Masters of the Universe Revelation Netflix Series

Originally Posted by Parzival

He’s going to just continue to portray you as a jerk. Don’t bother engaging anymore in this thread with him.

Good advice.

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Originally Posted by Parzival

The show was not presented by Netflix or Smith as a sequel to Filmation. This has been established multiple times throughout the thread. What other media outlets reported is not what was said. Spiritual sequel were the words used and “continuation of the classic story” with specific clarification that the Filmation show was owned by another company so they could only do nods.

This is actually incorrect my friend. Producer Ted Biaselli (Kevin's boss) said all the Filmation episodes count in the Revelation continuity.
https://foreternia.com/2021/12/motu-...-three-changes

And also, let's go directly to the source. On the official Netflix series page, the official synopsis:

"After a calamitous battle fractures Eternia, Teela and an unlikely alliance must prevent the end of the Universe in this sequel to the ’80s classic."
https://www.netflix.com/title/81154670

Originally Posted by Voodoo Magic

Good advice.

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This is actually incorrect my friend. Producer Ted Biaselli (Kevin's boss) said all the Filmation episodes count in the Revelation continuity.
https://foreternia.com/2021/12/motu-...-three-changes

And also, let's go directly to the source. On the official Netflix series page, the official synopsis:

"After a calamitous battle fractures Eternia, Teela and an unlikely alliance must prevent the end of the Universe in this sequel to the ’80s classic."
https://www.netflix.com/title/81154670

From the get go it is obvious it can’t be a sequel, from episode 1 it’s obvious and “sequel to the ‘80s classic’ also is as vague as the plot in a David Lynch film. There were four parallel stories in the 80s. Glut, which it was obviously not a sequel to, the DC comic stories, the mini comics following Glut that also included the story books developed by Mattel and Filmation, which the Marvel comics sorta followed. Of those four materials to choose from Revelation sure leaned pretty heavy on those mini comics and story books didn’t it? Like really heavy. Filmation? Not so much. DC stories? Adam was wearing Magenta, not blue and didn’t use the cave. So it paid some homage to Filmation but not anymore tHan the Mattel comics did. But then technically Biaselli isn’t wrong because there isn’t really all that much to Filmation when you look at it is there? It isn’t deep, it doesn’t have a strong lore to it. It doesn’t get too much into the background. It’s very saccharine. I will admit I was one of those kids who initially watched it and was not happy with how much it changed from the mini comics but I learned to really like it as it went on but I recognize it’s weaknesses and why they were hamstrung and why the stories were so shallow as a result. Not sure if it was just me but Thundercats and D&D, which came later, seemed to take the lessons from He-man and produced some really mature themed episodes and some continuity to them as well where it felt like time was moving forward.


Even though, those three changes are pretty major and pretty much nullify Filmation’s foundation. While the general idea of the stories could still exist, the events could still vaguely be there, it’s like post One More Day Spider-man where the small changes mentioned are big changes later. For example he’s wrong because in Filmation Duncan isn’t Teela’s natural father. He IS in Revelation. That’s a fourth change. There are plenty more as well that I can’t rattle off the top of my head at the moment but that’s a fairly major one. Cringer’s backstory is also different I believe.

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Originally Posted by Dice

I came home Wednesday evening after a great round of golf and binged episodes 5 to the end. That was my plan for the day.
Maybe no one else but for me as a fan, it left me feeling beat down and disappointed. Embarrassed even. I told my sons not to even bother watching it. I had a hard time sleeping that night just because of how badly I felt the show represented MOTU lore and franchise.
I'm embarrassed to think that a lot of my friends that know I'm a big He-man fan will possibly watch this series and think that's what I've been in to this whole time.

Man, your experience mirrors my own in 2007 to the tee!!!
I worked at a call center back then. Few nerds there, mostly I had vapid "every blonde woman joke ever" colleagues and many, many "dudebros" who only talked about sports and women.
So me being the geek who sometimes brought in Transformers figures with him, I was the weirdo whom not many people talked to or made fun of behind his back.
Then Michael Bay's Bayformers came out with Baysplosions, and suddenly the dudebros were lapping my back like I was one of them, telling me how awesome Transformers is.
One literally told me, being brutally honest, and I remember to this day "Man I always thought Transformers was so lame and wondered why you were a fan, but now that I have seen the movie, I suddenly know why!" And I did not have the heart to tell him that movie had so little to do with why I love Transformers, it hurts.

Originally Posted by BB Shockwave

Man, your experience mirrors my own in 2007 to the tee!!!
I worked at a call center back then. Few nerds there, mostly I had vapid "every blonde woman joke ever" colleagues and many, many "dudebros" who only talked about sports and women.
So me being the geek who sometimes brought in Transformers figures with him, I was the weirdo whom not many people talked to or made fun of behind his back.
Then Michael Bay's Bayformers came out with Baysplosions, and suddenly the dudebros were lapping my back like I was one of them, telling me how awesome Transformers is.
One literally told me, being brutally honest, and I remember to this day "Man I always thought Transformers was so lame and wondered why you were a fan, but now that I have seen the movie, I suddenly know why!" And I did not have the heart to tell him that movie had so little to do with why I love Transformers, it hurts.

I totally get that man! I like them for what they are but they aren’t the magic of that original G1 series and movie or even the Japanese follow ups like Headmasters and Super God Masterforce! I need… nay… DEMAND… a Commander class God Ginrai and Overlord figures with intact Godmaster gimmicks and a line of Headmaster Jr figures that aren’t just reissues of the Titan Master line.


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Originally Posted by Parzival

From the get go it is obvious it can’t be a sequel, from episode 1 it’s obvious and “sequel to the ‘80s classic’ also is as vague as the plot in a David Lynch film.

Don't know what to say. Ted is a HUGE fan of the Filmation series, is the reason Revelation exists, and wanted to make an adult sequel to it and feel like he did when he was a kid, where any character could die in any episode.

If it helps, here is Kevin Smith confirming it:

KEVIN: "Narratively our show is set up as the next episode in the legacy '80s animated series that aired from 1983-1985. This is a continuation of that story. We're playing with the original mythology and characters, and revisiting and digging deeper into some of the unresolved storylines."
https://comicbook.com/anime/amp/news...mith-explains/

So there you go.

Later it appeared they had to back off being so blatant about it, so Filmation wouldn't sue, because technically Revelation can't be an official sequel. Only a spiritual sequel will avoid those lawsuits!

For example he’s wrong because in Filmation Duncan isn’t Teela’s natural father. He IS in Revelation.

That falls under one of his changes.

All I'm gonna say is that I walked into watching the show hoping to get a feeling of nostalgia and just plain fun due to the "sequel" thing, and took away nothing but feelings of uneasiness and disappointment.

Originally Posted by Voodoo Magic

Don't know what to say. Ted is a HUGE fan of the Filmation series, is the reason Revelation exists, and wanted to make an adult sequel to it and feel like he did when he was a kid, where any character could die in any episode.

If it helps, here is Kevin Smith confirming it:

KEVIN: "Narratively our show is set up as the next episode in the legacy '80s animated series that aired from 1983-1985. This is a continuation of that story. We're playing with the original mythology and characters, and revisiting and digging deeper into some of the unresolved storylines."
https://comicbook.com/anime/amp/news...mith-explains/

So there you go.

Later it appeared they had to back off being so blatant about it, so Filmation wouldn't sue, because technically Revelation can't be an official sequel. Only a spiritual sequel will avoid those lawsuits!



That falls under one of his changes.

Filmation doesn’t exist. They were dissolved by L’Oréal when they bought them. L’Oréal sold the library to Hallmark who sold it to Entertainment Rights who became Classic Media and was then sold to Dreamworks and became a division of Dreamworks called Dreamworks Classics now part of NBCUniversal who own She-Ra and the original He-man cartoon and laWyers PROBABLY told them they needed to back off and change things to avoid having to pay Dreamworks royalties beyond the royalties for characters like Orko who was created by Filmation. So yeah they probably intended an actual sequel and had to squeak the breaks and make changes. No disputing that which meant back pedaling and thus the mini comic backstory elements coming into it so heavy vs the Filmation elements. There are 0 Filmation back story elements in Revelation and 1 Filmation character… Orko. Any other similarities were already shared from the Mattel story Bible for MOTU.

What I find interesting is that while it uses elements of 200x with some obvious modifications it doesn’t use anything from the Classics era nor does it use the Skeletor=Keldor bits.

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Originally Posted by Parzival

Filmation doesn’t exist. They were dissolved by L’Oréal when they bought them. L’Oréal sold the library to Hallmark who sold it to Entertainment Rights who became Classic Media and was then sold to Dreamworks and became a division of Dreamworks called Dreamworks Classics now part of NBCUniversal who own She-Ra and the original He-man cartoon and laWyers PROBABLY told them they needed to back off and change things to avoid having to pay Dreamworks royalties beyond the royalties for characters like Orko who was created by Filmation. So yeah they probably intended an actual sequel and had to squeak the breaks and make changes. No disputing that which meant back pedaling and thus the mini comic backstory elements coming into it so heavy vs the Filmation elements. There are 0 Filmation back story elements in Revelation and 1 Filmation character… Orko. Any other similarities were already shared from the Mattel story Bible for MOTU.

This is conjecture to me and I have to disagree. All the Filmation episodes have been stated as counting in Revelation continuity AFTER the series was written and went into production and in many cases, already streaming.

As a huge Filmation fan, I found the show followed the Filmation lore closely. And when things did not have explanations in the Filmation show (which was a lot), like the origin of Castle Grayskull, that's when they looked and pulled from other sources (like the 1983 LP in that instance). No Vahalla and Hell in Filmation? Let's use the names and modify "Preternia" and "Subternia." They pulled from and nodded multiple MOTU sources when they were expanding into new territory. Adding Pigboy from the 87 film into the series doesn't mean they are not continuing Filmation lore... if you get my drift. Now Skeletor was referred to as a Demon from another dimension in Filmation, so Keldor is off the table. But adding new elements taken from multiple iterations of this IP doesn't mean it's not a continuation of Filmation.

But there were fundamental alterations that only fit with the mini comic continuity and not at all with Filmation. You can’t have your cake and eat it too. It is not a continuation nor is it an erasure. It’s a spiritual successor like Spider-man movies are a successor to Lee and Ditko. Same premise, similar backgrounds, similar touchstones, different though.


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Originally Posted by Parzival

But there were fundamental alterations that only fit with the mini comic continuity and not at all with Filmation.

What are the fundamental alterations that only fit with the mini comics, not Filmation. Can you briefly list them for me?

Originally Posted by Voodoo Magic

What are the fundamental alterations that only fit with the mini comics, not Filmation. Can you briefly list them for me?

Yeah, the change to Roboto being one off the top of my head you already mentioned.


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Originally Posted by Parzival

Yeah, the change to Roboto being one off the top of my head you already mentioned.

Is that really a fundamental alteration that suddenly disqualifies Revelation from being a Filmation sequel though? Roboto was in only one Filmation episode where Man-at-Arms did rebuild him, and Orko even joked Man-at-Arms was Roboto's father. Revelation just left out Roboto originally was from a different planet. In the mini comics, he was built with a heart and emotions - not quite a like for like there. So I'm not sure how this alteration can be considered "fundamental" from any angle.

In contrast, with the mini comics, now that is where some actual fundamental changes were made within itself, based on outside media.

Originally Posted by Parzival

There are 0 Filmation back story elements in Revelation and 1 Filmation character… Orko. Any other similarities were already shared from the Mattel story Bible for MOTU.

There is no Mattel story bible for MOTU.

All Mattel had at the beginning were the first figures and a playset. If you actually look up the Mattel info, that is mainly "He-Man is good guy. Skeletor is bad guy. There is also Castle Grayskull that has mystery and power."

Actual proper story elements were introduced by Michael Halperin in Filmation Series Bible. As well as DC Comics, who (april 8th, 1982) had Cringer, Prince Adam, King and Queen, Palace etc show up. DC also did the wave2 minicomics, so you have King and Queen, Royal Palace showing up there as well. These were not originally in any Mattel story. And the first guy who wrote things for Mattel, Don Glut has mentioned interviews that he had some freedom to come up with names (Eternia) and such.

To say there is zero Filmation backstories in Revelation just doesn't hold up. They may not be direct-like-carved-in-stone, but a lot is referenced from it. Or it is used as the backdrop upon which Revelation is built over. True, it's not like "number 131 of Filmation episode", don't get me wrong. So the "spiritual successor" term might be closest. But its not BOUND by it. So you do get references to golden books, minicomics, 2002 show and modern DC Comics.

What I find interesting is that while it uses elements of 200x with some obvious modifications it doesn’t use anything from the Classics era nor does it use the Skeletor=Keldor bits.

The netflix CGI series already used the "Skeletor is Keldor" story aspect. So for Revelation that was somewhat off-limits, as Smith has said. Meaning they went with the original minicomic/Filmation idea of "demon from another dimension". In that case, they are serving both origins to fans.

As for Classics... well you get a snippet here and there. Panthor has that helmet that was made up for Classics only. Clamp Champ is referred by "real name" and in the tie-in comic there is the connection of ancient Trollan magic with creation of the Powersword.

Originally Posted by VelvetPython

It just occurred to me- there was no moral at the end of Revelation. I guess you don't have to hit every trope but it wouldn't be out of place with all the other easter eggs.

Here are a few ideas:

He-Man: "Remember kids, it is NOT okay to abuse your girlfriend and threaten her, like Skeletor did to Evil-Lyn. She'll eventually try to betray you and then destroy the universe, and that'd be a real bummer! Until next time!"
Teela: "Remember how the Sorceress, my mother, could never leave Castle Grayskull, and sacrificed everything to serve and protect Eternia? When it was my turn to take her place and make the same pledge, I realized these rules do not apply to me - because I am special, and because the power of friendship can do anything! So remember, whenever you are forced to make sacrifices in life, stand tall and say 'I defy your rules, fate!' and everything will go your way!"
Andra: "Would you believe it I am Man-at-Arms now, leader of Eternia's army? And just a few days ago, I was a scavenger and tinkerer! But, I was friends with the right people, so even though I never accomplished any major feat, I rose in the ranks quickly due to my connections! Remember kids, always befriend the right people!"
Evil-Lyn: "Everyone can have a bad day. See how I ended up destroying Preternia and then almost the whole universe, because I projected my personal issues on to everyone else, not just the responsible people? Luckily Teela talked me out of it, or I'd feel really bad right now... or would not exist at all. So remember, when you are feeling down, go tell your parents or friends what bothers you - don't let the grudges fester, or you might say some bad words to those you love, or try to destroy the world!"
Beast-Man: "Every boy knows what it's like if you like a girl very much but don't have the courage to tell her about your feelings. You fear something bad could happen and she would reject you? Well, look at me, I did not tell Evil-Lyn how I felt, I just followed her and agreed to whatever she asked of me, and now I am a giant dog, falling down an endless chasm. Don't be shy, boys, tell her how you feel!"
Blast Attack: "Hey kids. Remember when Teela hit my self destruct button and I blew up? And I don't even have a Heaven to go to, since Evil-Lyn destroyed that! So I am a robot ghost now, haunting Tri-Klops for all eternity. Heed my fate and learn from it, never label your weakness or draw attention to it!"

Originally Posted by BB Shockwave

Andra: "Would you believe it I am Man-at-Arms now, leader of Eternia's army? And just a few days ago, I was a scavenger and tinkerer! But, I was friends with the right people, so even though I never accomplished any major feat, I rose in the ranks quickly due to my connections! Remember kids, always befriend the right people!"

I mean... for better or worse that IS in fact how life works, so snark aside that's actually probably the best "lesson" any iteration of MOTU ever presented, either overtly or subliminally. Or at the very least, the one with the most applicable usefulness in Real Life.

Perhaps not a "nice" lesson, but definitely a useful one for sure.

Originally Posted by Rikki Roxx

I mean... for better or worse that IS in fact how life works, so snark aside that's actually probably the best "lesson" any iteration of MOTU ever presented, either overtly or subliminally. Or at the very least, the one with the most applicable usefulness in Real Life.

Perhaps not a "nice" lesson, but definitely a useful one for sure.

Agreed. There's a difference between a lesson to teach how things should be and a lesson that teaches how things really ARE. Both can be valuable.

Originally Posted by Stratos88

SPOP, not POP. I'd have no objections to POP being thrown in. It's the horribly divisive Netflix She-Ra nonsense that wouldn't fit in Revelation whatsoever and apparently that's what Smith wants to throw in. Because he hasn't drawn enough ire from the fans.

LOL for reals??? That show has so little to do with the real MOTU and POP shows, Mattel basically just threw their hands in the air and let Netflix do whatever they want, they did not even make a toyline (just a few toys basically at the last minute when the show ended) knowing the target audience of tumblr/twitter-addicts would never support the show by buying their toys.
If they bring that show into Revelation, well... It would make this an even bigger trainwreck than it is now.

Originally Posted by BB Shockwave

LOL for reals??? That show has so little to do with the real MOTU and POP shows, Mattel basically just threw their hands in the air and let Netflix do whatever they want, they did not even make a toyline (just a few toys basically at the last minute when the show ended) knowing the target audience of tumblr/twitter-addicts would never support the show by buying their toys.
If they bring that show into Revelation, well... It would make this an even bigger trainwreck than it is now.

Netflix POP and Revelation would be absolutely amazing and magical together.

Originally Posted by BB Shockwave

LOL for reals??? That show has so little to do with the real MOTU and POP

If they bring that show into Revelation, well... It would make this an even bigger trainwreck than it is now.

Trainwreck ? Really.... I really don't want to see SPOP mixed with Revelations either ( even if with some story modifications they could fit together nicely) but your idea of an acceptable MOTU show that only lives in your head must be legendary...

Originally Posted by smanomega

Trainwreck ? Really.... I really don't want to see SPOP mixed with Revelations either ( even if with some story modifications they could fit together nicely) but your idea of an acceptable MOTU show that only lives in your head must be legendary...

Yep, the hyperbole is strong with that one!

Originally Posted by Rikki Roxx

The unfortunate side effect of that being, I'm pretty sure it's the last cartoon we'll ever get that bears any resemblance at all to the original MOTU aesthetic. Partly BECAUSE this show was such a failure. What I'm expecting to happen is that Netflix, Mattel and the other "powers that be" simply decide that "MOTU isn't popular in its 'old-school' form". First they'll quietly cancel Masterverse, then Origins. With Masterverse, they'll say that since the show and the line were so intertwined, despite their goals to branch out into other areas of MOTU lore, the show not being a bigger hit forced them to end the line. With "Origins", they'll simply say the line ran its course and remind everyone that it had already gone on longer than initially planned.

LOOOOL dude. You need to stop being so gloomy.
See if things worked like this, Transformers would be all Bayformers and Cyberverse today. Yet it isn't, the "classics" line that re-makes G1, Beast Wars, Armada, Prime, comic-exclusive characters is stronger then ever. For 6 years now we had the Prime Wars trilogy of toys, and then War For Cybertron.
... And this is DESPITE how the cartoons associated with these toylines were the WORST Transformers shows ever. Prime Wars, by Machinima, gave us such wonders as Combiners whose limbs never transform, an Overlord who was basically the "Yee-Haw!" Texan from Simpsons, angry idiot Windblade, and tired old man Optimus Prime, as well as characters voiced by random youtubers. All that with animation that was the cheapest cell shaded look money can buy. And War For Cybertron, by Rooster Teeth... well, if you have seen their other creations like RWBY, you know what their standard is, but just check youtube for memes of "Say that you forgive me, Megatron-Sempai!" by the world's most incompetent, young and angry Optimus Prime, and classic characters voiced by random staff members they grabbed.
So basically, the reception of these shows by the fandom was about as bad as Revelation's. And the toyline not only endures, it flourishes, with Hasbro starting kickstarters to produce toys like Unicron or Star Saber for the die-hard fans.
I would not worry about Masterverse or Origins ending anytime soon. Revelations might had a bad reception, but so did the 2007 Transformers movie, it still did its part making many people remember the franchise again. Netflix gets to even more people than movies, so I am betting toy sales are better than ever now.

It's nearing 2 months since part 2 dropped. Netflix sure has been quiet with regards to another season...

Originally Posted by Durendal

It's nearing 2 months since part 2 dropped. Netflix sure has been quiet with regards to another season...

Kevin Smith said he'll let us know when he knows, so I guess they're still mulling over the data.

I wouldn't at all bet on a season two, but the fact that it wasn't quickly terminated like Cowboy Bebop probably means it's a good thing in regards to Revelation being some degree of a success, regardless what happens.

What old school fans think of the new She-ra doesn’t matter. It clicked with its target audience so you all really should get over it.


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Originally Posted by Parzival

What old school fans think of the new She-ra doesn’t matter. It clicked with its target audience so you all really should get over it.


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New SPOP fan alert lol

fight! Fight! FIGHT!

J/K I don't care about it as much as I do Revelations getting the green light for around of episodes.