She-Ra: Princess of Power is an American animated series produced in 1985 by Filmation. A spin-off of Filmation's He-Man and the Masters of the Universe series, She-Ra was aimed primarily at a young female audience to complement He-Man ' s popularity with young males. Unlike He-Man, which was based on the Masters of the Universe toy line by Mattel, the creation of She-Ra was a collaboration between Filmation and Mattel. The initial group of characters and premise were created by uncredited writers Larry DiTillio and J. Michael Straczynski for Filmation, while the characters introduced later were designed by Mattel. Mattel provided financial backing for the series, as well as an accompanying toy line. The series premiered in 1985 and was ended in 1987, after 2 seasons and 93 episodes. On March 22, 1985, several months before the release of the television series, Filmation released an animated film based on the series titled He-Man and She-Ra: The Secret of the Sword. The film is composed of what would be the first five episodes from the She-Ra television series: "Into Etheria", "Beast Island", "She-Ra Unchained", "Reunions" and "Battle for Bright Moon". In between the first and second season of the She-Ra series, in which He-Man regularly featured, Filmation also produced an hour long (44 minutes without commercials) Christmas episode, He-Man & She-Ra: A Christmas Special. A rebooted series, She-Ra and the Princesses of Power, premiered on Netflix on November 13, 2018, and concluded on May 15, 2020.

Plot

The series follows the adventures of Princess Adora, Prince Adam's (He-Man's) twin sister, who leads a group of freedom fighters known as the Great Rebellion in the fight to free Etheria from the tyrannical rule of Hordak and the Evil Horde. With her Sword of Protection, Adora can transform into She-Ra, just as Prince Adam can transform into He-Man. Born on the planet Eternia to Queen Marlena and King Randor, Princess Adora is kidnapped at birth by Hordak and taken to Etheria. There she serves as a mind-controlled Horde Force Captain before He-Man rescues her. After reuniting with her parents on Eternia, She-Ra decides to return to Etheria and lead the Great Rebellion.

Main characters

The Great Rebellion

The Evil Horde

Episodes

The first season of the series ran five days a week, like He-Man. The second season aired Saturday mornings. She-Ra ended in 1986, and the character was not mentioned in the two subsequent He-Man animated series.

Cast

Comparison list

Many of the characters/locations/vehicles in the Princess of Power toyline share similarities to the pre-existing Masters of the Universe characters. Comparing She-Ra (left) with He-Man (right): Characters Elements "For the honour of Grayskull!","I am She-ra!" = *"By the power of Grayskull!","I have the power!"

Syndication

Reruns aired on USA Network from September 1988 to September 1989, and on Qubo Night Owl from September 27, 2010, to August 25, 2013. In 2010, Retro TV began airing reruns. Reruns have also aired on Me-TV, as well as Teletoon Retro in Canada.

Toys

The female She-Ra characters were released in the 1980s as part of the Princess of Power toy line, while The Evil Horde were incorporated into Masters of the Universe. In the 2000s, an exclusive She-Ra toy was released for the MOTU 200X line. The later Masters of the Universe Classics toy line features characters from the entire franchise, including new action figures from the She-Ra cartoon series.

Other media

In the DC Comics series Masters of the Universe, the title "Masters of the Universe #8" is a one-shot about She-Ra. Adora/Despara/She-ra continues to be a main character through many of the remaining chapters/installments of the series, including in its conclusion. The entire series is collected in a hardcover omnibus.

Home releases

The most sought after set by collectors due to its 4X6 collectible art cards and extensive bonus features is the BCI Eclipse LLC (under its Ink & Paint classic animation entertainment brand) (under license from Entertainment Rights) released all 93 episodes of She-Ra: Princess of Power in 3 volumes on DVD (Region 1) in 2006–2007. Each episode on BCI Ink & Paint's DVD releases of She-Ra, Princess of Power was uncut, un-edited, digitally remastered and fully restored for optimum audio and video quality and presented in story continuity order. Each volume contains special features including different 4X6 collectible art cards, documentaries, character profiles, commentaries, retrospective interviews, storyboards, DVD-ROM pdf scripts, trivia, and photo galleries. In 2009, the releases were discontinued when BCI Eclipse ceased operations. On May 31, 2010, Classic Media announced plans to re-release the series on DVD (Region 1). On September 28, 2010, they released Season 1, Volume 1 as a 2-disc set featuring 20 episodes. On January 24, 2011, Classic Media released She-Ra: The Princess of Power - The Complete Series. On October 19, 2009, Universal Pictures UK (under license from Classic Media) released Season 1, Volume 1 in the UK, exclusively through retailer HMV. In early 2010, other retailers, such as Amazon.co.uk, also began selling the series as a box set. Madman Entertainment released the entire series on DVD (Region 4) in Australia, both in 3 volumes (similar to BCI Eclipse releases) and as a complete series set. Universal Pictures Home Entertainment released all 93 episodes of the original 1985 series of She-Ra: Princess of Power on DVD in Region 1 on October 1, 2019. This release includes He-Man & She-Ra: The Secret of the Sword and He-Man & She-Ra: A Christmas Special.

Reboot

On December 12, 2017, DreamWorks Animation SKG and Netflix announced a new reboot series based on She-Ra was announced within DreamWorks Animation Television. The series is executive produced by award-winning author, ND Stevenson (creator of Nimona and Lumberjanes). On May 18, 2018, new voice actors and the official title were revealed. It was released on November 13, 2018. The reboot series is separate from the continuity of the original Masters of the Universe series, and is noted for its explicit LGBT representation.

Live-action series

On September 13, 2021, Amazon announced that a live action She-Ra series is in development with DreamWorks Animation serving as an executive producer as the series will be a new, standalone story and will not be connected to the animated show. It was announced that Nicole Kassell will direct the series.