Skeletor is the main antagonist in Netflix's He-Man and the Masters of the Universe, and the former Prince of Eternos, Keldor. He is the archenemy of Prince Adam/He-Man and the Masters of the Universe.
Appearance[]
Keldor[]
Keldor was an adult man, appearing to be in his thirties or forties, with tan skin, blue eyes, short brown hair, a mustache partnered with a goatee. He wore blue robes, a pair of boots and, after being exposed to Havoc, his eyes glow red and his left forearm lost all its flesh, reducing the limb to yellowed bone.
Skeletor[]
Skeletor is noticeably taller and more muscular than his original self, but also has blue skin and animalistic feet. His face has been reduced to a skull with red glowing pupils, although his left hand and forearm are still exposed bones, and he carries his Havoc Staff. He wears a purple hood over his skull for a head which has glowing red eyes, and a chest plate shaped like a ram skull where the horns go over his shoulders.
Personality[]
As Keldor, he is devoid of morality, power hungry, short tempered, manipulative, opportunistic, melodramatic, suspicious, ambitious, and endowed with dry humor. He didn't hesitate to risk his own nephew's life to acquire the Havoc Staff, showing that he doesn't care about his family. This is also seen when ten years later, he skillfully gains Adam's trust the better to steal the Power Sword from him. Keldor appears to be very proud of his royal status, believing it gives him the right to use power however he wants. He also shows no respect for the soldiers, seeing them as nothing more than minions. In his final moments as a human sequel, Keldor seemed to have lost some of his sanity as a result as his powers grew.
Following his monstrous transformation, Skeletor became even more deranged, self-centered, and deceitful than he was previously. While most of his evil traits have remained intact with some even emphasis, Skeletor is immeasurably more talkative than Keldor and has fully accepted his hideous form, seeing it as the revelation that his fate is to sow terror throughout Eternia forever, also losing interest in Castle Grayskull when he realizes the extent of his newfound powers. Though blessed with a twisted mind and devoid of the seriousness of his former being, Skeletor remains a dangerous and cunning planner, relying on his knowledge to achieve his ends and always planning two steps ahead. He considers his allies to be mere minions and is suspicious of them enough to anticipate their first attempt at rebellion against him. Upon reuniting with his brother, Skeletor was disappointed that Randor wasn't so shocked at how much physically scarier he was and to blurt out a sarcastic remark when Randor gave him a joke, stating that the two brothers didn't get along very well in their youth. Skeletor doesn't care about the consequences of his actions either even if it would cause war. His manipulator side has proven to be the darkest side of his personality, using Krass' sense of abandonment and emotional fragility to turn her against the Masters of Universe and become an ally he seems to have already a lot of appreciation.
As a ghost, Skeletor is still the same, but due to his new position as Krass' mentor, he shows no regard for her but he still treats her better than his former minions. Above all, he took pleasure in teasing the young girl in a childish way while constantly expecting her to go through with his plan and even daring to use the promise to bring back her parents so that she would submit. When he finally gained the powers of King Grayskull, Skeletor immediately declared himself a god and began to bring Eternia under his sole dominion. He also reveals that he never intended to bring Krass' parents back to life as normal beings for her but only as undead servants loyal only to him, showing that Skeletor is a more than dastardly being who uses the plight of others only for his own benefit and that he doesn't really cares about anyone but himself. When he was all-powerful and in his dragon form, Skeletor now wanted to transform the entire universe into his image.
Once transformed back into Keldor, his sanity was restored but he was still unable to understand empathy, as evidenced by his misunderstanding of the Masters of the Universe returning him to his former body fully and Adam just responding that it was the best thing to do. He then warned with a touch of madness that a threat would fall on Eternia and that no one is prepared for it without being worried about his own fate.
Biography[]
Keldor was born a Royal Prince of Eternia, younger brother to Randor, King of Eternia and an Heir to Grayskull. The secrets of Grayskull had been entrusted to the Royal bloodline for a millenium. But while Randor felt that no man was worthy to call upon the power of Grayskull, Keldor sought to obtain it for himself and rule all of Eternia instead of his brother. Keldor began organizing a coup to overthrow his brother in secret with the aid of the Word Witch Evelyn and the royal Man-At-Arms, Kronis.
While Evelyn and Kronis distracted the King and his Royal Guard, Keldor himself abducted his young nephew Adam and took him to Castle Grayskull. His two accomplices were not informed by him of this part of the plan. At Grayskull, Keldor demanded that the Sorceress released the power of Grayskull to him in exchange for the boy's freedom. The Sorceress told Keldor to make a choice out of two magical totems. Keldor picked the scepter instead of the sword, but when he thrust the object into a magic ray, it was revealed he had chosen havoc over justice and light, and as punishment, the flesh from his hand was burned to the bone. Keldor demanded that the Sorceress restore his flesh. When she refused, he fired a bolt of magic from the scepter at her, but it was deflected by young Adam, using the Sword of Power.[1]
Young Adam tried to defend the Sorceress from Keldor's Havoc blasts with the sword, but it was much too large and unwieldy for the boy and he soon succumbed. The Sorceress threw herself in front of the boy to protect him from another blast of Havoc, and was mortally wounded. Keldor told her he would let the boy live if she used the last of her power to fix him. Instead, she rose from the ground and vowed to use what was left of her power to make sure Keldor never found the Castle or the boy ever again. She exploded in a ball of light, causing Keldor and Adam to be teleported elsewhere.[2]
Both Keldor and Adam were presumed dead after this encounter at Grayskull, but Keldor spent ten years secretly recuperating in stasis at Snake Mountain. His body was cursed by Havoc magic, and was slowly turning to bones. Meanwhile, Adam, having lost his memories of his time at the Royal Palace, grew up in the jungle with the Tiger Tribe. When Adam gained possession of the Sword of Power and called upon it's power for the first time, Keldor was awakened from his stasis slumber and vowed to make Grayskull's power his own.[3]
Skeletor after being cursed with Havoc
Keldor was on his way back to Grayskull to finish what he started when he came across a Royal checkpoint. There he used dark magic to drain the life essence of the guards stationed there to replenish his own. At this location, he was reunited with his old accomplices Evelyn and Kronis. Keldor told them he had been waiting for them to rescue him for ten years, but Evelyn and Kronis explained that they had believed him dead, as there had been a Royal funeral after their unsuccessful coup all those years ago. Evelyn revealed to him that she had recently learned that young Prince Adam may also have survived that fateful night.
Shortly after this, Keldor was reunited with Adam, who was fending off a swarm of Poacher Bots together with his friends. Keldor used his Havoc staff to round up and destroy the Bots, and introduced himself as Adam's uncle.[4] Adam was surprised to learn of his Royal bloodline, as he did not remember any part of his life before living in the jungle. When Keldor learned that Adam had temporarilly depleted the all of the sword's power and was unable to transform at this time, he grabbed the sword, blased the boy with his scepter and told Kronis, who had been stationed on top of a large rock out of sight, to blast Adam's friends with a rocket. After that, Keldor, Evelyn and Kronis resumed their way to Grayskull on Sky-Sleds.
Keldor used the sword to reveal the entrance to Grayskull, causing the castle to appear. Then he waited for Adam to appear and use the sword (as Keldor was unable to call upon it's power himself). Kronis and Evelyn swiftly captured Adam's friends, and Keldor threatened to inflict them with the same curse that haunted him if Adam did not use the sword to re-activate the magic chamber and cure him.[5]
Teela picked the lock on her cuffs and escaped with the others. He-Man decided to share the power of Grayskull with his friends after hearing Keldor say to Evelyn that he intended to keep it all for himself. The tiger and the three children all received a new alter ego, while Keldor faced He-Man inside the bowels of Grayskull. When He-Man proved to be too powerful for him, Keldor thrust this scepter into the power emitting from the chamber (transforming the scepter into the Havoc Staff) and dragged his two accomplices into it, thereby making their escape.
Arriving at Keldor's lair, Snake Mountain, Evelyn and Kronis were surprised to see that the power of Grayskull had transformed Keldor. He was now much more muscular, but had also been stripped of more of his flesh. His head was now nothing but a skull, causing a change in his voice as well. But Keldor had now accepted his fate, and had decided that he no longer sought the Power of Grayskull, but instead would rely on the Power of Havoc and rename himself Skeletor. [6]
Evelyn proposed that Skeletor might use his Havoc Staff to share his power with her and Kronis the same way He-Man had shared his power with his friends. But Skeletor realized that the sword was made of Kirbinite (the only metal in Eternia capable of channeling cosmic energy), and the staff was not. Kronis knew where to find some more Kirbinite at the palace. Skeletor reanimated the bones of several dead creatures and turned them into Battle Bones tp attack a transport carrying Royal Guardsmen. One of the Battle Bones brought back General Dolos to Snake Mountain, and Kronis used his technology to scan Dolos' image so he could pass as the General himself.[7]
Evelyn introduced Skeletor to his newest henchman: the hunter R'Qazz. Skeletor took R'Qazz's whip, Evelyn's wand and Kronis' jaw brace and began to merge them with a stolen rubic of Kirbinite. The forging of the Kirbinite caused a Havoc storm to form over Eternos as a by-product, which, unknown to Skeletor, his brother Randor and his nephew Adam/He-Man had to team up to defeat him. When he finished, he handed the three items back to his henchmen. The glove on top of Evelyn's wand began flashing, indicating the Masters of the Universe had found their location and were on their way. Skeletor was not surprised, saying they were walking right into his trap.[8]
Skeletor welcomed the young Masters as they approached Snake Mountain, using a microphone to allow them to hear his voice outside. He then allowed them to enter and lead them towards a room built for sacrifices. After revealing his new form and introducing himself as "Skeletor" instead of Keldor, he shared his Havoc power with his henchmen, transforming Evelyn into Evil-Lyn, Kronis into Trap Jaw and R'Qazz into Beast Man for the first time.
Skeletor faced He-Man, using his "Havoc Strike" attack for the first time and told him that the Power of Grayskull was a lie, having fully embraced the power of Havoc. Magical chains emerged from the Havoc Staff and broke the Sword of Grayskull in two. The Masters of the Universe immediately reverted to their normal selves and were captured and chained. At that moment the Red Legion of Eternos commanded by General Dolos arrived at Snake Mountain, but Dolos was under Skeletor's command and informed his master that the Legion had been upgraded to Trap Jaw and Beast Man's specificiations. Skeletor took command of the Royal Guardsmen with his Havoc Staff, and told the captive Masters to join him or drown in Havoc matter.[9]
After leaving the young Masters to drown, Skeletor and his new "Dark Masters" left Snake Mountain and headed towards Eternos. Before they got their, Evil-Lyn, Trap Jaw and Beast Man tried to overpower Skeletor, but he had seen their betrayal coming and explained to them that he didn't need the Kirbinite to share his Havoc power with them, but rather to be able to control them, just as it lets him control the Red Legion. The three "Dark Masters" would now only be able to access their new Havoc powers when Skeletor wanted them to.
Using the same kind of red Sky-Sleds as those used by the Red Legion, Skeletor and his Dark Masters entered Eternos. The new shield King Randor had ordered to be raised posed no threat for Skeletor's Havoc Staff. Inside the palace, Skeletor and Randor were finally reunited, and Skeletor was somewhat disappointed by Randor's unenthousiastic response to Skeletor's new face. When he heard Battle Cat roaring and realized the young Masters had survived and were on their way, Skeletor exclaimed that he wanted to have a Battle Cat of his own. He then forced Randor to watch the fight between good and evil as he and the Dark Masters headed into the street below to confront the Masters of the Universe.
The Masters of the Universe attempted to grab Skeletor's Havoc Staff away from him, and although the weapon changed hands several times during the battle, it ended up right back in Skeletor's boney hands. Skeletor then revealed that by now, all of the Royal Guards were under his Havoc spell, and that he had ordered the Red Legion to attack Castle Grayskull. Orko made the heroes, including King Randor disappear before Skeletor's eyes. Skeletor shouted that he could still track He-Man by the power of Grayskull, so, He-Man decided to de-power himself and his friends.
Shortly after this, Skeletor entered the Royal throne room where all of the Red Legion and the Dark Masters bowed down to him as he took his place on Randor's throne.[10]
Powers and abilities[]
Power of Havoc and Grayskull (formerly)[]
Skeletor wielded the corrupt and malevolent Power of Havoc, which, after first being exposed to it, caused his left forearm and hand to lose their flesh, reducing them to bone, when he was still Keldor. As a result, he suffered a malediction that was slowly killing him and forcing him to drain others of their life-energies in futile attempt to keep the sickness at bay. After being overexposed to it and becoming Skeletor, he wielded its powers, and later gained the Power of Grayskull after Adam surrendered the Sword of Power to Skeletor.
After his final defeat by the Masters of the Universe, Skeletor was stripped of his powers and returned to being Keldor by his nephew, healthy and alive, but a threat no longer.
When he wielded Havoc, Keldor/Skeletor possessed the powers of:
Necromancy[]
Skeletor can use Havoc to reanimate corpses and turn them into undead monstrosities, which he can apparently control remotely and over great distances. The Havoc holds these abominations together, so the only way to neautralize them is to remove the Havoc entirely from the bones.
Mind-Control[]
Skeletor can use Havoc to control minds, imposing his will over others, particularly the Dark Masters after their foiled coup, and on the Soldiers of Eternos.
Havoc Infusion[]
Skeletor can infuse his minions with the Power of Havoc, granting them greater powers, weapons, abilities and stronger forms. He can also take it away.
Havoc Strike[]
Skeletor's strongest attack, it focuses the deadly power of Havoc into a concentrated blast he launches upon his enemies to annihilate them.
Skele Strike[]
After possessing the bones of King Grayskull and "becoming a god" Skeletor's signature attack, changed to summoning a giant skeletal arm out of Havoc to punch his foes with incredible strength.
Trivia[]
This is the first version of Skeletor/Keldor who is explicitly aware of his relation to He-Man with both his classic and 2002 counterparts being completely unaware that Adam was his nephew with the 2002 version seemingly also being unaware that Randor was his brother.
This version of Keldor was fully human prior to becoming Skeletor in contrast to other versions who were instead presented as half human, half gar. Keldor is also presented as being Randor,s full brother rather than his half brother.
Unlike most of his counterparts this Skeletor was never affiliated with Hordak though he does seem aware of his existence.
Gallery[]
Appearances[]
Netflix series[]
- The Sword of Grayskull
- The Power of Grayskull
- The Heirs of Grayskull
- The Champions of Grayskull
- We Have the Power
- Orko the Great
- The Calm Before the Storm
- Cry Havoc, Part 1
- Cry Havoc, Part 2