Zodak
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Zodak is a character in the popular toy line and cartoon series He-Man and the Masters of the Universe.
Zodak (occasionally spelled 'Zodac', including on the packaging for the original figure) is a character in the Masters of the Universe mythology that interests many fans because of the mystery and ambiguity that surrounds it. In a unique curiosity of the Masters of the Universe franchise, portrayals of Zodak have varied erratically from medium to medium ever since the 1980s, leaving many confused over the character.
The general perspective of Zodak is that he is a neutral character, a cosmic enforcer who participates little in conflict but can aid either the heroic or evil sides in their hour of need. But to properly understand Zodak's position in the mythology, it is necessary to consider the many different portrayals of him within the different incarnations of Masters of the Universe.
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[edit] Character history
[edit] Pre-cartoon era
Zodak was one of the first characters to be conceived by Mattel in the development of the Masters of the Universe toy line, in 1981. His action figure was tagged as 'Evil Cosmic Enforcer' and his action figure, despite being human, was given claw-like feet, a standard trait of the line's evil characters. However, he did not actually appear in any of the toys' accompanying minicomics, leaving many buyers unsure of what was the exact nature of his character or what role he played in the story. The description on the back of his toy card read "Zodak attacks the Heroic Warriors with all the evil power at his command", an ambiguous description, which one could interpret as signifying either a generic evil warrior, or a universal enforcer of evil who somehow epitomized all evil power.
But if Mattel's approach to the character seemed vague, the mystery surrounding Zodak was heavily exacerbated by his use in the DC Comics, which featured him acting as a neutral character who seemingly oversaw the whole conflict and served to maintain balance between the two sides of good and evil, ensuring when he could that both sides got their way, and helping either side when they needed it. As a watcher of the universe, he naturally knew that Prince Adam was He-Man. Although he didn't appear in any of the regular minicomics, Zodak did appear in the book & record that came with the 'Point Dread & Talon Fighter' playset, which also presented him in such a neutral role. (However, as this playset was less commonly owned than the standard figures, many fans never saw this appearance and thus were still confused).
It is generally believed that this "neutral" role was Mattel's original concept behind Zodak, and the labelling of him as 'Evil' was done purely to even out the evil figures against the heroic, but Mattel have never confirmed this. Later on in the toy line's run, Zodak figures were packaged purely as 'Cosmic Enforcer', the 'Evil' tag dropped to avoid the confusion.
[edit] The Cartoon
In the He-Man and the Masters of the Universe cartoon series by Filmation, Zodak appeared in three episodes of the show's first season- "Quest for He-Man", "The Search" and "Golden Disks of Knowledge". The show's portrayal of the character was generally in-keeping with that of the DC Comics, although it was clear in the cartoon that he leaned more towards the side of good and served essentially to help maintain peace within the universe. As the cartoon never showed him acting on the side of evil (he never even shared any scenes with Skeletor) many viewers of the show perceive him as one of the good guys, even though this is not entirely true. It was his portrayal on the cartoon that heightened the confusion over the character, as viewers of the show who saw him as a good guy were perplexed when they went out to buy his figure.
In the cartoon he was clearly an all-powerful character who saw and understood all. The most important of his three episodes is "The Search" in which he sends He-Man out on a quest to prevent Skeletor reaching the Star Seed, a powerful object that will give him control over the whole universe. A twist ending reveals that actually Zodak set up the whole affair, telling Skeletor of the Star Seed and sending He-Man to defend it, in a test of He-Man's ability to resist the temptation of using the Star Seed's power for himself.
The episode "Golden Disks of Knowledge", meanwhile, revealed that Zodak was the last remaining member of the Council of the Wise, a universal council of knowledge and wisdom-keepers. It was revealed that Skeletor achieved most of his power after he stole the Golden Disks from the Council of the Wise after corrupting another of its members, Zanthor, into selling them to him. The end of the episode features the reformed Zanthor donning a uniform like Zodak's and leaving for the stars together with him to watch over the universe.
[edit] Other media
Other media to produce Masters of the Universe stories throughout the '80s took radically differing approaches to the character of Zodak. Some storybooks, most notably the UK Ladybird Books, portrayed him as a wholly evil character in servitude to Skeletor. In this storybook series he was portrayed as just another of Skeletor's bumbling henchmen; the complete opposite of the noble deity-like figure of the cartoon series.
Several other books and comic series portrayed him as a fully heroic character, while others were more in-keeping with the DC Comics and cartoon's portrayals. Given that many MOTU fans in the '80s purchased a wide range of these books and comics alongside the toys and cartoon, it is not surprising how so many people became confused over the true nature of Zodak's character.
[edit] 2002 series
When Zodak featured in the 2002 relaunch of the Masters of the Universe franchise, it was inevitable that complexities would arise in updating him for a modern audience. Indeed, toy sculptors the 4 Horsemen originally planned a radical change for the character by making him a strange alien creature rather than a human, in an apparent effort to enhance the view of him as a universal watcher. However, when Mattel demanded racial diversity in the toy line for the sake of political correctness, the 4 Horsemen realized they would have to make one of the characters brown-skinned and, after firstly considering Stratos but deciding that Stratos' overall design didn't go well with the racial change, Zodak was chosen. Zodak's toy in the new line, therefore, appears as a brown-skinned character with tribal markings on his arms and forehead.
It should be noted that, in the original toyline, Zodak was depicted with a reddish-bronze skin tone slightly browner than the He-Man figure's and, three years after the toy's debut, when the original Filmation cartoon gave him a somewhat peachier look.
As Ian Richter of Mattel worked on developments for the cartoon's storyline with Mike Young Productions, it was decided to link Zodak to the planned story line for season 2, dealing with the resurrection of the Snake Men. Although Zodak had had no connection with the Snake Men in the old continuity (indeed, Zodak was a very early character whereas the Snake Men appeared late on, resulting in no direct contact between the two), in the new series his whole role in the show revolved around them.
Zodak appears in the contemporary series as an all-powerful and immortal warrior from Ancient times, presumably the most powerful warrior on Eternia in the present time. Having aided the Elders in the defeat of the Snake Men centuries ago, Zodak is called upon in the episode "Snake Pit" to help prevent the Snake Men being released from their ancient prison. It is revealed in this episode that Zodak harbors a centuries-old grudge against the Snake Men after King Hiss killed his brother, Zeelahr. Presumably it was his brother's killing that convinced Zodak to give up his mortality.
Zodak resides in a small wooden temple in the Mystic Mountains, where he spends most of his time in deep meditation. He refuses to let his grudge against the Snake Men die and will do everything he can until King Hiss has perished. Although this inevitably involves him aiding He-Man and the Masters from time to time, he has pledged no alliance and refuses to officially side with anyone in the battle, abiding purely by his own sense of right and wrong with little consideration for others. Indeed, in season 2 it is Zodak himself who allows the Snake Men to be freed (thus himself placing Eternia in danger) for the sake of achieving his own revenge, which leads to a conflict between himself and He-Man in the "Rise of the Snake Men" 2-parter. Zodak returns in the final episode of the series, "Awaken the Serpent" in which he finally defeats King Hiss. The whole series ends with a shot of Zodak flying off into the sky in his chair, as He-Man thanks him for winning the conflict against the Snake Men.
The intriguing use of Zodak in the contemporary series has evoked a mixed reaction among fans. Some fans are enthusiastic about the depth of his character and the intriguing psychology behind his participation in the war, while others have argued that the show treated him as too much of a hero when it was he himself who inflicted the Snake Men on Eternia, and thus he should have been seen as more of a villain. What is particularly notable about the new show's portrayal of Zodak is that his personality was significantly more bitter and unstable than in the old continuity, in which he was a sombre and peaceful deity-like figure who would undoubtedly never have been overcome by anger or a thirst for revenge.
Whichever continuity fans prefer to follow, it is undoubtable that Zodak is one of the Masters of the Universe mythology's most mysterious and inspiring characters, and after the multitude of confusion and differing portrayals of the character, the character is left open for practically limitless interpretations in any subsequent incarnations of Masters of the Universe.
Also, Zodak seems to have a certain connection with the power of Grayskull as he was able to call upon the power of the Elders to fight King Hiss. He also seemed to have known of He-man's secret identity without ever being told in the show.
[edit] Trivia
- The writer of the '80s minicomic "Slave City" created a villain for the story whose name was Zodak, unaware that there was already a character in the toy line with that name. When asked by Mattel why the character in his comic did not resemble the toy, he realized that there was an existing character with the name of Zodak, and therefore changed his villain's name to 'Lodar'. Since the comics had already been printed, the text had to be physically altered, removing part of the "Z" to make an "L", and making the "K" into an "R".
- In the 1980s cartoon, Zodak hosted the moral/closing segment for two of the episodes he appeared in ("Quest for He-Man" and "The Search"). Being a duty normally reserved only for the "good" characters, this reinforces the notion of Zodak's default alignment being benevolent.
- Zodak was the first character to wield a gun. Unlike the other characters, who had medieval-style melee weapons, Zodak carries a laser pistol. It is assumed this is due to his "cosmic" technological advancement. However, the Battle Ram toy of the same era also had guns.
