Hordak is a fictional demonic character in the Masters of the Universe franchise who opposes She-Ra and He-Man, as well as the franchise's main villain, Skeletor, to whom he was once a mentor, and the cause of the latter's ambition and pursuits of evil. Hordak is the main antagonist of the She-Ra: Princess of Power animated series, in which he is the archenemy of She-Ra, He-Man's twin sister.
In this series, he rules the planet of Etheria with an army of Horde Troopers, most of whom wear a red bat symbol on their chests to convey their allegiance. According to most story media, Skeletor betrayed Hordak and trapped him in "another dimension" before beginning his own conquest of the planet Eternia. Hordak, not to be outdone, then returned with a vengeance to take over Eternia for himself.
Hordak is recognizable by his white (sometimes cream/bone colored) face, with sharp red eyes, his flat snout-like nose, red fangs, and pointed bat-like ears. He wears a collar of bones and black armor over his chest, emblazoned with the Horde bat symbol. His appearance resembles a bat-like creature, although in some media he appears more cyborg-like. Whenever he talks, he pauses his talking by snorting between his statements. According to the toy line's creator Roger Sweet, his face was modeled on an African witch doctor's mask.
Media
Movies
He-Man and She-Ra:The Secret of the Sword (1985 animated film)
In 1985, Filmation, the studio which produced the He-Man cartoon series, released a full-length 91-minute feature film titled The Secret of the Sword also known as He-Man and She-Ra: The Secret of the Sword. The movie transitioned from a focus on He-Man to an introduction of Adam's/He-Man's twin sister Adora, whom the film reveals to have been abducted, as an infant, by Hordak and Skeletor. Hordak raised Adora to be a warrior and captain for his Evil Horde and hid her true heritage from her. The film reveals that He-Man's power sword also has a twin, the Sword of Protection, which, when wielded by Adora to summon the power of Grayskull, transforms her into She-Ra, the female counterpart to He-Man. The movie grossed over three times its two-million-dollar production budget. It was later divided into several shorter segments and aired on television as the first several episodes of the He-Man & MOTU spinoff series She-Ra: Princess of Power.
Television
She-Ra: Princess of Power (1985) Hordak and the Evil Horde originally appeared in the Filmation cartoon series She-Ra: Princess of Power. Hordak is the main antagonist of the show and is portrayed as a ruthless tyrant, who delights in the pain and misery of others, including his own minions. He rules Etheria from his headquarters, the Fright Zone. He has the ability to transform all and/or parts of his body (usually his arm/s) into a wide variety of mechanical weapons and devices, including cannons, rockets, tanks, saw blades, drills, and flamethrowers. His powers seem to be derived from a combination of magic and science. Horde Prime, who is possibly his brother, is the evil ruler of the galaxy-spanning Horde Empire. Their home planet is known as Horde World. The Horde employs a vast army of robots, tanks, aircraft, spaceships, and other advanced technology to allow them to conquer and enslave planets. An assortment of the most horrible creatures in the universe serves the Horde as the leaders of its robotic army. He also is obsessed with getting revenge on his treacherous former pupil Skeletor.
He-Man & She-Ra: A Christmas Special (1985)
At the height of the conjoined popularity of the He-Man and The Masters of The Universe and She-Ra: Princess of Power cartoons, Filmation produced this made for television Christmas movie and aired it in syndication during the 1985 Christmas Holiday season. The original He-Man and The Masters of The Universe cartoon series had aired its final new episode the prior month and continued to air in re-run episodes for some time after. Its sister show, She-Ra: Princess of Power was still in its first season. The Christmas special reunited twins He-Man and She-Ra in their biggest joint adventure since the Secret of The Sword. It commences with Queen Marlena reflecting nostalgically about Christmases on Earth, and, after a series of misadventures set in motion by Orko, climaxes with a confrontation that pits He-Man, She-Ra, and Skeletor (whose bone-hard heart has been briefly softened by a pair of Earthling children, a peculiar pup, and Christmas Spirit) against Hordak and Horde-Prime.