Travel with me back to the 1980s: a decade of consumerism! Americans stockpiled material items and debt! Mattel wanted to tap into this consumerism courtesy of "He-Man". The commercial for the toy starts out with a close-up shot of the doll..Excuse me, action figure! It is a detailed figure complete with: blond bangs, broad shoulders, jiggling pecs, beasty biceps, and washboard abdominals. An adult male asks "Whose the big guy with all the muscles?" The boy chimes in: "He's He-Man: the most powerful man in the Universe!" Of course traditional ad campaigning wasn't enough; so Mattel conspired with Filmation to create a cartoon to help sell "The Masters of the Universe Collection"!
When the animated show materializes, He-Man is in civilian form as Prince Adam. Adam is as brawny as the action figure but has an effeminate voice. But when it comes time to battle: Skeletor, Beastman, and other forces of evil he points his sabre skyward, yells "From the Power of Greyskull: I have the poweeeerr!", a bolt of lightning darts out of the sky, strikes the sword, and Prince Adam is transformed into the baritone voiced He-Man! Mattels competitors didn't want the Masters of the Universe to have all the power; so they followed suit and created cartoons in an effort to sell a planned or existing line of toys! Their efforts included but weren't limited to: G.I. Joe, Transformers, GoBots, and Thundercats! The toy wars were raging because you NEVER saw a GoBots commercial during a "Transformers" program! This is proof that the cartoons I've mentioned were nothing more than advertising masquerading as entertainment!
Consumer Advocates argued that children would be defenseless because they would not know the difference between a program and a commercial! However the child is not the consumer, the parent is!The parent "Has the Power" to inform the child of the difference. The parent "Has the Power" to limit the child's viewing. They also "Have the Power" to tell the child "no" once in a while!
If Filmation was smart, they would try to bring this cartoon back. If they do, it will take the pressure off the parents to stay away from the "Toys Sure 'R' Expensive, Considering How Fast They Break" store at the closing credits of every episode!
When the animated show materializes, He-Man is in civilian form as Prince Adam. Adam is as brawny as the action figure but has an effeminate voice. But when it comes time to battle: Skeletor, Beastman, and other forces of evil he points his sabre skyward, yells "From the Power of Greyskull: I have the poweeeerr!", a bolt of lightning darts out of the sky, strikes the sword, and Prince Adam is transformed into the baritone voiced He-Man! Mattels competitors didn't want the Masters of the Universe to have all the power; so they followed suit and created cartoons in an effort to sell a planned or existing line of toys! Their efforts included but weren't limited to: G.I. Joe, Transformers, GoBots, and Thundercats! The toy wars were raging because you NEVER saw a GoBots commercial during a "Transformers" program! This is proof that the cartoons I've mentioned were nothing more than advertising masquerading as entertainment!
Consumer Advocates argued that children would be defenseless because they would not know the difference between a program and a commercial! However the child is not the consumer, the parent is!The parent "Has the Power" to inform the child of the difference. The parent "Has the Power" to limit the child's viewing. They also "Have the Power" to tell the child "no" once in a while!
If Filmation was smart, they would try to bring this cartoon back. If they do, it will take the pressure off the parents to stay away from the "Toys Sure 'R' Expensive, Considering How Fast They Break" store at the closing credits of every episode!