In the Classics realm of the Masters of the Universe world we have learned that there have been several He-Men throughout history, lots of Sorceresses, Kings, Trainers, and any number of various roles that have been filled by unique characters from D’Vann to Adam. Well, as it was briefly introduced in the Mike Young 200x cartoon, there has also been a Man-at-Arms to each king of Eternia. Did you just think that Duncan was just some weapons master and strategist who was wholly unique like most of the MOTU characters? Well, so did I, but we are now learning our histories through biographies, and as we delve deeper into the past, more characters come out of the woodwork. Enter the subject of our current feature: Dekker. Once the Man-at-Arms to the brave King Miro (whom we desperately need in the line now) and mentor of our beloved Duncan, this battle-hardened military man is now retired to the Orcas Islands where he enjoys fishing and bumming around the beach. Don’t let that fool you, though, he can crack the shells of an army of crab men at a moment’s notice!
I know (and you might know too) that I have my issues with the 200x era of MOTU, but the cartoon had some great qualities to it, and several of the original characters certainly fit that category. Carnivus, Dactys, Prahvus, and Ceretus are all great (if not brief in appearance), but I immediately took a shine to Dekker. It makes sense that Duncan had a mentor, but I really like the idea of each king having a Man-at-Arms to serve him as his most trusted adviser and strategist. Dekker is to Miro as Duncan is to Randor, and, eventually, as Clamp Champ is to Adam (for me anyway). The Man-at-Arms role is a position of respect, honor, and now history, so since I am surely not alone in regarding Duncan as the greatest Man-at-Arms of all time, he must have had one hell of a teacher.
Dekker’s bio indicates that he was once a mercenary that eventually switched sides and found his way into Miro’s trust and favor. I am not quite sure I like that background for the character since I think the MAA position must ascend from the ranks of the Eternos military and the person needs to have a strong history of loyalty and trust, but that is the great thing about this property: it is so easy to take what you like, disregard the rest, and make it your own. When we met Dekker in the show he was already retired, so I wonder if you “go with the king” in that role and if the monarch dies or abdicates, a new Man-at-Arms is found. Either way, it is interesting to have a character that Duncan can go to for advice since he is the one that must normally give it.
Dekker was actually one of the bigger surprises for me amongst the SDCC 2012 reveals last summer, but I often find that those are often the most welcome figures to my shelf. He is very faithfully modeled after his look on the MYP show (since that was his only appearance), but there are a couple of new and nice things that make him a fun figure. It would have been PERFECT if they could have released King Miro as a “king” variant at the same time (though Eternos Palace Randor is REALLY nice, as you will see soon), but we can all impatiently wait for him now as we continue to bug Toy Guru for a figure. Miro is really becoming a fascinating and important character in the Classics mythos and we don’t even have him yet. It’s a crime, I tells ya! But keeping with the theme of surprise, Dekker actually has a lot going on and has more new parts than you might originally expect.
For instance, it has become commonplace in Classics for many of the characters to adapt their footwear to one of the basic vintage varieties, but Dekker here retains the boots that match his model from the MYP cartoon. They fit in nicely with the aesthetic of the line and I wonder where they might be used again, but there are a lot of FILMation characters that might be able to take advantage of them. He also has an all-new (removable) tunic as well the “shorts” area that extend the top. As you might guess, the top does restrict his abdominal movement a little bit, but the plastic is nice and flexible so he retains most of the range. I have to say that I rather like the design of his outfit; the colors are unique to the line (for the most part) and I like how the blues and greens compliment each other. So, while his makeup is fairly basic, he does stand out and has a unique look.
He has two interchangeable heads: one for the “current” timeline and one for his younger “Man-at-Arms” days. The older look is, again, lifted right from MYP from his gray ponytail and braids, to his eyepatch and scar. To my knowledge, the cause of the scar (and subsequent need for the patch) has never been explained, and while I thought we might get that in the bio, it was not meant to be. Your imagination must once again make the most of it. The paint on (both) of the heads is up to the quality of the rest of the figure, and that is to say it is quite nice indeed. I see no noticeable slop or bleed and that really counts with the black paint covering up the very thin eyepatch strap.
The other head put me in a bit of a quandary, though. It is a younger version to represent the days when he was still Man-at-Arms, but aside from it having a couple of winks to the fans, I am not sure how useful it is, at least in this stage of the line. He does have the mandatory mustache, so now you know where Duncan got that from, as well as the topknot (if you prescribe to something as ridiculous as Duncan having a ponytail; I have always HATED that as I feel it is out of character), so that is neat for fans of continuity. The head does look good on the Man-at-Arms body, as you can see, but with what you have on the shelf, it makes him a bit of an anachronism. There really isn’t anywhere to put Dekker for me right now, not in his younger form for sure, but also not as his older self. He has no one to hang out with. See where I am going with this? Give us Miro, please. A Man-at-Arms without a king lacks his main purpose!
Past the spare head, Dekker comes with his standard issue mace for the MAA role. I like how the Four Horsemen gave him a unique mace to set it off from the one Duncan employs. Maybe the orange mace is kind of like the light saber of the Jedi for the Man-at-Arms: each one has to make his own and they are all similar but unique to the user. That works, right? Only MAA is allowed to have an orange mace, maybe? Works for me.
Past that, Dekker is a nicely constructed figure. All the plastic is solid and the materials vary to be appropriate for their purpose (the body is solid and the tunic is soft, for instance). All of the articulation points are nice and tight and the paint applications are, as mentioned before, very clean. I do not think he uses the dreaded black plastic on any of his extremities (I am positive someone will correct me on that, though, if it is not the case), at least not in his arms and legs. His hands might be painted, but I did try to scratch the arms somewhat and I did not make a paint dent.
You know what? Dekker is a very pleasant surprise of a figure and turned out better than most would have ever expected. I LOVE getting characters like this from places like FILMation and Mini comics, you know the ones — not the heavy-hitters, but the guys that make the MOTU world richer. He provides a good back story for Duncan, he extends the Man-at-Arms title and gives more characterization to the Miro era when Randor and Keldor were in their formative years. Plus, when your Great Unrest weapons pak arrives, the green shell shield and possibly even the “repaint” of the Clawful club look great when he outfits them. I am really thrilled to have a Dekker figure and he will patrol the 200x Battle Station in my display until his king arrives. He is a great figure and kicks off a very strong November for MOTU Classics, but more on that soon…
*Thanks for checking out this Look at Dekker and thanks to Toy Guru and his Matty Masters for making it possible!
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