With She-Ra and He-Man returning to Netflix as series that invoke the nostalgia of the 80s with a modern sensibility, several retrospectives have explored the origins of the toy line that that became a multi-million dollar franchise. For eagle-eyed viewers of the Netflix documentary, The Power of Grayskull, there's a surprising influence: Dungeons & Dragons.
He-Man vs. the Lawyers
He-Man and the Masters of the Universe was launched in response to Mattel's toy company rival, Kenner, winning a major coup with Star Wars. Arguing that it was impossible to launch the toy line in time for the movie's debut, Mattel passed. Kenner instead launched a cardboard box promising the figures later in the year; the Star Wars toy line, now with Hasbro, still makes the company massive amounts of money. Stung by the loss, Mattel was determined to create a rival toy line that was different from Star Wars. Inspired by legendary artist Frank Frazetta's Conan, the 1982 movie starring Arnold Schwarzenegger, and the Marvel comic based on the titular barbarian, Mattel pivoted to a musclebound, larger-scale toy line. There was just one problem: the movie was rated R and not suitable for kids.
Mattel shifted gears. The toy company knew it was on to something, but needed a setting independent of a movie franchise so that the toys could flourish without the inevitable build-up and steep drop-off in sales after the movie stopped playing in theaters. And yet they didn't want to give up on the barbarian theme (a theme that was similar enough to Conan that Marvel sued for its own toy rights ... and won). One of those settings was D&D.
The D&D Connection
Although it's not mentioned, D&D makes a quick on-screen appearance as one of the storyline development possibilities for He-Man (see the screenshot above). A quick perusal of the Masters of the Universe story bible makes it clear that, back in 1982, He-Man was strongly influenced more by D&D than Conan. Like other media inspired by D&D, the key isn't that typical D&D elements alone are included, but rather in how they're presented. For example, while dwarves and trolls can certainly be found together in generic fantasy, dwarves, trolls, and gnolls seems uniquely D&D:
Similarly, orcs, basilisks, and giant centipedes are common D&D foes:
And then there's the ogres, wraiths, and manticores:
But the most compelling proof of D&D's influence on He-Man is from the author of the story bible himself.
A D&D Background
Michael Halperin, who wrote the He-Man story bible, explained in an interview:
Larry DiTillio, who passed away last year, is perhaps best known in RPG circles for his work on Chaosium's iconic Call of Cthulhu campaign adventure, Masks of Nyarlathotep, but Larry worked on plenty of other ancillary D&D-related RPG content for Flying Buffalo. That work included several Dragon Magazine articles. Larry explains how he launched his animation career in an interview with Allen Varney:
Ironically, Larry would end up writing for the Conan the Adventurer cartoon in 1992. He-Man went on to gross over $2 billion (including a film flop) with its own unique blend of sci-fi and sorcery (more like Gamma World than D&D) before falling into relative obscurity; D&D eventually got its own toy line. But it's fun to imagine how a game that was so influenced by dime store toys nearly returned the favor.
He-Man vs. the Lawyers
He-Man and the Masters of the Universe was launched in response to Mattel's toy company rival, Kenner, winning a major coup with Star Wars. Arguing that it was impossible to launch the toy line in time for the movie's debut, Mattel passed. Kenner instead launched a cardboard box promising the figures later in the year; the Star Wars toy line, now with Hasbro, still makes the company massive amounts of money. Stung by the loss, Mattel was determined to create a rival toy line that was different from Star Wars. Inspired by legendary artist Frank Frazetta's Conan, the 1982 movie starring Arnold Schwarzenegger, and the Marvel comic based on the titular barbarian, Mattel pivoted to a musclebound, larger-scale toy line. There was just one problem: the movie was rated R and not suitable for kids.
Mattel shifted gears. The toy company knew it was on to something, but needed a setting independent of a movie franchise so that the toys could flourish without the inevitable build-up and steep drop-off in sales after the movie stopped playing in theaters. And yet they didn't want to give up on the barbarian theme (a theme that was similar enough to Conan that Marvel sued for its own toy rights ... and won). One of those settings was D&D.
The D&D Connection
Although it's not mentioned, D&D makes a quick on-screen appearance as one of the storyline development possibilities for He-Man (see the screenshot above). A quick perusal of the Masters of the Universe story bible makes it clear that, back in 1982, He-Man was strongly influenced more by D&D than Conan. Like other media inspired by D&D, the key isn't that typical D&D elements alone are included, but rather in how they're presented. For example, while dwarves and trolls can certainly be found together in generic fantasy, dwarves, trolls, and gnolls seems uniquely D&D:
"The ICE MOUNTAINS tower over the northern part of the western continent. Immense and foreboding peaks shrouded throughout most of the year by snow-laden clouds glower over the landscape. Within their fastness dwell DWARVES, TROLLS, and GNOLLS. The dwarves, a sturdy and industrious race, live far longer than ordinary humans. Generally friendly and outgoing, they enjoy carousing and decorate their clothes with bright pieces of cloth and metal. On the other hand, carnivorous trolls attack anything in their path with clawed hands and feet, but fear the dwarves weapons and magic. The intelligent but evil gnolls live in the old, used up dwarf mines. Thy bear wolf-like features and sport armor and weapons although they tend to be lazy and try to avoid a fight whenever possible."
Similarly, orcs, basilisks, and giant centipedes are common D&D foes:
"Within these rocky, encrusted and stalagtited caves walk races of monsters sealed beneath the earth thousands of years before by great volcanic eruptions. ORCS, BASILISKS, and GIANT CENTIPEDES travel the rocky bastion beneath the plain. Sorcery abounds here only awaiting the knowing hands of a conjurer to cast a spell, placing the innocent wayfarer into a state of hibernation or suspended animation among the grasses and low bushes."
And then there's the ogres, wraiths, and manticores:
"The MYSTIC MOUNTAINS make up the southern edge of the eastern continent. Wreathed in mystery, OGRES, WRAITHS, and MANTICORES find haven beneath the granite peaks. The valleys of the Mystic Mountains with their deep, slippery sides hold great reptiles and dragons prisoner, and it’s fortunate for they’d rampage the planet if not held within that stone fortress."
But the most compelling proof of D&D's influence on He-Man is from the author of the story bible himself.
A D&D Background
Michael Halperin, who wrote the He-Man story bible, explained in an interview:
Mattel asked me to come in and create the back story (bible) for "Masters" that could act as a device for merchandising the figures as well as the premise for the TV series (Filmation had begun the process of designing the cartoon characters -- but they had no stories). I was Creative Consultant to the series during its first year (65 episodes) with the job of approving all story lines. I'm proud to say that I brought Larry DiTillio into the series. His Dungeons and Dragons gaming background proved invaluable as a writer. He was what I looked for in story creation.
Larry DiTillio, who passed away last year, is perhaps best known in RPG circles for his work on Chaosium's iconic Call of Cthulhu campaign adventure, Masks of Nyarlathotep, but Larry worked on plenty of other ancillary D&D-related RPG content for Flying Buffalo. That work included several Dragon Magazine articles. Larry explains how he launched his animation career in an interview with Allen Varney:
It was game work that started my animation career, via Michael Halperin, who did the show bible for the original He-Man and The Masters of the Universe. Michael was a friend of mine at the Writer's Guild, and his sons played D&D. One day he was browsing their Dragon magazine and saw my name on a scenario." ["CHAGMAT," Dragon #63, July 1982.] He called me up and said 'Larry, I didn't know you wrote sword-and-sorcery.' He said to call Arthur Nadel at Filmation and pitch him some stories. That led to a staff job and an entirely new career in writing. No Dragon magazine, no job at Filmation. And a good lesson - you want to be a writer, get published anywhere you can!
Ironically, Larry would end up writing for the Conan the Adventurer cartoon in 1992. He-Man went on to gross over $2 billion (including a film flop) with its own unique blend of sci-fi and sorcery (more like Gamma World than D&D) before falling into relative obscurity; D&D eventually got its own toy line. But it's fun to imagine how a game that was so influenced by dime store toys nearly returned the favor.
