Grizzlor

Grizzlor is a fictional character from the popular toy line Masters of the Universe by Mattel.

A member of the Evil Horde, Grizzlor is a hairy man-beast creature from the wild, covered in thick brown fur and sharp claws, who attacks his opponents with the power of brute strength. Most story media have portrayed him as a mindless brute with little in the way of intelligence.

Toy line/Minicomics
Grizzlor is introduced into the Masters of the Universe toy line in 1985 among the first wave of Evil Horde figures. His figure was packaged with the mini-comic "Grizzlor: The Legend Comes Alive!" which portrays him as a kind of urban legend among the Eternians, a product of apparent "tall tales" about a wild man-beast which roams the night stalking its prey. After Buzz-Off disturbs his Heroic comrades with tales of the creature, it later transpires that Grizzlor is a real creature and has been hired by Hordak to fight against He-Man and the Heroic Warriors. Grizzlor is portrayed as a mindless, savage killing machine, who is defeated by being shown his own reflection in a mirror; he apparently fears nothing but the sight of his own gruesome visage.

Grizzlor also appears in several of the Masters of the Universe comic series. A notable one of these are the UK comics published by London Editions, which portray him as one of the least intelligent of all the evil characters. In this series he is frequently used for comic relief and has a childlike mentality, implying he is not actually evil and has merely been misled by Hordak into helping with his schemes. An origin story in a later issue explains that he comes from the jungle world of Jungulia "on the outer edge of the spiral arm of the N24 galaxy" and is a member of a race of man-beast creatures. Although his race was peaceful, by the age of 428 he had developed a savage anger that shocked his family, and stumbled across a range of powerful weapons in a cave. His youthful nature led him to see them as toys, and play with them as such. When detected with the weapons by Horde Prime's sata-spies, they mistook him for an evil warrior and reported him to Hordak, who beamed him on board his ship, erasing all memories of Jungulia from his mind so he would willingly serve him. At first, upon seeing the advanced weapons, Hordak mistakenly believed Grizzlor must possess an incredible mental genius, but subsequently Grizzlor proved to have no remote intelligence, rendering Hordak confused as to why Horde Prime wanted him in the Horde.

Filmation series
Grizzlor appears in animated form in the cartoon series She-Ra: Princess of Power, in which the Horde are the main villains. The cartoon series plays down his savagery, presumably to make his character more suitable for a children's audience. At times it even seems as though he may be more human than animal, particularly in the early episode "Beast Island" in which he is competent enough to operate a computer console and command a series of Destructotanks. However, he is far from intelligent and is usually portrayed as a generic bumbling villain, constantly fouling up Hordak's schemes. Although he appears frequently in the cartoon he has no spotlight roles and is mostly consigned to background appearances.

2002 TV series
Grizzlor also features in animated form in the updated He-Man and the Masters of the Universe remake series, produced in 2002 by Mike Young Productions, to promote the relaunched toy line. Mattel had intended to release the Horde characters among the next wave of villains, and they were intended to fill the role of main opposition to He-Man in the show's third season. The second season episode "The Power of Grayskull" features the Horde in a flashback sequence, as an evil force from Ancient Eternia. Grizzlor was seen amongst Hordak, Leech, and Mantenna in a non-speaking role, and was imprisoned by King Grayskull in the dimension of Despondos together with Hordak and the rest of the Horde. However, since the toy line and cartoon were cancelled shortly afterwards, the third season was never made. Despite the cancellation of the line, a Grizzlor mini statue figure has been sculpted and issued by toy sculptors the Four Horsemen.

2018 TV series
Grizzlor makes a few appearances in the 2018 She-Ra and the Princesses of Power series. Like before, he is a member of the Horde.

Masters of the Universe: Revelation
Grizzlor briefly appears in flashback sequences in the Dark Horse Comics comic book series that serves as a prequel to Masters of the Universe: Revelation.

Minicomics

 * Grizzlor: The Legend Comes Alive!
 * Mantenna and the Menace of the Evil Horde!
 * Hordak: The Ruthless Leader's Revenge!
 * The Treachery of Modulok!
 * The Warrior Machine!
 * Escape from the Slime Pit!

She-Ra: Princess of Power (cartoon)

 * Beast Island
 * The Sea Hawk
 * The Prisoners of Beast Island
 * Friendship
 * He Ain't Heavy
 * Return of the Sea Hawk
 * The Stone in the Sword
 * Friends Are Where You Find Them
 * A Talent for Trouble
 * Zoo Story
 * Glimmer's Story
 * The Rock People
 * Huntara
 * Birds of a Feather
 * For Want of a Horse
 * My Friend, My Enemy
 * Unexpected Ally
 * Of Shadows and Skulls
 * Jungle Fever
 * The Time Transformer
 * Brigis
 * The Caregiver
 * When Whispering Woods Last Bloomed
 * Bow's Magical Gift
 * The Inspector
 * Shades of Orko

He-Man and the Masters of the Universe (2002)

 * The Power of Grayskull

She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (2018)

 * The Beacon