When I was a child, four o' clock in the afternoon was a sacred time. The bus dropped me off at my house right around that time, and after a quick snack it was time for He-Man and the Masters of the Universe.  I lived for He-man: I watched the show religiously, had all the toys, and had a ton of coloring books.   With He-man occupying such a vaunted position in my heart, it was with great trepidation that I sat down on August 13th for the premiere of the new He-man and Masters of the Universe (Fridays, 6 p.m., Cartoon Network) cartoon.  I'm pleased to announce that I wasn't disappointed.

Where do I even begin with this show?  Let's start with the more mature, action-oriented storylines.  The previous He-man show was practically a 30-minute toy commercial, with a moral lesson tacked on to appease the FCC, which is not the case here.  The stories are more sophisticated and give greater depth to the characters; for the first time we learn the origins of both He-man and Skeletor, something conspicuously absent from the original. Also, peripheral players, such as Ram-Man and Stratos, play more prominent roles, rather than showing up for one or two episodes, as they did in He-man's previous incarnation.  The animation style is updated also, showing a definite anime influence.  

What would I like to see improved?  Tone down the fight scenes for starters.  One of my few complaints about the premiere was the fight scenes were too drawn out: in a two minute exchange, there would be one minute of posing, forty seconds of flipping through the air, and about twenty seconds of actual fighting.  I found this somewhat distracting, and really killed the episode's pacing.  I would also like to see more characters brought back and revamped.  A quick glance at the episode guide shows that Buzz-Off, Roboto and the Snake Men will be returning.  This writer is holding out for Hordak, She-Ra, Moss Man, and Stinkor.

Several toy lines/cartoons from the 80's have made resurgences as of late (G.I. Joe, Transformers, Thundercats) yet none of them have managed to recapture the spirit that He-man and the Masters of the Universe does. Hardly a rehash, the show appeals to twenty-somethings like me who grew up on the original, as well as introducing a classic character to a whole new generation.