Action Figure Review: Tatsu from Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles by NECA

   

  Getting an action figure of Tatsu from the original Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles films was a huge surprise. Even when I was a kid I was always hoping that we would get a Tatsu figure at some point, but he never materialized. With NECA going deep into the TMNT 1990s films over the past five years or so it seemed like it would be inevitable but for years it seemed that there was an issue with getting actor Toshishiro Obata to allow his likeness to be used. There weren't any concrete details I could find; there was some speculation it might have had to do with a religious or cultural belief or even that NECA couldn't get in touch with him, though apparently Mr. Obata still responds to fan mail. Whatever the case, a few months back Tatsu began appearing at Walmart stores in the US with no warning. What? That's crazy, right? Tatsu is an incredible figure and a standout in a year that's been full of standout toys. Coming up with top ten lists for this year is going to be insane! Let's check out this very cool take on Master Tatsu after the break...

The Facts:

Height: 6 5/8ths inches

Articulation: Double swivel/hinge ankles, hinged lower knees, swivel/hinge upper knees, swivel thighs, balljointed hips, balljointed midtorso, swivel/hinge shoulders, swivel/hinge elbows, swivel/hinge wrists, and a barbell jointed head.

Accessories: 7 interchangeable hands, 2 portraits, mask, crumpled Foot Soldier mask accessory, katana, sheath, kendo stick, open fan, and folded fan.

Original Retail Price: $35 dollars

The Positives:

* Tatsu is an impressive looking figure. I'm pretty sure he makes use of parts from other previous NECA TMNT figures like the Foot Soldier, Hamato Yoshi, and Oroku Saki, but you'd hardly ever knew because of the elaborate outfit. Yes, Tatsu actually has soft goods pants and a soft goods robe. It's an impressive outfit and it stays in place well thanks to the rubbery plastic belt and such that go around Tatsu's waist and over his shoulders. It's a fantastic outfit. NECS did an amazing job on this.

* The likeness is excellent. This looks exactly like Toshishiro Obata with great work on the facial expression, especially the eyes. NECA also did a fantastic job on the hair. Shaved hair can be tough to replicate with paint but this looks excellent. I know that Obata's voice wasn't used in the films (Tatsu's voice was provided by voice actor Michael McConnohie) but, still, when you look at this portrait you'll just hear Tatsu's awesome lines from the film. "Never lower your eyes to an enemy!"

* We also get a screaming head, showing Tatsu in the middle of battle. I like the angry head better but this one is still pretty good, too. Like the Shredder in the original two TMNT, films, Tatsu is a bad guy that pulls no punches. He's legit intimidating and not hammy or campy at all.

* Here's a closer look at Tatsu's shirt. It's fantastic with a nice hem and great colors. The material is really nice and everything looks perfectly in scale. You rarely see full fabric outfits that look impressive on figures under, say, $60 dollars, but this one is a real hit.

* Tatsu means dragon in Japanese, so Tatsu is sporting this awesome dragon image on the back of his outfit. Nice! This is a sculpted piece of his outfit and the dragon logo isn't just stamped on; it's textured and painted.

* Check out these pants! Plenty of room to move, which seems accurate to the movie from what I can tell. They feel pretty luxurious, too.

* Tatsu's articulation is great. Again, NECA figures aren't built like Marvel Legends or anything but you can get some very realistic poses out of Tatsu using the variety of weapons he comes with. He's a solid, sturdy figure and he moves nicely. He seems to have a balljointed mid-torso rather than a balljointed waist, but the effect is still pretty similar. 

* Tatsu comes with seven swappable hands. You get the standard grips, some flat handed sculpts for striking pokes, a right hand designed to hold his included fan, and a pair of fists. They swap easily enough and allow him to interact properly with every accessory he includes. 

* A big surprise that comes with this figure is an oni mask. Tatsu doesn't wear anything like this in the 1990s movies, so where'd it come from? It seems to be inspired by the character's appearance in the 2012 animated series (which I'd rank as the best Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles show of them all) where Hattori Tatsu (he had a first name there) wore an oni mask. This mask is excellent with incredible sculpting and paint. It stays on via an elastic string and just looks absolutely menacing. 

* Toshishiro Obata is a master swordsman and while Tatsu doesn't use any weapons in the original movies, he was depicted as a master swordsman in the 2012 TMNT series. Since he seems to aid in training members of the Foot Clan he comes with a kendo stick for practicing. This is pretty cool! It looks very accurate to the actual training tool, too.

* Of course, Tatsu seems like a guy who would keep his own katana, so he comes with one cased in a very nice scabbard. It has a cord tied around the scabbard and a few nice paint applications to make this look like a revered item rather than a mass produced weapon. 

* The katana looks quite nice out of the scabbard with a blade that legitimately looks sharp. Imagine if we had gotten the chance to see a katana fight between Leonardo and Tatsu in the original film? Use this and your figures to make that scene come to life.

* Tatsu comes with another cool surprise: A magazine for his Uzi 9mm so he and the Foot Clan can roll up on the TMNT and bust a cap. Just kidding. He actually comes with a martial arts fan/ tessen war fan. Well, two technically. This one is folded up. See? That's the fan folded up in a simple, easily concealable form. This is apparently from the film but I don't remember it at all. In the scene where he kicks the training Foot Soldier in the face ("Never lower your eyes to an enemy.") he pulls what looks like a knife out of his belt. I assume it's a knife an not the fan folded, right?

*And here's a version of the fan unfolded and ready for use in fighting. It's pretty impressive as it's actually sculpted with a folded pattern. There's a character in the middle that I believe is the kanji for barbarian or savage. Can anyone offer any better guidance? This shows up on a vintage TMNT 1990 trading card, so it's a deep cut indeed.

* The last accessory is a Foot Soldier mask that Tatsu passes to the Shredder to give to a Foot Clan initiate. This is a cool little film prop and a neat accessory to let your Tatsu figure interact with the Shredder.

   Holy smokes, did NECA deliver the ultimate Tatsu figure or what? Seriously, I wanted Tatsu in my TMNT collection so bad as a kid and I've always hoped that NECA would eventually get to him, even when it seemed unlikely. NECA did an excellent job. An accurate outfit, incredible accessories, and some really impressive portraits. Nothing about this guy seems done on the fly or like it was hurried. He's an Epic figure and a real standout for me this year. I don't collect too many TMNT figures these days besides the Universal Monsters turtles, but Tatsu was a must buy. Too bad he seems to be a Walmart exclusive that a lot of fans are having trouble finding. Most people find their store shelves empty, only hearing the words "Ninja Vanish" echoing on the unstocked pegs. I've heard that each store only received two figures per location, so finding him on the Walmart website might be easier. 


This is the first figure of Hattori Tatsu that I've reviewed. For more movie based Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles from NECA check out the following:
Casey Jones and Raphael (In Disguise)
Foot Soldier (Bladed Weapons)
Raphael in Disguise (Quarter Scale)
Shredder
Splinter