Fright Zone

The Fright Zone is a location from the Masters of the Universe toyline and related media.

General description
The Fright Zone is Hordak's base of operations, just as Skeletor has Snake Mountain. It is often depicted as a rocky green cave filled with traps and a dungeon. It is from here Hordak launches most of his schemes, and houses his weapons, army, and henchmen.

Depictions of the Fright Zone vary somewhat between the different media of the MOTU franchise. Like many subjects, the depiction of the Fright Zone in some of the minicomics is bases more on the look of the playset, which is radically different from its animated counterpart. The Fright Zone playset features several traps and a one-person dungeon to hold an action figure in, as well as a rubber hand puppet of a dragon's head known as the Beastmonster.

Minicomics
The toy version of the Fright Zone made a few appearances in the Mattel Minicomics packaged with the He-Man toys. In "Grizzlor: The Legend Comes Alive!", Hordak is seen standing before the rock face depicted in the toy version. The comic packaged with the Slime Pit depicts "Horde Territory", but simply shows a morbid, dying, dark forest. In this instance, it is never specifically identified as the "Fright Zone".

The Fright Zone appears in the comic titled "Hordak: The Ruthless Leader's Revenge!" In this instance it is shown not in a forest, but against a solid black background. It is also shown that the members of the Horde must utilize a portal to travel from here to Eternia.

The comic titled "The Hordes of Hordak" depict the toy version as being at the base of a tall, grayish blue tower which is vaguely shaped like an obelisk and has faint traces of the more industrial look of the She-Ra version. At the end of the comic this tower is destroyed by He-Man, and it is not seen again. In this story the location is not referred to as the "Fright Zone", but simply "Hordak's home world."

She-Ra: Princess of Power
The Fright Zone appeared in many episodes of She-Ra, and was often depicted as a sprawling techno-industrial labyrinth, a large industrialized area with a rugged and polluted appearance. In addition to serving as the home base for Hordak and his minions, it also functions as a workshop, factory, and staging area. It has been shown to contain living quarters and Hordak's throne/meeting room, among other facilities. Some of the locations within the Fright Zone include:
 * Doom Tower
 * Plunder Room
 * Slime Room

MOTU Toyline
Another depiction of the Fright Zone was in the original He-Man and the Masters of the Universe toy line. In 1985 the Fright Zone was released as a playset for the Evil Horde sub-line, although it never appeared in the original MOTU animated series. This version of the Fright Zone is radically different than the one seen in She-Ra. There are no traces of the industrial facility or the pollution that accompanied it, nor is there any indication that it serves as a base. Rather, this version consists of a rocky outcropping with no vegetation save for a withered, dead tree. The box art depicts the Fright Zone as being in the center of a dead forest.

It primarily consists of traps and dangers, such as claw-like hands protruding from the ground, a jail cell, and large cave from which a giant serpent would emerge. The toy came with a rubber glove molded to look like a snake or dragon's head, with the exact creature open to interpretation. Due to the thin, perishable material this was made from, it is now one of the hardest mint condition toy line items to find. The tree branches were pliable and the ends curled into hooks, allowing it to entangle figures.