He-Man and the Masters of the Multiverse #2 // Review
He-Man and the Masters of the Multiverse #2, much like the first issue, is not a good comic by any definition. It’s derivative, its pages are clogged with unnecessary dialogue, and the art is pulpy and rushed. But despite these flaws--or perhaps even because of them--it has a certain charm.
This issue picks up where the first issue left off, with our improbable heroes. A version He-Man from the Dolph Lundgren film, a version He-Man from an obscure mobile video game, and a mirror universe doppelganger of Skeletor named Prince Keldor--arriving in the universe of the New Adventures of He-Man cartoon show and action figure line. They attempt to save this world’s He-Man from the evil Anti-He-Man. At the end of the day, they fail, but that world’s Skeletor gives Keldor more power, in the hopes that it will help them save the next universe Anti-He-Man attacks.
It’s to writer Tim Seeley’s credit that all of this seems far less ridiculous in the context of the comic itself. Seeley recognizes that He-Man--in all its incarnations--is high camp, and handles the characters and situations with an appropriately light touch. The inclusion of the Tappers of the Universe incarnation of He-Man is particularly smart, as it’s impossible to take him (and, by extension, the comic itself) seriously at all.
Penciler Dan Fraga’s page layouts are strong, but his art seems somewhat sloppy and rushed; it’s hard to say how much of the blame for that goes to him or to the inker, Richard Friend. Matt Yackey’s colors are appropriately garish and ridiculous, and the way he colors Anti-He-Man is genuinely disturbing. Letterer Saida Temofonte manages the massive blocks of text well.
He-Man and the Masters of the Multiverse #2 is the equivalent of a Big Mac with a large fries and a Coke from McDonald’s. It’s not good, and nobody will ever argue that it is, but sometimes it’s exactly what you need, and in those moments, it’s actually pretty satisfying.
