Sunday, September 2, 2012

THE POWER OF POINT DREAD!/DANGER AT CASTLE GRAYSKULL!


The Power of Point Dread!/Danger at Castle Grayskull! is a 1983 Masters of the Universe comic and audiobook. No author is credited; it was illustrated by Alfredo Alcala. In the first story, Skeletor tricks He-Man into leaving Castle Grayskull unprotected; in the second, Skeletor – say it with me – captures Teela and tricks his way into the castle.  

The audio presentation, which includes voice acting, music, and sound effects, is pretty solid. Be advised, though, that in this pre-Filmation production, none of the characters sound like their cartoon counterparts.

Alcala’s art is good, as always. He’s using a distinctly different style from his runs on the mini-comics; it’s perhaps more reminiscent of the first run, but it isn’t quite as impressive as either of them.

The Power of Point Dread! is a good story, and one that bears some similarities to the classic cartoon episode “The Problem with Power.” Zodac’s here – apparently for him, “balance” between good and evil involves good winning every single time. This book was originally packaged with the Point Dread and Talon Fighter toy; as such, this story makes sure to let us know that the Talon Fighter holds two people and that Point Dread fits on top of Castle Grayskull.

Danger at Castle Grayskull! isn’t quite on the same level, unless you’re looking for the usual recycled early He-Man plots. Teela’s here, which means she gets abducted by Skeletor. Man-E-Faces is here, which means he gets enchanted by Skeletor. Marketing-wise, this one plugs the Attak Trak and Zoar (the Talon Fighter only holds two people – be sure to buy the Attak Trak too, so your Teela figure can go along on the adventure and get kidnapped). Well, at least we get Zoar dropping bombs and Skeletor with his hood off.

Whether you’re following along with the audio or just reading the comic, this is entertaining stuff.

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Get the full presentation HERE and HERE