Tag Archives: Power Stars

#3820: The Phantom

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

THE PHANTOM

POWER STARS (BOSS FIGHT)

Okay, so, before I get into the main body of today’s review, I’ve got a semi-related plug.  Not the sort of thing I usually do, but I’ve been going down the Super Powers-adjacent rabbit hole the last couple of months and really quite enjoying it.  With McFarlane losing the DC license at the end of the year, there’s some concern about the future of SP-style figures.  One of my personal favorites, Longbox Heroes, just launched a Kickstarter this week for their second series of figures, and if you’re a fan of the style and want to see it continue, I urge you to check that out!  There’s an Arthur and a Tick, and that’s got to at least count for, like, a whole thing!  Okay, that’s the plug, onto the actual review!

Back in the world of Super Powers-adjacent reviews, I’m heading back into Boss Fight’s own similarly styled line, Power Stars.  I looked at Flash Gordon and Ming, and when you’ve gotten the King Features Syndicate rights, then your next stop is very frequently Lee Falk’s The Phantom, the Ghost Who Walks.  Predating Superman by two years, Phantom is a very early costumed hero, with a very classic design, which is super great for toys.  And it’s surfaced as a toy going back to even the days of Captain Action.  So, here’s another of those, but now a bit more retro-y.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

The Phantom is part of the first series of Power Stars.  The whole set was King Features based, but Phantom is the only non-Flash Gordon character from the bunch, so he sort of stands out.  He’s seen here in his classic purple costume, and even still has those striped shorts that the first NECA figure lacked!  The figure stands 4 1/2 inches tall and he has 9 points of articulation.  His movement is the same as Flash and Ming, which is to say it’s pretty good.  His sculpt is again very similar to the others stylistically, but has no actual straight overlap of pieces, with each part getting at least enough small detailing to keep him unique.  I very much like that.  For a character such as the Phantom, who has such a simple design, it’s easy to sort of phone some things in, so things like the patterned sleeve cuffs or the raised ridges on the shorts are really cool to see.  His paint work is pretty basic, but does what it needs to, without any real issues.  I certainly like the actual shades picked, which is another leg up on the NECA figure.  Phantom is packed with a pair of pistols, which he can dual wield, or store in the working holsters on his belt.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I was grabbing Flash and Ming, and Phantom was also there at the same time, and I figured, why not?  Actually, it was more than that.  He sort of helped sell me on the idea of grabbing more than just Flash.  I had the NECA figures, and they were fine, but they didn’t really do it for me, and so being able to get all three characters in a style that more appeals to my sensibilities was actually pretty nice.  Flash is still my favorite, but Phantom’s no slouch 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.

#3811: Ming the Merciless

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

MING THE MERCILESS

POWER STARS (BOSS FIGHT)

Not-Flash!  AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!  …Get it?  Well, I though it was funny.  And that’s the thing that matters most of all around these parts.  Last week I kept up my Super Powers-adjacent reviews with a look at my first Power Stars figure, Flash Gordon.  Today, I’m looking at his regular opponent, Ming the Merciless!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Ming the Merciless is part of the first series of Power Stars, pairing off with the Flash from the same set.  Like Flash, he’s sporting a more classically-inspired Ming look, leaning more into his more humanoid stylings.  The figure stands about 4 1/2 inches tall and he has 9 points of articulation.  Ming’s sculpt is totally new.  It shares the aesthetics we saw on Flash, but there don’t appear to be any actual overlap of pieces, which is pretty neat.  There’s a fair bit more going on with this one, so there’s more space to fill in.  It certainly makes the most of it.  I particularly like the depth of detailing on the head sculpt.  The collar uses a multi-piece assembly, which is kind of free floating.  I’ll admit, I don’t *love* it, but it’s not horrible.  It’s just a bit loose.  He’s got a cloth cape, and, in contrast to the overly large clips we’ve seen on the McFarlane figures, this one seems a bit too small.  It does the job, though, so I’ll hardly complain.  His paint work is pretty similar to Flash’s in quality, but again has a bit more to it.  There’s a little bit of slop, but it’s generally pretty good.  Ming is packed with a sword and blaster.  The blaster is shared with Flash, but the sword is unique.  Like Flash, you can store them both on his belt.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I snagged Ming at the same time as Flash.  I’m more a heroes guy than a villains one, so I can’t say Ming was really jumping out at me, but at the same time, it’s hard to pass up on the pairing.  He’s neat.  Not quite as cleanly designed as Flash, but that’s ultimately more about the character than it is about the figure.  Over-designed is just a Ming-thing.  Heh, “Ming-thing.”

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.

#3806: Flash Gordon

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

FLASH GORDON

POWER STARS (BOSS FIGHT STUDIOS)

Well, I got a nice little kick of additional Longbox Heroes the last two weeks to help keep me on that Super Powers-inspired high, but now I’m out of those again, so it’s time to turn to the next best thing: another Super Powers-inspired line!  In fact, this one came first!  Boss Fight, whose HACKS lines I’ve previously reviewed a bit, decided to give the style a try, launching things with an assortment of characters from King Features, which means I get to kick things off with Flash (aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah! Savior of the Universe!) Gordon!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Flash Gordon is part of the four figure launch assortment for Power Stars, which hit in the fall of 2022.  There are a lot of Flash looks to choose from, but they’ve gone with a more classic comic version of the character, which fits pretty much perfectly with the style.  The figure stands a little over 4 1/2 inches tall and he has 9 points of articulation.  There are two tweaks to the articulation to deviate from Super Powers here.  Firstly, there’s the knees, which use the same general assembly as the Longbox Heroes (which is not entirely coincidental; LBH‘s designed Jason “Toy Otter” Geyer noted how impressed he was with the knee joint when still working out the knee assembly on LBH), and secondly, there’s the neck joint, which, instead of being a straight cut joint, is actually a ball-joint.  They both keep the same general look as the vintage articulation, while providing slightly better motion.  Flash’s sculpt is unique to him, and it’s a solid offering.  There’s I think a little more of Boss Fight’s in-house style bleeding through here, so they’re not quite a pitch perfect Kenner style, but also I think it still works very well, and he very much feels like Flash.  His color work is all pretty bright, clean, and bold, which exactly what you’d hope for in such a line.  I have no issues with any sort of slop or bleed over on mine.  Flash get’s an extra head without his headgear, as well as a sword and a gun, which can be placed in the designated spots on his belt.  Storage for weapons isn’t much of a Super Powers thing, but that’s another one of those innovations I don’t mind so much here.  My only real issue with the figure is that the size of the handles being so different between the sword and gun means that you kind of have to pick a hand for each and stick with it, otherwise the gun will fall out of any hand the sword has been in.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I remember when these were announced, and I was quite excited, and…then I just totally forgot to get around to ordering them.  Admittedly, I had a lot going on in my life, so I’m giving myself a pass.  Flash was the one I wanted the most, because he’s Flash Gordon and he’s just got such a classic design.  I particularly appreciate them just going straight to the classic Flash and not making me get a weird cartoon version I don’t really want as much first…sorry, I’m trying not to be too bitter with NECA.  Anyway, I was able to snag a few of these guys at the same time as the Super Powers and Longbox Heroes from the last few weeks, when they got traded in at All Time.  Unfortunately, Flash here was missing the main head, but it happened to come through on its own a week or so later.  He’s truly a fun little figure, and I’m glad I finally got one!

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.