NOSTALGIA: She-Ra remembered as favoured 80s cartoon heroine
The female counterpart to He-Man, She-Ra was engaged in mortal combat as part of a noble rebellion to free the oppressed of Etheria from evil. JOANNE SAVAGE remembers her sassiness, moral compass, flying unicorn, magical Sword of Protection and indomitable battle cry
Though these days I most wish I could turn into Lady Gaga, as a child, I most wished that I could turn into She-Ra: Princess of Power from the 1985 series, posing with imposing headdress, a flowing red cape, killer bodice, cascading blonde locks, and the kind of majestic supernatural powers that made her worthy of being He-Man’s twin sister.
I mean she could lift grown men, robots, mountain-like rocks and buildings, and was fast and acrobatic while wielding her magical Sword of Protection which deflected bolts of cosmic energy with remarkable effectivity.
I dressed up as She-Ra aged approximately seven, and although my Aunt Mary refused to allow me a racy bodice, I did get the red cape and in my soul I was roaring ‘She-Ra!’ and felt fully convinced I was a mistress of the universe about to fly through the space-time continuum and fight the bad guys, though I didn’t have her magical sword or wisdom or flying capabilities or indeed a talking unicorn named Swift Wind, although I very much wished I had all four.
The character was first introduced to audiences in movie The Secret of the Sword as Princess or rather Force Captain Adora of the Horde, ruling a strange mystical land called Etheria.
But she broke the spell that was making her serve The Horde - the result of childhood mind control - her liberation made tangible when she roared ‘For the honour of Grayskull’ and became fully She-Ra unleashed, rescuing He-Man, and then landing atop Swift Wind.
Atfer a stint back on her birth-planet Eternia, she returns to Etheria where she was raised, with the incredible mission of freeing the planet from the Horde oppression as part of a noble rebellion. So here was a female military leader of note, only unlike Joan of Arc she had that actual flying unicorn, and much more sex appeal than was perhaps appropriate for a children’s cartoon character or indeed Saint Joan.
A military strategist par excellence, She-Ra calls upon her allies across the entire universe to defeat the enemy and was yet always seen as brave and selfless, willing to help others in need at a moment’s notice.
I think the world needs more women of She-Ra’s true grit.