Sunday, August 12, 2012

MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE #3 (DC, 1983)


Masters of the Universe #3 (“Within These Walls…Armageddon!,” February, 1983) concludes DC’s three-issue mini-series. This one is written by Paul Kupperberg and penciled by George Tuska, but inked by Rodin Rodriguez. Here, the Heroic Warriors finish Skeletor’s job and a rival wizard gets involved.

There’s a lot of random stuff happening here, and it’s kind of a mess, in a “throw everything in the pot” kind of way. Man-E-Faces shows up for no reason other than to boost sales of his action figure (or maybe because his monster face hadn’t been controlled by Skeletor’s magic for a while – that’s the only thing that ever happens to him). In the interests of time, I suppose, the two halves of the Power Sword are hidden together. Seriously. Teela says “Hoo-boy.”

Now let’s be frank: nobody cares about this Damon guy. It’s not just because he doesn’t have an action figure or an appropriate He-Man name – he never feels like he merits either one. He looks like a ridiculous cartoon pirate, and he wears a hoodie tucked into his furry loincloth. He’s impossible to take seriously, and it’s extremely satisfying to see Skeletor open up a can on him.

Rodriguez’s inks are a substantial downgrade from Alcala’s. They’re flatter and plainer, and the art lacks some atmosphere for it (it’s also lacking Stratos’s beard).

After more or less cruising along for two issues, the mini-series falls somewhat flat at the conclusion. At least Superman didn’t show up.

TAKE IT OR LEAVE IT

Read it HERE