original art from unpublished he-man origin comic!

**Sallah** · November 10, 2009, 05:47pm

Originally Posted by Tallstar

Someone should ask about this in the Q & As on the MOTUC forum. Since Mattel owned Western Publishing during this time period, I would assume they have to have some record of it. Plus, it's their brand.

We have already made contact with Toyguru... he'll let us know what he can dig up.

Sallah

**AnnnaMot** · November 10, 2009, 05:53pm

Originally Posted by Sallah

We have already made contact with Toyguru... he'll let us know what he can dig up.

Sallah

nice cant wait

**Tallstar** · November 10, 2009, 06:13pm

Originally Posted by Sallah

We have already made contact with Toyguru... he'll let us know what he can dig up.

Sallah

Excellent!

I think Eamon is right, in that there's a good chance this predates the mini-comics or at least DC comics.

**Sallah** · November 10, 2009, 06:15pm

Originally Posted by Tallstar

Excellent!

I think Eamon is right, in that there's a good chance this predates the mini-comics or at least DC comics.

Yep, that's the assumption LFE and I have been pursuing since the start.

Sallah

**DJ_Convoy** · November 10, 2009, 06:57pm

Man, this is simply an amazing find! I wonder if there's any conceivable way we'll ever see more of this alternate history, if you will?

**Grimbot** · November 11, 2009, 11:14am

Originally Posted by DJ_Convoy

Man, this is simply an amazing find! I wonder if there's any conceivable way we'll ever see more of this alternate history, if you will?

Only if the script was also preserved.

**DJ_Convoy** · November 11, 2009, 12:23pm

It just seemed like a grim, almost mature take on the standard MOTU tropes. I found it really interesting... especially since it was apparently heretofore completely unknown. It makes me wonder what other stuff we don't know about is lurking out there...

**Da18thcustomizer** · November 12, 2009, 03:48am

Wouldnt it be interesting if Mattel finds out they do own the rights (or have access to them) and THIS is what a new movie script is based upon in the future ?

**Tallstar** · November 12, 2009, 06:22am

Wouldn't it be something if Wonder Bread He-Man was supposed to be a tie-in product with this comic and only a few got out before the project was abandoned.

**MegaGearMax** · November 12, 2009, 11:57am

This was a great read!

**Mike Bock** · November 12, 2009, 02:02pm

Originally Posted by Tallstar

Wouldn't it be something if Wonder Bread He-Man was supposed to be a tie-in product with this comic and only a few got out before the project was abandoned.

That would be cool!!

**Gonzo Merman** · November 14, 2009, 05:01am

This is awesome. I love the artwork.

**bianchi5** · November 14, 2009, 08:52am

Yeah, it is amazing!
This is something like MOTU is supposed to be, the characters have some deep, there is romance, revenge, a insane evil skeletor, a little more adult elements and chat and one of the aspects that I like more, the traditional barbarian high-tech, mix!Not to mention that the artwork is great!!
I really wanna see the rest of the story.

**JVS3** · November 14, 2009, 09:07am

LFE & Sallah:

Any more updates?
You gents have me on the edge of my seat here!!!

**Tallstar** · November 14, 2009, 09:59am

I know! I can't take it anymore.

**JimmyPSHayes** · November 14, 2009, 05:55pm

JUST stumbled across this thread. HOLY COW is this awesome!!!! I can't wait to hear more news and any info from Toyguru!

**Sallah** · November 15, 2009, 01:42am

We've gotten a few more tidbits... but still waiting on a couple of things we want definitively confirmed before we post anything. There's one person in particular that is proving VERY difficult to track down. LFE and I are going to go over our notes on Monday and see where we are at...

Sallah

**-= SupernovA =-** · November 15, 2009, 04:52am

Originally Posted by Tallstar

It almost seems like a bit of a precursor to what eventually became New Adventures. haha

I was thinking the exact same thing.

**JVS3** · November 15, 2009, 07:53am

My guess is still that this was an early licensed item, created off the preliminary material Mattel had at their disposal to provide the licensee. I'd say it's probably one of the very first licensed published items.

The Michael Halperin bible we've all seen is the draft from December, 1982.
Which means it went through a lot of various stages prior to that.
And who know what info Mattel was sending out prior to that in the early stages of their licensing program.

It was like that when we first started the comic in 200x. The information we were given was very hodgepodge. If there had been a bigger publishing program for 200x later on, no doubt it would have ironed out better.

Of course, another theory could be Mattel was just lax on their licensing publishing, given the story variations we've seen to-date in other books and comics for the classic line.

If this was made in 1984, who knows why it deviates so. The licensing program was in full swing by then.

This is all just my theory, of course.

I could be way off.

**Tallstar** · November 15, 2009, 08:09am

Too bad Adrian Gonzales isn't alive anymore. Would Earl Norem maybe know something about this? I know that he and Adrian were both illustrators on The Sunbird Legacy book that was done through Western Publishing.

Originally Posted by JVS3

If this was made in 1984, who knows why it deviates so. The licensing program was in full swing by then.

Not sure if you noticed it earlier in the thread, but I read on a site that Whitman Comics (subsidiary of Western Publishing) stopped publishing comics in 1984.

**JVS3** · November 15, 2009, 09:24am

Could this be the last project they were making before they ceased? Something that was in production when things came to a halt for publishing?
That's another possibility (which I'm sure someone already mentioned). That happens quite often in publishing as well. Companies are often working on things when upper management decides to pull the plug on operations as a whole.

**Eamon** · November 15, 2009, 11:53am

I reckon this was done before 1984 and predates any mini comic produced.
I base this purely on Skelertor's fleshy face and Man-at-Arms design.

Maybe it was a planned graphic to help launch the line?!
To only then have marketing deciding on mini comic instead that could focus more on the specific character.

**JVS3** · November 15, 2009, 12:32pm

Originally Posted by Eamon

Maybe it was a planned graphic to help launch the line?!
To only then have marketing deciding on mini comic instead that could focus more on the specific character.

I still think this book art and story is post-mini-comic production.
First He-Man figures came out fall of 1982. That means toys went into production spring of 82.
Which means the latest the first mini-comics would have been produced is VERY early in 1982.

As pointed out by Emiliano, the design above, which is a very early Skeletor, was used Alcala in the original minis.

**Emiliano** · November 15, 2009, 12:37pm

Agreed, the shin guards are the biggest clue about that.
The Skeletor in the comic have shin guards much closer to the 8 back card art.

**Eamon** · November 15, 2009, 12:42pm

I don't remember Alcala ever doing a fleshy faced Skeletor?!

A toothy green one yes but not the level of flesh we see in this comic here, which is very like that proto figure.

Why do something that is so far from what was in the minicomics at this stage?
The boy to man thing is a rather drastic change after both DC and the minicomics had Adam as a man.

I'll bet both of you a pint, that this predates any minicomic!!

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