”Masters of the Universe” (1987) with Chris Adams, Gerry D, and Laramy Wells

2024-08-09

Remember the days when action figures ruled our imaginations and epic battles between good and evil played out in our living rooms? Step into 1987, when a beloved toy line and animated series leaped onto the big screen in a live-action spectacle. In this 80s flick a intergalactic battle spills from the fantastical world of Eternia into our own. Marketed as the “Star Wars of the 80s, it didn’t quite live up to the hype. But today it is remembered as a cult classic that brought our favorite toy characters to life in a whole new way. So jump through the travel portal, grab the Power Sword and shout, 'I have the power!' as Tim Williams and guest co-hosts, Chris Adams (from "Retro Life 4 You Podcast"), Gerry D (from "Totally Rad Christmas Podcast"), and Laramy Wells (from "Moving Panels Podcast") discuss “Masters of the Universe” from 1987 on this episode of the 80s Flick Flashback Podcast.

Here are some additional behind-the-scenes trivia we were unable to cover on this episode:

The Throne Room set of Castle Grayskull was originally two large adjoining sound stages. The wall between the sets was knocked down to make one gigantic sound stage. At that time, this was the largest set Hollywood had seen in over 40 years.
Production designer William Stout intentionally wanted the interior of Castle Grayskull to combine elements of both good and evil. In an online interview, Stout explained, "This was the seat of power for the entire universe. I reasoned that power is neither good nor bad; it's what you make of it and how you use it. Above floor level were what I called the Space Gods—giant bronze statues of those who had used the power based in that room for good. Below floor level was the dark side—demonic creatures that represented power used for bad or evil."
Many reviewers compared the movie to the cartoon, but it was based on the toys. The toys initially portrayed He-Man as a barbarian in the first mini-comics, not as Prince Adam or Orko. Ed Pressman was interested in the property before the cartoon aired and purchased the movie rights for the Mattel characters, not from Filmation.

Sources:

Wikipedia, IMDB, Rotten Tomatoes, Box Office Mojo

https://www.cbr.com/heman-masters-of-the-universe-trivia-facts-1987-movie/

Some sections were composed by ChatGPT

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