Five of my Favorite Masters of the Universe Related Memories

     Some people have memories that are triggered by smells. A certain smell can bring to mind thoughts of people, places, and events from their past. For others it's music, as a certain song can carry them back.  For me, action figures always conjure up memories. Whether they're memories of loved ones, friends, special events, or certain places, when thinking about the toys from my childhood (and even now) the memories just keep flowing.  To celebrate Masters of the Universe Day 2013, I'm sharing a few of my most vivid MOTU influenced memories here after the break....

 Dressing up like He-Man

     I still like to dress up as characters I like, but I do it far less often than when I was a kid.  Since He-Man was one of my favorite characters, I always wanted to dress up like him, but the only problem with dressing up like He-Man is that he's a half naked barbarian (that phrase should help the Google hits- *Editor*).  My He-Man costume consisted simply of some red shorts, two random belts across my chest, whatever toy sword I had laying around, and a pot lid for a shield. In fact, it was this pot lid shown below.

Buy it now on Mattycollector.com!

     I remember going out to play He-Man one day and my mother tried to tell me that I should wear a t-shirt. I tried to explain that He-Man didn't wear a shirt, but she told me a white t-shirt would look like I had muscles. I'm not sure why it would nor do I remember if I wore it or not. She should have encouraged me to dress like Battle Armor He-Man; then I could have wrapped myself in tin foil.

My Grandma dressed up like Skeletor

Pictures: What Really Happened

     Many of my action figure related memories stem from my Granny (that's my Grandma on my mother's side), but one of the most significant ones that sticks out for me was when I was staying at Granny's house and she came out of her bedroom dressed like Skeletor.  The 1987 movie had just came out, but I was too scared to go see it, only being around 3 or 4 at the time.  Anyways, I did want to play He-Man and so I went and grabbed 2 belts, some red shorts, and a pot lid, and came out looking for evil.  And find evil I did! When Granny came out of her room dressed in a hooded robe with her face covered in cold cream and wielding a broom as her Havok Staff, I actually was kind of scared at first.  When your Grandma dresses up like Skeletor to play Masters of the Universe with you, you know she loves you!

Easter 1987

Nothing says Easter like a guy named Fisto

 I've read the comments of many Masters fans who seem to have great memories of receiving cool MOTU stuff in their Easter baskets.  I have a similar memory of Easter 1987 and the pictures to prove it: Check them out!  There's another picture where I'm holding a Screech in my hand, but Fisto and Stridor was really where it was at.  If you look carefully, you'll also see some of the hardback MOTU books.

 

 

 

 

 

Stinkor and a Night Out with my Mom

Rawwrggh!!

     Here's another memory from 1987: I very vividly remember a special night when my mother took me out to dinner at McDonald's, took me to see the re-release of Snow White & The Seven Dwarfs, and buying me Stinkor, the skunk like MOTU action figure that had patchouli oil mixed into the plastic.  My mother always had a knack for taking me out to do things and making them really special, and Stinkor always reminds me of that.

 

 

Christmas Morning and the Slime Pit

Rules didn't apply to me!

     Picture this: Christmas morning, 1988. A Young Barbecue17 wakes up to find that Santa Claus has delivered plenty of goodies under the tree.  One of those sets of goodies just happens to be the Slime Pit, that deranged MOTU play set that was devoted solely to pouring green sludge onto the heads of your victims.  As soon as I opened the Slime Pit, I spilled the slime.  Fortunately, I was near the back of the Christmas tree so I was able cover the slime stain with the tree skirt.  Unfortunately, I managed to get some slime on the new fluffy white dog slippers I was wearing.  Maybe it was because I got the Slime Pit in 1988 two years after it had been released, but I remember the Slime being very runny and watery, unlike Ghostbusters Slime which was more solid. I think when the stain was discovered, it got blamed on the Christmas tree.

 

 

 

 New MOTU Memory- Coming soon!

     Ok, so maybe this is cheating, but I'm going to share a memory that hasn't happened yet (That's not called cheating, that's called not making sense- *Editor*). In August of this year, my wife and I are expecting our first child, a daughter for whom we have chosen the middle name...........

 Adora!

Sorry, but Loo-Kee is not hidden in this picture

We already had her first name picked out (named after a very special friend who died far too young) but we didn't yet have a middle name.  I suggested Adora and amazingly, my wife really liked it. Not only does it fit beautifully with her first and last name, but it also evokes a strong female character who embodies strength, wisdom, courage, friendship, compassion, and who makes a positive change in the world. Those are all traits that I hope to inspire in my daughter. I also know that she will be exposed to the Filmation MOTU cartoons as a child and I think it will be really exciting for her to find out she shares a name with the powerful and heroic She-Ra. 







     I hope that these memories not only bring a smile to your face, but awaken some great childhood memories of your own (whether they be MOTU related or not). Happy Masters of the Universe Day to you, and remember to check back on the Epic Review all day long for more content and check out the festivities on these other fine sites who are also participating today:
It'sAllTrue.Net 
BattleGrip
Preternia
Poe Ghostal
Hoard World
DoomKick

Barbecue17 plans to purchase a stuffed Loo-Kee and hide him somewhere different every day. He calls that "good parenting." If you're interested, take a look at his Flickr account for more action figure inspired awesomeness.