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Masters of the Universe Revelation #1 features a character who looks an awful lot like Skeletor playing an important role in ancient Eternian history.
Warning: The following contains spoilers for Masters of the Universe Revelation #1 by Kevin Smith, Rob David, Tim Sheridan, Mindy Lee, Rico Renzi and Deron Bennett, on sale now.
The upcoming Netflix animated series Masters of the Universe Revelation will bring He-Man and his fellow Eternians back into the spotlight starting on July 23rd. In anticipation of the show’s release, Dark Horse Comics released Masters of the Universe Revelation #1, the first issue of a prequel series to Kevin Smith’s animated show. Tim Sheridan and Mindy Lee’s comic reintroduces the iconic cast of characters and explores the ancient history of Eternia, which appears to include one of Skeletor’s ancient ancestors.
Masters of the Universe Revelation follows He-Man on a journey through the cosmic corridor back into Eternia’s past. He observes the origins of his sword of power. King Grayskull begs the gods to forge him a weapon strong enough to defeat an interdimensional monster called the Orlax of Primeria. They agree to imbue a weapon with their powers, but they warn that no ordinary material will be strong enough. They tell King Grayskull that he needs to acquire “dark ore,” so the courageous king journeys across Eternia to obtain the ore from a “demon” with a haunting green skull and a purple cloak. The skeletal specter gives Grayskull the ore, but it is implied that he expects something in return.
This heinous character appears to be related to He-Man’s nemesis Skeletor. Their physical resemblance is uncanny, and their personalities seem quite comparable. This being’s role in the history of the power sword adds a new layer of complexity to Skeletor’s quest to take over Castle Grayskull, and implies that the rivalry between Skeletor and He-Man may be part of a multi-generational feud. However, the idea of Skeletor being a descendant of a long line of skull-faced villains contradicts the villain’s origins in previous Masters of the Universe stories.
Many of the details surrounding Skeletor’s origins have remained shrouded in mystery throughout the history of the Masters of the Universe franchise. Little is known about his extended family. In the mini-comics that accompanied Mattel’s first line of He-Man toys from 1981 to 1983, Skeletor is revealed to be from another dimension populated with creatures just like him. He arrived in Eternia after falling through a hole in the dimensional wall. The 1983 Filmation animated series incorporated the interdimensional angle and added Hordak, Skeletor’s evil mentor.
The 1986 minicomic The Search for Keldor by Steven Grant and Bruce Timm rewrote Skeletor’s origins to imply that he was actually Keldor, the long-lost brother of King Randor. This iteration of the villain was explored further by Cartoon Network’s 2002 He-Man and the Masters of the Universe series and 2012’s Masters of the Universe: Origin of Skeletor by Joshua Hale Fialkov and Frazer Irving, published by DC Comics – both of which depict Keldor betraying his brother Randor in an attempt to rule Eternia by himself. Keldor’s face is burned with acid in the ensuing battle, and he is saved by Hordak, who re-christens him Skeletor.
All of these explanations of Skeletor’s origin revolve around him being one of a kind, but Masters of the Universe Revelation #1 gives him a family of creatures like him on Eternia. Of course, it is possible that they still hail from another dimension, but Skeletor clearly isn’t the first member of the family to arrive. Similarly, Skeletor could still be King Randor’s brother, but it is likely that his face has always looked the way it does without any injuries or help from Hordak.
Skeletor’s history may always be shrouded in a degree of mystery, but the appearance of his historic look-a-like may be the key to understanding his rivalry with He-Man and the other heroes of Castle Grayskull. This first look at the fiend’s extended family contrasts sharply with previous iterations of the character’s history and paves the way for a new history of Skeletor and Eternia.
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