First Images From Kevin Smith’s Masters Of The Universe Animated Series

Masters Of The Universe has a lot of nostalgia power for those who grew up in the 1980s – be it watching the cartoon, begging parents for the toys that the show promoted, or the big screen outing which, er, didn't quite generate so many good memories. Now He-Man, Skeletor and the rest of the Universe gang are back in the latest animated series, one overseen by Kevin Smith. Check out the new batch of images from Masters Of The Universe: Revelation.

"Narratively our show is set up as the next episode in the legacy ‘80s animated series that aired from 1983-1985," says Smith. "This is a continuation of that story. We're playing with the original mythology and characters, and revisiting and digging deeper into some of the unresolved storylines. Visually we also made the conscious decision to lean into the line of toys for inspiration as well. Mattel owns this entire vast library of that artwork, so right away we wanted the show to open with classic pieces of that artwork. Mattel has been committed to this look since they first started as a toy line in the '80s, and now we’re leaning into it and honoring it." And yes, you won't be surprised to learn that Mattel will be launching a new line of toys to tie in with the series.

Here's the official synopsis from Netflix: "After a cataclysmic battle between He-Man and Skeletor, Eternia is fractured and the Guardians of Grayskull are scattered. And after decades of secrets tore them apart, it’s up to Teela to reunite the broken band of heroes, and solve the mystery of the missing Sword of Power in a race against time to restore Eternia and prevent the end of the universe."

Smith has rounded up quite the cast for the series, with voice duties handled by the likes of Chris Wood (Prince Adam/He-Man), Mark Hamill (Skeletor), Lena Headey (Evil-Lyn), Sarah Michelle Gellar (Teela), Stephen Root (Cringer), Tony Todd (Scare Glow) and Kevin Conroy. Part 1 (the first five episodes) will launch on Netflix on 23 July.