Masters of the Universe has recently hit Europe. From the toy to the cartoon, things are really taking off for this reboot of the classic property, and it's no exception for the Masters of the Universe comic!

The comic, which tells the tale of He-Man, Skeletor and related characters, is now available in the US, Canada and select parts of Europe. Comic shops in Austria, Finland, Germany, Netherlands, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and the UK can now order previous, current, and upcoming Masters of the Universe titles direct from Diamond Comics Distributor!

Many people remember the confusion of finally being able to get all US published '80s nostalgia books internationally, with the exception of Masters of the Universe. MV feels this is a step in the right direction for all fans across the globe.

"It's been a long time coming, but we're finally expanding the availability of the comic," says MVs Val Staples. "Mattel realized that there were a vast number of requests from fans in Europe to own the US version of the comic. Mattel is working with MV to get it into the hands of those readers. Now fans in European countries that currently enjoy the toy and cartoon can enjoy the US comic right along with everything else!"

MV continues to produce the high quality Masters of the Universe titles that fans have come to expect, and they plan to push it beyond the limits with upcoming Masters books! Now more retailers and fans everywhere can prepare for the anticipated launch of Volume 3 this February!

1. Assuming the line survives passed the Snakemen waves, will it return to red packaging, or something entirely new?

- We will move to something new. We always want to update the brand at retail and offer children and collectors a new fresh look.


2. Can you give us any more info on the MotU Collector's Club?

- We're still working on the details. Not much to tell at this point. Sorry!


3. The fans are concerned as to the total lack of television advertisement for the MotU line. If the line is aimed at kids, why aren't we seeing these commercials on the tube with any sort of regularity? Why are we seeing commercials for toys that are no longer even available in stores?

- We ran a significant amount of television commercials aimed at kids. All of the advertising is child targeted. We were on air during the spring heavily promoting the Samurai Figures and Land Battle Vehicles. We also created and aired the new brand spot featuring He-man and Skeletor battling. This aired in April, May and June. The goal of this spot was to make the hero and villain even cooler to kids.


4. Is MotU as important to Mattel now as it was a year ago?

- Masters will always be important to Mattel. It is currently having a bit of a struggle at the major US retailers, but it is having very strong success around the world.


5. If the line is successful internationally, will this expand its lifespan and effect whether or not the Collector's Club is available to the international community?

- So far, the line has been very successful internationally. This will allow us to develop more waves of figures, new animation, etc. As far as the Collector's Club goes, international specifics have not been figured out yet.


6. How well do the snakemen sales have to be to ensure the life of the line? Do they need to exceed sales prior to the Smash/Spin Blade problems, or surpass even that level?

- For the US, the Snakemen sales have to do very well.


7. What was the basis for the brighter and unusual colors on the redecoed villains (Skeletor, Tri-Klops, and Merman) and wiill there be more like this?

- We wanted to offer some of the previous figures from early waves with unique colors. Some of them worked and some didn't.


8. Assuming the Snakemen wave goes over well, can you give us any hints for the waves and toys to follow after the Christmas season (breakdowns, release dates, case ratios... anything and everything)?

- We're always looking to add new figures to the mix. The goal is for at least one new figure every time we change the case pack. New figures that will hit in the Spring (you have seen most of these in photos): Snake Armor He-man, Claw Attack Stratos, a Ram Man redeco, a new Orko, and Venom-Spitting Khan.
Case ratios will be, as promised, 1 of each character except if it s a brand new character then there will be 2.
Release dates are always hard to determine because many times we have the inventory in the distribution center, but the retailers are not placing orders. But they will roll out through out the spring.


9. Are there any considerations for multi-weapons pack in the future?

- Not at this point.


10. The fans are still clammering for MV Creations mini comics to be packaged with the toys. Any chance for this?

- We love the mini-comics and had been asking the old marketing team to include them but it has not happened yet. It is definitely something that Val Staples (JVS3) would love to see and has been pushing us on for over a year. Hopefully we can get it done in 2004, but only if Emiliano Santalucia draws them.


11. The two female characters released (Teela and Evil-Lyn) are extremely difficult to find in stores and have been since their introduction into the line. Will the high demand on these figures factor into the quantities of future female characters made available?

- Absolutely. Teela and Evil-Lyn have had a great run. We always try to balance out demand of a character vs production.


12. Any hope for MotU becoming more widely available in Canada?

- That's a tough one. The show did not perform that well on Canadian television and children did not buy into the toy line. We are uncertain at this time.


13. Can you pass along any more info on possible DVD releases of the classic, new, or she-Ra cartoon series in the US or Internationally?

- We are still working on some issues with the DVDs. Again, hopefully Spring 2004.


14. With Teela and Evil-Lyn being the hottest selling figures in the new MotU line to date, why is the Sorceress only being considered as a possible club exclusive?

- You never know. Sorceress will likely appear at some point down the road. A club exclusive or limited edition is always a possibility.


15. Any word on additions to the commemorative series?

- The commemorative series has been put on the backburner for now. There are no immediate plans for it.


16. What would one of these Q&A's be without a mention of our favorite heroine! The fans really want she-Ra to officially be a part of the new MotU saga, what are the chances of this coming to pass?

- As Val has experienced from his constant requests, we are still working on some details on She-Ra.


17. What are your personal favorite parts of the MotU line, and what is your ultimate goal in your role of managing this brand?

- I, Mr. Anonymous, am a big fan of classic characters that we and the Four Horsemen have redesigned like Zodak. My current favorite character is Two Bad. The episode where we told his origin rocked. I also like the season 2 episodes. The have more conflict and battling. He-Man does not always win every battle and Skeletor does not always jump on the Ram Chariot and run away. The addition of the Snakemen will make for some interesting twists and turns. If the fans liked the 3 part episode 25, 26 and 27 wait until 38, 39 and then the start of the third season with Episode 40. These will have some great surprises.


18. If the line picks up, any chance of seeing the Bone Warrior that was packaged as part of the Slime Pit available singly?

- Always a chance, but was not planned for the Spring. Great idea though.


19. What promotions will be used to help boost awareness in kids and collectors alike of the upcoming Snakemen waves? We heard talk of a Coca-Cola promotion, when will we see this?

- We have fast food promos like the one at McDonalds planned around the world. We are also working on the Coke promotion. It should be hitting soon. Everything we do targets children. We have a promotion on Cartoon Net around episode 30 when the Snake Men really hit Eternia.


20. Is the rumor of Fisto's name changing to "Battle Fist" true? If so, why the change to a significantly less interesting name, and why the terrible overuse of the word "battle" with the MotU line? Battle-Hawk, Battle Cat, Battle Raptor, Battle Tank, Battle Ram Chariot, Battle Armor, Battle Bones, etc? (there are also rumors of Snake Men names changing as well)

- Unfortunately we have to trademark every name. We had trademarked all of the names back in the 80s but over time the trademarks expired. We try to reuse the names in order to hold onto the marks, but with the 100s of Masters characters, several slipped thru the cracks and the name is now owned by someone else.

Fisto became Battle Fist
King Hiss became King Hssss
Rattlor became The General


21. Most important of all, with Target dropping the line, and Wal-Mart threatening to do so, what steps is Mattel taking to improve the status of the line with retailers?

- Target did not drop the line. They lowered it to 60% of their stores. We are also working with Cartoon Network to promote the TV series to make sure that kids are watching the show.


22. With secondary figures nearly impossible to find and the He-Man and Skeletor versions clogging the pegs, what is Mattel's reasoning for continuing to overpack He-Man and Skeletors and underpacking the supporting cast? What happened to better case ratios like 1:1:1:1:1:1 and 2:2:2?

- We moved to better ratios with the Snakemen product. Unfortunately changing cases does not happen with the snap of my fingers, it typically takes 6-8 months before the consumer see the effects in the market place. It takes even longer when sales slow and product isn't ordered fast enough to get new case assortments into stores.


And we just have to end this on a teaser!.
Wait until you all see our Convention Exclusive figure for next year. If you thought Keldor was cool, this will blow your mind. Who could it be? Find out in 2004!

MVC has recently broken off from CrossGen's CGE imprint to self-publish. This move comes in light of the recent difficulties CrossGen has faced.

As for MVC's future plans, things appear to be on track as planned.
Editor Leanne Shaw said, "We have some new and exciting projects lined up. Some of which have recently been solicited."

"October saw the launch of the Masters of the Universe: Rise of the Snake Men mini-series. This is an adaptation of Episodes 30 and 31 of the new cartoon series, but with some changes. The comic version is more brutal, and is a jumping off point for the direction Spring 2004's Volume Three regular series story will go."

"The art from newcomer Andie Tong is very dynamic and fits right in with this action packed mini-series. Expect to see Andie again on a long awaited Prequel mini-series debuting sometime in 2004. Written by Marv Wolfman, it will deal with the events that made Randor become king and will explain why Keldor (now Skeletor) is tied closely with the destiny of Prince Adam (He-Man)."

"Starting in December, we have the Masters of the Universe Encyclopedia. This is a five issue mini-series that is filled with info from cover to cover and topped off with art from Emiliano Santalucia and Enza Fontana. It covers the characters, comics, and cartoon episodes from what we distinguished as Season 1: July 2002 - August 2003. This is the ultimate guide that is certainly no light read."

"Then, as the icing on the cake, February sees the launch of Masters of the Universe: Volume 3. But there will be more details on that soon enough!"

Keep an eye out for MVCreations' comics in the Comics & Graphic Novels section of Diamond's Previews each month!

Episode 27 The Last Stand
He-Man has to battle Skeletor, the Council of Evil, and the Evil Warriors to protect Castle Grayskull.

Episode 28 To Walk With Dragons
The Masters of the Universe must thwart Skeletor's attacking serpinataurs with the help of some very special dragons.

Episode 29 Out of the Past
Teela is drawn to a small village where she gets further clues about her past.

Episode 30 Rise of the Snake Men Part 1
The Masters of the Universe have to battle Skeletor's forces while trying to prevent the dreaded Snake Men from getting free from their ancient prison.

Episode 31 Rise of the Snake Men Part 2
Zodak joins forces with the Masters of the Universe to prevent the freed Snake Men from taking over Eternia.

Episode 32 The Price of Deceit
Skeletor seeks to punish Evil-Lyn for betraying him.

Episode 33 Of Machines and Men
A mysterious force disables all technological power in Eternia.

Episode 34 Second Skin
It's up to the Masters fo the Universe to stop King Hiss from using a devastatingly powerful ancient artifact.

Episode 35 The Power of Grayskull
The Sorceress tells Prince Adam of the great history behind the power of Grayskull

Episode 36 Web of Evil
Webstor builds a spider army that threatens to take over Eternia.

Episode 37 Rattle of the Snake
The Masters of the Universe track King Hiss through Subternia to a long-lost Snake Temple, which holds the key to releasing a terrible power.

Episode 38 History
He-Man tries to stop King Hiss from reaching the Well of Darkness, unaware that Evil-Lyn is planning something catastrophic.

Episode 39 Awaken the Serpent
King Hiss uses the Medallion of Serpos to release the ancient snake god.