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Any more news on Masters of the Universe (He Man)? (1 Viewer)

Paul Miller

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Has there been any news about Masters of the Universe (He Man) being released on DVD since the news on March that someone bought the footage along with the rest of Filmation library?

Paul
 

Casey Trowbridg

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I'm curious about this as well, and with all that has happened this year, this purchase which got some attention when it went down has largely been forgotten ever since, at least by me.

mmmmm, She-ra!
 

Matthew Green

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I would buy that in a heartbeat...It was really cool getting the VHS copies from the New Heman toys...I'd rather have DVD's though..
 

Tory

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They are out in the UK in multiple volumes, but I'd wait for the new movie too before making a move.
 

Amy Mormino

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I just got an all-region player and I am really tempted to buy the Region Two releases. But I'd prefer real season sets in Region One to the UK volume releases, though I hear the UK releases are pretty good. I sure don't want to wait for the release of this movie, though a John Woo He-Man film sounds...intriguing.

There must be some story behind the delay of this show. I can't believe that a company like Rhino would choose to release shows like JEM (Don't get me wrong- I loved the JEM release) over He-Man.
 

Tory

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He-Man was owned by Fimation which was owned by the evil Hallmark company, those that wanted to dump Laurel & Hardy in the ocean. Within the last year a British concern bought the rights to the Filmation library and expressed interest in releasing DVD sets in both the US and the UK. Nothing really has been heard since but it is thought they are cataloging and cleaning what they bought so as to make everything more organized and presentable. I believe they want these releases to be of the highest quality.
 

Jason_V

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We've been hearing the same John Woo information for what seems like eons now. If this movie gets made, it won't be released until 2006, easy. With the stunts, effects, sets, stories, casting...I don't see why all the series (original He-Man, She-Ra, New Adventures and the most current show) aren't slowly brought out one season at a time.

Could Mattel be holding it up in some licensing deal somewhere? I know they're giving MV Creations a very hard time about the comic.
 

Paul Miller

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From TVShowsOnDVD...

"We are getting tons of e-mails from our readers who are making sure we know that Entertainment Rights of U.K. has licensed the original He-Man and the Masters of the Universe to BCI Eclipse for Region 1 release. We do know that; it has been all over the wire services this morning."

This is really great news, hopefully we may see something by mid 2005.


Paul
 

Casey Trowbridg

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Yes, I am so excited to see this come to pass...I loved this show and She-ra as well...can't wait for more info to become available.
 

Andrew Radke

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YES!!! This news definitely made my day. MOTU was the one cartoon I watched constantly as a kid. I had all the action figures, Castle Greyskull, etc. I remember I used to rent the 2-episode videos every weekend just to get my He-Man fix. I sincerely hope they release the original series in season sets, or at least divide them into half-seasons. I'll most definitely be amongst the first to purchase them!

Now TSoD also mentions that one of the two specials may also become available. As much as I enjoy the Christmas special, I have a hunch it will be the "Secret of the Sword" feature film.....a movie that is next to impossible to find. I'm keeping my fingers crossed on that one.

I just hope we get some iron clad information soon on what will be released, and when. This news has literally made my day!!
 

David Lambert

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I have a strong hunch that it will NOT be that one. That film properly belongs with the "She-Ra" property, as that is considered its pilot. She-Ra hasn't been licensed yet, only He-Man.

The Christmas Special took place on Eternia (and Earth), rather than Etheria, therefore I think they have decided it is properly a part of the "He-Man" property rather than a "She-Ra" story. Even though She-Ra and all her Etherian friend were there, it was Eternia they came to for celebrating the Earthly holiday.

The only other "specials" ever made for He-Man were a couple of things taking 3 episodes of the series and editing them together into a telefilm. Those won't be coming to DVD; they're unneccessary. So the Christmas special it is.
 

Tory

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Sorry to rain on the parade but I do not think this is good news, have you seen BCI Eclipse's track record with TV DVD releases:
BCI EClipse TV

They are a bargain bin cheap DVD company. I fear low quality "best of" DVD releases. Hopefully all will turn out right with restored season box sets or volumed box sets in chronological order with 20 to 30 episodes each but this does not look well.
 

Amy Mormino

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I also looked up BCI's record and there is definitely room for concern. Hard to believe this was the best deal that could be found.

However, the UK releases seem to have been received positively from what I've heard, so perhaps they will just be distributing the same package. The UK releases are in chronological order. Or maybe BCI wants to move up to more quality releases (You never know). This is definitely something for TVShowsonDVD to look into.

Actually, having read the info more carefully, it looks as if the British company is the one in charge of this deal, so we can be guardedly optimistic that the release will be the same as in the UK. And BCI also apparently released the Afterschool Special Box sets, which were fairly well-reviewed.
 

David Lambert

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Already looked into. :)


I was already talking to the folks at BCI when I first heard they were putting out DVDs of the ABC Afterschool Special. It came to my attention that, after they became part of Navarre, their course was steered away from cheap PD releases and more toward mainline releases. The New Zoo Revue was a good early move in that process, taking a baby step with a baby-oriented program. :)

A release called Rides - The Complete 1st Season came out around the same time (late Summer 2004) and was another good step for them, from what I've heard from distributors. But a PBS show and a BBC show don't turn the trick alone. To me the ABC Afterschool Special releases were the turning point. They were made pretty well, and have done VERY well for the folks at BCI. My guess is that the offer BCI made to Entertainment Rights wouldn't have meant squat if it wasn't for the Afterschool Specials proving that BCI could get ahold of a good product and make a go of it. The special packaging associated with that product - the trapper keepers for the first two and the lockers for the second pair - drew attention in a positive way and so worked pretty well for a gimmick. This proves that they can market the stuff as well.


Mind you, I will have a LOT higher standards for He-Man than I will for those other releases. I imagine all of you will, too, and the mass market as well. So I don't mind telling BCI that this is a spotlight event for them, they HAVE to do a really superbly great job with it, or else the customer base will turn on them. This would be the wrong time to blow it.

Having said that, I suggest we don't judge the releases until we actually see them. If you want to worry about it, fine. I think we'll probably like what we get out of it. If it's horrible, I'll be the first to shout it from the rooftops!
 

David Lambert

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Contender released He-Man in the U.K., and Manga Distribution released both He-Man and She-Ra in France. Both deals were in place and DVDs hitting the market prior to the March 2004 deal which sent the Filmation library from Hallmark to Entertainment Rights. So we're talking about two different companies, and they are not guaranteed to cooperate.

Also, I've talked to BCI (when I was told - very nicely and apologetically, mind you! - "no comment at this time") and I had no impression from them other than that this was entirely in their hands. Just like Fat Albert became the responsibility of UrbanWorks once UW licensed it from Ent. Rts.; it's no different.

By the way, the reason for "no comment" is because they wanted to get far enough along in the process to give a release date at the time they made the announcement. Ent. Rts. was not *supposed* to mention the deal just yet, but they let it slip out in a stockholder report. BCI is upset with them about that! So BCI is on the defensive, reacting to a situation they weren't supposed to be ready for yet for at least a few weeks.
 

Paul Miller

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As much as I loved the packaging on those After School Specials and affordable pricing, some of the video quality on the first two collections weren't very good.

Was it a matter of the source material being that bad on those or should we be worried about He Man?


Paul
 

Tory

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OK, thanks for the info. I was unaware that they released the Afterschools Specials, although I am not necesarily interested in those releases the box design makes me want them. I will remain optimistic in this light.
 

Tony J Case

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Well, I have the UK DVD's - and the show looks just FANTASTIC! (Well - as fantastic as a mid 80's kids show done on the cheap can be)

The picture is nice and crisp, theres hardly any detectable scratches or blemishes with the prints - the look like they were just broadcast. If we get these masters in the US, then there is nothing to worry about.

Frankly the smartest move would be just take the UK masters and convert them to NTSC. The extras are plentyful and pretty well done, the discs look sharp, and they manage to cram quite a few episodes on a disc. In short, the R1 version is going to have to look EXTRA slick for me to double dip here. (Classic He-Man toy commercials would do it in a hot second :) )
 

Casey Trowbridg

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As usual, David says it best but I think this quote is worth highlighting. Lets just give them a chance to not screw it up before we complain about them screwing it up.
 

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