universe character. Mattel will produce the toy.

While in Los Angeles, the winner will be Mattel’s honorary president for a day.

There’s also a fun story about a semi-finalist who didn’t win one of the big cash prizes, but instead was rewarded with toys. Benjamin Pace, aged 7 at the time, created an Evil Horde character with a bloodshot eyeball for a head. Interestingly, an early name for the character of Optikk was Eyegore, which you can see kind of crossed out and replaced with Eye-Yik in the concept art below:

The Baltimore Sun, January 5, 1986:

From the story:

Who knows what evil lurks in Ben’s heart? Eye-Gor
By Abby Karp
Staff writer

Who knows what evil lurks in the heart of Benjamin Butler Pace, a sweet, soft-spoken 7-year-old from Crofton?

Behind Ben’s four missing front teeth, his neat brown hair and the squeaky voice carrying a little lisp is the imagination that produced Eye-Gor, a creature ugly inside and out.

Eye-Gor has a bloodshot eyeball for a head and a radar unit where the rest of us have hearts. A member of the “Evil Horde,” a gang so bad that even the bad guys hate them, Eye-Gor instantly hypnotizes enemies by twitching his oversized eyeball.

Eye-Gor wields a triple-headed weapon, bares two fangs and stands on a pair of green spindly legs, which are dotted with small green bumps.

“Those are supposed to be muscles,” explains Ben’s older brother, Duncan.

Ben picks up the story of the master hypnotist. “He’s got three spikes on each arm and one on each leg and he can see if any- thing’s coming near the Evil Horde base. And he can go underwater.

“Um, I just made that part up,” he admits, with a giggle.

This double-ugly creature made Ben a winner in a recent contest by Mattel Inc., the company that created the Evil Horde as part of the He-Man and Masters of the Universe cartoon. Of 44,000 entries in the Masters of the Universe Create A Character Contest, Eye-Gor was one of 1,005 creatures promoted to semi-finalist status.

At least, the Pace family thinks Eye-Gor was the semi-finalist. Ben sent in a total of four drawings, including a snake-man, an insect-man and a tree that grabs bad guys when they flee through the forest.

But the form letter from “The National Judging Institute,” which carried the good news to Ben, didn’t say which of his characters won. And with no phone number listed for the institute in Syosset, N.Y., the Paces must be content to assume Eye-Gor made the grade.

The first-place winner in the national contest was a 12-year-old Illinois boy, who created “Fearless Photog.” His prize is a $100,000 scholarship and the chance to be president for a day of California-based Mattel, the country’s biggest toy company. Fearless Photog, a “heroic camera-man,” will appear in the cartoon and be produced as a molded plastic toy.

Ben’s prize as a semi-finalist was an Evil Horde Fright Zone Playset, one of the few Masters of the Universe toys which he and Duncan don’t yet own. The letter telling Ben of his prize came the Saturday after Christmas, providing a quick relief to the after-Christmas blues.

Given the size of the top prize, Barbara Pace says, entering the contest “was worth the price of the stamp.” But generally she regards the He-Man show as “one long commercial” for the toys Mattel makes.

“I don’t like cartoons in general. This one [Masters of the Universe] is not as bad as some. They try to have a moral at the end,” says Ms. Pace...

Fearless Photog

Nathan Bitner’s Fearless Photog was of course chosen as the grand prize winner of the contest. Nathan described his character in a story in the Wausau Daily Herald, published December 19, 1985.

From the story:

Fearless Photog wins
12-year-old dreams up toy

NEW YORK (AP) Watch out Skeletor! Beat it, Hordak, and take your Evil Horde with you! Fearless Photog is on the way. thanks to a gifted 12-year-old who was named winner of Mattel’s Create a Character contest.
Fearless Photog is the brainchild of Nathan Bitner, a student from Naperville, Ill., about 40 miles west of Chicago.

With a video-camera turret-head, film-reel belt and flashbulb reflector shield, Fearless Photog focuses on his enemies and zaps their evil powers, leaving only the good behind.

“I wanted to make a humane guy who defeated evil but left the good behind because there’s some good in every person.” His creation is fearless, Nathan said, because “he doesn’t use any weapons really and still goes into battle.”

“We think it’s an excellent figure,” said David Capper, Mattel’s director of marketing. He said it encompasses the Masters of the Universe theme, which is that good always conquers evil but always in a non-violent way.

Nathan’s winning entry was chosen by children who voted by telephone for one of five finalists.

Nathan Bitner, 12, of Naperville, Ill., displays a drawing of his toy creation, “Fearless Photog,” in New York Wednesday. Bitner got a $100,000 college scholarship, for winning Mattel’s Create a Character contest.

Nathan said he entered the contest because “I thought it was neat that Mattel would let kids give their ideas and then listen too one of these ideas.” He also wanted to win the top prize: $100,000 college scholarship, payable in four installments when he turns 18.

His creation will be sold as part of the 1987 Masters of the Universe collection.

Interesting, in this story, it’s said that not only does Photog drain villains of their powers, he can also convert them into good guys. That’s an aspect of Fearless Photog that is not usually mentioned.

The story said that Fearless Photog was to be a part of the 1987 Masters of the Universe collection. Of course that was not to be. It’s not entirely clear what happened with it. The 1987 Mattel Dealer Catalog actually shows several figures that would end up not being made due to the cancellation of the line that year. But Fearless Photog is nowhere to be found. You’d think if Photog was in the works he might have shown up in that catalog. Maybe he was going to be pushed back to 1988 instead – a year that never happened for MOTU in the US.

Here’s one more newspaper story about Nathan and his character. It was published in The Dispatch on December 26, 1985:

Nathan’s winning entry was announced in the US He-Man and the Masters of the Universe Magazine, Spring 1986. Nathan was honored as the “He-Man of the Issue”

Side note: in the same magazine in the Spring 1985 issue there was a Create-A-Character activity! Thanks to hk_toyworks for the tip!

The lack of a figure in the vintage line kind of gave the figure a quasi-mythical status among fans. There was certainly some pent up demand, which was finally met with the arrival of the figure in the MOTU Classics line in 2012.

*MOTU Classics Fearless Photog prototype*, *sculpted by the Four Horsemen*

Fearless Photog had been teased previously in the bio released for MOTU Classics Captain Glenn (ie Queen Marlena before she crash landed on Eternia.) It’s said that she was assigned to something called “Project Photog.” However this project was never elaborated upon, even in Fearless Photog’s bio.

Captain Glenn (Matty.com version)
Real Name: Marlena Glen
Heroic Cosmic Adventurer
Before she was Queen of Eternia, Marlena Glenn was a heroic explorer and space captain from Planet Earth. Along with her courageous crew, she traveled the stars in search of new sources of fuel for her homeword. A crack shot with almost any laser riffle, she prefers a Higuchi 1114 model for its speed and accuracy. On many adventures she learned to rely on not only her strength and courage but her intellect as well. After completing her assignment with Project Photog, Marlena volunteered to pilot an experimental Warp Ship through a black hole. Arriving in the center of her dimension, she become the first Earthling to make contact with the magical planet of Eternia. Late in life, she used the power of the Cosmic Key to return to her homeworld, discovering a great secret that linked the two planets she called home!

And here is the bio for MOTU Classics Fearless Photog:

Fearless Photog
Real Name: Jey
Heroic Master of Cameras
BURST: Created by Nathan Bitner!
Apprentice to Gwildor, Jey often daydreamed of life as a member of the Masters of the Universe. His dreams became a reality when he was selected along with five other inventors by the Science Council to journey to Eternos to present his latest creation; the Photog Emulator. During the presentation a slight miscalculation lead to a flux overload merging Jey with his invention. Finding he could drain his enemies powers and display their defeat on his chest, Jey called himself the Fearless Photog and was offered membership with his idols in the Masters of the Universe. He heroically fought during the Second Ultimate Battleground helping to defeat several of Skeletor’s warriors including Clawful and Whiplash. Photog drains his enemies’ power, displaying their defeat for all to see!

The release of the figure also sparked some additional interest in Nathan Bitner’s story. He was interviewed back in 2012 by John Atkin for He-Man.Org. You can read the interview here.

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Heroic Warriors, Mondo, MOTU Classics, MOTU History

From Mark Taylor to Mondo: A History of the Goddess

Posted on October 15, 2025October 25, 2025 by Adam McCombs

Written by Adam McCombs & Jukka Issakainen

With the arrival of the new Mondo Goddess figure, we thought it would be a good time to take a look at the history of the character. We’ll cover her original concept design, her appearances in comics and toys over the years, and provide a look at the new 1/6 scale Mondo figure at the end of the article.

The name Goddess or Green Goddess, historically, did not apply to the character under discussion in this article, at least not originally. She appeared in exactly one comic and in one piece of concept art in the 1980s, and in both instances she was called the Sorceress. Nevertheless, since the name/title Sorceress has come to refer to the falcon-themed guardian of Castle Grayskull who appeared in the Filmation He-Man and the Masters of the Universe cartoon, we’ve used the name “Goddess” in the title to avoid confusion.

Mark Taylor’s Sorceress

The Sorceress/Green Goddess was created by Mark Taylor for the original Masters of the Universe line. In her original design, she was not green-skinned, but actually wearing a green body suit, similar to Man-At-Arms. Her allegiance isn’t specifically stated, but she does have a slightly evil or at least crafty look to her.

A black and white version of the above artwork with green Pantone stickers is dated June 8, 1981, shown below. Mark notes that she was to use the same basic body as “Female Warrior” (Teela). Note that Teela’s gold decoration on her white tunic was supposed to be a separate overlay rather than something sculpted to her torso. So this figure would have gotten the snake headdress but not the gold fleur-de-lis-esque costume elements.

Years ago, I asked Mark Taylor what his original intent was for the character:

Adam: Teela and the Sorceress/Goddess (the one with the snake armor) were originally separate characters. Whose decision was it to combine them into a single action figure? How did you feel about that? Did you intend the sorceress character to be a hero or a villain?

Mark: She was actually supposed to be a changeling but the comic book guys had a hard time with that. Also, the head of girls toys wanted to rip her off for Princess of Power (because now the line was very hot!). She was intended to be like a spy and play both sides with some magic but the “professionals” felt that was too complex (I guess they don’t get Game of Thrones either).

As Mark has explained in public appearances, he didn’t want to give up on the idea that Sorceress was a “bad person”. Her personality is perhaps mirrored in her stern, cold facial expression in Mark’s concept art. Mark has also said that, though initially “bad”, he had the idea that Sorceress could at times team up with either Skeletor or He-Man.

He-Man and the Power Sword

In the original Masters of the Universe mini comics, the green-skinned Sorceress appears only in the aforementioned He-Man and the Power Sword. Contrary to Mark’s conceptualization, she is unambiguously heroic, providing help for He-Man and defending the Power Sword and Castle Grayskull from Skeletor. Note that in this story her face is green, indicating that she’s not wearing a green body suit, as originally designed by Mark.

*Alfredo Alcala’s illustration of Mark Taylor’s Sorceress*

I’ve talked before about how Mattel elected to produce only one female figure for the 1982 Masters of the Universe debut, and so combined Teela and Goddess into one figure. In some early stories, when you are seeing what looks like Teela wearing her snake armor, it’s actually the Goddess (or often called the Sorceress). But in other early stories it’s just Teela with snake armor on. It could be quite confusing, and so the Sorceress character was redesigned by Filmation with a totally different look to make things clearer. You can read more about that in the two articles below. In this article we are focusing only on the green-skinned version of the character.

So, back to the Sorceress in her appearance in He-Man and the Power Sword. She appears in four pages in the story. She is the first person that He-Man meets when he leaves his home in the jungle, whereupon he saves her from a purple beast that had attacked her.

Interestingly in her first appearance in the story she is holding a staff topped with what looks like an animal skull with horns. Later in the story we see Skeletor holding this same staff, which is not quite the same design as his Havoc Staff. She is not holding this staff in her concept art, but instead holds a snake staff.

The staff in Alcala’s illustration above is somewhat reminiscent of the Skeletor’s prototype staff. However the version in the comic looks more like a cow’s skull than a ram’s skull.

On the page below, we see He-Man fighting the beast, aided by some “mystical bolts of force” from the Sorceress. In this panel we can see that she actually has the same tiara that Teela was supposed to have, poking out from the top of her snake helmet. Perhaps this was taken from another (lost) piece of concept art, because she has no exposed hair in the existing Mark Taylor B-sheet.

After He-Man defeats the monster, the Sorceress rewards him with some treasures she has been guarding. She explains that they were made centuries before the Great Wars by Eternian scientists. The treasures include his harness (which, depending on the model, give him augmented strength or a force field), an axe, a shield, the Battle Ram, and the Battle Chariot (an unproduced vehicle designed by Ted Mayer). We can also see a sword (not the Power Sword), some boots, and a spear.

The Goddess does not show up again in the story until near the end, where she disarms Skeletor by taking the Power Sword from him and splitting them into separate halves again. She disappears and is never seen again in any vintage stories, at least not with this coloring.

Just a note for those not familiar with this comic or this topic- Teela was definitely a separate character from the green-skinned Sorceress, and they both appear in He-Man and the Power Sword. In the story, Teela was a warrior character with apparently no magical abilities who was captured by Beast Man and Skeletor. In the end she escapes and helps He-Man and Man-At-Arms to fight off the Evil Warriors.

MOTU Classics The Goddess

The ethos of the Classics line was, for some reason, to retcon concept characters into completely new characters to “justify” their inclusion in the toyline. Or, sometimes two characters would be combined into one. How that would “justify” them is unclear. I suspect this was really done to maintain one consistent and harmonized story in the bios that went on the back of the packaging. The Goddess was released as a figure for the first time in 2009 in the MOTU Classics toyline. Originally she was supposed to have opaque skin, like the Sorceress character in the first mini comic, but Mattel design opted to make her translucent, which lead to problems with the figure cracking at the pelvis.

The color scheme was based on one particular panel in He-Man and the Power Sword where she had white bracers. The white was probably an oversight by the artist – in all the others her bracers were brown, and they are also brown in Mark Taylor’s concept art. She came with a spear that was really intended for Teela, allowing The Goddess to use Teela’s snake staff. She reused Teela’s tunic, which was the only major point of departure from Mark Taylor’s design (recall that she wasn’t supposed to have the gold leaf pattern on her costume). This was no doubt done to save money.

*MOTU Classics Goddess Prototype, sculpted by the Four Horsemen*

*MOTU Classics Goddess figure – note the change to a see-through body. She is holding Teela’s staff.*

In her bio, she was given the real name of Sharella, a character from the Powers of Grayskull line. Originally there was no connection between these characters, and neither one was produced in the vintage line. This retcon was met with a mixed reception at the time.

The Goddess
Heroic Trainer of He-Man
Real Name: Sharella

After the death of King Grayskull, the Power of the Universe was transferred from the Sword of He to the Council of Elders who hid it deep within his castle. Knowing the full sword was the key to channeling the power, they split it in two to prevent it from falling into the hands of evil. For five centuries they waited for a worthy heir to be born. During this time their spirit guide, the creature known as “The Goddess” of Eternia, trained secret heroic guardians to keep the two halves of the sword separated. Many of these brave warriors took the name “He-Man” in honor of the sword they protected – giving birth to many different legends of the protector of Eternia.

*Note: The Goddess’ real name Sharella did not appear in the original printing. It was added after the fact in a sticker. Image via Toy Habits.*

Classics had given the (green) Goddess a “real name” Sharella, and later they retconned the fan-theory about a nameless archer girl, who appeared in the background art for vintage Megator, as Sharella. Classics had a habit of taking elements created by fans, and inserting them officially in the bios (for example in the 2002 cartoon King Grayskull had a lion, which never had a name in the series bible or scripts, other than “Grayskull’s Lion”. Fans coined the term “Battle Lion”, and Classics used that).

Masters of the Universe Classics minicomic #8 gave us couple flashback panels, where we see Sharella (as archer girl in ancient times) get injured from an arrow by Quick Flix. Then given a blood transfusion from Moss Man. Implying that because of this, she’ll later turn into the green-skinned Goddess.

Masters of the Universe Classics minicomic #8 – art by Jordi Tarragona.

Masters of the Universe Classics minicomic #2 – art by Wellington Alves.

Modern DC Comics (2012-2016) – The Goddess Conundrum

When interpreting the world of Eternia for modern comic stories, Rob David took the approach that there was a life force that created the Universe. It was worshiped by different races, each calling it by different names and viewing it through their own lenses, if you will.

So in the stories by Mattel/DC Comics, the Star Seed is “the First Light” and has been called the Life-Force, the Goddess, Zoar, Serpos, Horokoth. The characters refer to the being as The Goddess in the story.

Some fans who may not have followed the comic series regularly may have remembered from the 1980s stories that there was a character called the Goddess or the Sorceress, and were naturally confused when the heroes in this comic were searching a way to resurrect the Sorceress, and needed to go to the Goddess [an entity, not a person] for help.

In He-Man and the Masters of the Universe #12, in a battle with King Hiss and the Snake Men, Teela is knocked into the Star Seed. There she learns that her mother was the Sorceress, and that the job of the Sorceress was to be the oracle of the Goddess. Each Sorceress takes a different form, and Teela is transformed into the Sorceress of Serpos. Like the original Sorceress/Goddess created by Mark Taylor, she has green skin and snake armor (although she shows much more skin in this comic). In this continuity, she is not the Goddess, but a servant of the Goddess.

Teela continued as the Sorceress of Serpos for most of the DC Comics He-Man the Eternity War series, which ran from 2015-2016.

*Snake Teela concept art by Gabriel De La Torre. Source: He-Man the Eternity War blog*

In issue 14 of the series, when Teela in her Sorceress of Serpos form is on the brink of death, Man-At-Arms trades his life for hers. In the process she is restored to her human form.

Masters of the Universe Revelation & Revolution

The Masters of the Universe Revelation and Revolution animated series have utilized many aspects from the franchise’s long past, taking elements from existing media and putting them into new contexts. In the show, the concept of Preternia (Eternia’s distant past) becomes Eternia’s version of heaven. Or the underground world of Subternia (originating in 2002) with its caves and own inhabitants becomes a version of hell instead.

Revolution takes many cues from the He-Man the Eternity War comic series (thanks to executive producer Rob David). But it was never an animated adaptation of that story, as some fans thought when Revolution trailers arrived. In “Ascension,” Teela is transformed by the Staff of Ka into the green-skinned Sorceress of Ka, based on the Sorceress of Serpos from the 2014-2016 comics, but with several visual updates. Throughout the series we see Teela transformed by the ancient powers of the three primal gods of Eternia in the Revolution series: Zoar, Ka, and Ha’Vok. Eventually, with He-Man’s help, Teela is able to fuse all three powers into one, changing her appearance for a fourth time.

Masterverse Revolution Sorceress Teela

The Sorceress of Ka was released as a figure in 2024 the Masterverse line as Sorceress Teela. For whatever reason she was produced in very low numbers, and so is difficult to get on the secondary market. The packaging artwork was done by Simon Eckert.

Below a Wallpaper version 😉 -Jukka

MOTU Origins Eternian Goddess

Masters of the Universe Origins brings once again a totally new continuity with its figures and storytelling. They use old official elements mixed with unused concept materials and insert them in the new story they are telling (for instance, Veena is no longer the wife of a King Grayskull). So the Origins stories are not a continuation of the vintage material, but, like the Classics bios before them, they represent a new canon on their own.

Origins has the Goddess appear in the pack-in mini-comic for the 2019 He-Man & Prince Adam 2-pack. The artwork is by Axel Giménez with colors by Val Staples.

She was released as a figure in the MOTU Origins line in 2021 as the Eternian Goddess. Her color scheme was changed a bit from the source material – she was give silver bracers and boot tops and blue bicep rings. Her accessories were also closer to red than to brown, especially in the production figure (the image below is a prototype pic that Mattel released).

The Goddess appeared in the modern MOTU Origins mini comic, Rock and a Hard Place. In the story, Prince Adam is overcome by Stinkor’s stench, and calls out to the Goddess for aid. The images below come from Vaults of Grayskull, and you can read the full comic on their site.

She also appeared in the MOTU Origins mini comic, Lost Legend. In this story she has the “real name” of Sharella, a detail taken from the MOTU Classics bio mentioned earlier in this article. Sharella transforms herself into the Goddess. Strangely, “Oo-Larr” (the MOTU Classics name for the “jungle” He-Man) is retconned as being the same person as “Wun-Dar.” This page comes from Vaults of Grayskull, and the full scan is available at their site.

Other Versions of the Goddess

The Goddess was released as a statue by Iron Studios, as a ReAction figure by Super7, and as a mini figure included with the Mega Construx Castle Grayskull set.

Mondo’s The Goddess: a short review

Mondo’s Goddess figure went up for pre-order March 2025 and was shipped out October 2025. The back of the package makes clear that this isn’t the original Sorceress from He-Man and the Power Sword, but rather the transformed Teela that appeared in the Masters of the Universe Revolution series. I should note that although her costume is similar to the Revolution Sorceress of Ka, this figure is really its own thing and is a blend of different influences, including the 2015 DC comics, the vintage Mark Taylor design, and even a bit of 200x Teela.

Still, on my shelves she’ll represent the original Sorceress character created by Mark Taylor. That was my approach in the Classics era too, with characters like “Oo-Larr” that were retconned into new characters. I just thought of “Oo-Larr” as He-Man from the mini comics, and I will think of Mondo’s The Goddess as the original Sorceress character envisioned by Mark Taylor. Call me a curmudgeon if you must!

The figure is at 1/6 scale, and is intricately detailed, sculpted and painted. I inspected my example for paint problems and other irregularities, but thankfully I didn’t find any. Her left ankle is slightly loose, but it doesn’t seem to inhibit her ability to stand. Otherwise all of her joints are good, neither too tight nor too loose.

The Goddess comes with three different heads. two of which have a placid expression. The neutral face is available with either a helmet or a snake tiara and long hair. The smiling face is available with the long hair and tiara. Any of the three can be used with the snake headdress. Mondo made the interesting choice of giving her gold eyes with dark red sclera, which enhance the snake theme, but also make her look slightly evil. I’m okay with that – the original concept seemed slightly sinister too!

There is also a removable skirt, although I found it challenging to get it looking right. I wasn’t that interested in it as an accessory, so I put it on for the photo, but otherwise it’s going to live in my parts bin.

The Goddess also comes with a spear, a sword and a shield. To me these are really Teela accessories. I see Goddess more as a spell caster than a warrior, but they are an option if you want them. For me, her snake staff (or Staff of Ka, as it’s come to be called) is her primary weapon.

Speaking of magic, she also comes with a mystical snake magic effect, which can be attached to either hand. She comes with a total of ten hands, so you have plenty of options there.

Adam: Overall she’s a beautiful figure, one of the best Mondo has ever done. There is something compelling about the character itself. Her roots lie at the very beginning of the Masters of the Universe mythos, and I feel she has an important role to play in it. But for a long time she was forgotten, and arguably brought back to life through the advocacy of artist Nate Baertsch back in the MOTU Classics era.

Jukka: I agree, that the (Green) Sorceress aka Goddess has gained popularity in the fandom, due to her striking color scheme in that single minicomic appearance. Big thanks to Nate “Baena” Baertsch for creating fan arts about her, which have spread online and added to her intrigue.

Images from New Eternia blog interview with Nate Baertsch

Adam: While I don’t totally sign onto the idea that she’s some kind of Teela variant, I’m happy that the figure is at least getting represented, even if the original character behind the figure is sometimes forgotten. What I’d really like to see though is a faithful figure based 100% on Mark Taylor’s original artwork – we haven’t gotten that yet. But I do have to say that the Mondo version of the Goddess is my favorite version to date.

*From left to right: Customized MOTU Origins Goddess, Mondo Goddess, and MOTU Classics Goddess.*

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Heroic Warriors

The Mystery of Savage He-Man…Solved?

Posted on July 25, 2025July 27, 2025 by Adam McCombs

Guest article by Val Staples

This is an updated article from The Toys of He-Man and the Masters of the Universe from Dark Horse Books.

If there is one figure that has long puzzled He-Man fans, it is Savage He-Man (AKA Wonder Bread He-Man). And for over two decades, fans pondered the history of this toy.

This figure is regarded as one of the gems of any He-Man collection. But the figure had a problem in that is no one knew exactly where it originated. Theories of its genesis range from it being a mail-in figure, to a store give-away, to promotional offers. Many of those who had this figure from a young age often have a different account of how it came to be in their collection.

The whole thing kicked off in the early days of the internet thanks to Alex Bickmore’s Super Toy Archive (toyarchive.com). Part of the collection of one David Schickedan, this figure was depicted with brown hair, brown trunks, black boots, and a black belt. It was also shown wearing black Zodac armor and brandishing a maroon Castle Grayskull mace. It was stated this was part of a mail-in Wonder Bread promotion. Once Lee’s Action Figure News & Toy Review magazine, a popular action figure magazine at the time, printed information about this figure then the legend of Wonder Bread He-Man took off!

*An example of a loose Savage He-Man figure*

In the early days of the internet, many fans had not even seen the later USA releases of the toy line. And the exact number of gift sets was still unknown. So, this figure being an unknown mail-away seemed plausible. In addition, many fans were unfamiliar with the maroon weapon shown on Super Toy Archive.

In the following couple of years, fans realized the black Zodac armor came from Mattel’s vintage accessory pack. And then a packaged promotional version of Man-E-Faces surfaced (now referred to as “Man-E-Weapons”) that contained five of the Castle Grayskull weapons that were cast in a maroon color, including the mace seen on Super Toy Archive.

When 2000 rolled around, two prominent collectors, Darren Fowler and David Fowler, purchased on eBay the only known packaged sample of this mystery figure. It came with no armor, a maroon sword, and maroon axe, all of which differed from the image on Toy Archive. In addition, it included a Mattel Buy-3-Get-1-Free coupon that was supposed to be how the figure was offered. But it was odd that it came packaged with the very coupon that would have been mailed to claim the figure. The bag it came in was also questionable, as it was not the typical sealed polybag one would expect from a factory (more on this later). As a result, the mystery only deepened.

Soon after in 2001, Mattel started to produce a Commemorative line that re-released some of the vintage Masters of the Universe figures. Working with He-Man.Org, Mattel polled fans about their favorite figures, cartoon episodes, and more. During this polling, Mattel shared with He-Man.Org that they planned to release a Commemorative Wonder Bread He-Man due to the hype and mystique surrounding the figure. But Mattel cancelled plans for the release because they could find no prior deal with Wonder Bread in their archives for a mail-in promotional figure. It turned out the Wonder Bread promotion previously attached to the figure was instead a 1985 / 1986 mail-in for a trading card set which was a far cry from being an action figure.

Realizing the figure never came from Wonder Bread, and all the accessories were now accounted for from other sources, fans were left with an armorless, weaponless figure of unknown origin. In order to disassociate from the Wonder Bread promotion, fans went on to call the figure “Savage He-Man” because of his resemblance to the armorless, weaponless He-Man depicted in the very first minicomic where the story was more “savage” and preceded the Filmation cartoon.

One thing for certain is that the brown-haired figure is legitimate. It was produced with the same materials and methods of vintage He-Man figures that could have only come from a factory. Customizers of that time did not have the ability to replicate a figure to match the 80s releases from Mattel. And as the years have passed, multiple legitimate samples of the figure have surfaced on the aftermarket and in private collections.

In a 2007 / 2008 attempt to cast a net for information, Mattel, ToyFare magazine, and He-Man.Org all teamed up to try and resolve the mystery once and for all. All three put a call out to the public for any information on the figure that may help to discover its roots. Unfortunately, nothing surfaced.

Mattel went on to pay homage to the figure in 2010 with the release of the Masters of the Universe Classics Wun-Dar figure, which played off the original Wonder Bread origin rumors even though those rumors had been debunked by that time.

Trying again in 2019, Val Staples, He-Man historian and owner of Power-Con, spoke to Mark Ellis, the former Director of Marketing for Male Action Toys who oversaw Masters of the Universe, and showed Mark all the current evidence. Mark revealed the original test sample of He-Man from the factory had brown hair. But that test sample would have had an earlier torso sculpt that ended up being corrected for figures released later in 1982. The mysterious brown-haired figure has the corrected torso. With the test sample theory dead, fans were still left wondering how this figure came to be.

But then in 2020, former MOTU brand manager Scott Neitlich discovered a customer letter at Mattel which discussed a mail-away offer. It was a 1983 Buy-3-Get-1-Free offer that appeared to be tied to Meijer Thrifty Acres (now known just as Meijer). The letter had been sent by an unhappy customer. The customer, a mother whose son was a fan of He-Man, wrote to Mattel about receiving an oddly colored He-Man with no armor or accessories. Both her and her son were displeased with this bland “special edition” figure. Mattel noted in a response that the offer did not specify what would be sent nor that it would be a “special edition” item. In regards to the mail-in, Meijer Thrifty Acres had a string of stores in Michigan in 1983 and had just entered the Ohio marketplace. If Mattel coordinated with Thrifty Acres to offer a special mail-in incentive, it seemed quite possible that a test-run that resulted in a brown-haired He-Man may have been used to satisfy the promotional needs of this smaller, regional account. However it turns out the promotion ran in other stories, including Zayre, Kohls, Evans, Wieboldt’s, and Thornbury’s Toys.

*A Michigan Meijer ad with the buy 3 get one free promotion. March 28, 1983*

Finally, in 2024, the mystery was put to rest. A gentleman named Rick Hale, who had been a MOTU fan as a child, had convinced his mother to move from Michigan to Kentucky so they could live in close proximity. According to Rick, “I wanted her to be closer to us. She’s getting older now, and while she’s always been very independent, I want to be there for her when she needs me. She also has an almost 4-year-old granddaughter and I want them to be able to spend some time together.” And this is what led to a discovery.

“While packing up the garage,” said Rick, “my mom opened the drawer of an old wooden desk. Among other items was an unopened brown mailer. It was from California and the postage indicated it was from July, 1983. When she opened the mailer, she recognized the contents as a He-Man toy.”

Not knowing what she had found, Rick noted, “She doesn’t remember how the mailer ended up in the drawer, or why she never gave it to me.” Ultimately, the mailer was forgotten and eventually lost amid all the things one tends to gather through forty years of living.

Rick’s mother worked long hours through the week, so she always wanted to show her son how much he meant to her. Almost every weekend they would visit the Meijer store in Canton, Michigan where she would purchase her son a new He-Man action figure – a small, but heartfelt symbol of her love. Rick talked to his mother to find out more about where she got this figure. Rick reported, “She was a thrifty shopper, always on the lookout for a deal. So when the Meijer sales paper arrived one week boasting a “Buy 3, Get 1 Free” offer on He-Man figures, it was exactly the sort of thing she’d jump at.”

Still not knowing what this He-Man figure was, Rick asked his friend Benton Edwards if he had an idea what it could be. To Rick’s surprise, Benton knew exactly what Rick possessed. And furthermore, Benton also happened to have spent many a night in Kentucky hanging out with Val Staples. Benton encouraged Rick to speak to Val about his discovery. Soon after, Benton put Rick directly in contact with Val through Robert Sutton, a mutual friend of Val’s and Benton’s.

Val went on to speak with Rick at length, and then with Rick’s mother. Thereafter, Val verified the validity of the mailer and the figure. Sure enough, the find was 100% authentic and legitimate. This was the first known example of Savage He-Man in its original mailer. The figure did come in a taped bag like what the Fowler brothers bought on eBay all the way back in 2000 but without a coupon. Rick’s figure also came with a maroon shield. So it is still unknown if the mail-away Savage He-Man figures came with the shield as well, if they came with random maroon weapons, or if some came with no accessories at all. Beyond that, it was packaged in a simple, brown, paper mailer shipped direct from an address in City of Industry, California. That location used to boast a Mattel Toy Store and currently houses Mattel’s Adjustment Center for replacements and refunds.

Savage He-Man Gallery:

The actual Savage He-Man toy is one of the most coveted vintage Masters of the Universe offerings. Often sold as customs or bootlegs, finding legitimate versions is proving harder as time passes as the ones that have been discovered have often ended up in the collections of fans. So, if you can find one that is real, you will have a special item for your collection!

And now’s your chance to own the only known example of of Savage He-Man in his original mailer. The figure has been examined and graded by AFA. And is now up for proxy bid at Heritage Auctions. Live bidding begins on August 17th, 2025. Don’t miss out on what might be the only example to ever surface of Savage He-Man in his original mailer:

Heroic Warriors

Guest Post: Mark Taylor’s Vision for Zodac

Posted on May 12, 2024September 7, 2024 by Adam McCombs

Guest article by Dejan Dimitrovski

Zodac B Sheet from the Mark Taylor Portfolio, published by Super7/The Power and the
Honor Foundation

Initially, in 1982, Mattel planned eight figures for Wave 1 of the Masters of the Universe toy line. Envisioned by Mark Taylor, they were supposed to be He-Man, Skeletor, Teela, Sorceress (early snake-themed version), Beast Man, Mer-Man, Stratos, and Man-At Arms.

Mockup of what the 8 back cards might have looked like if the Sorceress hadn’t been dropped from the first wave, and if the figures hadn’t been cost reduced. Put together by Adam McCombs using Mark Taylor’s concept art.

But when Teela and the Sorceress were blended into one figure, it left seven figures instead of eight. Thus, Zodac was developed as the last character of the original eight figures, and released in second half of 1982.

In this text I will try to review and summarize all the information that was already revealed on the original Zodac character, as well as add some information revealed to me by Rebecca and Mark Taylor.

The original Zodac B-Sheet by Mark Taylor, dating from 1981, shows that this character was at first named differently “Sensor”. He was renamed a few times more before getting his final name “Zodac”. Possibly, the name Zodac is derived from the word ZODIAC – a term used in both astronomy and astrology, referring to the area of the sky that corresponds to the Sun’s apparent annual path around Earth in the course of a year. The association of this character with stars and cosmos (and the fact that Zodac is made a Cosmic Enforcer sailing through space), would go in favor of this name speculation.

The figure design reuses body parts formerly seen in other figures but introduces few new parts as well – a decision of Mattel to save money. It borrowed Skeletor‘s arms and claw-like feet and Beast Man‘s furry chest, while the new parts included his head, armor, and blaster. As a result, Zodac seems to be a being not entirely human, rather a member of a hybrid-like race. In an audio interview (conducted by Matt Jozwiak, sometime around 2006.) Mark Taylor says: “I don’t think he is completely human… He may even be a throwback to these people, to however it was that originally occupied Castle Grayskull. He knows a lot of stuff that nobody else knows about the history of Castle Grayskull.”

In the same interview, Mark says he never saw him as a bounty hunter, as he was labeled in the 1981 Mattel licensing kit, where his black and white illustration was presented with the following text: “ZODAC figure. The cosmic enforcer. The bounty hunter of our exciting universe”. Mark makes a comment on how that would be an idea too close to Lucas, referring to Boba Fett the popular character from Star Wars franchise.

There is a lot of controversy on whether Zodac was originally imagined to be either a good or an evil character. On Grayskull Con 2014 – “Power & Honor Foundation” Panel by Emiliano Santalucia, Mark’s original Zodac B Sheet art was shown under which was a label indicating that Zodac is an ally of He-Man, which would lead to the conclusion that Zodac was intended to be a heroic warrior.

But, in the above mentioned audio interview, Mark describes Zodac as an almost independent character, not inclined to follow either He-Man or Skeletor. He further adds that he and Man-at-Arms kind of understand each other pretty well, as both are warriors who are fascinated by technology. Zodac had his own reasons into getting into Castle Grayskull and they have to do with technology found in there. He knew that in Castle Grayskull is a great, wonderful weapon that he has been trained how to use, and if he could pull it out, he would gain great power and advantages in battle.

However, in 2017 Mark and Rebecca Taylor provided us with a back-story, revealing more information intended for this character:

Zodac was imagined as an evil counterpart of Man-at-Arms – a negative knight so to speak. He was to fight on Skeletor’s side and go to war against Man-At-Arms and He-Man. As, they fought “all day and all night”, Zodac learned to respect Man-At-Arms so much as a warrior, that he betrayed Skeletor and switched sides – from Skeletor’s Legions of Evil to He-Man and Man-At-Arms’s side. Skeletor was furious with Zodac and he came after him. Zodac then, along with his new allies, fought Skeletor to a stand still. And thus, he then became a trusted ally of He-Man.

At some point, Zodac was to go to Castle Grayskull and recognize the spacesuit from an ancient battle field, and he becomes determined to duplicate that suit. Apparently, Mark also had the idea that a variant of Zodac could be made, associated with the spacesuit: “The next time we see Zodac in a box, we see parts of the spacesuit that snap on to him that give him different abilities.”

It seems that the technology in Castle Grayskull that Zodac was seeking, mentioned in the audio interview, was to be the spacesuit which would give him different powers and abilities. So in conclusion, Zodac would have been He-Man’s ally, as labeled beneath his B Sheet, but he first had to walk the path from Skeletor to He-Man, from evil to good.

Perhaps this Zodac back-story info could give us some hints on why he was shown as an evil warrior in the toy marketing, including the card back art by Errol McCarthy where we see Zodac shooting at He-Man and Man-at-Arms. As with the initial Sorceress, a similar motif was conceived here, that of switching sides and teaming up with either He-Man or Skeletor.

But later, in the upcoming media, he was made a neutral character in the end, picking either He-Man’s or Skeletor’s side as he tried to maintain the balance of good and evil on Eternia. Of course, in the various ’80s media and marketing there were exceptions to this, as he was sometimes depicted as completely heroic and at other times as Skeletor’s lackey, (this will be reviewed in more detail in the upcoming articles on Zodac).

I wish to express my gratitude to Rebecca Salari Taylor and Mark Taylor for being willing to reveal and share the information on the original Zodac character with us. Also, I would like to express my thanks to my friends Jukka Issakainen and Adam McCombs in providing help and information on writing this post.

Battle Ram