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120-415: An evil witch who aids Skeletor as his second-in-command with her powers of darkness. She is vastly more intelligent than Skeletor's other minions, and while she admits that she is not as powerful as Skeletor, she readily confesses that she hopes to seize her master's powers and rule over Eternia herself one day. Thus, she has worked completely independently of Skeletor on multiple occasions. Her trademark

240-416: A "jarring mix of corny screwball comedy and choppy action heroics." Chris Eggertsen of HitFix , in an article identifying the film's campy, positive qualities, called it "an objectively bad film with a big heart." Joshua Winning of Digital Spy wrote, "...beloved of '80s kids but scorned by critics, it's a high camp oddity that we should celebrate on its own terms." The commercial failure of Masters of

360-639: A North American gross of $ 17,336,370. The film was released in the Philippines by Solar Films on September 10, 1987. Masters of the Universe received generally negative reviews from critics and holds a 21% rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on 28 reviews. The critical consensus reads: " Masters of the Universe is a slapdash adaptation of the He-Man mythos that can't overcome its cynical lack of raison d'etre, no matter how admirably Frank Langella throws himself into

480-563: A battle ensues. Evil-Lyn recovers the Key and summons Skeletor to Earth. Skeletor's forces capture the Eternians, and Julie is wounded by his lightning blast, which simultaneously erases the memory storage of Gwildor's Key. He-Man surrenders to save his comrades and is returned to Eternia as Skeletor's slave. Skeletor attempts to torture He-Man into submission to make his victory complete, but He-Man refuses to yield. The moment arrives for Skeletor to receive

600-528: A benevolent pagan religion that had survived the Christianization of Europe. This has been discredited by further historical research. From the 1930s, occult neopagan groups began to emerge who called their religion a kind of 'witchcraft'. They were initiatory secret societies inspired by Murray's 'witch cult' theory, ceremonial magic , Aleister Crowley 's Thelema , and historical paganism. The biggest religious movement to emerge from this

720-437: A contest for children for a chance to appear in the film. Richard Szponder won the competition, but his victory was announced as filming was nearing completion. All the scenes taking place on Earth had been shot, so Goddard cast him as the minion character Pigboy, who holds Skeletor's staff as he returns to Grayskull. Two sound stages needed to be connected to film the interior of Castle Grayskull, with matte paintings filling in

840-403: A female more dedicated to Skeletor's cause than any man; she is obsessive around Skeletor because she is slightly lovelorn. The filmmakers considered having Foster wear eye-lenses to mask her naturally pale-blue eyes, but decided that her natural eyes fit the character better. However, they did augment Foster's chest, fitting cleavage into the character's costume. Foster wanted the character to have

960-531: A great team" after all. She also declares to Teela in this episode that she has "no loyalty to Skeletor", and that she only works for him because she eventually hopes to acquire his superior powers. At the end of the episode, Evil-Lyn evinces shades of goodness as she thanks Mallek the Wizard of Stone Mountain for saving her life and healing her injuries. As a token of her heartfelt gratitude, she refuses to steal that which Skeletor had sent her to obtain, and proves that she

1080-531: A large hairstyle, rather than the short style featured in the film. Evil-Lyn returns for the 2002 relaunch of the Masters of the Universe toy line and cartoon series. While her portrayal in the new show is very much in keeping with the original series, her background is expanded in the new series. She is revealed to be the daughter of a mysterious sorcerer known only as the Faceless One , who lives in isolation amongst

1200-409: A live action Masters of the Universe film. One of the original drafts from the script by David Odell (whose previous writing credits include Supergirl and The Dark Crystal ) was reviewed in the third episode of the He-Man and She-Ra podcast, Masters Cast. The original draft included more time spent on Eternia and Snake Mountain, had Beast Man in a speaking role and revealed that He-Man's mother

1320-533: A minority of the accused in any area studied". Likewise, Davies says "relatively few cunning-folk were prosecuted under secular statutes for witchcraft" and were dealt with more leniently than alleged witches. The Constitutio Criminalis Carolina (1532) of the Holy Roman Empire , and the Danish Witchcraft Act of 1617, stated that workers of folk magic should be dealt with differently from witches. It

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1440-638: A minority of those accused. European belief in witchcraft gradually dwindled during and after the Age of Enlightenment . Many indigenous belief systems that include the concept of witchcraft likewise define witches as malevolent, and seek healers (such as medicine people and witch doctors ) to ward-off and undo bewitchment. Some African and Melanesian peoples believe witches are driven by an evil spirit or substance inside them. Modern witch-hunting takes place in parts of Africa and Asia. Today, followers of certain types of modern paganism identify as witches and use

1560-403: A more capable ally than Evil-Lyn, who is often left in charge when he is away from Snake Mountain. Voice actress Linda Gary imbued Evil-Lyn with the qualities of perniciousness and refinement simultaneously, and indeed, whatever the character did, she did it with style, unlike the vast majority of the other villains. Although the toy line may have designed her as an evil counterpart to Teela , in

1680-800: A multi-phase journey influenced by culture , spirituality , and societal norms. Ancient witchcraft in the Near East intertwined mysticism with nature through rituals and incantations aligned with local beliefs. In ancient Judaism , magic had a complex relationship, with some forms accepted due to mysticism while others were considered heretical . The medieval Middle East experienced shifting perceptions of witchcraft under Islamic and Christian influences, sometimes revered for healing and other times condemned as heresy . Jewish attitudes toward witchcraft were rooted in its association with idolatry and necromancy , and some rabbis even practiced certain forms of magic themselves. References to witchcraft in

1800-433: A two-disc edition with the complete score and the original album presentation; in 2012, Intrada Records issued the complete score (the entirely of disc one and tracks 1–5 on disc two) on one disc. Masters of the Universe was released on DVD October 23, 2001. A 25th Anniversary Edition Blu-ray Disc was released by Warner Home Video on October 2, 2012. Prior to releasing the film, The Cannon Group touted Masters of

1920-472: A viable explanation of evil in the world". The belief in witchcraft has been found throughout history in a great number of societies worldwide. Most of these societies have used protective magic or counter-magic against witchcraft, and have shunned, banished, imprisoned, physically punished or killed alleged witches. Anthropologists use the term "witchcraft" for similar beliefs about harmful occult practices in different cultures, and these societies often use

2040-613: A wax or clay image (a poppet ) of a person to affect them magically; or using herbs , animal parts and other substances to make potions or poisons. Witchcraft has been blamed for many kinds of misfortune. In Europe, by far the most common kind of harm attributed to witchcraft was illness or death suffered by adults, their children, or their animals. "Certain ailments, like impotence in men, infertility in women, and lack of milk in cows, were particularly associated with witchcraft". Illnesses that were poorly understood were more likely to be blamed on witchcraft. Edward Bever writes: "Witchcraft

2160-406: A wide range of practices, with belief in black magic and the evil eye coexisting alongside strict prohibitions against its practice. The Quran acknowledges the existence of magic and seeks protection from its harm. Islam's stance is against the practice of magic, considering it forbidden, and emphasizes divine miracles rather than magic or witchcraft. The historical continuity of witchcraft in

2280-499: A witch (m. kaššāpu , f. kaššāptu , from kašāpu ['to bewitch'] ) was "usually regarded as an anti-social and illegitimate practitioner of destructive magic ... whose activities were motivated by malice and evil intent and who was opposed by the ašipu , an exorcist or incantation-priest". These ašipu were predominantly male representatives of the state religion, whose main role was to work magic against harmful supernatural forces such as demons . The stereotypical witch mentioned in

2400-586: A witch, what makes a woman more likely than a man to be a witch, how to put a witch on trial, and how to punish a witch. The book defines a witch as evil and typically female. It became the handbook for secular courts throughout Europe, but was not used by the Inquisition, which even cautioned against relying on it. It was the most sold book in Europe for over 100 years, after the Bible. Islamic perspectives on magic encompass

2520-522: Is Wicca . Today, some Wiccans and members of related traditions self-identify as "witches" and use the term "witchcraft" for their magico-religious beliefs and practices, primarily in Western anglophone countries . Masters of the Universe (film) Masters of the Universe (stylized as Masters of the Universe: The Motion Picture ) is a 1987 American superhero film based on

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2640-462: Is a crime punishable by death and the country has executed people for this crime as recently as 2014. Witchcraft-related violence is often discussed as a serious issue in the broader context of violence against women . In Tanzania, an estimated 500 older women are murdered each year following accusations of witchcraft or accusations of being a witch, according to a 2014 World Health Organization report. Children who live in some regions of

2760-413: Is also explored: born to poverty and almost cannibalised by her parents as a youth before being recruited by Skeletor as an adult to lead his armies, learning magic and falling in love with him. After being shown the true size of the universe by Skeletor, Lyn is disillusioned by its emptiness and elects to destroy it, tricking Skeletor into relinquishing his power in order to have sex with her before taking

2880-413: Is not subservient like the other Evil Warriors, stating that Skeletor can "come get" what he wanted "himself". Although her background is never mentioned in the series, the series bible explains she was once a scientist from Earth called Evelyn Powers, who was on board Marlena Glenn's spacecraft before it crash-landed on Eternia. Evelyn had been insanely jealous of Marlena for being chosen over her to pilot

3000-404: Is obsessive around him because she loves him. The filmmakers considered having Foster wear contact lenses to mask her naturally pale blue eyes, but decided they fit the character better. They augmented her chest, fitting cleavage into the costume. She wanted Evil-Lyn to have a long hairstyle, rather than the short style featured in the film; Mattel objected, considering it too far a departure from

3120-549: Is particularly used for women. A male practitioner of magic or witchcraft is more commonly called a ' wizard ', or sometimes, 'warlock'. When the word witch is used to refer to a member of a neo-pagan tradition or religion (such as Wicca ), it can refer to a person of any gender. Witches are commonly believed to cast curses ; a spell or set of magical words and gestures intended to inflict supernatural harm. Cursing could also involve inscribing runes or sigils on an object to give that object magical powers; burning or binding

3240-462: Is suspicious of the Key, which he suspects Kevin may have stolen. He confiscates it and leaves for Charlie's store to verify Kevin's story. Evil-Lyn and her team break into the house and interrogate Kevin regarding the Key's location using a mind-control collar, before pursuing Lubic. Julie and the Eternians arrive and release Kevin from the collar, then pursue Lubic and the Key. They arrive at Charlie's store, but Skeletor's forces catch up with them and

3360-654: Is that witches cause harm by introducing cursed magical objects into their victim's body; such as small bones or ashes. James George Frazer described this kind of magic as imitative . In some cultures, witches are believed to use human body parts in magic, and they are commonly believed to murder children for this purpose. In Europe, "cases in which women did undoubtedly kill their children, because of what today would be called postpartum psychosis , were often interpreted as yielding to diabolical temptation". Witches are believed to work in secret, sometimes alone and sometimes with other witches. Hutton writes: "Across most of

3480-640: Is the magic wand crowned with a crystal orb, but Evil-Lyn typically generates magic without the assistance of any instruments. Evil-Lyn was introduced into the Masters of the Universe toyline in 1983 in order to add a female character to the Evil Warriors. Envisioned as an evil warrior-goddess and counterpart to Teela , Evil-Lyn's action figure is identical to Teela's except in color scheme, head mold, and accessories. The original figure has bright yellow skin. With her intelligence, fearlessness, and her incredible magic skills, Skeletor clearly could not hope for

3600-414: Is the usual name, some are also known as 'blessers' or 'wizards', but might also be known as 'white', 'good', or 'unbinding witches'. Historian Owen Davies says the term "white witch" was rarely used before the 20th century. Ronald Hutton uses the general term "service magicians". Often these people were involved in identifying alleged witches. Such helpful magic-workers "were normally contrasted with

3720-411: Is to use protective magic or counter-magic , often with the help of magical healers such as cunning folk or witch-doctors . This includes performing rituals , reciting charms , or the use of talismans , amulets , anti- witch marks , witch bottles , witch balls , and burying objects such as horse skulls inside the walls of buildings. Another believed cure for bewitchment is to persuade or force

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3840-446: Is tolerated or accepted by the population, even if the orthodox establishment opposes it. In these societies, practitioners of helpful magic provide (or provided) services such as breaking the effects of witchcraft, healing , divination , finding lost or stolen goods, and love magic . In Britain, and some other parts of Europe, they were commonly known as ' cunning folk ' or 'wise people'. Alan McFarlane wrote that while cunning folk

3960-644: The Chicago Tribune wrote that the film, while predictable and derivative, entertains audiences through its side plots set on Earth. Several reviewers praised Frank Langella's portrayal of Skeletor, including Rose DeWolf in the Philadelphia Daily News (though saying his costume looked like a Halloween mask ) and Roger Hulburt of the South Florida Sun Sentinel . In a retrospective review, Glenn Heath Jr. of Slant Magazine called it

4080-447: The Masters of the Universe franchise by Mattel . The film was directed by Gary Goddard , produced by Yoram Globus and Menahem Golan , and written by David Odell . It stars Dolph Lundgren , Frank Langella , Jon Cypher , Chelsea Field , Billy Barty , Courteney Cox , Robert Duncan McNeill , and Meg Foster . The film follows two teenagers who meet He-Man , the most powerful man in

4200-490: The Age of Colonialism , many cultures were exposed to the Western world via colonialism , usually accompanied by intensive Christian missionary activity (see Christianization ). In these cultures, beliefs about witchcraft were partly influenced by the prevailing Western concepts of the time. In Christianity , sorcery came to be associated with heresy and apostasy and to be viewed as evil. Among Catholics, Protestants, and

4320-461: The Indo-European root from which it may have derived. Another Old English word for 'witch' was hægtes or hægtesse , which became the modern English word " hag " and is linked to the word " hex ". In most other Germanic languages, their word for 'witch' comes from the same root as these; for example German Hexe and Dutch heks . In colloquial modern English , the word witch

4440-473: The Sorceress of Grayskull , imprisoning her within a power-draining field and planning to seize power over the entire universe by the next moonrise. Skeletor's archenemies—the warrior leader He-Man , veteran soldier Man-At-Arms, and Man-At-Arms' daughter Teela —rescue locksmith Gwildor from Skeletor's troopers. Gwildor invented a "Cosmic Key" that can open a portal to anywhere by utilizing musical notes. The device

4560-565: The Tanakh , or Hebrew Bible, highlighted strong condemnations rooted in the "abomination" of magical belief. Christianity similarly condemned witchcraft, considering it an abomination and even citing specific verses to justify witch-hunting during the early modern period. Historically, the Christian concept of witchcraft derives from Old Testament laws against it. In medieval and early modern Europe, many Christians believed in magic. As opposed to

4680-454: The accuser's estate was handed over instead. The Maqlû ("burning") is an ancient Akkadian text, written early in the first millennium BCE , which sets out a Mesopotamian anti-witchcraft ritual. This lengthy ritual includes invoking various gods , burning an effigy of the witch, then dousing and disposing of the remains. Witchcraft's historical evolution in the Middle East reveals

4800-456: The devil ; and he comes to them in the likeness of the man that is buried there, as if he arises from death." Most societies that have believed in harmful or black magic have also believed in helpful magic. Some have called it white magic , at least in more recent times. Where belief in harmful magic is common, it is typically forbidden by law as well as hated and feared by the general populace, while helpful or apotropaic (protective) magic

4920-434: The secular leadership of late medieval/early modern Europe, fears about witchcraft rose to fever pitch and sometimes led to large-scale witch-hunts . The fifteenth century saw a dramatic rise in awareness and terror of witchcraft. Tens of thousands of people were executed, and others were imprisoned, tortured, banished, and had lands and possessions confiscated. The majority of those accused were women, though in some regions

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5040-455: The 1987 live-action feature film Masters of the Universe . Played by Meg Foster , she is shown as Skeletor's right-hand woman as in the cartoon, although the film adds an extra dimension to her relationship with Skeletor by indicating some amount of romance between the two. In one scene, Skeletor reveals that he depends upon Evil-Lyn to portray the image of him as a ruler to the people of Eternia as he strokes her face and shoulder. While sharing

5160-605: The British Isles. Historian Ronald Hutton outlined five key characteristics ascribed to witches and witchcraft by most cultures that believe in this concept: the use of magic to cause harm or misfortune to others; it was used by the witch against their own community; powers of witchcraft were believed to have been acquired through inheritance or initiation; it was seen as immoral and often thought to involve communion with evil beings; and witchcraft could be thwarted by defensive magic, persuasion, intimidation or physical punishment of

5280-488: The Cosmic Key, Evil-Lyn tries to convince Skeletor that their talents could still be useful. This stance prompts Skeletor to force her into control of his troops on their second mission to Earth to track down the heroes. She succeeds in capturing the Cosmic Key, but Skeletor once again disregards her when she reports that she has failed to deal with He-Man. In the final stages of the film, she deserts Skeletor after he absorbs

5400-640: The Darklands Journey to Stone City and No Job Too Small also depict her working away from Skeletor. Additionally, Evil-Lyn renders her services to aid other super villains, such as Gorgon in The Defection , and Dark-Dream in Eternal Darkness , hence, affirming, time and again, that she is by no means devoted to Skeletor. This is brought to the forefront in the episode The Witch and the Warrior , perhaps

5520-662: The Devil , though anthropologist Jean La Fontaine notes that such accusations were mainly made against perceived "enemies of the Church". It was thought witchcraft could be thwarted by white magic , provided by ' cunning folk ' or 'wise people'. Suspected witches were often prosecuted and punished, if found guilty or simply believed to be guilty. European witch-hunts and witch trials in the early modern period led to tens of thousands of executions. While magical healers and midwives were sometimes accused of witchcraft themselves, they made up

5640-422: The Key. The henchmen retreat to Grayskull where, incensed by their failure, Skeletor kills Saurod and sends the others back to Earth, with a larger force under Evil-Lyn's command. Kevin returns to the school to find police investigating the damage caused by Skeletor's men, and no sign of Julie. Kevin is taken to Julie's house by Lubic , a detective investigating the disturbance. They find no trace of Julie, but Lubic

5760-460: The Middle East underlines the complex interaction between spiritual beliefs and societal norms across different cultures and epochs . During the 20th century, interest in witchcraft rose in English-speaking and European countries. From the 1920s, Margaret Murray popularized the ' witch-cult hypothesis ': the idea that those persecuted as 'witches' in early modern Europe were followers of

5880-503: The Spellstone, Evil-Lyn's Plot and The Royal Cousin. Although occasionally using such artifacts as the legendary Shaping Staff and the Spellstone to supplement her powers, she was by no means reliant on external objects to perform her spells and enchantments. More often than not, her powers emanated from within her. She frequently branched out from Skeletor's service and conducted her own schemes, as portrayed in episodes such as Ordeal in

6000-532: The Sword of Grayskull and shatters Skeletor's staff in a duel, restoring the latter to his normal state. He-Man offers mercy, but Skeletor draws a concealed sword and attempts to kill him. To stop him, He-Man knocks Skeletor into a pit below. The freed Sorceress heals Julie, and Gwildor opens a portal to send the Earthlings home. Hailed as a hero for his bravery, Lubic decides to remain on Eternia. On Earth, Julie awakens on

6120-513: The Universe as the Star Wars of the 1980s. Despite releasing alongside the height of the success of the toy line, animated series and related merchandise, Masters of the Universe began as the third-highest-grossing film of the weekend in North America on August 7, 1987, earning $ 4,883,168, behind Stakeout ($ 5,170,403) and The Living Daylights ($ 7,706,230). It quickly left the charts, with

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6240-543: The Universe , among other films such as Superman IV: The Quest for Peace and Lifeforce , contributed to the eventual closure of Cannon Films . Cannon Films had intended to create a Masters of the Universe sequel, indicated by the end credits with a revelation that Skeletor survives his fall. The sequel, titled Masters of the Universe 2: Revenge of the Beast , was written; the script featured He-Man returning to Earth to battle Skeletor, who had returned to Earth and possessed

6360-470: The Universe: Revelation , Evil-Lyn supplants Skeletor as leader of his armies following his apparent death, bringing peace to Eternia. After unknowingly freeing him and He-Man from their prisons, leading Skeletor to gain the Sword of Power, Lyn initially begins decides to begin serving him again and resume their romantic relationship, becoming the new Sorceress of Castle Grayskull. Evil-Lyn's backstory

6480-712: The aborted Spider-Man movie. The project was abandoned when Cannon was unable to pay Mattel 's fees. The already-made costumes and sets were instead utilized for the low-budget sci-fi film Cyborg , which led to this film occasionally being screened as Masters of the Universe II: The Cyborg . Masters of the Universe was Lundgren's first leading role in a feature film following his success in Rocky IV and he later labeled it as his least favorite film role. Conversely, Langella considers Skeletor one of his favorite roles. Skeletor's question to He-Man ("Tell me about

6600-427: The actors' presence. Mattel was also initially very controlling over how He-Man was depicted in the film, insisting that the character could not appear doing anything morally wrong (such as swearing or killing). Sales of He-Man toys dipped in the middle of production, after which Goddard noted that Mattel relaxed their rules and allowed the director to have more liberties with the character. During filming, Mattel held

6720-401: The alleged witch to lift their spell. Often, people have attempted to thwart the witchcraft by physically punishing the alleged witch, such as by banishing, wounding, torturing or killing them. "In most societies, however, a formal and legal remedy was preferred to this sort of private action", whereby the alleged witch would be prosecuted and then formally punished if found guilty. Throughout

6840-457: The alleged witch. It is commonly believed that witches use objects, words, and gestures to cause supernatural harm, or that they simply have an innate power to do so. Hutton notes that both kinds of practitioners are often believed to exist in the same culture and that the two often overlap, in that someone with an inborn power could wield that power through material objects. One of the most influential works on witchcraft and concepts of magic

6960-427: The body are believed to grant supernatural powers, the substance may be good, bad, or morally neutral. Hutton draws a distinction between those who unwittingly cast the evil eye and those who deliberately do so, describing only the latter as witches. The universal or cross-cultural validity of the terms "witch" and "witchcraft" are debated. Hutton states: [Malevolent magic] is, however, only one current usage of

7080-437: The body of a big business entrepreneur named Dark, taking control of the technology of Dark Industries in a new effort to take over the universe. On Skeletor's trail, He-Man was to take on the guise of a professional quarterback to pursue his enemy undercover. Pro surfer Laird Hamilton was set to replace Dolph Lundgren as He-Man. With a low budget of $ 4.5 million, the sequel was to be directed by Albert Pyun , consecutively with

7200-540: The cartoon, she was really more of an evil counterpart to the Sorceress rather than Teela, seeing as how she possessed no warrior skills whatsoever, but more than compensated for this by her expertise in magic and witchcraft . When her helmet is off, she is revealed to have white or grey hair. She would use all manner of magic spells in combat against the Heroic Warriors, and duped many people with her magical disguises in episodes such as The Shaping Staff, The Curse of

7320-562: The concept of "witchcraft" as one of the ways humans have tried to explain strange misfortune. Some cultures have feared witchcraft much less than others, because they tend to have other explanations for strange misfortune. For example, the Gaels of Ireland and the Scottish Highlands historically held a strong belief in fairy folk , who could cause supernatural harm, and witch-hunting was very rare in these regions compared to other regions of

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7440-481: The desire for power between them, Evil-Lyn's calm and seductive approach is shown to soothe Skeletor's wrath and mania in his moments of hysteria. In that same scene, they were about to kiss when Beast Man and the other warriors walked in and interrupted them. Any attempt Evil-Lyn makes to stand closer or equal to Skeletor is quickly deflected by him in the film. After Skeletor kills Saurod for failing to capture He-Man and

7560-410: The device, they accidentally transmit a signal. Tracking it, Evil-Lyn sends Skeletor's henchmen Saurod, Blade, Beast Man and Karg to recover the device. Kevin believes the Key to be a new Japanese synthesizer and takes it to a music store run by his friend Charlie. At the school, Skeletor's henchmen arrive through a portal and chase Julie, who is rescued by He-Man while he and his companions search for

7680-423: The director of Masters of the Universe , it was a pleasure to see that someone got it. Your comparison of the film to Kirby's New Gods was not far off. In fact, the storyline was greatly inspired by the classic Fantastic Four / Doctor Doom epics, The New Gods and a bit of Thor thrown in here and there. I intended the film to be a "motion picture comic book," though it was a tough proposition to sell to

7800-712: The employment (or presumed employment) of some occult means of doing harm to other people in a way which was generally disapproved of. In this sense the belief in witchcraft can be defined as the attribution of misfortune to occult human agency". Emma Wilby says folk magicians in Europe were viewed ambivalently by communities, and were considered as capable of harming as of healing, which could lead to their being accused as malevolent witches. She suggests some English "witches" convicted of consorting with demons may have been cunning folk whose supposed fairy familiars had been demonised . Hutton says that magical healers "were sometimes denounced as witches, but seem to have made up

7920-508: The evil group uses time travel to get the Skull of Power and Sir Laser-Lot, thereby allowing him to reshape Eternia and erasing Adam's memories as He-Man. Evil-Lyn will appear in the live-action He-Man movie portrayed by Alison Brie . In the film, she will be a powerful and intelligent witch and the femme fatale who will use her power to help Skeletor reconstruct the Havok Staff. In Masters of

8040-434: The film, she rarely uses magic, although in one scene she casts an illusion to make herself appear to be the dead mother of Julie and also uses her powers to keep the door of the music store closed while Julie brings her the Cosmic Key. Describing her character, Foster said that Evil-Lyn is not villainous, "she is just doing her job and she knows how to get results, even if it means being harsh." Langella agreed, calling Evil-Lyn

8160-460: The fourth added by Christina Larner : Witch-hunts, scapegoating, and the shunning or murder of suspected witches still occurs. Many cultures worldwide continue to have a belief in the concept of "witchcraft" or malevolent magic. Apart from extrajudicial violence , state-sanctioned execution also occurs in some jurisdictions. For instance, in Saudi Arabia practicing witchcraft and sorcery

8280-403: The friendship of Jack and Roz and was lucky enough to spend many hours with Jack, hearing how he created this character and that one, why a villain has to be even more powerful than a hero, and on and on. Jack was a great communicator, and listening to him was always an education. You might be interested to know that I tried to dedicate Masters of Universe to Jack Kirby in the closing credits, but

8400-435: The general public in at least four ways. Neopagan writer Isaac Bonewits proposed dividing witches into even more distinct types including, but not limited to: Neopagan, Feminist, Neogothic, Neoclassical, Classical, Family Traditions, Immigrant Traditions, and Ethnic. The word is over a thousand years old: Old English formed the compound wiccecræft from wicce ('witch') and cræft ('craft'). The masculine form

8520-488: The good left within her as she considers defecting to the side of good after He-Man saves her life following a call for help from her father. Later, in the episode "The Power of Grayskull", Evil-Lyn learns that Skeletor promised to free Hordak from the dimension of Despondos in return for Hordak saving his life, but Skeletor chose instead to destroy Hordak's sanctuary, knowing that Hordak could easily destroy him. She, therefore, chooses to free Hordak by herself, in order to gain

8640-584: The helpful magic of the cunning folk , witchcraft was seen as evil and associated with Satan and Devil worship . This often resulted in deaths, torture and scapegoating (casting blame for misfortune), and many years of large scale witch-trials and witch hunts , especially in Protestant Europe, before largely ending during the Age of Enlightenment . Christian views in the modern day are diverse, ranging from intense belief and opposition (especially by Christian fundamentalists ) to non-belief. During

8760-541: The law codes also prescribed the death penalty for those found guilty of witchcraft. According to Tzvi Abusch, ancient Mesopotamian ideas about witches and witchcraft shifted over time, and the early stages were "comparable to the archaic shamanistic stage of European witchcraft". In this early stage, witches were not necessarily considered evil, but took 'white' and 'black' forms, could help others using magic and medical knowledge, generally lived in rural areas and sometimes exhibited ecstatic behavior. In ancient Mesopotamia,

8880-449: The line that serves as a continuation of the discontinued 2002 Mattel action figures. The mini statue was painted in traditional blue and yellow colors. The statue was also released in Series 5 of the ministatue line in 2007, in the new purple color scheme. Comic Book Resources list the character as part of He-Man: 15 Most Powerful Masters of the Universe. Witch Witchcraft is

9000-448: The loneliness of good, He-Man. Is it equal to the loneliness of evil?") is slightly reworded in the crossover comic miniseries, Injustice vs. Masters of the Universe . Gwildor, a character created for Masters of the Universe as a replacement for Orko due to the complexity of the character to make in live action, was brought into the canon of the 1983–1985 He-Man and the Masters of the Universe animated series in 2024's Masters of

9120-444: The majority were men. In Scots , the word warlock came to be used as the male equivalent of witch (which can be male or female, but is used predominantly for females). The Malleus Maleficarum (Latin for 'Hammer of The Witches') was a witch-hunting manual written in 1486 by two German monks, Heinrich Kramer and Jacob Sprenger. It was used by both Catholics and Protestants for several hundred years, outlining how to identify

9240-549: The masses did not accept this and continued to make use of their services. The English MP and skeptic Reginald Scot sought to disprove magic and witchcraft altogether, writing in The Discoverie of Witchcraft (1584), "At this day, it is indifferent to say in the English tongue, 'she is a witch' or 'she is a wise woman'". Historian Keith Thomas adds "Nevertheless, it is possible to isolate that kind of 'witchcraft' which involved

9360-400: The morning of her parents' deaths in a plane crash. Realizing the Key transported her back in time, she prevents her parents from taking the ill-fated flight. Kevin later confirms to her that their experiences were real, producing a souvenir from Eternia: a sphere containing a scene of He-Man with his sword in front of Castle Grayskull. In the post-credit scene, Skeletor's head later emerges from

9480-501: The most in-depth character study of Evil-Lyn in the series, in which she is forced into making an uneasy alliance with Teela when the two of them are stranded in the desert together. Having always held Teela in utter contempt, and never having regarded her as a formidable adversary (unlike He-Man and the Sorceress), Evil-Lyn acquires a degree of respect for Teela's skills and intelligence, going so far as to say that she and Teela could "make

9600-551: The particular societies with which they are concerned". While most cultures believe witchcraft to be something willful, some Indigenous peoples in Africa and Melanesia believe witches have a substance or an evil spirit in their bodies that drives them to do harm. Such substances may be believed to act on their own while the witch is sleeping or unaware. The Dobu people believe women work harmful magic in their sleep while men work it while awake. Further, in cultures where substances within

9720-445: The pits of the central walk-way. Unhappy with Lundgren's reading of He-Man's dialogue, Goddard initially planned to have Lundgren's dialogue dubbed over by another actor, but was not permitted to do so due to contractual reasons. Lundgren's dialogue was subsequently re-recorded and dubbed over the original footage to better meet Goddard's standards. Actor Frank Langella told the press he loved playing Skeletor and worked very hard to make

9840-519: The power of the cosmos and declare himself the Master of the Universe. On Earth, Gwildor repairs the Key, and Kevin re-creates the tones necessary to create a gateway to Eternia. The group, including Lubic as he attempts to arrest them, are transported to Castle Grayskull and begin battling Skeletor's forces. Resenting that Skeletor absorbed the power of the universe without sharing it with her, Evil-Lyn deserts him along with his other henchmen. He-Man retrieves

9960-421: The power of the universe without sharing it with her. This remains consistent with the various portrayals of the character as scheming and willing to turn on Skeletor from the mini-comics, Filmation series, and 2002 series. Evil-Lyn is not depicted as a powerful magic-wielder in the film (although it is not explicitly stated that she does not have such powers either) and does not carry her distinctive orb-staff. In

10080-410: The power that she needs, and once again concocts a scheme behind Skeletor's back, allying with Count Marzo in the episode "History" to free Hordak from Despondos. Failing in her scheme, she vows to continue until she has freed Hordak. This plot was going to be expanded in the show's third season, but the cartoon was cancelled before any further episodes could be produced. Evil-Lyn is with Skeletor when

10200-518: The present. According to the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Extrajudicial, Summary or Arbitrary Executions there is "difficulty of defining 'witches' and 'witchcraft' across cultures—terms that, quite apart from their connotations in popular culture, may include an array of traditional or faith healing practices". Anthropologist Fiona Bowie notes that the terms "witchcraft" and "witch" are used differently by scholars and

10320-412: The production budget on time. A member of staff was forced to put lens caps on cameras on several shooting days, to prevent any more filming from taking place. Due to the production running out of budget, Goddard had to finance the filming of the battle scene between He-Man and Skeletor himself. Only Lundgren and Langella were present along with a skeleton crew, with the set's lighting made dark to emphasize

10440-462: The production designs, but the studio nixed it. Check it out. It requires some bending and an occasional sex change ( Metron becomes an ugly dwarf, The Highfather becomes the Sorceress), but it's an amazingly close analog, otherwise. And Frank Langella 's Skeletor is a dandy Darkseid! Director Gary Goddard clarified this in a letter appearing in John Byrne's Next Men #26, in which he stated: As

10560-479: The role as exciting as possible, remarking that it was a positive experience. Comic book writer/artist John Byrne compared the film to Jack Kirby 's comic book metaseries Fourth World , stating in Comic Shop News #497: The best New Gods movie, IMHO, is Masters of the Universe . I even corresponded with the director, who told me this was his intent, and that he had tried to get [Jack] Kirby to do

10680-511: The role of Skeletor." On Metacritic the film has a weighted average score of 35 out of 100, based on 9 critics, indicating "generally unfavorable reviews". Variety called it a "Conan-Star Wars hybrid ripoff" that is "a colossal bore." Walter Goodman of The New York Times wrote, "If you liked the toy, you'll love the movie." Michael Wilmington of the Los Angeles Times called it "a misfiring, underdone epic." Johanna Steinmetz of

10800-563: The ruins of Zalesia and is the guardian of a precious object called the Ram Stone. The Faceless One disapproves of his daughter using her talent in the service of evil, particularly Skeletor's, although he hopes that someday she will learn the error of her ways. The episode "Lessons" indicates that she still feels a familial bond with her father when she returns the Ram Stone to him after it was used by Skeletor in an attempt to breach Castle Grayskull . The show's second season expands considerably on

10920-421: The score mixer Dan Wallin assembled the score from the various recorded takes, because there were problems with the orchestral performances ("We didn't have anything that went from beginning to end without a problem"). The soundtrack album was released on record, cassette, and compact disc by Varèse Sarabande in 1987; it was subsequently issued in an expanded version by Edel. In 2008, La-La Land Records released

11040-413: The shuttle. When the ship crashed as the result of an explosion from Skeletor's homeworld of Infinita, Evelyn wound up on Infinita, where the evil powers of that world turned her knowledge of science into sorcery to aid Skeletor. This origin is used in a storybook entitled New Champions of Eternia but was unpopular with the show's writers and therefore never alluded to in the cartoon. Evil-Lyn features in

11160-415: The sources tended to be those of low status who were weak or otherwise marginalized, including women, foreigners, actors, and peddlers. The Law Code of Hammurabi ( 18th century BCE ) allowed someone accused of witchcraft (harmful magic) to undergo trial by ordeal , by jumping into a holy river. If they drowned, they were deemed guilty and the accuser inherited the guilty person's estate. If they survived,

11280-428: The studio at the time. 'Comics are just for kids,' they thought. They would not allow me to hire Jack Kirby who I desperately wanted to be the conceptual artist for the picture... I grew up with Kirby's comics (I've still got all my Marvels from the first issue of Fantastic Four and Spider-Man through the time Kirby left) and I had great pleasure meeting him when he first moved to California. Since that time I enjoyed

11400-462: The studio took the credit out. Brian Cronin, author of the "Comic Book Urban Legends Revealed" column, concludes that "the film itself was not intended to be literally a reworked Fourth World, although the intent WAS to make the film a tribute to Jack Kirby—just a tribute to ALL of his work, not just the Fourth World." The musical score of Masters of the Universe was composed by Bill Conti . It

11520-535: The sword's power as Dark-Lyn and destroying the heaven of Preternia, subsequently witnessing the death of God at the beginning of time. After facing off against Teela after she takes her place as Sorceress, Lyn is convinced to relinquish her power, before preventing a newly resurrected Orko from being called back to his afterlife . At the 2006 Comic-Con International in San Diego , Four Horsemen Studios offered an exclusive mini statue of Evil-Lyn, as part of

11640-459: The term "witchcraft" for the actions of those who inflict harm by their inborn power and used "sorcery" for those who needed tools to do so. Historians found these definitions difficult to apply to European witchcraft, where witches were believed to use physical techniques, as well as some who were believed to cause harm by thought alone. The distinction "has now largely been abandoned, although some anthropologists still sometimes find it relevant to

11760-684: The term "witchcraft" or " pagan witchcraft " for their beliefs and practices. Other neo-pagans avoid the term due to its negative connotations. The most common meaning of "witchcraft" worldwide is the use of harmful magic. Belief in malevolent magic and the concept of witchcraft has lasted throughout recorded history and has been found in cultures worldwide, regardless of development. Most societies have feared an ability by some individuals to cause supernatural harm and misfortune to others. This may come from mankind's tendency "to want to assign occurrences of remarkable good or bad luck to agency, either human or superhuman". Historians and anthropologists see

11880-511: The term to servant spirit-animals which are described as a part of the witch's own soul. Necromancy is the practice of conjuring the spirits of the dead for divination or prophecy , although the term has also been applied to raising the dead for other purposes. The biblical Witch of Endor performed it (1 Samuel 28th chapter), and it is among the witchcraft practices condemned by Ælfric of Eynsham : "Witches still go to cross-roads and to heathen burials with their delusive magic and call to

12000-536: The term when speaking in English. Belief in witchcraft as malevolent magic is attested from ancient Mesopotamia , and in Europe , belief in witches traces back to classical antiquity . In medieval and early modern Europe , accused witches were usually women who were believed to have secretly used black magic ( maleficium ) against their own community. Usually, accusations of witchcraft were made by their neighbors and followed from social tensions. Witches were sometimes said to have communed with demons or with

12120-560: The theme of her disloyalty to Skeletor. Unbeknownst to Skeletor, Evil-Lyn forms a secret alliance with Kobra Khan to free King Hiss and the Snake Men , whom she believes will grant her greater power than Skeletor. After the release of the Snake Men, Skeletor seeks to punish her by banishing her to the Forsaken Realm in the episode "The Price of Deceit". This episode features a flashback to

12240-432: The time of release, it was met with negative reviews from film critics, but is now regarded as a cult film . On May 1, 2024 a second live-action film was announced to be directed by Travis Knight and will be released on June 5, 2026. On the planet Eternia , the warlord Skeletor seizes control of Castle Grayskull , the center of power in the universe. His army scatters the remaining Eternian defenders and captures

12360-556: The time she first met Skeletor when he was still Keldor . The young Evil-Lyn had managed to impress Keldor with her great skill and power, and played a part in saving his life. After his injury at the hands of King Randor , she took him to the altar of Hordak , who gave him new life by turning him into Skeletor. After the transformation, Skeletor became more and more twisted and evil, ending the love between him and Evil-Lyn and inspiring Evil-Lyn to overcome him rather than work alongside him. This episode also indicates that there are sparks of

12480-402: The toy. When offered the role, Langella said that he "didn't even blink ... I couldn't wait to play him". He cited his then-four-year-old son's love of Skeletor while running around his house yelling He-Man's battle cry "I have the power!" as the reason he played He-Man's archenemy. According to director Gary Goddard, Mattel caused problems for the production crew by not paying their half of

12600-475: The universe, who travels to Earth with his friends to stop their archenemy, the evil Skeletor from obtaining a cosmic key that will enable him to take over their home planet of Eternia and the entire universe. Masters of the Universe was released theatrically in the United States on August 7, 1987. It was a critical and commercial failure , grossing $ 17 million worldwide against a budget of $ 22 million. At

12720-408: The use of alleged supernatural powers of magic . A witch is a practitioner of witchcraft. Traditionally, "witchcraft" means the use of magic or supernatural powers to inflict harm or misfortune on others, and this remains the most common and widespread meaning. According to Encyclopedia Britannica , "Witchcraft thus defined exists more in the imagination", but it "has constituted for many cultures

12840-412: The water at the bottom of the pit, saying "I'll be back!" The Masters of the Universe toyline started in 1982, which was then followed up by the television series He-Man and the Masters of the Universe from 1983 to 1985. The first theatrically released movie to star He-Man and feature Masters of The Universe characters The Secret of the Sword was released in 1985. Work then started on producing

12960-482: The witch archetype. In some parts of the world, it is believed witches can shapeshift into animals, or that the witch's spirit travels apart from their body and takes an animal form, an activity often associated with shamanism . Another widespread belief is that witches have an animal helper. In English these are often called " familiars ", and meant an evil spirit or demon that had taken an animal form. As researchers examined traditions in other regions, they widened

13080-459: The witch who practiced maleficium —that is, magic used for harmful ends". In the early years of the European witch hunts "the cunning folk were widely tolerated by church, state and general populace". Some of the more hostile churchmen and secular authorities tried to smear folk-healers and magic-workers by falsely branding them 'witches' and associating them with harmful 'witchcraft', but generally

13200-404: The word. In fact, Anglo-American senses of it now take at least four different forms, although the one discussed above seems still to be the most widespread and frequent. The others define the witch figure as any person who uses magic   ... or as the practitioner of nature-based Pagan religion; or as a symbol of independent female authority and resistance to male domination. All have validity in

13320-497: The world, accusations of witchcraft are often linked to social and economic tensions. Females are most often accused, but in some cultures it is mostly males. In many societies, accusations are directed mainly against the elderly, but in others age is not a factor, and in some cultures it is mainly adolescents who are accused. Éva Pócs writes that reasons for accusations of witchcraft fall into four general categories. The first three of which were proposed by Richard Kieckhefer , and

13440-550: The world, such as parts of Africa, are also vulnerable to violence stemming from witchcraft accusations. Such incidents have also occurred in immigrant communities in Britain, including the much publicized case of the murder of Victoria Climbié . Magic was an important part of ancient Mesopotamian religion and society, which distinguished between 'good' (helpful) and 'bad' (harmful) rites. In ancient Mesopotamia , they mainly used counter-magic against witchcraft ( kišpū ), but

13560-401: The world, witches have been thought to gather at night, when normal humans are inactive, and also at their most vulnerable in sleep". In most cultures, witches at these gatherings are thought to transgress social norms by engaging in cannibalism, incest and open nudity. Witches around the world commonly have associations with animals. Rodney Needham identified this as a defining feature of

13680-655: Was wicca ('male sorcerer'). According to the Oxford English Dictionary , wicce and wicca were probably derived from the Old English verb wiccian , meaning 'to practice witchcraft'. Wiccian has a cognate in Middle Low German wicken (attested from the 13th century). The further etymology of this word is problematic. It has no clear cognates in other Germanic languages outside of English and Low German, and there are numerous possibilities for

13800-529: Was E. E. Evans-Pritchard 's Witchcraft, Oracles and Magic Among the Azande , a study of Azande witchcraft beliefs published in 1937. This provided definitions for witchcraft which became a convention in anthropology. However, some researchers argue that the general adoption of Evans-Pritchard's definitions constrained discussion of witchcraft beliefs, and even broader discussion of magic and religion , in ways that his work does not support. Evans-Pritchard reserved

13920-473: Was originally from Earth, like the character Queen Marlena from the Filmation animated series He-Man and the Masters of the Universe , thus linking the two planets. Describing her character, Foster said Evil-Lyn is not villainous, "she is just doing her job and she knows how to get results, even if it means being harsh". Langella agreed, calling her a female more dedicated to Skeletor's cause than any man; she

14040-549: Was particularly likely to be suspected when a disease came on unusually swiftly, lingered unusually long, could not be diagnosed clearly, or presented some other unusual symptoms". A common belief in cultures worldwide is that witches tend to use something from their target's body to work magic against them; for example hair, nail clippings, clothing, or bodily waste. Such beliefs are found in Europe, Africa, South Asia, Polynesia, Melanesia, and North America. Another widespread belief among Indigenous peoples in Africa and North America

14160-502: Was recorded by several European orchestras, chiefly the Graunke Orchestra of Munich (the only one to be credited on the soundtrack album) and conducted by a number of conductors, chiefly Bruce Miller and Harry Rabinowitz (Rabinowitz received sole credit). Conti did not conduct his score because it could not be recorded in the United States as "there was a musicians strike or something like that ... So it went to various places." He and

14280-709: Was stolen by Skeletor's second-in-command, Evil-Lyn , allowing Skeletor to breach Castle Grayskull. With Gwildor's remaining prototype of the Key, He-Man and his friends travel to the Castle. They attempt to free the Sorceress, but are overwhelmed by Skeletor's army and forced to flee through a hastily opened portal via Gwildor's Cosmic Key. The Key is lost upon their arrival on Earth and discovered by two California teenagers—orphaned high-schooler Julie Winston and her boyfriend, aspiring musician Kevin Corrigan . While experimenting with

14400-663: Was suggested by Richard Horsley that 'diviner-healers' ( devins-guerisseurs ) made up a significant proportion of those tried for witchcraft in France and Switzerland, but more recent surveys conclude that they made up less than 2% of the accused. However, Éva Pócs says that half the accused witches in Hungary seem to have been healers, and Kathleen Stokker says the "vast majority" of Norway's accused witches were folk healers. Societies that believe (or believed) in witchcraft also believe that it can be thwarted in various ways. One common way

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