The Ordeal of Man-E-Faces!



"The Ordeal of Man-E-Faces!" is a minicomic from the Masters of the Universe toy line, written by Gary Cohn with art by Mark Texeira and Tod Smith. It was included with the Evil-Lyn and Man-E-Faces action figures.

Synopsis
At the Royal Palace of Eternia, He-Man, Teela, and Man-At-Arms catch a performance by the travelling actor Man-E-Faces. He-Man is particularly impressed with how the performer brings life to every one of t the roles he plays. Unbeknownst to the heroes, Skeletor is lurking through the crowd, and is inspired by Man-E-Faces to concoct a new plot. Once the actor's performance has concluded, he is shocked to find Skeletor in his wagon, pointing half of the Power Sword at his throat. Skeletor forces Man-E-Faces to drink a magical potion, which quickly turns him into a hideous, evil brute. Biding his time, Skeletor uses his sword to reverse the transformation and erase his new servant's memories of these events.

Several nights later, Man-E-Faces delivers another performance in the banquet hall of the king and queen, as part of a feast honoring Eternia's greatest heroes. Suddenly, Skeletor materializes from thin air. Once more he uses the sword to transform Man-E-Faces, reverting the man to his beastly slave. With the monster's strength at his command, Skeletor is a match for the heroes, and teleports himself, his servant, and Teela away. With no way to track his enemy, He-Man sends a falcon to summon the Sorceress to help.

Later, the villains take Teela to his lair, where Skeletor summons a mighty demon who might help him to enter Castle Grayskull in exchange for a sacrifice. Just then, the Sorceress transports herself and He-Man onto the scene. He-Man contends with the demon, and Skeletor is confident he and Man-E-Faces can easily defeat the Sorceress alone. But the goddess quickly casts a spell upon the brute, returning him to his human form. Man-E-Faces remorsefully unties Teela, allowing her to help He-Man turn the tide against the demon. However, with the Power Sword, Skeletor can easily overturn the Sorceress's magic, and two mystics wage an ethereal tug of war with the soul of the pitiful actor. Man-E-Faces goes from human to monster and back, over and over, until finally he explodes.

When He-Man and Teela finally send the demon back from where it came, Skeletor wisely retreats from the heroes' superior numbers in a cloud of smoke, leaving them to consider the fate of Man-E-Faces, who is now a mindless robot, neither good nor evil. The Sorceress makes one final attempt to undo Skeletor's wickedness, and He-Man and Teela are relieved to find the actor has been restored to his human self. But the Sorceress knows the full, sad truth--the robot and monster are now a part of Man-E-Faces forever, and it is inevitable that Skeletor will one day exploit those personas again.

Characters

 * Heroic Warriors
 * He-Man
 * Teela
 * Man-At-Arms
 * Man-E-Faces (first appearance)
 * Allies
 * King (first appearance)
 * Queen (first appearance)
 * Sorceress
 * Zoar
 * Evil Warriors
 * Skeletor
 * Others
 * Demon (first and only appearance)
 * Locations
 * Eternia
 * Castle Grayskull
 * Royal Palace of Eternia (first appearance)