Snake Face action figure from the Masters of the Universe Classics line.

Canon

Snake Face was a minor training officer named Cyltho Ssstavve in the Serpent Army of the Unnamed One. The Great Black Wizard enchanted him with the power to turn his enemies to stone. An impressed King Hssss brought Snake Face into his inner circle as his own second in command during the Great Wars against King Grayskull. Zodak and the Council of Elders trapped Snake Face and the other Snake Men inside the Void. They escaped five thousand years later with the help of Kobra Khan and Evil-Lyn. Snake Face fought King Hssss’s new enemies, the Masters of the Universe, and eventually joined forces with the Horde when they returned to Eternia. During their final conflict in the Second Ultimate Battleground, Snake Face fell in battle to Saurod.

Bio

Originally a minor training officer in the Unnamed One’s serpent army. Cyltho Ssstavvve drew King Hssss’ attention after he was enchanted with the ability to turn his enemies into stone by the Great Black Wizard. Quickly brought into Hssss’ inner circle. Snake Face often acted as the Viper King’s second in command during the Great Wars with Grayskull. He was trapped by the entire Snake Army in the Void for five millennia, but eventually was called forth by King Hsss to do battle once again after their release – this time against new enemies – He-Man and the Masters Of The Universe! Snake Face slithers after his enemies then turns him to stone!

The Masters of the Universe Classics line, launched in 2008, is a new line of action figures based on the classic characters from all aspects of the Masters of the Universe franchise. Available solely from Mattel’s website and aimed purely at collectors, the line also includes biographical descriptions of the characters designed to tie the diverging aspects of the mythos together.

Based on the look of the original 1980s MOTU toys, this new toy line was aimed primarily at the adult toy collector market, often available only through subscriptions (from MattyCollector). Sculpted by the Four Horsemen, these toys were updated versions of previous figures as well as characters that never before had an action figure made of them; such as Filmation’s Queen Marlena, Fang-Man, Lizard-Man, Count Marzo, Granamyr, and many others. The toy line featured many redesigned and updated action figures from the original action-figure line from the 1980s, but it also included characters from She-Ra: Princess of Power (Adora, Madame Razz, Scorpia, Shadow Weaver, and others), The New Adventures of He-Man (Mara, Crita, and more), and the Mike Young Productions series from 2002 (Faceless One, Chief Carnivus, King Chooblah, Ceratus, and others). As the line progressed, characters from all versions of MOTU lore were included, from such things such as prototypes and concept art (He-Ro, Eldor, Demo-Man, Gygor, Vykor, and others), box art from vehicles and model kits (Sky High and the Fighting Foe Men), mini comics (the Goddess, Geldor, and Procrustus), and other books, comics, and media (Despara, Strobo, Goat-Man, and more). There were also newly created figures, exclusive to the Classics toy line, such as Draego-Man, Cy-Chop, Castle Grayskullman, and others. In February 2010, the figures of He-Man and Skeletor were available as Toys “R” Us exclusives packed in two-packs with Superman and Lex Luthor, respectively, from Mattel’s DC Universe Classics action figure line; with this dual line expanded to include two-packs featuring Aquaman/Mer-Man, Hawkman/Stratos, Bizarro/Faker, Supergirl/She-Ra, and Green Lantern/Zodac.

Masters of the Universe Classics surpassed the original 1980s toy line in terms of length, running continuously for seven years with more than 150 different figures produced since its launch in August 2008. Along with the Classics series, MOTU Minis and Giants figures were also released in 2014 and 2015. In 2016, Mattel ended production on the MOTU Classics and MattyCollector.com’s Club Grayskull series, with the production company Super7 now taking over the Masters of the Universe license.