Action Figure Review: Force Captain Adora from She-Ra and the Princesses of Power by Mattel

   I'm still working my way through reviewing all of the figures from Mattel's new She-Ra and the Princesses of Power line based on the 2018 Netflix cartoon and today I'm checking out Princess Adora herself! Well, actually just Adora here. Force Captain Adora, actually. Thus far the 2018 Netflix series hasn't made a connection to Adora's family on Eternia, and who knows if they'll ever do so? The series seems to be forging a path all of its own and while it is a good show, I'd love to at least have a story arc connecting Adora back to her family at some point. Anyways, Adora is still the main character and her character design is one of my favorites from the new series. I like her outfit as it definitely has a military cadet vibe while still looking like it belongs in the fantasy setting of Etheria. Force Captain Adora comes packaged one per case, alongside of Bow, Catra, and Glimmer, meaning that tracking these figures down can be a bit of a chore. I managed to get one for me and one for my daughter (whose name is Adora!), though, so hopefully you'll have good luck like me. Let's check out Force Captain Adora after the break...

Action Figure Review: Faker (Leo) from Masters of the Universe ReAction by Super7

   A month or so ago Super 7 released a series of Masters of the Universe ReAction figures that mostly focused on variants inspired by the vintage Indian releases from Leo Toys. Leo Toys had some interesting variants that have become quite desirable over the years and one of the most popular variants is Leo's Faker. It was released in 1987 and features some interesting differences from the standard vintage Faker. I've already reviewed the standard Faker who came out earlier this year, so this review's going to be a bit brief since this is largely a repaint with Skeletor's torso. Let's check out the Leo Faker after the break and see what all the rage is about...

Action Figure Review: Catra from She-Ra and the Princesses of Power by Mattel

    Catra is one of the characters from She-Ra and the Princesses of Power who differs the most from earlier depictions of the character, but you know what? It works! Catra is easily one of my favorite characters in the new cartoon, so it's only fitting that she's also one of my favorite figures in this new line. It turns out that Catra seems to be the hardest of the dolls to find as well. Considering she's She-Ra's primary antagonist in this series, packing her just one to a case seems like a bit of a misstep (She-Ra comes by herself 4 to a case while Catra, Bow, Glimmer, and Adora all come packed 1 to a case). Still, that doesn't change the fact that she's a pretty cool toy and a very unique interpretation of the character. She honestly reminds me of a character design from the 2011 ThunderCats. It really works for the character, though, and makes her quite unique. She's a great, conflicted villain. Let's check her out after the break...

Action Figure Review: He-Man and Prince Adam from Masters of the Universe Origins by Mattel

   SDCC 2019 had a few really cool Masters of the Universe exclusive toys this year and today I'm getting ready to check out the first of them: The He-Man and Prince Adam 2-pack from Mattel's upcoming Masters of the Universe Origins. With the movie reportedly on the horizon and the upcoming Masters of the Universe: Revelations Netflix series, Mattel is getting ready to give He-Man another shot at retail. This time they're going back to the earliest days of MOTU by developing a line based on minicomic depictions of the crew with the aesthetics and size of the vintage line augmented with more modern articulation and features (extra hands, swappable heads). It's an interesting strategy for a mass market line but perhaps Mattel is hoping that collectors and nostalgic fans will keep it alive. While the Origins line isn't supposed to hit retail until sometime next fall, Mattel decided to give fans a taste of things to come by offering this really cool 2-pack. Ready for a very minicomics inspired He-Man and Prince Adam? Then join me after the break...

Action Figure Review: Bow from She-Ra and the Princesses of Power by Mattel

   Slowly but surely I will be making my way through reviewing most of the She-Ra and the Princesses of Power dolls. I picked up most of these for my daughter for her birthday, so now the Great Rebellion has taken up residence in the giant Frozen frozen dollhouse in her room. Her She-Ra figures have it better than mine: They get to lounge in a castle with nice beds, a fireplace, and a chaise lounge while mine are lined up in my Masters of the Universe collection with hundreds of enemies to fight. Today I'm checking out Bow, one of She-Ra's besties in the newish Netflix series. I'm not all the way through Season 3 yet but so far I'm liking the show. I've been liking it a bit more with every season as it seems to be finding its footing while getting deeper over time. While Bow is still an archer with a heart of gold who is fiercely loyal to the Great Rebellion, the Netflix version of Bow definitely seems a lot younger and more immature than the Filmation Bow (though that's true of most of the Netflix She-Ra characters). Mattel's toyline definitely captures the look of the new show but it also does it's own thing a bit, converting the designs into more traditional doll designs. Let's see if Bow hits the mark after the break...

Action Figure Review: Slamurai and Snake Troopers from Masters of the Universe Classics by Mattel

    PowerCon 2019 was just a couple of weeks ago and, like every year it has been held, there was a nice assortment of Masters of the Universe exclusives from various lines. This year Masters of the Universe Classics had two exclusives: A single packed Horde Zombie He-Man and the Slamurai versus Snake Troopers three pack. I'm reviewing the three pack today as it arrived in the mail first (I'm still waiting on my He-Man!). Looking at Slamurai and the Snake Troopers, you might ask yourself "Who are these guys? They look familiar but I don't remember owning them as a kid."
 
   You'd be correct. These guys are the last figures from a proposed 1988 series of figures that never happened. While Mattel was planning to release the figures from The Powers of Grayskull line, it seems that at one point they also wanted some new MOTU figures out that used existing parts. We actually have Errol McCarthy's proposed drawings for the figures from the series, though the names are mostly recent inventions except for Strobo. The series would have consisted of Terroar, Plasmar, and Lord Gr'asp (who were a 3-pack exclusive for PowerCon 2017), Strobo (who was the 2013 traveling convention exclusive), and Slamurai and a Snake Trooper, who we're checking out today. Man, is MOTUC a crazy toyline or what? We actually for an entire series of figures based on toys that were never even made? Know what else is interesting? These are actually made by Mattel, and not Super7. Odd, huh? We know now that Mattel has aggressively been taking back control of the property so Mattel must have jumped in and made these themselves. Being a convention exclusive with a very, very limited run, this set is definitely pricier than your standard exclusive, so keep that in mind. Let's check this set out after the break...

Action Figure Review: Skeletor from Masters of the Universe by Mondo

    Skeletor is evil. He's a seriously evil being intent on taking over Eternia and, later, the entire galaxy. He's attempted to kill members of his own family, razed helpless villages to the ground, and even eradicated his own henchmen. But Skeletor was no match for two things... The Christmas Spirit and the love of a puppy named Relay! Guess what? I'm back with another review from Mondo's excellent line of Masters of the Universe 1/6th scale action figures and today I'm checking out the Evil Lord of Destruction, Skeletor! Skeletor has been making his way out over the past couple of months and I'm finally getting the chance to review mine! He's already found a play of honor in my MOTU collection next to the Sideshow statues of He-Man and She-Ra and the Mondo He-Man and he's even had a few battles against my daughter's new She-Ra dolls (he lost, by the way). Today, though, Skeletor is getting the full review treatment here at Action Figure Barbecue and I'm going to preempt this review by going ahead and stating that Skeletor is easily one of the best MOTU toys I've ever owned. Let me tell you, folks, I own a lot of MOTU toys, too. That's high praise! I love how Mondo manages to capture so many different facets of the MOTU brand and meld them all into one killer toy. Let's check out Skeletor after the break and see what all the fuss is about!