Back in late 2022, a new ultimate boxset was announced by the German company Plaion Pictures called “The Eternia Collection” that (among other bonus material) housed 20 Blu-Ray discs that featured every episode of the classic Filmation animated series “He-Man and the Masters of the Universe” and “She-Ra: Princess of Power” remastered in HD (High Definition).
THE ETERNIA COLLECTION – Although it had German menus, every episode could be watched in English on region-free discs.
Fans were excited by the remastering, because what they heard prior was the original prints of He-Man and She-Ra series were destroyed. Apparently when Hallmark owned the rights to the Filmation libraries, Hallmark digitized the He-Man and She-Ra shows in SD (Standard Definition/DVD Quality) in PAL format from the 16MM broadcast prints… and then subsequently destroyed those prints including 35mm visual effects masters.
This is why when the now defunct news division of tvshowsondvd.com had asked Mill Creek Entertainment (responsible for multiple He-Man home video releases) “will any of the He-Man series be available on Blu-ray?“, this is how Mill Creek replied:
"Unfortunately, no. We have exhaustively explored this option, but there are no HD elements available for any of the series. The only possibility would be to up-convert the Standard Definition elements, but the end result would not be true, 1080p High-Definition quality."
Yet, with rumors that some original prints exist somewhere, Plaion Pictures did what they could with what they had… and were able to obtain most of those original Hallmark digital PAL masters and upscale them. So while not true HD Masters from its original source, these Blu-Ray discs did become the best home video release to date for Filmation He-Man and She-Ra fans… which sold out rather quickly. And now if fans look to purchase this set on the secondary market, those fans will be likely paying upwards of $600 US or more for it.
Well now it seems Plaion Pictures will be making these discs available to fans again! No, they are not printing another run of the “Eternia Collection” boxset, but what they have just announced is a Volume 1, a 5 disc Blu-Ray set of “He-Man and the Masters of the Universe” is coming out this August. Check it out:
HE-MAN AND THE MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE (1983) (VOL. 1) (5 BLU-RAYS)
CONTENTS With the help of his magic sword, Prince Adam from the planet Eternia can transform himself into the mighty hero He-Man. Together with his friends, he has set himself the task of defeating Skeletor, protecting Eternia from evil and preserving the secrets of Castle Grayskull. The box presents the first season of the legendary first animated series with Mattel’s heroes, completely uncut and in HD.
EXTRAS:
Audio commentaries
alternative VHS dubbed versions
Listed at 39,99€ with a release scheduled for August 21, 2024, if these discs are region free like “The Eternia Collection” and playable in any country (not confirmed at press time), fans who missed on the boxset the first time around may be looking for ways to import these stunning new Blu-Rays into their home video collection.
9 thoughts on “Plaion Pictures announces new Blu-Ray HD set of ”He-Man and the Masters of the Universe” Volume One”
I didn’t know these discs were upscaled. What a huge disappointment. How could Hallmark just throw all that stuff out? It’s like throwing out history! 😡
I am very interested in this release. The Plaion website uses the same screenshots for the two releases, so I assume it will have the same remastered/upscaled content. I wasn’t able to get the original Eternia Collection, and I find it hard to accept the prices on ebay.
Is there any confirmation if the discs in the new set are identical to the discs in the Eternia Collection? Or, is there any info that they will have reduced content/features?
The Eternia Collection is 4905 minutes on 20 discs, this is 1466 minutes on 5 discs–1/3 the length on 1/4 the discs.
@redav I have the Eternian Collection and my season one is the same amount of discs. 5. I can’t see them making the quality worse on the new release just because. Also I wouldn’t do your math that way. She-Ra didn’t have as many episodes as He-Man and there are some bonus discs.
my season one is the same amount of discs. 5. I can’t see them making the quality worse on the new release just because.
OK, “Part 1" = “Season 1" makes sense. So, they should be the exact same discs, just in different packaging. I’m cool with that.
My worry is whether I’d miss out on the extras (featurettes, documentaries, commentaries, etc.) if I tried to get this version. I see that the Plaion page mentions the audio commentaries but not the documentaries or featurettes.
I have to assume they will release the later seasons as their own sets, but if the other bonus stuff is on their own discs, then can I assume those will be in a future set?
IIRC, they wouldn’t sell the He-Man set directly to the USA because of licensing issues. Any idea if that’s true?
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I didn’t know these discs were upscaled. What a huge disappointment. How could Hallmark just throw all that stuff out? It’s like throwing out history! 😡
It is an upscale but it is a good upscale. 😘
It’s my bad. James Eatock posted that these discs were upscales last year but I missed it. I shouldn’t have gotten angry.
Very informative! Is there any info on a She-Ra vol.1?
They are probably doing He-Man first and She-Ra comes next.
Fuckin yeah 🤟
I am very interested in this release. The Plaion website uses the same screenshots for the two releases, so I assume it will have the same remastered/upscaled content. I wasn’t able to get the original Eternia Collection, and I find it hard to accept the prices on ebay.
Is there any confirmation if the discs in the new set are identical to the discs in the Eternia Collection? Or, is there any info that they will have reduced content/features?
The Eternia Collection is 4905 minutes on 20 discs, this is 1466 minutes on 5 discs–1/3 the length on 1/4 the discs.
@redav I have the Eternian Collection and my season one is the same amount of discs. 5. I can’t see them making the quality worse on the new release just because. Also I wouldn’t do your math that way. She-Ra didn’t have as many episodes as He-Man and there are some bonus discs.
OK, “Part 1" = “Season 1" makes sense. So, they should be the exact same discs, just in different packaging. I’m cool with that.
My worry is whether I’d miss out on the extras (featurettes, documentaries, commentaries, etc.) if I tried to get this version. I see that the Plaion page mentions the audio commentaries but not the documentaries or featurettes.
I have to assume they will release the later seasons as their own sets, but if the other bonus stuff is on their own discs, then can I assume those will be in a future set?
IIRC, they wouldn’t sell the He-Man set directly to the USA because of licensing issues. Any idea if that’s true?