That title is a bit of a mouthful, eh? So here we have a free comic for ‘Comics Giveaway Day’. The same thing, and the same day, as Free Comic Book Day, Comics Giveaway Day became a thing when the distribution side of the comics industry recently fractured.

You’re not here to read about that though, are you? You’re here to read my thoughts on the double-headliner featuring Masters of the Universe and Dungeons & Dragons! So let’s check them out.

First up is Telling Tales, a Masters of the Universe story which features Prince Adam recounting a far-fetched story of He-Man taking on Hordak and his Evil Horde. The slime-filled shenanigans here are very entertaining, full of campy Masters of the Universe action (as it should be), and very nicely drawn by Andrew Krahnke. I loved this story, and it’s a great taster for Dark Horse’s Masters of the Universe comics.

This came a little too early to capitalize on the hype from the film; though the movie has really underperformed, it seems that so many people who have seen it (myself included) saw it for what it was: a gloriously colourful and camp, Flash Gordon-esque adventure which beautifully draws on the source material.

Anyway, enough of my gushing about Masters of the Universe. How was the Dungeons & Dragons story?

Magefall is a beautifully illustrated story featuring duelling magic users. It looks absolutely gorgeous, but unfortunately the story fell really flat to me. Where Masters of the Universe’s chapter feels beginner friendly and packed with useful exposition, Magefall, well, falls short and just doesn’t feel particularly interesting or accessible for newcomers.

I just didn’t really care about the characters, or the outcome of the story, at all. It’s a shame, as I’ve often enjoyed quite a lot of Dungeons & Dragons media beyond the TTRPG, but this brief excursion did nothing for me.

Still, can’t complain for free, right? And Masters of the Universe was great, at least!

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