Overlord is the main antagonist from the early 1980's Filmation animated series Blackstar.
| “ | At last, with such power in my control, Blackstar will be doomed! | „ |
| ~ Overlord |
The Overlord is a very powerful sorcerer native to the planet Sagar. He comes from a long line of evil rulers, one of whom appeared in an episode as an undead fiend, He holds the Powersword and seeks to rejoin it with it's other half, the Starsword, to form the PowerStar which he will use to crush the rebellion and rule all of Sagar. His chief opposition in this is the titular hero, lost Earth Astronaut and space explorer John Blackstar, wielder of the Starsword.
His stronghold is the Ice Castle and he has many minions and allies sworn to obey him.
While a more serious antagonist than Filmation's better-known Skeletor, the Overlord is not above miscalculation, and at least once needed to ally himself with Blackstar to counter an out-of-control force he himself unleashed. Also, while his minions and allies tend to plot against him a bit less than is the norm for kids fare of this era, they are not above it, and Overlord keeps an eye on them for signs of betrayal, even to his personal sorcerer and chief adviser, Vizier. The Overlord's cruelty towards his lessers seems especially pronounced in the case of the Trobbit people, a race of diminutive, peaceful beings, targeted often by his forces until the arrival of John Blackstar.
Like many such series of this era, nothing resembling a finale emerged before cancellation, so the outcome of the struggle between Overlord and Blackstar is unknown. However, in broadcast episodes, Blackstar did whittle down Overlord's forces, while expanding his own ally base. Moreover, one episode featured a fellow astronaut from Earth learning of Blackstar's fate and contacting Earth to ask for a full rescue mission. It seems possible that, even if not finally defeated, the Overlord's territories could have been either freed from his grasp or at least been significantly reduced.
Voiced by: Alan Oppenheimer.
Powers[]
- Sorcery
Deputy Rulers & Field Commanders[]
- Gargo, Prince of the Vampire Men
- Kadray, the Time-Master
- Meuton, Prince of the Wasp Men
- Neptul, Prince of Aquaria
- Tongo, Prince of the Leopard Men
- The White Knight, Captain of the Ice-Castle Guards
Equipment[]
- Powersword
- Flying Wagon
- Ice Castle
Types of Minions[]
- Aquarians
- Demons
- Lava-Locs
- Leopard Men
- Palace Guards (Ice Castle)
- Vampire Men
- Wasp Men
Trivia[]
- The relative success of the Blackstar toy line, one centerpiece of which was the Overlord's Ice Castle playset, led Mattel and Filmation to the notions that eventually led to He-Man.
- Besides both villains being voice by Alan Oppenheimer, Overlord and Skeletor once shared another similarity. In early pack-in comics contained inside packages of He-Man/MOTU figures, He-Man and Skeletor also fought over a divided sword, like the Powerstar.
- Another common point between the two villains, which extended into the He-Man animated series, was the origin of their nemesis. John Blackstar was a lost astronaut from Earth, as was He-Man's mother, Queen Marlena.