The lore of He-Man and She-Ra were meant to be tied tightly. I enjoyed both 1980s cartoons even if She-Ra was meant primarily for a female audience. The three-parter introduction for She-Ra featured the expansion. It's revealed that Skeletor was once a member (and the favorite apprentice) of Hordak. Skeletor was once a member of the Evil Horde. The flashback involved Hordak and Skeletor attempting to steal both Adam and Adora. Skeletor was left behind by Hordak. Skeletor ratted out Hordak. It's revealed that Snake Mountain was once a base of operations for the Evil Horde.
Skeletor became a secondary antagonist to She-Ra. It's something that Skeletor was once a member of the Horde. It's possible that Skeletor agreed to work with Hordak, learned fast, but soon became more ambitious in the process. Hordak does use a combination of technology and sorcery. Later episodes of She-Ra reveal that Hordak did learn sorcery at some point. My only assumption is that Skeletor learned from Hordak with the intention of one day taking over Eternia. One episode of She-Ra even has Skeletor seeing to take over the Horde's flagship, the Velvet Glove, and plan to conquer the Universe.
Obviously, both Skeletor and Hordak are trying to outdo each other in who's Eviler Than Thou in the 1980s cartoon. What I still feel is funny is why Filmation created Horde Prime for the She-Ra cartoon. Many plots had Hordak turn Keldor into Skeletor (and the same plot was carried over the 2002 reboot). The He-Man and She-Ra Christmas Special had Horde Prime summon them both. One episode had Skeletor try to kill Hordak with a Doom Berry Pie. Skeletor sought to get a promotion from Horde Prime. However, knowing Skeletor, he would get rid of ANYBODY for power. If Skeletor can betray Hordak then he can also do the same to Horde Prime. However, I believe Horde Prime is MORE THAN READY if ever Skeletor tries to betray him.
I also feel poor Hordak may have been blasted by Horde Prime because of Skeletor's betrayal. It's possible that Hordak's decision to abandon Skeletor behind early on was something. It's possible that Skeletor's betrayal was something Horde Prime pinned on Hordak. If Hordak didn't abandon Skeletor then I don't think Skeletor would've ratted Hordak out. However, Skeletor did end up answering Horde Prime in the Christmas Special. I guess Horde Prime was taking advantage of a traitorous deserter to pit against Hordak. It might be best to ask what's the guarantee that Skeletor won't betray Horde Prime? Skeletor already backstabbed Hordak more than once.
It was entertaining to see both villains fight each other. I think Skeletor and Hordak could've won IF they put their differences aside. However, both hate each other too much and create many comedic tones that keep the villains going. She-Ra did get some really entertaining episodes because of this bitter rivalry. The bitter rivalry between the two is indeed very fun to watch.
The missed potential in the reboot
Hordak was supposed to make an appearance in He-Man (2002). The flashbacks featuring Hordak such as him turning Keldor into Skeletor and the Spell of Separation are something. Hordak was even very feared by King Hiss himself. I even feel like comparing Hordak to Kulan Gath. Kulan Gath in the Conan series would soon become Red Sonja's greatest foe. Just think of how similar She-Ra is to Red Sonja aesthetically. She-Ra's recurring foe was Hordak (though Hordak answered to Horde Prime) while He-Man fought against Skeletor.
It's a shame that a scarier, more evil Hordak ever came to fruition. I was even excited about it but all that went down the drain. Just think that Evil-Lyn was warned against releasing Hordak. Skeletor was even bullied by Hordak telepathically. Skeletor betrayed Hordak by not releasing him. It would've bene interesting if the more sinister Hordak showed up and showed people who was boss. That Hordak was nothing like the comical villain from the 1980s. That Hordak would've been Kulan Gath from the Red Sonja franchise.
This has to be the biggest disappointment. It was already good enough to have a Skeletor who was actually more threatening than funny. The 2002 Skeletor almost feels like Movie Skeletor in some way. It would've been interesting to see Hordak become the next antagonist. Instead, the reboot was canceled too soon and I still feel disappointed it happened.
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