First off, this is a story about Teela, not He-Man – He-Man
doesn’t show up until three quarters of the way through the book, in large part
because Skeletor’s plan is so convoluted. The plot of this story is definitely
for young kids (that’s a nice way of saying it’s kind of stupid), but Grant
uses more advanced words like “outstrip” and “shied.” I can’t decide if that’s
bad writing or good vocabulary building.
The art here is an amateurish disaster. Davies gives us
cartoony, disproportionate figures, with bad perspective and bad poses. It’s
like something a moderately talented eighth grader might produce.
Most bizarre of all is a scene where Teela beams out thought
waves to “the Lord He-Man,” asking for direction (pp. 10-11). Because
apparently all the Heroic Warriors are telepathic and/or He-Man is some kind of
prayer-answering deity (Skeletor’s entire plan is based on the former). It’s utterly absurd, regardless of whether we pause to consider
the implications of this scene’s ludicrous religious overtones.
I hate to give up, but I can’t come up with a single good
thing to say about this book.
RECOMMENDED AGAINST
Read it HERE
