Tag Archives: Masterverse

#3864: Roboto

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

ROBOTO

MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE: MASTERVERSE (MATTEL)

Okay, so it’s worth noting that I *have* reviewed something Masters of the Universe-related this calendar year, but its also been since all the way back in January, which is something of a gap.  It sort of happens with Masters, due to my more selective collecting.  On my short list of characters I pretty much always buy in any given style is today’s focus, Roboto.  He was added to the Masterverse line-up in 2023, while they were still pretty heavily leaning into Revelation style figures, so that was his focus.  Despite that being a generally classic take on him, he’s never the less gotten a revisit, aiming more at specificially updating the original figure, which I’m looking at today.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Roboto is part of Series 16 of Mattel’s Masters of the Universe Masterverse line.  He’s under the “New Eternia” banner, which serves to update the classic designs more directly, and also offer up some optional “improvements.”  The figure stands 7 1/4 inches tall and he has 32 points of articulation.  Like most modern Robotos, he lacks mid-torso movement, and this time around the swappable hands are worked into the standard wrist peg system, rather than adding an additional cut joint.  The mouth plate is movable, but not quite to the extent of the Revelation version, so it doesn’t really feel much like practical articulation in that sense.  Despite both being based on the original Roboto design and sharing a number of common design elements, there are not parts shared between the two Masterverse Robotos.  It’s not terribly surprising, given there’s just generally been very little crossover between the two themes.  He does, however, share his legs with the New Eternia Trap Jaw, continuing the trend of that particular re-use.  Though totally new sculpts, they’re using the same general set-up as the Revelation ones, complete with the same slightly odd layout of the kneepads relative to the articulation.  From the mid-section up, he’s an all-new sculpt.  It takes the broad strokes designs of the vintage figure and sort of does its own sort of thing with them.  He’s a bit more rounded, especially on the torso and head designs, and there are more intricate elements worked into things.  The head is more involved than we tend to see, using a three-piece assembly.  He’s got the usual mouth guard, as well as a “helmet” piece, both of which can be removed to reveal a robotic skull underneath.  The torso brings back the gear turning action feature we frequently see with this guy, which is a lot of fun.  The color work on this figure is in keeping with the generally metallic leanings of the more recent New Eternia figures, which I do rather like.  The helmet is totally clear, which makes for an iffy look in the photos, but looks really, really nice in person.  Roboto is packed with an alternate take on his mouth guard, a standard right hand, and axe, blaster, and claw attachments, which pretty much cover all of the basics.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

After getting the Revelation Roboto, I didn’t really feel like I *needed* another version.  But, a Roboto’s a Roboto, so it’s not like I was really going to balk at buying a new one.  The pictures on this one were sort of iffy at first, so I wasn’t sure how much I’d like it, but in person he looked really good, and I have to say, he turned out really nice.  Personally, I think I still lean a bit towards the Revelation figure, but it’s cool to see a different approach to the same general design, and there’s a lot of really fun elements to this figure’s implementation.

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.

#3773: Orko & Gwildor

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

ORKO & GWILDOR

MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE: MASTERVERSE (MATTEL)

Looking back on my reviews, I haven’t just done a straight Masters of the Universe review in a fair bit.  I looked at some of the TMNT crossover figures, but I stuck to the Turtles characters, so, you know, it’s not really there.  It’s been since all the way back in March.  It was at least a Mekaneck, so that’s a good leave-off.  As always, I do tend to gravitate to a specific selection of characters in any given style.  One such character is Orko.  I’ve *technically* already got him in the Masterverse set-up, but the first one was more of an accessory than a figure himself.  But now there’s a new one, and he’s even bringing a Gwildor along for the fun!

THE FIGURES THEMSELVES

Orko and Gwildor were released last year in the Masterverse line-up as an Amazon exclusive, though that information didn’t seem particularly well advertised….which might have contributed to the deep discounting of the set.  The pair are both based on their appearances together in Revolution.

ORKO

Hey, it’s Orko the Unnamed Power-Up!  His lack of subtitle here certainly frustrated his actor Griffin Newman, if his Dad-At-Arms interview is anything to go by (also, I really do recommend that interview if you’ve got the time; it’s quite entertaining and Newman is incredibly insightful about his character).  Maybe he’s Orko the Great?  I like that.  Seems solid.  We already got the weakened Orko from Revelation, which was okay, but not great.  This one’s more put together, in terms of both design and final product.  The figure’s about 3 inches tall and he has 9 points of articulation.  He’s decently posable for an Orko, and I certainly appreciate that he’s at least got elbow movement, something the last one was lacking.  The neck joint is a lot tighter this time as well, so no bobble-head Orko.  The sculpt’s a nice offering.  It’s clean and show accurate, with a good flow to the robes.  The paint work’s a little iffier on this guy.  Some of it’s pretty clean, but his notably got a lot of slop on the gold trim, especially on the hat, where it’s quite uneven.  He does get a nice selection of accessories.  He’s got a pretty sizable stand, with a larger magic effect that surrounds him, as well as a long flowing train for the robe, and two smaller magic effects to go over the hands.  It makes for a nice display, but I do sort of wish there was a smaller option on the stand.  I suppose you could always steal it from the prior one.

GWILDOR

After being sort of a shoddy replacement for Orko in the live action movie, Revolution does a pretty neat and compelling turn at weaving Gwildor into the main lore, and in fact giving him some fun interplay with Orko, making his replacement somewhat of a meta joke.  The figure stands about 4 inches tall and he has 24 points of articulation.  Gwildor’s a more conventional figure for the line, just a bit shorter than usual.  The articulation works more or less the same.  Some of them are a little more limited on range, but honestly, he’s not bad considering.  The only real issue for me is the elbows.  The sculpt’s pretty decent.  There’s more going on with it than Orko, with a lot more texturing and layering.  It makes for a contrast.  The sculpt is definitely more of an animated twinge, as expected given the source, but also he should work okay with the movie He-Man too.  His color work is rather on the bright side, again matching the animation.  In general, the application is cleaner than Orko’s, which is a plus.  Gwildor is packed with the Cosmic Key, which is solid, but also does feel maybe a touch light.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I was all prepped to buy this set, but then they were an exclusive, and it wasn’t initially clear where, and then I didn’t wind up tracking them down after the fact.  It ended up working in my favor, because I was able to catch them on a particularly good discount.  And yes, that makes me part of the problem, and I am sorry about that.  I would not that it came in an exceptionally jacked up box, but the figures inside were fine, and given the price, I can’t really complain much.  Orko was my main reason in getting this set, but I also didn’t mind having a Gwildor, since I’m one of those people that actually kind of likes the live action movie.  Both of them are pretty solid, and I’m glad I finally managed to snag them.

#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.

#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.

#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.

#3314: Faker

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

FAKER

MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE MASTERVERSE (MATTEL)

“Of all the deadly minions at Skeletor’s disposal, Faker’s mastery of deception and destruction makes him among the most dangerous.  The cybernetic doppelgänger of He-Man takes on the appearance of Eternia’s most powerful protector, fooling many heroes, including the Sorceress of Greyskull herself.  By the time the heroes discover Faker’s true nature, it may be too late.”

You gotta have the evil clone, right?  It’s, like, a staple of crazy, action-oriented fiction.  Even more so if there are toys involved.  I mean, it’s an easy repaint.  That’s the whole basis of today’s focus, Faker, who, as the above bio outlines fairly thoroughly, is a robotic duplicate of He-Man.  Faker’s been a fixture of the Masters of the Universe toy lines, though not so much the other media associated.  The cartoons have all featured a duplicate of some sort of He-Man, but it wasn’t until Revelation that one was officially dubbed “Faker”, thereby tying toy and show together fully.  So, Masterverse got to be the very first show accurate Faker figure.  Noice.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Faker is a deluxe offering for the Masters of the Universe: Masterverse line.  He was the second deluxe offering, and began as a Target exclusive (though he wasn’t officially billed as such), before moving to a wider release.  The figure stands a little over 7 inches tall and he has 31 points of articulation.  His movement is more or less the same as the standard He-Man, though he doesn’t seem to have the same issue with the sticky hips, at least on my copy.  The sculpt shares a lot of its parts with the standard He-Man, as expected, although it’s actually a lot less parts than you might expect, given how Faker’s previous figures haven’t gotten any new parts in the past.  To properly differentiate him from standard He-Man, Faker is based on his look after his deception is revealed by the Sorceress, so he’s got a lot of his robotic parts revealed.  As such, he only actually shares the lower half of his body, plus his hands, bracers, and chest harness with He-Man.  All of the other parts are adjusted to feature the skin pealing back, which is actually pretty impressively handled.  What remains of the skin is consistent with regular He-Man, and the whole look adds a bit of menace to him.  His paint work is again pretty consistent with the standard He-Man, adjusting of course for the parts with the exposed silver.  He’s also got a slightly more metallic finish to the gold parts of his armor, and his eyes have red irises, so he’s got that proper “evil” feel.  Faker’s standard head has a split face, with have robot and half He-Man, but he also gets two extras, which go the opposite directions, so there’s the standard He-Man head (with the adjusted red irises), and a fully-revealed robot head.  He also gets the two sets of hands that He-Man had, as well as a tweaked Power Sword with Faker’s usual orange coloring, and Skeletor’s chest harness, also in orange, so that you can do a bit of a classic Faker throwback.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Faker’s been sitting on my shelf waiting to be reviewed for a very long stretch of time.  I wound up grabbing him when Target put him on sale back at the end of 2021.  He was cheap enough that I felt it was worth it, but I just kind of kept forgetting to review him, for one reason or another.  He’s honestly a pretty fun figure.  Not a classic Faker, but a fun refresh on the concept.  I’d love to see a more straight update of his classic design as well, but I can definitely dig trying something new, especially when it turns out as well as this.

#3293: Roboto

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

ROBOTO

MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE: MASTERVERSE (MATTEL)

My Masters of the Universe reviews around here are getting further and further between, I’ll admit.  Part of that is because I’m trying to really stick to my guns on only buying specific characters from each line.  I have three characters that are a lock for any Masters line I’m picking up: Mekaneck, Orko, and Roboto.  The irony of this is that, up til now, Masterverse, the line I’ve been focussing the most on, has only actually had one of those three, Orko, and he was only as a pack-in at that.  Thankfully, there’s been at least one change on that front, as Roboto has officially been added to the Masterverse line!  Let’s see how he turned out!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Roboto is part of Series 7 of the Masterverse line, alongside Sorceress Evil-Lyn, Stratos, and Frosta.  Roboto falls under the line’s Revelation banner, being specifically based on his appearance in the show.  His very awesome appearance in the show, where he’s the best part.  It was really cool, you guys.  You should check it out.  In Roboto’s case, it means he’s still a pretty classically-inspired version of the character, so he doubles as an update to his original figure, if that’s more your speed.  The figure stands just shy of 7 1/2 inches tall and he has 32 points of articulation (which includes his moving mouthplate).  Roboto’s articulation is largely pretty similar to the others in the line, though he gains an extra swivel at the top of his right forearm, and lacks the usual mid-torso joint, due to the nature of his design.  On my figure, both of the arms had one half of the double elbow stuck right out of the box, so sticking joints is still a recurring issue for the line.  At least the hips aren’t as bad on this guy.  Roboto’s construction is a mix of old and new.  He’s re-using the legs and feet from Trapjaw; the two of them have shared legs going back to the vintage line, and its consistent with their respective designs in Revelation, so the re-use is a sensible one.  I’m still a little iffy on how the articulation works respective to the kneepads on the boots, but it does bug me less on this release than it did on Trapjaw.  The rest of his sculpt is an all-new, and it’s honestly my favorite to come out of Masterverse so far.  It’s very clean, very sleek, and very sharp.  It matches up nicely with his animated design, while still melding well with the established look of the rest of the line.  In particular, I really like the internal structure on the torso.  Roboto’s color work is generally pretty solid.  The paint application is nice and clean, and I dig the mix of metallic and flat colors.  As always, that clear torso’s a lot of fun, and works well with all the sculpted elements inside.  Roboto is packed with two different styles of blaster attachments to swap out for the right hand, as well as the two halves of the Power Sword, this time in a translucent orange, as if he’s fusing them.  The only thing notably missing is his poncho, which does bum me ever so slightly, but I guess it’s an okay omission.  He’s got the needed sculpted attachments, and that’s what really counts.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Roboto was my absolute favorite part of Revelation, and I’ve been eagerly awaiting his addition to the line ever since the show dropped.  It sure did feel like they were dragging their feet, but he’s finally here.  I really dig this figure.  Lack of poncho aside, he does everything he needs to, and he’s by far my favorite figure from the line thus far.  Just a real standout, all things considered, and one that’s going to be very hard to top.

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

#3227: Zodac

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

ZODAC

MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE: MASTERVERSE (MATTEL)

“Few are more powerful than the omnipotent master of the cosmos, Zodac.  As the keeper of the neutral balance between good and evil, the Cosmic Enforcer’s universal travels return him to Eternia – home of Castle Greyskull, the Nexus of Realities, and the center of the multiverse.  For a threat to the cosmic balance can come from anywhere at any time.”

While I *did* take a look at something Masters of the Universe related within the last month, it’s been four months since I really looked at anything new from the franchise.  It has a tendency to happen, especially when there are such gaps between the characters I actually want.  Look, this Mekaneck-erasure will not stand, you guys.  It’s driving me a little batty.  Making me but more figures of the *other* guy in a goody red helmet.  So, um, here’s another version of Zodac, I suppose.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Zodac is part of Series 5 of the Masterverse line, and he’s part of the “New Eternia” sub-branding for the line.  Thus far, New Eternia seems to be a way of doing classic versions of the characters, but with some optional updates to their looks, something that Zodac sticks to pretty closely.  The figure stands 7 inches tall and he has 32 points of articulation.  Zodac’s sculpt uses the basic male body as a starting point, as well as re-using the forearms from Barbarian Skeletor, and the feet from standard Skeletor.  He also gets a new head, upper torso, shins, pelvis, and an add-on for his armor.  The new parts are all pretty respectable recreations of that classic Zodac look.  The head’s certainly consistent with the way the classic version of the character tends to be depicted, to the point that I felt the need to double check that he wasn’t sharing his head with the Origins.  The two pieces are distinctly different, though.  The new upper torso replicates the vintage figure’s use of Beast Man’s torso, though in a far less bulky and less hairy way than the Masterverse Beast Men did.  His armored up pieces are generally consistent with his classic design, but he does get a little bit of updating, with his loincloth piece getting a fancier tabard sort of thing at the front, and his chest armor getting some shoulder pads.  It keeps his general look, while also cleaning him up just a little bit.  He also gets a holster piece, which adds a bit more practicality to him.  The look is cool, but I did find some functionality issues with how they interact.  The shoulder pads attach via clips on the back, which work fine, but they’re also meant for weapon storage, so you ultimately have to choose between them.  The holster attaches via one of the chest armor straps, which means that posing pulls the strap loose if you’re not careful.  Rather minor issues, though.  Zodac’s color work sticks to the classic set-up, with red, grey, and white.  It’s largely molded plastic coloring, but there’s some paint work on the head and torso armor.  It works out pretty well, and the application’s all pretty slick and clean.  Zodac is packed with two sets of hands, his weird sci-fi gun, as well as a staff piece, which can be split in two for storage.  Unfortunately, my figure was missing half of his staff, but Max was kind enough to loan me his for the review photos.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

So, it would seem I’ve apparently added Zodac to the list of Masters characters I’m buying in every style.  I didn’t really see that happening.  Certainly not with Zodac with a “c”.  Zodak with a “k”, perhaps.  But Zodac?  Well, I guess I have a soft spot for this goofy space guy.  This figure’s a pretty fun one.  I like the classic design with just those very slight updates.  The figure’s got a few little minor flaws, but he’s very fun, and I like that a lot.  Still holding out for that Zodak re-deco, though.

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

#3134: Teela

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

TEELA

MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE: MASTERVERSE (MATTEL)

“Learning she had been lied to her entire life, Teela threw down her sword, rejected her title, and turned her back on her family, friends, and all of Eternia.  Fate, however, has a way of returning.  Prince Adam’s secret identity as He-Man — the same secret that shattered her trust — became intertwined with her quest to save magic from disappearing from Eternia.”

Oh, wow, you know, those last two Masters reviews were so lovely, I think I might just do one more. Like a dessert or something. Just a little extra. Masters of the Universe Revelation spent most of its runtime in a post-defeat of He-Man setting, but it’s first episode, as well as some flashbacks sprinkled throughout the rest of the show, still gave plenty of focus to the main characters in their classic designs. This also gives the tie-in portion of Mattel’s Masterverse line plenty of free reign for some more straightforward updates of the original figures. While the line’s first Teela was sporting her later Revelation look, there was a rather quick follow-up to that one, this time with her classic attire. I’ll be taking a look at that one today!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Teela is part of Series 4 of the Masterverse line, as one of the two Revelation-themed figures in the set. The figure stands about 7 inches tall and she has 31 points of articulation. She again keeps with the set-up we’ve seen previously with the female bodies in this line, which is a pretty solid articulation scheme. Her sculpt is obviously starting from the same base point as the other female figures, but she’s almost entirely new. It’s a strong sculpt. I was a big fan of the prior Teela, and I liked the extra details the newer design offered, but this one looks pretty great too. The armor is very clean and sharply detailed, and I like how the two faces are a younger, more cleaned up Teela, but still very distinctly the same person.  As hinted by the “two faces” comment from the sentence prior, Teela includes two head sculpts.  The first is the more classic one, with her hair up and her headdress in place.  The second is her post-quitting look, with her hair down and messy.  They’re both a lot of fun, and, again, consistent to what’s been established thus far for the character in this iteration of the line.  Teela’s paint work is generally pretty decent.  The application is pretty clean for the most part.  There’s a little bit of slop on the tops of the boots, and the coloring on the cheeks is a little heavy handed, but otherwise, it works well.  Teela is packed with two sets of hands, a sword, and a shield.  Not quite as impressive as the last two figures I looked at, but still a nice set-up.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I was quite content with my post-time-jump Teela figure from Series 2, and, as cool as this figure looked, I wasn’t planning to grab this one.  I then got offered a deal on one that I really couldn’t beat, and suddenly, I have one.  She’s really nice.  A fantastic update on the classic Teela design, fitting right in with the other “classic” figures from the line.  I definitely dig the extra pieces, and she’s just a pretty solid figure all around.

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

#3133: Andra

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

ANDRA

MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE: MASTERVERSE (MATTEL)

Remember when I was talking about Masters of the Universe yesterday? Good, then I won’t have to repeat myself too much. As it turns out, I’ve got a small little handful of Masters figures to check out, so I’m going ahead and doing that now. As I mentioned yesterday, the Masterverse line started off with tie-ins for Revelation, and while it’s moving on to some other corners of the franchise, there’s still a few more Revelation figures to cover. I’m looking at one of those today. This time around, it’s Andra. Originally introduced as a supporting player in the first ongoing Masters of the Universe comic (published by Marvel’s short-lived Star Comics imprint), Andra was revived and updated to be a major player in Revelation, getting her very first action figure in the process. I’m looking at that figure today!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Andra was released in Series 3 of the Masters of the Universe: Masterverse line. It’s the last fully Revelation-themed set for the line, and also featured Fisto, Stinkor, and Scare-Glow. Andra is one of the characters to only be seen post-time skip, so she’s only got the one real look, which is what this figure goes with. The original Andra design’s honestly not much to write home about, so Revelation departs from it pretty radically, going for more of a post-apocalyptic, quickly thrown together sort of vibe, which I really dig.  The figure stands 7 inches tall and has 31 points of articulation. Her articulation scheme is the same as we saw with Teela and Evil-Lyn before her. As with Teela, actual re-use is at a minimum, mostly being confined to her upper arms, and the internal structure of the body. Beyond that, she’s an all-new sculpt. It’s a pretty great one. She continues the trend set by Evil-Lyn and Teela of the female figures really being the best ones in the line. The show design has all of its elements captured well, with just a little extra detailing to make the figure a little more visually interesting.  Her paint work is rather involved, but far more reserved than the usual offering from this line.  It works out pretty well, and matches up nicely with her look from the show.  Andra rivals Evil-Lyn in terms of accessory pack-outs, going for a real all-in-one set-up.  She gets her alternate masked head from her intro, plus a cloth cloak to go with it, three different pairs of hands, and a blast effect for her wrist blaster.  Certainly not a bad set-up at all.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Andra’s not a character I knew before Revelation brought her back, but, as I’ve mentioned a few times before, I really dug Teela’s whole team, and they’re really my main focus with this line.  Andra’s certainly not a character I could leave out, given how central she is to so much of the story.  She’s genuinely one of the line’s nicest figures, with a real feeling of value for what you’re getting, as well as a lot of very obvious care going into the whole construction.

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