He-Man & Orko 1:4 Scale Statue
by Pop Culture Shock Collectibles
Product Size: 29” H (73.66 cm) x 10” W (25.4 cm) x 9” L (22.86 cm)
Product Weight: approx. 15 lbs.
Artists: Sculpted by: Alterton, John Cleary, Jerry Macaluso; Painted by: Ryan Pintar, Art Director: Jerry Macaluso
Originally Released: June 2014
Edition Size: 350 (w/ Orko), 750 (w/o Orko)
He-Man Fun Facts:
First Appearance: He-Man and the Masters of the Universe animated series (1983)
Real Name: Prince Adam
Place of Birth: Eternia
Height: Unknown
Weight: Unknown
Family: King Randor (father), Queen Marlena (mother, from earth), Princess Adora/She-Ra (twin sister)
As a child born in the early 80’s, it was probably my duty to have owned at least one He-Man toy (in fact, I owned MANY), and to have watched the Masters of the Universe cartoon at least a handful of times on Saturday mornings (well, much more than a handful for me). He-Man was a huge part of my childhood (perhaps this is where my love of collecting started), and I wasn’t alone. There have been several animated series with the titular character over the years (although the original 80’s series is clearly the best) with each series having a corresponding toy line, a live action feature film in 1987 (Dolph Lundgren was surely robbed of the Oscar that year), and there are continuing rumors of a new live action film. Here we are, over 30 years after the cartoon debuted, and He-Man has not been forgotten, and may be as popular as ever. Pop Culture Shock obtained the MOTU license and is attempting to capitalize on the nostalgia felt by all of us 80’s children for the fellow with the furry undies (or is he just…ahem…exceptionally manly?). The first in their 1:4 scale statue series is of course, none other than He-Man himself.
Of course, we all remember the classic opening credits scene from the original cartoon, but here it is again to get those memory juices flowing:
He-Man Opening Credits (click to watch)
After watching that again, there was only one pose PCS could have chosen for this piece, and that is of course taken from the awesome transformation scene, sword held up high…”By the power of Grayskull!!...”, lightning flashes, and the meek Prince Adam (although let’s face it, that dude was still pretty jacked) changes before our eyes into the powerful He-Man! Just looking at the statue, that scene plays in my mind, and I find myself humming the familiar theme music.
(^ "I have the Power!!!!")
Pop Culture Shock has deliberately gone with a heavily Filmation (i.e. the 80’s cartoon) inspired design for their 1:4 scale statues. As such, the statue was never going to be hyper realistic, or ultra-detailed. The sculpt is very simple by design; however, PCS did accentuate the muscles with some added detail in the abs, arms and legs. In terms of the chest harness, wrist guards, and belt, you get exactly what was shown in the classic cartoon, so basically plain bands with no additional ornamental detail (remember the action figures had some added details in these areas, like the extra red squares on the front straps of the harness). The fur on his undies and around the top of the boots is also very lightly detailed. He-Man’s likeness is good, but from certain angles is perhaps a bit off; however, there is no doubting that this is He-Man based on the face alone. The statue comes with two hair sculpts: one seems to have much sharper, straighter edges, and the other has much more flow and is perhaps a bit longer (I call this the Pantene version). I find that the longer, less jagged hairdo reflects much more closely what was shown in the cartoon.
The base sculpt is actually very, very cool for this piece. Again, taken straight from the transformation scene we all know so well, He-Man stands atop the open drawbridge (or should I call it Jaw-bridge?) of the famous Castle Grayskull. When I first took it out of the box, I was surprised at how large the base was (insert your own “That’s what she said” joke here). The top of the base actually slopes downward back to front, too, allowing the viewer to see the entire base and He-Man’s feet clearly…nice touch. The base itself, conversely to the He-Man figure, is actually quite detailed. The cracks and chips give a very lifelike rocky appearance, the edges of the wooden door boards can be seen below around the perimeter, and there are vines crawling their way up onto the “tongue” in some areas. This base is actually one of the better I have seen.
(^ Very cool base sculpt on this piece.)
He-Man himself comes in three separate pieces: the aforementioned hair pieces, the body, and the blade of the sword. The hair fits nicely onto the top of the head with a peg, and the sword inserts into the handle with a metal dowel and peg (you can actually display the sword with either the broadside or the blade edge facing forward). He-Man fits into the base with a peg under each foot. I actually find that the left foot does not site quite flat onto the base, making He-Man a bit wobbly, so be careful if you are moving it around.
(^ Two different hair sculpts for He-Man, and two different wands for Orko (discussed below).)
The statue stands at around 29” tall, so it’s a large piece that requires adequate display space. However, despite the overall height, He-Man himself appears to be undersized. The piece is marketed as 1:4 scale by PCS, but He-Man only stands around 16” tall from head to toe. At 1:4 scale that means He-Man is only in the 5’4” to 5’6” tall range. I am sorry, but that just doesn’t sit right with me. I could not find any officially published height/weight info, but I envision He-Man being on par with someone like Superman, who is listed at 6’3”, 235 lbs on the SC Comics Wikia page. He-Man, for my money, should have stood around 18” to 19” tall for a 1:4 scale statue. If you plan to display He-Man on his own, the size may not be a problem. However, this smaller scale could be an issue if you intend to collect other pieces in the MOTU line. If Teela, for example, comes out at true 1:4 scale, she will make He-Man look like a runt.
If you were able to snag the exclusive version of the statue, you would have also received the extra Orko piece. Orko, of course, was one of He-Man’s sidekicks from the Filmation series and was known for his magical hijinks and constantly getting himself into and out of trouble. This exclusive is legit…I mean, this is not a switch-out hand holding a plastic knife, this is an additional small statue included that really enhances the overall display. Orko has a nice, solid feel to him, and even comes with two wand options: one longer and more intricate, and one is a shorter, plain baton.
(^ Orko is a very cool addition for the exclusive.)
Orko has a partially clear stand that attaches to the back of He-Man’s base with magnets, and the top of the stand fits into a hole on Orko and is held in place again with a magnet. I admit I was disappointed with this design choice. Maybe I did not look closely enough at the prototype photos, but I assumed Orko would have an independent support that could stand on his own, allowing you to move Orko around in your display. However, he can only be displayed above He-Man’s left shoulder. The stand shape seems to vary piece to piece, meaning the actual position of Orko over He-Man’s shoulder varies. Between the two pieces I have seen personally (PCS provided me a full replacement for some paint issues I’ll discuss further below), one had Orko’s right hand almost touching He-Man’s shoulder, and the other had an almost 1” gap between the two. There was one reported case where the top of the stand continued to shift under Orko’s weight, and eventually snapped. Another significant variation I noticed between my two stands was the diameter of the tip that Orko attaches to. One had a nice tight fit, the other was noticeably smaller, allowing Orko to almost spin in place. So, there seems to be a fairly inconsistent production standard amongst the Orko stands.
(^ Notice the three magnets on the base used for attaching Orko's stand).
(^ Orko's only display position is over He-Man's left shoulder).
I own two other PCS statues, those being the Judge Dredd and Judge Death 1:4 scale pieces. Those two pieces set my expectations for paint applications from PCS extremely high, as they are both superbly painted. Frankly, though, this He-Man piece failed to meet that (admittedly high) standard by a long shot in the paint department. The colours used are kind of muted and flat, although that may be intentional to stick to the animated look. The colours themselves don’t seem to match what I remember from the cartoon either. I always think of He-Man having a deeper tan than this statue has, and Orko’s hat is a bright orange, whereas I remember it being more of a red from the cartoon. He-Man’s body also lacks shading and detail around the muscles, it is pretty much one flat colour used throughout. The base (which I love in terms of sculpt) is one single colour; even just painting the creeping vines a different colour could have added a lot of pop. On top of that, the paint application is rather sloppy, and not what I have come to expect from PCS. Paint bleed around He-Man’s harness, paint spatter where it shouldn’t be, sloppy paint around Orko’s ears. Oh, and did I mention the paint cracks? Many collectors found noticeable cracks in the paint on He-Man’s body. In fact, there were cracks on mine as well (although, PCS was kind enough to send a replacement for the issue). I also found some flaking paint on the base. It all adds up to a pretty ordinary, borderline poor paint application.
(^ Some issues with sloppy or flaking paint.)
(^ Example of cracked paint on He-Man's body, this one was replaced by PCS.)
The Verdict:
Sculpt: 8.0/10
Great detail on the Castle Grayskull themed base. Some needed muscle definition added to He-Man. Fairly close likeness to the cartoon.
Paint/Mixed Media: 6.0/10
The paint really lets this statue down. Issues with cracking paint, sloppy lines, and lack of painted detail and shading all add up to a lack lustre effort.
Design: 7.0/10There was really only one or two poses that could have been used for a Filmation based He-Man. The pose is not necessarily original, but is still classic for the character. The addition of Orko is a great bonus for the exclusive, although I would have preferred him to come with an independent base, rather than only attaching to He-Man’s base.
Production & Build Quality: 7.0/10
He-Man is a little wobbly in the base. Orko’s stand seems to vary in position and size from piece to piece. The statue does have a nice, solid feel, and Orko has a quality look and feel for being an added "exclusive" piece.
Overall: 7.0
The statue does have good presence, despite He-Man himself being undersized, and from a reasonable viewing distance, it is a quality looking piece. There are some deficiencies with paint that could be a significant issue for some buyers, and some consistency/quality issues seem to be present from statue to statue. Scale could be an issue in the future as more MOTU pieces are released from PCS...will He-Man look undersized next to Teela and Man-at-arms? However, a wave of pleasant nostalgia may take you over. If you are a big He-Man fan, you may be willing to overlook some of the potential issues in order to secure this one for your collection. It’s a nice statue that scratches a very particular itch for He-Man fans, but hopefully the other pieces in the MOTU line can step up the quality in the paint and production departments.
