He-Man is now considered a staple of geek culture, in fact it is often seen as an established pillar of the geek movement. It was an animated show, that in turn was birthed from small comic-like stories, which in turn were found inside the packaging of the Masters of The Universe action figures. The toys were Mattel trying to cash in on the success of other iconic action figure lines, such as those commissioned for franchises such as Star Wars. The only problem with this being that they chose to create an original cast of characters without a visual medium to back them up. Eventually this led to Mattel also commissioning an animated tv series to accompany, and further popularise He-Man and his cast of quirky friends. And of course, it was a triumphant success. So successful in fact, that He-Man began to eclipse Mattel’s other powerful property, a pretty Malibu girl called Barbie. So Mattel then decided to splinter the He-Man fandom and create a female orientated version, complete with new characters, villains and even a twin sister for He-Man’s Adam. From this came She-Ra: Princess of Power. Although the show was not as popular as it’s predecessor, it has since gained a cult following, with many recognising She-Ra as one of the first female superheroes to get her own show. And now, over three decades later, we have seen She-Ra return to the small screen – or at least Netflix anyway.
