Geek Review – Masters of the Universe: Revelation – Part 2 (Netflix)

Remember He-Man and the Masters of the Universe (MotU) where both He-Man and Skeletor simply disappeared from the story, and audiences spent the rest of the series following Teela as she searched for the missing Prince Adam?

Neither do we, but apparently, writer/director Kevin Smith did when he envisioned a revival of the 80s cartoon classic, with Revelation.

Now that the second part has landed and… do you remember when the first half where the guys in the show took a back seat, and Teela, together with Andra, and Evil Lynn stepped up and became the focus of the show, such that the new show could easily have been called Teela and Her Sisters Look For the Masters of the Universe?

Well, Part II is kind of like that, except we should be clear, and just call it Teela and Her Sisters Battle To Become Masters of the Universe. If you enjoyed the first part in its loose continuation of the original cartoon, you might like the second part where instead of a journey of discovery of Teela, Andra and several characters from the original show, you see Teela fulfil her destiny.

For those who skipped watching Part I in the misguided hope of catching all episodes in one sitting, all you know to know from the first half is that He-Man and Skeletor seemingly perish in the first episode, thus leaving Teela and team to locate He-Man, only to discover that Skeletor left a part of himself in Evil Lynn’s scepter, and with the return of good versus evil, the battle to become Master of the Universe was underway again, except this time, Skeletor emerged victorious, got hold of the Power Sword and called upon the power of Greyskull.

Those who disliked the first part won’t find any solace here, as Skeletor’s claim to the Power Sword gets off to a great start for all of two seconds, before his selfishness and stupidity kicks in and he makes it all about himself, in his long standing beef with He-Man. 

Like a new season of the 80s cartoon designed to sell toys, Part II focuses on several core characters, but brings in some new ones, though their roles are so insignificant, audiences are mainly stuck with He-Man (Chris Wood), Teela (Sarah Michelle Gellar), Man-At-Arms (Liam Cunningham), King Randor (Diedrich Bader), Queen Marlena (Alicia Silverstone), Beastman (Kevin Michael Richardson), Evil Lynn (Lena Headey).

If you discount the lack of continuity and links to the original animated cartoon, Revelation could have worked if it was honest in its efforts to expand upon Teela’s character. Fans have known for a long time that she is the daughter of the Sorceress but little has been touched on with regards to that widely known secret. It’s a nice approach in uncovering more about the secondary characters in the series, from Evil Lynn, Beastman and even Orko, but ultimately, all the revelations about the origins of the MotU aren’t necessary or are core to the series.

The one thing audiences will get from wrapping up the series, aside from how the characters progress and take on their new roles in the universe, is the coda at the end that brings us to a new chapter in Eternia’s history, where a new horde of characters and storytelling awaits.

We’re just not sure that given Smith’s approach, if this is something we want to see, of more main characters getting sidelined.