Barbecue's Bonfire: 2/6/2016

   We're only a week away from New York Toy Fair 2016! And Deadpool! And Valentine's Day! Good stuff! To whet your appetite for Toy Fair next week, here's a picture I just found last night of the new Harley Quinn ver.2 from Kotobukiya's DC Bishoujo line. Looks pretty good so far!  They also showed a teaser from the upcoming Spider-Gwen which, along with Lady Deadpool, makes me want to expand into the Marvel side of Kotobukiya's offerings. On the complete opposite end of the toy spectrum, Imaginext has suddenly become huge at my house. My little one is nuts about them and we've been having a blast most evenings. I ordered the little one a bunch of playsets, most of which should arrive in the post later today. Since I don't watch football me and the little one are going to sit sit around and have an Imaginext party tomorrow night while everyone else we know is preoccupied.
   Anyways, join me this week as I talk about hunting down Star Wars: The Black Series figures, Batman Eternal, my gut reaction to the Hasbro/ Mattel merger rumors, NECA's upcoming Rocky 40th Anniversary line, DC Collectibles' Black and White Batgirl statue, and more...

Action Figure Review: Darth Vader (Emperor's Wrath) from Star Wars: The Black Series Phase III by Hasbro

  For a character that Hasbro has tended to release as often as they possibly can in other lines, it seems rather restrained that Darth Vader has only made two appearances in Star Wars: The Black Series so far. The original figure was released in 2014 and featured a removable helmet as it was based on Vader's appearance in Return of the Jedi. Today I'm looking at the second release of Vader in the Black Series, a Walgreens' exclusive which is again based on Vader's ROTJ costume: Emperor's Wrath Darth Vader. Trickling out near the end of 2015, this version of Vader is more than a repaint of the 2014 figure as it features a new removable right hand and a completely new headsculpt. Walgreens really has been doing a pretty good job with getting some cool exclusives lately (they're now one of my default places to hit up on toy runs) and Vader has hit in force in my area with each of my local stores getting about 8 figures each. That's not too bad. Since this figure is largely the same as a figure I've already reviewed in great detail I will be mostly focusing on the new elements. Feel free to check out that review to get the full picture. Ready to jump in for a look at this figure? Then join me after the break...

Action Figure Review: IG-88 from Star Wars: The Black Series Phase II by Hasbro

  IG-88 is another figure from Phase II of the Black Series that was released in 2015 but which I never saw in stores. I finally just ordered him before he starts to disappear and becomes incredibly expensive like many other Black Series figures already have. Everyone knows Boba Fett and Bossk, but IG-88 is one of the bounty hunter that you use to begin to check someone Star Wars cred. I mean, there are hundreds and hundreds of Star Was characters and I'm sure you can name someone I don't know and I could name someone you don't know but, if you don't know IG-88, I don't trust you. I've met many a "fan" who praised how awesome Boba Fett was only to kind of freeze up when I mention IG-88. He's just that kind of character: Not insanely obscure, but definitely one that requires you to have done more than watch the movies once and go to a convention. Anyways, I knew that if I didn't pick up IG-88, I'd never accomplish my ultimate Black Series goal of having all six of the Empire Strikes Back bounty hunters: Dengar, IG-88, Boba Fett, Bossk, 4-LOM, and Zuckuss. Ready for a closer look at the figure that gets us halfway there? Then join me after the break...

Action Figure Review: Emperor Palpatine from Star Wars: The Black Series Phase II by Hasbro

   While things have improved a little bit, over the past few years Hasbro has had some terrible distribution for their Star Wars product line. I'm talking bad. If Hasbro were an Imperial-class Star Destroyer, Vader would be on board force choking fools. That's how bad their distribution has been. Honestly, I kind of hoped that things were going to improve with the release of The Force Awakens so I held off on ordering some of the Star Wars: The Black Series Phase II figures from online sources. Well, now that we're knee deep in the middle of Phase III, I decided to jump in and pick up a few figures I missed. Fortunately, ol' Emperor Sheev Palpative (AKA Darth Sidious, AKA Big Papa Juicemaker) wasn't very expensive. Honestly, I ordered him online for less than I would have paid retail. The Emperor is one of those figures that I initially passed on but then recently decided I wanted to own. I mean, I'm sure we'll get a Darth Sidious at some point but who knows if and when Hasbro will ever revisit a Return of the Jedi styled Emperor in the 6-inch scale? Emperor Palpatine is a very middle of the road Black Series figure and presents a great example of what Hasbro needs to do to improve this line. Ready for a closer look at Sheev? Then join me after the break...

Action Figure Review: Link (Ocarina of Time) from World of Nintendo by Jakks Pacific

    I absolutely love The Legend of Zelda: The Ocarina of Time. Love it, love it, love it. I've written about the game before and now, just thinking about it, I'm really wanting to play it again. I've been a big fan of Jakks Pacific's World of Nintendo toyline over the past year and I've been looking forward to this Ocarina of Time inspired version of Link. I'm going to come right out and say that I find this figure very disappointing, however. Jakks has a great line here but they really are hit and miss on their articulation. I'm OK with a minimally articulated figure like the Goomba or some repaints every now and then if the newly constructed figures are well thought out but Link here just isn't. What's crazy is that 2014's Skyward Sword Link is actually more well thought out than this newer version. Jakks seems to be having some struggles with this line (Wal-Mart doesn't carry it and Jakks claims that the 6 inch figures have been dropped due to a lack of retailer interest) and they really need to bring their A-game if we're going to get another year of figures. Anyways, rant over. On to a review of Link....

Action Figure Review: Sarah Connor from Terminator 2: Judgment Day by NECA

 I couldn't even begin to tell you how many Terminator action figures have been made. Kenner released an awesome kid-focused line back in the early 90's (I'm pretty sure a smaller company like Toy Island released a figure or two as well) and McFarlane began releasing collector targeted figures in Movie Maniacs in the late 90s/ early 2000s. In more recent years Playmates created one of the ultimate peg-warming action figure lines for Terminator: Salvation while Funko's ReAction brand has released a few so-so figures from the original two films. Of all of the action figures relased for the series, NECA's efforts have definitely been the best. Of course, they still hadn't tackled Sarah Connor or John Connor, arguably the two main characters of the entire series. Finally, with the release of this figure as part of NECA's Ultimate Reel Toys range of figures, we can mark Sarah Connor off the list. Well, a T2 Sarah, anyways. Packaged in a cool five panel box, this version of Sarah Connor features three swappable heads to allow for some different appearances. Considering many of the past Terminator figures were simple head swap variants, this is really like getting three figures in one. Ready for a closer look at Linda Hamilton's portrayal of a victim turned warrior? Then join me after the break...

Action Figure Review: Lord Masque from Masters of the Universe Classics by Mattel

   Guess what? Lord Masque is the first new Masters of the Universe Classics figure of 2016! While he's listed as part of the Collector's Choice subscription, a smaller subscription than year's past, he really is still just part of Masters of the Universe Classics. Other than the lack of a bio and the presence of a small logo on the side, the packaging is exactly the same as it's been since 2008. I'm not considering him as part of a different toyline and neither should you! This guy is pure MOTUC goodness. Lord Masque has been a long desired figure in the line because he comes from one of the best Filmation episodes (the two part "House of Shokoti") and his companion, Shokoti, was already released as part of the Filmation series back in 2013, so it's nice to have him. Now that the vintage line is complete, every figure we get just feels like extra icing on the cake, you know? Let's take a closer look at Lord Masque after the break...