The Menace of Trap Jaw cover
The Menace of Trap Jaw! is a second series Masters of the Universe minicomic produced by DC Comics and written by Steven Grant. The artwork was drawn by Mark Texeira, inked by Tod Smith and colored by Anthony Tollin. The minicomic was packaged with action figures ofTrap-Jaw and Mekaneck.
Characters
- Heroic Warriors
- He-Man, Man-At-Arms, Teela, King Randor
- Evil Warriors
- Skeletor, Trap Jaw
Summary
After numerous unsuccessful attempts to force open the Jawbridge of Castle Grayskull using his magic, Skeletor concocts a scheme to gain entry to the castle via traveling to an otherwordly dimension. Once there, he will move to the spot that Grayskull would occupy in that world and then return to Eternia to arrive within the walls of the castle. He opens a doorway to a world that is so closely aligned with Eternia that a ghostly image of Castle Grayskull looms before him and working quickly, Skeletor opens another portal back to Eternia within the image of Grayskull. However, before he can enter it, he witnesses a being with a mechanical lower jaw and arm equipped with a laser cannon escaping from the roof of a nearby fortress via zip line as futuristic guards or soldiers armed with energy weapons pursue him. In the cybernetic being's rush to escape, he collides with Skeletor and knocks him back through the first portal that he opened, which closes. The alien cyborg attempts to hold off his pursuers before their superior firepower forces him to retreat through the portal that Skeletor opened to gain access to Castle Grayskull and closes behind him, leaving his enemies behind.
A short time later, at the royal palace of Eternia, He-Man, Man-At-Arms, and Teela urgently rush to a meeting with an elderly King Randor to discuss the source of a series of terrible earthquakes that have been happening for the past hour. Randor believes that Skeletor is the reason for the tremors and sends the heroic trio to the source of the disturbances, Castle Grayskull, before the quakes destroy Eternia.
Flying by Wind Raider and Talon Fighter, the heroic warriors soon arrive at Castle Grayskull and find a confused Skeletor standing before the castle. Before they can act, they are forced from their vehicles when another shock wave damages them. The three warriors close on Skeletor and He-Man demands to know if Skeletor is responisible for the quakes. Skeletor informs him that the concussion are coming from Grayskull itself and as they look on, the Jawbridge of the castle opens to reveal the one responsible—the alien cyborg, now bathed in a glowing aura of power that is connected to Castle Grayskull. When questioned by He-Man about who he is, the cyborg responds that he is Trap Jaw, who was only a criminal on his homeworld, but now, augmented by Grayskull's power, he is "a god". He then proceeds to inform the four that Eternia shall only be the first world that he conquers with his new-found power.
Immediately, Man-At-Arms and Teela move to engage the strange being and Trap Jaw boastfully defeats both of them with his laser cannon before they can reach him. He-Man charges Trap Jaw to avenge his friends and punches him in the metallic jaw, but the evil warrior easily shrugs off the blow and responds by blasting him with his laser as well. Skeletor, angered that Trap Jaw has gained the powers of Grayskull by accident that he sought and has so easily defeated his archenemy, He-Man, attacks him with a spell from his half of the Power Sword that sends bolts of magical energy with monstrous hissing faces at the cyborg, but Trap Jaw easily deflects them.
Triumphant, Trap Jaw crows about his invulnerability while Skeletor strikes at the rebounded magic bolts. It is then that a recovered He-Man suggests that he and Skeletor join forces, even though the idea repels him. Skeletor agree to the plan and they join both halves of the Power Sword and strike together at the energy tether that connects Trap Jaw to Castle Grayskull. The resulting explosion knocks-out Trap Jaw and leaves him powerless. Skeletor, noticing that the castle's Jawbridge remains open, charges towards it, but it closes before he can gain entry.
As He-Man laughs at his misfortune, Skeletor picks up the unconscious Trap Jaw (claiming him as a new servant) and disappears. With the quakes having stopped, He-Man leaves with the now recovered Teela and Man-At-Arms, laughing at Teela's quip that she'd hate to be Trap Jaw when he awakens in Skeletor's vengeful clutches.
Notes
- In this comic, Trap Jaw's body is not the same blue color as the toy, but rather the same greenish color of his face.
- Like most of the first and second series of minicomics, the Power Sword was shown to exist as two separate halves, as the accessories to the action figures were, rather than the single sword that enabled Prince Adam to transform into He-Man. It was also one of the only minicomics that presented Skeletor as possessing one half of the Power Sword, rather than it being hidden and him having to seek it out.