Blade (Masters of the Universe)

Blade
Statistics Name Blade Affiliations Skeletor Notable powers or skills Master swordsman and bounty hunter Weapons Sword Created by Mattel

Blade is a fictional character from the popular toy line Masters of the Universe, who was introduced into the toy line and mythology after appearing in the 1987 live action movie based on the toy line.

Blade is a master swordsman and bounty hunter. He has a brigand-like appearance, with a patch over his eye and completely bald head. He is an incredibly skilled swordsman, whose swordsmanship can rival He-Man.

Character history

Blade was introduced into the MOTU mythology with his appearance in the 1987 live action movie starring Dolph Lundgren. Played by Anthony De Longis, he was one of Skeletor's bounty hunters, a psychotic swordsman whose array of blades and exuberant swordsmanship render him a deadly enemy. No background is given for the character, although it is hinted that he may have had a long-standing personal grudge against He-Man; he utters "I've been waiting a long time for this" when facing He-Man in a man-to-man fight. In the later stages of the movie, he is knocked into one of the deep pits of Castle Grayskull by He-Man and is never seen again.

In the comic book adaptation of the film, wherein most of the characters are drawn to resemble their cartoon and toy counterparts, Blade is depicted with yellow skin, similar to Evil-Lyn, and wears a large grilled mask over the lower part of his face for some reason. He is also apparently mute; he has no dialogue in the comic and during their fight scene, He-Man refers to him as "silent one."

After the release of the movie, Blade was incorporated into the MOTU toy line by Mattel. His action figure came packaged with a mini-comic titled "The Cosmic Key", which was based upon the weapon of that name from the movie, although the storyline completely contradicts the movie. In this mini-comic, Blade is sent, together with Saurod, by a mysterious entity called the "Evil Cloud" to serve Skeletor but they are both defeated by He-Man.

Blade also appears in the MOTU Marvel comics, where he appears as another bumbling villain, different from the deadly swordman from the movie, and also in various European comic series.

Trivia

• Many fans have speculated that Blade may have been a substitute for the toy line's character of Tri-Klops. This is mainly because like Tri-Klops, he is a swordsman and has only one frontal eye, although Tri-Klops is a three-eyed spy with a rotating helmet.

• As well as playing Blade, Anthony De Longis was also Frank Langella's stunt double as Skeletor in the movie, and doubled for Skeletor in the final climatic battle between him and He-Man.