As my most recent posts have shown, I am on a bit of an 80's and 90's nostalgia kick, mostly in the realms of toys, comics and hobbies. One of the major toy lines from the 1980's was Masters of the Universe from Mattel, featuring the mighty He-Man and his arch-nemesis Skeletor. While at the local flea market a few weeks ago, I came across a few booths selling some vintage 1980's MOTU items and I couldn't resist picking a few of them up.

While looking through a booth mostly dedicated to 80's and 90's toys and videogames, I spotted one of the most iconic items in the original MOTU toy line, Castle Grayskull. While the playset sitting in front of me was not 100% complete, it was very close to it. The only items missing were the assorted weapons and a single cut-out decoration; not bad for a 30 year old toy. This particular playset also came with the not-so-common Point Dread and Talon Fighter. These standalone toys could attach to Castle Grayskull to provide a landing spot for He-Man and his crew.


Castle Grayskull.


Inserting He-Man's sword into the lock slot allows the drawbridge door to open.


Pretty creepy for a toy designed for children.


Castle Grayskull Interior.


Point Dread and Talon Fighter.


Point Dread control panel.

Along with Grayskull was a carded Weapons Pak accessory kit. Again, this item is over 30 years old, so it is a little bit beat up and the plastic is yellowed.


Weapons Pak.


Stains? What stains?

Even though Grayskull wasn't 100% complete, and the Weapons Pak had seen better days, that didn't stop me from following in the footsteps of Frank Fritz from American Pickers and putting together a "bundle" to get these items at a reduced price. It didn't take long, as I was soon walking away with my arms full of vintage MOTU goodies.

My next two items are less exciting, but still cool. I found a Ram-Man figure in a $1 toy bin and snatched it up. He is missing some paint, but still springs to life when prompted. I also found a read-along book without the record, but it was cheap so I grabbed that too.


Ram Man looking a little worse for wear.


"Killer boots man!"

I enjoy heading to the monthly flea market on a regular basis, but I try not to put too much hope in finding anything that I am interested in and at a price I am willing to pay. I usually find items in broken condition or covered in 20+ years worth of dirt and grime along with inflated prices. Luckily for me, this time my eyes were able to zone in on a few neat items to add to my seemingly ever-growing collection.