DC Universe Vs. Masters of the Universe

He-Man and the Masters of the Universe (Collected Editions) #3.5

by Keith Giffen, Dexter Soy (Illustrations)

After narrowly escaping his last battle with He-Man, Skeletor has fled to the most unexpected realm to EARTH! Once there, he sets a plan in motion to siphon off Earth's core magic. Forging an unlikely hunting party, He-Man and company go in search of Skeletor and find themselves at odds with the heroes of the DC Universe, He-Man and the Masters of the Universe must find a way to stop Skeletor and his mysterious new master!

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Dc Comics, Fantasy, Superheroes, Graphic Novels Comics, Fiction

160 pages, Paperback

First published April 29, 2014

About the author

Keith Ian Giffen was an American comic book illustrator and writer. He is possibly best-known for his long runs illustrating, and later writing the Legion of Super-Heroes title in the 1980s and 1990s. He also created the alien mercenary character Lobo (with Roger Slifer), and the irreverent "want-to-be" hero, Ambush Bug. Giffen is known for having an unorthodox writing style, often using characters in ways not seen before. His dialogue is usually characterized by a biting wit that is seen as much less zany than dialogue provided by longtime collaborators DeMatteis and Robert Loren Fleming. That approach has brought him both criticism and admiration, as perhaps best illustrated by the mixed (although commercially successful) response to his work in DC Comics' Justice League International (1987-1992). He also plotted and was breakdown artist for an Aquaman limited series and one-shot special in 1989 with writer Robert Loren Fleming and artist Curt Swan for DC Comics.

Giffen's first published work was "The Sword and The Star", a black-and-white series featured in Marvel Preview, with writer Bill Mantlo. He has worked on titles (owned by several different companies) including Woodgod, All Star Comics, Doctor Fate, Drax the Destroyer, Heckler, Nick Fury's Howling Commandos, Reign of the Zodiac, Suicide Squad, Trencher (to be re-released in a collected edition by Boom! Studios)., T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents, and Vext. He was also responsible for the English adaptation of the Battle Royale and Ikki Tousen manga, as well as creating "I Luv Halloween" for Tokyopop. He also worked for Dark Horse from 1994-95 on their Comics Greatest World/Dark Horse Heroes line, as the writer of two short lived series, Division 13 and co-author, with Lovern Kindzierski, of Agents of Law. For Valiant Comics, Giffen wrote XO-Manowar, Magnus, Robot Fighter, Punx and the final issue of Solar, Man of the Atom.

He took a break from the comic industry for several years, working on storyboards for television and film, including shows such as The Real Ghostbusters and Ed, Edd 'n' Eddy.

He is also the lead writer for Marvel Comics's Annihilation event, having written the one-shot prologue, the lead-in stories in Thanos and Drax, the Silver Surfer as well as the main six issues mini-series. He also wrote the Star-Lord mini-series for the follow-up story Annihilation: Conquest. He currently writes Doom Patrol for DC, and is also completing an abandoned Grant Morrison plot in The Authority: the Lost Year for Wildstorm.

Reviews

[Quentin Wallace · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a good crossover all things considered. When crossover with so many characters are attempted, it can easily become incoherent and fall apart. This one never did.

This was more of a JLA (all 3 teams) vs. Masters of the Universe story, but some of the other DC Heroes did have cameos. This tied directly into the MOTU series. Eternia has been overrun by Hordak's horde, and the heroes are basically playing rebels on the run. The villain was a bit of a surprise an evil, all-powerful Orko who's been possessed.

The story wasn't simple, but not overly complex either. The art fit the story well.

If you're a fan of MOTU and the DC Universe, this is a good chance to see the worlds interact. Good graphic novel.

[Stephen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was exactly what a crossover/mashup is supposed to look like!

[Sune Nesu · Rating 4 out of 5]

Me gustó bastante está historia, me pareció entretenida en todo momento a excepción de algunas partes, y de la ilustración puedo decir que me encantó. Definitivamente lo recomiendo al 100.

[Robert Bussie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Crossover stories are usually average or sub-par in the comics world. It is contest of who is stronger, smarter, faster, and popular for each publisher. This story falls into the same trappings of Superman versus He-man until they realize that they are on the same team.

However, what saves this trade paper back from falling in the footsteps of other crossovers is a simple story that flows nicely without being bogged down by confusing reasons why the two universes met. Also you need very little knowledge about the characters past story lines to enjoy this book. But what gives it the extra star is the wonderful coloring!

As a bonus it includes a story from the early 1980's about Superman going to the Masters of the Universe realm. It is really interesting to see how the art, writing, and especially coloring has improved over the years.

[Brini · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Aber ich muss zugeben--ich habe nicht alles verstanden, was gerade passiert ist!" - Superman
Das erging mir ebenso. Ich hatte weder groß von He-Man noch von die Masters of the Universe Ahnung. Dementsprechend habe ich auch etwas länger gebraucht um in diese Geschichte reinzufinden. Allerdings bin ich großer Fan von Crossovern mit der Justice League und der Justice League Dark (und sowieso alles mit John Constantine). Außergewöhnlich gut oder schlecht war dieser Comic jedoch nicht, so dass ich auch nicht wirklich Essentielles dazu zu sagen habe. Man muss ihn jedenfalls nicht unbedingt gelesen haben.

[Dante · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great storyline that incorporates DC's The New 52 with what's going on in the He-Man universe without missing a beat in The Masters of the Universe. Even though the Justice League are featured in this story, it is centered on He-Man; so just be ready to learn more about The Masters of the Universe instead of Superman. But YOU HAVE TO READ the first three graphic novels of He-Man BEFORE you read this story or it'll ruin the He-Man stories for you.

[Derek · Rating 4 out of 5]

More fun than the vast majority of crossovers out there. Writers Keith Giffen and Tony Bedard bring just enough tongue-in-cheek wit to make the absurdity of the basic premise go down smooth. If only more DC books could manage the balance between light and dark this gracefully. The art feels fairly rushed by book's end and things resolve themselves a bit too quickly and neatly but these are minor quibbles. An entertaining and enjoyable series overall, here's hoping we get a volume two some day.

[Rosa · Rating 3 out of 5]

This volume explains exactly what happened to Orko and the circumstances of his betrayal. It was interesting to see all of the different groups come together and work together.

[Craig · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very happy with this one! It was great to find out about orko!

[Andrew Shapter · Rating 2 out of 5]

The good artwork and a couple of original lines saved this from a single star...
Some things just work on their own and shouldn't be mixed...

[Bradley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Crossover events usually hold billboard signs that scream “STAY AWAY” at least in my mind. Small disclaimer now: I have not read many at all. There’s something about it that I usually deem unworthy of the time. To me the epitome of this is the Superman vs. Goku phenomenon. People will argue this to their dying breath and its simply a waste of time. I think after reading this crossover comic that my views changed slightly, however I still think one should keep an eye out for wasted efforts in the realm of crossover.

With all that wind out, I’m here to say this is not a bad comic. In fact, I found it to be damn good. It helps if you have any prior dealings with the Justice League and the Masters of the Universe. It’s a prerequisite. Other than that, open er` up and have fun. The art is badass and its not difficult to follow, both the art and the story. Mind control is a bit gimmicky. If you did not see it coming, then you are blind in the third eye, open your perceptions and see!

There’s no doubting it’s cliché, but it’s cliché when two worlds collide. Maybe I’m completely biased since I’m a hardcore DC fan and you have no idea how imprinted I am for watching the 2002 He-Man tv series. The show was *&%$#@! awesome. Skeletor looked menacing as hell courtesy of the coloring. The coloring for the whole comic is spot on. If you’re not even interested in the story (which surprised me) pop it open and look. It’s beautiful just to look at.

I’m still going to tip toe around events like this. It’s worth noting that I’m nonplussed after finishing. I’ll grudgingly admit it worked. Props to all the peeps involved. Ya did something tricky cool.

**Reading another review someone said that this is a build up and could contain spoilers for the He-Man run. I honestly thought this was just a one-off scenario but it serves as a tie-in. Starting to sound like genius.

[Ma'Belle · Rating 2 out of 5]

He-Man and the Masters of the Universe came out the year I was born - one of the wave of cartoons based on toys, made purely for the sake of selling more merch while spending less than the cost of a commercial during another program. So I recall a few of the action figures - especially my neighbor down the street who had a Castle Greyskull and Skeletor set and the skunky guy that ACTUALLY SMELLED (a gimmick I've never seen in a toy since!). But I don't recall ever watching the show or otherwise learning about the mythology of Eternia ... not until the amazing Netflix series She-Ra and the Princesses of Power, which doesn't include He-Man or Skeletor at ALL. I was amused by this crossover miniseries mostly as an introduction to some of the characters. Definitely not nearly as good as Batman/Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, as crossovers go.

[Philmore Olazo · Rating 3 out of 5]

Whatever happened to Orko or to Queen Marlena in the story? We were told that Orko betrayed the Masters of the Universe and Queen Marlena is just absent from the story. So what gives?

Skeletor disappeared from the story after his defeat, this is because he was transported to planet Earth.

Queen Marlena is on Earth too and knows about this fact, so she seeks the help of the laughing magician, John Constantine. On Eternia the Masters find Evil-Lyn and the go in search of Skeletor to aid in the struggle against Hordak.

We find out what happened to Orko and how is it that Skeletor survived in the first place.

It's quite fun, but being honest. It could have just been a crossover with Constantine and nothing else would be different. The rest of the DC universe’s character's contributions don't really matter and are pointless since they don't really interact with the Masters of the Universe other than to fight each other and later alongside one another.

[Roberto Diaz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good mandated crossover mybe limited by artist budget

DC produced this during his new 52 era, connecting this iteration of DC characters with the He-Man revision/continuation by James Robinson, Keith Giffen and company.

This volume counted with awesome covers by Ed Benes, which I though would do the interior art, but this task was assigned to Dexter Soy, who did a pretty well job, but it is not Ed Benes.

All in all, is a good story, and the collected volume includes the original Suoerman/He-Man crossover by Curt Swan.

[B · Rating 3 out of 5]

Because I'm a dope, I've run into this a lot: The crossover between classic properties where one or both are in updated rebooted form so that the whole nostalgia collision doesn't quite happen.

Like the villain here? How did someone let that happen? It's a frown-transmitter.

Then, of course, they include an old-timey classic between the two as they were in yesteryear. And it's simpler even than the cartoon. Usually, one or both has to hunt down some MacGuffin. Oh, well.

[Erik · Rating 2 out of 5]

It's a fine crossover story and it's fun to see these characters interating. That's about as positive as I can be though. The art is bad, the character redesigns for He-Man and friends are even worse. Trying to make these characters edgy and extreme comes off as really childish in a terrible way. Far from the fun goofiness of the original Masters of the Universe or even the solid storytelling of the later cartoons

[Ashe Armstrong · Rating 4 out of 5]

The New 52 era never appealed much to me but this story worked well and since there was so much magic involved, having Superman benched works. Kind of torn on the big reveal of the villain of this little arc but I suppose it could be worse. Overall a nice little story to fit between the main arc of the He-Man series. Plus the DC Presents issue from 82 where He-Man and Supes first met in the first Masters continuity.

[Tesutamento · Rating 2 out of 5]

Daha farklı bir hikaye beklerken DC evreninde geçen bir Masters of the Universe hikayesi buldum. DC evreninden karakterlerin çoğu zaman geri planda kaldığı, temelde He-Man ve Skeletor'un savaşını okuduğum bir kitaptı. DC karakterlerinin yazımından pek memnun kalmadım. Çoğu karakter normalde olduklarından farklı bir biçimde agresif ve salak yansıtılmış. Constantine dışındakilerin hikayeye bir şey kattığını söylemek de güç.

[Paul Raised · Rating 2 out of 5]

4/10 I usually don’t review or add comics here because there’s a million issues missing, but since this one is here I’ll put it down as read. The writing is not very good, the art is not very good, not much to say without spoilers.

[Zachary Brown · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed the story here, and as far as crossovers go this is one of the better ones. However, the real appeal here was the artwork. I absolutely loved the style, there were lots of action scenes. Just a 10/10 in that regard!

[Philip · Rating 5 out of 5]

100 stars!

[Erick · Rating 2 out of 5]

Could be much better

[Donavon · Rating 5 out of 5]

The mini series was great and the bonus classic Superman/MOTU issue waa nice. Wish it included the 2nd Superman crossover as well.

[Juan Sanmiguel]

The art could have been better. A great explaination of what happened to two major characters in the He-Man story. A fun tie in

[Nicole · Rating 4 out of 5]

I grew up in the 80s. It was hard not to know about He Man and the masters of the Universe. Especially considering the appeal the show had to my best friend/cousin. We frequently played He Man and I was, unfortunately relegated to a lot of being saved (Teela was not a huge part of the show, in the version we played—until She-Ra came around and then, I was a force to be reckoned with. I even remember Barbie magazine having a feature on the Masters of the Universe movie that I made clear to my parents I just HAD to see.DC_Universe_vs_M_5405eaa9e6243 (1)

So when I saw DC Universe vs Masters of the Universe at my local bookstore, I just HAD to pick it up—and thankfully, it was everything I had hoped for and more. When some mysterious characters from the Masters of the Universe universe show up on present Day Earth, and end up KILLING Superman, members of the Justice League decide to take matters into their own hands—so when another group of Eternians shows up, they are in trouble.

Batman does his best detective work to determine what is happening to the rest of the JLA (who seem magically bent on revenge), while working with John Constantine and the Justice League Dark to figure out how to bring the normal back to Earth. He-Man must work with his mother, an Earth woman exiled by Skeletor to Earth, and trust his advisors working with the JLA to fix the issue. As it turns out, what is first thought to be a power play from Skeletor ends up being the work of a once-beloved member of He-Man’s inner circle. Can Batman find out what’s going on behind the scenes of Superman’s death and get the two groups to fight for the cause?

With a creative team including Keith Giffen, Tony Bedardm Dexter Soy and Pop Mhan, DC Universe vs. Masters of the Universe features a great story, solid art and beautiful coloring. I really enjoyed reading this—and I cannot recommend this enough to fans of the DC Universe whom may have grown up watching He-Man as a kid.

[Jim · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Get off my lawn."

Best. Quote. Ever.

I did not know this existed.

But now you do.

You're welcome.

He-Man was slightly after my time, but I saw enough of it in the 80s to be familiar with most of the characters. The story was interesting. They did a good job writing Batman, and I liked the inclusion of Constantine.

And the villain was fantastic. Though I could kind of see it coming.

[sixthreezy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cool to a point, but mostly weak. Kind of interesting once Skeletor is thrown into the mix and starts talking about his familiarity with DC Universe, but the story really never amounts to anything of any importance...

[Lyric · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an awesome crossover. The new Masters of the Universe storyline meshed really well with DC's New 52 storylines. It was kind of awesome to read a story with all these classic characters united together. I'd definitely recommend this to other fans of He-Man and the Justice League.

[Crystal Puckett · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this crossover and in particular the finding out of how Orko was corrupted and came about being Dark Orko. I hope that will be explored more throughout the regular series.

[Óscar Montero · Rating 1 out of 5]

Bastante prometedor pero, o terminó muy rápido o fue lo mismo de siempre con esa diferencia que logra vender.

Lástima. El personaje que me llamó la atención fue She-Ra.