“And what brings the famous Man-At-Arms to my humble house?” -Oo-Larr (asked sarcastically). “He-Man & the Power Sword” Mini-Comic.
I was gonna start MOTU Catch-Up Week 2 off with a different figure, but that review was turning out to be a bummer. Mondays are bummer enough. So I poked through the other MOTUC releases from earlier this year to find one that I would have fun talking about. It wasn’t hard to find. It stuck out like a nearly all-naked barbarian in a line of half-naked barbarians.
Oo-Larr is the He-Man that you didn’t know you wanted. Or maybe you did. MOTU Collectors can never agree on anything! In terms of publication history, Oo-Larr is first. If you were around back in 1982 and snagged a vintage (well, brand new if you’re in 1982) He-Man figure, then you were treated to his origin in the included mini-comic. You would see a strong barbarian wave bye to his tribe, fight a purple bear/dinosaur thing, save the Goddess, earn his “forcefield costume” (i.e. normal He-Man gear), axe, & shield, and then promptly… start to build a house. No Eternian Palace, no Power Sword, and definitely no Price Adam.
It wasn’t until Filmation came along with the cartoon that He-Man’s story got a little more familiar to how most of us remember it. And there is plenty in the mini-comics that is also in the cartoon – Skeletor breaking into Castle Grayskull, Teela, Man-At-Arms, etc. And, of course, He-Man sports the same basic gear. Until now, this has all largely been prologue though, the various incarnations of MOTU refining the overall story each time. Until Classics. The giant jigsaw puzzles of the Classics mythology converted He-Man to a title – one that Adam currently carries and has run through a line of some of Eternia’s greatest heroes – Vikor, Wun-Dar, & Oo-Larr among them. Oo-Larr takes his place as the “Jungle He-Man” who fought against Skeletor and his foes around the time that Adam was born.
Some fans aren’t fans of it, but I find it fascinating. Particularly the transition – did Adam grow up knowing about Oo-Larr, or He-Man rather? What happened to Oo-Larr? Did Skeletor finally get the best of him? Is that too dark? These are all the questions I would love to find out more about! But, whenever Oo-Larr comes up, everyone is usually talking about how his name is one letter off from Mo-Larr and how that’s a conspiracy of some sort.
Anyway, as you can imagine, I’m pretty enamored with finally getting Oo-Larr. I found the toys way later than 1982 and had already seen the cartoon, so I don’t really know him as mini-comics He-Man. I’m aware of the Goddess story in the mini-comics, but this is really my first real exposure to this iteration of the character and his being scooted over from being the “real” He-Man in the mini-comics to a predecessor is cool by me. Besides, even if you ignore the bios, this is still a cool barbarian figure. That sells me right there.
If there’s any complaint I have about this figure, it’s just that he’s so limited a release. Oo-Larr is the subscription exclusive and it’s a crying shame. He’s so naked that he’s the perfect customizable MOTU figure. Heck, some collectors might even just want him a generic barbarian to raid their other shelves. But, it’s not to be. The only way to get him was to sign up for a subscription or snag him second-hand at whatever price you’re willing to pay. Continue to Page 2…
It’s funny how much I anticipated this release considering he’s just a more naked than usual He-Man variant. Still, it’s pretty well done. With the Classics head, Vintage head, Oo-larr (Alcala) head, and Snake Armor (200X) head, you can create any version of He-Man you want.
I really ought to get a Shadow Beast and paint it to match the Mini Comic monster that he fights.
if he had dark hair, that could totally be a (more muscular) Tarzan figure.
I take it the “Remco” reference was to the Warlord line, which, while still a DC property, was an obvious rip off of the MOTU line. I think I was vaguely aware of the Warlord character then, but there being a “Hercules” in the line is what caught my attention, as well as a black dude, which MOTU lacked back then.
(Machiste? I think bleeding Cool was just calling out DC recently for “lightening” his skin tone in Convergence or whatever it was they had him in? They even showed the progression of several shades in the same issue!)
Great read 🙂
When the toy head was first announced, my reaction was “meh”. But once I had it in my hand, I loved it and put it on my default He-Man instantly.
The “Alcala Head” on the other hand, I don’t like at all, it just doesn’t feel right. Maybe because Alfredo Alcala never drew He-Man with an extreme expression like that – he always looked more serene.
Excellent review. Glad to see you back in the game, mate.
I signed up for two subs this year (and every last one counted, so I’m totally taking credit for saving the line), so I got two of these bad boys. That means one mostly-nekkid Oo-Larr, one He-Han with an Oo-Larr head, one He-Man with a Vintage head* and a blob of brown paint to make a Vintage Wun-Dar head. Now I just have to find those spare He-Man figures I bought a while back and forgot where I put them . . . .
* “Vintage” He-man is being repurposed as:
KA-LINSK
The Ruthless He-Man
Real Name: Ka-Linsk
For a couple of decades before Oo-Larr took up the mantle of He-Man, Ka-Linsk of Tundaria held the title. Whilst on the whole a devoted protector of Eternia and the Sword of He, Ka-Linsk was also noted as a ruthless warrior. Not content just to defeat the forces evil, he sought to annihilate them. When a challenge presented itself, Ka-Linsk moved into the area and systematically eradicated all foes without restraint, mercy, or regret. Conquering his way across the globe, he brought an unprecedented amount of awe and fear to the name “He-Man.” His actions pushed many evil-doers underground, biding their time until Ka-Linsk was finally brought down by The Crimson Scourge. Ka-Linsk slaughters evil-doers as The Ruthless He-Man!
The fact that Ka-Linsk is also from Tundaria explains his resemblance to Wun-Dar. Lotta inbreeding going on underground . . . .
This, to me, is exactly what a sub exclusive figure should be. It is a cool variant (like Wundar and Preternia He-Man) that has appeal and is an interesting footnote in the properties history but wasn’t part of the vintage line or any of the media (beyond that one mini-comic appearance) so it isn’t necessary to complete the line. (Shadow Weaver on the other hand, horrible selection for sub exclusive)
I could really live without the vintage He-Man head and would have preferred something else in its place. I’m just so used to the Classics He-Man face that the vintage one looks odd to me now. But other than that I’m happy with him.
Nice review! I am very pleased with Oo-Larr. The vintage head went right on Battle Armor He-Man and hasn’t come off since!!!
Good review.
Actually the prince Adam aspect of the mythology predates the Filmation cartoon. It was part of the Michael Halperin story bible and first appeared in the DC 4-issue mini-series, which came out a little before the cartoon debuted. In that one they try to mesh the early minicomics with the prince Adam story by saying that Adam had stayed with Ceril’s tribe and been accepted there as a brother,
It doesn’t -exactly- work, if you think about it, but it’s a fun piece of trivia.
The fact that the awesome Alfredo Alcala worked on both the minicomics and the DC comic of course helped.
Sadly as a sub exclusive figure I’ll never own this guy to fight Alcala Skeletor, but them’s the (Matty) breaks
Great review. Personally I think the vintage head looks a little too small for the standard MOTUC body, but it looks a lot better than the original MOTUC He-Man head. I really like the look of the Oo-Larr head.
It’s amazing how such a simple figure, done right, can be so awesome.
How did you get/make that Sorceress/Jewelstar head clear? I tried to do that for a movie sorceress, but ended up having to just go solid white (which looked cr*p)
And on topic – I like Oo-Lar, luckily i got 2 subs, so i have an extra generic body