What a month for fans of the highly popular Masters of the Universe Classics line. March saw the release of a first time figure in the line as well as an interesting exclusive figure for MOTUC subscribers. Let’s check out Fang Man, King He-Man, and a few other goodies.

Up first is Fang Man. The evil fanged minion of Skeletor has never had a chance in figure form until now. Long beloved by many fans of the original He-Man cartoon, Fang Man had been off limits due to licensing issues with Filmation characters. In keeping with the plans of finally being able to make and release Filmation characters, Mattel rolled Fang-Man out for the month of March… for subscribers only! In a move more shocking than anything I’ve ever played in a board game, Mattel only made Fang Man available to those who had purchased a MOTUC subscription. Many touted the instant rarity of this figure before Linda Blair could even spin her head around three times.

Looking closely, Fang Man does have some awesome detailing going on. The shade of blue perfectly matches the coloring from the old cartoon. The facial sculpt also pays homage to the Filmation character to a tee. This is a really nice looking figure. He also features the same level of articulation as most MOTUC figures. (I even believe his tongue moves too!) Accessory-wise Fang Man comes with the Wheel of Infinity, a sling shot weapon, and the Sword of the Ancients. Those familiar with his appearance in the cartoon will understand these items, and will more than likely geek out big time. Since I mostly was hooked on the She-Ra cartoon, Fang Man does not hold as special a place in my heart, hence the non-removal from his package for this review.

The back of the card features a grand lineup of the Evil Warriors and Fang Man’s bio. Fans of the Evil Warriors have much to rejoice about, because that faction of the MOTU mythos is just about covered in this line.

Fang Man’s bio is slightly depressing, but who doesn’t love a good depressing MOTUC bio? I like the idea of Fang Man waiting in the past for Skeletor to show up again. I’m not usually a big fan of time travelling tales, but I could really get into a storyline like that.

Grade: A- (The look and love of the figure is clearly there, but the minus is simply because I don’t have the emotional ties to this figure like others may have. All in all, this figure is a great addition to the line!)

The other offering for MOTUC subscribers was the special exclusive figure of the year. This year the honor of Exclusive Figure went to King He-Man. Now I am not big on 7 different He-Man variants filling up my collector space, but this was one He-Man that I was excited to own! Let’s check him out!

Back when Filmation was responsible for the He-Man and She-Ra cartoons, one direction that the story was going to take was He-Man being grown and having a son of his own. That show never saw the light of day, but this King He-Man is pretty much the closest thing fans are going to get to that story.

King He-Man boasts an all new look and some really cool accessories. The biggest draw for some is King He-Man’s sword with a nod to the 200X design. It is a rather cool looking sword and for fans who are gaga over anything 200X, this is a must have piece. King He-Man features the usual articulation and he comes with a cape! There will be more on all his awesomeness in just a second.

The back of his card features a cast of heavy hitters. With Randor and King Grayskull both on the card, it is easy to tell the influence for King He-Man’s look. The lineup of figures is really secondary though to the actual bio.

I love this bio. For one, this is a bio that really speeds the MOTUC mythos further into the future. Most of the bios so far have dwelled on plot points that covered areas from the past to the sort of present, in terms of what fans have already come to know about the story. King He-Man’s bio really brings things into a fun perspective. There is a queen and a son! (I am really hoping that Mattel releases a Queen Teela figure at some point.) And since He-Man and Teela have a son, I totally want an Auntie She-Ra figure.

King He-Man and his sword strike a pose for Grayskull. The figure is a nice sturdy figure. His joints are nice and not loose. My King He-Man did have a fleck of gold paint missing from his chest plate, but that is alright.

The sword is also pretty big. The detail is impressive. One thing I also really like about King He-Man is the scar detail over his left eye. It is just really cool to see He-Man grown and a little battle worn. I just have really fallen for this figure.

The other item included with King He-Man is a royal staff that resembles the one that came with King Randor. It was a little difficult to place it in his hand, but with a little patience the piece can snap in without damaging the figure. Just be careful.

I want to share some closer shots of the accessories, especially with the sword:

One side shows the crest covered partially by what appears to be a strap.

The other side of the sword shows a clear image of the crest.

The Royal staff is also pretty tall and the colors are bright. I love that these items also fit on the vintage weapons rack from Castle Grayskull.

Another item included with King He-Man is a mini-comic:

I wanted to keep the comic mint, so I have not opened or read the story inside yet. Sorry folks, no spoilers here!

So with King He-Man having a queen in his bio, I couldn’t help but think of other characters who would have thrown themselves in the running for Queen…

Frosta’s dreams can only truly come true if He-Man takes her name and moves to Etheria…

On second thought, maybe He-Man would want to fall in love with the honey of a guide Sweet Bee. (Over Frosta’s dead body!)

At the end of the day though, there is truly only one love for He-Man: Teela. Now we just need that Queen Teela figure, because this current image looks like some sort of bizarre time travel tale.

Grade: A (This is a great figure and a nice new take on the character. I’m not too thrilled on all the He-Man variants, but this is one I can get behind.)

With both figures addressed, there is one more thing to look at. Included with the exclusive King He-Man figure was also a brand new map. Ever since the first subscription, Mattel has released various maps covering Eternia and Etheria from different eras. The map for 2013 is for Subternia, the hidden land beneath the horizon.

When folded up, there is a nice bio about the map. Subternia is basically all the hidden nooks and crannies underneath the surface of Eternia.

The map folds out to show a detailed image of what is all under Eternia’s surface, as well as some hot spots on the surface. I love these images, there is so much to look at and notice. There is also mention of this version of Eternia being under King Skeletor’s reign. Though not as cool as the map of Etheria, this Subternia map is pretty cool. (The image of Grayskull and the Central Tower’s energy joining in the planet’s center is so cool.)

There is also an image of Eternia’s Moon of Droom. I especially love this because it is nice to learn more about Eternia’s moon.

So that is about it for this month’s releases from Masters of the Universe Classics. Fang Man and King He-Man are both lovely additions to a line that continues to grow into a massive experience for fans of all ages. Be sure to check back next month when Snake Face joins the fold!

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