10 TV Backstories Revealed In Opening Credits
2. He-Man And The Masters Of The Universe
When He-Man and the Masters of the Universe premiered in 1983 on American televisions, the characters and settings were entirely new. Viewers didn't know who He-Man was, nor did they know anything about his world or what he stood for. Fortunately, the opening credits took care of this perfectly.
The credits scene is completely narrated by John Erwin, the man who gave his vocal talents to He-Man and a host of other characters. He explained the whole thing rather perfectly:
Adam: I am Adam. Prince of Eternia and defender of the secrets of Castle Greyskull. This is Cringer... my fearless friend. Fabulous secret powers were revealed to me the day I held aloft my magic sword and said... By the power of Greyskull! [He-Man] I have the Power!
From there, he explains how his buddy Cringer transformed into Battle Cat, and how his secret is only known to a few people. The narration concludes with a mention of the need to defend "Castle Grayskull from the evil forces of Skeletor."
The best part of the intro isn't that Prince Adam explains how he became He-Man, it's the music and transformation that blows a kid's mind when they see it for the first... or thousandth time. Who hasn't thrust their fake sword into the air and exclaimed, "By the power of Greyskull! I HAVE THE POWER!?!?"