Available at Amazon.com
Created by
Ed Friedman
Mark Glamack
Cast:
Melendy Britt …. Princess Adora/She-Ra/Madame Razz/Frosta
George DiCenzo …. Bow/Hordak/Sea Hawk
John Erwin …. Broom/He-Man
Alan Oppenheimer …. Grizzlor/Modulok/Skeletor/Beast Man
Lou Scheimer …. Kowl/Mantenna/Leech/Light Hope/Spirit/Swift Wind/Horde Trooper/Loo-Kee
Erika Scheimer …. Queen Angella/Frosta/Imp
For those people that never stopped living in the 1980’s, DVD must be a godsend. Seemingly every great TV series from the era has hit the format, especially the unique brands of animated shows that greeted children every afternoon when they got home from school. While many of the programs of the age may have begun their run simply as half hour commercials for the toy lines they were associated with, some actually transcended this convention to become pop culture icons. These few series remain in the public eye to this day, with fans keeping their heroes alive through sheer force of will more than anything else. One such show, whose first volume is just now reaching DVD, is She-Ra: Princess of Power.
A spin-off to the enormously popular series He-Man and the Masters of the Universe, She-Ra was a similarly themed series geared toward young female audiences. The main character, Princess Adora AKA: She-Ra was the lost twin sister of the original series’ hero, Prince Adam known more prominently on the show by his legendary alter-ego, He-Man. With Masters of the Universe used as a template, She-Ra: Princess of Power was an entertaining mix of Fantasy and Sci-fi, with She-Ra and her friends fighting the forces of darkness, personified by Hordak and his minions of the evil Horde.
This DVD covers the first 32 episodes of Princess of Powe’s first season. With the first five episodes, entitled “The Secret of the Sword”, serving as a terrific introduction to the show, She-Ra is off to the races from that point on, giving its audiences a show of colorful magic and mayhem with a high dose of comedy to keep the kid’s laughing. While many cartoons of the era tend to feel tired and horribly dated when watched today, She-Ra survives by utilizing the same interesting story axioms and inspired animation that made Masters of the Universe such a joy to watch. Admittedly, the shot of nostalgia that the series brings with it is tempered by an overtly earnest tone and humor that has not aged as well as creators would have liked, but with fun characters and a terrific villain in Hordak, She-Ra: Princess of Power is an easy recommendation.
From the show’s opening installments, the series’ writing staff show’s a penchant for creative concepts. Making it feel as if it were part of some ancient myth, we learn that Adora was actually stolen as a child and raised by the evil Hordak as one of his lieutenants. Brought up on the distant planet of Etheria, Adora is used as a tool to help enforce the rule of the Horde over the peasants of the land. One of Hordak’s greatest warriors, Adora is unaware that the Horde is actually a force of malevolence, using an iron fist to make the people of Etheria do its will.
Making an interesting “Nurture Vs. Nature” argument, it is not until Adora is reunited with her lost brother He-Man that she is able to come to the side of good. Hordak is unable to stop her good nature, as eventually the secrets of Adora’s past are revealed to her and she is able to become She-Ra. Eventually She-Ra joins the rebellion against the Horde, giving the show a much different dynamic than its predecessor, where He-Man and the armies of good rule the land of Eternia.
From these opening installments, this DVD set goes on with several episodes featuring simple messages such as “The Missing Ax”, which teaches the moral of not lying to get out of trouble. Other, more ambitious concepts come out in installments such as “A Loss for Words” and “Book Burning” which deal with censorship, but do so in a way that makes it easy enough for children to understand without watering down the message. All of these episodes represent the hallmarks of She-Ra as children were able to tune into a series that not only gave them high adventure, but provided a nice moral to go along with it.
This is not to say that series’ creators ignored adventure in any way during the show’s run. Two roles voiced by Actor George DiCenzo, series regular Bow and occasional guest star the Sea Hawk, seemed to have been patterned after Hollywood legend Errol Flynn. With tons of swashbuckling and daring-do, the spirit of Flynn’s films run throughout many of the episodes, especially the ones focusing on these two rogues.
Masters of the Universe fans will also enjoy appearances from He-Man regulars, especially the big man himself, showing up in several episodes such as “King Miro’s Journey”, “The Mines of Mondor” and “Horde Prime Takes a Holiday” which also features everyone’s favorite villain Skeletor in a team-up with fellow heavy, Hordak. Kiddie favorite Orko even makes an appearance in “The Price of Freedom”, which ends up being one of the best episodes of the entire series.
She-Ra: The Princess of Power is a solid animated series that manages to be more than just a clone of He-Man and the Masters of the Universe. With a softer edge, but perhaps a stronger villain, the show seems to have a somewhat different feel to it than its macho predecessor. The show’s humor comes off as a bit juvenile now, yet each episode is injected with enough breezy energy that the show’s appeal is undeniable. The combination of traditional hand-drawn animation and rotascoping also makes for an interesting visual pallet while the show’s writers provide whimsical adventures that make the show as constructive to young viewers as it is entertaining.
The Video
BCI has done a bang up job on this disc, as the colors sparkle from start to finish. No visible debris can be found on the print, with restoration making this show look better than it did in its original run. The show is presented in Fullscreen with an aspect ratio of 1.33:1.
The Audio
The Audio for the DVD’s are just as good, as the Dolby Digital 2.0 soundtrack comes off as completely pristine. The balance is terrific as each
SPECIAL FEATURES: Documentary, Commentary, Show Intros, Profiles, Games, Trivia, Episode Guide.
The Stories of She-Ra, Part 1 – This is a 30 minute documentary featuring many of the show’s creators talking about their favorite moments on the show. They discuss the many themes and elements that went into finding inspiration for storylines and characters, as well going into great detail about the show’s origin. Each creator comes off as very charming and shows a great affection for this show and its fans.
Commentary tracks for episodes “The Sea Hawk” and “King Miro’s Journey” with Writers Larry DiTillio and J. Michael Straczynski, Editor Rick Gehr and Storyboard Creator Michael Swanigan, hosted/moderated by Andy Mangels – These are terrific commentary tracks by these show creators that give some wonderful insights. This does cover some of the same ground as the documentary, but the tracks are absolutely loaded with tidbits on the series’ creation from start to finish.
50 Character Profiles – This is an interactive menu featuring the show’s characters, giving you a basic knowledge of what the character is about. Each is also given a small clip to see the character in action.
Other Ink and Paint Titles – This is a great feature, showing you the opening credits for other 80’s series such as He-Man, Bravestar, Flash Gordon and many others.
“Loo-Kee’s Fun Facts” and Trivia — This is a little menu that gives little facts and tidbits about each episode.
Interactive “Where’s Loo-Kee” Game – Loo-Kee is a little character that is hidden in each episode (get it, Look-ee?), and then he would reveal where he was. This just gave kids extra incentive to watch the show.
Storyboard-to-episode comparison for Episode One: “Into Etheria”
Two exclusive collectible art cards by popular award-winning comic book artists: Dave Johnson and Humberto Ramos
Booklet with Episode Guide
Easter Eggs
DVD-ROM features: Scripts of five episodes, Princess of Power series Bible, The Secret of the Sword comic book, coloring book
The Inside Pulse
She-Ra: Princess of Power is a show that holds up surprisingly well for its age. With an energenic mix of Fantasy and Sci-Fi, the show created its own mythology and educated kids about values at the same time. The DVD set has some great extras, especially the commentaries, which are really great fun. For those that long for the nostalgia of the 80’s, this is a great place to find it.
