Warning! Spoilers for Masters of the Universe: Revelation and Masters of the Universe: Revolution.
Summary
- He-Man and Skeletor take center stage in Masters of the Universe: Revolution, addressing fan criticism from the previous series.
- Revolution's better characterization of key characters and impactful world-building set it apart from its predecessor.
- The series' faithful character designs, introduction of new villains, and streamlined storytelling make it a hit with fans.
After the somewhat frosty fan reception to the original Netflix series, Masters of the Universe: Revolution has managed to win over returning fans with some notable improvements. Predecessor series Masters of the Universe: Revelation garnered some negative buzz on its release in 2021, upsetting long-time He-Man fans with its dramatic changes to the core story of Eternia's warriors. It seems as though creator Kevin Smith took these lessons to heart, leading to Masters of the Universe: Revolution having a much more favorable fan reception.
Re-inventing the original beloved characters and locations from the iconic Masters of the Universe '80s cartoon, Masters of the Universe: Revelation made big changes to the core concepts of a He-Man story. Masters of the Universe: Revelation vastly underestimated fans' attachment to iconic names like He-Man and Skeletor, egregiously writing them out of the story early on and upsetting prospective viewers. After this perceived slight, it was an uphill battle for Revelation to maintain interest, which Revolution seems to have finally won back.
9 Revolution Puts Big Names Like He-Man And Skeletor Front And Center
The universe's biggest players are given time to shine
Masters of the Universe: Revelation garnered controversy for immediately killing off Prince Adam and Skeletor within the space of the very first episode, leaving the sorceress Teela to instead serve as the primary protagonist. Even if He-Man's name wasn't technically in the show's title, it's hard to fault returning fans for being upset that the central character of the franchise was so quickly tossed aside. Luckily, Masters of the Universe: Revolution took this into , bringing He-Man and Skeletor back into the spotlight as the central protagonist and antagonist.
It Took 40 Years, But Masters Of The Universe Finally Made An Iconic He-Man Design Canon
In He-Man's 40-plus years of existence, Masters of the Universe has shied away from canonizing one iconic He-Man design — Revolution changes that.
8 Revolution Had Better Characterization
Revelation didn't do much to develop its flagship characters
In all fairness, Masters of the Universe: Revelation wasn't completely bereft of great characterization, providing more insight and depth into ing characters of the franchise than ever before. In particular, Teela's journey from doubt and indecision in the wake of her allies' deception to ultimately deciding to keep fighting for Eternia's future was the biggest development the character had gotten in years. However, the series was mostly focused on the journey to restore magic back into the land of Eternia and undo the damage Skeletor had caused, with internal conflicts taking a backseat overall.
Evil-Lyn's ultimate redemption as a Cosmic Enforcer after spending most of Revelation as the primary villain was an unexpected but welcome arc...
Meanwhile, by the end of Masters of the Universe: Revolution, several satisfying character arcs had come to fruition, with the benefit of added time to simmer since the release of the second batch of Revelation episodes. Evil-Lyn's ultimate redemption as a Cosmic Enforcer after spending most of Revelation as the primary villain was an unexpected but welcome arc, proving that Masters of the Universe villains don't have to be one-dimensional. Likewise, Price Adam's own struggle in choosing between his desire to continue doing good as He-Man and his royal responsibilities added more nuance to his heroism.
7 Revolution Had A Lasting Impact On Eternia
The homeworld of the Masters of the Universe will never be the same
Even if Masters of the Universe: Revolution did walk things back on some of Revelation's more controversial developments to the lore and core story, the Netflix series still wasn't afraid to make big changes to the world-building of the franchise. The end of the series saw the resurrection of Preternia, giving all the fallen heroes of the world a second chance to make a big impact in the final moments of the season. Not only that, but Revolution also addressed the political upheaval of Prince Adam stepping down as monarch, meaning that Eternia was a democracy for the first time.
6 Teela Is Done Better In Revolution
The follow-up series was sure to address the shortcomings of its former protagonist
Despite taking over for He-Man as the series' primary protagonist in Masters of the Universe: Revelation, Teela's incarnation in the first series was not looked upon favorably by most viewers. In fact, if Teela had been portrayed differently, Revelation's decision to swap out Prince Adam for his sorceress protector as the primary perspective character might not have been so poorly received. Unfortunately, Teela came across as unlikable, entitled, and too easily discouraged in Revelation, along with many other questionable changes to her classic personality.
Masters of the Universe: Revolution took these criticisms to heart, almost completely overhauling their depiction of Teela while still keeping her around as a secondary protagonist next to Prince Adam. The second time around, Teela's attitude and decisions were much more in line with the wise mentor figure of the original '80s cartoon. Revolution even recast Teela's voice actress to mark the change, bringing in the talents of Melissa Benoist of Supergirl fame to better serve the character's new direction.
5 The Character Designs Are More Faithful To The Original
Revolution's slight art-style shift was a welcome sight
Masters of the Universe: Revelation premiered with a slick art style, making the most of Netflix's long history with animation to bring the colorful world of Eternia back to the small screen once again. While the first series' animation was perfectly serviceable, it's hard not to agree that something was lost in the toning-down of He-Man's larger-than-life cast, re-proportioning physiques and costume designs to be a touch more realistic. Revolution's slight but noticeable change in art style helped return the series to the fantastical muscle masses and unbelievable outfits the franchise was originally known for, much to audiences' delight.
Revolution's slight but noticeable change in art style helped return the series to the fantastical muscle masses and unbelievable outfits the franchise was originally known for.
4 Revolution Teased She-Ra
Adora's possible inclusion opens up a whole new world
Despite being originally created as a female answer to He-Man existing within the same universe, She-Ra has existed outside the continuity of Kevin Smith's Masters of the Universe series, instead featuring in her own Netflix show, She-Ra & The Princess of Power. Smith cited legal licensing issues as having barred him from using the character in Masters of the Universe: Revelation (via She-Ra may have been introduced by Revolution already, something Revelation could only dream of alluding to.
3 Revolution Confirmed The Live-Action Movie As Canon
Revelation could only make vague references
The '80s live-action Masters of the Universe film starring Dolph Lundgren has seldom been mentioned by any He-Man media since, but Masters of the Universe: Revelation got fans thinking about the film again with some subtle teases, including some trademark lines and the film's unique flying disc vehicles. Revolution took things one step further by actually introducing an original character from the film, Gwildor. Not only that, but Gwildor and Man-At-Arms' conversation references the events of the movie, confirming as canon what Revelation could only tease.
2 Revolution Had Better Overarching Villains
Revelation's villainous forces were far too scattered
Obviously, Skeletor is the premiere villain when it comes to He-Man and the Masters of the Universe series. After the character was killed off early in Masters of the Universe: Revelation season 1, the series struggled to fill the antagonistic void, with names like Dark-Lyn and Scare Glow struggling to share the spotlight with Skeletor himself. Masters of the Universe: Revolution not only featured Skeletor more prominently but also introduced Hordak and Motherboard as consistently threatening villains that have more of a tactile presence.
1 The Shorter Season Streamlined The Story
Netflix's limitations wound up working in Revolution's favor
Across the two parts of Masters of the Universe: Revelation, Kevin Smith and his team released a total of ten episodes, with each part containing five installments apiece. When Netflix cut Revolution down to five episodes, Smith and his team were forced to trim the fat of the plot, resulting in a leaner narrative that spends less time going on fetch quests and confusing side tangents compared to Revelation. Overall, Masters of the Universe: Revolution wound up being the better story, turning its imposed limitations into a strength.
All five episodes of Masters of the Universe: Revolution are available to stream on Netflix.
Sources: Den of Geek
Masters of the Universe: Revolution
- Release Date
- 2024 - 2024-00-00
- Cast
- Melissa Benoist
- Showrunner
- Kevin Smith
- Franchise(s)
- Masters of the Universe
- Seasons
- 1
- Streaming Service(s)
- Netflix
