He-Man in action film
In 1987, Cannon Films produced a Live-action film Masters of the Universe which features Dolph Lundgren in the role of He-Man which was a commercial failure at the cinema.
In this film, Prince Adam is not seen at all, and only He-Man is shown. This He-Man was much more aggressive than his 1980s TV series counterpart, attacking with lasers, his sword, and bare fists several times throughout the film. The film ends with a spectacular and violent clash with Skeletor, which ended with Skeletor being flung deep beneath Castle Grayskull, to a pit filled with steaming liquid, presumably highly heated water. The film ended in a post-credits scene with Skeletor emerging from the liquid and proclaiming 'I'll be back!'
Although it holds little to no connection to the 1980s series, the film can be considered a bridge between the 1980s television show and The New Adventures of He-Man, which depicted Skeletor as looking like his first toy figurine, with mechanical components implanted into his body, injuries that could have been explained from this battle with He-Man.
The New Adventures of He-Man
After the demise of the MOTU toy line, Mattel attempted to reinvigorate interest in He-Man by producing a new toy line, simply titled He-Man.
The accompanying storyline in the mini comics packaged with the figures explained that He-Man had now left Eternia and pursued Skeletor into the depths of space, where Skeletor had now set his sights on conquering the distant world of Primus, a planet with high technological resources. He-Man was shown to have given up the identity of Prince Adam altogether to permanently become He-Man, basing himself on the world of Primus where he had allied with a team of defenders known as the Galactic Guardians and become their leader.
He-Man's appearance was re-designed for the new toy line, with a space helmet and golden armor added to his attire to give him a more futuristic appearance, and his sword was also completely redesigned. In the insert comics issued early in the toy line's run, He-Man begins to transform, only to be grabbed by Skeletor, who was astonished to see that Prince Adam was casting some kind of strange spell, not realizing he was about to transform into He-Man.
Still holding onto Adam, Skeletor was caught in a backwash of power as the comic proclaimed 'Prince Adam is no more. Long Live He-Man!' As such, He-Man is directly responsible for Skeletor's cybernetic chest plate seen on the figurine.
A cartoon series was produced by Jetlag Productions to accompany the toy line, titled The New Adventures of He-Man. Although generally in-keeping with the story line from the mini-comics, with certain deviations, such as Skeletor already having the cybernetic chest plate and never discovering that Prince Adam and He-Man were the same person, this series maintained the double identity of Prince Adam and He-Man.
On the world of Primus, Prince Adam posed as a travelling merchant and the nephew of the character of Master Sebrian in order to disguise his secret identity. His transformation oath was also altered slightly to become "By the Power of Eternia".
2002 series
To tie-in with a new line of revamped action figures based upon the original toy line, a new He-Man cartoon series was produced in 2002-03 by Mike Young Productions, again titled He-Man and the Masters of the Universe.
This series retold the MOTU story from the very start. He-Man's origin was told in a 3-part episode that began the series, in which the 16-year-old Prince Adam is summoned to Castle Grayskull by The Sorceress to take upon the identity of He-Man and the role of Eternia's defender. The portrayal of his character in this series was mostly consistent with Filmation's portrayal, although the character of Prince Adam was shown to be much more brash and youthfully energetic than his 1980s counterpart, to convey the image of a teenage boy saddled with the overwhelming responsibility of defending the entire planet from evil.
The Adam/He-Man character was also significantly redesigned to give each dramatically different appearances to make the character's secret identity more credible. The second season episode "The Power of Grayskull" also revealed He-Man to be a descendant of King Grayskull, an all-powerful barbarian hero from Eternia's ancient past, who sacrificed his life to save Eternia from the Evil Horde and was the original wielder of the Sword of Power. He was the original owner of Castle Grayskull, and his sword was concealed in the castle for centuries before being given to Prince Adam, who inherits his ancestor's own power which is channeled through the sword (thus giving an alternate meaning for the phrase "By the Power of Grayskull").
Actors who have played He-Man
In the 1980s series, He-Man is voiced by John Erwin. In the 1987 live-action feature film, he is played by Dolph Lundgren. Gary Chalk provides the voice of He-Man for the 1989 series The New Adventures of He-Man, and later the voice of Man-At-Arms for the 2002 series.
He does not provide the voice of Prince Adam; Adam is instead voiced by Doug Parker, unlike the 1983 and 2002 series, where Adam and He-Man were voiced by the same actor. In the 2002 series, He-Man is voiced by Cam Clarke.
Powers and abilities
He-Man is characterized by his incredible strength. In the intro sequence of the 1980s cartoon series he claims to be "The Most Powerful Man in the Universe". Similar wording is also used in early packaging of He-Man toys.
He-Man's strength is an issue rarely tackled and seems to vary depending on the adaptation. In his first DC comics appearance he was able to trade punches with Superman. And in one episode, he even lifted and was able to throw Castle Grayskull itself - when it was transported to another dimension. He threw it from one dimension through a space corridor back to Eternia, though this was the result of a temporary increase in power. He-Man also has been attributed to be as strong as he wills or believes himself to be.
He also has abilities granted via the power of Grayskull that are untapped and yet to be discovered. Another thing about some of his powers from the secrets of Grayskull are that, what ever the challenge the powers of Grayskull will give him new armor and weapons to defeat his enemies.
Typical of most adaptations is that He-Man is often shown successfully attempting feats deemed impossible by other characters. Episodes of the original cartoon also depict him as being able to swim at a far faster rate than is humanly possible.
Physical Prowess
It is unknown if there is a limit to how long He-Man can remain He-Man before he reverts back to his original form of Adam; but in the 2002 series, He-Man is shown enduring the brunt of the Ram Stone of Zalasia, a gem whose mystic force can pierce any barrier or topple any obstruction.
He survives, but reverts back to Adam in the process. Also when in combat against the Snake God, Serpos, He-Man was struck by the giant entity's tail and sent crashing into a mountain. When he fell to the ground, he was again in Adam's form. This suggests that even He-Man has a limit as to how much abuse he can endure before his superhuman strength and stamina are exhausted.
His physical prowess is not limited to strength, however, and he is also depicted as being extremely fast and acrobatic.
On the other hand, He-Man as a character is largely non-violent and usually only resorts to combat as a last resort, often preferring to outsmart his adversaries, his most violent actions typically consist of body throws.
As per broadcast standards of the period, in the Filmation cartoon, He-Man was not allowed to use his sword as an offensive weapon. Nor was he allowed to directly punch or kick anyone. He was only allowed to destroy robotic enemies.
The 1987 film and 2002 series show him fighting more aggressively. He-Man is also depicted as a leader, most noticeably in the movie adaptation where he is referred to as the leader of the resistance. Sometimes He-Man's intellect appears to cross a point not within his character, but this usually happened in the original 80s cartoon.
He-Man's primary weapon is his sword, but he also uses other weapons, such as a laser-gun in the film, and equipment while battling his foes. His sword is apparently totally indestructible and able to deflect bolts of energy both magical and technological.
In addition, the sword gives him the ability to transform him from Prince Adam into He-Man and back by utilizing the powers of Castle Grayskull.
He also uses the sword to transform Cringer into Battlecat. Originally He-Man's primary weapon was an axe. The chest piece on his battle harness is made of an Eternian mineral called Corodite that helps add to his physical strength.