Tag Archives: Masters of the Universe

#3691: Casey Jones

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Reviews and tagged with , , , , ,

CASEY JONES — ONE-MAN WEAPONS RACK

TURTLES OF GRAYSKULL (MATTEL)

Toy crossovers are becoming a pretty common thing, and, honestly, when it comes to that sort of thing, TMNT has pretty much always been the king of that sort of thing.  At the very tail end of last year, Mattel launched a crossover between TMNT and their own in-house property, Masters of the Universe, dubbed “Turtles of Grayskull”.  I got the Donatello, of course, because that’s what I do.  The Metalhead/Roboto combo is a Build-A-Figure, so there’s a barrier for entry on that one, but that leaves me with one more TMNT character I always buy: Casey Jones!  So, let’s see how his amalgamation worked out!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Casey Jones is part of the third assortment of Turtles of Grayskull figures.  He and Mikey are the two Turtles characters, and are joined by Teela and Skeletor from the Masters side. The figure stands about 5 1/2 inches tall and he has 26 points of articulation.  Donatello and the other Turtles were making use of a lot of new base parts, but Casey’s actually just using the standard Origins male buck.  It’s a little buff for Casey, I suppose, but it seems like when you travel to Eternia, you just immediately get jacked.  Donnie was specifically patterned on Man-At-Arms as his MOTU-equivalent, but Casey’s “One-Man Weapons Rack” gimmick makes him a bit more his own thing.  He’s pretty decidedly the classic Casey Jones cartoon design, but assembled using MOTU parts.  It’s honestly a pretty cool concept.  He gets a new head and a new overlay for the torso.  The head’s unmasked, and is certainly more in line with Casey’s more modern “pretty boy” interpretations.  It’s also rather unique when compared to the standard Origins heads, giving Casey a lot of character.  The new torso piece pairs up with a re-used Man-At-Arms shin guard to give him his slightly more padded appearance.  He also gets a new facemask and armored glove, patterned on Ram-Man’s headgear and the Jitsu/Fisto hands, respectively.  The glove’s a little tricky, because it feels like it *should* just slide over the hand, but because it’s an open hand, it sits way too far down.  You can remove the hand, of course, but then it feels like it sits a little too high, and it’s never totally secure.  I feel like just having it swap for the standard hand and putting a peg in place to hold it would have been the best solution.  Casey’s color scheme is his classic color lay out, with the saturation pitched up ever so slightly, and a few more metallic colors thrown in for good measure.  The paint work is minimal but generally clean, with the only notable issue on mine being some slop on the white paint for the boots.  Casey gets quite an impressive assortment of extras, with the previously mentioned mask and glove, as well as a MOTU-ified version of his usual sports bag, as well as a hockey stick, warhammer, axe, katana, and staff.  The “bag” clips securely onto the harness, and everything fits well inside it.  There’s even a special spot on the side to clip the hockey stick in place.  Obviously, the hockey stick is the classic armament here, and I love the translucent green, but I also love the warhammer so very, very much.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Donatello was fun, but as I said in that review, I didn’t see myself really jumping into this line.  Metalboto being a Build-A-Figure that I wasn’t given much of a chance to complete seemed to cement that…and then they showed off Casey.  I already have a soft spot for Casey figures, and this one also looked really, really cool.  As it turns out, he *is* really, really cool!

Thanks to my sponsors over at All Time Toys for setting me up with this figure to review.  If you’re looking for cool toys both old and new, please check out their website and their eBay storefront.

#3569: Mekaneck

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Reviews and tagged with , , , ,

MEKANECK

MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE MASTERVERSE (MATTEL)

Fun FiQ Fact #0048:  I’ve reviewed all of the Mekanecks in my collection, which means at this point, all I have to do is review each new one as I add it!

I’ve touched on it here on the site before, but Mekaneck has been my favorite focus in Masters of the Universe since my earliest days with the franchise.  As such, he’s my top want in any given incarnation of the franchise, and I always get excited to see him crop back up.  Classics was perhaps the longest wait for the character to join a given style, but Masterverse took a little while itself.  But he’s finally here, and I’m checking him out!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Mekaneck was released in Series 11 of Masters of the Universe Masterverse.  He’s under the “New Eternia” banner, alongside Tri-Klops.  As with the others in that sub-brand, he’s taking the classic look and putting a few upgrades into place.  In his most basic mode, the figure stands 7 inches tall and he has 33 points of articulation.  The extended neck grants him extra height and movement, of course.  Mekaneck is actually largely new, at least to me, sculpturally.  The old “barbarian” body has been worked out with the Revolution re-launch, and this is an upgraded version.  It’s got harder angles, it’s generally smoother, and the articulation works a touch better.  He’s got an assortment of character-specific parts, which include the head, chest armor, and his left arm bracer.  The head does a nice job of capturing the vintage look, while also giving it just the slightest bit of an updated flair.  The new shaping sits a bit better with the general aesthetic of the line, and it sits much nicer on the head than the Classics version.  The new chest piece is surprising, given that they had already sculpted one for Stinkor, and the two usually share.  I do like the shaping on this one more than the Stinkor version, even if they’re ultimately very similar.  The new bracer piece gives Mekaneck an asymmetrical set-up, mirroring his vintage figure.  It’s got a peg-hole in it, for the purposes of mounting a shield, if you so choose.  Mekaneck’s color work is pretty nicely handled; it leans into metallic shades, which I really dig.  He also gets mirrored lenses for the goggles, fixing one of my biggest issues with the Classics release.  Mekaneck is packed with five segments to his extended neck, his club, two sets of hands, and a shield.  The neck segments can be swapped in and out, allowing both additional posability, and much more modulation to the length of the neck.  Further, the top of the club is now removable, and it’s on the same joint system as the neck, so you can give him an extended club as well.  Or, mount his club in place of his head, I guess.  Dealer’s choice, really.  The hands come in gripping and fists; the back of the box shows a relaxed left hand, but it’s not present in the box.  The shield is a fun piece; the front shows a graphic inspired by the Road Ripper, which Mattel seems to have decided to link to Mekaneck now, if this and the Origins figure are anything to go by.

THE ME REMAINDER OF THE EQUATION

I can’t help but love a good Mekaneck figure.  The Classics Mekaneck was just okay, never really strong.  But, between Origins and this guy, I feel like I’ve gotten some very good Mekanecks.  Honestly, this figure is everything I wanted the Classics figure to be.  He’s just so immensely fun.

Thanks to my sponsors over at All Time Toys for setting me up with this figure to review.  If you’re looking for cool toys both old and new, please check out their website and their eBay storefront.

#3542: Prince Adam

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Reviews and tagged with , , , ,

PRINCE ADAM

MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE (MATTEL)

(Not So) Fun FiQ Fact #0021:  I’m coming into this MotU review with an unfortunately re-ignited frustration towards the Classics era of the line…or at least some of it’s management.  Thankfully, I’m not focusing on that era!  Yay!

My introduction to Masters of the Universe was the 2002 re-launch of the brand, specifically the pilot movie to the cartoon, which aired during Cartoon Network’s Cartoon Theatre.  I really loved it, and got a basic He-Man from the tie-in line almost immediately.  The line was notoriously hard to find, though, so follow-ups to He-Man were on the trickier side.  But, even during the original run, I did manage to snag He-Man’s alter ego Prince Adam, who in this incarnation was actually convincingly a different guy.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Prince Adam was released in the third main assortment of the rebooted Masters of the Universe line from 2002.  The figure stands a little under 6 inches tall and he has 12 points of articulation.  He was notably smaller than the rest of the Heroic Warriors, accurately depicting the smaller stature Adam had in the cartoon.  His articulation matched the rest of the line; it’s hardly super-posable, but it was an improvement on the vintage line, which was cool at the time.  Adam’s sculpt was, like the rest of the line, handled by Four Horsemen Studios.  Honestly, it’s one of my favorites from the line, just because it was different from everything else.  It takes the core elements of the vintage Adam design, and translates them into something more in-line with the updated aesthetics of the line.  There’s plenty of detail work, and it’s a pretty nice example of subtlety from the line.  Adam’s paint work is decently handled.  It’s largely on the basic side, but the application is clean.  He could definitely benefit from some additional accenting, but that was really true of this whole line.  Adam was packed with the “powered-down” version of the Power Sword, as well as a scepter thing, which originally included a missile launcher-style case, but I’ve lost that.

THE ME REMAINDER OF THE EQUATION

My dad had driven me around to a few stores when I was looking for a basic He-Man, and from that point on, he kept a pretty close eye on the line’s other releases.  This one in particular he kept an eye out for, because it had all the markings of a particularly tricky to get release, and he wound up finding me one in a much shorter fashion than I think either of us expected.  He’s basic, and kind of just a statue, but still definitely my favorite version of Adam.

#3537: Orko

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Reviews and tagged with , , , , ,

ORKO

MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE CLASSICS (MATTEL)

Fun FiQ Fact #0016:  Orko’s original name was “Gorpo,” but having a “G” on the front of his robe would have made it difficult for Filmation’s animators to easily flip his animation cels from shot to shot, so his name was changed.

I was very hot and cold with Masters of the Universe Classics.  I definitely fell into some of its hype (it was hard not to at the time, especially given how into DC Universe Classics I was), but it was also not a line that was particularly easy to get into without paying an arm and a leg.  Even within my usual rule of only certain characters it was tricky, just based on the weird ways things wound up released.  I did wind up getting *most* of the figures I really wanted, though, which included the goofy comic relief sidekick, Orko!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Orko was the 2010 San Diego Comic Con exclusive for the Masters of the Universe Classics line.  There were two versions: an attendee version, and an online version.  The one here is the online version, which was the more standardized of the two, as the attendee version had a heat-activated invisibility feature.  The figure stands just shy of 3 inches tall and he has 13 points of articulation.  This figure was a big deal at the time for being the first Orko properly scaled to the line he accompanied; the vintage figure was much too large, and the 200x was still a touch out of scale.  Also, while his articulation wasn’t top-notch or anything, he’s surprisingly mobile for an Orko, and even at this point, he’s only rivaled by the Origins figure.  This one got an all-new sculpt (a rarity for the line), which is clearly modeled on his Filmation incarnation.  It’s clean and well-rendered, and very certainly looks the part.  His color work was a mix of paint and molded.  The colors are a good match for his usual look, but the paint is notably a little on the sloppier side, especially when it comes to his ears.  Orko was packed with his staff and book, as well as the flight stand used by Triclops’ seers, allowing him to float.  Well, more fly; it’s honestly a little too tall, given Orko tended to float closer to the ground.  Still, as the one bit of re-use, it’s alright.  Orko also included one more, rather substantial accessory: a full Prince Adam figure.  Yep, despite being a full-scale Classics figure, Adam is treated as an accessory in every way, not getting proper billing on the package (though there’s a bubble that denotes his inclusion off to the side of Orko’s name), and even packaged laying down below the cardstock name tag for Orko.  If you don’t know he’s there, it’s possible to miss him.  Why exactly Mattel opted to do him this way is anyone’s guess, but they did some odd stuff at the time, so I’m not gonna try and delve into that myself.  Adam was built on the standard barbarian body (with the matching wrist bracers), so he stands about 7 inches tall and has 23 points of articulation.  He got a new head (with a real Mona Lisa smile situation going on for the expression), as well as a new vest piece.  He also got accessories of his own, in the form of both molds for the power sword (full and split) in the proper magenta color, and an alternate head borrowed from the standard He-Man.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I didn’t much care for Orko being an exclusive, and I didn’t have any luck getting him from Matty Collector directly either.  What *did* happen, however, is that I somehow managed to find a sealed one on eBay for a surprisingly low price.  I really only bought it for Orko, and him I do genuinely love.  Since I’m a 200x fan at heart, a classic Adam is something I could take or leave.  And, in fact, I took him and I left him…which is to say, I sold him when he was going for a rather insane aftermarket price, completely offsetting what I put into the set, because why not.  I got the pictures, though, so think of his presence in the review as being like that one last movie an actor filmed before they died, I guess.  Or maybe something less morbid?  I don’t know, do what makes you happiest.  I certainly did, which is why I just have the Orko and not the Prince Adam.

#3532: Mekaneck

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Reviews and tagged with , , , ,

MEKANECK

MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE CLASSICS (MATTEL)

Fun FiQ Fact #0011: Despite not being one of the franchise’s central characters, Mekaneck has been included in most incarnations of the Masters of the Universe toyline.

For reasons I’ve never been able to fully explain, Mekaneck has been my favorite part of Masters of the Universe since my very first interactions with the franchise. I got into things with the 200x re-launch, and even before that line’s Mekaneck got to retail, I had already tracked down a vintage figure, because I just really wanted the character that badly. For Masters of the Universe Classics, it was the potential inclusion of Mekaneck that finally got me interested in the line, after hemming and hawing on it for a couple of years. I just really like that long-necked guy, I’m pretty much every form. Even when that form requires braving Matty Collector on a day of sale…but it’s okay, because that’s way in the past now, and all I’ve got is the figure, which is far more pleasant a thing. Let’s check him out now!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Mekaneck was released as part of the 2012 line-up for Masters of the Universe Classics, which ran during the line’s fourth year. He was the monthly figure for September of that year. Much like with the later Origins release, Mekaneck was the last 1984 character to join Classics. The figure stands 7 inches tall and he has 23 points of articulation. His sculpt was a lot of re-use. He has the line’s standard barbarian body, with the modified left arm for the symmetrical bracers set-up. Technically, that breaks from his vintage design, but animation tended to go for matching, and Mattel seems to want to reserve the larger bracer for He-Man proper most of the time. Since the Classics version of Stinkor was released before Mekaneck, this figure re-used the chest armor piece, albeit with the peg at the top of the plate glued in place this time, since Mekaneck had no alternate piece to swap out. The one new piece for this release was the head. It was a two piece assembly, with the helmet being separate. The helmet seems to sit a bit high, meaning the goggles don’t line up with where his eyes should be. It was brought up at the time that Mekaneck more than likely had some sort of cybernetic enhancements that make the lenses on the helmet something more than goggles, so they wouldn’t strictly *have* to line up with his actual eyes. It’s a reasonable explanation, but it doesn’t change the fact that literally every other Mekaneck figures has the goggles sitting where they should, and that Classics had a history of figures where molded parts weren’t fitted together properly during production. It was hardly the end of the world, but it was annoying. Mekaneck came from an era of the line where figures were almost entirely painted, allowing the main parts to be batch molded in black plastic. It caused issues for certain figures, but luckily Mekaneck wound up with a pretty good set-up. The only real issue is the lenses of the goggles, which are the same flat silver as the other accents on the helmet. The vintage figure hand mirrored lenses, and the 200x version had green ones. Either would have been nice, but the flat color makes it hard to distinguish any difference in the sculpted elements. Mekaneck was packed with his club, as well as two neck extensions of differing lengths. Technically, the necks can stack for one extra long neck, but the presence of a blue collar at both bases means that it looks a touch odd.

THE ME REMAINDER OF THE EQUATION

Obviously, there was no way I was gonna miss this guy, so I had to deal with that fateful day-of sale on Matty Collector, which I honestly recall not being super stressful.  Yay, fun bonus!  After quite a wait for him, I recall being a little bit underwhelmed when he finally made it out.  I bounced back pretty quickly, since I was really just happy to have him, and having him as part of a larger collection of Mekanecks has taken some of the pressure off of him.  He’s not as strong as the later Origins release, and I don’t have the same nostalgia for him as the vintage or 200x releases, but he’s at least a reminder of my time with Classics, for better or for worse.

#3527: Orko

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Reviews and tagged with , , , ,

ORKO

MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE REACTION FIGURES (SUPER 7)

Fun FiQ Fact #0006: In both the original ’80s Filmation Masters of the Universe and the 2002 re-boot, Orko and Mekaneck share a voice actor, Filmation founder Lou Scheimer in the ’80s and Gabe Khouth in the ’00s.

I’m not a hardcore Masters of the Universe fan by any means, but I’ve got a shortlist of three characters that I like to have in every possible style.  Number three on that list is He-Man’s plucky comic relief sidekick Orko, who I’ve had a soft spot for since I was rather young.  Yes, kid me saw the appeal of the kid-appeal character.  I was an easy target.  Super 7’s ReAction line is an ill-explored one in my collection, but I did get the Mekaneck back when he first hit, but I passed on Orko at the time, and he sold out.  He has eluded me for a bit, but no figure escapes me forever.  Oh, no.  I’m like a mounty: I always get my man.  Or…you know, action figure.  I’m like an action figure mounty.  Sure, let’s go with that.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Orko was part of Series 2 of the Masters of the Universe ReAction Figures, which is interestingly enough, the same one that had Mekaneck.  The figure stands 2 1/2 inches tall and he has 5 points of articulation.  Orko doesn’t tend to get the same articulation as the rest of the characters, but this one actually gets the same set-up as everyone else, giving him some of the best mobility of any Orko figure.  He actually has “legs” to move, which is unique to this particular Orko.  As per usual for the character, Orko gets a unique sculpt.  It captures the style of the line nicely, and also requires less adjustments to his character design than some of the others.  His arms are a little longer, but not by much, and overall, he gets all the important details you need to sell Orko’s look.  Orko’s color work is his usual set-up; the paint work is a little spotty on the ears (a classic issue with Orko figures), but otherwise it’s pretty clean.  Orko is packed with his wand, which for this release is just a simple yellow cylinder, rather than anything more ornate.

THE ME REMAINDER OF THE EQUATION

Since I missed out on grabbing Orko from All Time back when he was new, I’ve been waiting for one to come through, and one did indeed, just last week, in fact.  I’ve been stepping back my pick-ups recently, but he was worthy enough to bring home.  He’s a fun little version of the character.  Plus, he gave me an excuse to introduce my daughter to Orko, which is always a fun time!

Thanks to my sponsors over at All Time Toys for setting me up with this figure to review.  If you’re looking for cool toys both old and new, please check out their website and their eBay storefront.

#3525: Donatello – Heroic Turtle-At-Arms

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Reviews and tagged with , , , , , ,

DONATELLO — HEROIC TURTLE-AT-ARMS

TURTLES OF GRAYSKULL (MATTEL)

Fun FiQ Fact #0004: The vintage Masters of the Universe and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles toylines shared a designer, Mark Taylor, who designed key portions of both lines.

I’m neither the world’s biggest Masters of the Universe fan nor the biggest TMNT fan, so you may be wondering what’s the deal with me reviewing a crossover figure from the two lines. Okay, you’re probably not, because I’m actually pretty transparent on some things, and one of them is that I like Donatello action figures. Where there are cool new Donnies, I tend to follow. Also, I do like me a nifty crossover. So, behold Man-At-Arms Donatello!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Donatello is part of the first standard assortment of Mattel’s Turtles of Grayskull line, alongside Leo, Man-At-Arms, and Mutated He-Man. The figure stands about 4 1/2 inches tall and he has 24 points of articulation. In terms of construction, these figures are very similar to Mattel’s own Origins line, which makes a degree of sense, since it allows the Turtles to fit right in with the established MotU characters, as showcased in the included minicomic. The design brings his build more in line with the typical Masters look, so he’s a little more roided out than usual, and gets less of that typical Turtle physique. This is presumably to keep cross-compatibility between all of the figures in the line. Donnie gets his own Man-At-Arms inspired armor, which is pretty fun. I especially dig how the back shell can turn into a separate shield piece. Donnie’s color work keeps with his usual palette, but there’s clearly more purple, since that’s the main basis for the armor. I like it; it makes him stand out nicely. Donnie is packed with the 7 pieces of removable armor, plus a staff-version of the Man-At-Arms mace, and a minicomic explaining the background of the crossover. Of particular note, it features Roboto in his minicomic colors, which makes me very happy.

THE ME REMAINDER OF THE EQUATION

This whole endeavor is Max’s fault. He let me know about this crossover’s existence, and he made darn sure I got one of these, with this particular one landing in my hands just days before Christmas. He really likes to look out for me. I don’t feel the need to go in-depth for this line (but I certainly wouldn’t say no to a Roboto/Metalhead crossover), but this one figure is definitely worth it.

#3488: Clamp Champ

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Reviews and tagged with , , , ,

CLAMP CHAMP

MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE MASTERVERSE (MATTEL)

When Clamp Champ was introduced into the Masters of the Universe toyline in 1987, the brand was winding down.  ’87 was the last year of the vintage run, and the cartoon had wrapped up, leaving poor Clamp Champ with only a few comic appearances, and a rather rare vintage figure.  He was set to join the cast of the 200x show, but it was also cancelled before his inclusion, and in that case he didn’t even get a proper figure, just a “staction” from NECA.  So, it was certainly exciting when good ol’ Raenius finally made his animated debut in Revelation.  It wasn’t a huge role, or anything, but he got to be cool for a bit, and he also managed to net another figure out of the whole deal.  Dope!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Clamp Champ was released in Series 10 of Mattel’s Masters of the Universe Masterverse line.  He’s officially under the Revelation banner, but his design on the show means that he can also double as a classic Clamp Champ update.  The figure stands a little over 7 inches tall and he has 31 points of articulation.  Clamp Champ is based on the standard male body, which is pretty much expected for the character.  This far into the line, it’s pretty by the numbers.  The hips seem to have lost the weird sticking they had early on, and everything else works pretty well.  Clamp Champ gets an all-new head sculpt, which matches up pretty nicely to his Revelation animation model.  He’s not quite as battle-hardened as his Classics counterpart, but looks a bit less green than his vintage and Origins releases.  I didn’t care for it in the prototype shots, but in-hand, it turned out very well.  While Clamp Champ typically shares his chest armor with Fisto, that’s not the case this time around; though the two certainly have similar design elements, Champ’s armor is a touch more fitted and ornate, giving him a slightly more unique feel.  Clamp Champ’s color work is pretty solid.  He keeps his classic colors, but gets a little bit of a modernized edge, with his armor all getting a metallic finish.  There’s also some pretty solid accent work on the face, the loincloth, and the boots, which adds some more depth and dimension.  Clamp Champ is packed with two sets of hands (fists and gripping), as well as his signature Techno Clamp.  The clamp is a bit changed up from prior releases; now it’s a two piece assembly, which surrounds the whole forearm, in contrast to the usual hand-held affair.  The actual styling of the clamps is a little different as well.  It doesn’t do the spring forward capture gimmick, instead just being a more conventional springy clamp.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I’ve had a soft spot for Clamp Champ for a while, despite not actually owning any of his figures until the Origins release.  Since I *had* the Origins figure, I didn’t necessarily think I needed to grab this one.  Then I saw him in person, and I had a very hard time passing him up.  I really like how this one turned out. Even after getting the Origins figure, I still felt like I was missing out on the Classics figure I never got, but this guy makes me feel like I don’t even need that one at all.

Thanks to my sponsors over at All Time Toys for setting me up with this figure to review.  If you’re looking for cool toys both old and new, please check out their website and their eBay storefront.

#3463: Roboto – Minicomic

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Reviews and tagged with , , , ,

ROBOTO — MINICOMIC

MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE ORIGINS (MATTEL)

Something I’ve discussed a lot in my more recent Masters of the Universe reviews is how I avoid getting *too* sucked into Masters lines by sticking to a few select characters and not expanding much beyond that.  It tends to lock me in at one version of a given character per style.  Sometimes, however, it backfires on me just a little bit, when Mattel does exactly what they’ve done here and goes for an easy repaint.  And then I’m over here buying yet another Roboto.  Worse things have happened, right?

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Roboto was released as part of Wave 12 of Mattel’s Masters of the Universe Origins line, which started showing up towards the end of the summer.  The line’s been a little out of sequence, so they actually wound up hitting *after* 13, and with a pretty last minute announcement at that.  Whatever the case, we got a new Roboto, and that’s what really matters.  This one is specifically patterned on his early minicomic appearances, which has been a running trend of variants for the line.  The figure stands 5 1/2 inches tall and he has 22 points of articulation, in addition to the moving jaw piece.  Roboto is a total parts re-use from the standard colored version, which isn’t even the slightest bit surprising.  That’s been the mincomic set-up for the most part, and Roboto’s look is pretty much just a palette swap anyway.  It’s still a very strong sculpt, and I like it a lot, so I certainly don’t mind seeing it again.  The main change-up here, of course, is the color scheme, which shifts him to the colors seen in “The Battle of Roboto,” and other minicomics from the vintage run.  His limbs are now orange, rather than blue and red, and, most importantly, he’s got the heart on his chest, which in the comics was the thing responsible for Roboto’s human emotions.  It’s so hokey, but I love it so much, so I’m very glad it’s there.  Just like his first release, Roboto includes his three arm attachments: blaster, axe, and claw.  He’s also still got the standard action feature; turning the torso moves the gears in the chest and moves his jaw up and down.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Roboto is an interesting break from how I was introduced to a good portion of MOTU.  I know most of it because of the 200x series, but in Roboto’s case, my first exposure to the character was in “The Battle of Roboto,” which came with my vintage Orko that I picked up at a toy show in the early ’00s.  I loved that take on the character, and it’s informed my love of the character in general since.  I honestly didn’t expect this figure, but I was genuinely very excited by its announcement and arrival.  He’s not terribly different from the last one, of course, but I love the small little touches.

Thanks to my sponsors over at All Time Toys for setting me up with this figure to review.  If you’re looking for cool toys both old and new, please check out their website and their eBay storefront.

#3424: He-Man – Movie

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Reviews and tagged with , , ,

HE-MAN — MOVIE

MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE MASTERVERSE (MATTEL)

Masters of the Universe was quite a powerhouse property in the early to mid ’80s, and it’s owners Mattel had seen great success not just with the toys, but also in the realm of comics and TV. With that in mind, they set their sights on a theatrical film, and said film materialized in 1987…to mixed results. By ’87, public interest had started to move past MotU, and the film itself was held back by its changes to the source material, largely the result of its rather small budget. In the years since, it’s gotten quite a cult following, however, and, aided by a resurgence of interest in the franchise as a whole, it’s even managed to get a little bit of toy coverage, too, including a pair of Masterverse figures, the first of which I’m taking a look at today! Let’s take a look at He-Man!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

He-Man is a deluxe sized offering from the Masters of the Universe: Masterverse line, the first of the two movie-based deluxe figures (the other being Skeletor). The figure stands about 7 inches tall and he has 31 points of articulation. He’s using the line’s standard male body, which works well enough. Though some of the people at Mattel during the film’s production apparently found Dolph Lundgren, who was a body builder who could snap most normal men in two mind you, too scrawny for the role, the standards of build for He-Man have changed enough that the line’s standard build actually matches up pretty well. He gets two new heads, new upper arms, and shins, as well as overlays for his harness, belt, and wrist guard, and a soft goods cape. The first head is the actual “movie inspired” one, though that largely just amounts to the styling of his hair, as they didn’t actually get Lundgren’s likeness rights. He doesn’t look *unlike* Lundgren, I suppose, but his face does seem a little wide. His alternate head is a more house style He-Man, which looks odd to me, but I guess there’s an appeal to it. The heads are really difficult to swap, though, to the point where I was worried I was going to break the neck peg when going back and forth. The rest of the new parts capture his film look pretty well, and I quite like how the cape gets printed detailing on the outside. He-Man’s color work is decent enough. Definitely the armor and hair get the best work, since there’s some solid accenting in play there. He’s packed with his power sword, two different knives, a pistol, and two sets of hands. I really like that he’s actually got storage for all the weapons, but I’m less enthusiastic about the fact that the paint is already chipping on the sword handle, and also that none of his hands can properly hold the pistol.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I was late to the game on the Masters movie, and didn’t actually see it until I was in college about a decade ago. After years of hearing how bad it was, I was pleasantly surprised, and it’s become one I’ve returned to a good number of times. I really wanted to grab Super 7’s Movie He-Man when he hit, but missed out and always regretted it, so I was glad to get another chance with this one. I actually got this one as a Father’s Day gift from my son Matthew, who was committed to keeping last year’s theme of Masterverse going. He’s not a perfect figure, but he’s fun, and I’m very glad to have him.