Wednesday, February 22, 2023

Action Figure Review: Two Bad from Masterverse/ Masters of the Universe: New Eternia by Mattel

 

   I actually have four new Masterverse figures to review (I found Pig Head, Man-E-Faces, and Sorceress over the weekend) but I'm going to start with Two Bad, a deluxe release that showed up at the very beginning of the year already swinging to be one of the best Masterverse releases of 2023. I'm sure we'll get plenty of other really solid figures this year in Masterverse, but wow, this one is going to be tough to beat. Two Bad is part of the New Eternia subset and their packaging tells the story of Tuvar Baddrah as the captains of rival mercenary ships who fall victim to the cursed treasure of Horde Prime. The curse fuses them together, leaving them as one terrifying individual wrestling with their egos. Interestingly, the package calls Two Bad "him" but wouldn't it make more sense to say they? I mean, they're two distinct individuals fused together, not just one being that has multiple heads but one mind. Anyways, it's a cool setup for Tuvar and Baddrah in New Eternia which borrows from the Mike Young Productions concept for the characters a bit. Ready to check out what all there is to love about Two Bad? Then let's check him/they out after the break...






The Facts:

Height: 8 1/4ths inches

Articulation: Swivel/hinge ankles, boot swivels, double hinged knees, thigh swivels, balljointed hips, swivel waist, balljointed mid-torso, swivel/hinge shoulders, bicep swivels, double hinged elbows, swivel/hinge wrists, and barbell jointed heads (x2).

Accessories: 4 interchangeable hands, armor, belt, shoulder pad, pistol, shield, axe, and 2 maces.

Non-Scalper Price: $33 dollars






The Positives:

* Let's start off with a look at the basic Two Bad figure. It's pretty awesome! It's obviously very true to the vintage figure with that bright orange armor and the different gloves and boots but there is also now a spiked should pad on Tuvar's arm and a really cool belt inspired by the chestplate on the vintage Roger Sweet concept art. If you want a straight up vintage Two Bad just pull off the spiked shoulder pad and the belt; they come off easily. This is a fantastic looking figure that's far superior to the Masters of the Universe Classics version, something that I don't say often.




* One of the weaknesses of the Classics figure was that Mattel made the division between Tuvar and Baddrah very neat and clean looking. You know, very symmetrical. They're supposed to be more erratically joined, though, and the Masterverse team did an excellent job here. Besides having radically different skin styles and textures, the skin overlaps in places and looks uneven. It's really quite impressive. The Masterverse figures are absolutely mass market retail figures sold in the toy aisle, sure, but Two Bad really ups the detail impressively to create a very cool "two beings melded together" effect. There's even a nice wash on the skin tones to bring out the detail. Mattel absolutely brought their A game to Two Bad. 




* Two Bad is significantly larger, too. Not just wider, though he is wider, but taller. Interestingly, Baddrah's head is about a half inch higher than Tuvar's, which is the opposite of the 200x figure where Tuvar was a bit taller. The whole figure is taller than most other Masterverse figures, too, making Two Bad really imposing and frightening looking. 









* Here's a look at Tuvar's head. It's pretty close to the look of the vintage figure but with the taller, thinner Masterverse proportions, quite a few more teeth poking out of his mouth, and a pirate inspired hoop earring on his right ear. He looks pretty mean and those eyebrows and red eyes really seal the deal. 



* Baddrah is also really cool with an improved... circlet on his brow. I'd call that a circlet, right? It doesn't wrap around his head, though, and I'm not calling it a tiara. It's not his eyebrows, right? It clearly looks like a decorative. He's sporting lots of other head ornamentation like horns and one big fin in the center. Oh, and fangs. Lots of fangs. Plus  red eyes with no pupils. Spooky!


* Two Bad's belt is awesome. It looks like it's made of brown leather with armored studs (green on one side and silver on the other) and a very elaborate belt buckle. On the left is a dragon like creature (in blue) while the right side has a griffin-like creature (in purple). This design showed up on Roger Sweet's vintage concept art for the character, even in drawings where the original idea was a character who had a (literal) good half and an evil half. 



* Two Bad's articulation is the same as any other Masterverse figure, though his unique body does make things a bit different in terms of range of motions, smoothness, etc. It all works really well and feels fantastic. His joints are definitely tight enough to him standing since he's a bit top heavy, so that's a plus. 


* You get a pair of hands for each half of Two Bad: Silver gripping and punching right hands and purple flesh gripping and punching left hands. They swap easily enough and give you the option to have Tuvar and Baddrah utilize their included arsenal of weaponry or just hit things with their fists. 


* Two Bad comes with his classic orange shield, though it's far more detailed with lots of sculpted damage and weathering. It has the asymmetrical spikes like the vintage toy but now even the texture of the two halves of the shield are different. The creature logo from the belt is also included here in the middle and, of course, it has the same useful straps on the back for keeping it on Two Bad's left arm. 



* This red mace is covered in spikes and matches one if the weapons from the vintage concept art for the character. Here's that concept image from the always excellent Battle Ram blog


* The green mace is far more unusual looking and also stems from the same vintage concept art seen above. These also kind of match up with the odd double headed mace that the Four Horsemen created for the 200x line. They must have been looking at some vintage concept art for inspiration too, right?


* The best weapon is this amazing axe that actually looks like the two headed beast that Two Bad is sporting on their belt. The wings are the blades and the tails form the handles. At least I hope those are the tails. This thing looks awesome and very capable of some serious destruction. There's even some paintwork on it to make it look worn and weathered. 



* Need to stow away a weapon? There's a monster head on the back of Two Bad's armor that can grip one of the weapons. It rotates it down into a storage position with the handle up, so I think the looseness of the head is intentional. Using this, Two bad can potentially hold all of his weapons. 



* The laser pistol isn't anything too complex but it suits the character well and looks appropriately Masters of the Universe-ish (almost like a version of the Castle Grayskull laser pistol). It's also double barreled, so no wonder Two bad likes it. 



* Pop that laser pistol into the simple holster on Tuvar's right hip and you're ready for some quick draws. Or just straight up punching. Take your pick. 

The Negatives:


* The handle of the very cool axe has a paint application, but it started crumbling off the first time I put it in Two Bad's hands. Their hands are really tight and the paint just flaked off. Bummer. 








   This guy is amazing. Two Bad is definitely one of my favorite Masterverse figures yet. He's also the best Two Bad figure ever made. Seriously, this guy is amazing. Fantastic sculpt with some seriously nice detail and paintwork, awesome armored and outfit bits, and lots of cool accessories. He's a deluxe figure that feels worthy of being a deluxe figure in this line. Two Bad is big, bad, and brings both a vintage accurate figure or a cool New Eternia design to your Masterverse shelf. Definitely deserving of an Epic rating. 







Looking for more of Two Bad/ Tuvar and Baddrah? Then check out my reviews of the MOTUC Two Bad and the Super7 M.U.S.C.L.E. Two-Bad.

For more Masterverse reviews check out the following:







18 comments:

  1. Yup. He is a force to be reckoned.

    I'd actually like to see Origins try to tackle the concept Two Bad concept with the good and evil halves. yes, the good half that looks like Adam carrying a flower. That would be hilarious.

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  2. I must admit, i never heard about Two Bad but the figure is quite great, like the name puns (Tuvar+Baddrah=Two Bad, also for "Too Bad" and being Two) that are quite original and give the characters some charm.

    Also, they sort of remind me of Invader Zim's Almighty Tallest, but unlike them, Tuvar and Baddrah have to live and work very, very "close". Ha, ha, ha! About the Almighty Tallest, i hope some company makes 6 or 7 inch figures for them, i liked them a lot in the TV series.

    Another character i remember when i see Two Bad is Lythos, the Rock Titan from Disney's Hercules. You know, two heads, one body. I hope Two Bad can be smarter than Lythos, at least. Hey, that reminds me that we should get Lythos, Pyros, Hydros and Stratos as figures from Disney too.

    Barbecue, i would like to know two things, and i hope you can answer them if you want, obviously:

    1. Which characters would you like to see getting converted into action figures?
    2. How is your Retro Crimson Guard order going?

    As a final point, nice review, i always enjoy reading them. Have a nice day!

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    1. Two-Bad is definitely a very punny name, which is absolutely in line with much of the vintage line. The Tuvar and Baddrah names/ personalities didn't actually come about until the 200x/ Mike Young Productions era, so it was definitely a later edition. The MYP animated series really added so much to the lore of MOTU that is now just generally accepted.

      Headbanger from Toxic Crusaders also used a similar theme with a scientist and a surfer guy mutated together. It was a pretty sweet figure.

      As always, thanks for your kind comments. Let me see about those questions:

      1. If you're talking about specifically Masterverse, I'd love to have New Eternia versions of Moss Man (he's my favorite), Orko, King Hiss, and Rio Blast to start things off. I'd love to see a mixture of old and new elements for those figures. If they do any more movie figures (which feels doubtful) I'd love a movie Teela and Man-At-Arms.

      If you're talking about action figures in general, I really want someone to release a good, ongoing 1/12th scale Resident Evil line that spans all eras of the games. A line of Mystery Science Theater 3000 toys is another dream of mine (I'd even take ReAction styled figures). Just at least give us all the hosts, the bots, and the main mads/ villains from each era. Extra points if we get Torgo. Lastly, I want NECA to do Big Trouble in Little China and Escape from New York.

      2. My Retro Crimson Guard order is still listed with a July 1st release date at Hasbro Pulse along with my Retro Snake Eye.

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    2. Nice figure choices! Would like to see HUNK in 6 inch versions, that would be really great. Never heard about MST3000 but seems a nice TV series.

      I would like to see Mars Attacks 6 inch figures, always liked the Martian suits, especially the blue-caped Martian Leader and the red-caped Martian Ambassador designs. Also, the MOTU film Skeletroopers, i always liked the design a lot. Also, a proper SF II M.Bison figure, because i hate how beefy M.Bison is on all the other games. I liked Raul Juliá's interpretation of M.Bison, as both him and SF II Bison were slimmier than the modern Bison design. And also, the news anchors from that SyFy series called "Alien News Desk" in 6 inches would be a nice addition.

      About your Retro CG, wow, Pulse decided to kick you in the grill really hard. Let's hope you get it as soon as possible.

      Also, i wanted to ask you a thing. I saw you reviewed the Mando's Incinerator Trooper and the First Order Flametrooper, but you never had a Jedi Survivor Flametrooper review. Also, i see your Classified reviews miss Barbecue, which would have been nice to make puns with this blog's name. You passed avout that figures, you never managed to get them, or you have them but never reviewed them?

      Have a nice weekend, you and your family! Your real one i mean, not your action figure family! Ha, ha, ha!

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    3. Oh, i also forgot to mention we should get some figures from 200X shows. Like the Almighty Tallest from Invader Zim (the old figures weren't bad but now they are hella expensive for 4 inch figures) and the Skeleton King from that Nickeloeon cartoon show called "Super Robot Monkey Team Hyper Force Go!", but both itterations. It surprises me that Mark Hamill voiced so many villains after playing as a hero. Funnily enough, Skeleton King is like a mix of Darth Vader and Darth Sidious, what a coincidence.

      As i told you, i wish you a nice weekend for you and your family, i will wait for your next review to read and enjoy it.

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    4. Man, I love the Street Fighter movie as well. I had many of those figures as a kid. In fact, I still do. I have the full Turbo roster of 12 characters between the G.I. Joe Street Fighter II line and the movie line.

      Yeah, I skipped the Jedi Fallen Order Flametrooper. The Gaming Greats line is just marked up too much and he just didn't excite me. I have so many troopers at this point that it has to be something pretty unique to get my attention.

      I did review Barbecue, but he's listed as Gabriel "Barbecue" Kelly as that's how he's sold, kind of like Alvin "Breaker" Kibbey and Stuart "Outback" Selkirk. Check it out. I definitely had fun with that one.

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    5. True, you are right, you reviewed Barbecue. And yes, i thought you missed it as i forgot that he has a full name. Well, the fun fact is that i saw the Barbecue review and maybe in a future if i can i will get him. If not, will try to get the Slaughter's "Mad Marauders" variant.

      Also, i hope in a future they do a Black Series Second Sister new version, or a General Veers one, as i never knew they had figures and now they are on Amazon for 200 euros. But Barbecue will be my priority, for sure!

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    6. Well, i actually liked the film as it didn't made Ryu and Ken the protagonists, actually. I like sagas where you have different protagonists over reasonable timespans. Only things i hated was fusing Blanka and Charlie Nash into a single character, a bad explanation of Bison's powers (although i liked the electromagnetism thing as it mixes Bison with Palpatine), Chun-Li being a news reporter instead of a secret agent (unless i forgot something about the film plot) and yeah, Van Damme was way too annoying for portraying Guile.

      But at least SFII:The Movie is way better than The Legend of Chun-Li. Also, the Arcade Game's Troopers should get figures too. You know, the ones from "SFII:The Game. The Movie. The Game. The TV Adaptation. The Desk Game. The Spaceballs. The End.", which is an horribly long title, and everytime i mention it i like to parody it.

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    7. To me, the Street Fighter movie is the best G.I. Joe movie we've ever had. I would love a G.I. Joe movie that played out just like it. Legit action but also embracing the weirdness of the property. Guys in snake costumes, ninjas everywhere, an accountant in a bird costume. Just utter weirdness.

      "Come out from behind the curtain, wizard!"

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    8. And you know what's crazier? I actually thought the SF movie WAS a G.I. Joe movie. Like, some years ago, I believe in 2017, I searched about the live action 90s G.I. Joe movie only for there to be nothing. I was confused as I had in my memory what I thought to be one. After digging deeper did I discover that was actually the Street Fighter movie of Van Damme and Raul Julia. It was the ending shot that was in my head and ironically, this discovery got me into Street Fighter.

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    9. It just feels like a G.I. Joe movie, doesn't it? Non regulation uniforms, Bison's roster of incompetent help, those cool Bison troopers.

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  3. Actually, the white paint coming off the handle doesn't look too bad. In fact, it looks like cloth wrappings that are starting to come off of be undone.

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    1. That's true and definitely a glass is half full view on this. I was just surprised at how quickly it flaked away.

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  4. Yeah, there have been a few concept things. They are doing Slaumrai and the Snake Troopers, though they did get Classics figures first, but characters like Frog Monger definitely show a willingness to try some different things.

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  5. I just opened up my Masterverse Two Bad. Toy is large and imposing. Two things (ahaha) though - while I like the weapons he's packed with and it's cool to see nods to concept art, I wish they had given us the 200X double-headed mace instead of the axe. I mean the axe is neat and all but the double mace has kind of become a signature Two Bad weapon. And secondly, I'd have preferred to have the Tuvar head higher up than the Baddrah head, a la 200X and to a lesser degree, the MOTUC version. I guess that's just what I've been conditioned to expect. But neither of those preferences is a deal-breaker or really significant - Two Bad is a great addition to the Evil Warriors and I can't wait for the upcoming big monster guys like Whiplash and Clawful :)

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    1. Masterverse is knocking out the big monster guys and it's cool to see them actually be made larger and more imposing. I do wonder why the 200x mace was skipped, though it was never one of my favorites. I'm penty happy with what we got.

      I wonder why they switched which had was higher? Maybe the next Two Bad figure will give Baddrah the higher head again, just for the sake of fairness.

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  6. Can't wait to read your reviews of the upcoming Masterverse toys. Lots of peeps have switched to video reviews, but I still enjoy taking my time reading written reviews and comments :)

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    1. Thanks!

      I've been reviewing a lot of DC Multiverse figures lately but I definitely have lots of Masterverse and Origins figures coming soon, too. I should be reviewing a good 5-10 MOTU figures this month, so keep reading.

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