Orko Masters of the Universe

When someone needed a smile on the Masters Of The Universe television series, Orko was there. This was a lovable little floating semi-magician that seemed to have his magic tricks backfire on “Man At Arms” too many times. He is a Trollan from the land of Trolla and originally created in the Filmation series. Mattel created an action figure out of him in the early eighties that reflects part of his bumbling character. He is part of wave 3 of the MOTU series and was issued in 1984.

The powers of Orko are not so well adapted to his new home on Eternia. Orko arrived to Eternia when a cosmic storm transported him there. His first place that he appeared was in the tar pits. It just so happened that Prince Adam and his pet tiger, Cringer were stuck in the tar pits at the same time he arrived. He saved them both and went on to be pronounced the “Royal Buffoon” by the King of Eternia. Orko is one of the few that know He Man is secretly Prince Adam. Orko can make magic spells, but many of them are unreliable. He has demonstrated many of them while Man At Arms was around, only to have them backfire on him. Orko claims that he lost his magic wand upon arrival to Eternia and that the wand would have enhanced his powers. Orko’s hat seems to have an abundance of things inside it. In fact, there are so many things hidden there that it would be physically impossible to put all of them there. It is assumed that magic is the reason he can pull so many things out of his hat. His favorite trick seems to be floating and to make things appear in his hands out of thin air.

Orko and other 1984 Masters Of The Universe action figures are 5 ½ inches tall. This was a departure from the standard 3 ¾ inch figures of the day. He came packaged with a comic in most of the original packages, but the Spanish versions left out the card in 1985. He came with a wand and a plastic ripcord  in the package that helped him do some acrobatics. He could be made to whirl like a top on a flat surface. He was clothed in a red robe and his face was totally black. His red hat had blue ears sticking out of them and his hands were the same color. A light brown collar finished off his look. He did not come with the “power punch” feature.

The versions of the original Mattel Orko action figure were basically the same. The bubble packs were a little different on the front, but on the back they were all “12 back” material. This means that 12 Masters Of The Universe figures were depicted on the back of the card he came in. Instructions on how to make Orko do his “round and round” trick were also on the back. There were no “8 back” versions of this figure. At times he could be found in a two pack with He Man.

For those who want to buy an Orko he is fairly easy to find. He can be found in many different aspects, both loose and packaged, with accessories and without. For those who want him loose, the prices range from $40 for one in used condition to around $125 dollars with his wand and coin tricks. For an Orko in an unopened package prices can reach up to $600+ dollars depending upon the grade. Obviously the upper range of prices is for an Orko with a high AFA grade.