You can tell this is a special issue right from the start, with Shadow Weaver on the cover! It is a special Halloween issue of MOTU!

Orko the Magician
Orko attempts to make himself bean soup..... but ends up with something that has been soup!

Feature Story 1: "The Final Chapter"
The closing part of the epic Snake Men saga which began in issue #38. He-Man, Rio Blast, and Extendar are travelling along in the monorail car, when they are attacked by a huge monster, that King Hiss has sent. They trick the monster into smashing open a dorr, allowing them to enter the building. They make their way down the corridor, but are attacked by King Hiss and the Snake Men themselves, just as the monorails continue extending towards Grayskull and Snake Mountain. They take a shortcut away from the Snake army, and He-Man and Extendar attempt to deal with the monorails, while Rio holds back the Snake Men. He-Man and Extendar find the control center for the monorail, and Extendar reverses the movement of the monorails, while He-Man summons the other heroic warriors. The other warriors arrive quickly, and drive away the Snake Men. The Snake Men have fled from their would-be fortress, so the heroic warriors decide to use Viper Tower as their own base.

Master Mail
More questions and answers feature in this issue's master mail.

Feature Story 2: "Happy Monster's Day, part 1"
Eternia is celebrating its annual Monsters Day, which is really the Eternian equivalent of Halloween. Hordak, meanwhile, is aware of the legend that the dimension of monsters opens onto Eternia on this night. So he intends to combine sorcery with his powers of science, and summons Shadow Weaver from Etheria to help him. At the Royal Palace, Orko is practising a spell to make him as strong as He-Man- but the spell doesn't go exactly according to plan, and changes Orko into He-Man! At the same time, the spell accidentally makes Adam and Cringer disappear. Orko is in major trouble! Back at the Fright Zone, Hordak is showing Shadow Weaver the recorded footage of He-Man's battle with the Mantisaur in issue #32, which helped him learn many of He-Man's weaknesses. Hordak tells her that if she were to project a beam of magic at He-Man's neck, he would be made powerless. Shadow Weaver teleports away to find He-Man. Back at the palace, the transformed Orko is having a spot of bother with people thinking he is He-Man- so he leaves for Grayskull, so the Sorceress can reverse the spell. But just then, he is found by Shadow Weaver- who mistakes him for the real He-Man, and traps him on one of Hordak's machines, which is designed for the specific purpose of trapping He-Man! (Continued in part 2)

Feature Story 3: "Happy Monster's Day, part 2"
Shadow Weaver fires bolts at He-Man's weak spot... still not realizing that the 'He-Man' she has captured is really Orko. Therefore the bolt doesn't work on Orko the way it would with the real He-Man, and Shadow Weaver is confused as to why He-Man does not seem to be weakening. And since the machine is made to hold He-Man, but Orko is not really He-Man, Orko finds a way to escape- and he breaks free, then surprises Shadow Weaver by using his magic powers on her! Shadow Weaver is shocked to see He-Man using magic, and attempts to use her wand to defeat him- but Orko's powers have been greatly increased by the power of Monster's Day! When out of sight, he reverses the spell and changes back to Orko, and Prince Adam and Cringer reappear. Orko briefly explains what happened, and Adam and Cringer become He-Man and Battle Cat. They go back to Shadow Weaver, and she sends an army of jewelled warriors after them- but He-Man uses a sound wave from his sword to shatter them, and Shadow Weaver flees. Orko, He-Man and Battle Cat prepare to make their way back to the palace where Orko will tell the whole story- but first, Orko wishes Happy Monster's Day!

Power Pin-Up
This issue's power pin-up is Skeletor riding in the Land Shark!

(I really like this issue! The end of the Snake Men saga, with the heroic warriors moving to Viper Tower, is one of the most important turning points in the continuity of this comic series- while the "Happy Monster's Day" story, corny as it may sound, is brilliant! It's also great to see Shadow Weaver in a MOTU story for a change! Don't miss this issue!)