Count Marzo as seen in the Mike Young Productions animated series He-Man and the Masters of the Universe (2002).
He-Man and the Masters of the Universe (2002)[]
Years ago, Count Marzo attacked the Hall of Wisdom. Fortunately for Eternia, Captain Miro, father of King Randor, and his army managed to defeat Count Marzo. He was imprisoned in the form of an old man and exiled to the Dark Hemisphere, while the Amulet, the source of his magical power, was placed far beyond the reach of man. He returns and tricks Mekaneck into getting him the Amulet in exchange for a wish. When the Amulet is retrieved, Count Marzo reverts to his normal form and plans his revenge on the Royal Palace and uses his hounds to emit knock-out gas throughout the palace. It takes Mekaneck and He-Man to defeat him as He-Man throws the Amulet far into the seas of Eternia as Mekaneck captures Count Marzo and imprisons him.
Count Marzo in his wicked glory
Skeletor later frees him and returns his Amulet to him when he is recruited into the Council of Evil. He captures Mekaneck and assists Evil Seed in restraining He-Man. Of the entirety of the Council of Evil he is the only one to outwardly attack Skeletor after it becomes clear he is unwilling to share any power from Grayskull. His attack is however completely ineffective on Skeletor, despite its obvious strength. In the battle at Castle Grayskull, he is one of the few who stays and fight, however, Stratos swipes his Amulet and The Sorceress of Castle Grayskull and Zodak use the Elders' powers to revert Count Marzo back into an old man form.
Count Marzo returns when his old man form steals from a horde of Barbarians and Evil-Lyn returns his Amulet to him in exchange for his help into releasing Hordak from Despondos through the Well of Darkness. In the end, He-Man intervenes and Count Marzo takes back his Amulet and flees.
Behind the scenes[]
- A Count Marzo action figure based on this incarnation was sold in 2010 as part of the Masters of the Universe Classics toyline. He was also mentioned in the toy bios of Nepthu and a Shadow Beast. #
- Count Marzo is one of the only villains from the Filmation series unaffiliated with Skeletor to be brought back in this iteration, the other being Evil Seed.
- This version of Count Marzo is far different than the original version from the Filmation series. In that one, Marzo was presented as a powerful wizard who preferred using his magic and complicated plans rather than taking on He-Man directly. He also had a henchman named Chimera, who as of right now is currently exclusive to the Filmation version and was not brought back in the 200X version. In the original, Marzo was also given a British accent and was presented as being an aristocratic individual, who often has Chimera take on He-Man physically, and relies on his own evil sorcery and cunning rather than getting his hands dirty, similarly to Lex Luthor and Superman's dynamic. This version presents Marzo as being more of a warrior, and he has a Russian or Slavic accent. He summons rat-like monsters and wields a sword and is more willing to face He-Man one on one, even beating him in their initial confrontation.
- This version of Count Marzo received an entry in Masters of the Universe Encyclopedia: Season One - Issue 1.
Appearances[]
He-Man and the Masters of the Universe (2002)[]
Season One (2002-2003)
Season Two (2003-2004)
Comic Book appearances[]
- MOTU vol 3 #1