When Skeletor Meets Shogun Warriors, Everybody Loses (Except Toy Fans)

*gulp*
*gulp*
Image: Mattel Creations

When Mattel’s senior manager of Masters of the Universe Ruben Martinez applies the aesthetic of He-Man’s greatest foe to a legendary line of giant 1970s robots, two-foot-tall, $300 Shogun Masters Skeletor is the result.

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Yes, his massive blue fist is a projectile. Yes, He-Man is in for an incredibly bad day. Shogun Masters Skeletor is a celebration of two of Mattel’s iconic toy properties. There’s Masters of the Universe, of course, with its evil light blue and purple overlord, Skeletor. And then there’s Shogun Warriors, the giant robot toys Mattel imported from Japan in the late ‘70s.

Left: Ruben Martinez and his creation. Right: Forget the right, look how happy Ruben is with his Skeletor.
Left: Ruben Martinez and his creation. Right: Forget the right, look how happy Ruben is with his Skeletor.
Photo: Mattel Creations

Shogun Masters Skeletor, available through the Mattel Creations website, is a wicked piece of art that taps into these two toy classics to create what the official announcement calls “a perfect pairing of two iconic lines.”

Even the back of the box is appealing.
Even the back of the box is appealing.
Photo: Mattel Creations

For those of us who dig the design but can’t justify a $300 robot skeleton man, there’s also a $30 t-shirt that commemorates the event without killing all of that cash.

Consolation prize.
Consolation prize.
Photo: Mattel Creations
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But I say if you want the super-sized Skeletor robot with the giant firing fist you should get the super-sized robot with the giant firing fist.

His fist is ready.
His fist is ready.
Photo: Mattel Creations

Kotaku elder, lover of video games, keyboards, toys, snacks, and other unsavory things.

DISCUSSION

juliaq
Julia Q.

He-Man is in for an incredibly bad day.

Or a really, really good day.