When NECA released their first set of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles action figures based on their appearance in issue number 1 of the Mirage Studios comics I was a day one buyer. Even though NECA is riding high with TMNT these days, that initial set wasn’t the catalyst for it. Those figures came and went and came again in black and white, but they didn’t launch a whole new toy line for NECA. Some of that had to do with interference from master license holder Playmates Toys, but also NECA conceded that they weren’t big sellers. At the time, the company concluded that the comic book versions of the characters weren’t that popular and it would take awhile for them to get into that sweet, sweet, cartoon gravy.
In my opinion, what really got things going with NECA and TMNT was the unveiling of the quarter scale action figures based on the 1990 movie. I am not a big quarter scale collector, but those turtles are some of my favorite possessions because they turned out so damn lifelike. Collecting them was pretty fun too as they were pretty much released on a quarterly schedule initially with the first one out the door being Donatello in time for Christmas 2016. I loved it and I made sure to get each of the next offerings to assemble a full squad of turtles. I was going to go deeper initially and had a Shredder preordered at one point, but once NECA revealed the 1:10 toy line based on the movie I decided to go without the villain. They take up a lot of space and aren’t exactly cheap.
One item I was tempted by, but never pulled the trigger on, was the Baby Turtle Accessory Set. I don’t remember what it cost originally, but it felt too steep for what it was. As the name implies, the set centered on baby versions of the turtles as seen during the flashback scene pretty early in the film. To make it an accessory set, a pizza box and four additional slices were to be included which, together with the four pizza slices included with the figures, made for a whole pie. There was also a bag of corn chips in the same style as the pork rinds which came with Michelangelo, but the thing that really tempted me was an additional accessory for Mikey: his spinning nunchaku effect.
One of my favorite scenes in the film as a kid is the “‘Chuk-Off” between Mikey and an unnamed Foot ninja. I originally saw the film on the big screen when it came out, but most of my viewings of the movie were on VHS. There, the dark, grainy, picture always made it look like the scene ended with Michelangelo just spinning his nunchaku like he often did by holding one end and twirling it over his head. It didn’t make sense to me, but I thought it was funny like he was clowning on the guy. Only when I got the movie on DVD many years later could I see the scene for what it was: Mikey balancing the weapon at the center of the ropes and twirling the whole thing like helicopter blades. It makes no sense, which is why the Foot look absolutely stunned by what they’re seeing and it remains a favorite scene of mine. The real question was, did I want to pay $60 or whatever just to get an extra hand and effect part?
No. I passed, but I’ve kept my eye on the damn set all these years hoping to score a break. I even tried buying just the accessory I wanted secondhand, but never could find one worth the price. The set finally was discounted recently on Amazon, but only slightly. Ten bucks off making the set $50. For all I know, the set originally was that or even less considering the quarter scale figures used to be around $100 but now cost anywhere from $130 to $150. I was kind of sick of looking though so I just went and did it. Was it stupid? Probably. After all, I’m really only interested in the nunchaku part. The rest of the box isn’t worthless, but not exactly appealing either. Time to see if I’m mistaken.
The box this thing comes in is pretty nice. It’s a big window with the film’s theatrical poster adapted for the art. Mine did arrive damaged with the window cracked and broken. Could I have complained and got a few bucks refunded? Maybe, but I don’t really care about the box so I can’t in good conscience get worked up about it. The part I wanted was actually flopping around loose in the box, but since it’s just a hand it was fine. It’s a pointing finger hand with a hole drilled into the tip of the index finger. The color seems a little lighter shade of green compared to my quarter scale set. This is likely a production variation as I’m guessing this thing has been in and out of production over the years. Had I bought it when it was originally made available then maybe it would match better. Even so, it’s not really noticeable and the nunchaku part pegs into it effortlessly. It can then spin freely – wee! It does what it’s supposed to do, but I do wonder if it would look better as a sculpted, whirling, effect? We’ve seen NECA do that with the toon line, but this being live action probably made them just go with the real deal and you can spin it if you want. It might have been nice to get both though.
The pizza box and food items are what they are. The box is designed to look like a Domino’s box, but it’s parody. The grease marks inside are convincing and I like that the price is listed as $13. The four slices of pizza are actually different sculpts from what came with the turtles. That’s pretty cool as it gives a more realistic look, but also probably wasn’t necessary. The new slices appear a little darker than what came with the boys, but it will work. The toppings at least match. The corn chips are done just like the pork rinds so it’s a foil bag sealed at both ends. There’s probably a little piece of a spongey material inside to give it some volume, but it probably could have done with a touch more. The turtles can grip it easily and that little scene with Mikey and Don at the table was perhaps the one my sister and I recreated the most as kids, though always with potato chips as we never had pork rinds.
The main attraction here is obviously the baby turtles. These guys are about 4″ tall and are articulated at the head, jaw, and shoulders. They’re all identical and while they look pretty good, I was surprised at the lack of articulation in the legs. They do a solid job of resembling the puppets in the film, though if I am to nitpick I think the beak could be sharper and more yellow. One of them appeared to have a bandage on their face in the movie (I assume Raph since he has a scar on his cheek) and NECA included an optional sticker sheet if you want. It has two Band Ade style bandages and two that look more like wraps. I’m not sure if I’ll bother as stickers have a tendency to curl and come off eventually and my collection is kept in my basement where it can get a little humid. If one is supposed to have a bandaged face then NECA should have just sculpted it.
Did I just pay 50 bucks so my Michelangelo figure could spin a nunchuk on his finger? Yeah, pretty much. The little guys aren’t terrible, but they don’t add much to the display for me. They can at least hold a pizza slice, but the articulation is so minimal that there isn’t much they can do. I think I like the pizza box and corn chips more than the baby turtles. If this set included more food items like soda cans, juice boxes, and Raph’s apple then I’d probably like it a lot more. Or if it just had most of the stuff the 1:10 scale accessory set wound up coming with (a set I passed on, but probably should not have). This one is very light and retails for $60. I don’t feel great about my purchasing decision, but I wanted that stupid effect part and now I have it. In time, I’ll forget about the cost and just enjoy seeing Mikey spinning his weapon on my shelf so I guess that will just have to be good enough.
These reviews are old as hell and I’m reluctant to link to them, but if you want to read my thoughts on the quarter scale line here you go:
Neca 1/4 Scale TMNT Movie Michelangelo
The good thing about NECA’s Michelangelo, the final turtle to be released from their quarter-scale line of action figures based on the 1990 film, is that it’s just like the previous three turtles to be released. The bad thing about it is that it’s just like the previous three turtles to be released. Let’s start…
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Neca 1/4 Scale TMNT Movie Leonardo
NECA is now 3/4 of the way through the release schedule of their TMNT 1990 movie line with the release of Leonardo – the REAL leader of the group. And like Donatello and Raphael before him, he’s a pretty impressive specimen. The original 1990 movie impossibly never had dedicated action figures. Playmates half-assed a line…
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NECA 1/4 Scale TMNT Movie Raphael
It took awhile, but I finally have my hands on the second turtle from NECA’s 1/4 scale series of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles based on the original film. Raphael was released back in February, but I left the preordering of this series to my wife who saw them as gifts for basically the coming year…
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The Nostalgia Spot 
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