Castle Grayskull

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Lore & Background

The origin of Castle Grayskull was related in the read-along book "Castle Grayskull," published by Kid Stuff, 1983, as once being the beautiful "Hall of Wisdom," the "center of Eternian culture and a storehouse of all knowledge of the universe." The Hall was the meeting place of the Council of Elders. One day, the elders saw a vision of a beautiful woman dressed in snake armor who warned of future danger and also the coming of He-Man. The Elders concentrated all of their power into a magical orb. The Elders then magically transformed the Hall of Wisdom into Castle Grayskull in order to frighten away intruders and protect the orb. This was to have all taken place several centuries before the coming of He-Man. The Castle was then largely forgotten until Man-At-Arms eventually led Prince Adam to Castle Grayskull, where Prince Adam became He-Man using the Sword of Power. In the original television series, Castle Grayskull is a legendary/mythical location situated on a pedestal of bones jutting out of an abyss in a barren plain just on the edge of the Evergreen Forest. It serves as home to the Sorceress and to the mysterious and rarely seen Spirit of Grayskull, as well as a place of refuge for He-Man and all those considered his friends. Its origins are unknown except for the fact that it was constructed to protect an unspecified source of power from those who would misuse it. It is a frequent target for the forces of evil.

In Their Own Story

In the live-action movie, Castle Grayskull is finally captured by Skeletor's forces. The first image of it seen is of its interior as Skeletor, victorious at last, makes the long march across the castle's Throne Room. The throne resides in the posterior section of the room just beyond the section's seemingly incomplete marble foundation which rests atop pillars and framework that extend from a deep abyss. Near the throne, Skeletor has trapped the Sorceress within an energy field, which, little by little, transfers her power to him. The castle serves as Skeletor's main base of operations throughout the movie. According to the film, it houses a giant circular portal called "the Great Eye of the Galaxy", which only opens when Eternia's moon reaches its zenith, granting whoever stands before it god-like power. It is never explicitly stated, though visuals strongly indicate, that for this to happen the Sword of Grayskull must be inserted into a small column near the portal. The opening narration implies that Castle Grayskull itself is at the center of the universe. In the film, the exterior of Castle Grayskull was designed by production designer William Stout. It was presented as a matte painting, and only appeared once, to reduce the cost of sets and models.

Reader's Guide

Castle Grayskull was conceived as the central location for the battle between the forces of good and evil. The original playset was released in 1982, and all other depictions of the castle originate from it. It is a large hollow green castle, consisting of two halves connected by a hinge. The toy is designed to open for play and close for storage. A carrying handle is molded into the top of the castle. A large skull decorates the front, with a hinged "Jawbridge" allowing access to the interior, through the "mouth" opening. The interior has a throne room, elevator, and a trap door. Multiple accessories are also included – a ladder, removable flag pole, turret cannon, weapons rack with nine weapons, and a "battle trainer" device. When the initial Mattel toy line was introduced in 1982, the He-Man and Skeletor figures each came with half of a plastic sword which could be joined into one "complete" sword, corresponding to the storyline in the included mini-comic. Together, the combined sword was used as a key to open the jawbridge to the Castle Grayskull playset. According to the original storyline, the Sorceress (as she is called in the very first minicomic "He-Man and the Powersword") had split the sword into two and scattered the pieces, in order to protect the castle and its source of universal power. The toy set was the centerpiece of the toy line, and sold more than 3.5 million units. An early concept sketch by Mark Taylor featured "the Dwell of Souls", an idea that evolved into Castle Grayskull; it featured a skull-shaped entrance. The original packaging art by Rudy Obrero showed Skeletor inside the jaw bridge; which was done because Mr. Obrero had not been given a storyline at that point and he thought to himself that it might be Skeletor's base. The original concept art and prototype show a large swamp surrounding the castle, which was going to be printed on a playmat that would be positioned beneath the playset. This moat playmat was not included with the finished toy, in order to keep costs down.

Did You Know?

• Castle Grayskull was originally conceived as 'the Dwell of Souls' in an early concept sketch by Mark Taylor.
• The original packaging art by Rudy Obrero showed Skeletor inside the jaw bridge because Obrero had not been given a storyline and thought it might be Skeletor's base.
• The toy set sold more than 3.5 million units.
• In the 1987 live-action film, the exterior of Castle Grayskull was a matte painting designed by William Stout and appeared only once to reduce costs.
• The castle's jawbridge is opened using a combined sword made from two halves that came with the He-Man and Skeletor figures in 1982.