More characters for your Mighty Mutanimals display have arrived courtesy of NECA Toys.
NECA started down the Archie-verse of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles in 2022 with the Mighty Mutanimals-adjacent Slash. For most, The Mighty Mutanimals team of heroes consists of Man-Ray, Jagwar, Leatherhead, Dreadmon, Mondo Gecko, Wingnut, and Screwloose. For those folks, NECA began that team in 2023 releasing the trio of Man-Ray, Jagwar, and Dreadmon all within about a month of each other. Following that, the team has been slow to complete as 2024 saw only the release of Mondo Gecko and 2025 will only be adding the subject of today’s post, Wingnut and Screwloose.
Wingnut has some decent size to him. As for Screwloose, well he’s a little guy.
Wingnut had an inglorious debut in the companion comic to the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles cereal. At least, it feels like an inglorious debut, but how many kids bought a box of cereal and saw him vs how many may have picked up the Playmates toy or an issue of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Adventures? I’m willing to bet Ralston-Purina sold a whole bunch of cereal boxes that year. Wingnut was a villain there and he’d be a villain (along with Screwloose) in the cartoon series, but in the Archie books he and Screwloose are heroes with an obvious Batman and Robin motif. They’re aliens and hail from a world that Krang has destroyed making them both the last of their kind. Their creation is credited to Ryan Brown, and like a lot of the Archie versions of toyline characters, their appearance here is stylistically pretty different from other sources even if the same, general, vibe remains the same.
I never thought I’d have this many versions of this duo.
NECA’s version of Wingnut and Screwloose comes courtesy of sculptors Tomasz Rozejowski and Brodie Perkins. Paint, as always, is credited to the duo of Geoff Trapp and Mike Puzzo and the box art is by TMNT veteran artist Ken Mitchroney. The duo has that Batman and Robin vibe most are looking for, but the dominant color with Wingnut is purple. Most of his body is a dark purple while his gloves, boots, and thigh straps are a lighter, more red, purple. He has some gray armor on his chest and shoulders and the ever-present Not Batman logo in yellow on the chest. The combo of yellow and purple makes me think of ’66 Batgirl more than Batman. He has a big, yellow, utility, belt and his mechanical wings. Unlike every other Wingnut figure I own or have owned, there are no tiny, organic, wings present in the mechanical ones. I don’t know if he lacked them or if they’re inside these ones. These wings do give him even more of a Batman silhouette because of the shape.
That is some nose you’ve got there, Wingnut.
The sculpt and the paint is the star of the show here. Wingnut has a wild expression on his face with his saliva-coated tongue flailing about. There’s some black on the top of his head which plays off of the deep purple and the pink of his inner ears very well. The sculpt is very much reminiscent of an actual bat, but there’s a slight softening to it via the more cartoonish approach of the design vs what Playmates did with the vintage figure. He does retain that…unfortunate…nose shape and it’s big, veiny, and gross. There’s some nice details sculpted and painted into the shoulder pauldrons as well as the wings. There’s the usual abundance of black linework that helps make the figure “pop” with nary a touch of paint slop.
“I got a guitar!” “I got a gun!” “I got a rock…”
The accessory load-out for Wingnut is a bit on the minimal side, especially if you’re used to this character coming with a bunch of Batman-like gadgets. There is no alternate portrait, but we do get three sets of hands: fists, gripping, and open. There’s also an extra right hand with a much wider grip so he can hold his lone weapon: a rock. It is a pretty big rock. I’m sure it would hurt, especially if thrown from above. Wingnut’s number one accessory though is Screwloose. Sculpt and paint-wise, Screwloose is every bit as good as Wingnut just much smaller. He stands a little over 3″ which feels about right and has a maroon and green color scheme with his usual black mask. He’s minimally articulated with a swivel at the head, ball-hinge shoulders, wrist swivels, ball-jointed waist, ball-socket hips, ankle hinge, ankle rocker, and ball-jointed wings. He also has his own accessory in the form of a swappable lower half. It’s permanently molded in a sitting position so he can sit in the little seat built into the back of Wingnut’s wings. His tail pokes through the seat and kind of locks him in place. Separating him at the waist is a bit tricky and required some heat to accomplish. I may have been able to force it without heating, but there’s not a lot of room to grip this little guy and I was worried about breaking the wings in the process.
Screwloose is the rare character who can smell his own ass.
Wingnut’s articulation is fairly standard for the line. You get a ball-jointed head, ball-hinge shoulders, bicep, double-elbows, wrist hinge and swivel, diaphragm joint, waist swivel, ball-socket hips, thigh swivel, double-jointed knees, and ankle hinge and rocker. The pain points continue to pretty much be the same from release-to-release with NECA. The range at the head looking up is only okay, but the diaphragm joint doesn’t help the situation really at all as it doesn’t go forward and back much. At least with this figure, the point of the armor stops it form going forward so there’s an obvious obstruction one can see that would have been hard to work around where as Archie Shredder just kind of sucked at that joint “just because.” With Wingnut, it’s just unfortunate because if you want to have him flying parallel with the ground he won’t be able to look forward. He just doesn’t have the required range to do it. He can grip the handles on his wings, though it’s a little tricky since the wings don’t always want to stay in place. The right handle popped off on mine trying to get him in place, but it appears to be engineered to do. Though I think it’s supposed to be glued. The elbows and knees were pretty tight out of the box, but I didn’t have to heat anything. And the joints are pin-less, if that’s something you value.
I wish NECA made better flight stands.
With Wingnut and Screwloose it’s pretty simple: NECA is killing it with the sculpt and overall presentation. We miss out a little when it comes to articulation as a result, and while I’d like to see them make more of an effort in that area, Wingnut is not their biggest offender. He does come at an inflated price-point of $45 currently. Thus far, he’s only been solicited at Walmart so he may even go up when offered by online retailers. It’s not a great price, but we’re also entering a world of $30 Marvel Legends figures so at least from that standpoint it certainly could be worse. I’d have liked to see NECA include a flight stand with this release since he so clearly needs it, but aside from that I’m largely okay with what we got. This release features all unique and purposeful tooling with no obvious reuse potential available. Maybe there are different colorways they can do? Perhaps a Tournament Fighters edition? NECA has mostly abandoned the video game stuff, but that would be an easy re-release. He certainly looks good on the shelf along with Screwloose and the rest of the Mutanimals. Now we just need Leatherhead and the team will largely be complete. Perhaps in 2026?
Just missing Leatherhead now.
Looking to assemble your own Mighty Mutanimals shelf? Here’s a few reviews you may have missed:
.The NECA Cowbunga Collection is a content creator’s dream. Here we are deep into October still talking about figures that dropped in August. This time it’s another Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Adventures action figure and it’s fan-favorite Mondo Gecko. Most TMNT fans probably know Mondo from the Playmates action figure line. He also made the…
We’re almost done with all of these NECA Haulathon drops from March and up today is the last of the single-packed figures, the Mighty Mutanimal Dreadmon! Technically, he’s the third figure in NECA’s line of figures from the pages of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Adventures since he’s listed as number 3 on the box. However,…
The next figure in NECA’s line based on the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Adventures comic series is a much anticipated one for fans of those books and its spin-off The Mighty Mutanimals. And that’s because this character is making his debut in plastic. Previously, we looked at Slash who has been pretty well-represented in some…
I would wager that when it comes to the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles character Ace Duck most fans will immediately go to the Playmates figure as their first frame of reference. His creation is credited to the trio of Jim Lawson, Steve Murphy, and Ryan Brown, but I don’t know if any had a hand in his original look. That version of Ace, who was an anthropomorphic duck dressed like an old fighter pilot, made one appearance in the 1987 cartoon series as basically a show within a show. He flashed across the screen of the TV in the sewer lair in the episode “Attack of Big MACC.” That was it for old Ace as he never got to be a featured guest like many other characters who first appeared in the toy line. The character wouldn’t get a substantial look until he showed in the pages of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Adventures published by Archie, only there he wasn’t a fighter pilot, but a pro wrestler.
He’s one big duck.
NECA’s TMNT Adventures line of action figures has been committed to giving fans basically everyone associated with the fictional Stump Wrestling. We have the turtles, Leatherhead, and Cryin’ Houn’, and now we have Ace Duck. This version of Ace is quite different from his Playmates counterpart. The only things the two share are the fact that they’re both ducks and they both have wings. While the original Ace is of average build for a human, this duck is massive. The phrase beefcake comes to mind, but also feels inappropriate for the massive mallard since he’s not a mammal. He’s a big boy and would have fit right in with the WWF of the early 90s. Even the whole duck thing probably could have worked in the promotion that introduced the Gobbledy Gooker. He also has a bit of a Buddy Rogers thing going on as he’s kind of a pretty boy. Part of me wonders if this design was influenced by Daffy Duck’s foil in the short Muscle Tussle because even the trunks are the same to go along with the physique. As a character, he’s neither friend nor foe to the turtles and even though he’s depicted as champion, he sure seems to lose a lot.
Ace Duck with the Ace Duck most know him as.
Ace Duck from NECA comes in the usual packaging with new artwork by Ken Mitchroney. He’s a big figure and comes courtesy of Walmart Collector Con which actually took place several months ago where he was available as a preorder. NECA is now finally shipping the figure and it’s expected that he’s just first run at Walmart and will eventually be available from other outlets. This chiseled sculpt was handled by Tomasz Rozejowski with paint by Geoff Trapp and Mike Puzzo.
It might take two turtles to topple this guy.
Ace Duck stands right around the 7″ mark and as high as 7.25″ to the top of the curl of feathers on his head. I’m pretty sure the first impression most are likely to have when looking at this figure is that he sure is bulgy, in more ways than one. He is jacked as his shoulders are quite broad and his chest is puffed out like a man (or duck) of such musculature would be. He’s also quite bulgy down…there. It’s quite the comical look when compared with the old Ace and borders on ridiculous, but I mean that in a good way. Since this is just a big duck in a Speedo, there’s not much being asked of the paint department. He’s a pale yellow all over save for his beak and his feet, which are a light orange. There’s plenty of black linework on the figure to highlight the musculature and some of the feathers. He has a set of tiny wings on his back which are barely visible from the front. I guess he skips wing day when in the gym. The only other embellishments on the sculpt are the little feathers on his forearms.
I love this cocky expression.Itty, bitty, wings.
Ace is just a big muscle duck, but what helps sell the character in plastic form are the expressions. By default, Ace looks pretty angry and ready to get down to business in the ring. His teeth are showing and he’s got a legitimately intimidating glare. The head most (including me) are likely to find more enjoyable though is the cocky grin. For that, Ace’s eyes are partly closed and looking to his right and his beak is shaped in the form of a wry smile. This is him preening for the audience or just looking in a mirror. It just goes so well with the vibe of this figure. The third portrait features a squawking Ace. His mouth is open in a cartoonish shape with a big, red, tongue flopping out. His eyes are also all red with black circles in them indicating he’s dizzy. This is pulled straight from a panel in the comics where Leatherhead is swinging him around by the feet. This one also works for a punch drunk look or an impact which is definitely a worthwhile inclusion for a pro wrestler action figure.
This right hand is basically included just for this.
The rest of the items are in the box are reserved for hands and one accessory. For hands, Ace has a set of fists, relaxed, and gripping hands. He also has a left hand that’s somewhere in between a pointing gesture and a relaxed look and a right hand that’s puzzling to me. It’s almost like the start of a thumb’s up gesture or a guitar picking form. It looks so specific that I’m guessing it’s lifted from a panel, and sure enough, it is. There’s a panel where he’s basically posing after slamming Leatherhead and saying “later gator” where he’s making this gesture with his hand. The last item in the box is a folding chair. It’s the exact same accessory that came with the turtles and even the colors are the same. It’s a solid accessory to have for a wrestling figure and I like that we now have two in the collection instead of one.
He’s not above getting dirty.
The approach to articulation with Ace is pretty basic. While the turtles were used to show off NECA’s first attempts at traditional pinless double-joints, Ace is going more old school. There’s articulation at the head, shoulders, elbows, wrists, diaphragm, hips, knees, ankles, and wings. Both the elbows and knees are single-jointed, but they will swivel at the point of entry as well. There is a thigh swivel, but it’s pretty limited and I was surprised by the lack of a waist twist. You will need to use the diaphragm joint for that and it’s pretty limited. Mostly, the figure is just so bulky that the range in a lot of places is hampered. The shoulders aren’t going to get much use out of the hinge and the elbow swivel isn’t as good as a proper bicep swivel. The hinge for the gripping hands is of the horizontal variety which is unfortunate. The legs have very little range kicking forward, though they actually kick backwards a decent amount.
You’re gonna need a bigger chair, Leo.
Ace isn’t going to do a whole lot on your shelf. In that, he’s a lot like Leatherhead and Cryin’ Houn’ who I also felt were really limited in the articulation department. Ace is probably a littler better than the hound, but a little worse than Leatherhead. None of them are going to be celebrated for their articulation and the best articulated figures in this line so far are probably the turtles. With Ace it’s just a little disappointing because there’s not much that NECA had to work around. He’s practically naked and it’s just the bulk of the sculpt that impedes things. And while I do like the sculpt, I do think there was a happy medium some where to make this guy more articulated without having to jeopardize the aesthetics. The hips, in particular, stand out as an area where there’s no real reason for why they’re as limited as they are.
Or not.
Ace Duck is another solid entry in NECA’s Archie Comics inspired toy line. The articulation shortcomings are basically a feature of the line at this point and collectors likely know what they’re in for with that. The sculpt is on point and this is a figure that just puts a smile on my face because he’s so damn fun to look at. The accessory count is suitable with three portraits and a folding chair to go along with 8 hands. The only other thing I failed to mention so far is the price. Ace Duck will set you back $50 if you can find him at Walmart (currently available for order as I type this) and may cost a little more when he makes his way to specialty retailers. That’s certainly a steep price and I guess it’s owing to his size and potential for reuse. The sculpt is such that maybe NECA can reuse it for other muscle guys though none in this particular line come to mind. He’s the same price as Cryin’ Houn’ who was a little bigger, but came with less stuff, so he doesn’t feel like a lesser release. I just wasn’t crazy about the price tag with that figure either. I do like this figure a bit more and if you’re okay with the price and its shortcomings then I can safely recommend it. It has a premium feel in-hand and it’s a musclebound space duck in trunks – what’s there not to like?
That duck has a family!
If you missed our look at the other Stump Wrestling figures from NECA then check these out:
I’ve said it before and I’ll probably say it again, but no toy collector enjoys hearing the phrase “Walmart Exclusive.” Such was the case for today’s figure, and many others, around the time of San Diego Comic Con. Walmart had their own collector con which is just a marketing way to say that a bunch…
We are rolling right along with more reviews of NECA’s TMNT Adventures line of action figures and we’re also staying within the realm of Stump Wrestling. When the turtles wound up in the intergalactic wrestling federation, they didn’t just encounter aliens, they also encountered an old foe. I don’t know how Leatherhead wound up as…
When I was a kid, I didn’t really get a lot of comic books. I most often would encounter them at the grocery store and I always hoped my mom would end up in the check-out aisle with the comics instead of candy so I could maybe convince her to get me one. And when…
Hello daddy. Hello mom. I’m your buh-buh-buh-buh-buh-buh-Bellybomb!
Sometimes, a character design so fun and outrageous can be enough to motivate one into dropping $35 on an action figure. Such was the case with NECA Toys’ Bellybomb figure from its subline of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles action figures based on the characters from the Archie Comics series. Of course, in this case it helps that I’ve been collecting most of the TMNT figures put out by NECA so I was predisposed to getting this guy when he dropped, but mostly I wanted him because he just looks so weird. I know next to nothing about the character. He’s some kind of alien or Dimension X creature and he’s a bad guy for the most part. Mostly though, he’s a dude with his mouth in his stomach and eyeballs in his palms – he’s a freak!
You might think he only has one eye at first, but he actually has three.
Bellybomb, to me, looks like a character that belongs in The Real Ghostbusters toy line from Kenner back in the day. A big eye, sharp teeth, and a wacky design. I remember having a football player in that line and his entire back lifted to exposed a monstrous mouth. Bellybomb can never pass as human or anything, but his anatomy is so very Ghostbusters. I wish I knew who created him so I could properly credit the artist responsible for this design, but I wasn’t able to find anything online. Maybe it was Chris Allen? Ryan Brown? I don’t know, whoever did though my hat is off to you. The character has been brough to life by sculptors Brodie Perkins and Tomasz Rozejowski. I believe it was Perkins who did the main figure and I’m guessing Rozejowski either did the gun or his little buddy (we’ll get to that). Paint is done by Geoff Trapp and Mike Puzzo and once again Ken Mitchroney is on hand to do the artwork on the box.
“Hey man, how’s it going?”
Bellybomb is a figure that gets by on this outrageous design. He stands around 6.375″ to the top of his…head, and is closer to 6.75″ if you factor in the horns. He’s a bit of a chunker since the torso is just a giant mouth with an eyeball rising out of it. His skin is a very fleshy color with numerous wrinkles and if you want to compare him to a certain piece of male anatomy there’s little I can say to dissuade you. It’s a valid comparison and just adds to the grotesqueness of the character. There’s lots of black linework while his clothing is pretty basic, but also bright colored. He has a blue dress shirt which is obviously unbuttoned to expose that massive maw. The hot pink pants and blue boots make him look like a creature out of the 80s, though he’s technically a 90s invention as far as I know.
“What the heck are you?!”
The two things that stand out with this sculpt are the mouth and the eye. The mouth is full of sharp, white, teeth while the interior is painted black with a big, red, tongue. The teeth are legitimately sharp so if you want to open the mouth try to push on the lip instead. He has a big, blue, eye at the top of his head that’s well-painted and sits cleanly in the socket. It’s moveable as well. It feels quite loose, but it stays where it’s supposed to as long as you’re not shaking the figure. Each of his hands also has an eyeball sculpted and painted on the palm which is done very well. Even the fist hands leave the eyeballs exposed which is a nice touch.
“What is this greasy concoction?”“Oh my god! Pizza, where have you been my whole life?!”
And aside from that, there isn’t much else to talk about with Bellybomb. His neck, I guess, which the eyeball sits on is articulated at the base and at the top. It can be positioned very well with plenty of room for nuance. The mouth opens and closes and it looks pretty good in both positions. The rest of the figure does very little, The shoulders are standard ball-hinges while I can’t get the elbow hinges to do anything. There’s rotation there, but that’s all. Hands swivel and hinge with the trigger hand being vertically hinged so that’s a plus. There is a waist twist while the hips and knees, despite being double-jointed, are pretty limited. The ankles hinge forward and back a bit with an ankle rocker, though the right ankle on mine is pretty loose.
New Krang is so cute!And now Slash gets a buddy.
Bellybomb is mostly going to just stand there and look at stuff with his big eye or maybe stuff things in his mouth. He also doesn’t come with much. He has a pair of fists, gripping hands, open hands, and a trigger finger right hand. He has a big rifle that’s nicely painted and appears to be accurate to the comic, but he can only hold it with one hand and there are no effects for it or anything. The only other thing he comes with is his little buddy and accomplice in crime, Krang. Krang in the Archie books features the same, general, design as the Krang from the cartoon except he’s a whole lot more adorable. He’s a cute little blob, and I love the very toon-like eyes. His tentacles can be posed a little bit and the underside of the figure is sculpted to be curved so he can sit in Bellybomb’s hand or on Slash’s shoulder, which is how he got around for a time in the comics.
Bang! Bang!
Bellybomb is basically a slam dunk of you’re into this design. He looks awesome, I’m smitten with it, so it’s an easy recommend. He’s not going to pose as well as some of the other figures in your collection, but I think the figure more than makes up for it. Maybe the package is a little light on stuff, but the included Krang is a nice touch. And if you’re turned off by the coloring, NECA has a blue variant of this figure on the way based on his look from one of the covers. I was able to track this guy down at Target. He wasn’t advertised as being part of the Cowabunga Collection from August, but he arrived at basically the same time. I never did encounter this one in-store though and had to stalk the online listing where he’s been going in and out of stock since August. It’s likely a wider release will follow at some point so if you’ve been having a hard time tracking this one down just be patient as he’ll likely wind up on online retail outlets soon enough.
Check out more from NECA’s line of action figures from Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Adventures:
.The NECA Cowbunga Collection is a content creator’s dream. Here we are deep into October still talking about figures that dropped in August. This time it’s another Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Adventures action figure and it’s fan-favorite Mondo Gecko. Most TMNT fans probably know Mondo from the Playmates action figure line. He also made the…
We are rolling right along with more reviews of NECA’s TMNT Adventures line of action figures and we’re also staying within the realm of Stump Wrestling. When the turtles wound up in the intergalactic wrestling federation, they didn’t just encounter aliens, they also encountered an old foe. I don’t know how Leatherhead wound up as…
Back when Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles ruled the world, there was a lot of brand synergy between all of the various media being generated by this one mega popular piece of intellectual property. The comics came first followed by a toyline which necessitated the creation of an animated mini series to basically serve as a…
.The NECA Cowbunga Collection is a content creator’s dream. Here we are deep into October still talking about figures that dropped in August. This time it’s another Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Adventures action figure and it’s fan-favorite Mondo Gecko. Most TMNT fans probably know Mondo from the Playmates action figure line. He also made the jump to the cartoon series and he’s shown up quite a bit in other TMNT media ever since. Like a lot of those old toys though, Mondo is a Mirage Studios creation. Ryan Brown is the credited creator and Mondo would go on to appear in the Archie Comics Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Adventures books where he would be an ally of the turtles. He would then go on to become a member of the Mighty Mutanimals alongside the likes of Man Ray, Dreadmon, and others.
When it comes to NECA’s subline of figures based on TMNT Adventures, it would seem they have two priorities: Stump wrestling and Mighty Mutanimals. The first few figures started building out the Mutanimals before pivoting to the wrestling stuff. Mondo is a reminder that more Mutanimals are needed and likely coming. First unveiled at San Diego Comic Con 2023, Mondo arrives in the standard TMNT Adventures packaging with new artwork by artist Ken Mitchroney. He’s a sculpt by Tomasz Rozejowski and Kushwara Studios with paint by Geoff Trapp and Mike Puzzo. Because Mondo’s appearance in the comics is so close to his vintage toy, which also inspired his cartoon design, this figure is perhaps the least exciting one in the line so far. That’s just because he’s so familiar, but that doesn’t mean this isn’t a worthwhile release.
This is NECA’s second run at Mondo. As you can see, there’s a lot of similarities between his Archie and toon design, though no parts are shared.
Mondo stands at around 5.5″ to the top of his head and tack on another quarter of an inch for the hat. His design is almost exactly like the old Playmates toy with one obvious exception. He has the torn yellow shirt with skull emblem on the chest, the asymmetrical gloves and knee pads, high top shoes, and purple shorts and hat. The main difference is the long, black, hair. The old toy had it tied back in a ponytail while this Mondo just lets his hair down. His eyes are partially closed and his mouth is in an open position with a big smile which helps to expose those braces. It gives him a bit of a stoner look and there’s a toon quality to the face that’s appropriate for the line. I know some who aren’t crazy about the expression, but it works for me.
The little guy partly responsible for why Mondo looks the way he does.
Paint on Mondo is a little sparse compared with some releases, but I’d stop short at calling it lacking. The body is a rather bright, almost neon, green textured like a basketball to impart scaling. There’s some black curves painted on to highlight the scales as well and a lot of linework on the figure’s face. The teeth, eyes, and tongue are painted cleanly as are the gloves and shoes. The shirt is an overlay and the print on that is clean. The bare plastic in use for the green is not glossy or cheap, but the figure doesn’t pop as much as say Man Ray. The only area I don’t love are the hands. He has sculpted claws, but everything is green. His nails weren’t painted in the books from what I’ve seen, but this could be an odd spot where the sculpt should have been a little softer to make for pointed fingers as opposed to fingers with claws. In another deviation from the Playmates/toon design, there’s no blue on the character’s belly or the underside of the tail. The bright green also doesn’t match the box art nor does it match the comic. He should be a more olive green, very close to the turtles, and I’m guessing this was a creative choice by NECA to brighten the figure up. Perhaps to differentiate him from Slash too.
What do you think is in the cup? My guess is Mountain Dew.
Mondo comes with an assortment of accessories, most of which are expected. For hands, he has a set of gripping hands and open ones. He comes with a right hand in a devil horns gesture and a left in a hang 10 one. There’s also another right gripping hand that’s wider which is for holding his soft drink. It’s an all white cup with a straw that has a red diamond on it. There’s some black linework on it as well and it’s sharp looking. There’s also a microphone which is done all in black and is taken right from the books as he was a human musician who got mutated into this gecko man. There’s also an included gecko who is pretty cute and has his little tongue sticking out. He’s mostly green with some linework and yellow eyes. I wish they had painted the inner mouth black rather than leaving it green as it looks a little funky with the red tongue poking out, but it’s fine.
A guitar strap or microphone stand would have gone a long way here.
The two big accessories are Mondo’s instrument of choice and mode of transportation. Mondo has his trusty six string which is mostly teal with white accents. The paint on the fretboard is really clean and there’s volume and tone knobs sculpted in as well. I do have to point out that there are only five strings sculpted onto it even though there are six knobs at the end clearly indicating that this should be a typical guitar. It’s also lacking a strap so Mondo is forced to hold it if you want to display him with it which seems like an odd oversight. Mondo also has his skateboard which is all purple with a sting ray on the underside. It’s not as flashy as the cartoon board and it’s also not equipped with a motor. The wheels do turn and it has a single peg on the rear. My board did come with the front truck not glued on. There’s a sculpted tab on the underside for it that it slides onto and I’ll have to glue it myself if I want it to stay in place. Otherwise, it’s a skateboard and it does what it’s supposed to, we’ve just received a lot of boards from NECA at this point so it’s a little hard to be impressed by it.
Looks like the factory missed a spot of glue.
Articulation for Mondo is pretty much the norm for the line. We have a ball joint at the head, but the presence of the hair and open jaw is going to severely limit what he can do there. It’s primarily a swivel point and even that is limited. Shoudlers are ball-hinged and he has a biceps swivel past that. The bicep on the left arm of my figure doesn’t want to seat properly on the peg for the joint. I’ll have to try heating it to see if that works as right now the joint is basically working itself out when I mess with it. Elbows are double-jointed and this figure does feature pins. They don’t create much of an eyesore, but your mileage may vary. Hands rotate and hinge horizontally on all hands. No vertical hinges anywhere. The gloves are painted on, so repeated use of these hinges may expose the green plastic underneath so do be mindful.
It’s an easy fix.
In the torso is a ball joint in the diaphragm which rotates and tilts in all directions. Nothing crazy, but it’s there. There doesn’t appear to be anything at the waist while the hips are ball sockets that go out to the side for splits, but will be limited by the crotch overlay kicking forward and back as the legs will want to go off to the side. Forcing the issue will likely just result in the leg popping off. There is a thigh pivot built into that joint which works fine and the double-jointed knees bend a little past 90 degrees. The ankles feature the customary hinge and rocker setup and NECA wisely put the hinge right in the middle of the sneaker so it’s not really hindered by anything. It also appears to be smartly engineered so that paint rub or flaking won’t present an issue. Mondo is also rocking a tail and that’s connected via a ball hinge. There are no segments in the tail or a wire or anything so it’s pretty basic, but can be posed a bit. It’s also fairly short so it’s not the most useful third leg, but it can be utilized for added stability in certain poses.
The Mighty Mutanimals are nearly assembled with the addition of Mondo and it’s a natural way to display him, but…
Mondo Gecko is a solid release. The figure doesn’t possess much of a wow factor and part of that is due to it just being so similar to the toon figure and the vintage one, which has in recent years received an update via Super7. The articulation is okay and most of the accessories are solid. He’s not really the right shade of green, but I don’t think that’s really impacting my enjoyment of the figure at all. I do think he should have at least another head for those who aren’t crazy about the expression. I’m also surprised that the jaw isn’t hinged. This is definitely a figure for those who want to assemble the Mighty Mutanimals on their shelf. If you’re a more casual TMNT toy collector then you may feel like you’re covered when it comes to Mondo with one of the other releases.
…this also kind of rocks!
If this figure is to your liking and you want to add it to your TMNT Adventures collection then head to Target. There Mondo will run you $37. The figure is likely to see release at other retailers in the not too distant future as well. Adding Mondo means we’re just missing a proper Mutanimals Leatherhead as well as Wingnut. Once they’re out, the team is basically complete (some will claim they need Ninjara as well, but I don’t think of her as part of the core team) and I would imagine that NECA is already planning on a release for both. They may string us along a bit first, but I have faith that the full team will at long last be immortalized in plastic.
If TMNT Adventures is your thing then check out some of these reviews:
Back when Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles ruled the world, there was a lot of brand synergy between all of the various media being generated by this one mega popular piece of intellectual property. The comics came first followed by a toyline which necessitated the creation of an animated mini series to basically serve as a…
The next figure in NECA’s line based on the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Adventures comic series is a much anticipated one for fans of those books and its spin-off The Mighty Mutanimals. And that’s because this character is making his debut in plastic. Previously, we looked at Slash who has been pretty well-represented in some…
We’re almost done with all of these NECA Haulathon drops from March and up today is the last of the single-packed figures, the Mighty Mutanimal Dreadmon! Technically, he’s the third figure in NECA’s line of figures from the pages of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Adventures since he’s listed as number 3 on the box. However,…
We are rolling right along with more reviews of NECA’s TMNT Adventures line of action figures and we’re also staying within the realm of Stump Wrestling. When the turtles wound up in the intergalactic wrestling federation, they didn’t just encounter aliens, they also encountered an old foe. I don’t know how Leatherhead wound up as a wrestler in space when he debuted in the pages of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Adventures as just another Earth dwelling mutant, and I’m not sure I want to know. It’s more fun to imagine how such a thing happened, though I’m guessing it’s more or less in-line with how the turtles ended up doing the same. Either way, if you ever watched the old cartoon and thought that Leatherhead would make for a good pro wrestler then consider your wish granted.
“I’m tagging in, brother!”
Leatherhead comes via the new, massive, TMNT drop that NECA unleashed upon Target. I believe it was dubbed the Cowabunga Collection, but think of it as basically another Haulathon type of deal where a lot of stuff was released in a small window of time. Leatherhead was shipped in pretty substantial quantities and may even still be available online when this post goes live. If not, worry not as it’s expected that all of these Archie figures will see release across online retail spots at some point. It just may mean having to wait for a second production run or something. I think the figure has already been spotted at Walmart as well, along with some of the other non-toon releases that hit Target.
Here comes the fallaway slam!
Leatherhead is packaged in the standard Archie box with new artwork by comic artist Ken Mitchroney. The sculpt was handled by Tomasz Rozejowski and Kushwara Studios with paint by Geoff Trapp and Mike Puzzo. And right off the bat, I am confused. The artwork depicts Leatherhead with a bandana style black mask on. The figure features some black paint around the eyes, but there’s clearly no mask as there’s nothing wrapping around his head. Most of the interior artwork I’ve been able to find from the comics seems to include the mask. I found one cover, issue #13, which takes place a little later, but seems to include Leatherhead in his wrestling attire without a mask. I’m not enough of an expert to know what is correct, but if they’re commissioning artwork that includes a mask then I think the figure should as well. Maybe this is a cost saving measure to make it easier to do a Mutanimals Leatherhead later? Or maybe the factory was supposed to do a mask, either via paint or some sort of overlay, and it got missed? The top of his head is almost squared-off like you could put something there, but I don’t know.
Leatherhead stands at right around 6.25″ to the top of his head. This is a much shorter, squatter, Leatherhead than we’re used to seeing. The toon Leatherhead, by comparison, is around 7″ tall. This guy is really not much taller than the turtles with only a little more girth. Again, I don’t have comics to compare so I’m just going to assume that NECA got it right when it comes to scale for the Archie line. His attire is pretty simple compared with his usual getup. We have just some purple trunks with white stripes and wrestling boots that are in the same style as what we saw with Cryin’ Houn’. The exposed flesh is all textured with lots of little bumps and such and like most Leatherhead figures the tail comes detached in the box.
If a snake can master the DDT, then so can a gator!
Paint for Leatherhead is a little less intense than it may be on some other characters, but no less effective. Most of the body is a dark green with a slight blue hue to it. The chest and neck region is painted more of a lime green. There’s lots of black linework on the throat to highlight the scales and additional linework for some of the muscles and random scales here and there. The interior of the mouth is painted really well including black outlines at the base of the teeth. There’s a hit of orange for his big, bushy, eyebrows and the trunks and boots are all painted very cleanly. I basically have to hunt for paint blemishes on this figure and even then the only things I can find are a black line here and there that’s maybe just a bit too thick. It’s really an impressive paint application for a mass-produced figure like this.
Or perhaps you prefer the vertical suplex?
Wait! This gator can fly?!
And maybe that’s what makes him expensive, because it’s certainly not the plastic. Leatherhead doesn’t come with much in the box, just two extra sets of hands leaving us with fists, gripping, and open. Why does he have gripping hands? I don’t know because it’s certainly not to hold any included items because there are none. He only has the one portrait, which is a bit of a bummer since he seems to have a pretty expressive few panels in the comics. My criticism of this release is basically the same as Cryin’ Houn’ which is to say I think NECA could do better. They already have tooled some wrestling weapons, so why not stick them here? We could always use more chairs. A break-away table would have been pretty rad, even if no such thing took place in the books. Wrestling figures should be fun to design because of all or the shenanigans that can go on in and out of the squared-circle so it’s disappointing to not see NECA take advantage of suck.
At least he can manage a big boot.
Articulation for Leatherhead is not particularly impressive, though it’s not really a strength of the line either. He does have a double-ball peg for the head, but since it sits so low on the chest there’s not a lot he can do with it. He can look side to side okay as well as down. There’s a little range looking up, but the head has a tendency to pop off of the ball peg when doing so. The mouth does open and close which helps to make the figure a bit more expressive. Shoulders are simple ball hinges which rotate fine, but can’t quite raise out to a “T” pose or come all the way down at the sides of the figure. There is a biceps swivel as well as a swivel and single hinge at the elbow. Leatherhead can straighten his arms out there and just about hit a 90 degree bend. Wrists swivel and hinge horizontally.
Let’s get hardcore!
Oh! That’s gotta hurt!
In the torso, we get a big ball jointed diaphragm. It really doesn’t offer a whole lot. There’s a little tilt there and rotation, but forward and back articulation is so minimal that it’s hardly worth counting. There’s a standard waist twist below that and ball-jointed hips. There’s a little play on the hips as far as a thigh swivel goes, but mostly they kick forward pretty well, back a little, and out to the side. The crotch does feature a “diaper” overlay which will limit the range and keep Leatherhead from hitting a full split, but if you wanted to force the issue you could probably do so. The knees are poor, they’re pegged into the thighs and feature a hinge that maybe bends 45 degrees. The ankle hinges aren’t much better as he can’t go forward and back very far. The ankle rocker is fine. The tail connects via a peg and hinge so it will move up and down and rotate. It also has a heavy gauge wire running through it for a little extra poseability, but it’s a thick tail so don’t expect much.
“And the crowd, angered at the victory, rains debris upon the champ.”
Leatherhead, by virtue of NECA knocking it out of the park with some of their other figures in the line, comes across a little ho-hum. This is a figure for those who have an attachment to the character from this era or for those who just really want to fill out their wrestling TMNT display. The character design isn’t particularly eye-catching and the subpar articulation and lack of accessories reduces the potential fun factor here. Aside from the mask component, the figure is a nice representation of this version of Leatherhead and it’s not the fault of the figure that the design isn’t more elaborate. I am curious to hear what dedicated TMNT Adventures fans think of this release and how well it represents the source material, particularly when it comes to scale. For me, I waffled on weather or not to get this one ultimately deciding to just because there figures to only be a handful of wrestling characters (Ace Duck is coming in 2025) and I want my wrestling turtles to have some foes. At the MSRP of $37, I definitely wouldn’t blame those who just don’t see enough value in the box to take the plunge on Leatherhead.
We have more from NECA’s line of TMNT Adventures if you’re looking at starting a collection or adding to one:
I’ve said it before and I’ll probably say it again, but no toy collector enjoys hearing the phrase “Walmart Exclusive.” Such was the case for today’s figure, and many others, around the time of San Diego Comic Con. Walmart had their own collector con which is just a marketing way to say that a bunch…
When I was a kid, I didn’t really get a lot of comic books. I most often would encounter them at the grocery store and I always hoped my mom would end up in the check-out aisle with the comics instead of candy so I could maybe convince her to get me one. And when…
As NECA continues to find success with its Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles lines of action figures, the company has sought to branch out beyond the usual source material in an effort to give collectors more of what they want and also likely to just keep the hype train rolling. NECA started first with doing figures…
Can the turtles hope to withstand the might of Cryin’ Houn’?!
I’ve said it before and I’ll probably say it again, but no toy collector enjoys hearing the phrase “Walmart Exclusive.” Such was the case for today’s figure, and many others, around the time of San Diego Comic Con. Walmart had their own collector con which is just a marketing way to say that a bunch of exclusives and first run figures would be made available on their website. It got off to a rocky start as the listings went up hours before they were supposed to causing them to switch to “Sold Out.” Naturally, a lot of people took to social media to vent their frustrations, but when the actual, intended, sale time came all of those items went back up. All in all, it actually ended up being fairly smooth with lots of actual exclusives lasting into the weekend. Some even beyond that! I personally wasn’t after much, but one figure I did want to get was NECA’s take on Cryin’ Houn’, an intergalactic four-armed dog from the pages of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Adventures. He wasn’t a true exclusive, just a first available type of deal (you can now buy the figure at Target as well as Walmart), so I wouldn’t have been bothered much had I missed out. I didn’t though, and since we have now examined the Stump Wrestling turtles, it’s time to look at their chief rival in the squared circle.
He’s not so much tall as he is chunky when compared to other figures in the line.
And we’ll throw in a comparison with a pretty standard sized Marvel Legends figure and a 1:10 Super7 figure.
Cryin’ Houn’ debuted in issue number seven of the Archie TMNT Adventures line of comics. I’ve never actually read the issue (I know, I need to get on that), but I’ve been familiar with the character for a long time since the cover image is pretty iconic for the line. Cryin’ Houn’ took on all four members of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles at the same time because he has four arms. Never mind that collectively the turtles have eight, but we’ll go with it. The TMNT wiki website has him listed at 7′ 16″ which I don’t know if that’s a typo or a goof on how wrestlers overstate their height routinely. He’s also listed at 275lbs so if this beast is really over eight feet tall then he’s actually a bit light for his size. Especially considering how bulky he is.
The sledgehammer is probably a sound strategy, Michelangelo.
Cryin’ Houn’ comes in the standard TMNT Adventures box with new artwork from Ken Mitchroney, only the box is noticeably larger than most. It’s probably similar in size to the Man Ray box, but deeper. Cryin’ Houn’ was sculpted by Tony Cipriano with Kushwara Studios also credited. I need to find out what the role of Kushwara is in the sculpt, I’m guessing they’re responsible for creating the physical sculpt from a digital file created by the sculptor, but I don’t know that for certain. Paint is credited to Geoff Trapp and Mike Puzzo.
A super kick, on the other hand, doesn’t seem to phase him.
Nor does whatever this is by Raphael.
Cryin’ Houn’ follows the apparent rules of this subline of TMNT figures from NECA. He stands at approximately 7.125″ to the top of his head and about 7.5″ to the top of what I assume are his ears. Cryin’ Houn’ is a dog-like creature that would look at home among the Beagle Boys of the Disney comics, save for the whole four-armed thing. He’s painted all over with liberal use of black lines near his muscles and in the folds of his wrestling uniform. I like the contrasting colors as his flesh, or fur (there’s no fur texture), is a muted brown while the uniform is a bright pink with purple striping. The black and white wrestling boots look nice and he has a logo on his abdominal region that appears to be a skeletal cat. His eyes are outlined all in black which helps them stand out and his face is sporting a cocky smirk. The paint is all really clean with the only problem area being right where the boots meet the calves. It’s very minimal though. I also have a dot of light brown around the chin that’s barely noticeable. Unlike the turtles, this figure does feature pins in the knee, but NECA painted over the pins so they don’t stand out so bad.
A chop block? That seems more likely to work.
Cryin’ Houn’ is a chunky sculpt. He is heavy in the hand and quite a bit of fun to behold. And it’s important that you like the sculpt because it’s the main selling point. He’s not a figure that does much or comes with a lot. The articulation is very basic and also pretty limited. The head is on a double ball joint, but this is one of those characters where the neck is basically coming out of the top of the chest as opposed to sitting on top of the body. That means he can look side to side well enough, but he can’t really look up or down much. And the tilt afforded by the joint isn’t the most useful. He does indeed possess four arms and all four are attached to the body by a simple hinged ball. Rotation is fine at all four shoulders, but the hinge range is maybe 45 degrees at all four spots. There is no biceps swivel and all of the elbows are a simple pegged hinge. Because of how the back of the elbow is sculpted, the figure can’t quite straighten its arms out all the way, but the elbow hinge will allow for a 90 degree bend. And since it’s a peg, there’s a swivel there as well, but the cut of the joint isn’t the prettiest so the swivel has limited use. All of the hands rotate and feature a standard horizontal hinge.
Oh but it didn’t. Now Cryin’ Houn’ has poor Donatello setup for the Doggy Bomb.
The torso does feature some kind of ball joint in the diaphragm, but it’s of limited use. The singlet the character is wearing was done with an overlay so there’s no cut going through it. Forward and back at the joint is functionally useless and really it just provides for a minor amount of rotation, though the singlet will raise up when doing so and might not be as visually appealing. If there’s a waist joint it’s rendered totally useless by the overlay. The hips connect via a ball and socket joint and since the character design here calls for a huge upper body with comparatively tiny legs, the range is pretty limited. He kicks back a little, and forward just a little. I don’t think he can even kick 45 degrees forward. The legs will go out to the side a bit, but not enough for splits. There is a little twist at the thigh for adjustment posing. The knees are double-jointed, but they’re only going to bend about 90 degrees. The ankles are one of the few places not compromised by the sculpt as they’ll hinge forward and back a generous amount with a solid ankle rocker.
The impact was brutal, but at least our turtle friend has a sense of humor about it.
Cryin’ Houn’ is not going to do much on your shelf beside stand there and look imposing. As such, he’s like a true monster wrestler, the sort of big man that really didn’t do a whole lot in the ring either. He’s meant to remain vertical when going on the offensive with punches, elbows, some eye pokes, and little else. He can’t even get his leg up for an effective big boot and his arms can’t cross his chest at all so no chokeslams. I guess he can do a one-handed chokeslam. He’s also not designed to take abuse either so he’s basically one of those big guys who doesn’t sell his opponent’s offense. A tough draw for the turtles.
Now he’s just showboating.
If you were looking for Cryin’ Houn’ to feature some accessories to make up for the lack of articulation, well then I’m afraid you’re going to be let down again. This figure just comes with some alternate hands. In total, he has a set of open hands, fists, clenching hands, hang 10 hands, and a lone devil horns hand and an “Ok” hand. I would have liked to have seen some pointing hands or maybe even thumb’s up hands, but otherwise I’m fine with the selection. What I really miss is an alternate portrait. An angry one would have been nice for when he’s engaged with an opponent or something fun like a portrait with swirling eyes in case you want him on your shelf getting obliterated by a steel chair. Mostly though, I wish we got some more wrestling accessories. How about a championship belt? If one didn’t exist in the pages on Archie comics then another chair would have been nice. Some different refuse for the ring like what the turtles came with, a ring mic, or just some other kind of wrestling weapon. Only hands is just a bit of a letdown.
When all else fails, hit him with the chair!
And that letdown stems in part from the list price of this guy. Cryin’ Houn’ will set you back 50 bucks which is pretty steep. That’s close to the price of a NECA TMNT two-pack. Is there a two-pack’s worth of value in this box? Certainly not. There’s a lot less in the package than what came with a figure like REX-1 and this one is set to be sold in more places than that figure. Plus, just like REX-1, NECA already has plans to reuse the tools created for this figure to do an El Mysterio, a masked version of Cryin’ Houn’ who showed up later in the comics.
Now that’s more like it!
At the end of the day, I don’t have any real insight into the economics of toy production. I can only judge a product like this one against others being sold by NECA or by other toy companies. And that comparison has this figure coming up short. Given the articulation limits and the lack of accessories, Cryin’ Houn’ is a tough recommend at 50 bucks. And that’s coming from someone who is content to own this figure. I think he’ll look good in my makeshift ring display with the other Stump characters, I just wish I didn’t have to pay 50 bucks to add him to the collection.
I may need a bigger “ring.”
We have plenty more reviews from NECA’s TMNT Adventures line of toys:
When I was a kid, I didn’t really get a lot of comic books. I most often would encounter them at the grocery store and I always hoped my mom would end up in the check-out aisle with the comics instead of candy so I could maybe convince her to get me one. And when…
Back when Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles ruled the world, there was a lot of brand synergy between all of the various media being generated by this one mega popular piece of intellectual property. The comics came first followed by a toyline which necessitated the creation of an animated mini series to basically serve as a…
We’re almost done with all of these NECA Haulathon drops from March and up today is the last of the single-packed figures, the Mighty Mutanimal Dreadmon! Technically, he’s the third figure in NECA’s line of figures from the pages of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Adventures since he’s listed as number 3 on the box. However,…
When I was a kid, I didn’t really get a lot of comic books. I most often would encounter them at the grocery store and I always hoped my mom would end up in the check-out aisle with the comics instead of candy so I could maybe convince her to get me one. And when I was a kid, we also had an old hunting camp in my family for hunting and fishing. It was purchased by my great grandfather in the 1940s and it was basically a two-room dwelling not much better than a shack, but I was a kid and liked smelly, dirty, places where I could pee off the porch so it was awesome! My dad would take me up on occasion and when he would it often meant stopping at a convenience store where I was allowed to pick out snacks and such. On one occasion, my dad let me get a comic book too and I selected TMNT Adventures #10. Being that I wasn’t a comic reader, I was really confused when I opened it up and saw Raph in an all black costume. It would be years later that I would find out this costume was a wrestling costume the character just chose to keep wearing. It was cool though and something I wanted in toy form almost immediately.
These new Archie turtles share nothing in common with the toon line.
Last summer, NECA unveiled their take on the Stump Wrestling turtles from the pages of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Adventures. They looked great even though they were just early paint masters. No articulation, just sculpts and paint. At the time of showing, I wanted them and figured it wouldn’t be too long, but that wait turned into 13 months. Now hitting Targets, this four-pack features all four turtles from issue 7 in their wrestling attire. No surprise, they look great, but they also feature some surprises too.
Check it out, dudes, new shells!
I think when NECA started wading into the Archie universe most assumed the turtles would come and when they did they would feature some similarities with the cartoon turtles. We were wrong. These first Archie turtles are entirely new sculpts. Nothing has been recycled from those cartoon turtles which are coming up on being ten years old going back to their original release. They have featured some modifications along the way, but it’s always fun to get new stuff. Especially as NECA seems more interested in wading into more stylized interpretations of the licenses they hold. These turtles, which are based on the artwork of Ken Mitchroney (who also supplied art for the box), look like they stepped right off the page. Assuming, of course, that page was illustrated by Mitchroney. Other artists worked on the book and while they all went for a toon aesthetic, they also all had their own signature look. I love Mitchroney’s work so these look terrific to me and the paint applications (credited to Geoff Trapp and Mike Puzzo) really bring them to life.
“This is some bullshit right here, turtle!”
For these new Archie turtles, NECA turned to the team of Tony Cipriano, Tomasz Rozejowski, and Kushwara Studios to craft the sculpt. That’s a pretty big deal for all involved because these figures will likely be repeated again and again for other versions of the characters. In comparing them to the toon figures, these Archie ones are noticeably chunkier. They stand right around 5.75″ which makes them just a hair taller than the original toon figures. What stands out more is that the proportions are different as they have bigger hands and feet than the toon figures. The headshape is different and the shell is very different. There is more of a horizontal approach to the panels on the shell where the toon guys have a shell composed around a center hexagon. The plastron doesn’t have that little, center, diamond and the limbs are also thicker. I like the toon turtles, but these new Archie figures probably do a better job of really capturing the style of the source material. They’re just fun to look at, and it doesn’t hurt that they have some pretty interesting attire.
“He’s got evil intentions with that sledgehammer!”
But wait! There’s more! This may be a detail more interesting for characters going forward, but NECA is making some engineering changes on their end in a lot of the waves they work on. And as far as I know, these new turtles are just the start. These figures are pin-less at the elbows and knees which also means these turtles also feature double-jointed elbows, something the toon turtles lack. Pin-less joints have become something that toy collectors pay a lot more attention to these days as Hasbro made it a selling point of their Marvel Legends line. Most import companies have been doing them a lot longer. They’re technically not pin-less, the pins just aren’t visible which is the whole point. For me personally, I don’t care that much as long as the visible portion of the pin doesn’t create an eyesore. For Hasbro, that happened a lot with Spider-Man as the outer arm and inner arm are different colors which meant the pin was often red giving him a red dot in the middle of a sea of blue. With the turtles, it’s never been an issue since they’re green so the pin could be green. Pin-less joints can also create an eyesore all their own because the joining piece for the knees and elbows is often cast in a firmer plastic which can lead to discoloration. With these figures, it’s fine and this may be less an issue with NECA since they paint everything. Hasbro does not, so it’s not uncommon to end up with shiny knees or elbows that are a different color from the rest of the arm.
Yes, that is Donatello on the left.
This post is already getting long so let’s get into it since we have four figures to talk about. To no one’s surprise, the base figure is essentially the same across all four turtles with only minor differences. They have different overlays and heads and share most of the accessories as well. It’s also a fun set to show someone who is not familiar with this version of the turtles because they may have a hard time figuring out who is who. Donatello is especially confusing since he’s wearing a mask that’s mostly red with some yellow. His knee pads and elbow pads are also yellow and if you were playing arcade games in the 80s then you know Michelangelo often ended up being yellow for some reason. Leonardo and Michelangelo feature their signature colors while Raph is in his all-black. The all-black looks really cool as it’s a matte finish with blue highlights. The paint across all four is really clean. The only issues I have is Michelangelo has a green dot on the wraps of his right forearm and there’s a little bit of paint rub/stick around Leonardo’s knees related to the kneepads he has on.
These guys are going to pose better than any of your other NECA turtles.
We’ll talk articulation now and my demo figure for this is going to be Raph because he’s essentially a blank body. The others have some impediments, but stuff like Leo’s shoulder pads is designed to move out of the way, but there’s no denying that Raph is going to have the absolute most range because he’s basically naked. The head is on a double ball peg with a ball joint at the base of neck. This gives you basically all of the range you could want at the head. Going back, the head will eventually hit the shell, but they’re still capable of looking up. The shoulders and hips are the same as the toons and have about the same range as well. The new double-jointed elbows look solid and will bend past 90 degrees. Not way past, but it’s an improvement. There is a diaphragm joint and the plastron is glued in around the pectoral region so the bottom will move out of the way. This mostly allows for rotation, but there is a little crunch forward and back. The other joints work as expected. Some of the knees and elbows will probably be stuck at one hinge or another, but I was able to free them all up without heat. The figures feel sturdy.
I guess you have to have a ring bell and fire extinguisher.
A box set of turtles styled around pro wrestling should lend itself well to accessories. For starters, we get some hands. All of the turtles come with gripping hands by default which, unfortunately, have horizontal hinges. For the brothers in green, we get a set of pointing hands, thumb’s up hands, flat hands, and wider gripping hands. For Raph, he has some open, style posed hands and a set of fists. We also get some things for the characters to wield. Up first is a sledgehammer which looks like a sledgehammer. There’s a fire extinguisher that appears to be a new sculpt when compared with past fire extinguishers (we’ve had a few at this point across various lines). The nozzle is hard plastic so it sadly can’t be articulated, but it looks fine. There’s also an ice cream cone, a can of not Pepsi, and a red cup with a straw. I guess this is stuff for the audience to throw at the boys in displeasure?
Lining him up…
Two items that are very much in the world of pro wrestling include the ring bell and a chair. The ring bell features a little dinosaur guy who I assume is the one who strikes the bell in the comic. It’s a very Flintstones-esque design. He doesn’t move or anything so it’s more for show. The folding chair is definitely more of a true weapon. It can open and close if your turtles need a seat, but it’s better utilized as a weapon. It’s a worthy addition and by far the best accessory of the bunch. Of note is what’s not included which would be the signature weapons of the turtles themselves. The larger hands mean that the older weapons from the toon line won’t work quite as well here, but I assume NECA is just delaying a set of Archie weapons until they do more generic turtles. I really only miss them with Raph since he would wear this costume for several issues so a set of sai would have been nice. An alternate portrait for each turtle would have been nice too.
Good God, almighty!
Which takes us to probably the only major negative here – the price. This set retails for $150 at Target. Based on how last year’s Mirage Turtles were sold, it’s entirely possible these guys get broken up into single releases for a wider distribution. Though given that they’re variants, maybe they won’t? I’ve often said that NECA puts a “Turtle Tax” on all of their actual turtle figures. Two-packs typically cost between $55-$60 and single, “ultimate,” releases are hovering around $36 now. The Pizza Club single toon turtles were priced at $38 and included less stuff than a typical ultimate figure. This is now the fourth or fifth four-pack to go for $150 so it’s not a surprise anymore, but it’s a bit of a bummer that these things seem to be coming with less and less.
This Stump Wrestling mini-universe is going to get even bigger!
If the price doesn’t bother you then I can give these figures a hearty recommend. I am having a lot of fun with them in a way I never did with the toon ones. They’re just fun to hold and pose. NECA is also really building out this Stump Wrestling setting with a lot of characters so these guys figure to occupy a space in one’s collection all their own. If you like turtles and have ever been amused by the world of pro wrestling then you’ll probably like these whether you read the comics or not. I’m pretty much all-in and this Archie subline is becoming my new favorite so expect plenty more from me.
Here’s more from the world of NECA and TMNT Adventures:
The next figure in NECA’s line based on the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Adventures comic series is a much anticipated one for fans of those books and its spin-off The Mighty Mutanimals. And that’s because this character is making his debut in plastic. Previously, we looked at Slash who has been pretty well-represented in some…
Back when Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles ruled the world, there was a lot of brand synergy between all of the various media being generated by this one mega popular piece of intellectual property. The comics came first followed by a toyline which necessitated the creation of an animated mini series to basically serve as a…
We’re almost done with all of these NECA Haulathon drops from March and up today is the last of the single-packed figures, the Mighty Mutanimal Dreadmon! Technically, he’s the third figure in NECA’s line of figures from the pages of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Adventures since he’s listed as number 3 on the box. However,…
Late in 2023, Super7 started shipping the ninth wave of its line of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Ultimates! action figures. I bought none. It was a wave with no compelling characters for me as it contained Slam Dunkin’ Donatello, Scumbug, Wingnut & Screwloose, Zak the Neutrino, and a flocked Master Splinter variant. Scumbug had been on my list of wants from the line, but when NECA released their version of the character in its TMNT Animated line it scratched that itch since the character model was practically a 1:1 recreation of the vintage action figure. Wingnut was tempting, but Super7 wanted $75 for the figure and that was too rich for my blood. The rest I had little to no interest in. The Slam Dunkin’ Donatello even irritated me by simply existing since it was Super7 starting yet another variant line of turtles without finishing any of the ones they had already started to begin with (the disguise turtles and the music ones). Eventually, I would happen upon these figures in my travels at local comic book stores and I was really impressed with Wingnut, in particular, just not enough to meet the asking price of Super7 (or the comic book store markup on top of that) so I played the waiting game. I was okay if I never got the figure, and if it ever did get marked down then I’d be happy to pounce. That day finally came via Amazon, and while their discounted price only amounted to around 12 dollars, it was enough for me.
I no longer have the vintage version of this duo so this comparison with NECA will have to do.
The ninth wave of TMNT Ultimates! is the last to make use of the traditional slipcover style packaging, if that matters to you. Wingnut gets the green slipcover with his own, custom, manhole decal on the front and the figure is presented in a window box behind it. Thankfully, I’m an opener because my Screwloose was not secured in the plastic bubble and flopping around inside. If you only remember Wingnut from the cartoon, then you’re probably surprised to see he gets the green “Good Guy” slipcover instead of the villainous purple one. According to the lore of the original Playmates figure, Wingnut is indeed a good guy alien who has a vendetta against Krang. The character is best known as a member of Archie’s Mighty Mutanimals comic book series where Wingnut is a hero. He actually first debuted in Ralston-Purina cereal comics where he was indeed a villain and not aligned with Screwloose. His creation is credited to Ryan Brown and in basically every iteration of the character he’s a Batman parody of some kind and the design that would become the Playmates toy very much drives that point home.
Wingnut is pretty big, but in more a chunky sense like the previously released Muckman.
I don’t think anyone outside of Super7 or Viacom knows what the true constraints of this line are, but it’s nice to see that Wingnut is, more or less, a recreation of the vintage toy. Super7 has acknowledged that Playmates has expressed frustrations with the company essentially copying their figures for their Ultimates! line and Viacom has acquiesced to those concerns. As best as we know, Super7 can no longer recreate those old toys if that’s the only way they’ve existed. That’s basically a mandate from Viacom, legally it would appear Playmates doesn’t have a ton of standing, as we saw when the fans roundly rejected the Super7 Rat King concept solicited for Wave 10. Super7 was able to leverage those complaints with Viacom to get permission to more closely design their version of the character to match the vintage toy. And with the music turtles, it would seem those designs were used for some stickers and other ephemera back in the day and that’s enough to give Super7 access to those. With Wingnut, I’m not sure where this design comes from. He looked quite different in both Archie and the Ralston-Purina comic, but given he was a somewhat popular action figure it wouldn’t shock me if he showed up elsewhere. Maybe the cartoon featuring a near spot-on likeness to the figure is enough even if the toon is NECA’s domain.
When the wings don’t work you make them work.
Whatever the reason, I’m happy to see this approach to Wingnut taken by Super7. I think fans want to see a lot of those Playmates features incorporated into the same characters released in this line, just bigger, more detailed, and more painted. Like most of the old toys, I no longer have my original Wingnut. I suppose I could have purchased the somewhat recent reissue, but those can’t be trusted as Playmates often omits accessories and skimps on paint. From what I remember, this figure embodies a lot of the same features. He has his tongue sticking out, the belly of the shirt is ripped open, his tiny wings are incorporated into the mechanical features, and he has a gaudy, bat-head, belt buckle. The costume is clearly inspired by the classic Batman costume with a gray body suit and blue cowl, gloves, and boots. He’s only different in that he has some armored bits on his shoulders, biceps, and thighs. His fingers and toes are also exposed and then, of course, there’s the wings.
“You better have a good lawyer.”
The base figure isn’t changed much from the Playmates release save for the addition of the cape. That was basically the one missing ingredient from the Batman parody, but perhaps no one felt the cape was necessary back then because he had actual wings. Super7 included a blue cape with “W” logo buckles that connects to the shoulder pads. It’s tattered and torn to match with the aesthetic of the figure as a whole and it is a really nice addition. It provides for display options as you can include it with or without the wings and really lean hard into the Batman parody. There’s also a secondary portrait that’s also more Batman inspired as it features a closed mouth and whited-out eyes rimmed with black paint. It’s a good look for the character and it’s reminiscent of the actual turtle releases in this line which featured vintage-inspired heads as well as new interpretations that work just as well. Options are certainly nice to have, especially at this price point.
Wingnut will look pretty big mixed in with the turtles.
Super7 charges a premium for this figure likely because of its size and paint. In terms of height, Wingnut is around 7″ to the top of his head and around 7.75″ to the tips of his ears. He’s one of those characters that’s always hunched over though so he’s taller than the figure stands. He’s also long-limbed and the wings add considerable depth and width to the display giving him a rather imposing presence on the shelf even beside other larger figures. He’s most similar to Muckman as they both have poor posture, but also feature a ton of paint. There’s a nice Kevlar-like texture to a lot of the armored portions of the costume and all of the straps and panels are well painted. The facial details are also clean and there’s a nice gloss applied to the exposed gums and tongue of the default portrait. The tiny, atrophied, wings are painted brown with a black wash over them to distinguish them from the metallic, armored, portions. The “W” logo in the chest is a painted feature too where as the vintage figure came with stickers. The only disappointing aspect of the paint concerns the belt. Super7 has a bad habit of only partially painting certain features of its toys. Some of the gear that’s part of the belt’s sculpt (dynamite, walkie-talkie, flashlight) have been painted and painted very well and look great. Other items, basically most of the stuff on the rear of the belt, were left bare plastic. They come so close to giving us what we want, but then step back from the edge.
Those details at least aren’t enough to ruin what is otherwise a terrific displaying action figure. And it’s certainly true that Super7 leans more into that display than it does articulation. Wingnut is pretty basic for a modern action figure in that regard and his somewhat unusual shape won’t lend itself well to posing. We do get a ball-jointed neck with a double-ball peg for the heads. This lets him swing his head left and right pretty well with some up and down and then the head joint provides for even more range. I don’t think it works as well as it does with Muckman, the ball joint is situated a little too deep in the neck and is prone to popping off, but it’s solid. The shoulder hinges provide surprisingly good range given the shoulder pads and the single-jointed elbows will provide swivel and a 90 degree bend. There is a ball joint at the waist which allows for a little tilt in all directions and plenty of swivel, but it’s in the legs where sacrifices are made. The Super7 standard hinged-peg hips go out to the side plenty far, but are very limited going forward and back. Because his neutral pose features bended knees, there’s little play there as well. Basically, he can crouch or go into a deeper crouch. The ankles hinge forward, but going back they’ll bump up against the dewclaws. The ankle rocker works fine as do the thigh and knee swivels but this is a figure that’s designed to basically have its legs in only one pose only allowing for minor adjustments. He also has a tail which is on a ball peg that mostly rotates. The wings are on hinged pegs so they move up and down as well as in and out some. The cape is also wired and can be posed fairly well.
Does a winged guy really need a grappling hook?
I don’t think anyone will be surprised by the articulation of Wingnut. He’s not exactly a joy to pose, but it’s also not hard to find a pose that looks good. The various spikes and such can make it a painful exercise though and there is a fiddly nature to the figure. The wings pop off rather easily and can become cumbersome when trying to find a good pose. The inner wing on my figure’s right wing is also prone to popping off the peg it’s on which is really annoying. You can essentially remove the armored parts of the wings if you want to as it’s just that peg and a plastic clasp that holds them on. I’ll never do that though so I’m tempted to glue the inner wing to the armor instead. The cape also pops off way too easily as it just pegs through some clasps on the armor. It’s not a tight fit at all and the cape basically just rests in those ports. The head also comes off too easily when trying to pose it. At the same time, at least nothing is getting stressed and looks like it will break. Most of the joints are tight without being overly so. The only exception are those damn Super7 hips. I wouldn’t call Wingnut loose there, but he’s looser than I’d like. He stands fine though and I credit that to his massive feet.
He’s got a few toys and can store most of them on his person too.
Where this figure improves upon Muckman (and is perhaps where it tries to justify its value) is with its accessories. I already mentioned the two portraits, the optional wings and cape, but he also has weapons and some additional hands. For said hands we get a set of fists, open hands, a trigger finger right hand, and a pointing/gripping left hand. The two gripping hands feature vertical wrist hinges which is certainly appreciated. The trigger right hand works well with Wingnut’s gas gun. If you’re going to be a Batman knock-off, then you need a means of firing a grappling hook (even if you’re a character with wings). The gun itself looks like a stylized revolver with a W logo on one side and a bat head over the muzzle. Wingnut holds it well, or it can be pegged onto one of his wings. There’s an included grappling hook which slots into the muzzle, but no included rope or blast effect to capture it in a mid-firing pose. It’s done up all in a nice, metallic, silver. Wingnut also has his own “Batarang” which looks like an actual bat. As a kid, I never knew if this was supposed to be a metallic weapon or just a dead bat he throws at people. Super7 chromed it up so it’s clearly a weapon as opposed to something morbid. The pointing or trigger hand work okay to hold this one or you can wedge it between the fingers of the open hands. Sadly, there’s no way to peg it to the wings or utility belt. I guess you could stuff it in-between the belt and figure, but it’s pretty big and looks a bit silly.
Also included are more vintage-inspired accessories. There are four grenades that are all silver like the other weapons. Wingnut can palm them or store them on either his belt or wings. The canisters feature peg holes and there’s one peg on each wing. He also has two open loops on his belt for storage. I’m left wishing he just had four loops, but it’s all right. Lastly, he has his trusty radar dish. Does his own inner radar not work very well? It’s silver and looks almost like a repurposed colander. There is a bit of red paint on the tip. It has a long post, or handle, which Wingnut can’t hold very well. Both wings feature shallow holes though and they can accommodate this dish to a point. It will stay, but the slightest breeze will knock it out. I wish they gave us one wing hole that just went all the way through for a more secure attachment as it certainly feels like this is an item meant to go on his wings.
And who could forget dear mosquito boy?
Of course, we can’t end this review without talking about the other figure in the box – Wingnut’s trusty sidekick Screwloose! I think Wingnut was the first figure in the original line that I got that came with a little buddy character. Lots of figures would follow with the little guys always being a slug figure that was one color. Now, through the magic of Super7, we get to see Screwloose all painted up. Which is to say he looks a lot like his cartoon version, only with one obvious distinction. First of all, Screwloose stands a shade under 4″ and like his vintage counterpart he’s molded in yellow. His tank top has been painted orange and his pants green while his shoes are black. It’s, more or less, a Robin color scheme which is driven home by the inclusion of a black domino mask. I wish I had my old figure as I can’t remember if that had a sculpted mask or not on it. I want to say it did and it was something I noticed after I had owned the figure a long time making it a sort of “Eureka!” moment where it finally clicked that he was a Robin parody. The painted details are done well, including the eyes, teeth, and tongue. I think the exposed limbs could have used a wash or something to liven them up, but he looks fine.
Where Screwloose isn’t much of an improvement over the old one is with the articulation. He has some, so by default it’s better, but I think Super7 could have done a little better considering this guy is presumably part of the reason why this figure costs 20 dollars more than most. The head is likely on a big, ball, socket, but it can only rotate a little. Each of the four arms are on hinged pegs which move okay while the tail just swivels. The wings, done with transparent plastic, attach to ball sockets and really only swivel. Try to move them out from the body any and they’re likely to just pop off. There’s no articulation in the body of the figure itself, including the legs. His legs are preposed like the vintage figure and he can at least stand fine, but that’s it. He can’t do any flying poses and since the wrists aren’t articulated you can’t swap hands. This is annoying because his lower, right, arm is in a pointing gesture and I’d love to move that hand to the upper arm. I suppose I could try to pull the arms out at the shoulder socket, but I also don’t want to break it. As an accessory, Screwloose is fine. As a figure, he’s rather poor. If he could at least get into a flying pose I’d have been more than content.
This franchise loves Batman parodies.
In terms of visual quality, Wingnut and Screwloose are among Super7’s best. The paint is exceptional and they nailed the look of both characters. There’s a lot of the vintage toy here and a lot of it has been improved upon through both the sculpt and paint. There’s also a little new and what’s been added is just as good and gives the figure multiple display options. Really, the only true downside with this figure is the price. Asking $75 is just too much, especially with the hit or miss approach Super7 has had of late across its lines. Super7’s business model is heavily dependent on preorders, but they haven’t earned that level of trust to commit to pay sight unseen. If money isn’t a deterrent, then I think you’ll like this figure. There’s very little not to like. If the price is a turn-off, then maybe do what I did and wait for a sale. This wave is already seeing some discounting (especially Scumbug who was down in the 30’s off an inflated MSRP of $65) so keep your eyes peeled. I think if you can get this down closer to the standard price of the line then it’s definitely worth it. I feel fine paying around $62 for it and I’m happy to have it as I liked the vintage toy. Hopefully Super7 is able to continue making vintage-inspired figures because it would be a shame if this guy represents an end of an era for the line.
If you want to check out more Ultimates! or TMNT stuff there’s certainly plenty of that around here:
Gross. That’s the word I hear all of the time associated with the vintage Playmates Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles line of action figures. Back then, articulation was kept pretty simple and this allowed studios like Varner to go nuts with sculpting. They could include all kinds of details in their figures. Sure, much of it…
For most fans of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles from the 1980s, you reside in two camps when it comes to how certain characters are remembered: either from the cartoon/comics, or from the Playmates toy line. For Wingnut and Screwloose, I suspect most associate them with the action figure, but there are those who think…
It’s been over 9 months since I last reviewed a figure from Super7’s line of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles action figures. That figure was Muckman, and I actually waited on that one a little while because I ordered through Big Bad Toy Store and wanted my pile of loot to fill up a bit. Had…
We’re almost done with all of these NECA Haulathon drops from March and up today is the last of the single-packed figures, the Mighty Mutanimal Dreadmon! Technically, he’s the third figure in NECA’s line of figures from the pages of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Adventures since he’s listed as number 3 on the box. However, Dreadmon was the most recent to actually hit stores as Man Ray and the actual number 4 figure Jagwar were released on the first weekend with Dreadmon following a week later. I don’t know why they shipped out of order, but it hardly matters in the end. Like Jagwar, this is Dreadmon’s first go at plastic. I could not confirm if he started off as action figure concept art like Jagwar did, but like Jagwar, Dreadmon has basically only existed in comic form. He started off with Archie in issue #15 in an adventure where the turtles and Jagwar encounter him and he’s also made the jump to IDW, albeit with a pretty substantial redesign. As another member of The Mighty Mutanimals, Dreadmon continues to put us on the path to one day assembling the full team which is something a lot of fans have been dreaming about for 30 years now.
Dreadmon comes in the same style box as Jagwar featuring new artwork from Ken Mitchroney, who was also the illustrator for Dreadmon’s debut issue. Out of the box, Dreadmon stands around 6″ to where his head most likely would end and 6.75″ to the highest point of his mane. I’m measuring him with his legs bent slightly as he’s intended to be posed, but you could possibly get him a little taller, or shorter, depending on how you position the legs as he’s one of those characters that really stands on his toes. As for what he is, he appears to be some sort of wolf man. The newer version of the character has clearly landed on jackal, but wolf seems fine for this version. Like Jagwar, he’s not a mutant and is actually a thief who was magically turned into this beast by a talisman. He’s of South African descent and his family escaped apartheid to Jamaica where a young version of Dreadmon became a street thief before eventually turning a corner after his encounter with the good guys. Even though the Archie books always had a reputation for being like kid version of the more serious Mirage comics, it’s pretty cool how a lot of the characters born within those books have a pretty mature backstory.
These two share quite a few parts. And a love of fruit.
Dreadmon is a character with a pretty neat design. He has a wild mane of hair on top of his black face that is supposed to be dreadlocked. There’s some evidence of that where the hair is twisted and slid through tiny skulls two of which hand over his shoulders with three more on the back of the head. There’s a lot of black linework in the hair to add some character while the sculpted texture looks more like thick fur to me. There’s even a curve to the back of the mane and from the side it looks a little spiky giving me images of Sonic the Hedgehog as I look at him. The ears and face are black with the nose and inner ear painted purple. It’s a fun look and the paint is really clean. The inner portion of his mouth is also painted and looks clean. For his attire, I’m not really sure what he’s wearing. He’s got this black tank top and a three-ringed necklace. Unlike a lot of figures from NECA, the torso clothing appears to be part of the sculpt instead of an overlay. He has a belt that looks like it’s wooden slates bound together by hemp rope and there’s a purple skirt sticking out below that. I’m not sure if it’s supposed to be an actual skirt or was conceived as the end of a tunic, but it’s essentially a skirt and I think he pulls it off.
Obligatory scale shot – I’d say he looks fine.
A lot of the body outside of the torso on this guy is actually shared with Jagwar. The shoulders, biceps, hands, and thighs are the same which is fine. They don’t need to be different and this sort of reuse is what companies should be doing to keep costs down. And the parts are well-sculpted with a fur texture applied and they’re painted a matte brown. There’s also some black lines applied here and there and it’s a nice touch. The forearms are unique so that Dreadmon can have tufts of fur which are done in a redder brown to match his mane. He has some black spots there as well and there’s some on his thighs too. The lower legs had to be different to accommodate his canine feet so the calf is shorter because the foot is longer with a hinge in the center of it. He stands on his toes, though if you wanted to you could flatten the feet and stand him that way, but it looks pretty silly. He does have a tail which is a unique sculpt and it’s a bushy one the color of which matches the mane and there’s some linework applied as well. He looks nice as the paint is once again really clean and has the appropriate finish. The darker palette certainly adds some contrast to the display, but he still has that “pop” factor by nature of the design and those little hits of white and purple help. About the only thing, aesthetically speaking, that bothers me a little is that it’s hard to get him to look like he’s staring straight ahead. His head seems to always be tilted down and it’s hard to pose away and that’s basically due to the hair. We’ll get into that more with articulation, but that’s pretty much it. You do have to watch out for paint rub too as the white skulls that hang over his chest can leave behind streaks on the torso. I had some and I did lightly hit his torso with a dry Magic Eraser and it mostly came off, but I also don’t want to take off too much of the black either as everything is painted on this guy.
I did not have much luck with this particular accessory. The one on the left came with Jagwar and is missing the jaw while the one on the right came with Dreadmon and has a horribly misaligned eye.
A lot of Dreadmon’s accessories feel similar to Jagwar’s in both concept and because they are quite literally the same. That includes the hands as Dreadmon comes with the same, three, sets: fists, open, and gripping. NECA painted some black linework around the claws which does make them look a little better when compared with Jagwar’s which lacked that detail. Dreadmon also has the same Malignoid worm thing. The one I got with Jagwar was missing the lower jaw, while the one I received with Dreadmon has a terrible paint job. The black lines weren’t lined up properly so it looks stupid. I guess I can’t win when it comes to this thing. Dreadmon also has a fruit bowl, but it’s different from Jagwar’s as his bowl is a bit more distressed and also features some intestines under the fruit. He is a wolf or coyote or something and they do enjoy their entrails! It looks appropriately gross, though not exactly realistic, so it doesn’t throw off the vibe of the property. If it’s too nasty though you get a pair of bananas that he can hold. One is intact while the other has been partially peeled and is ready to eat. He has a blue can of something. There’s no indication of what’s inside it so someone more familiar with the property will have to clue me in, but it looks like a soup can. There’s also an unmarked grave. It just sits on a surface and looks foreboding though I have no idea what significance it holds since it’s unmarked. The Mutanimals did meet an unfortunate end in the books so it could just stand for that. Lastly, Dreadmon comes with a second set of eyes. His default ones are wide open and have a bit of a toon vibe to them while the alternate set is narrowed and more menacing. I like the look of both so I haven’t decided what I’ll ultimately settle on for the shelf, but it’s nice to have options. Swapping them is also pretty painless, provided you keep your thumbs clear of those pointy ears.
“Uhh, got anything without entrails?”
After being pleasently surprised with the articulation on Jagwar, I’m sorry to say that Dreadmon is a bit of a step back. Much of that is unavoidable based on his character design, but it is what it is. The head is probably on the standard double-ball setup we’ve been seeing with NECA figures of late, but the hair isn’t going to let you do much with it. You get some rotation and a little tilt, but virtually no ability for the figure to look up. There is a hinge at the base of the neck which will allow the figure to look down pretty far. The jaw is articulated and it’s fine as it looks good when open or closed. The shoulders are the standard ball-hinges we’re used and they rotate just fine and allow the character to raise its arms out to the side to a horizontal position. There’s a biceps swivel plus single-hinged elbows that have some room to swivel. He can hit a 90 degree bend, though I remain surprised that NECA opted not to use a double-jointed setup here. The wrists swivel and hinge and all of the hinges are of the horizontal variety. In the torso, we get just a ball joint at the waist with no diaphragm cut. He can rotate freely on that peg and crunches forward a bit, but doesn’t go back at all which is a bit surprising. There’s some tilt as well, but it’s pretty limited. The legs are ball and socket joints and NECA put slits in the skirt to keep them pretty much unencumbered. Dreadmon can just about his a full split and he kicks forward to about horizontal and kicks back a bit too. There’s some twist on the ball joint so you have some play there followed by the usual double-jointed knees. After that comes the ankle hinge and rocker followed by the mid-foot hinge. That hinge is a little loose for my liking, but he’s standing okay so I guess it’s fine for now. There’s also a ball hinge for the tail that gives him some pretty good range there as well. Because he has a bushy tail, it’s not wired for added posing like Jagwar’s or Man Ray’s. It’s also too short to be relied upon as a third leg of sorts unless you put Dreadmon in some really low poses.
It’s just pragmatic to have a blank tombstone onhand. You never know when you’re going to need it…
Dreadmon’s unique leg situation and the more simplified approach to the torso means he’s not as poseable as Jagwar or even Man Ray. The unique nature of the legs can also make him a bit tricky to just get straight up and down. You have to make sure both hinges in the knees are bent at the same angle in each leg and then the same is true at the ankle and foot. Often times, I find myself placing Dreadmon on a surface and he’s taller on one side than the other so I have to mess around to try to get his shoulders more level, unless I’m going for a more angled look. And then there’s the previously mentioned annoyance of just trying to get him to appear to be looking forward. I wish the waist joint could bend back to help with that as the range going forward just works against what I’m trying to do. As far as tightness goes, everything felt pretty nice out of the box. The joints are all tight in a satisfying manner. The only ones that are a bit on the loose side are the waist and foot, but neither are failing to hold a pose. He is going to be a little harder to stand than the other figures in the line, but if you’re having problems he does have peg holes on his feet. I’ve done a couple of poses with him so far to just leave alone and he’s fallen over a couple of times. Other times he’s been fine, so there’s a nuance to it when it comes to finding a shelf-safe pose that will last longterm.
That’s hardly a bad looking group.
Dreadmon gets us one step closer to assembling the entire Mighty Mutanimals squad. Slash was associated with them, but most consider the core team to be Man Ray, Jagwar, Dreadmon, Wingnut, Screwloose, Leatherhead, and Mondo Gecko. NECA has yet to indicate what’s coming next, but it will be interesting to see if they continue with the Mutanimals or if they pivot to something else. They have stated that evergreen versions of the turtles aren’t really in play right now as they’re design is very similar to the cartoon, but it was suggested that some of their other looks from the comics might be in play (think wrestling attire). Could that be next? Maybe, though I wouldn’t be shocked if such a set started off as a convention exclusive or something. I hope they don’t dick around though and just continue with the Mutanimals as a lot of people have been waiting a long time. Mondo and Leatherhead from the toon line can kind of fake it as Archie versions, but Wingnut and Screwloose most certainly cannot so it’s for that reason that I’d like to see them be next in line. Hopefully we won’t have to wait long.
If you’re looking to add Dreadmon to your collection of NECA TMNT figures then you shouldn’t have too hard of a time. Haulathon has come and gone at Target, but Dreadmon is not exclusive to that event or store. He should start showing up at other brick and mortar locations and will also be solicited to specialty retail. At Target, this figure cost $35 so the specialty shops will likely tack on a few bucks, but if you missed the initial drop your patience should pay off eventually.
Want to know more about the other TMNT Adventures action figures from NECA?:
The next figure in NECA’s line based on the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Adventures comic series is a much anticipated one for fans of those books and its spin-off The Mighty Mutanimals. And that’s because this character is making his debut in plastic. Previously, we looked at Slash who has been pretty well-represented in some…
Back when Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles ruled the world, there was a lot of brand synergy between all of the various media being generated by this one mega popular piece of intellectual property. The comics came first followed by a toyline which necessitated the creation of an animated mini series to basically serve as a…
As NECA continues to find success with its Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles lines of action figures, the company has sought to branch out beyond the usual source material in an effort to give collectors more of what they want and also likely to just keep the hype train rolling. NECA started first with doing figures…
The next figure in NECA’s line based on the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Adventures comic series is a much anticipated one for fans of those books and its spin-off The Mighty Mutanimals. And that’s because this character is making his debut in plastic. Previously, we looked at Slash who has been pretty well-represented in some form or another in most versions of the franchise. Last week was Man Ray’s turn, and while technically a new debut, he’s basically Ray Fillet from the old toy line so the anticipation level wasn’t quite the same. For Jagwar, we’re talking something completely new to the world of TMNT action figures. Like a lot of characters that make up the expanded universe of TMNT, Jagwar began life as an action figure concept for Playmates since Mirage Studios and its artists basically were churning those out in the 80s. He was rejected, for one reason or another, but he got a second chance at life with the comic series. In that, he was actually not a mutant jaguar, but the result of some lady getting it on with a Jaguar god. I guess that makes him a demigod or something? I don’t make the rules, so call him what you will. He’s a crusader for the Brazilian rainforest and his exploits have a real world connection in that they were influenced by activist Chico Mendes, who was unfortunately assassinated for his work in saving the rainforests of Brazil. He was even made an ally of Jagwar’s in the comics and he’s basically carrying on his legacy which is pretty cool.
Who doesn’t want to be friends with a jaguar demigod?
Jagwar would befriend the turtles and then go on to become a founding member of The Mighty Mutanimals, and it’s from those books that this action figure from NECA appears to take most of its inspiration. During Jagwar’s earlier depictions, he was drawn with solid spots on his body and I think he even had a skull pattern on his forehead, but later the the spots turned to ring shapes which this figure utilizes and the skull was dropped. Jagwar, like the other figures in this line, is also based on the art of Ken Mitchroney so he’s somewhat stylized to resemble how he would draw the character. He also did the box art and the shape of the box is more in-line with what we saw with Slash as Man Ray had to go with an oversized one to accommodate his added bulk. Jagwar was first released as part of the Haulathon event with Target which is over at this point, but he may still be getting shipped out to Target stores. He is expected to eventually show up elsewhere including other big box retailers as well as specialty retail so if you missed out on this guy just keep your eyes open at other venues as he’s not likely to be too hard to come by.
I like that both he and Man Ray come with “sexy” faces.
Out of the box, Jagwar stands approximately 6.25″. He’s a mostly naked jaguar guy who just wears a necklace of leaves to go along with the same at the wrists and waist. The necklace is a separate piece that pegs into the back and chest so it doesn’t move all over the place. I assume it’s reinforced with glue, but I could be wrong. It definitely doesn’t appear to want to come out. The leaves at the wrist are more of the floating variety and could be slid off if desired while the leaves at the waist are done in a similar fashion to the necklace so they’re pretty locked in. The body is done in orange and painted over as well, which NECA often does. The only other paint needed are for the spots and some black linework here and there. The spots are done in brown, which seems consistent with the books, and my only critique here is that the opacity seems to vary between the limbs and torso giving some rings a darker look than others. There’s also no paint on the hands aside from the orange which makes them look a bit plain. I would have at least liked some linework around the claws and I’m going to assume having the claws match his fur is consistent with the source material. The head, which features a comical expression, has some nice linework and the eyes are rather cleanly applied so that is all in order. I think the expression some may take issue with as it is a bit odd, but we do have another head to talk about when we get to accessories so I think it’s fine. It has that toon vibe I associate with the Archie series so I don’t mind it.
“Am I supposed to eat this?”
And for those accessories, we have some interesting stuff and some pretty typical items. For hands, Jagwar has a set of fists, gripping hands, and open, style posed, hands. The gripping hands have a standard horizontal hinge and feature a pretty wide grip and they’re not really suited for much of what he comes with. And as for things he can hold, we get a little Malignoid slug, baby, worm, thing. It’s painted in blue and has a rather wicked head on the end of it. Mine is defective in that it’s missing its lower jaw, though it’s not something I even knew about until I saw another one. It’s pretty fat though so it doesn’t fit into his gripping hands effortlessly and you’ll probably end up leaving some orange paint behind on it when pulling it out. His other item for gripping is a stick going through a purple fish. It looks fine, but it’s almost too thin for the gripping hands. At the fattest portion, the figure still can’t really get a good grip on it, but you can position it to stay in his hand. The paint is really nice on the fish though I’m a little surprised he doesn’t have “X” eyes. Jagwar also comes with a little campfire to cook his fish over. It looks fine and the fire itself is done entirely with paint as opposed to translucent plastic. There’s also a bowl of fruit for when he’s not in the mood for fish and it looks fine too, but in the end, is just a bowl of fruit. There’s also a baby Jagwar so he can hold a baby version of himself and create a wicked time paradox. Lastly, we have a second head and in keeping with Man Ray there’s a cockyness to this expression. His eyes are narrow and I can’t decide if he’s ready to throw down or looking to attract a mate. It’s fun though and I have a feeling a lot of people will use this head in place of the more cartoonish one.
“Now that’s more like it!”
The accessories for Jagwar aren’t terrible, but do feel a bit lackluster. He did sometimes use a blow gun so I’m surprised to see that omitted, but regardless, he can make up for that with the articulation. Jagwar is pretty much all new tooling, and if anything is repeated it’s not obvious to me. As such, it will be interesting to see how he moves. The head is on a double-ball peg and it has terrific range. He can rotate, tilt, look up, look down, the whole nine yards. There’s no joint at the base of the neck, but he doesn’t seem to need it. The jaw on both heads is articulated, but it doesn’t open as far as I’d like on either. It doesn’t get ugly though, so that’s a plus. The shoulders are the customary ball hinge joints and Jagwar can raise his arms out to the side to about horizontal and rotate freely. We have a biceps swivel and single-hinged elbows. I’m a little surprised at the lack of double elbows here, but he can at least achieve a 90 degree bend. There’s a slight swivel at the joint too, but it doesn’t have much range and I don’t think the goal was to get much there either. The wrists swivel and hinge and all of the hinges are horizontal. They were also the only joints I’d consider stuck, but I was able to get them moving without having to resort to heating them. In the torso, we get a diaphragm joint that mostly allows for rotation. You get a little bend back, no crunch forward, and some tilt. The waist also has a waist twist. At the hips, we get the ball and socket joints that allow for the figure to almost hit a full split, but the leaves at the waist prevent the legs from going out to the side as far as they could. There is a little thigh twist there and the legs kick forward to almost horizontal (again, the leaves get in the way) and kick back a little. The knees are double-jointed and work fine while the ankles have the customary hinge and rocker combination which also works fine. Lastly, we have a wired tail on a little ball hinge that rotates and can be positioned pretty well. The wire is also strong enough that you could use the tail to help stabilize the figure if you so wanted to.
“I am freaking out here!”
And this isn’t even the “camping” variant of Jagwar!
Jagwar moves pretty well for this line. I’m a little disappointed that NECA didn’t separate some of the leaves at the waist to provide some pathways for the legs as I’m sure they could bend further without the obstruction. We saw a similar situation with the Chakahachi figure from the toon line where the sculpt has room to be modified with the goal to achieve better range at the hips, but NECA opted not to do so. I’m guessing they were worried about the durability of the soft plastic if they had cut into it, but I think they could have found a way. The diaphragm joint also could be better as I’m surprised it gets virtually no range bending forward. This is a character who should have a lot of articulation so while I normally go soft on the criticisms when it comes to that area, I think this is one of the few characters that should have a bit more. Even with those shortcomings, he still poses pretty well which is a good thing because his accessories don’t offer a whole lot there. You can have him holding a bowl of fruit or roasting a fish over a fire, but that’s not likely to be how most assemble the Mutanimals on their shelf.
The Mutanimals are starting to come together…
Was the wait worth it? Considering fans of Jagwar have been waiting for over 30 years for this I would have to guess that the answer is “No,” because how could it have been worth it? So many versions of TMNT have come and gone since without a Jagwar and that’s pretty surprising. If we’re just going back to when NECA got the license then I think the answer is “Yes.” Jagwar looks pretty cool and he’ll look good with his buddies, the ones already out and the ones likely to come. There’s certainly some room for improvement, but at the more normal price of $35 I think I can safely recommend Jagwar to fans of the Archie universe of characters and to those collectors that just want to mix him into their toon display. Archie fans, at long last your wait is over.
As NECA continues to find success with its Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles lines of action figures, the company has sought to branch out beyond the usual source material in an effort to give collectors more of what they want and also likely to just keep the hype train rolling. NECA started first with doing figures…
2022 is nearly in the books. As we countdown the final hours and minutes until 2023, it feels good to say that the new year will begin with no further Loot Crate obligations. That’s because after a delay of more than a year, the second crate in Loot Crate’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles series of…
Back when Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles ruled the world, there was a lot of brand synergy between all of the various media being generated by this one mega popular piece of intellectual property. The comics came first followed by a toyline which necessitated the creation of an animated mini series to basically serve as a…
The Nostalgia Spot 