I’m not going to discuss what happened with the various exclusives and so forth–Rustin has promised a rant later in the week, and I’m sure that will cover it all and more.
Instead, I’m just going to list the things that interested me the most.
Masters of the Universe Classics
Photos: AFP
Lots of interesting stuff here. Battle Cat looks great, and the price tag of $30 is surprisingly cheap. The display stands look awesome, too–I’ll definitely be getting a few sets of those (depending on price, of course).
Trap-Jaw looks great, but the optional head and arm to create Kronis is what makes him a likely 5-star figure. Here’s hoping we get a green-skinned repaint (for some reason, I’m really fond of that look).
I’m a wee bit less impressed by Scare-Glow, but that’s only because I was really hoping for that translucent Blight design that I nonetheless knew would be too costly. However, I’m still psyched to get him, finally. And I’m really curious what the story is behind those odd accessories.
I’m also pretty psyched for Wun-Dar. I know some fans aren’t, but I just like the notion of a more Conan-esque He-Man. I’ll definitely be taking off that armor, though. Personally I think they should have given him a 2002-style harness.
King Randor does look like the Burger King, but he’s still cool. And while I’m not that much of a POP fan, I know Dr. Mrs. Ghostal will be happy to see another female action figure added to my collection.
As for the bonus figures, Green Goddess, 2002 Zodak and Battle Armor He-Man: I’ll probably skip GG, and I’m 50/50 on Zodak and BA He-Man.
DC Universe
DC Universe Classics
Pics: AFP
While I don’t regret my decision to trim my DCUC collection and cherry-pick in the future, Mattel is certainly offering a number of treats for those who stick with it.
The Joker looks great, but we already knew that. The 5-pack is even better than expected, so here’s hoping you can actually find it in stores. And as a great supporter of a black-and-gray Batman with a black bat symbol and pouch belt, I’m looking forward to the Public Enemies Batman (I’ll have to do a head swap, though).
Movie Masters
Pics: Figures.com
Kneel before Zod’s 12″ inches! Sorry, couldn’t resist.
I’ve never collected 12″ figures, but the head sculpts on these are pretty nice. Not so sure about the bodies, though.
I’m glad we’re finally getting the remaining Dark Knight Movie Masters, though why they couldn’t include the Ghoul and Bruce Wayne unmasked variants is beyond me. In any event, I’ll be getting Jailhouse Joker and Two-Face for sure, and perhaps Bank Robber Joker and Asylum Scarecrow.
World’s Greatest Superheroes
Pics: Figures.com
Wow. Who saw this coming? I’m a shade too young to have any nostalgic fondness for Mego figures, but kudos to DC and Mattel for recognizing the growing popularity of this particular figure type.
DC Infinite Heroes
Pics: Figures.com
These are definitely getting better, and may even be able to compete with MU in the near future (check out the articulation on this Batman).
Ghostbusters
Pics: Figures.com
They got the Bill Murray likeness rights. All is right with the world.
Somehow, despite my flagging interest in DCUC and enthusiastic-if-not-obsessive interest in MOTUC, Mattel has managed to produce the one line I’m really excited about right now.
And then they made Walter Peck. I’m going to own a Walter Peck figure. This is the end times, people! Watch your dogs and cats for signs of cohabitation!
Miscellaneous Toys
I’ll admit to being lukewarm to Queen Alluxandra and her retinue, but Scarabus and his variants look great, especially this incredibly badass Anubis version. Heck, they all look good–this could be the first time I buy the whole set.
There are going to be Battle Beasts Minimates. “Wait–what?!” you say. It’s true! And awesome. What’s more, DST actually now has ownership of the brand, not just the license, so the sky’s the limit in terms of what they can do with it.
(On a side note, I’m considering covering Minimates more on PGPoA. Would people be interested in that…?)
Rustin attended an information session with NECA, where we got the story behind the second series of TMNT. As we all guessed, Playmates’s deal with Mirage is preventing NECA from being able to sell their TMNT figures at Toys ‘R Us. But you say: why can’t they just sell them in specialty stores? As it turns out, the problem is with international sales. While the four Turtles in the first wave sold very well domestically, sales were virtually nonexistent overseas due to lack of recognition. Non-U.S. fans knew the classic blue, red, orange, and purple Turtles from the cartoons and movies, but the comic-based Turtles with their all-red bandannas just didn’t sell. Therefore, NECA barely broke even on the line.
Therefore, the plan now is to sell a figure, see how it does, then try the next figure. The first will be April in green and yellow variants in the fall, and if she sells well enough, Shredder will follow. I understand why we’re getting a yellow April–NECA’s hoping that figure, which resembles the cartoon version, will sell well overseas. But why the green version? It doesn’t make a whole lot of sense to sell the comic-accurate blue version as an exclusive at SDCC, then sell the green and yellow versions at retail–it should be blue and yellow at retail. In any event, fingers crossed that April’s numbers merit us a Shredder. I already plan to pick up a couple Aprils for friends and family.
Bonus question: What would an SDCC wrap taste like?
leondeluz
common, i will try to get themm all, but the packs always with supes and batman, cmon i got an rearl army os supes and batmen, please no more, and motu line its the best of this year so even dont like some of them for a real collector we are buying all, sorry for my money and poe like always a great review and discussion thanks
T.
@Poe … Whoops. Well spotted.
Nicholai
@bicmarkit:
I agree about the Zod looking good, but I wonder how skinny that Supes really is. Reeve wasn't a big guy and definitely brought a different physique to the role of Superman than most people would think. The bigger the scale the harder the figures, especially at a reasonable cost, so I just hope they turn out good as I'd love to collect something based on the Donner movies.
bicmarkit
About 12" zod, i felt it was a solid looking figure. but the reeve superman was lacking. his skinny physique makes him look like a weakling. also looking forward to 12" Ursa done the proper way. We had 12" 'matrix trinity figures to do kitbashes for years, but finally the real thing is possible. 3he possibility of messing her up badly does exist though. just look at the new dc direct 13" line Poison Ivy and Wonder Woman. DC Direct did an awful job on those figures. ~ know its DCD and not Mattel but there are few 12" and larger 1/6 scale figures that do the DC female heroes and villains justice.
Traie
I was discussing with a friend how cool it would have been if Mattel secretly got the Blackstar license and had Blackstar and Overlord prototypes to show off at SDCC that would make a nice Matty.com 2 pack. Looking at the basic He-Man, Blackstar would be an EASY retool and Overlord would also be fairly simple and cost effective. Not sure how many Masters fans even remember this short lived series, but just like the Matt Trakker addition to one of the last 3 3/4 G.I. Joe waves, it's a nice wink wink, cherry on top for fans, and totally appreciated, especially with the quality of the MOTUC line. What do you say Mattel, is this possible at all? Would you MOTUC fans be interested? Has this subject already been discusses and squashed?
clark
"I’m a wee bit less impressed by Scare-Glow, but that’s only because I was really hoping for that translucent Blight design that I nonetheless knew would be too costly"
I asked Mattel why they didn't go with the more impressive skeleton within a body look, especially since they have been making good profit selling $15 figures for $20, and always selling out quickly. They told me that due to legal restrictions, and also their not wanting to get creative, they just could not comply with a much better figure, but for us to rest assured, he will still be $30 with shipping and half of the people who want him will have to go through an eBay scalper.
finkrod
Thanks for bringing it all together Poe.
Scare-Glow looks awesome!
Trap-Jaws face & robot arm, not so much.
Randor looks like a friggin' clown.
And from the look of the upcoming DCUC waves, I'll be spending alot less money on action figures. The Imperex(?) wave probably has the most figures I'm looking for. The 'Public Enemies' wave is a complete loss.
I will definetly picking up the Gotham 5-Pack if I can find it though. I'll finally have a decent looking Lex. The powersuit one from a few years back was cool and all, but sometimes you just need something a little less formal.
prfkttear
I think a SDCC wrap would taste like cabbage, sourkraut, horseradish and bratwurst.
I'm glad we finally got some real info from NECA. Its a shame that the TMNT didn't sell better internationally, those are some excellent figures. I guess it makes sense though, for those fans who are more familiar with the different colored bandanas. Personally, if I had my preference, I would have liked the option to buy the different colors, but that defeats the purpose of the line being based on the original comics. I'll def. pick up a yellow jumpsuit April, and just hope that we get Shredder.
As far as DCUC is concerned, I think I'm going to only be collecting Batman related figures. The 5-pack is nice because as someone who didn't collect DSCH, it gives me the chance to get Catwoman and Two-Face. Of course from what I understand, even people who did collect DCSH didn't have much of a chance to pick them up.
I'm glad to see that the Movie Masters are going to see the light of day, but I'm curious how much they'll sell for… $20 I presue. If you ask me they should have been out a long time ago. That aside, depending on cost, I might be game for Two-Face and Jailcell Joker, I hope he comes with plenty of knives and pocket lint! 😉
I'm thankful they got the likeness rights for Ghostbusters. While I guess we could have settled for a "near likeness" or they could have put Goggles on him a la Terminator Salvation John Connor (yeah, right!) but its nice to know they'll be able to do this line and do it right. Walter Peck will make a very nice accessory to the containment unit! 😉 To think, now we can grab a tub of Fluff and re-enact the scene from the film where he gets covered with molten marshmallow!
Motorthing
Yes to more Minmates.
I'll have to EvilBay that 5 pack which is always annoying, but at least I didn't bother with scat-Bats or Pink-eye Supes.
Shadeslord
I can't be more jacked up for DCUC. With the exception of Martian Manhunter(and it's weird that they haven't shown any interest in making him, isn't it), every character I've ever loved has either been made or is getting made. Now if they could get quality control higher and pricing lower… just picked up Supes and Braniac at TRU, not sweating that I'll get a better Supes somewhere down the road.
Frowny McBeard
Please yes minimates. I think you'd do a better job than minimates central.
The Flash III
As solely a DCUC collector, I'm pretty excited. The 5-pack will be cool, if only for Luthor, Two-Face, and Catwoman. I feel bad for anyone who bought the Clayface or Brainiac 2-packs, as they'd be getting new versions of Supes and Bats–that was crummy of Mattel to do. But need I say more than "Animal Man and B'wana Beast"? Waves 10 and 11 look good, as expected, with enough core characters and suprises to keep me in.
Oh, and if SDCC were a wrap it would taste like fanboy desperation, nerdgasms, spandex, and frustration with a side of scalper sauce.
Nicholai
Good wrap up.
I'm glad to see the Murray likeness rights business tied up so I can really get my excitement up for Ghostbusters.
Some good MOTUC announcements though I'll be buying fewer and fewer of them as I fill out my collection of favorite characters.
I like quite a bit of the DCUC shown including the two-packs and five-pack. I'm also interested in the 12 inch Supes/Zod figures as the faces look great and if the bodies are decent I'll pick them up. I'm not old enough to have any nostalgia for Mego figures but they look good and I hope they find their niche.
I was hoping for more BioShock pics from NECA though I wonder if the line will be delayed since BioShock 2 was delayed. I hope the NECA TMNT line does well enough to continue if only for the sake of a friend who is collecting them.
Dead Man Walking
Please, no Minimates.
nerdbot
Re: World's Greatest Superheroes
Nope, I did not see this coming. I have sort of dreamt about it – although the way I imagined it Emce Toys, partnered with Diamond Select, would go to Mattel and/or Hasbro (and DC and/or Marvel) and say "look, you won't sell enough of these to make it worth your while, but just allow us to make them and we'll give you a cut." I didn't think either of the big companies would be involved. (Hell, Hasbro recently tried the Mego-style Signature Series, and it seems to have been a flop.)
As I am old enough to fondly remember Mego, I am really looking forward to these. I hope Mattel doesn't screw it up too badly.
Actually- let's aim higher… I hope it is a huge success for Mattel, which should increase the chances that repro Megos from the Marvel universe will come our way.
PresidentJuggernaut
That's too bad about NECA. Hopefully they get out April, Shredder, and the Foot ninjas. I'd get two ninjas for sure, but probably not the mystic.
Poe
@T: If you look at this photo, you'll see it's a tube that opens up and there's a key inside, and that on top of it is a miniature Castle Grayskull.
Not sure what sort of attachment that would be for Trap Jaw… 😉
T.
Look closely. I'm pretty sure what Scareglow's got there are attachments for Trap-Jaw.
jestergoblin
FINALLY some actual news on TMNT. While unhappy, I completely understand why they're doing it. Though using April as the test seems… odd.
Thanks Poe, you're probably going to get a lot of hits from the Technodrome.com now…
Nik
I'll be sad if there's no Shredder. At least I will pick up April, if only for the Mousers.
Very excited with the GB toys, though I really wish they were at retail. TRU carries every random contemporary video game figure that NECA can put out. I'm sure if Mattel tried, they could get at least one retailer to carry the line based on the Video Games general success. Plus I hate the idea of having to wait so long between characters. Just let me drop the money on them all at once or at least 2 at a time.
Kinda grumbly about the DCU 5 Pack. I wouldn't need that Batman if the Clayface set didn't eff it up. Though it will be nice to get Two-Face can't say I'm a fan of the orange. Catwoman is OK. Luthor and Supes aren't bad, but I wouldn't buy them if they were single packed.