Heroic Warriors, Mondo, MOTU Classics, MOTU History

From Mark Taylor to Mondo: A History of the Goddess

Posted on October 15, 2025October 17, 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.*

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.

Strobo (1988 – Unreleased)

Posted on April 28, 2024January 7, 2025 by Adam McCombs

Written by Adam McCombs and Jukka Issakainen

Name: Strobo
Faction: Heroic Warriors
Approximate US release date: March 14, 2013 (MOTU Classics version)

Although never advertised in catalogs, in the late 1980s Mattel had plans to release a wave of figures that would feature 100% reused tooling, the vein of previous characters like Stinkor, Moss Man and Faker. Presumably these figures would have been released in 1988 along with Laser-Light Skeletor and Laser Power He-Man. Six figures made it far enough in the design process for Mattel to commission packaging artwork for them, although of the six, only Strobo had an appearance in vintage media.

Cardback illustration

Strobo appears in two separate pieces of cardback artwork by Errol McCarthy. One was created for Strobo’s packaging, and the other for a Snake Trooper army builder character.

*Snake Trooper card art. Image via He-Man.org*

The illustration below shows which parts Strobo would have been built from:

Interestingly, Strobo’s arms look like Sy-Klone’s arms except for the fins on the outer arms. It’s not clear if this figure would have omitted those fins as depicted in the artwork, or if Errol was displaying a bit of creative license in his illustration.

Update: I’m now adding the action feature artwork by Errol McCarthy that would have gone on the figure’s cardback. The image comes courtesy of Danielle Gelehrter. The artwork probably would have needed to be revised, as it incorrectly identifies the wheel to make the figure spin on the front of the figure’s belt, rather than the back:

US Magazine – Masters of the Universe

Strobo appeared in the Fall 1988 issue of Masters of the Universe Magazine, in a story called The Dark Power of Skeletor. The story is really the continuation of a story arc that started with the Spring 1988 issue story, To Save a World. In that comic, a rogue dark star comes close to Eternia in a rare event. Skeletor tries to harness its power, but in the process almost destroys all of Eternia. Only by He-Man and Skeletor working together is Eternia saved from utter destruction.

*From To Save a World. Image source: He-Man.org*

In The Dark Power of Skeletor, we learn that a meteor from the dark star had landed on Eternia, and Skeletor used its power to cast a shadow over the land. Anything in the shadow, including Castle Grayskull, was under Skeletor’s control. We find him and his evil warriors occupying the throne room of Castle Grayskull, which is illustrated in the Filmation style. Sorceress in her Zoar form is locked in a bird cage. In order to break the shadow magic, He-Man shines light from his sword onto Strobo’s chest. Strobo spins, bathing the room in light and causing the piece of the dark star to explode into dust.

*Image scan by he-man.org member RED. Cleaned by Jukka Issakainen.*

*Image scan by he-man.org member RED. Cleaned by Jukka Issakainen.* *Strobo demonstrating his spinning action feature, which he was to share with Sy-Klone.*

Full story below:

Note that despite Strobo’s Zodac helmet, there is no mention of his being a Cosmic Enforcer or there having been any connection between himself and Zodac.

So if Strobo was not originally intended to be a Cosmic Enforcer, what lead him to that road?

In the original Filmation He-Man and the Masters of the Universe show, Zodac appears three times. He is portrayed as the Cosmic Enforcer that watches over the Universe. He is not good or evil in the cartoon; we seen an example of that when he gives Skeletor the knowledge of how to obtain the Starseed (“The Search”) which serves as a test for He-Man. But his presence is requested at times when the balance is tipped (“The Quest for He-man”) so fans see him help out the good guys. In the episode “The Golden Disks of Knowledge,” it is revealed that Zodac is the last member of the Council of Wise.

[High-Definition Filmation screencaptures by Jukka Issakainen]

Zodac was also part of the group decision, that sent Zanthor into the Phantom Dimension as punishment for his crimes. Zanthor in his greed had given the Golden Discs to Skeletor. Having had a change of heart, Zanthor wants to atone for his crimes, so he pleads to help retrieve them back as penance. Zodac is called for this occasion and he decides to set Zanthor free from the Phantom Dimension, but only as a ghostly figure. With help from He-Man, they manage to get the Discs back from Snake Mountain.

After they have retrieved the Golden Disks of Knowledge, Zodac says that he will need some help, and turns Zanthor from his ghostly form into a Cosmic Enforcer.

We now see Zanthor sporting the same red armor, dark gray boots, white gloves and red helmet that Zodac wears. From this episode the precedence is set that if you join the Cosmic Enforcers, that armor and red helmet are part of the uniform. They embark on their journey together, each turning into a white ball of energy as they bid farewell to He-Man and the other heroes.

It doesn’t seem that Mattel made the connection with Zodac’s helmet and the Cosmic Enforcers when they were creating Strobo. Indeed, Strobo seems to have more in common with Sy-Klone than Zodac. The canon of Masters of the Universe was never tightly controlled, and it was rebooted several times, even in the 1980s. The people who developed Strobo may not have even known about “The Golden Discs of Knowledge.” And of course in some 80s media Zodac had been retconned as an Evil Warrior. Strobo’s name and main gimmick with a reflecting light in the magazine story demonstrates that the approach was more leaning to the Sy-Klone direction, and not as a member of the Cosmic Enforcers.

Masters of the Universe Classics toyline

Strobo was released in the Masters of the Universe Classics Toyline as a traveling convention figure, periodically made available online and at conventions throughout 2013. Because the source material at the time was only the MOTU Magazine story and not the Errol McCarthy art (which hadn’t been revealed yet), Strobo was not released with a repainted Sy-Klone shield. Instead he came with a piece of the dark star, complete with stand, and an extra unhelmeted head intended for Zodak, the 200x Cosmic Enforcer. He was supposed to come with a Four Horsemen-created strobelight gun as well, but it was cut for cost. Later it would be released in a weapons pack.

*MOTU Classics Strobo* *prototype with planned accessories. Note that the middle line down his helmet is painted silver, not red.*

In the bio that came with Strobo, he was re-written as the Cosmic Enforcer who replaced Zodac after his death (there were a lot of deaths in the MOTU Classics bios). The bio says he was “forcefully maintaining neutrality in He-Man’s absence” which sounds like a contradiction in terms. Bits and pieces of the bios have been used in more recent story canons, and the aspect of Strobo being a Cosmic Enforcer is one element that carried forward. The “real name” was invented for the Classics line, and has not been used in any media after it.

*Strobo carback and bio. Image via eBay*

Since Strobo was a Traveling Convention Exclusive figure by Mattel, German fans found a cool way to advertise him on the back cover to the Grayskull Convention 2013 exclusive minicomic “Under Grayskull’s Flag” (art by Daniele “Danbrenus” Spezzani).

Classics Mini-Comics

Below is the original pencil layout page spread for MOTU Classics mini-comic issue #8 by Axel Giménez, where Strobo is included close to King He-Man and Orko in the battle scene.

Final artwork altered and omitted some characters. Artwork by Jordi Tarragona and color by Carrie Strachan.

The coloring on Strobo’s helmet appears to be based on the Classics prototype version, where the middle line across the helmet is not colored red.

DC Comics

A brief appearance for Strobo occurs in the He-Man and the Masters of the Multiverse comic mini-series from DC Comics issue #3. This is the first time that after the Classics toyline associated Strobo as part of the Cosmic Enforcers, that it is acknowledged in another media outside of it. Art by Dan Fraga & color by Matt Yackey.

As the Anti-Eternia He-Man is on his quest, he is stopped at the Interrealm by Zodac, Zanthor, Strobo, Apokrifa, Zodak and the Mighty Spector. Though in the next page it appears that Anti-Eternia He-Man prevailed against the Cosmic Enforcers of the Multiverse and continues on his rampage.

Masters of the Universe Revolution

In the Netflix animated series Masters of the Universe Revolution, we catch a glimpse of Zodac speaking to Evil-Lyn in episode 05. And next to Zodac (on his right side) is Zanthor and on the other side is Strobo. Neither Zanthor nor Strobo have any dialogue in this ending teaser.

In a close up shot of Strobo, it appears that his right hand is not wearing the red glove. But that might just be a small coloring error.

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