Here is number 3,434,651 in the reasons that make Masters of the Universe so great: in the same month as getting new Classics figures, you can get the name amongst names in the He-Man universe right alongside a character that never appeared past a one-shot story in a comic from the 1980s. If you are a MOTU collector like me, you are all-in and you want all of the characters from the instantly-recognizable to the most unknown. Well, if you feel like I do, then March is certainly the month for you. If you are a subscriber, you are already getting King He-Man and FilMation favorite Fang Man delivered to your door. However, you can also try for (via Early Access) the latest addition to the Cosmic Enforcers: the elusive Strobo. Yep, this year’s traveling convention figure is a completely unique character and, for the first time, subbers will get the chance to own him, even before the local convention goers. I don’t expect him to make it past an early access sellout, but it looks like there will be more opportunities throughout the year to get this enigmatic Enforcer.
I have to admit that, prior to the internet, I had no idea that Strobo even existed. That is kind of uncommon as I fancy myself a pretty dedicated Masters fan, but I had no idea this guy existed before the advent of Classics. He was cooked up for a single comic appearance, but I have to say that since the artist almost went out of his way to design him as a Frankenstein made up of so many Masters bases pieces, it is amazing that he did not make into the vintage line. I mean, he is essentially a mash-up of Sy-Klone and Zodac with a giant mirror in his chest, so what’s not to love? Well, I can completely understand why he was chosen as a traveling exclusive rather than getting a slot in the main line, but now that Mattel has the rights to make all of these comic and storybook characters, I hope he is just the first of the offerings.
*Psst! Goatman! Please make Goatman!*
His real defining moment in his comic appearance was letting He-Man shoot a beam blast from the Power Sword into his chest mirror to help defeat the enemies. If that is not MOTU is a nutshell, I don’t know what is. He has now been enlisted in the ranks of the Cosmic Enforcers and he takes over on Eternia after Zodac is apparently assassinated. I really like the Enforcers being a bit of a space police force, ala the Green Lantern Corps, and I hope we continue to get new members.
Like I said, he is mostly a smash-up of Zodac and Sy-Klone, but he also has an all-new cape and the short shorts are borrowed from Icarius. Yep, no Sy-klone skivvies as were assembled in that, now infamous, pre-production piece. So, while he is made up of mostly reused parts, he has a very strong look all of his own. His costume is mostly finished in silver, blue and red, so he takes a bit of a departure from most of the other Cosmic and Mystic Enforcers we have seen so far. When I was first looking over this figure before I opened him, I thought that he had a pretty substantial bronze tan to him, much more than even He-Man in this line. However, on closer inspection, you can see that his skin is actually finished in an almost copper tone with a bit of iridescent overspray to it. Thinking about it, I really like this little detail as it kind of adds to his reflective quality and makes for a great transition to his giant chest mirror.
Speaking of which, gone is the lenticular cosmic chest map, and in comes a fully reflective mirror sticker to really sell the effect of the strobing one. I am so glad they went this route with him over simply painting the circle silver, having the actual reflection is really important to his characterization. Plus, now you have the perfect guy to take on that pesky Snake Face who is shipping in April – he can send those stone-turning face snakes right back on that nasty serpent man. This mirror power is new to MOTU, so I am glad that we can add another power to our stable because even though we have gotten a lot of characters for the first time in the line, few of them take on that essential MOTU gimmick as well as Strobo. His cape is also all-new, removable and very flexible.
He also comes with a couple accessories, one of which will probably be the main motivation for purchase for a lot of fans. First, he has his little green asteroid thingee with the stand. This can be seen in the same comic where Strobo makes his appearance and it is a neat little “artifact” addition in line with the Staff of Avion coming with Icer later this year. It appears that the asteroid is cast in a clear green plastic so it has a bit of an almost glowing effect to it, maybe it is Eternian kryptonite. That downside is, and maybe I just convinced myself that it would be a separate piece, but the stand and asteroid are solid, as in one piece. I don’t know if it was ever said that they would be separate, but I am kind of disappointed that they are not.
The big one, though, is an alternate unmasked head for your Zodak figure! Yep, fans have been asking for this one ever since the original Zodak figure was shown to not include it. In the MYP cartoon, I think he was actually shown without his helmet more than when he was wearing it, so I am sure this will help build a new default version of him for a lot of collectors. It is good to see that Mattel is listening to the fans about getting stuff like this out because it just adds another dimension to the line. I am personally one to always want to get as many unique characters as possible, so I am currently working on a VERY simple custom to use this alternate head for Zeelahr (Zodak’s brother) rather than Zodak himself. Sure, he was only a plot device, and snake food, but the more Enforcers I can get on my shelf the better, and I am not really expecting him to show up in the actual line anytime soon.
And so Strobo finally comes home and joins the ranks of your Masters of the Universe collection! I personally love when these lesser-known characters get their day in the sun, and I am willing to bet that many people will be quite pleased with Strobo once they get him in hand. He was originally supposed to come with a strobe gun fashioned in the same design vein as Zodac’s blaster and Zodak’s staff, but since that got cut, hopefully we might see it in a weapons pak later on this year. The only way you are going to be able to get Strobo is by attending Power-Con or New York Comic Con, snagging one through Early Access in March, or maybe getting a shot at the leftovers at the end of the year on Matty. I have to say I like this convention exclusive more than the Temple of Darkness Sorceress from last year as it gives us a crack at adding another new character to the ranks. The race is on for Early Access day on Matty Collector in March, so be there or risk missing this first time figure!
*Thanks again to Toy Guru and Mattel crew for sending this guy along and allowing us to, ahem, reflect, on him. More soon!
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