Tag Archives: masters of the universe

September 24, 2025

Super7 The Misfits Vintage Style Action Figures

By Joe
We got ourselves a trio of misfits.

A few months ago, we took a look at a pair of Glenn Danzig action figures made by Super7. The figures depicted Glenn in his Samhain era and his early Danzig era. The figures were in the style of old Masters of the Universe action figures with only the smallest of revisions. Now, we’re back with The Misfits era of the same because you can’t have a Samhain and a Danzig Glenn without a Misfits version. And since Super7 has a longstanding working agreement in place with Jerry Only and his brand, we have a Jerry figure and also a bit of a Super7 original in the form of the band’s mascot The Fiend (aka The Crimson Ghost).

If you have the Danzig figures or read my review, then you know what to expect with these ones. The figures come on a blister card designed to mimic the MOTU cards they’re inspired by. The dimensions are even the same as the current MOTU Origins packaging. The cardback depicts an explosion of skulls on a neon green which is very Skeletor-like while the card bubble is in the shape of the Fiend’s visage. The rear features some artwork from the Die, Die My Darling single and a cross-sell that only includes these Misfits figures. It does not include the Danzig ones and I guess that’s because we’re dealing with two copyrights. The Danzig figures were licensed through Glenn’s evilive imprint while these are through the new entity, Misfits AD, referring to The Original Misfits which is shared by Jerry and Glenn. I thought maybe Jerry’s would just be through him, but I guess not. Both of their websites are referenced on the box. There was some weird hang-up with the Danzig figures from Super7 and I don’t know if it had anything to do with the legal stuff or if it was an approval thing. This Danzig, as well as the other two, were cancelled at one point while Jerry and the Fiend were not. Whatever the issue, it was resolved and they’re all here now.

“Let’s all laugh at his lack of accessories!”

We’ll start with the Glenn figure first which features the frontman in his skeleton shirt and sporting his devilock hairstyle. The torso is basically a blank body with the skeleton image printed on the front only with the back left bare. The head is the same head that came on the Samhain figure only now it lacks blood and the eyes are painted. The crotch piece is basically a blank with some slight creases sculpted in and it’s shared with Jerry and the Fiend. The legs are reused from the Samhain figure with the only difference being the boot buckles are painted silver on this one where as they were blank on the Samhain version. Glenn has no accessories, which is pretty weird and also pretty cheap. The other two each came with a microphone, and while it is kind of boring, this figure should have at least come with the same. They already tooled it, how much extra cost could that possibly add to the package? A quarter?

Eat your heart out, Skeletor!
They apparently scrapped the painted bones.

The Fiend is an interesting inclusion, but not unwelcomed. He features a unique, hooded, head and his skull face is painted white. It’s quite clean and I like the black and white approach to the figure. The torso is a blank done on black plastic while the legs are the same as Glenn’s only his buckles are left bare like the Samhain figure. Distinguishing him from the others is this wrap-around skeletal armor with the Fiend Club logo stamped on the front. It carries onto the back which is nice and it’s glued in so you can’t remove it without some hassle. Interestingly, all of the promo shots of the figure featured the skeletal-printed arms that Glenn has plus paint on the legs, but the final edition is bare. For accessories, The Fiend has some catcher’s equipment on his right forearm which is something Glenn used to wear as part of his stage getup. It is removable so if you want to swap it with Glenn you can. He also has his own take on Skeletor’s Havok staff only this one is topped with a jack-o-lantern that’s based on the Halloween single artwork. It’s black and white as well as it’s done on white with black, painted, features. The paint isn’t as clean, but in terms of accessories it feels appropriate.

Jerry is the most involved of the group from a sculpt and paint angle. He’s depicted in his current stage outfit which features a black, spiked, vest trimmed with red and The Fiend behind the collar. The paint is just okay on the vest as there’s some red on the back of the collar and some other slop in places. The profile looks pretty good and they got the little hit of red under the eyes mixed in with the black. Super7 was pretty kind to Jerry’s receding hairline and the devilock comes down over the nose and mouth. The arms and legs are both unique to Jerry as he has his big gauntlets and his unique boots which also have a relief of The Fiend sculpted on. Jerry does come with his bass which looks pretty good. The paint on the strings isn’t very clean, but the cyclops skull at the head of the neck looks okay. The strap is covered with spikes which are legitimately pointy. The outside is black while the inside is painted red. Jerry’s left hand is positioned so he can hold the neck while the right hand is flat like he’s slapping his bass. I don’t think he plays like that, but it’s fine. It’s a little tricky getting his hands over the strings so it’s probably easier to pose him with his right hand up like he’s getting ready to smack the hell out of that thing.

Removable armor.
Works with Glenn too.
They apparently had a higher budget.

There’s not much to say about articulation here. It’s very basic as we have a swivel at the head, shoulders, and waist. The hips are a ball-hinge, but since the legs are preposed they’re not particularly useful. As a trio, it’s a fun mix on the shelf, but sticklers for era may be annoyed. This is basically 80s Glenn and modern day Jerry which might bother some. It might have made more sense to base the figures off of a specific show in the 80s, maybe set during the Walk Among Us era, and then do another set based on the current version of The Misfits. It’s also a little disappointing that Doyle didn’t join in on the fun. He is his own, separate, license and I’m guessing Super7 tried, but he either wasn’t interested or they couldn’t come to an agreement. Maybe he still has regrets over those dolls they used to sell at Hot Topic? And it’s unfortunate that The Misfits never really had a permanent, iconic, drummer. I guess Robo is the most famous? It might have been fun to make The Fiend the drummer, but since we don’t have a guitarist I guess it doesn’t feel like a missing piece. Super7 likely doesn’t want to tool any drums anyway.

Left to right: $26, $30, $35
What you’re getting.

If you like these figures based on The Misfits then you should have no trouble finding them in various places. They’re basic, but there aren’t many sets of Misfits figures that include both Jerry and Glenn. The real drawback here is that these will set you back $30. That’s a ridiculous price for what you’re getting, these should be less than $20, but that’s also Super7 for you. There are a lot of Misfits collectors out there who will scoop these up and probably multiples to keep some carded, but even so, I can’t imagine they’ll sell out at $30. You’re probably better off waiting to see if anyone has to discount them. The Glenn one is a particularly bad value since he doesn’t even come with a single accessory. These are for the diehards only and that particular niche of Misfits fans who also like vintage toys. The rest need not apply.

The Misfits and Danzig are no stranger to toys:

Misfits Holiday Fiend Figure from NECA

2020 will be remembered for a lot of things, many of them not good. One non-negative aspect of 2020 that will be memorable for me was that it was the year I really got back into toy collecting. Most of that was courtesy of NECA toys and their various Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles lines. Those…

Keep reading
by Joe

NECA Misfits Ultimate Fiend Action Figure

When Glenn Danzig and Jerry Only reached a settlement over who owned the rights to The Misfits in the mid 90s (resolution: they both did), it set off a wave of new merchandise plus a new version of the band. What had once been a logo found mostly at punk and metal shows, the visage…

Keep reading
by Joe

Leave a comment   |  tags: , , , , , , , , , | posted in Danzig, toys

May 14, 2025

Super7 Vintage Collection Glenn Danzig – Samhain and Danzig era

By Joe
I’ve got a couple Danzigs coming at you today.

For a guy as tied into comic books and the properties associated with them, Glenn Danzig has had a lot of disinterest when it comes to toys based on his own likeness. It was about 20 years ago that musician and publisher of his own books partnered with Medicom to produce a trio of vinyl figures of his own likeness from his time with The Misfits, Samhain, and the band that bares his namesake. Those figures were very stylized and not exactly what one would call an action figure. It was mostly in-line with the snippets of Glenn’s own collection of toys that are floating around on the internet which seems to focus on Japanese properties and soft vinyl. This approach is in contrast with what his former and now current bandmate Jerry Only has done who had a doll of himself (and then Misfits guitarist Doyle) sold in the early 2000s and has partnered with Super7 to produce a ReAction figure of himself. He also went the Medicom route as well with a figure stylistically the same as what the company did with Glenn.

Previously, the only Danzig toy of any kind I’ve had is this big fella on the left from Medicom. There was a Samhain and a Misfits version of that guy as well.

I don’t know if Glenn Danzig has ever said specifically why there aren’t more toys of him out there. I’m sure he doesn’t mind the income that comes with such deals, but I know he did throw some shade at Jerry for those dolls that wound up in Hot Topic’s clearance section eventually. It was awhile ago, but NECA’s Randy Falk, in response to a question from another user on social media, mentioned he had been trying to get Glenn onboard with the company to do a figure of him, but the singer always brushed him off. NECA tends to do realistic portrayals of music personalities which leads me to think that Glenn just isn’t interested in such a thing. We saw similar sentiment out of actor Elias Koteas when NECA was trying to secure his likeness to do a Casey Jones figure and, for him, he indicated it just seemed weird that people would want a tiny version of himself to mess around with. Maybe Glenn feels similarly about the whole thing, or maybe he knows the internet or a show like Robot Chicken would have too much fun at his expense if such a thing existed?

The style of these Danzig figures is clearly based off of the old Masters of the Universe line. Since I don’t have any of those, here’s an Origins He-Man for comparison.

That hypothesis seems to track with what Super7 has recently released. Brian Flynn of Super7 teased a deal with Danzig years ago in a conversation with The Fwoosh. I didn’t try and look it up again, but I want to say it was in either 2020 or 2021 and may have been part of the San Diego Comic Con at home thing. That deal was apparently not an easy one and Super7 never elaborated on what they were doing, but it turns out they had Danzig in mind for a new line they wanted to launch. It’s possible Glenn said “No,” to ReAction and Ultimates and this came about as a compromise – who knows? Super7 calls the line it’s Vintage line and it’s heavily inspired by the original Masters of the Universe toyline from Mattel. And by inspired by, I mean it’s basically the same thing. They’re 5.5″ figures with super basic articulation in a preposed stance. Glenn was obviously onboard with this depiction of him in plastic, though it still came with more controversy. It was sometime last year that retailers abruptly cancelled the line indicating that word came down from Super7 that they weren’t happening. Super7 blamed it on retailers auto-cancelling items that have been outstanding for too long, which makes no sense since I’ve had stuff on preorder from the same retailers for Super7 product that literally took years to deliver. Danzig, for his part, seemed to be confused by the whole thing so he wasn’t expecting it. The Jerry and Misfits Fiend figures in the same style were not cancelled, so it was definitely an issue with Glenn and Super7. Was the company having an issue with approvals and playing hardball or something? I don’t know, but something fishy was going on. Either way, the figures went back up for preorder eventually and started rolling out at the end of 2024.

Gimme that sword!
Danzig triumphant!

The first two figures in this line to arrive are figures of Glenn based on his appearance with Samhain and one based on his early 90s Danzig look. They’re packaged on a cardback the exact same dimensions as a MOTU figure. There’s even a castle, but instead of it being Castle Grayskull it’s a castle sporting the Samhain/Danzig/Golden demon skull. The Samhain figure, based on the album cover for Initium, has a blister bubble with the shape of a skull blown in while the Danzig one has an inverted cross. The castle on the Initium card is also bloodied. It’s a thin card so it’s not the most sturdy, but I suspect the packaging is nice enough that many will just leave this on card.

On second thought, maybe don’t fuck with He-Man?

And that’s because the figures themselves are not the most interesting to handle. These are faithful interpretations of the MOTU style which is a mold that is over 40 years old at this point. Those figures were designed during a time when action figures were almost exclusively the domain of children. They were engineered to be durable and functional first and foremost. The form was also still really new so there hadn’t been much in the way of innovation beyond some swivel joints. They were also designed for maximum profit so the molds were just used over and over recolored and joined with new accessories and new heads to flesh out the cast of characters.

The form factor you know and love?
The blood continues on the back so that’s cool.

And that brings me to the subject of vintage inspired releases. Super7 very clearly wants to be as faithful as it can to the old toys in this style at the expense of perhaps even saving a few bucks. There is really nothing modern about these Danzig figures, but the molds are not exactly the same. The torso is the only intended shared part between these two. Samhain Danzig has fingerless gloves on while Danzig era Glenn has just wristbands. Since the arms are one piece, that’s an entire new mold. Samhain Glenn also has boots with buckles on them while Danzig era Glenn has long pants that go over his boots. Or he’s supposed to, but my figure has the correct right leg, but the wrong left leg which is the Initium figure’s leg.

Hey, Glenn! You ain’t got no eyes!
“You call those sideburns.”

I find Super7’s approach here kind of interesting, and a bit frustrating. The company could have saved itself some money if its molds for the legs and arms ended at the boot and wrist. This would have also given us another point of articulation if the hands and feet were separate pieces, but then that would break with the original line’s articulation which is just a swivel at the head, shoulders, and waist and a ball-hinge at the hips. How much does the consumer value this slavish adherence to a format from the early 80s? I don’t think many care and would happily trade the inaccuracy for a couple of swivel points. You may be thinking that a wrist swivel or a boot swivel won’t do much, but these guys are packaged with microphones that they can only hold in their right hand and not turn towards their face. It’s kind of dumb looking.

A comparison of tats.
“You need a shower.”

Those are my thoughts on the approach here, as for the figures themselves they look about as good as you could get out of this form factor. These are exaggerated, hulked-up, takes on Glenn Danzig from two different points in his life. The Initium head has the old devilock hairstyle which obscures the face while the Danzig era figure has the side part long hair and sideburns. The face on the Danzig era figure does look like Glenn, albeit it looks more like an older Glen to me than an early 90s one. He’s got some of that modern grump to him. The Samhain Glenn has no facial features to really take in. Even his eyes are unpainted. His selling point is the blood paint job which does look pretty damn cool. Both also feature Glenn’s tattoo on his left bicep. I’m honestly not sure if it was finished when the Initium album cover was shot, but I don’t really care. The batwings on the Fiend in the middle is a little smooshed looking, but it’s fine considering the size we’re dealing with. I think he also had some other skulls added to it for Unholy Passion and November Coming Fire. I don’t know when they were added, but they’re featured on the Medicom figure.

“Did he just say he wants to kill a baby?!”
“Sorry, bud, it’s not adjustable.” “This is bullshit!”
“I’m calling my lawyer!”

The only accessory each figure comes with is a microphone that has a bit of wire trailing off of it. The Danzig era figure does have the skull-cross pendant which is affixed via a plastic wire. It’s not a bendy wire and has a tendency to want to float. I’m curious if I heat it up if I can get it to lay flat on his chest, but I think it’s just not heavy enough. That figure also has the skull belt buckle which is painted silver and looks decent enough. The presentation across both figures is pretty clean and the paint kept to a minimum. I wish the Samhain figure had a little paint on the buckles of his boots or something, but I’m definitely not surprised by the omission.

“Hey man, what’s up with the bear?” “I vibe with this bear.”

Are these stylized takes on Glenn Danzig worth adding to your collection? I guess it all depends on what your initial reaction to them is. If your first thought is “These look pretty cool,” then you’ll probably like them. If you’re buying them to keep on card then you’ll be even more pleased since they don’t really do much out of the box. I personally wish they were engineered like a MOTU Origins figure, but that’s just me. These will set you back about $30 so they’re not exactly cheap. A MOTU Origins figure is about half that and a much better figure, but none of them are Glenn Danzig. For the price, I do wish they had more stuff. Maybe a dagger for Danzig era Glenn and that weird mask he sometimes wore for Samhain performances? The mic makes sense, but is kind of lame. That said, I have a rather extensive Danzig collection so I had to add these and I’ll be adding the Misfits ones soon as well. If I have anything to say about them you know I’ll say it here, but I could have saved myself a lot of words by just saying what you see is what you get. If you like it then cool, and if you don’t you probably won’t regret passing on them.

Here’s a look at some related figures you may find interesting:

NECA Misfits Ultimate Fiend Action Figure

When Glenn Danzig and Jerry Only reached a settlement over who owned the rights to The Misfits in the mid 90s (resolution: they both did), it set off a wave of new merchandise plus a new version of the band. What had once been a logo found mostly at punk and metal shows, the visage…

by Joe

Super7 Ultimates! Ghost Papa Emeritus IV

If you’re reading this the day it went up then you should know April 25, 2025 as Skeleta day! This is the day that Ghost unleashed its latest album upon the masses and there’s a lot of hype surrounding this one. It’s arguably the band’s first release since it saw its popularity explode in recent…

by Joe

MOTU – Turtles of Grayskull Skeletor

When it’s come to the Turtles of Grayskull line by Mattel, I have mostly stayed in the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles side of the pool. I have all four turtle boys plus Sla’ker, who is more Slash than Faker if you ask me. The one exception has been Mouse-Jaw, but the classic Masters of the…

by Joe

Leave a comment   |  tags: , , , , , , , , , | posted in Music, toys

January 28, 2025

MOTU Turtles of Grayskull Two-Bopsteady and Metal-Boto

By Joe
The end of the Target exclusives for the Turtles of Grayskull line?

Thanks to Christmas and my affinity for only posting Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle posts on Tuesdays, we have quite the backlog of action figure reviews to get through and this should be the last of them. 2024 is going to be known for a lot of things, and one such thing for me was Mattel’s Turtles of Grayskull crossover series featuring familiar faces from Mattel’s own Masters of the Universe brand and TMNT. It was sold basically everywhere, but the two, main, big box retailers in the US each got their own exclusive figures. For Target, that took the form of a build-a-figure line of four releases that started late in 2023 with the Mouse-Jaw release. That means collectors have had to keep track of these build-a-figure pieces for about a year as the final of four “deluxe” releases hit stores in November of 2024 in the form of Two-Bopsteady.

“Aww boss, we don’t wanna share a body!”

Two-Bopsteady is perhaps the most interesting release of the four. It takes the famous henchmen of Bebop and Rocksteady and mashes them up with the MOTU villain Two Bad. Two Bad, if you’re not aware, is two characters merged into one so for this release Mattel opted to merge Bebop and Rocksteady into one two-headed monstrosity. I love the concept and I’m left wishing this was something the old cartoon had done because there is a lot of comedic potential. And as a toy, it’s an interesting concept to get a two-headed figure and especially so in a toyline intended to be modular. Can they do it right without breaking the format?

Just one big knife? I guess we’re not going with a “Two” gimmick.

The answer to that is yes and no. The torso obviously needed to be unique to accommodate two heads which meant it has to also be wider than typical. It also seems flatter and it is a bit odd looking. The two heads, Bebop on the right and Rocksteady on the left, also seem undersized compared to the other characters in the line which was obviously needed to fit both in place. I also don’t know much about Two Bad, but I do know that the blue one on the right has the fins on his head which have been given to Rocksteady who is on the left of this release. I can see why they wouldn’t want to mess with Bebop’s mohawk, but why not reorder them then? It’s not an issue for me, but MOTU purists might find it annoying.

The flair is just a recolor of the same accessory that came with Krang. A bit weird this non-mechanical character has to remove a hand to use it.

Aside from the odd proportions though, I really like the look of this figure. Most of the figures in this line utilize a lot of colored plastic and this figure isn’t particularly different from that perspective. There is more paint though and the plastic in use has a real matte appearance. The shades are fairly earthy in tone and it all blends together in a very pleasing way. The gray on the torso is painted and it matches the gray plastic of the left arm very convincingly. The vest and harness is an overlay and there’s “metallic” overlays on the legs which have a slight blue hue to them. The paint on the two heads are pretty clean, there’s a tiny bit of purple slop on Bebop’s glasses while the big turtle shoulder pad looks pretty nice. The only really plasticky looking bits are the feet. The torso is a little odd and the figure is sort of bow-legged, but the different shades just work really well for me so I find myself just really liking the look here.

Do these guys strike fear into the hearts of turtles?

Articulation for this figure is exactly like the rest so I won’t go into detail. The ankle rockers work well and I point that out because it’s been the most inconsistent aspect of this line. His feet are tiny though so standing this one can be a bother. Accessories are limited to two, a big, yellow, knife and a ball on chain. The knife is a solid callback to both Playmates figures, more Rocksteady than Bebop due to its design. It’s fine, though I don’t like the use of bright, yellow, plastic here. It looks really cheap which clashes with the look of the figure. Maybe a bronze would have worked better? Or just copy the steel color of the armor. The ball and chain accessory is exactly like the one included with Krang, but it has a blueish chain and a yellow spiked, ball. It plugs into the wrist and it’s a bizarre choice. I think Two Bad comes with a gun so why not get representation for that aspect of the mash-up via the same? I don’t even know if a flail makes sense for Two Bad.

It took about a year, but Metal-Boto is now complete.

Since this figure comes with the final parts needed to build Metal-Boto, we should probably discuss him. He is a mashup of Metalhead and Roboto which makes sense. Despite that, I don’t think this figure shares many parts with Roboto aside from some of the accessories. I also don’t know if it’s all new sculpting, but it’s pretty intricate and detailed. This looks like a MOTU Origins Metalhead to me, and the only real Roboto aspect to it is the red mouthguard. Well, that and the hidden surprise in the chest. This figure has an action feature as the head connects to the torso via a different connection. It reduces the modular functionality, but when you turn the waist it makes the red piece flap up and down. And if you remove the green chest cover it reveals some transparent plastic with plastic gears behind them which also move with the head. It’s the same feature Roboto has and I actually didn’t even know it was there until I put everything together.

The shell can come off, but also be used to store his various attachments.

Metal-Boto is constructed like the other turtles in that he has a removable shell that can double as a shield. His shell also has plug holes for his accessories. On his arms, he has plugs for these extra attachments done in blue plastic. There’s a grabber and an axe head as well as a gun arm and drill bit. He also has an extra forearm which has a bit more of a turtle look to it. To use them in place of his hands you need to first insert an adapter. One came with Mouse-Jaw and one here so there’s one for each arm. They work fine, but they also add length to the arms so they look a little goofy. Especially if you want to use that alternate hand, Why they didn’t make that plug into the wrists I don’t know. I like the look of it, but it looks so stupid on the figure.

Pop the chest piece off to reveal his inner workings.

Aside from that, I do like the look of this one. As I said, it’s very Metalhead even down to the T logo on his belt. There’s a slight luster to the silver parts and the gold accents are well-painted. The green feet clash, but that’s true of the old Metalhead design. He has red trunks, but they don’t look out of place and I rather like the introduction of the soft, green, chest plate. It’s no gold vac-metal, but it has a nice finish. His articulation is basically the same as the rest save for the fact that his head only swivels. He’s a nice looking figure. I can see how this one may have been more expensive to produce than some of the others so it makes sense that it was the build-a-figure. Even so, he basically costs 20 bucks if you figure that extra five for these deluxe offerings fund this guy. Though in reality, you have to spend 100 bucks across four releases to get him. At least he might be the best figure in the line so that certainly helps. I just wish he had storage for all of his accessories. Basically, the adapters don’t slot anywhere so you have to keep track of either them or the default hands if you’re using some of the weapons.

I kind of like the look of this third hand more than the default ones, but in order to use it you need to plug in an adapter first. Then it just gets weird looking.

These two figures basically put a bow on this line for me. Mattel is rolling out more including another set of turtles, a mutated Shredder, and more, but I think I’m content. I do like some of the new designs more than what I have, but not enough to double dip. I do wish I liked one of the He-Man figures because it feels weird to have a MOTU x TMNT display with no He-Man, but I’m not going to buy one for the sake of it (I already did that with the Shredder figure I’m still just lukewarm on). And my shelf is really full anyway. Fitting these two in there is hard enough. As a line though, it’s fun. It’s not amazing, but it’s also limited by the form of the Origins subline which wants to keep a lot of that 80s aesthetic with better functionality. It is a fun combo though as you have the dominant action figure line of the early 80s mixing with the one that took over at the end of the decade. It’s just surprising it took this long. If you’re still looking for this release, it seems to be in stock at Target still and may even be heading for a post holiday sale price. The other releases in this deluxe line may be harder to find at this point since Target put them on sale to make room for the next one. Good luck!

The true fifth turtle (take that, Zach!).

If you missed the other deluxe offerings in this line and are curious if you’re missing out, see below:

MOTU – Turtles of Grayskull Deluxe Mouse-Jaw

Nothing can be simple in this day and age of retail toy sales which is why the new mash-up of Masters of the Universe and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles toyline features ostensibly 3 SKUs: standard, deluxe, and deluxe with build-a-figure parts. The standard releases are, as you may have expected, released abroad and you can…

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by Joe

MOTU – Turtles of Grayskull Deluxe Sla’ker

It’s a Tuesday, and I have a new Turtles product to talk about, so let’s make it another Turtle Tuesday! And today brings us the second in the line of deluxe Masters of the Universe Origins – Turtles of Grayskull line exclusive to Target – Sla’ker: The evil cybernetic snapping turtle! This is Slash, the…

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by Joe

MOTU Turtles of Grayskull Splinter-Skull

A couple week back I bemoaned the Walmart exclusive Krang from Mattel’s Masters of the Universe Origins – Turtles of Grayskull line for being particularly troublesome to track down. I couldn’t even find one in store or online to purchase at MSRP and had to buy it from a third party – on Walmart’s website…

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by Joe

Leave a comment   |  tags: , , , , , , , , , , | posted in toys

September 3, 2024

MOTU Turtles of Grayskull Splinter-Skull

By Joe
Things are getting out of hand so here comes Splinter to lay down the law.

A couple week back I bemoaned the Walmart exclusive Krang from Mattel’s Masters of the Universe Origins – Turtles of Grayskull line for being particularly troublesome to track down. I couldn’t even find one in store or online to purchase at MSRP and had to buy it from a third party – on Walmart’s website no less. Contrast that to today’s review of the Splinter-Skull figure (from here on just referred to as Splinter) that’s exclusive to Target. It went up for preorder probably six or eight weeks ago with an actual release date. I missed the preorder, but when release date rolled around there it was online and in-store. No problem.

There’s a lot more sculpted detail than usual with this figure.

Splinter is the third deluxe figure in this line released at Target. The deluxe tag doesn’t really refer to the figure itself, more the fact that it comes with a build-a-figure part for Metal-Boto, the Metalhead Roboto mashup. Aside from that, Splinter is not much different from the rest of the line in that you get a figure and an accessory. The difference with Splinter is while he’s on the MOTU Origins body, he’s a rat so he needs a little added texture. I don’t think what’s here is anything new, there are other beast men in this line that likely benefited from a furry sculpt, but it is new to me.

If you want something closer to a vintage Splinter you can ditch the cape and even the harness.

Splinter is basically the sensei we know and love from TMNT crossed with King Grayskull. That means he gets to wear a harness over his usual kimono and has a big, fur-trimmed, cape and spear. The head portrait seems to very much be drawing from the classic Playmates Splinter as he has a very large nose with his teeth poking out. The kimono is in the same color as it was in the ’87 animated series and is done with soft plastic that clasps in the front. The torso piece is separate from the portion that covers his thighs which is basically done as a belt. The cape is cumbersome, but stays on. It just clips around his neck somewhat loosely, but certainly adds a regal quality to the presentation. Splinter is also rocking some braids this time and the typical MOTU bracers and leg wraps.

Welcome to Hot Rat Summer.

What really stands out though is the physique. We’re just not used to seeing Splinter as anything but a somewhat frail, old, rat-man. This Splinter is positively jacked and it’s almost funny to behold. He looks great and Splinter can be a big, tough, guy if he wants, but it is very different for the character. I don’t know if that is something that will bother anyone, but it’s the first thing I see when I look at him. He’s a big, beefy, rat boy and I’m tempted to display him shirtless for maximum effect.

“Whoa Sensei, have you been workin’ out?”

Splinter actually comes with two accessories: a spear and an extra hand. The extra hand is a left hand and it’s in a clawing pose, I suppose. The default hands are standard gripping hands. The spear has a translucent blue tip and bronze handle. It feels just a tad short and I wish there was an extra half inch to the handle, but it’s fine. The spearhead can separate from the handle and be held like a sword as well, if you so choose. Articulation for Splinter is the same as always with the only addition here being the tail which connects via a hinged ball peg. It’s slightly preposed to begin with so it has limited use. A bendy wire would have been neat, but I wasn’t expecting one either.

Some assembly required.

The other accessories are the build-a-figure pieces. Splinter comes with the torso and shell of Metal-Boto which is welcomed since we previously received the right arm, hips, thighs, and head. Now we have something to connect those stray parts to and the only pieces missing now are both feet and the left arm. He also has a few more weapons expected too. Since this is a modular line, you can assemble the figure with parts from other previously released characters for a Frankenstein approach. Before, that couldn’t be done because the head joint is unique in that it has an action feature. Turning Metal-Boto at the waist causes the red cover for the jaw to move up and down. It’s kind of cool, I guess. The rest of the figure will be included with the upcoming Two-Bopsteady expected in October.

It’s not hard to find some parts to make this guy both complete and creepy.

Splinter is a figure I wasn’t that excited for initially and was only planning on buying to get the Metal-Boto pieces. I’m happy to say I have been pleasantly surprised by what Mattel did here. I dig this look for Splinter and there’s enough of the original character preserved in this version to make him feel familiar as well. His weapon is more interesting than most and his armor pieces have actual utility. I think this figure looks pretty cool with everything on or everything off and even some mix in between. He’s a nice addition to the collection and I’m really looking forward to assembling Metal-Boto in the near future.

And this will continue to go on forever.

Check out more from Mattel’s MOTU Origins Turtles of Grayskull line:

MOTU – Turtles of Grayskull Shredder

For today’s latest Turtle Tuesday action figure review, I think we can go a little light. That’s because I am looking at yet another action figure release from the Mattel Masters of the Universe Origins – Turtles of Grayskull crossover line between the heroes and villains of MOTU and those of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.…

Keep reading
by Joe

MOTU Turtles of Grayskull Krang

Two words that are much hated in the toy collecting community are “Store Exclusive.” Add a “Walmart” in front of that phrase and you get something akin to a worst nightmare. The world of “collectibles” has always relied on same degree of scarcity. The 90s saw a collector boom across various mediums which created a…

Keep reading
by Joe

MOTU – Turtles of Grayskull Skeletor

When it’s come to the Turtles of Grayskull line by Mattel, I have mostly stayed in the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles side of the pool. I have all four turtle boys plus Sla’ker, who is more Slash than Faker if you ask me. The one exception has been Mouse-Jaw, but the classic Masters of the…

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by Joe

Leave a comment   |  tags: , , , , , , , , | posted in toys

August 20, 2024

MOTU – Turtles of Grayskull Shredder

By Joe
Shredder has entered the fray.

For today’s latest Turtle Tuesday action figure review, I think we can go a little light. That’s because I am looking at yet another action figure release from the Mattel Masters of the Universe Origins – Turtles of Grayskull crossover line between the heroes and villains of MOTU and those of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. These figures are essentially all the same. They have the same build, engineering, and some even have the same weapons. The differences are mainly in the head sculpts and whatever additional clip-on armor is provided. And for today’s release we are looking at the chief villain of TMNT: The Shredder!

Looks like this Shredder chooses to bring an axe to a sword fight.

When I first saw this MOTU-ified Shredder I wasn’t 100% sold on it. Even though Shredder figures are usually among my favorite in a given TMNT line, this one wasn’t an instant hit. It evokes memories of the original Playmates Shredder, one of the few Shredder figures I don’t care for, with its bare chested approach and black pants. It is, of course, on a MOTU Origins body so it’s not in that ridiculous preposed position of that figure, nor does it have any soft goods or blue metal. Instead, we have Shredder with a full helm and a Shredder/Foot-themed harness across his chest with a blue, plastic, cape affixed to it. The promo images made the armored pieces on his arms, shins, and helm look very plasticky. I am happy to say that in-hand it looks noticeably better.

I suppose he looks menacing enough.

That’s not to say I’m in love with what I see here. And it starts with the helm. Mattel gave Shredder a full helm that basically just has some eye holes in it. The eyes are red with black surrounding them. The fins atop the helm are a little different in that the two going around the helm connect in the back, which looks fine. It’s textured like crudely smithed steel with impact marks and the rear of the helmet which surrounds the head has a texture similar to that of movie Shredder, specifically Secret of the Ooze just without the gold coloring. That stuff is all fine, but what I don’t really care for is the face. Mattel sculpted the mouth area like it has an actual opening mechanism. And the shape of that mouth is like that of a crudely made robot with a severe underbite. I don’t like it and it makes him look like a dinosaur to me.

This duo looks rather formidable.

The rest of the figure is mostly fine. The pauldrons at the shoulders and forearm guards basically slide on while the shin armor clips on. It’s all snug and stays in place and it all has the same color and dented texture of the helm. What I don’t like is that the blades which go on the backs of Shredder’s hands are part of the forearm piece. You basically position that armor so that it appears to be affixed to the back of his hand. It probably would have been too cumbersome to have the blades slide onto the hands, but I think this is the rare spot were uniquely sculpted hands were called for.

I’m told this is a Horde Crossbow.

And speaking of hands, Shredder features one gripping hand and one open hand, which is pretty unique from my limited interactions with this line. It’s just like the old Playmates figure with the right hand for gripping and the left open and I’m guessing it’s a nod to that figure, because why else would Shredder need an open hand? For slapping jerks? The gripping hand is useful for his included axe accessory. It appears to be new since it has a 2003 era Foot symbol stamped into it. It has a serrated edge and looks pretty nasty, though it’s just the one color which matches the other “metal” parts of the figure. Shredder’s other weapon is a crossbow which can snap onto a forearm. It’s a dark gray with what I guess is a dragon head in the center of the bow itself? There are two tabs inside the apparatus that look like they have a purpose, but I don’t know what that could be. It’s possible this weapon is reused from some other release that had a clip-on arrow or something for it that is not included here.

He has enough articulation to, more or less, achieve his “classic” pose.

Articulation for Shredder is exactly like the other figures in the line so there’s not much to discuss. The added armor at the shoulders doesn’t hinder movement there, nor do the armored parts on his forearms and shins. The ankle rocker continues to be a sore spot with this line. I felt it worked fine with the turtles, but most of the other figures have more of a swivel than a true ankle rocker. The angle of the pin going into the foot isn’t severe enough for it to function properly which is a bummer. Shredder at least has fairly wide feet relative to his body and even with the added weight of the cape coming off of his back he’s fairly painless to stand, unlike Skeletor which has fallen over multiple times since entering my shelf space.

“You guys look like a couple of dorks.”

This Shredder is fine. Nothing really spectacular going on here or anything unbecoming of the character. It’s a fairly unimaginative take on Shredder and the few, subtle, changes made to his design to fit into this MOTU aesthetic offer little. The axe accessory, while a little unusual for Shredder, is at least fine and looks pretty violent. The crossbow kind of sucks though. At the end of the day, I bought this figure because he is Shredder and my Turtles of Grayskull collection is large enough that Shredder felt like a necessity. He’ll likely end up being one of my least favorites though and I’m holding out hope for a Super Shredder deluxe figure to make up for this one (Note: since writing this Mattel has shown off a mutated, snake, Shredder for this line that might be interesting).

Shredder vs Splinter. The cosmic ballet goes on.

Check out these other reviews from Mattel’s Turtles of Grayskull line:

MOTU – Turtles of Grayskull Deluxe Sla’ker

It’s a Tuesday, and I have a new Turtles product to talk about, so let’s make it another Turtle Tuesday! And today brings us the second in the line of deluxe Masters of the Universe Origins – Turtles of Grayskull line exclusive to Target – Sla’ker: The evil cybernetic snapping turtle! This is Slash, the…

Keep reading
by Joe

MOTU – Turtles of Grayskull Skeletor

When it’s come to the Turtles of Grayskull line by Mattel, I have mostly stayed in the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles side of the pool. I have all four turtle boys plus Sla’ker, who is more Slash than Faker if you ask me. The one exception has been Mouse-Jaw, but the classic Masters of the…

Keep reading
by Joe

MOTU Turtles of Grayskull Krang

Two words that are much hated in the toy collecting community are “Store Exclusive.” Add a “Walmart” in front of that phrase and you get something akin to a worst nightmare. The world of “collectibles” has always relied on same degree of scarcity. The 90s saw a collector boom across various mediums which created a…

Keep reading
by Joe

Leave a comment   |  tags: , , , , , , , | posted in toys

July 30, 2024

MOTU Turtles of Grayskull Krang

By Joe
Krang decided his body should be all naked and muscley too.

Two words that are much hated in the toy collecting community are “Store Exclusive.” Add a “Walmart” in front of that phrase and you get something akin to a worst nightmare. The world of “collectibles” has always relied on same degree of scarcity. The 90s saw a collector boom across various mediums which created a mindset in producers that scarcity was good. Scarcity is what the public wanted. Scarcity was fun! In reality, most collectors aren’t buying because they want to make an investment. Sure, some do, but most collect for the enjoyment of it. The idea of an exclusive is just a barrier of entry and it’s frustrating for those who just want to buy some toys.

If you want him to have normal proportions you will want to forego the Krang Kave.

With the rise of online sales and the decline of brick and mortar, stores are more desperate than ever to drive foot traffic. In the eyes of retailers, exclusives will bring in people that might not otherwise set foot in the store and the big toy producers like getting the big retailers to pay for exclusive merch. With Mattel and its Turtles of Grayskull subline of Masters of the Universe Origins, the company was able to strike a deal with both Target and Walmart. At Target, the deluxe figures that include a build-a-figure part have remained exclusive to that retailer. I have so far reviewed those two releases and I plan to review them all. I’ve been able to find them in-store with no issues, and failing that, online has worked fine. With Walmart, Mattel has released a different set of deluxe figures that seem to be a little more involved than what’s at Target, but doesn’t have a build-a-figure. And even calling them “more involved” might be a stretch so I don’t know where the extra money is going, but they’re $25 as well. Only with Walmart, tracking them down has been a problem, at least for me in the north east. Not only have I not seen a single store exclusive at various Walmart stores spread across Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Maine, I haven’t seen a single Masters of the Universe figure at all! It’s like they don’t even carry the brand any longer.

He’s so widdle and cute!

What’s a guy to do when he can’t find something at retail? Regrettably, I turned to a third party seller. It’s great that Walmart can’t sell its own product on its website to people that want it, so they let others use their website to sell their wares at inflated prices – awesome! In this case, I purchased today’s figure from someone charging $41. Whoever this person is presumably paid $25 for this thing and then had to cover shipping and whatever fees Walmart charges those who sell through their website to sell me this thing. What did they actually make on it? Ten bucks? Eight bucks? I guess from Walmart’s perspective it’s a win-win. They sold this person a toy, then got to take a piece of the resale as well – it’s like selling it twice! If you ever wondered why Walmart essentially condones the practice of scalping on their own website, well now you know.

“Mondo bizarro!”

Unfortunately, I felt like I had to have this figure of Krang so hopefully it’s worth the extra fifteen bucks or so. Krang has always been an absurd character design. As Vernon put it, it’s a guy with his brain in his stomach. If you’re a toy designer at Mattel and you just received word that the company acquired the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles license to mash-up with Masters of the Universe then Krang had to be at the top of the list of characters that would be the most fun to design. And for Krang, they settled on a mash-up with Megator, a big, green, ogre of sorts. He’s packaged in a window box with new artwork all over that looks great. And this Krang certainly takes up a lot of real estate in that box.

The “deluxe” villains.

Krang, like Sla’ker, utilized the oversized Origins body to add some considerable size. To the top of his head, he’s around 6.875″ and to the top of the tuft of hair he’s 7.5″. That’s not where it ends though, because Krang needs to occupy the center of this body as God intended. Since this toyline is modular by nature, the way to accomplish this is simply to create a little Krang prison that fits in between the waist and abdomen. Once that is in place he balloons to about 7.75″ to the top of the head and 8.25″ to the top of the hair. He’s a big boy and he looks pretty good. The figure is primarily green with light red, almost pinkish, accents. The head is shaped like the classic, Playmates, android body only the antenna has been replaced by a topknot of hair and he has a helmet and protruding sharp teeth. The helmet is red with spikes on the side and a metallic plate on the front which covers the eyes and nose. The red slits of the eyes look like they’re set too high on the sculpt. The artwork on the box has them angled so it works better, but the figure didn’t carry that over.

“Use this stuff if you want to be a true master of the universe!”

For the body, Krang is wearing this breastplate with a skull on it held to the body by two, bronze, chains. These go over the shoulders and match the color of the cavity for Krang. Below that he has a black loincloth and belt, but the only part painted is some more bronze chains. Krang himself, the little brain with a face, is quite tiny. He’s almost cute. It’s a soft rubbery plastic with painted eyes and teeth and the portrait here is very close to the 1987 TV series interpretation of the character. He locks into place in the body and there’s a little grate that closes over him. The tentacles are designed to stick out and I think it’s quite entertaining to look at. If you’re particularly concerned with scale then it might annoy you that Krang is way smaller here than he’s been in the past. They could have made him bigger, but that would have required a larger compartment. One drawback to this design is that Krang’s body has very short arms since they’re designed to scale with the body without the middle insert. If it were any larger it would look really goofy.

It’s a Krang comparison. I forgot how big the NECA one is.
Real chains are pretty cool, but they need some help to pose well.

Krang does come with a pair of accessories to add some value here. Both come in the form of weapon add-ons. Krang can remove his hands and swap them with either an axe or a ball and chain. The axe can function has a handheld weapon too and it’s cast in a grayish plastic with some decent sculpt work. The ball and chain is done in the same bronze plastic as the chains on the body of the figure with a gray, spiked, ball at the end. Like Michelangelo’s nunchaku, the chains are all plastic, but are actual links. It’s pretty damn long and looks cool, though I’m always a little remiss that accessories like this don’t have a fixed chain for posing, but this line gets away with it by being an homage line to actual toys that are meant to be played with. It’s an odd space where it’s a collector line done as-if it were a line made for children. The articulation is also exactly the same as Sla’ker, right down to the poor ankle rocker. The peg hole in the foot isn’t done at enough of an angle for the ankle rocker to be useful.

“It would appear that we are evenly matched.”

Is Krang worthy of your $25? If you can find him at that price, then definitely. Is it worth north of $40? No, probably not, but that’s what a potential hole in the collection will do to a collector. That’s not the figure’s fault though, it’s on Walmart. For the line, this is one of the best figures so far. Maybe even the best. I like the design quite a bit, it’s fun to behold, and it works as a combination of two famous properties. If you’re into this line and come upon this figure in your travels then I highly recommend you pick it up.

It takes a lot of turtles to topple a Krang.

Check out more from Masters of The Universe – Turtles of Grayskull:

MOTU – Turtles of Grayskull Deluxe Sla’ker

It’s a Tuesday, and I have a new Turtles product to talk about, so let’s make it another Turtle Tuesday! And today brings us the second in the line of deluxe Masters of the Universe Origins – Turtles of Grayskull line exclusive to Target – Sla’ker: The evil cybernetic snapping turtle! This is Slash, the…

Keep reading
by Joe

MOTU – Turtles of Grayskull Deluxe Mouse-Jaw

Nothing can be simple in this day and age of retail toy sales which is why the new mash-up of Masters of the Universe and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles toyline features ostensibly 3 SKUs: standard, deluxe, and deluxe with build-a-figure parts. The standard releases are, as you may have expected, released abroad and you can…

Keep reading
by Joe

MOTU – Turtles of Grayskull Skeletor

When it’s come to the Turtles of Grayskull line by Mattel, I have mostly stayed in the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles side of the pool. I have all four turtle boys plus Sla’ker, who is more Slash than Faker if you ask me. The one exception has been Mouse-Jaw, but the classic Masters of the…

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by Joe

Leave a comment   |  tags: , , , , , , , , | posted in toys

June 25, 2024

MOTU – Turtles of Grayskull Skeletor

By Joe
Prepare for havoc!

When it’s come to the Turtles of Grayskull line by Mattel, I have mostly stayed in the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles side of the pool. I have all four turtle boys plus Sla’ker, who is more Slash than Faker if you ask me. The one exception has been Mouse-Jaw, but the classic Masters of the Universe villain has been mashed-up with a Mouser so there’s a gray area there. Plus, if I want to build this line’s version of Metalhead I needed to get him. Today, there is really no way to color it, I just bought a MOTU character and his name is Skeletor.

I couldn’t expect these two to operate without a proven leader.

As someone who has been buying and enjoying action figures since the 1980s, it’s kind of shocking to me that I have never owned a Skeletor action figure. As the chief villain of one of the most famous action figure lines to exist, it seems like the sort of thing I would have picked up somewhere along my travels. I have owned a He-Man, but just never got a Skeletor even though I’ve always enjoyed his design. I’m pretty sure I considered getting the 2000 Skeletor, but probably correctly realized that I had my fingers in too many figure lines and passed. With this Turtles of Grayskull line, I actually have yet to come across Shredder. The online images didn’t sell me on the figure, but it would be nice to have a big baddie for the display and if that can’t be Shredder, why not Skeletor?

“I’m the real bad guy here, Shredder!”

Skeletor isn’t a whole lot different from his classic portrayal. He’s still a purple-gray body with a greenish skull face, only now he has a stylish samurai helmet. I don’t know why he’s grabbed this helmet, but it looks pretty cool on him. What really caught my eye with this figure though is the presence of the neon green. It adorns his helm, weapon, and the trim of the armor. It’s garish, but it’s the kind of thing I love because a lot of toy lines were doing this back in the day. I’m surprised Mattel didn’t take it one step further and just make the plastic glow-in-the-dark because it almost looks like it should, but that doesn’t appear to be the case. He has some snap-on armor for his forearms and a tattered black cape that’s well textured. Basically, this is a Skeletor that took one look at Shredder and said “That looks pretty cool.” He just stopped short at copying the blades and such.

The biggest influence TMNT apparently had on Skeletor was turning his staff into a proper ninja weapon.

The paint work is fairly sparse, but not out of line with the other figures we’ve taken a look at. It would have been nice to get a wash applied to the face to bring out the teeth, but this line doesn’t do that sort of thing. What’s present is fairly clean. The straps on the armor look solid and the silver ram skull that’s a logo of sorts for the character was applied very cleanly to the center of the helm. The shin armor is molded, silver, plastic which is an interesting choice. There is a little metallic silver in places, but the majority of the armor add-ons are black and green so it’s a little odd the shin guards didn’t go with a similar scheme. Black with green trim would have looked pretty nice.

The quality of the links on the plastic chain may vary from figure to figure.

For accessories, (not including the cape) Skeletor has two, which is one more than a lot of figures. His havoc staff has been turned into havoc nunchaku. The weapon is cast in neon green and basically the head of the staff adorns both ends. They’re connected via molded, plastic, chain links just like the nunchaku we saw with Michelangelo. The chain did not come out of the molds as cleanly with Skeletor as they did Mikey and some don’t really move at all. Some careful trimming with a blade might fix that, but it’s too bad that they couldn’t do better. The figure also doesn’t really have any weapon storage for this item. I suppose you could fake it by shoving it through the straps of his harness, but it would look rather stupid. The other accessory is a vile of mutagen, or ooze, if you prefer. It looks like a classic mutagen canister with silver ends, only much slimmer to fit into the standard MOTU Origins gripping hands. The center is transparent plastic with a blueish fill and it looks nice.

What would happen if Skeletor drank the mutagen?

Even though Skeletor is not a turtle, his articulation is essentially the same. All of the same joints are present with the same range. The only aspect of the articulation I feel merits pointing out is the head and neck. Skeletor still uses the same double ball peg setup, but it’s fairly loose. With the cape on, which just slots over the neck, it’s not noticeable. If removed, the head becomes borderline floppy. This may be purposeful engineering to increase the range with the rather thick, plastic, cape on, but if you dislike that look then this aspect of the figure may let you down.

“And you thought you had it bad before, turtle!”

In the world of action figures, Skeletor is a legendary character and was obviously going to be included in this toy line. The TMNT influence on the character is fairly light though, and if the mutagen canister was taken away there really wouldn’t be anything obvious about this figure linking it to the TMNT franchise. That might bother some, or it might not. I think this is a fun, cool, look for Skeletor which is why I decided to grab it. None of the other MOTU specific characters in the standard line have tempted me at all, but this works for me. It’s odd it ended up being my very first Skeletor, but better late than never. I don’t think this is going to open the floodgates or anything. As far as other characters in this line are concerned, my wants list is pretty small and concerns only TMNT characters. That could change, and it’s possible I’ll feel compelled to add He-Man eventually just because, but that’s fine too. For MOTU fans collecting this line, Skeletor should make for a solid addition. And if you’re more of a TMNT fan like me, you may still enjoy seeing him in your collection.

By the power of pizza…here’s more Turtles of Grayskull coverage:

MOTU – Turtles of Grayskull Michelangelo

Mattel’s Masters of the Universe Origins subline, Turtles of Grayskull, has given us three of the iconic four reptilian brothers with a MOTU theme. Now, we have the fourth. The heroic captain of cowabunga Michelangelo is in the house and he’s got a new look, and a new ‘do, to show off. Like his brothers…

Keep reading
by Joe

MOTU – Turtles of Grayskull Deluxe Sla’ker

It’s a Tuesday, and I have a new Turtles product to talk about, so let’s make it another Turtle Tuesday! And today brings us the second in the line of deluxe Masters of the Universe Origins – Turtles of Grayskull line exclusive to Target – Sla’ker: The evil cybernetic snapping turtle! This is Slash, the…

Keep reading
by Joe

MOTU – Turtles of Grayskull Deluxe Mouse-Jaw

Nothing can be simple in this day and age of retail toy sales which is why the new mash-up of Masters of the Universe and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles toyline features ostensibly 3 SKUs: standard, deluxe, and deluxe with build-a-figure parts. The standard releases are, as you may have expected, released abroad and you can…

Keep reading
by Joe

Leave a comment   |  tags: , , , , , , , | posted in toys

June 18, 2024

MOTU – Turtles of Grayskull Michelangelo

By Joe
That’s a new look for Michelangelo.

Mattel’s Masters of the Universe Origins subline, Turtles of Grayskull, has given us three of the iconic four reptilian brothers with a MOTU theme. Now, we have the fourth. The heroic captain of cowabunga Michelangelo is in the house and he’s got a new look, and a new ‘do, to show off.

Like his brothers before him, Michelangelo is a very familiar release. He’s going to recycle a lot of the same assets created for those turtles, but in his own shade of green. Somewhat to my surprise, Michelangelo uses the very yellow-green we have seen Playmates use before in their 2012 toyline for the character. The other brothers in this line were closer to their 1988 counterparts and if Michelangelo were to follow that pattern he would have been a very dark green. I’m curious how much freedom Mattel had when it came to the shades of green in play, but I don’t hate the choice. This is a rather bright line of figures and the lighter green has a place here. I think the figure would have looked just fine with a darker tone too, but it’s not something that’s going to bother me.

This version of Mikey isn’t following his old color guide, but is close to the 2012 version (left).

Outside of the green, the main thing that jumps out about this Michelangelo is that he has something he rarely features – hair. Mikey has apparently taken a liking to He-Man to the point where he decides to basically just dress up like him. He’s sporting He-Man’s battle armor, only he’s replaced the big “H” with an “M,” and tossed on a wig to help sell the look. The wig just sits on the figure’s head so if you hate it then it’s nothing to take it off, but I think it adds a dash of silliness to the look that’s fitting for Michelangelo. From the waist down, he’s basically the same as Leo and Raph only the straps on the fur parts of his shins have been left unpainted. He has his own, removable, turtle-shell shoulder pads and there’s an orange harness around his torso. The actual torso piece is new sculpting as the battle armor is non-removable. I say “new” as-in it’s new to me, but it could very well be reused from a past MOTU figure.

He’s a happy guy.

Mikey’s sporting a rather happy expression. He has an open mouth with visible teeth and he’s smiling. The carve-out for the open mouth isn’t very deep and has been left unpainted. I think some black in there would have helped the look. The white eyes and smile combo always looks a bit weird to me whenever it show up on figures, but it obviously would have been weirder to give just Michelangelo pupils. While I appreciate Mattel capturing Michelangelo’s silly side, I do think an angry expression would have looked better. The paint is limited in application, but where it is applied it looks fine. There’s one defect I don’t like where there’s a little blob of white paint at the bottom of the left eye. I’m tempted to try and scrape it off, but I’m worried that could make it look worse. There is a seem line on the front of Michelangelo’s snout that’s a bit off-putting which I assume is present on all figures.

Keep it above the belt, Mikey.

Accessories with this line are slim and with Michelangelo that’s true. We already covered the wig, but he also has the same removable shell the other turtles come with. The only other accessories are the weapons and Mikey has his trusty nunchaku. To create them, Mattel went with an all plastic approach and utilized orange, which makes thematic sense. The chain links are done like real chain, just in plastic. I can’t recall a Michelangelo figure coming with plastic, chained, ‘chuks before, but it works fine. NECA did do a green chain with the Bugman release. There are a couple of links that are stuck together which I was able to work out, though there’s one that’s still pretty stuck. I think it’s because they had to mold these chains all in one go as there’s no cut in the links. You also get another installment of the comic. This time it has word bubbles (I never confirmed if the one that came with my Raph was unique to me or not) so if you’re interested in where the story is going it will actually make more sense now.

I don’t think we need to run-down the articulation for a fourth time here. Michelangelo is the same as his brothers, which are also basically the same as every MOTU Origins figure I’ve encountered. Mikey is going to pose reasonably well for what this line is going for. The joints are tight, but nothing is stuck. He should be fairly painless to pose.

A TMNT toy line never feels quite right until all four brothers are together.

And that’s Michelangelo. He’s more of the same which is the whole point of the Origins line of figures. The success or failure of the figure on a personal level almost entirely comes down to the design of the character. I think this is an amusing take on Michelangelo and it works in the context of the line. I do think the head could have used some tweaking, but the rest works for me. I like that Mattel went with chain links for the weapons and the all plastic approach suits the line well. For 20 bucks, I think a little more isn’t a hard ask. It would have been nice if all of the turtles came with a second head or a secondary weapon or accessory, but it is what it is. These things seem to be flying off the shelves around me so clearly Mattel has it all figured out. If you have the other three turtle boys, then this figure belongs on your shelf.

By the power of pizza…here’s more MOTU Turtles:

MOTU – Turtles of Grayskull Raphael

Mattel’s Turtles of Grayskull line rolls on with wave two. This Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles x Masters of the Universe collaboration is a continuation of the Masters of the Universe Origins toyline. That’s a line of roughly 5.5″ figures designed to capture the aesthetic of the original MOTU toyline, but with some modern articulation engineered…

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MOTU – Turtles of Grayskull Deluxe Sla’ker

It’s a Tuesday, and I have a new Turtles product to talk about, so let’s make it another Turtle Tuesday! And today brings us the second in the line of deluxe Masters of the Universe Origins – Turtles of Grayskull line exclusive to Target – Sla’ker: The evil cybernetic snapping turtle! This is Slash, the…

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MOTU – Turtles of Grayskull Leonardo and Donatello

These days, there isn’t much the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles haven’t crossed-over with. Back in the day we had Star Trek, trolls, and the Universal Monsters. More modern times have seen cross-overs with the likes of WWE, Ghostbusters, and Mighty Morphin Power Rangers. Throughout all of that, as well as the action figure license seemingly…

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May 21, 2024

MOTU – Turtles of Grayskull Deluxe Sla’ker

By Joe
That’s one happy turtle.

It’s a Tuesday, and I have a new Turtles product to talk about, so let’s make it another Turtle Tuesday! And today brings us the second in the line of deluxe Masters of the Universe Origins – Turtles of Grayskull line exclusive to Target – Sla’ker: The evil cybernetic snapping turtle! This is Slash, the evil turtle from Dimension X (as billed by Playmates) and Faker, the cybernetic copy of He-Man. It’s from the Target exclusive build-a-figure line of deluxe figures which, once all released, will allow collectors to build a figure of Metal-Roboto. The first such figure in this line was Mouse-Jaw, who despite carrying the “deluxe” label, was a pretty basic figure for the line. He just came with a Mouser and the build-a-figure parts, but cost more money. Sla’ker takes a different approach. There’s no little buddy character this time, but instead this guy is just a whole lot bigger than the norm.

Sla’ker is going to tower over the rest of the figures in this line.

Sla’ker comes in a blister box style of packaging and he dominates the window on said box. That’s because this figure stands just a tick under 7″, though more noticeable than the figure’s height is just how big of a melon this guy has. The head is huge, maybe too big, but there’s certainly a more impressive look to the figure as a result. Otherwise, the body is just a pretty standard MOTU Origins body. It’s my understanding this one was created for the MOTU x WWE line and they needed something bigger for Andre the Giant. And I’m pretty sure this body is being utilized for the Walmart exclusive Krang which I’d love to tell you more about, but Walmart exclusives are an incredible pain in the ass to track down.

Having Sla’ker go bare-chested provides for a better look at whatever this stuff is.

The look of Sla’ker is pretty much as advertised. The body is a pale blue, like Faker, but the head is very much Slash (the Playmates interpretation). Despite the deluxe naming, there’s no extra paint which is unfortunate as there’s a broken piece sculpted into the left eye, but since it’s unpainted it doesn’t stand out at all. The gold chest armor has a slash taken out of the chest and underneath that is a decal of robot stuff. Since this is TMNT, the gears on the decal are pizzas. The armor can be removed easily enough by taking off the head and separating the body at the waist, but the decal looks much cooler through the slash, if you want my opinion. The shell is done the same as it is for the other turtles and it can be removed and used a shield. Since this is Slash, the shell is spiky and purple and looks cool, though it’s still hollow and a little cheap to the touch. The rest of the armor, including spiked shoulder pauldrons, belt, and bracers go for hot pink which feels like a call-back to the Playmates figure. The fingers and toes are clawed, as they should be, and the open mouth is fully sculpted out which is a nice detail. There is a bit of an unsightly seem to it, but it’s only really visible from the side.

He should be able to do some damage with these.

For weapons, Sla’ker has a pair of swords that are more like over-sized knives. They’re very much in line with the same weapon the original Playmates Slash came with, only now his hand blades have been incorporated into the handguard. It’s weird to have a Slash-inspired figure without the blades on the hands themselves, but this is an okay substitute. Like the other turtles, there is a slot on the back of the shell to store weapons, but it can only accommodate one sword at a time. The only other accessories in the box are the Metal-Roboto parts which include the head and the crotch which has includes the legs down to where the boot cut would be. Unfortunately, the head is going to use some other method of connecting to the body when it eventually comes out and can’t be swapped to another figure. I also personally hate it when build-a-figures like this released in a series don’t come with parts that can connect to the parts we just got. Mouse-Jaw came with an arm. It would be more tidy if this figure came with the torso, but oh well.

The removable shell is still a thing with Sla’ker.

Sla’ker may be bigger than the norm, but the construction is exactly the same which means the articulation is essentially the same. With one detail. For whatever reason, the ankle rockers on this figure just plain don’t work. They’re more like swivel joints. Is that by design? I can’t tell. It could just be the engineering is subpar and they’re not working as intended. If it’s an intentional choice then it truly is a bizarre one and also not a good one. You never know how much you’ll miss ankle rockers until they’re gone. As a result, Sla’ker is tough to pose dynamically. The figure is better off with a pretty neutral base. The size of the figure relative to the rest at least imparts some shelf presence even when posed in a pretty vanilla manner, but it’s a shame it doesn’t move as well as the other figures. Every other joint is fine and the tolerance is good.

We’re gonna need more turtles!

Sla’ker is a figure I wasn’t going to get. Then I got Mouse-Jaw and felt the compulsion to complete the build-a-figure, but like Mouse-Jaw I was going to hold off for a clearance event. Obviously, that didn’t happen and I paid the full $25 for Sla’ker. What got me to change my mind? He just looked cool on the pegs. I’ll be surprised if he doesn’t end up getting discounted at some point, though maybe with this figure being more of a TMNT character than a MOTU one it will sell better? That all depends on who is buying this line: MOTU fans or TMNT fans. A lot of people may have also grabbed Mouse-Jaw for cheap and thus could rationalize paying full price for this one with the money saved on Mouse-Jaw, because once you get one piece of a build-a-figure it can lead to wanting the rest, so what should you do? If taking one look at this figure doesn’t do a whole lot for you, or the poor ankles will drive you nuts, then go ahead and play the waiting game. It’s a Target exclusive and I’m guessing they ordered just as many of this figure as they did Mouse-Jaw. If you have to have it now though, then you’ll probably be content enough. Just don’t expect to be able to put this figure into any crazy poses.

“I wish I had a body.”

For more thoughts of mine on this MOTU x TMNT line, look no further:

MOTU – Turtles of Grayskull Raphael

Mattel’s Turtles of Grayskull line rolls on with wave two. This Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles x Masters of the Universe collaboration is a continuation of the Masters of the Universe Origins toyline. That’s a line of roughly 5.5″ figures designed to capture the aesthetic of the original MOTU toyline, but with some modern articulation engineered…

Keep reading
by Joe

MOTU – Turtles of Grayskull Deluxe Mouse-Jaw

Nothing can be simple in this day and age of retail toy sales which is why the new mash-up of Masters of the Universe and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles toyline features ostensibly 3 SKUs: standard, deluxe, and deluxe with build-a-figure parts. The standard releases are, as you may have expected, released abroad and you can…

Keep reading
by Joe

MOTU – Turtles of Grayskull Leonardo and Donatello

These days, there isn’t much the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles haven’t crossed-over with. Back in the day we had Star Trek, trolls, and the Universal Monsters. More modern times have seen cross-overs with the likes of WWE, Ghostbusters, and Mighty Morphin Power Rangers. Throughout all of that, as well as the action figure license seemingly…

Keep reading
by Joe

Leave a comment   |  tags: , , , , , , , , , | posted in toys

May 14, 2024

MOTU – Turtles of Grayskull Raphael

By Joe

Mattel’s Turtles of Grayskull line rolls on with wave two. This Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles x Masters of the Universe collaboration is a continuation of the Masters of the Universe Origins toyline. That’s a line of roughly 5.5″ figures designed to capture the aesthetic of the original MOTU toyline, but with some modern articulation engineered into the form. For the first wave, I took a look at both Leonardo and Donatello. As someone who is a TMNT fan, but not a MOTU fan, the turtle boys are the only ones that appeal to me. Despite that, I did end up getting the Mouse-Jaw figure despite that being a MOTU character, but he came with a Mouser so that works, right?

The gang is not quite all here.

Raphael is the turtle of the line’s second wave which also includes Ram Man, Beast Man, and Shredder. I’m not likely to get either MOTU character in this wave, but I’m also not sold on Shredder. I guess I need to see him in person. Raph I knew I wanted so I went ahead and just preordered that one. This should be a pretty easy review since this figure is essentially the same as the prior turtles. That’s the whole idea behind the line which is one base body creates many toys. The new stuff is the armor and accessories and the new head.

I’ll take a picture of the shell shield, but if you display your Turtles of Grayskull like this you’re a monster.

Raphael could basically be described as Raphael x Ram Man. I don’t know anything about Ram Man, my MOTU knowledge is only surface level, but from what I gather he’s a stout fella with a hard head and helmet to go with it. I assume he rams people, and while Raph may be hot-headed, he’s not known for bashing folks with his brain so he’s also equipped with some weapons. Unlike the Donatello-At-Arms figure, the helmet is removable so this figure can strip down to a fairly basic Raph with barbarian underwear.

“I could get used to this.”

Right off the bat, I have to say the green on this Raph pops. It’s hilarious to me that Mattel has done a better job at recreating Raph’s classic shade of green than Playmates has with its reissues. The head gives me 2003 vibes like it did with the previous turtles while this figure has way more of Raph’s red worked into the figure. The bracers and greaves are red, he has red on the helmet, a red belt, red on the chest, and a piece of red armor on his shoulder. The shell is the same piece and is a matte brown and the paint applications overall are a little cleaner with this figure than they were with my wave one offerings. I may not care about Ram Man and I think his design is kind of boring, but this is working for me. I think Raph is my new favorite in the line and it’s mostly because the colors work and he looks great with or without the helmet.

Raph could do some damage with these.

As for weapons, Raph apparently can’t have normal sai he needs something bigger. The first sai is more like a tri-bladed sword. It has a long handle and the weapon is larger than Raph’s leg. It’s done all in silver and he can grip it just fine. It also slots into the holster on the back of the shell pretty well. The other sai is a bit more involved. It’s basically a glove that fits over his right fist which is kind of a Fisto thing, only Raph is taking it a step further (or three) by having giant blades coming off the top of his fist. If the outer blades were as long as the center one he’d look like he’s cosplaying Wolverine. It’s a cool weapon, though it looks more like a Shredder weapon to me and that’s primarily to do with how he armed himself in the 2012 series. Like the other turtles, the shell does come off and can double as a handheld shield. The chest armor, like the helmet and glove sai, are just pressure fitted so no straps to deal with. The shoulder armor can slide off as well so if you want to get this guy pretty close to naked it’s not too difficult. There’s also another mini comic included, but it’s not the advertised continuation of the story from the first wave. It’s just panel art, no dialogue bubbles, and seems to be pretty scattershot. I guess we have to wait until Wave 3 for the rest of the story?

“You don’t scare me, ugly!”

The articulation for Raph is exactly the same as it was with Leo and Donnie. It’s solid as the shoulders, head, elbows, and knees have good range despite the simple approach. The waist twist is just a waist twist, but the ankles feature hinges and rockers. My lingering complaint is still that the hands only have horizontal hinges when vertical would be preferable for melee weapons. It’s fine.

“You better not be cuttin’ in on my territory, bub!”

The bottom line here is if you dig the look of this mash-up and enjoyed Wave One then you’ll be plenty happy with this interpretation of Raphael. The line needed a Raph and it got a pretty good one. Wave Two should be arriving in stores around you as I type this. It’s also available at various online retailers and I got mine from Amazon. MSRP is 20 bucks, which is a little higher than the standard MOTU Origins price, but that’s likely due to Mattel having to pay Viacom for the license. Wave 3 should be coming soon and I’ve seen some people who already have it, plus there’s the deluxe figures and I’ll be checking some of them out. This line has legs, so we’re definitely not close to being done.

The Turtles like playing with other IP, MOTU is just the latest:

MOTU – Turtles of Grayskull Leonardo and Donatello

These days, there isn’t much the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles haven’t crossed-over with. Back in the day we had Star Trek, trolls, and the Universal Monsters. More modern times have seen cross-overs with the likes of WWE, Ghostbusters, and Mighty Morphin Power Rangers. Throughout all of that, as well as the action figure license seemingly…

Keep reading
by Joe

MOTU – Turtles of Grayskull Deluxe Mouse-Jaw

Nothing can be simple in this day and age of retail toy sales which is why the new mash-up of Masters of the Universe and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles toyline features ostensibly 3 SKUs: standard, deluxe, and deluxe with build-a-figure parts. The standard releases are, as you may have expected, released abroad and you can…

Keep reading
by Joe

Hasbro MMPR x TMNT Shredder

We’ve looked at the two-packs from Hasbro’s Mighty Morphin Power Rangers x Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles line of action figures based on the comic book crossover, but have we saved the best for last? Coming in on his own is the arch nemesis for the turtles: The Shredder! And since this is a line specializing…

Keep reading
by Joe

Leave a comment   |  tags: , , , , , , , | posted in toys