Archfiend
5 3/4 Inch scale
By: Zoloworld
$23.00
Realm of the Underworld’s Wave 2 goes up fro pre-order this Friday and to help count down, we’re going to finish up our reviews of the ROTU first series. Up first we’re looking at one of two skeletons or “Archfiends” as they’re known in the Realm of the Underworld toy line. As I mentioned in my Hercules review, these guys are designed to fit in with all the vintage He-Man knock off lines of the 80′s.
Of course Remco was the main supplier of those types of barbarian lines and Zoloworld have perfectly recreated these concepts with their own twists. One of the most popular and sought after figures, were the Remco skeletons. You could spend hundreds of dollars on those vintage skeletons, or you could snag one of these really nice homage recreations from Zoloworld for a fraction of the price. Getting these classic designs into the fold, is one of the key elements that make Realm of the Underworld such a fun purchase for classic figure collectors.
There’s something about these vintage skeletons that immediately harken back to the late, great Ray Harryhausen’s Jason and the Argonauts stop motion creations. This certainly isn’t lost on the folks behind Realm of the Underworld and I couldn’t help but put a few of the Archfiends into action against Hercules and recreate some of that action. These are just fun toys to mess around with and the Archfiend is no different. But does he hold up as well as the others in the line? Continue reading
Ultimate Captain America
6 Inch Scale
By: Hasbro
$14.99
There are many aspects of collecting that provide difficulties, from beating the dreaded scalper to the aisle, all the way down to having the funds to buy what we want. But the most frustrating of all is actually finding what we’re looking for. I’m a little bit old school in that regard: I could easily do the pre-order thing like most others do, and have for things I know will be hard to get (let’s face it: Florida is a literal swamp where things are hard to find in the toy world). But as far as having an actual reason to get out of the house for something other than work, then I still make the pilgrimage to Toys ‘R’ Us or the nearby big box boys Target and Wal-Mart. It was during such a run that I was finally able to snag an Ultimate Captain America.
If one were to go by the internet community, then Ultimate Cap has been “available” for several months now. I put the word in quotation marks as it appears that those who were able to procure him either ordered him online or somehow found him when Wave 4 of Marvel Legends hit the few stores that actually ordered the series (as of right now, my Target is still sitting at a fresh restock of Wave 1, and only scatterings of Wave 2 have been at my Wal-Mart).
That being said, Ultimate Cap was one of the few figures from the fourth wave of Hasbro’s resurrected Marvel Legends that I really wanted. I haven’t read a Marvel comic in years, so that ticked X-Force Wolverine off my list; I may snag Archangel, but I’ve slowly begun phasing X-Men out of my collection so that’s another low priority. Iron Fist (who is the running change for Protector) makes for some good Bronze Age charm, and even though he’s in his modern outfit it’s a welcome update; I have my eye on Red She-Hulk, and should the running changes happen (we’re still waiting on Wave 2’s changes with Moonstar and Blade, who has finally been announced) I will definitely get the Sentry and She-Hulk updates. Until I find those, I’m pretty good with just Cap. Continue reading
Alright, you like open-ended, broad topics, well here’s another one just for you. This week’s topic for the League of Extraordinary Bloggers is… Why? No, really. WHY?
So the League is back and this time we’re just supposed to talk about why. Why what? That’s up to you to decide. For me, the choice was simple. Why the hell haven’t they made War of the Gargantuas figures yet? Okay to be fair, they HAVE made quite a few different vinyl figures of Sanda and Gaira, but not nearly enough. I almost bought some of the vinyl figures a while back, but that would just make me want real figures even more. I would even settle for a good vinyl. Most of the vinyls that have been made are not very good in being actual representations of the characters. Instead they tend to be those wacky “fun” Japanese vinyl types.
There’s nothing wrong with that, on the surface… But I want something poseable. I want something like a MonsterArts figure! It seems like such a no brainer to make Gargantuas. We got a Revoltech Baragon, so I thought maybe we’d see some Gargantua action, but no dice. Heck they even made the MASER and included mini Gargantuas, but no actual figures followed. What’s up with that?
These two behemoths could reuse a lot of the same sculpt. All you’d need was a new head and some alterations to the chest. That’s easy money! Yet we just haven’t seen it in toy form. I suppose it could be because getting really detailed and poseable versions of classic kaiju is a relatively new thing. But man, War of the Gargantuas, I mean come on!
So why not get on with it?! Somebody needs to make these things. There have been some incredible model kits. Yet when it comes to toys, the selection is so small. Maybe someday I’ll get my Sanda and Gaira… But until then I’m left to wonder, WHY!? Continue reading
New 52 Batgirl
6 Inch Scale
By: Mattel
$15.99
Greetings once again true believers! Your friendly neighborhood Batced back again after a bit of an absence. Hope you, dear readers, have been healthy, wealthy and happy during the interim as I hit you over the head with another figure review.
Inspired by Batman, Barbara Gordon fought Gotham City evildoers as Batgirl. But when the Joker shot her in the spine, she was confined to a wheelchair indefinitely. Determined to walk again, Barbara trained intensely and was able to resume her work as the crime-fighting Batgirl. Although her traumatic memories will not easily fade, she can once again be seen fearlessly swinging over the rooftops of Gotham City as a sign of hope and perseverance.
First and foremost I’d like to dedicate this review to Carmine Infantino, Batgirl’s co-creator and a titanic talent during the Silver Age, along with being a brilliant editor and publisher during the Bronze Age for DC Comics and Marvel, who passed away on April 4. The comics industry is still feeling his influence sixty years later.
At first announcement, I thought DC was going to retcon “The Killing Joke” in order to make Barbara wear the cowl again. The story needs no introduction or much mention of the name; I’m sure the readers of Infinite Hollywood have read the story numerous times by now, its importance nothing to sneeze at. But DC editorial assured that certain things would still be in continuity in the New 52, especially in regards to the Batman universe. Thusly, Barb still felt the Joker’s bullet knock her down. She also still became Oracle, and was a member of Birds of Prey. Since the New 52 relaunch, Batgirl’s solo title has been a pretty moderate seller; the new title’s first trade paperback “The Darkest Reflection” was also a New York Times Bestseller. Not too shabby for a character who hadn’t been in the cowl for twenty years.
As one of the prominent members of the Batman family, Barb has seen several incarnations as a figure under many different corporations. Under the Four Horsemen’s watchful eye for Mattel, we’ve had two previous versions of Barb, one in Silver Age appropriate colors, the other coming from late in the Bronze Age (when she ditched the black bodysuit and dark blue cowl for a gray bodysuit and lighter blue cowl). And now we have one for the New 52 Age (if anyone’s calling it such a thing) courtesy of the new Batman Unlimited series from Mattel. Swing a bat-line with me and we’ll go over its finer points. Continue reading
1. What would Mattel say is the greatest strength of the Masters of the Universe Classics line to date?
The power of our fans!
Editor’s Note: I guess that’s what I get for throwing a softball. To be fair, I guess it IS an accurate answer.
2. Has Mattel shopped around the idea of other MOTUC exclusives to retailers? Obviously the TRU experiment was met with limited success, but since that time has Mattel pitched any new concepts like this to other retailers?
At this time MOTU will remain exclusive to Mattycollector.com. We do not have plans for retail product.
3. Will Aquaman get a singles release in the new Target line? It seems like right now he’s only available in the multi-pack. It seems like he should be available as a single with his trident.
He will not be a part of the 2013 singles assortment. So if you love Aquaman, the multi-pack is the place to get him.
Editor’s Note: NOOOOOO! He’s the only one I really want. I guess I have to wait for that pack to go on clearance.
4. There already seems to be a lot of Superman variants hitting the shelves. What exactly is the strategy behind putting out so many different Superman figures in wacky alternate costumes?
The Man of Steel line celebrates the film and Superman. The various costumes will allow boys and collectors to play out a variety of Superman stories.
Editor’s Note: I just wish they tried a bit harder on these variants. Is it that hard to come up with a really compelling reason for a new Superman suit?
5. Will the old WWE Hardcore title see release anywhere aside from the upcoming Kane exclusive?
Not at this time.
If you have questions you’d like submitted to Mattel (I sent in a few this round from folk’s submissions to be answered next time around), email me or reply here with a question and I’ll try to get it asked. No matter what your question, I will ask it of Mattel. I need some good questions folks.
In honor of the new release of Star Trek: Into Darkness, post something about Star Trek!
This week the League is all about boldy going where no man has gone before. So in celebration of the release of the newest Star Trek movie, I spin a little JJ Abrams magic and mix the Avengers and Star Trek… In MEGOs! Perhaps it’s a nod to the old Twisted Toyfare Theater or Robot Chicken… Or it could be that I have a ton of Re-Mego Star Trek figures with nothing much to do with them. Enjoy…
