Moss-Man is a

fictional character In fiction, a character (or speaker, in poetry) is a person or other being in a narrative (such as a novel, play, radio or television series, music, film, or video game). The character may be entirely fictional or based on a real-life person, ...

from the popular

Masters of the Universe ''Masters of the Universe'' (sometimes referred to as the ''He-Man'' or ''She-Ra'' series) is a sword and planet-themed media franchise created by Mattel. The main premise revolves around the conflict between He-Man (the alter ego of Prince Ada ...

(MOTU) franchise. As his name indicates, he is a man made of

moss Mosses are small, non-vascular flowerless plants in the taxonomic division Bryophyta (, ) '' sensu stricto''. Bryophyta (''sensu lato'', Schimp. 1879) may also refer to the parent group bryophytes, which comprise liverworts, mosses, and hor ...

, whose power is to

camouflage Camouflage is the use of any combination of materials, coloration, or illumination for concealment, either by making animals or objects hard to see, or by disguising them as something else. Examples include the leopard's spotted coat, the ...

into foliage and other green areas (making him a useful

spy Espionage, spying, or intelligence gathering is the act of obtaining secret or confidential information (intelligence) from non-disclosed sources or divulging of the same without the permission of the holder of the information for a tangib ...

), as well as control all

plant life Plants are predominantly photosynthetic eukaryotes of the kingdom Plantae. Historically, the plant kingdom encompassed all living things that were not animals, and included algae and fungi; however, all current definitions of Plantae exclu ...

. He lives in the Evergreen Forest in harmony among the

animal Animals are multicellular, eukaryotic organisms in the Kingdom (biology), biological kingdom Animalia. With few exceptions, animals Heterotroph, consume organic material, Cellular respiration#Aerobic respiration, breathe oxygen, are Motilit ...

s and plants.

Character history

1980s

Original figure

The Moss Man figure was first released in 1985, as part of the line's fourth wave of figures. The figure is a green repaint of the

Beast Man Beast Man is a supervillain in the toy line and cartoon series Masters of the Universe; the savage right-hand man of Skeletor, he can control many wild creatures and has brute strength. Character history The 1980s The original design sketch of B ...

action figure, covered with fuzzy "moss" flocking, with the fangs painted over, and a pine scent added to the body. He has a brown mace that is a recast of a weapon from the original

Castle Grayskull Castle Grayskull is a fortress located on the fictional planet Eternia. It forms a central location in the '' Masters of the Universe'' toy/comic/animation universe and also appears in the 1987 live action adaptation. The concept is credited to ...

playset. With his added scent, he can in some ways be considered a Heroic counterpart to the Evil Warrior Stinkor, released in the same wave, who also had an added scent. Examples of the Moss Man figure can be found both with hollow, 'squeezable' heads, as was common for earlier figures in the line, as well as more solid rubber heads, which became more common in the later days of the line.

Filmation cartoon series

Given that the accompanying cartoon series was drawing to a close at the time his toy was released, Moss Man's role in the cartoon is minimal and he appears in only two episodes: "Here, There,

Skeletor Skeletor () is a fictional character and the main antagonist of the ''Masters of the Universe'' franchise created by Mattel, serving as the archenemy of the protagonist He-Man. He is typically depicted as a blue-skinned humanoid who wears a purpl ...

s Everywhere" and "The Ancient Mirror of Avathar". The former portrays him as a

who can secretly observe danger by turning into a plant. The latter shows him using his abilities to rescue others by turning his arms into

vine A vine (Latin ''vīnea'' "grapevine", "vineyard", from ''vīnum'' "wine") is any plant with a growth habit of trailing or scandent (that is, climbing) stems, lianas or runners. The word ''vine'' can also refer to such stems or runners themselv ...

s, as well as

communicating Communication (from la, communicare, meaning "to share" or "to be in relation with") is usually defined as the transmission of information. The term may also refer to the message communicated through such transmissions or the field of inquir ...

with plants. He also has a non-speaking

cameo appearance A cameo role, also called a cameo appearance and often shortened to just cameo (), is a brief appearance of a well-known person in a work of the performing arts. These roles are generally small, many of them non-speaking ones, and are commonly eit ...

with a number of other lesser-seen characters in '' He-Man and She-Ra: A Christmas Special'', where he appears in the background at

Prince Adam He-Man is a fictional character and the main protagonist of the sword and planet ''Masters of the Universe'' franchise, which includes a toy line, several animated television series, comic books and a feature film. He-Man is characterized by h ...

and

Princess Adora She-Ra, real name Adora, is a fictional superheroine in the 1985 Filmation series ''She-Ra: Princess of Power'' and its 2018 Reboot (fiction), reboot ''She-Ra and the Princesses of Power''. A series of toys under her name was produced by Mattel ...

's birthday party.

2002 series

Moss Man features in the 2002 relaunch of Masters of the Universe as part of the cartoon series. He was not part of the new toy line, because it was cancelled before his figure could be released, although a limited edition figure was given away as a

Mattel Mattel, Inc. ( ) is an American multinational toy manufacturing and entertainment company founded in January 1945 and headquartered in El Segundo, California. The company has presence in 35 countries and territories and sells products in more ...

exclusive. As with the original figure, this was a repaint of the line's Beast Man figure, this time replacing the mace with a club that came with the line's Mekaneck figure. The cartoon series depicts him as one of the most powerful beings on

Eternia ''Masters of the Universe'' (sometimes referred to as the ''He-Man'' or ''She-Ra'' series) is a sword and planet-themed media franchise created by Mattel. The main premise revolves around the conflict between He-Man (the alter ego of Prince Ad ...

, possibly even more powerful than

He-Man He-Man is a fictional character and the main protagonist of the sword and planet ''Masters of the Universe'' franchise, which includes a toy line, several animated television series, comic books and a feature film. He-Man is characterized by h ...

himself. He is introduced in the episode " Orko's Garden", in which he is an

urban legend An urban legend (sometimes contemporary legend, modern legend, urban myth, or urban tale) is a genre of folklore comprising stories or fallacious claims circulated as true, especially as having happened to a "friend of a friend" or a family m ...

; an Eternian equivalent of the

Green Man The Green Man is a legendary being primarily interpreted as a symbol of rebirth, representing the cycle of new growth that occurs every spring. The Green Man is most commonly depicted in a sculpture, or other representation of a face which is ...

. He seems to be a kind of spirit who

farm A farm (also called an agricultural holding) is an area of land that is devoted primarily to agricultural processes with the primary objective of producing food and other crops; it is the basic facility in food production. The name is used fo ...

ed and looked after the Eternian

forestry Forestry is the science and craft of creating, managing, planting, using, conserving and repairing forests, woodlands, and associated resources for human and environmental benefits. Forestry is practiced in plantations and natural stands. Th ...

and kept it in harmony. His rival in this episode is

Evilseed The ''He-Man and the Masters of the Universe'' franchise debuted in 1982 with the creation of American company Mattel and the toyline of the same name. This is a list of characters that appear in the toyline, television series ''He-Man and the Mas ...

, an evil counterpart who wants the plant world to overcome the human world. Moss Man's incredible powers help He-Man save the day, his power over all forms of

vegetation Vegetation is an assemblage of plant species and the ground cover they provide. It is a general term, without specific reference to particular taxa, life forms, structure, spatial extent, or any other specific botanical or geographic character ...

able to overcome just about any obstacle. In a subsequent episode, "The Last Stand", he uses his abilities to save all the Masters from

's strongest trap yet. Given that he is so powerful, his appearances are sparse; only coming to the Masters' aid in times of desperation.

Masters of the Universe Classics

Moss Man was released on March 15 as the March 2010 Figure of the Month for the Masters of the Universe Classics line of action figures. The figure includes two distinct head sculpts, one looking more like his 200x counterpart and the other like his 1980's Beast Man head (painted green &

flocked Flocking is the process of depositing many small fiber particles (called flock) onto a surface. It can also refer to the texture produced by the process, or to any material used primarily for its flocked surface. Flocking of an article can be per ...

). Originally, Mattel had reported that they had problems with the flocking – with the line's increased articulation, the flocking had caused some of the joins to cease. However, the final production figure was released with most of the body covered in "moss" flocking. A variant of the figure with flocked ears was also released in small, limited quantities.

Masters of the Universe: Revelations

Moss Man has a cameo in the opening episode of Masters of the Universe: Revelations voiced by

Alan Oppenheimer Alan Oppenheimer (born April 23, 1930) is an American actor. He has performed numerous roles on live action television since the 1960s, and he has had an active career doing voice work since the 1970s. Early life Oppenheimer was born in New Yor ...

(Who voiced Skeletor and Man-at-Arms in the original series). When Moss Man is killed Skeletor remarks that his death 'smells like pine'.

Reception

Comic Book Resources ''Comic Book Resources'', also known by the initialism CBR, is a website dedicated to the coverage of comic book–related news and discussion. History Comic Book Resources was founded by Jonah Weiland in 1995 as a development of the Kingdom Co ...

listed the character as part of He-Man: 15 Most Powerful Masters of the Universe. CBR voted Moss-Man 7th worst He-Man toy.

Cracked Cracked may refer to: Television * ''Cracked'' (British TV series), a 2008 British comedy-drama television series that aired on STV * ''Cracked'' (Canadian TV series), a 2013 Canadian crime drama series that aired on CBC * "Cracked", a Season 8 ( ...

thought poorly of Moss man. Moss man was voted 2nd out 7 in the 7 Stupidest He-Man Characters by

Total Film ''Total Film'' is a British film magazine published 13 times a year (published monthly and a summer issue is added every year since issue 91, 2004, which is published between July and August issue) by Future Publishing. The magazine was launched i ...

References

{{Masters of the Universe Fictional characters introduced in 1984 Fictional anthropomorphic characters Fictional humanoids Fictional superorganisms Extraterrestrial superheroes Masters of the Universe Heroic Warriors Plant characters Male characters in animated series