Masters of the Universe Revelation isn’t your 80s cartoon with better animation and star-studded vocal cast. In fairness to Kevin Smith’s new take on the property, the 2002 animated series did an awesome job of modernizing the old school show and trying to top that was likely not gonna happen.
As for Revelation? It’s going to largely depend on fans’ attachment level to the original source material and their willingness to go along with Smith’s massive (emphasis on massive!!) changes. The stronger your devotion to classic MOTU, the less likely you’re going to enjoy Revelation. While this new spin is interesting, it did have me eager to revisit the 2002 series again.
Some are likely to take issue with the fact that He-Man (Chris Wood) is largely absent from the first five episodes after he and Skeletor turn up missing. Teela (Sarah Michelle Gellar) gets the focus as the main character in these episodes. That kind of feels like having a new She-Ra series and shifting the focus to Bow.
Smith’s changes to Teela gives her more depth, but also comes with the not so welcome side effect of making her somewhat unlikable. Fortunately, she’s got a new friend Andra (Tiffany Smith), a talented weapons designer who brings the fangirl excitement as she joins this new adventure. Early on, the series seems to strongly hint that Teela and Andra are more than friends, but subsequent episodes suggest more of a big sister/little sister bond.
Magic is fading out in Eternia and The Sorceress tasks Teela and Andra to team with Evil-Lynn (Lena Headey) on a quest to restore the magical balance. Aligning Evil-Lynn with the good gals makes for an interesting dynamic although she tends to steal the scenes in most episodes. Along the way, the trio meet up with some old allies/enemies in Man-At-Arms, Roboto, Orko, Beast Man, Tri-Klops, Mer-Man and Trap-Jaw.
Character designs are largely great updates for Revelation. Most of the redesigns make sense. Even for those not as enamored with the series, the designs are different enough to warrant keeping an eye on Mattel’s Revelation figure line. Hopefully, the next five episodes will feature more classic characters in this Revelation style.
Smith has a clear love for the source material and works in some fun Easter Eggs. He clearly doesn’t secretly want to tear down everything that made the franchise so endearing over the decades, but Revelation probably would benefit from not being so serious. There’s long sequences where the characters ponder their lot in life and it’s rarely a joyous, happy revelation.
The series treats Orko like a serious, almost tragic character instead of the butt of the jokes. It’s an interesting decision, but definitely makes him more of a sympathetic character than a discount magician.
The voice cast is killer with luminaries like Kevin Conroy, Mark Hamill, Susan Eisenberg, Kevin Michael Richardson, Cree Summer, Phil LaMarr and Deidrich Bader playing important roles. Liam Cunningham, Henry Rollins, Justin Long, Tony Todd and Jason Mewes round out the cast.
Action sequences are solid with nice and clear to follow battles incorporating the various abilities of the Masters. Most of the bad guys still get treated like minor obstacles instead of serious threats though.
I really wanted to see Stinkor, Spikor and Whiplash treated with a bit more respect, but they’re still just oversized punching bags. On the plus side, Smith does strike the right balance of the magical side of the property and its heavy action sci-fi roots.
Episode five wraps this first installment with a big cliffhanger and some heavy spoiler material Netflix requested not be disclosed. As the opening chapter of this new series, Smith does enough to pique the interest of fans up for a new spin on the property. It’s definitely a situation where this mostly promising start could crash depending on how the second half plays out. If nothing else, we’ve got some cool new figures out of it.
Rating: 7 out of 10
Photo Credit: Netflix