Review: ‘Masters of the Universe: Forge of Destiny’ #1

Tim Seeley pens a new Masters of the Universe for Dark Horse Comics, which serves as a prequel to the Masters of the Universe: Revelation Netflix series.

TL;DR

We’re introduced to a lot of the background related to the power sharing agreement amongst the people of Eternia. We see how the difference between the people of Gar, who favor technological advances, and the people of Eternos, who rely on magic to defend themselves, have caused distrust and leave the planet in a fragile state of agreement. Thus, King Randor looks to reaffirm the alliance between Eternos and Anwat Gar to quell to Skeletor’s increasing power. Prince Adam also deals with coming to terms with his He-Man power and the struggle with not being able to reveal that he’s the figure helping to defend Eternos.

REVIEW

I was too young for the original Masters of the Universe franchise to be a staple of my childhood and it’s caused me to shy away from a lot of the franchise’s recent content. I’m glad I decided to give Seeley’s new series a chance because it felt like a natural jumping on point for new readers or those unfamiliar with the franchise. It was fascinating to see an origin story that provided so much backstory without making it feel like things were being dumbed down for me. The “twist” caused a bit of confusion for me but since it’s setting up what is likely the first arc’s plot I’m hopeful Seeley will be fleshing it out more in the coming issues.

I’m glad Seeley didn’t throw too much action into this debut issue as I felt like I got to familiarize myself with the world and meet some of the main characters, namely Prince Adam/He-Man, Teela, and King Randor. I don’t know if their personalities here match the existing material, but as a new reader, I bought into the development Seeley gave each of them and it all felt natural for where they were at this time in the story. I would have liked to see more of the threat Skeletor posed at the time, but knowing he’'ll go on to be the big bad for the entire franchise negated that some.

Eddie Nunez’s art and Brad Simpson’s colors were the stars of this issue for me. There is nothing too complex or detailed, but there doesn’t need to be with what this team did for the visual approach. They wonderfully capture the 80s nostalgia tone with a modern twist. Characters are well designed and stand out from each other. Backgrounds pop off the page with a bright, vibrant palette. Again, I wish we got to see more of Skeletor because Nunez and Simpson make him look so damn cool.

FINAL VERDICT

Seeley and team produced a successful debut issue that has me interested for the long-term narrative of this comic series and even intrigued to consume more Masters of the Universe content. It was well written, looked great, and serviced it’s characters well. What more could you ask for?

Rating: 7.5/10