Unreleased Powers of Grayskull Designs We Need as MOTU Figures and Playsets

I have to say, when I saw this post from Axel Gimenez, it immediately stopped me in my tracks because this is not just a collection of concepts, this is a window into years of creative work that have quietly helped shape what Powers of Grayskull has become today, and honestly, I love getting this kind of behind the scenes look straight from the artist himself. Axel shared that these designs represent some of his contributions to Masters of the Universe dating back to 2013, developed alongside @manuel_eduardo_caritas and the Mattel design team, and seeing them presented in this scroll-style layout with his line art and colors by @dc_alonso_colorist really brings that vintage-inspired storytelling energy to life in a way that feels both classic and new at the same time. What really jumps out to me is how many of these designs have already crossed over into actual figures, including Lady Slither, Fang-Or, Sting-Or, Frog Monger, Skeleton Warrior, Red Shadow, The Great Black Wizard, Vypor, Reptilax, and the Snake Lair playset, which says a lot about how influential this body of work has been and how naturally it translates into the current collector landscape. And that is where I think the path forward becomes pretty clear, because if Mattel is looking to continue building this out, doing it through MOTU Origins just makes the most sense to me since every one of those realized characters has already found a home in that format and fits seamlessly with what collectors are building right now. At the same time, I cannot help but look at the remaining concepts like Dread Horn, Serpentosss, High Priest Pythonus who we recently saw teased in a Mattel promo video, Stretch Nek, Cham-Or, Terror Eye, and the Sky Cauldron, and just think about how much potential is still sitting here waiting to be tapped. Moments like this really reinforce how important artists like Axel are to the DNA of this brand, and if Mattel is listening, this feels like the perfect roadmap to keep Powers of Grayskull going strong for years to come. Let’s take a look at the unproduced concepts in this image a little deeper!

Terror-Eye

Terror-Eye is depicted as a towering cyclops with a single central eye set in a snarling, fanged face, wearing a red helmet with a circular crest and a layered, scale-like armored collar that spreads across the shoulders and chest. The body is rendered in purple with a black fur loincloth, a red belt, and asymmetrical armor that includes a scaled shoulder guard and a large plated piece on one leg, giving him a rugged, pieced-together look. In one hand he holds a heavy chain connected to a spiked mace, which adds to the brute force feel of the character and gives him a strong accessory right out of the gate. What really stands out to me is that we have already seen this concept teased on box art, so it feels closer to reality than ever, and I can easily picture this as an oversized MOTU Origins deluxe figure, potentially pulling in some of the larger tooling approaches we have seen in the Turtles of Grayskull line to bring that scale and presence to life. This is one of those designs that feels like it is just waiting for Mattel to make the leap from concept to plastic.

Standing next to Stinkor you could make out the purple Cyclops character that we have seen teased several times in the past. He has been seen on the Castle Grayskull package art, Wundar’s cardback art, and on the Battlefield Warriors set package as well.

Our next hint at Cyclops was a little more visible, when we saw him locked in battle with Fisto. In this illustration we get a clear view of Cyclop’s fierce looking face, his Viking style horned helmet, battle armor and battle knee pads complete with spikes! You can kind of make out his purple-colored skin as well.

Next, we got a very clear view of Cyclops joining in battle with Two Bad, Faker on Duplicat, and Battle Armor Skeletor on Panthor against our Heroic Battle Armor He-Man riding Battle Cat and another female warrior which might be Teela, or perhaps someone else? And we also get another hint of that mysterious green frog man, just to the right of Faker and Duplicat. But that can be a discussion for another time! Cyclops again is shown is his horned Viking style helmet, is wheedling a chained mace weapon, and has purple skin and brownish orange chest and knee armor. Now this being the third time we are seeing Cyclops on package art, each time he is getting more prominent and more detailed.

And now the latest time we spot Cyclops, he is the featured character on the cover of the Wun-Dar packaged in mini comic “Lost Legend” ! He is a pivotal part of the mini comic story and is featured battling Wun-Dar throughout the mini comic! So is this now a huge hint, that Cyclops is coming to the Origins line? Only time will tell, but it has sure been fun to review all the times we have spotted him and to speculate!

High Priest Pythonus

High Priest Pythonus is shown as a green, reptilian humanoid with scaled skin, a fang-filled grin, and red eyes, wearing a tall, Egyptian-inspired headdress with gold, red, and blue striping that immediately sets him apart from the rest of the Snake Men. His outfit includes a blue chest piece with a stylized emblem, matching wrist guards and boots, and a gold-trimmed loincloth, while he wields a curved golden blade that reinforces his status as a high-ranking figure within the faction. This one really feels like a slam dunk to me, especially since we recently spotted him in a Mattel promo video, which makes it feel like he is already on their radar. At the same time, there is that lingering question because he was originally tied to an unfunded tier for the Snake Lair playset, but honestly, that just makes the case even stronger that he needs to be brought back around and released in MOTU Origins. The design is already there, the demand is clearly there, and this feels like one Mattel can easily move from concept to figure without missing a beat.

Seeing Gray pop up in the Black Wizard promo video already had my collector radar fully activated, but the quiet inclusion of High Priest Pythonus in that same lineup is what really made me stop, rewind, and start connecting dots, because this absolutely did not feel like a random assortment of figures tossed together for background flavor, and the more I sit with it, the more it feels like a very deliberate choice by Mattel Creations to visually reintroduce characters that still have unfinished business. As we all remember, High Priest Pythonus was positioned as the final tier unlock for the Crowdfund Snake Lair, and when that last stretch goal did not get there, it left this strange narrative gap where a fully realized character was teased, discussed, and then seemingly shelved, which has lingered in the back of my mind ever since. That is why seeing him standing there alongside other Preternia and Powers of Grayskull era figures immediately felt different, more intentional, and honestly a little exciting, because Mattel did not need to include him at all if the plan was to quietly move on. I am not trying to get everyone worked up or overpromise anything here, but from a collector perspective, this feels like Mattel acknowledging that Pythonus still matters and that his story is not finished yet. When you combine that with Gray also appearing in the same promo, a character deeply tied to long-form MOTU lore threads, it starts to feel like we are watching seeds being planted rather than leftovers being reused. I am cautiously optimistic, but if I had to read the tea leaves, this looks less like coincidence and more like Mattel slowly setting the stage to finally bring High Priest Pythonus to life as a proper figure this year.

You can watch the full video here:

Cham-Or

Cham-Or is shown as a reptilian figure with a lizard-like head featuring layered scales, a wide toothy grin, and small horn details, paired with a red body and teal limbs that give him that color-shifting visual identity right away. His design includes a black harness with circular red accents, matching boots, and a simple waist piece, while the zig-zag striping running along his arms and legs adds another layer of visual contrast that plays into the “color-changing creature” concept. He comes armed with a blaster-style weapon, which gives him a slightly more modern edge compared to some of the more fantasy-leaning Snake Men designs. What really stands out to me is that we have already seen Cham-Or teased in Vypor’s card art and even featured in Axel’s Kings of the Snake Men book, so this is another one that has quietly been building presence over time. From a tooling standpoint, this feels like a very straightforward MOTU Origins release with a lot of potential for part reuse across the existing bucks, making it a relatively easy win for Mattel. This is exactly the kind of concept that feels ready to move from page to plastic without much friction.

Roy Juarez officially revealed the digital art that adorns Vypor’s card art that features the stunning work of Axel Gimenez and Joseph John Zacate. Now that we can see a fully colored digital image, there is no doubt that the new Snake Men are a brand new character called Cham-Or. Roy announced on his Instagram page, “A clossser look at the sssinissster artwork and packaging for the upcoming Originsss Vypor.”

The usual suspects for Origins:
Graphic Design & Art Direction @manuel_eduardo_caritas
Artwork @axel.gimenez@josephzacate
Toy Design @katanarama333
Packaging Engineer @lpukhrambam
Story @joshuaskywriter
Copywriter @yesreallyrob

Axel explains the story on how Cham-Or came to life! He said in an Instagram post, “An interesting detail about this Snake Man is that I made his design as a very rough sketch in the blank corner of a script page from a Classics minicomic. And he was rescued from oblivion thanks to the insistence and perseverance of @zoooorito who asked me once and again over the years to finish his design.”

Cham-Or is a new Snake Men character and will reuse parts from Tung Lashor, Mosquitor, Skeletor, Rattlor, Keldor, Castle Grayskull Space Suit, and Frog Monger!

Serpentosss

Serpentosss is depicted as a striking Snake Men hybrid with a humanoid upper torso and a long, coiled serpent lower body, blending red and purple scales with a wide-open, fanged mouth framed by a raised cobra hood. He wields a curved golden sword in one hand while his tail ends in a trident-like blade, giving him built-in weaponry that immediately sets him apart from other characters in the lineup. The figure also features a simple belt and fur-like waist detail that transitions into the snake body. We have already seen Serpentosss teased on card art and in the background of Axel’s Kings of the Snake Men book, so this is another concept that has been quietly building momentum over time. I also have to call out that Mr. Home Arcade did an awesome custom take on this concept, showing how effectively parts from Lady Slither and Kobra Khan can be reused to bring this design into a physical form. That alone makes a strong case that this could be executed in MOTU Origins without starting from scratch, and honestly, this feels like one Mattel could turn into a figure with a really unique silhouette on the shelf.

There is a beautiful reddish orange Eternian sunset sky in the background. Standing in the distance are High Priest Pythonus, and an what we now know as Serpentosss, a character that Axel Gimenez came up with.

Serpentosss is prominently featured on the back of the card back art work for Moss Man and you can see the actual figure in the image below.

Mr. Home Arcade has a custom red Snake Men creature that was teased on the Moss Man card and he will be making an appearance in the MOTU Origins line.

The creativity of Mr. Home Arcade astounds us as he recreated the box art scene in real like using his red Snake Man custom and a custom High Priest Pythonus from Mega Customx.

Mr. Home Arcade also did a video on the red Snake Men creature dubbed Serpentosss:

Strettch-Nek

How cool would it be to have Stretch Nek in the MOTU Origins line, especially knowing that he was already teased on the Serpent Claw Man-At-Arms card art, which really makes this one feel like it is only a matter of time. The design features a human body with a long, extended serpent neck that rises up into a snake head with an open mouth and forked tongue, creating a unique silhouette that immediately stands out. His body is rendered in bright yellow with green gloves, boots, and trunks, while a green snake emblem sits on his chest and a scaled ridge runs along the back of the extended neck. He carries a staff with a coiled snake design, reinforcing the mystical side of the character while tying him visually to the Snake Men faction. This feels like a natural fit for MOTU Origins, and with that card art tease already out there, it really seems like Mattel has at least considered him. This is one of those concepts that feels ready to make the jump from artwork to figure, and it would bring something visually different to the lineup with that extended neck feature.

Strettch Nek is a concept based on an early Roger Sweet design and he would have a bendy neck, similar to how Squeeeze’s arms bend and stay in place. He would resuse arms, loin cloth, and legs from Whiplash and the torso could be formed from the bottom piece of Tung Lashor combined with the top piece of Ceratus, who has not been hinted at or teased in the MOTU Origins line. He would need new armor and a head but this figure could be done using existing parts that Mattel has created for the Origins line.

In this amazing card back art, MAA is tangling with Strettch Nek, which is held over concept from the MOTU Classics era! MAA has him by the neck in this killer scene in the Eternian forest.

Here is a custom concept of Strettch Nek, from the MOTU Classics line, created by the talented Orsogranito Granitebear Shop! It looks like a direct translation from the Axel concept art and would make a very unique addition to the Origins line.

Dread Horn

Dread Horn is shown as a dark, winged steed with a skeletal-inspired armored head featuring a single forward-pointing horn, glowing eyes, and layered plating that wraps around the face and jaw, while a chain bridle connects under the muzzle. The body is primarily black with mechanical harness elements along the torso and shoulders, leading into large bat-like wings with a purple membrane stretched across a segmented frame, giving it a mix of organic and constructed design. Teal accents run through the mane and tail, with additional pops of color on the hooves and small feathered details near the legs, tying the whole look together. What really jumps out to me is that we already have a starting point for this in MOTU Origins with the She-Ra and Swift Wind 2-pack horse buck, which means a lot of the groundwork is already there and Mattel would just need to build on it with the new armor, wings, and head sculpt. This is exactly the kind of creature that feels like it was made to become a MOTU Origins mount, and I would love to see Mattel take that existing foundation and complete it into a fully realized figure for the line.

Sky Cauldron Playset

This is a pipe dream but would make an amazing addition to the lore of MOTU if we got the Great Black Wizard’s stronghold as a playset, and while it may feel like a long shot, it is not completely out of the realm of possibility if the community makes enough noise to Mattel. The Sky Cauldron is depicted as a floating fortress built into a jagged rock base, with a large skull-faced engine at the front featuring glowing eyes and a vented furnace-like core that suggests it is powered from within. Mechanical elements surround the structure, including pipes, gears, chains, and suspended weights, giving it a mix of dark magic and industrial design that feels very different from anything else in the MOTU lineup. Flames and smoke billow beneath the base, reinforcing the idea that this entire stronghold hovers in the air, while smaller towers and weapon-like protrusions add to its defensive presence. This is the kind of ambitious concept that would translate into a centerpiece display for MOTU Origins, and even though it would likely require a larger format release, it feels like the kind of playset that could expand the world in a big way if Mattel ever decides to bring it from concept to reality.