Action Figure Review: Leech from Masterverse: Princess of Power by Mattel

 

   I've definitely not been putting out as many reviews over the past month as you're probably accustomed to, so some of you have probably wondered if I'm OK. I am! I've been working on a special project that involves another swamp creature. October is less than 3 months away, you know...

   Masterverse is putting out the Evil Horde very slowly in the Princess of Power subset but Leech gives us at least one one new member for this year. While he's not an exact match for the Filmation version of Leech from She-Ra: Princess of Power, this take on Leech does seem to be inspired by the design of the Filmation version mixed with the vintage toy. I'm surprised we got this take on Leech rather than the Masters of the Universe: Revolution but only because it's the most recent show the character appeared in. Personally, I really hope Mattel gets to some of the Great Rebellion in the line. Anyways, I'm excited to have Leech as he's not a character we've seen in Masterverse yet. Ready to check him out? Then join me after the break...

Action Figure Review: Moss Man from Turtles of Grayskull by Mattel

 

   I'm absolutely loving Mattel's Turtles of Grayskull line and I was pretty thrilled a month or so ago when I walked into my local Walmart and stumbled upon a full row of the Turtles of Grayskull Moss Man. Turtles of Grayskull is far more well thought out than most of the TMNT crossover properties and there are some pretty interesting changes made to the characters. Moss Man is another of the unfortunate heroes who has been transformed by mutagen ooze and is now at the beck and call of Shredder and Krang. An evil Moss Man who reminds me of a Resident Evil villain? Sign me up! Let's take a look at Moss Man, the Mutated Master of Nature, after the break...

Action Figure Review: Royal Guard from Savage Crucible by Harvinger Studios

 

  Back in mid June I was at HeroesCon in Charlotte, NC and stumbled upon the Harvinger Toys booth which was selling figures from their Savage Crucible line. I'd heard of Savage Crucible before but I wasn't very familiar with the line. It started out as a Kickstarter funded line in 2023 and the first series of figures has already dropped. At the show the Harvinger Studios team also had test shots and prototypes of series 2 and a couple from series 3, all of which got me pretty excited for this line. I practiced a little restraint, though, and only ended up with two figures and one of the accessory packs. Kind of a big mistake on my part as these are some extremely impressive figures and I now wish I'd picked up a couple more as these are tough to find and pricey most everywhere else now (Harvinger Studios seemed to be giving a nice discount at the show). The first figure I'm checking is the Royal Guard, a Lemurian warrior. The Lemurians are a race of lizard people. This guy really appealed to me because of his cool black and white color scheme and there was an accessory pack for sale that had an alternate head for this guy with a raised crest or hood, kind of like a Dilophosaurus. Ready to check out my first figure in a new line? Then join me after the break...

Action Figure Review: Kirby from Eastman & Laird's Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles by NECA

 

   I haven't seriously collected a TMNT toyline for at least a decade now, though this year I have been collecting Mattel's Turtles of Grayskull due to their Masters of the Universe connection and I've been secreting away the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles x Universal Monsters (which are being set aside for some terrifying purpose!). I've been aware of this upcoming Jack Kirby figure from NECA's Eastman & Laird's Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles toyline based on the 1980s Mirage Studios comic book series since it was revealed last year. I've read quite a bit of the Mirage Studios TMNT comics through the excellent hardbound editions released by IDW and I was familiar with the story that Kirby appeared in, "Donatello: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle #1" (Kirby King also appears in the 2003 series in the episode "Kirby and the Warp Crystal"). In the story Donatello meets Kirby, a new tenant of April's building, who is an artist utilizing a magic crystal he has found that brings his drawings to life. Kirby and Donatello end up travelling through a portal into another world where Donatello and Kirby help the human population fight off the monsters that Kirby has been drawing. It's a simple and neat story that was Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird's tribute to Jack "The King" Kirby, one of the most legendary creators in all of comics. Kirby is a Target exclusive and is part of their Haulathon promotion. I managed to just stumble upon him on a shelf one night right after it seemed like a fresh display had just been set. I didn't buy this figure because he's a TMNT character; I bought him because he's a tribute to Jack Kirby. Let's check out Kirby after the break...

Action Figure Review: Arrizak from Mythic Legions by Four Horsemen Studios

 

   I usually only pick up a couple Mythic Legions figures a year, typically just the Masters of the Universe tributes, but the wizards from the new Poxxus series of figures really appealed to me. They just released this month and I was able to snag some from both the Four Horsemen's booth at HeroesCon on the 15th and from some other vendors at the show. It's pretty cool walking up to the booth and not only having the crew from Four Horsemen Studios there but also getting to see so many of the figures displayed out of the package in a variety of poses. They even had some customs out for display, too. Arrizak is an evil sorcerer who is part of the Circle of Poxxus, the followers of Poxxus, the evil god of sickness and decay and a new threat to Mythoss. Arrizak reminds me of Kelek, the evil wizard from the vintage LJN toyline. I've never owned Kelek but I've always liked the look of the figure. The Four Horsemen have been working more and more soft goods into this line and the is incredibly impressive. Ready to check out Arrizak? Then say some magic words and join me after the break...

Action Figure Review: Ken from Ultra Street Fighter 2: The New Challengers by Jada Toys

 

   Jada Toys seems to have big plans for their Ultra Street Fighter 2: The New Challengers toyline, though they stated off slow with only three characters last year: Ryu, Chun-Li, and Fei Long. Series 2 has been hitting slowly over the past few months and it seems that Ken shipped before M. Bison and Dhalsim, the other two figures in the series. While Ken was a bit of a Ryu clone in the game Capcom worked over time to differentiate him from his best friend and rival. The Jada Toys Ken uses much of the same body as Ryu, but his outfit is different so they're not just the same figure with different heads and paint jobs. Ready to check out Ken and see if he's "Kenough" to win the World Warrior Tournament? Then join me after the break...

Action Figure Review: Iron Man (Model 01-Gold) from Marvel Legends Retro Collection: Iron Man by Hasbro

 

      For well over a year now I've really cut my Marvel Legends collecting down to just X-Men and mutant related characters (X-Force, Alpha Flight, etc.) and just the random figure here and there I really like. I've sold off quite a few Marvel Legends over the past 6 months that I'd lost interest in or that didn't fit into my collection. I did keep my core Avengers and villains, though, particularly in their most classic looks. I had multiple Iron Man figures but I sold off about half of them, keeping just my favorites. I didn't pick up the Mark I Iron Man last year but when I saw this gorgeous Iron Man (Model 01-Gold) from the new Iron Man Retro Collection I had to bite. These are packaged on cards that look like the old Toy Biz Iron Man cards that tied in with the cartoon, the only Marvel line I collected after I stopped collecting the X-Men line, so the nostalgia hit. But this guy really just appealed to me. I think he'll look great with the other core Avengers. I think the gold suit was Tony's third design, painted gold because he thought people found the original suit too frightening and one of his girlfriends thought gold would make Iron Man look like " knight in shining armor." Cute. I saw him at a local shop and debated grabbing him but I ended up picking him up at my nearest GameStop. With my Pro discount and my monthly $5 reward I ended up with him for less than a Jackson. Let's check out Iron Man (Model-01 Gold) after the break...