MOTU Origins Cartoon Collection Skeletor In Hand Review
Get ready you boobs, because we have Skeletor stepping right out of your old school CRT TV with the MOTU Origins Cartoon Collection! Mattel finally brings us new Filmation cartoon inspired MOTU Origins Cartoon Collection figures! The new MOTU Origins Cartoon Collection is a spectacular homage to the 1980’s He Man and the Masters of the Universe Filmation cartoon series! The first set of figures includes cartoon versions of He-Man, Beast Man, Man-At-Arms, Trap Jaw, Skeletor and Teela! The Cartoon Collection figures are still compatible with swappable parts like the rest of the figures. The card backs feature new art with the He Man and the Masters of the Universe logo and the blue-sky with Castle Grayskull from the opening of the Filmation cartoon. The back of the character description will say what episode the figure was inspired by. We were lucky enough to get our hands on the new MOTU Origins Cartoon Collection Skeletor for this very special in hand review!
This new Cartoon Collection Skeletor looks like he stepped right out of your CRT tv and into your living room, bringing to life the lead Evil Warrior’s himself! His cartoon inspired head sculpt, simplistic chest armor sculpt, and simplified waist and boots really help to give him an animated look.
It’s so wonderful to see the first set of Cartoon Collection figures together and they look incredible!
These new figures look so cool posed together in different action poses! I just love the aesthetic of this new Cartoon Collection line!
It’s the evil warriors versus the heroic warriors!
Packaging
The new figures have incredible new packaging with a Filmation inspired card back! You can see the classic animated Castle Grayskull on the cardback that comes straight out of the opening sequence of the Filmation Cartoon! It also has a new “Cartoon Collection” sticker in the Filmation rainbow logo style.
he back of the card back features new card art as well as a cross sell featuring the other Cartoon Collection figures in these first two waves. If you want to read more about waves 15 & 16, check out these two articles.
The great thing about these new card backs besides the cool cross sell and card art, they tell you what episode specific accessory the figure comes with as well as which Filmation cartoon episode it came from. Here you can see beautiful artwork featuring Skeletor looking into his crystal ball looking at Aran and Oona, are a young couple that Skeletor sends to the City of Ancients to retrieve the Masks of Power, as see in “The Masks of Power” cartoon episode! Skeletor comes with his havoc staff, power sword and 2 masks of power. The cross-sell features He-Man, Beast Man, Skeletor and Man At Arms. Skeletor also comes packed with his diagram to show which parts are removeable.
Skeletor Card Art Comes to Life
Check out this amazing video showing how the sketches and concepts become the final product!
Roy Juarez has released the digital card art for the upcoming Skeletor MOTU Origins Cartoon Collection figure! This brand new line, revealed at San Diego Comic Con 2023, brings the characters we know and love from the Filmation Masters of the Universe cartoon to life in plastic form! Today, Roy revealed the card art that is featured on Skeletor’s card back. What is also great about this new MOTU Origins sub-line is that we get a whole new array of card art teases! Speaking of which, the characters Aran and Oona are teased on the back of Skeletor’s card art from the Masks of Power cartoon episode. Aran and Oona are a young couple that Skeletor sends to the City of Ancients to retrieve the Masks of Power. Aran and Oona find the artifacts within the ruins and when they place the masks on their faces, they transform into Demos and Tyrella, two powerful magicians from Eternia‘s ancient past. It remains to be seen if the Cartoon Collection will be getting these new characters as figures but it is fun to think about the possibilities!
Digital Card Art Reveal
The new figures feature very colorful packaging that also has a new “Cartoon Collection” sticker in the Filmation rainbow logo style. The back of the card back features new card art as well as a cross sell featuring the other Cartoon Collection figures in these first two waves. If you want to read more about waves 15 & 16, check out these two articles.
Here you can see beautiful artwork featuring Skeletor looking into his crystal ball to see Aran and Oona obtaining the Masks of Power, as seen in “The Masks of Power” cartoon episode!
“The Masks of Power”
“The Masks of Power” is an episode from the classic animated series “He-Man and the Masters of the Universe” produced by Filmation. It originally aired in 1983 as part of the show’s first season.
According to Masks of Power (Filmation episode) | Wiki Grayskull | Fandom:
Adam, Man-At-Arms and Orko, while exploring, discover the long-lost City of the Ancients. Unknown to them, Skeletor is spying on them via a mechanical bird. While he is still plotting, a young man and woman, Aran and Oona, arrive at Snake Mountain with the urge to serve Skeletor. Seeing an opportunity, he sends them to retrieve the Masks of Power, said to lie within the City of the Ancients.
Aran and Oona find the artifacts within the ruins; they place the masks on their faces, transforming them into Demos and Tyrella, two powerful magicians from Eternia‘s ancient past. He-Man battles Aroo, the enraged protector of the masks, whilst Demos and Tyrella head back to Snake Mountain.
He-Man, Man-At-Arms and Orko speak with the Sorceress, who tells them that Demos and Tyrella are after the Sword of the Ancients located deep under Snake Mountain.
Demos and Tyrella defeat a startled Skeletor easily, and He-Man is forced to rescue the villain. Racing to beat the two ancient sorcerers, a tremendous battle takes place beneath the mountain. The Sword of the Ancients is retrieved by He-Man and joined with his own Sword of Power. With the Sword of the Ancients forever beyond their reach, Demos and Tyrella vanish, and Aran and Oona return, having learnt the cost of their evil employment.
Masks of Power (Filmation episode) | Wiki Grayskull | Fandom
“The Masks of Power” is considered a classic episode of “He-Man and the Masters of the Universe” due to its compelling storyline, moral themes, and dynamic action sequences. It exemplifies the overall tone and appeal of the show, which became a cultural phenomenon during the 1980s.
Skeletor up close and personal
Let’s dive in and take a closer look at the Cartoon Collection Skeletor. Here we get to see Skeletor from all sides, and you can see how great his simplified armor, shoulder armor, waist and boots give him a very animated style. He features the new MOTU Cartoon Collection buck that stands a little bit taller and lankier that the MOTU Origins figures that came before them. Also you will notice the new quads design on his legs, that make him look very ripped!
Here we can see how closely the new Cartoon Collection Skeletor captures to the Filmation Cartoon version of Skeletor. They absolutely nailed the face sculpt. The best part of the face sculpt and his hood and how it drapes around his head. They even got the little pointed end on the back side of the hood too!
The chest armor, loin cloth, waist and boot design really nailed the animated look!
Head Scuplt
The head sculpt for Skeletor looks incredible and they really captured his Filmation animated look!
Chest & Back
The chest armor design features his simplified purple cross boned chest armor. The back clasps is a new design, as you can see it crosses in the back and clasps together in the center. It is made of a soft plastic.
Arms
Skeletor’s arms are also a new buck as well.
Legs
Skeletor is wearing a purple skirt with a black loin cloth and black belt with a blue loin cloth. The new MOTU Cartoon Collection buck stands a little bit taller and lankier that the MOTU Origins figures that came before them. You will also notice the new quad design on his legs, that make him look very ripped!
Accessories
The Cartoon Collection Skeletor comes packed with his classic havoc staff and Filmation style power sword. He also comes with the 2 Masks of Power featured in the Filmation cartoon episode “The Masks of Power”. Skeletor features two gripping hands so he can hold accessories with both hands.
Skeletor can dawn the masks of power, which are basically 2 alternate swappable heads.
Mini Comic
Below we have the entire Mini Comic “Wizard Vizard” for your reading pleasure. We won’t spoil it for you, so if you don’t want to read the comic, skip to the next section of this article. All I have to say is that there are some teasers in here!
Figure Comparison
Here we can see on the left, a comparison of the Wave 1 Origins Skeletor vs the new Cartoon Collection Skeletor. Then on the right, is a comparison of the Super7 5.5″ Vintage Style Skeletor vs the Cartoon Collection Skeletor. I really love the new face sculpt and animated design of the new Cartoon Collection figures. As we mentioned before, the MOTU Cartoon Collection buck that stands a little bit taller and lankier that the MOTU Origins figures that came before them. You can see the new quad leg muscle design make him look very ripped! The new Cartoon Collection Skeletor also comes with 2 gripping hands so he can hold both his included accessories with hands. Where the MOTU Origins Wave 1 version came with 1 gripping hand and one outstretched hand. The Wave 1 Skeletor is a much brighter blue color than the Cartoon Collection. The Wave 1 Skeletor is modeled after the vintage action figure, where as the Cartoon Collection Skeletor is inspired by the Filmation Cartoon. His belt, chest armor and shoulder armor is much more implied as well to give him that animated cartoon look.
You can see that the Super7 5.5″ Vintage Style Skeletor is also Filmation inspired but he is a much brighter blue color. The only compliant I had on him was that his finish was way too shiny. Also he only had 5 POA, so the Origins figure is a vast improvement on the Super7 version. The Cartoon Collection Skeletor is a really cool figure and really looks like his cartoon counterpart!
Skeletor Official Images
Skeletor looks like was ripped right from the cartoon and he comes with his Havoc Staff, Masks of Power, and his Power Sword.
The simple designs on their chest armor and wrist bracers help to give that Filmation cartoon look to them!
How freakin rad is this! Skeletor can don the Masks of Power!
Here is a close up of his head sculpt from SDCC and it looks amazing!!!
Cartoon Collection Preorders
The following figures are up for preorder so get them while they are hot!
Where to Buy
You can preorder the first two waves of Cartoon Collection figures at the following retailers:
For those that missed out on the Cartoon Collection Man-At-Arms figure on Amazon, Paulmart just put MAA and Skeletor up for preorder! Man-At-Arms was the only figure that was extremely hard to pin down on October 4, 2023 but we’ve since deduced that this MAA is an Amazon exclusive. The MOTU Origins Cartoon Collection was revealed at SDCC 2023 and put up for preorder on October 4, 2023! Since then, the Cartoon Collection version of Man-At-Arms has been sold out!
Cartoon Collection Reviews
Be sure to check out Micheal wonderful Youtube video review on Skeletor here:
You can check out our reviews of the Cartoon Collection He-Man here:
You can check out our review of the Cartoon Collection Beast Man here:
Complete Your MOTU Collection
Be sure to check out our Masters of the Universe shop pages where we’ve curated figures from MOTU Origins, Masterverse, Classics, Vintage and more so you can find the figures you need easier!
