Mattel’s ToyGuru was kind enough to send an early review figure of the upcoming Masters of the Universe Classics Hordak (who goes on sale June 15), and I’ve been slow publishing updates to my collection. So to catch us up, here’s some photos of the recent MOTU Classics releases of Mer-Man and Zodac, with a preview of Hordak.
Mer-Man – Ocean Warlord
Dubbed Squiddish Rex by Mattel’s MOTUC team, Mer-Man is revealed to have been the ruler of Eternia’s undersea realms until his kingdom was destroyed by his rivals. Now he’s been drafted into Skeletor’s service.
Mer-Man comes with a trident, sword, and features interchangeable heads. The head he sports in-package is reminiscent of his original toy release (also repainted for use with Stinkor). The head featured on the card back is styled after his appearance in the original mini-comic, King of Castle Grayskull.
When headless, you can remove his crustacean armor, revealing additional sculpted details (gills?) that are part of the torso sculpt.
Zodac – Cosmic Enforcer
Zodac Zur is revealed to be a Cosmic Enforcer who has left Eternia but tasked to maintain neutrality in the universe. Although his allegiance is to the Overlords of Trolla, he is often called back to Eternia by He-Man and Skeletor’s battle for the Power Sword.
Mattel’s MOTU line in 2003 had reimagined Zodak with ethnic skin tone and features, but for Classics he returns to his lighter-skinned appearance. He’s comprised of Beastman’s torso, He-Man’s crotch, and Skeletor’s arms and legs. Zodac comes with a cosmic ray gun. His helmet is not removable.
Hordak – Evil Leader of the Evil Horde
He’s so evil, his subtitle says it twice. To the chagrine of many die-hards, Mattel has given him the much maligned name of Hec-tor Kur. His origin ties back to King Grayskull (now I’m starting to regret not picking one up at last year’s San Diego Comic Con), King Hiss and the Snake Men, and the upcoming San Diego Comic-Con exclusive He-Ro. Hordak is also revealed to have a part in Skeletor’s transformation from Keldor. Interestingly enough, there is no mention of She-Ra, for whom Hordak was the main antagonist in her cartoon series.
Hordak comes with 3 accessories – a bat gargoyle familiar that clips to either of his wrists, a staff, and a stylized crossbow. He features new beautifully sculpted elements for his torso, crotch (featuring a longer, more flexible loin cloth), arms, and boots. The cape and cowl are a single piece but still afford good movement for his head. His armband is a separate piece that could be removed.
With the cape, cowl, and large torso, I found the preview figure’s ankles to be a little on the floppy side, although I did not have any problems getting him to stand. This can also be offset using either the staff or cape. There’s not a whole lot of crunch in the well-hidden ab crunch, but overall, a figure I’m very much looking forward to seeing in final release.
Awesome, awesome, awesome stuff!