In 2005 at He-Man.org, the fans could post questions on the discussion forums and have Producer Ian Richter answer them about the 2002 animated He-Man series.
To give some context, the show had ended about a year early at this point and many fans were interested in getting the show on DVD. Many repeat this simply due to fans not reading previously made questions. The DVDs were released three years later finally in 2008.
These answers debunk the 2004-rumor of She-Ra being He-Man's daughter from the future. And confirm that Fisto was planned to be Teela's Dad and that Keldor and Randor were brothers. Both of which were never fully confirmed on-screen. Also the makers had plans to always come back to Skeletor being the ultimate villain, going up against King Hssss and defeating Hordak too.
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1. How involved were you in all storylines?
IR: Dean Stefan and I would break each story and the overall story arcs. When we were working with another writer, they would be part of the episode brainstorm as well.
2. How do you feel about She-Ra?
IR: Great. She is an important part of the He-Man mythology and our plan was always to include her when the time was right.
3. What were the future plans for a season three?
IR: He-Man and the Masters become renegades when Hordak returns and takes over Eternia.
4. What was your favorite episode?
IR: Power of Grayskull. There’s a good story behind it. Gary Hartle and I were sitting at lunch in mid-2001 and he told me how much he liked the original sculpture the Four Horsemen did of He-Man with long hair. I agreed and decided we should find a way to work it into the new series – but how? At that moment the concept of King Grayskull began to take shape on our lunch receipt. Gary and I fleshed out the story right there on the spot, then we called Dean on his cell phone.
One of our objectives with the new series was to improve the existing mythology and understand more about why the world existed as it did. I think we accomplished this goal with episodes such as the Power of Grayskull.
5. How were the writers of the episodes selected?
IR: The writers were selected based on their past experience writing action/adventure/fantasy shows.
6. How was Mike Young Productions selected?
IR: At the time we were exploring many options, but settled on MYP because we knew Mike Young, Liz Young and Bill Schultz would deliver a high-quality series for a reasonable budget. As I’m sure you all agree they did not disappoint.
7. Some episodes basically amounted to commercials, like the Dragon Walker, episode, and the Anwat Gar episode. Was the creative team opposed to doing these types of episodes? I assume that Mattel required that they were done.
(Not trying to be rude).
IR: Anwat Gar: From a story standpoint we wanted to explore many different aspects of Eternia – including ancient civilizations. Regarding the Dragon Walkers we thought it would be cool to see revisit the dragons from season 1 in some epic dramatic battles. We came up with the idea of the Dragon Walkers as a way for our heroes to be involved.
8. Does King Greyaskull replace He-ro, or would there still have been room for him in the MVC series?
IR: I think anything is possible in the world of Eternia as long as it fits the characters and the logic of the world. This was how we approached everything.
9. Will the new 'toon ever see release on DVD?
IR: Yes. Once we have more details, we will share them.
10. Were there any plans to expand the Horde beyond what was shown (whether or not She-Ra was really to play a part in that)?
IR: Yes. The plan was for Hordak to return from Despondos and take over Eternia.
11. What is MYP doing/are working on now?
IR: MYP is doing some great shows right now. Piggly Winks and Pet Alien are the two that immediately come to mind.
12. Is there any chance of a direct to video/DVD MOTU movie special?
IR: I personally would love to do one, but it would have to make financial sense. Don’t underestimate the power of the fans…
13. How were the episodes selected? Or, to put another way, how were episode ideas developed and then scripted? Were there any episodes that started out one way and ended up a totally different version? Were there any episodes that just "didn't make the cut?"
IR: The He-Man team would discuss series arcs, character arcs, etc… and map out the episodes accordingly. Then a writer would be assigned to write the episode under Dean’s supervision.
14. My main question that comes to mind is about Veena. How did she turn over Grayskull's protection to the Sorceress we know today, or is she the same Sorceress that was once King Grayskull's wife? In the King Grayskull episode when she first said there would come another guardian of Grayskull I got the impression that she speaking of Teela.
IR: Glad you liked it. Veena, like the Oracle and King Grayskull, is an ancestor of her contemporary.
15. Will tthe show that was released already be on dvds and 2 will it be possible to do more eps w the other seasons like other shows have done for more seasons on dvds only and let the really big fans get to watch and enjoy the series from there?
IR: Yes, the new show will come to DVD. Regarding more episodes, anything is possible – look at what happened with Family Guy.
16. I know it was HINTED that Fisto was Teela's father...was that going to be the case? if so...WHY? I mean not to step on anyone's toes but i think the idea that her real father was dead was a much better storyline...not EVERYTHING has to be a twist you know?
IR: When we decided to make Fisto and Duncan brothers (for dramatic reasons), we came up with the idea that Teela’s real father could be Fisto. We felt it worked on many levels.
17. Also why did you decide to make Duncan and Fisto brothers...I actually liked that idea as it brought some tension to the good guys
IR: To add depth to the relationships between the Masters of the Universe.
18. Why was the choice made to call the good guys the "Masters of the Universe"? Masters of the Universe is a GREAT name for a line but not for a team. it doesn't roll of the tongue like avengers or xmen etc. I think the idea that they were all masters of their respective traits (bad guys too) was much more appealing. (ie Heroic master of capture, evil master of escape etc)
IR: We wanted to work it into the show and felt that the title of “Masters of the Universe” fit the heroic superheroes of Eternia better than the heroes AND the villains (we also had cool names for them like Evil Horde, Snakemen, etc…)
19. Did mattel push to have more episodes made and did they see the cartoon as something more or just a way to advertise the toys?
Now I know there are people AT mattel that love MOTU and fought for it but these questions are more so from the business standpoint.
IR: Masters of the Universe is one of the great brands. Like many similar brands, MOTU manifests itself in many forms: Entertainment, Toy, Video Game, etc…
20. DVDS the new series NEEDS to be put on DVD.
IR: This is the plan. We will let the fans know more when we have more details.
21. What exactly happened to Randor's knee? how did he injure it? Why didn't we see more of the mythology of Eternia developed (not like the King Grayskull stuff etc.) but more so why didn't we really get into the heart and soul of the planet...the locations the beliefs the stuff that makes the world so rich
IR: Randor’s knee was an old battle injury. We gave him that injury as a way to convey the passage of time between the scene at the Hall of Wisdom and the scene at the Palace. Regarding the mythology of Eternia, I think we did a great job of exploring more of the planet, the creatures and the various denizens.
22. Why did you nix Granamyr? he is a great charcter and Talking dragons are not a far fetched idea. (if you accept dragons you can easily accept that they talk)
IR: We decided not to have animals talk in this Eternia universe. Talking animals and creatures can tend to skew the tone of a show very young.
23. Also why was the UNIVERSE aspect taken out? they were just stuck on Eternia...made the show feel smaller.
IR: We wanted to keep He-Man out of space and go back to what made the original great.
24. He-Man - he wasn't written with a lot of character depth, which was a shame. now don't get me wrong i loved the new series, but these are some of my questions.
IR: We debated whether or not to focus the series on He-Man or the entire team. We opted for the latter based on the great cast of characters we had to work with.
25. Grayskull...why was it drawn so dull and plain? the new toy looked better than the one in the toon...the show's version lacked a certain mystery.
IR: I was very happy with Grayskull in the series. Some episodes it looked better than others, (the overseas animators didn’t always get it right) but overall I was very happy.
26. The show started off with a nice level of continuity...each ep leading into the last but that kind of diminished...at least in a real strong storyline sense..why..also did skeletor know about the sorceress, it didn't really seem to be the case...if not why?
First off, I thought the new cartoon was awesome an the artwork envolved was fantastic..but on with the questions:
IR: I think we maintained a fairly good continuity throughout all the episodes. I don’t think there was an episode without some aspect of continuity.
27. Why was the time that they were shown so early 4pm was really early for the mian collectors that this was marketed for...the people that grew up with the original He-man cartoon missed out on wathen this sometimes becuase of working.
IR: The show was not targeted to adults, but we obviously had aspects for the fans.
28. Why weren't some of the other characters brought into it..there was soo much that could have been done if it hadn't been soo limited to certian charcters.
IR: I think we introduced a good amount of characters in the 39 episodes. Any more would have been difficult.
29. Are there any finished cartoon episodes that weren't aired? and if so are there plans for VHS or DVD's of the complete line..an if there are episodes that haven't been aired would they be put on to something like that?
IR: There were no episodes produced that did not air. We did write a 40th script however.
30. I'd also like to ask Ian Richter, is there anything you regret about the series or how it was handled (aside from it being discontinued)?
IR: I think we could have pumped up the action more in the first season and updated He-Man to make him more relevant to today’s kids (we did this by the time we hit season 2).
31. First off, I love the new MotU cartoon. You guys have done great work. I have only a couple of questions at this time... Is it possible for you guys to do a DVD series with new unseen episodes? I mean something featurelength, but that ties in with the series.
And my other question... Why was Mossman's design changed so much for the cartoon. I understood that the 4HM allready had designed him, and he was supposed to look very differently.
IR: Glad you like it. A DVD release is in the works, but there are no unseen episodes. We initially based Moss-Man in the series on the Four Horsemen design, but we decided to make him even bigger and more powerful.
32. I was wondering what you guys had in mind for Evil-Lyn. Was she going to free Hordak, eventually? Or stay faithful to Skeletor?
IR: Good question. The plan was for her to ultimately succeed in freeing Hordak.
33. When Hordak showed up, were Skeletor and his crew going to be any threat? Cuz, what the Snake Men did to em' was prett ugly. (Which leads me to ask -)
IR: Yes and no – we wanted Hordak to be an extreme threat when he showed up, but ultimately the plan was for Skeletor to come back and defeat Hordak by the end of season 3.
34. Why did the Snake Men school Skeletor and his crew so bad? Did Mattel ask you guys to make the Snake Men more powerful? Skeletor couldn't beat Hsss?
IR: We wanted the Snake Men to be truly formidable. The plan was to introduce many powerful villain factions to keep the audience guessing who would prevail.
35. First off, I'd like to say that while it was running the new MOTU cartoon was the only show I watched on television. So hats off to you for getting me use my TV for something other than my DVD player or nintendo for once. Even though I know it really doesn't mean much in the grand scheme of things, that really was a big accomplishment. And I know you're going to get ten million requests for the new show on DVD, so instead of saying that again I'll just get straight to my question. Is there any way at all for us to get an actual finale to the cartoon series? I mean, is it at all possible to make a finale movie, either straight to DVD or as a tv special? Because the series just can't be over with the way it ended in Awaken the Serpent. If it has to be over, MOTU needs to end with a final, all out battle between He-Man and Skeletor. We fans deserve at least that much.
I mean, you're keeping the Max Steele cartoon, which I highly doubt has as large or dedicated fan base as MOTU does, running with straight to dvd specials.
IR: I’m glad you liked the series so much. Regarding a finale – I would love to do this, but it would have to make financial sense.
36. We never got to see Skeletor unleash his full power. There were always hints as to how phenomenally powerful he was - i.e. surviving having his face burned off, fusing Tuvar and Baddrah together like it was nothing, resurrecting Merman with a snap of his fingers, etc. - but we never got to see him go all out. Granted that was because of his character flaw, he liked to have his minions do the dirty work for him, but still, that's the one thing we've never gotten to see. For an ending to the series we should have gotten to see a no holds barred battle between him and He-Man, one where He-Man would actually have to struggle to win.
IR: I agree it would be great to see Skeletor unleash even more power if we could do more entertainment.
38. What was the easiest aspect of bringing He-Man into today's cartoon market?
IR: The great reaction from the fans.
39. What was the hardest aspect?
IR: The challenge of appealing to today’s kids. We did not do enough to make He-Man relevant.
40. Any episode you're especially proud of?
IR: I like them all, but Power of Grayskull and Price of Deceit in particular.
41. Is there anything you can reveal to us He-Fans about where the show would have gone past "Awaken the Serpent"?
IR: Man-At-Arms captured and turned into a Snakeman for good – giving them a new weapons master; Hordak returning and taking over.
***Ian corrected his previous answer in regards to Man-At-Arms becoming a Snake Man:
"hey guys - to clarify one of my answers - Duncan as snakeman would have been a 3-5 episode storyline max. He is one of the great MOTU characters.
I'll try and check back with you guys from time to time.
Regards,
Ian"
42. If the Stacticons do well enough commerically, is there a chance perhaps He-Man and the Masters could come back for an animated movie on Cartoon Network?
IR: Right now it looks unlikely, but the best thing fans can do right now is support the brand by picking up the DVDs and the great busts and statues the Four Horsemen are working on.
43. Suppose the new cartoon is released on DVD on a future date, If the DVDs sell really well,is there a chance of getting new eps directly on DVD.
IR: DVDs are in the works – stay tuned. If they sell well, anything is possible.
44. We saw many new characters & Races in the toon like Dekker,Sortech, Clawful's cousin etc. Were they planned to be in other eps in the later seasons or were they kept for single eps?
IR: Yes – the plan was to see them all again.
45. What was your experience with working with MYP on the toon?
IR: Fantastic.
46. Modulok was one of my favourite characters in the classic series. If ever introduced in the series, would he be a Horde Member or a work solo like in the classic series?
IR: Probably solo – I think that would be more interesting.
47. Would Hordak have his transforming abilities like in the classics or is he more of a Wizard in the new Toon.
IR: He would be more of an Evil Wizard, but we would have given him a new spin on those old powers.
48. I don know if i should as this but what would the Horde season intro be like. THe MOTU v/s the Snakemen intro was really fantastic.
IR: Glad you liked the Snakemen intro. A Horde intro would be supremely dramatic with everyone in Eternia cowering under their control. He-Man and the Masters would become renegades in their own land.
49. Last of all, What happens to King Hsss after the beheading incident in Awaken the Serpent & its effect on the other Snakemen?
IR: You’ll see when we release the 40th script. It will likely be a special feature on the DVD release.
50. Was there a reason behind the way in which the new show was more sci-fi-oriented, rather than fantasy-oriented like the original? Was there a conscious decision to follow this angle, or was that just the way things turned out?
IR: I think we had a roughly equal balance of both fantasy and sci-fi. It was a conscious decision.
51. What were the plans for the character of Prahvus, as introduced in "Out of the Past"? He struck me as an interesting character and I wonder if he would have played some greater role in the series had it continued.
IR: He would have come back with a vengeance to work for Hordak.
52. Is there any truth in the rumor that Queen Marlena was to have been revealed as half-Gar (the blue-skinned race, we were told)?
IR: This was an idea Gary and I cooked up. We never found a way in the first 39 to work it in, but may have explored it had we continued.
53. I loved the new show and thought it was excellent and so did my 8 year old, we'd really like to have the series on DVD - ANY CHANCE?
IR: Glad you liked it. A DVD release is in the works.
54. Also, the Mike Young Productions website has a section devoted to the He-Man cartoon, but it is missing a lot when you click on the links, any chance that will ever be updated now that the show is over?
IR: I’m not sure what they have planned for their website.
55. First of all, thank you very much for answering questions from the fans. It's been a very long time since we have had any Mattel representatives communicate with the .org
IR: No problem.
56. Speaking of which, when can we expect answers for the latest What The Fans Want To Know? Or does this replace that?
IR: I think for now, this does somewhat replace that.
57. Now, I know Skeletor's origin was partly explained in the pilot episode, but we were told that the "second part" of his origin was to come at the end of season 1. Then we were told it would come in season 2. Was the second part of his origin in the episode "The Price of Deceit", or was there more (I'm sure there was more ). And if there was more, is it possible to divulge any info?
IR: Get ready for this: RANDOR AND SKELETOR ARE BROTHERS. This was always the plan. They have different mothers, but the same father! I was disappointed we never got to finally do this.
58. Secondly, what were the plans for She-Ra? There were rumours that she (Adora) was going to be Adam's cousin, and other rumours saying that she was going to be from the future. Also, the box from the SDCC exclusive figure said she was He-Man's sister, but it did not say TWIN sister. Can you explain what the plans for her were?
IR: The plan for She-Ra would have been the same as in the existing mythology.
59. I was wondering if there were ever plans to introduce some of Skeletor's warriors that still had not been seen at the time, namely Jitsu and Spikor.
IR: The Four Horsemen did some cool artwork for Spikor, but we did not have any immediate plans for either character in the series.
60. Also, with the series at an end on regular television is there enough justification to perhaps keep the MYP He-Man series going in some form of straight to DVD movies? (in the same vein as the Batman Animated Series' Mask of the Phantasm etc.)
This way we could see the introduction of the Horde (as im sure was intended for series) and She-Ra.
IR: Not right now.
61. My questions are pretty much the same as those preceeding mine, with the following exceptions: How much freedom were you allowed in creating origin-stories for the characters? Was it left to the writing team then submitted for Mattel's approval, or was it specifically dictated by Mattel? and How many of the MYP staff are MOTU fans? Thanks again!
IR: Hello. As I mentioned before, Dean and I broke the stories and then submitted them to the rest of the team and to the network for comments, concerns. Many of the MYP, Mattel and Cartoon Network staff are HUGE MOTU fans.
62. were any episodes completed that were not aired on Cartoon Network for Season Two? It seemed rather short-lived and not a lot of issues were resolved. The "final" episode felt anything but.
IR: No – all episodes aired.
63. Mattel seems to be putting out a new Max Steele dvd- even though those toys are long gone in the USA. What are the chances of MOTU getting an all-new dvd movie released? If slim or none, how come?
IR: The Max Steel movies are for Latin America where the brand is huge.
64. Will there be a release of the cartoon on dvd (either several eps per dvd or full-season box sets)? If not, how come?
IR: Yes – that is the plan.
65. Like the many other people here, I am currious to know, what else was planned. I also want to throw my support for a DVD release, of the series. I would like to see all 39 episodes, the begining in both episode and movie, format, and The World of He-Man, all in a box set.
I would also like to throw my support behind special DVD movie releases, like Batman: The Animated Series has had, in the past.
IR: Hello, thanks for the support. Yes – I would like to see the DVD set with all of those components as well.
66. Also, where there any classic characters you really wish had appeared in the new series?
IR: It would have been fun to see She-Ra return.
67. Was season 2 planned to be 26 episodes originally then later cut down? Was there ever plans to have a proper Skeletor vs Hsss battle? That's what I wanted to see!
IR: The plan for season 2 was always 26, but we only made 13 of them. Yes – we would have had a jaw-dropping fight between those two.
69. And if you had the opportunity to pit the Horde vs. the Masters and Skeletor's warriors as the third party (instead of the Snake Men), would you do so?
IR: Yes.
70. Why wasn't Megator one of the three giants seen in "Buzz-Off's Pride"? Were there any plans to bring him in later, or did you have no intentions of using him at all (and if so, why)?
IR: We decided to create new giants with their own identities. There were no plans to introduce him, but if we had done more episodes anything is possible.
71. Were there any plans on bringing back Snakeface? He got turned into a statue after his first appearance and hadn't shown up since. Were the Snakemen going to break into the Palace and reverse the spell or something?
IR: Yes – you’ll see how in script 40.
72. Why was Tri-Klops the "mechanic" or "tech guy" in this series instead of Trap Jaw? It would seem more fitting if it were Trap Jaw, especially since I believe he was in the classic series. Any specific reason for the change?
IR: We decided to make Tri-Klops the smarter, tech savvy one when we heard Paul Dobson’s great concept for the voice.
73. And was there going to be other planets such as Etheria or Infinita when Hordak was going to be introduced, or was everything happening on Eternia only?
IR: We didn’t want to tread into “New Adventures” territory and have He-Man in space, so the action would have most likely stayed on Eternia.
74. Finally (I think ), do you regret not having Battle Cat speak? I felt that it made the character under-utilized in the cartoon because of this. I think it would be nice if He-Man would run battle-strategies across Battle Cat, or possibly ask his opinion on a matter etc. He could have been another 'person' that He-Man could talk to instead of just being a living vehicle. And I don't think it would be too far-fetched of an idea to have the power of Grayskull grant Battle-Cat the ability to speak. How about you?
IR: We decided not to have Battlecat speak because talking animals tend to skew a show young.
75. why was battlecat so scaled back? except for a few scenes he was basically a glorified vehicle and I am not asking why he didn't talk I am more so asking why he and he-man didn't interact as much. (he doesn't have to talk for that)
IR: I think we had some great He-Man and Battlecat moments. I was really happy with Battlecat’s lion ancestor in Power of Grayskull.
76. any truth to the rumour that She-ra was going to be He-Man's daughter from the future?
IR: Not that I know of.
77. Out of all the changes that where made from the original Filmation show, in hindsight, do you think any where harmful? Would you do everything the exact same if given the chance to do it all over again?
IR: I was happy with the updates we made and would do them again the same way.
78. Will we ever see behind the since production notes or the series bible available online now that everything is said and done? We really want to know what was planed but never happened. Eternia's history fleshed out, what would have happened with She-Ra and the Horde, How Clamp Champ a Snout Spout would have been introduced and so on.
IR: I hope to make much of that available on the new series DVD release.
79. loved the show and truly miss it now. but one question - Did Webstor die in the end of "Web of Evil"? and if not, were there any more plots which were going to include him more?
IR: Yes, but anything is possible.
80. Now I can understand why He-Man was wearing his Snake Armor in Season 2 when he had to fight the Snakemen, but why was he wearing the Snake Armor when there were no Snakemen around? A specific example I can think of is in the Power of Grayskull episode. At the end He-Man goes to stop Skeletor from releasing Hordak, but why is he wearing the Snake Armor? In my opinion he just looks ridiculous in that situation. There was no threat of a Snakemen attack so why didn't he just wear his regular armor? (As you can probably tell, I'm not a big fan of the Snake Armor ).
IR: We originally had him fighting Snake Men in that episode, but we had to cut it for time.
81. And lastly, were there plans to bring back ALL classic characters (the ones that had action figures), or were there some characters that weren't going to be incorporated because of how ridiculous they were, or for some other reason?
IR: We probably would have brought back all classic characters eventually.
82. To re-hash a couple of questions already asked:
Can you tell us how the Evil Horde was going to come back to Eternia?
How much restrictions did Mattel put on you on the storylines?
Can you answer what the deal is with the video game? Why not release it in the US?
Mattel said that ratings dropped off after awhile. Could you guess why? (I think its due to Cartoon Network constantly moving it around the schedule and not promoting it enough.)
IR: Evil Lyn and Skeletor would take over Eternia; banish Randor to Despondos and Evil Lyn would take the opportunity to release Hordak and his entire Horde army. No restrictions on story. Video game, not sure. Ratings dropped off for a variety of reasons, but I think the primary reason for the end of the show was that the brand was not re-launched in a way that was relevant enough to kids of today. I think by the time we got to season 2 we were there, but it was too late.
83. This was brought up in another thread and I thought you might have the answer for us. Who's tombstone was placed in front of Castle Grayskull? Was there a story behind it or was it just some random detail that was added to the castle? Can you elaborate on it?
IR: It was Loo-Kee’s tombstone (joke).
84. Oh, and since King Grayskull vaporized his physical form, how would you have explained how Hordak got a new body?
IR: He’s a wizard and master of black magic. Don’t underestimate Hordak.
85. Was Modulok planned for the series, and if so what were his origins and personality planned to be like?
IR: We didn’t have any immediate plans, but we would have brought him in, in a cool, updated, much more threatening fashion.
86. They say that the original 80's cartoon was very expesnive to make at the time. How would that compare now? How does the new compare to other currant shows production cost wise?
Oh, and who was the most difficult character to animate?
IR: The cost to produce He-Man today is on par with other shows like Teen Titans, Justice League, TMNT, etc… I’m not sure how it compares to budgets in the early 80s, but I suspect they cost less to produce then based on the amount of reused animation.
87. Thank you for taking the time to answer our questions Mr. Richter.
I guess my sole question is, will it be possible to continue the series via another way besides Cartoon Network, like DVD? I don't think I was interested in any cartoon series like I was with Masters of the Universe. I would have liked to explore more of the origins of a few characters. If not a continuation of the series, at least a finale to somehow tie up loose ends...?
IR: You’re welcome. I would like to do this, but we would need it to make financial sense. It is very expensive to produce each episode. Keep supporting the great work the Four Horsemen are doing and the various DVD releases. That is the best way to make the case for more entertainment.
88. My question is, and I'm dead serious: "Can I have a job?"
IR: Yes. Your job is to become an avid He-Man fan.
89. Who was the next classic character scheduled to be unveiled in the new toon?
IR: I think it was Clamp Champ.
90. 1 why did the cartoon have to be so damned good 2 why did mattel have to kill it ?
IR: The brand did not catch on as we’d hoped.
91. Has there been any outside sources, that you know of that might be interested in purchasing the He-Man & The Masters of the Universe line to re-start the series again to continue where it left off ?
IR: I’m not sure Mattel would part with one of their core brands.
92. I've heard John Woo will be making a new He-Man Live action movie. Now I gotta ask what would be the purpose of this with no action figure line, and no cartoon series. What could they possible hope to accomplish with this new movie? If they other two failed.
IR: There is a huge fanbase for He-Man. If done right, it would be a great way to re-launch the brand.
93. A lot of the episodes featured an individual character, e.g. Buzz-Off's Pride featured Buzz-Off, Mekaneck's Lament's featured Mek, so I would like to know which character was scheduled next after ep 39 to be the star of an episode? (this can be a good and/or bad character).
IR: We were planning more Snakemen episodes followed by the return of Hordak. No specific character focus.
I would also like to throw my support behind special DVD movie releases, like Batman: The Animated Series has had, in the past.
IR: Hello, thanks for the support. Yes – I would like to see the DVD set with all of those components as well.
66. Also, where there any classic characters you really wish had appeared in the new series?
IR: It would have been fun to see She-Ra return.
67. Was season 2 planned to be 26 episodes originally then later cut down? Was there ever plans to have a proper Skeletor vs Hsss battle? That's what I wanted to see!
IR: The plan for season 2 was always 26, but we only made 13 of them. Yes – we would have had a jaw-dropping fight between those two.
69. And if you had the opportunity to pit the Horde vs. the Masters and Skeletor's warriors as the third party (instead of the Snake Men), would you do so?
IR: Yes.
70. Why wasn't Megator one of the three giants seen in "Buzz-Off's Pride"? Were there any plans to bring him in later, or did you have no intentions of using him at all (and if so, why)?
IR: We decided to create new giants with their own identities. There were no plans to introduce him, but if we had done more episodes anything is possible.
71. Were there any plans on bringing back Snakeface? He got turned into a statue after his first appearance and hadn't shown up since. Were the Snakemen going to break into the Palace and reverse the spell or something?
IR: Yes – you’ll see how in script 40.
72. Why was Tri-Klops the "mechanic" or "tech guy" in this series instead of Trap Jaw? It would seem more fitting if it were Trap Jaw, especially since I believe he was in the classic series. Any specific reason for the change?
IR: We decided to make Tri-Klops the smarter, tech savvy one when we heard Paul Dobson’s great concept for the voice.
73. And was there going to be other planets such as Etheria or Infinita when Hordak was going to be introduced, or was everything happening on Eternia only?
IR: We didn’t want to tread into “New Adventures” territory and have He-Man in space, so the action would have most likely stayed on Eternia.
74. Finally (I think ), do you regret not having Battle Cat speak? I felt that it made the character under-utilized in the cartoon because of this. I think it would be nice if He-Man would run battle-strategies across Battle Cat, or possibly ask his opinion on a matter etc. He could have been another 'person' that He-Man could talk to instead of just being a living vehicle. And I don't think it would be too far-fetched of an idea to have the power of Grayskull grant Battle-Cat the ability to speak. How about you?
IR: We decided not to have Battlecat speak because talking animals tend to skew a show young.
75. why was battlecat so scaled back? except for a few scenes he was basically a glorified vehicle and I am not asking why he didn't talk I am more so asking why he and he-man didn't interact as much. (he doesn't have to talk for that)
IR: I think we had some great He-Man and Battlecat moments. I was really happy with Battlecat’s lion ancestor in Power of Grayskull.
76. any truth to the rumour that She-ra was going to be He-Man's daughter from the future?
IR: Not that I know of.
77. Out of all the changes that where made from the original Filmation show, in hindsight, do you think any where harmful? Would you do everything the exact same if given the chance to do it all over again?
IR: I was happy with the updates we made and would do them again the same way.
78. Will we ever see behind the since production notes or the series bible available online now that everything is said and done? We really want to know what was planed but never happened. Eternia's history fleshed out, what would have happened with She-Ra and the Horde, How Clamp Champ a Snout Spout would have been introduced and so on.
IR: I hope to make much of that available on the new series DVD release.
79. loved the show and truly miss it now. but one question - Did Webstor die in the end of "Web of Evil"? and if not, were there any more plots which were going to include him more?
IR: Yes, but anything is possible.
80. Now I can understand why He-Man was wearing his Snake Armor in Season 2 when he had to fight the Snakemen, but why was he wearing the Snake Armor when there were no Snakemen around? A specific example I can think of is in the Power of Grayskull episode. At the end He-Man goes to stop Skeletor from releasing Hordak, but why is he wearing the Snake Armor? In my opinion he just looks ridiculous in that situation. There was no threat of a Snakemen attack so why didn't he just wear his regular armor? (As you can probably tell, I'm not a big fan of the Snake Armor ).
IR: We originally had him fighting Snake Men in that episode, but we had to cut it for time.
81. And lastly, were there plans to bring back ALL classic characters (the ones that had action figures), or were there some characters that weren't going to be incorporated because of how ridiculous they were, or for some other reason?
IR: We probably would have brought back all classic characters eventually.
82. To re-hash a couple of questions already asked:
Can you tell us how the Evil Horde was going to come back to Eternia?
How much restrictions did Mattel put on you on the storylines?
Can you answer what the deal is with the video game? Why not release it in the US?
Mattel said that ratings dropped off after awhile. Could you guess why? (I think its due to Cartoon Network constantly moving it around the schedule and not promoting it enough.)
IR: Evil Lyn and Skeletor would take over Eternia; banish Randor to Despondos and Evil Lyn would take the opportunity to release Hordak and his entire Horde army. No restrictions on story. Video game, not sure. Ratings dropped off for a variety of reasons, but I think the primary reason for the end of the show was that the brand was not re-launched in a way that was relevant enough to kids of today. I think by the time we got to season 2 we were there, but it was too late.
83. This was brought up in another thread and I thought you might have the answer for us. Who's tombstone was placed in front of Castle Grayskull? Was there a story behind it or was it just some random detail that was added to the castle? Can you elaborate on it?
IR: It was Loo-Kee’s tombstone (joke).
84. Oh, and since King Grayskull vaporized his physical form, how would you have explained how Hordak got a new body?
IR: He’s a wizard and master of black magic. Don’t underestimate Hordak.
85. Was Modulok planned for the series, and if so what were his origins and personality planned to be like?
IR: We didn’t have any immediate plans, but we would have brought him in, in a cool, updated, much more threatening fashion.
86. They say that the original 80's cartoon was very expesnive to make at the time. How would that compare now? How does the new compare to other currant shows production cost wise?
Oh, and who was the most difficult character to animate?
IR: The cost to produce He-Man today is on par with other shows like Teen Titans, Justice League, TMNT, etc… I’m not sure how it compares to budgets in the early 80s, but I suspect they cost less to produce then based on the amount of reused animation.
87. Thank you for taking the time to answer our questions Mr. Richter.
I guess my sole question is, will it be possible to continue the series via another way besides Cartoon Network, like DVD? I don't think I was interested in any cartoon series like I was with Masters of the Universe. I would have liked to explore more of the origins of a few characters. If not a continuation of the series, at least a finale to somehow tie up loose ends...?
IR: You’re welcome. I would like to do this, but we would need it to make financial sense. It is very expensive to produce each episode. Keep supporting the great work the Four Horsemen are doing and the various DVD releases. That is the best way to make the case for more entertainment.
88. My question is, and I'm dead serious: "Can I have a job?"
IR: Yes. Your job is to become an avid He-Man fan.
89. Who was the next classic character scheduled to be unveiled in the new toon?
IR: I think it was Clamp Champ.
90. 1 why did the cartoon have to be so damned good 2 why did mattel have to kill it ?
IR: The brand did not catch on as we’d hoped.
91. Has there been any outside sources, that you know of that might be interested in purchasing the He-Man & The Masters of the Universe line to re-start the series again to continue where it left off ?
IR: I’m not sure Mattel would part with one of their core brands.
92. I've heard John Woo will be making a new He-Man Live action movie. Now I gotta ask what would be the purpose of this with no action figure line, and no cartoon series. What could they possible hope to accomplish with this new movie? If they other two failed.
IR: There is a huge fanbase for He-Man. If done right, it would be a great way to re-launch the brand.
93. A lot of the episodes featured an individual character, e.g. Buzz-Off's Pride featured Buzz-Off, Mekaneck's Lament's featured Mek, so I would like to know which character was scheduled next after ep 39 to be the star of an episode? (this can be a good and/or bad character).
IR: We were planning more Snakemen episodes followed by the return of Hordak. No specific character focus.
94. I have another question. That Prahvus guy, was he a member of the Horde? Always seemed logical too me.
IR: No, but the plan was that Hordak would recruit him.
95. Is there any chance that you can let us know what your plans were for the future epsiodes of the series. We have been told that the script for ep. 40 was done, and we would all appreciate some insight to where the show way going. What kinds of ideas can you reveal to us?
IR: Please see my earlier answers above.
96. Teela's father. There were impilcations that both Fisto, and Man-At-Arms may be her true father. Could you please tell us who, if either were going to be her father.
IR: Fisto.
97. If there was a season 3, was The Horde going to become the new focus?
IR: Absolutely.
98. Vehicles and Characters that were on the show, and not made into toys, how far along were they in the toy stage that the cartoon had designed them (Webstor, The Horde, Wind Raider, Sky Sled, etc.) or vice-versa?
IR: They were not developed into toys. Idea sketches may exist, but that's all.
99. I was a big fan of He-Man's new Snake Armor, if the show had continued, would there be a new design for He-Man each season to fight the new threat?
IR: Yes. We had a concept for Horde armor that we did not have time to see in the flashback in Power of Grayskull, but would have seen in season 3.
100. Clawful. Why was he scripted as being so dumb?
IR: We needed some bumbling villains and decided Clawful fit the bill. We were planning a story later in season 2 where Clawful would gain intelligence via some brain tampering from Tri-Klops and almost overthrow Skeletor.
101. Was Man-At-Arms the leader of the Masters, or was He-Man? The show kind of projected Man-At-Arms as the leader, but then he would fall back when He-man appeared.
IR: Correct. They both took the lead from time to time, but He-Man is the key heroic leader.
102. Was there going to be any kind of love relations/or tensions between Teela and He-Man or Teela and another Master?
IR: No.
103. I loved your Historic episodes like the stories of King Grayskull and how Keldor became Skeletor. Was there ever to be any more origin stories of characters like Man-E-Faces, or Mekaneck, or other characters that were on the 1st episodes and how they came to be?
IR: I was planning to write the Mekanek origin comic and came up with a great story with Dean for this. I didn’t end up having time, but we will see this outline on the DVD release.
104. It was hinted that Faker was going to eventually show up on the new show. What were your plans for his story if any?
IR: He was going to play an important role in the season 2 cliffhanger. We actually introduced him early on in the series. Look carefully at “The Courage of Adam” I deliberately had the He-Man cyborg flicker the Faker colors when he shut down. The plan was that Tri-Klops and Skeletor would come across this robot and use him to turn Eternia against He-Man.
105. Was King Hsss dead at the end of episode 39, or were there plans to bring back him and the Snake Men?
IR: You’ll see in the Ep 40 script.
106. What was the reasons for choosing MYP as your animation studio?
IR: Please see earlier answers.
Thank you, everyone. We had a blast producing the show and always love to hear from the fans.
Best Regards,
Ian Richter
