Thursday, January 26, 2023

Wrapping Up 2022: King Hiss from Masters of the Universe Origins by Mattel

 


   Masters of the Universe Origins was on a roll in 2022 and today I'm checking out the last release from last year that I'm looking at for the moment: The deluxe King Hiss. I love King Hiss and the Snake Men and I'm thrilled that we're finally getting them in Origins. I was curious as to how Mattel was going to handle King Hiss in Origins; I assumed he would be handled like the Masters of the Universe Classics figure with a separate upper torso you could swap out. Instead, Mattel went with kind of a blend of the vintage toy and Classics as he does wear armor covering his torso, but his arms and head are separate pieces that you swap out. It's pretty cool and makes for a fun use of the modular Origins body. Ready for a look at King Hiss? Then let's check out this cold blooded creature after the break...




The Facts:

Height: 5 3/4ths inches

Articulation: Swivel/ hinge ankles, boot swivels, swivel/hinge knees, balljointed hips, swivel waist, swivel/hinge shoulders, swivel/hinge elbows, swivel/hinge wrists, and a double balljointed head.

Accessories: Two heads, 4 interchangeable arms, armor, staff, shield, and minicomic.

Non-Scalper Price: $22-$24 dollars


The Positives:

* Out of the package King Hiss resembles the vintage toy quite closely. The designers of the vintage Masters of the Universe line had come up with many concepts for a figure that disguised it's true form underneath an exterior shell, and King Hiss was the final result. The original idea for King Hiss is that he was supposed to look like a heroic character in order to get close to or infiltrate his adversaries. Does King Hiss really look that heroic? Maybe, I can kind of see it. His green outfit has scale-like armor on it and some really cool red trunks, also with a snakeskin pattern. It's a fashionable outfit for sure. 



* His head is a standard portrait (not just a hollow piece that's part of the armor like the vintage toy) that looks somewhat friendly with a more normal looking face, but also kind of odd with some very piercing eyes. I imagine chatting with King Hiss in this form would be highly unsettling. 




* The figure is covered with some fantastic detail all over his limbs, his armor, and even the back of his helmet. 

* The MOTU Origins figures are built like the vintage toys but with more modern articulation. While their bulky frames make the articulation a bit clumsy, they do feel like an evolution of the vintage line. Imagine what you would get if you mixed a vintage figure with a MOTUC figure. They're quite fun to play with.

* They're also modular. and can be easily separated to make your own lazy boy customs!


* Just King Hiss' head and arms, remove his armor, and his true form is revealed! The design is very close to the vintage toy, although his arm snakes are much larger and more menacing. This wasn't a bad way to handle Hiss at all. Heck, you can even mix up his arms, heads, and having his armor on or off to show him in different forms of transformation. 


* The snake head is really cool. It loos more dynamic than the vintage toy, probably due to it being a separate headsculpt that doesn't have to be truly hidden away.  




* The arms are pretty menacing, too. They're larger with some pretty decent sized heads for the hands. 



*  King Hiss comes sporting his Snake Man staff in a nice, bright green, just like the vintage toy. It's really nicely made and does look good with Hiss, giving him something to carry in his human form.




* His signature snake shield is also excellent. Not only is it just a great looking shield but the clip on the back can rotate, allowing him to hold it in different ways. 





* Both Thunder Punch He-Man and King Hiss come with this minicomic, "Heart of the Snake." It's a short little comic but it's fun. Plus, this is the regular release and not the international release, so it has words in it. 










The Negatives:


* My only complaint about King Hiss is that his snake body looks a bit too light in person. The Origins figures are definitely brighter than the vintage toys, which seems to be part of the style of the line, but a lot of King Hiss' visual appeal is lost when he's so bright.





   I really feel like Mattel packs a lot of value into these deluxe releases and King Hiss is one of my favorites yet. He's an Epic figure that handles King Hiss' classic transforming action really nicely. He's quite versatile and just a lot of fun. We're hopefully going to get a swarm of Snake Men soon and it'll be really nice to have their leader with them. This guy kind of slithered out at the end of the year so hopefully he's still making his way to more retailers so everyone has an easier shot at him. I'm thrilled that he turned out so well and I'm excited to add him to my Origins display.





If you're a fan of King Hiss/ King Hssss then check out my review of the MOTUC Snake Armor He-Man and Battle Armor King Hssss and the Funko POP! King Hiss #1038.


For more Masters of the Universe Origins reviews check out the following:








7 comments:

  1. Well, being honest, i never liked MOTU much, the only thing i liked was the live-action film. But the King Hiss figure can work for the Classified line as some sort of Cobra thing, maybe like an old Cobra Knight.

    I know, my inagination is limitless.

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    Replies
    1. He could be snake Cobra Commander. Just give him to Roadblock and have him yell "I was once a man!!!"

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    2. Yeah, would be a nice idea. What i miss from Classified would the the Old Snake version of Cobra Commander from the Transformers cartoon.

      Maybe if i manage to get a hat, a trenchcoat and some Uzi guns i can use the Classified CC as Old Snake too...

      "COBR- *Imminent and insane coughing attack strikes. It's super effective!*"

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  2. Did you read the 2012 DC Comics Series? King Hiss was pretty terrifying in that series.

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  3. I will agree that the DC series definitely went out of it's way to be dark, like the random panel where Flutterina gets unceremoniously impaled. That being said, I loved King Hiss as a major threat. And Teela in her green snake goddess garb. Woah, mama.

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  4. My only negative about this figure (I have him as well) is that in his human mode his torso is a soft rubber material when I think it would have been better to be a hard plastic material which can snap off to reveal the snake torso body. Aside from that I think its a good figure

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    Replies
    1. Yeah, making his human body an armor piece definitely doesn't allow for as quick of a snake reveal. I guess they didn't want to do something like that when they knew they needed to do swappable arms and a swappable head to keep the articulation intact. I expected we'd get two swappable torsos.

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