I open a toy & post it here... VOL 2!

[Team Jetfire]

[Team Jetfire]

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McFarlane Toys- DC Multiverse: Batman Metal



I?m sure I?ve said this before, but it bears repeating: If you are not able to keep up with the monthly barrage of comics and want to stay current on so many of the current toy releases, the best, and FREE, way to keep up to date on what is out there is by watching a YOUTUBE creator like Comicstorian who basically complies and performs the comics like an old school radio drama, minus the folly work, using some of the art in the books to support the story. I cannot recommend it more and for me personally it has been an invaluable source of entertainment and education when reviewing some of these figures. I?m currently a quarter of the way through the almost 3 hour reading of the DC Metal and really loving it so far and has really opened my eyes to how great these McFarlane Bat-Metal characters really are. And the great thing is that it?s not just DC, but all comic companies as far as I know, which really helps with some of those Marvel stories that I?ve missed too!

Pros: Well, it?s Batman again. I guess it?s my own fault at this point and I really have no one to blame but myself given that I know McFarlane is keen on a ?Bat heavy? toy line, but would it kill him to branch out a bit? In any case, as far as I can tell, Batman here is the Earth 0, or primary, Batman that is featured throughout the DC Metals series. Overall the sculpt is dynomite from top to bottom, uses the McFarlane articulation pretty well allowing for a good amount of poses, and comes with two different battle axes. I?ve not seen him wield these just yet, but looks pretty bad ass in toy form.

Cons: McFarlane has typically done a really good job in putting function over form, but made an exception with Batman?s gravity defying cape. Overall I?m fine with it, but hope it doesn?t become a normal thing.

[Team Jetfire]

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Hasbro- Transformers Kingdom- Optimus Primal.




Time is a funny thing. If you asked me when Beat Wars premiered, I certainly would not have said 25 years ago. That said, I do recall the new ?beast? figures on the shelves of my local Toys R Us, but I was nonplussed at that time given that I was at that time, both only interested in Star Wars and not exactly on board with the premise. I mean, Animals instead of vehicles? Where were all my favorites? It wasn?t until Beast Machines until I rightly relented and was able to thankfully watch all the Beast Wars (Beasties in Canada), but also track down most of the figures or at least the unique molds from the series in one form or another. Unfortunately I was too late from the OG Primal, but got lucky with the re-deco ?universe? figure that was released well past the series close. In any case, Beast Wars has become and remains to be one my favorite Transformers series and serves as a great reminder that even though something is a bit different, it still can be good.

Pros: Like Cheetor before, Optimus Primal hits right in the nostalgic feels and I am here for it. I love both modes, appreciate the articulation/range of motion that provide some decent poses and like that they include his two blades that can fit right on his back. Major bonus points for an special Ape mode for Standing on two feet or on all fours, as well as the retractable forearm cannons.

Cons: Usually I appreciate a compact figure, but for the money, Optimus Primal is just a bit too small.

[Team Jetfire]

[Team Jetfire]

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Bandai Namco- Gundam Universe: Wing Gundam



So here?s the thing, if you asked me what Gundam Wing was about, I don?t think I could tell you. For the record I followed the entire series on YTV back in the day, watched the Endless Waltz feature and even collected all the original toys, but the overall story is still a bit of a mystery to me. I mean, I know that it is set in the future and I know that the story revolves around the constant battle between the Space colonies and the Earth Federation. I know that each of the Gundams were built by specific Earth scientists that were designed specifically for each teenage boy pilot and I know that the Earth has its own mobile suit champion that pilots super cool Tallgeese mech, but that's really about it. I recall a lot about the other pilots and their corresponding Gundams, but could not tell you how it ended, which is so crazy given how big of a fan I am of the entire franchise. I really need to do a better job in following it, but Anime is really hard for me to get into. I?m trying though as I recently started watching the first Gundam movie recently uploaded to Netflix. It?s really slow by today's standards, but I get why it was a hit back then.

Pros: The Gundam Wing series gave me my first real taste of the world of Gundam so this figure is certainly iconic. The mold is outstandingly detailed, has a good amount of articulation and includes his massive rifle and shield.

Cons: I?m not sure why, but Bandai has decided to cheap out a bit with the accessories. While his rifle and shield are iconic, his Laser sword is even more so and the figure feels lacking without.

[Team Jetfire]

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McFarlane- Mortal Kombat: Spawn.



It?s 2021 and I can?t believe that I am so jazzed to have a new Spawn figure in my collection. Honestly if you asked me 5 years ago I would have never guessed it, but I suppose that it is the nature of pop culture; things are cyclical. That is not to say that I ever lost faith in the character or toys of Spawn, but stepped back years ago when it was clear that McFarlane was only keen on producing statues and would shy away from providing even standard articulation in their figures. That is not to say that the figures did not look amazing, check out the mcfarlane.com to see some of the older waves in all their glory, but they just were not for me. Fast forward to the Mortal Kombat line and the inclusion of one very highly sought after figure. Sure this Spawn figure is a bit toned down from what fans might be used to, but I think it was a canary in the coal mine for the company. Testing the waters to see if there was any love for the character and to see if collectors were ready for a Spawn reincarnation and as far as I can see, it worked. Since the MK figure was released there has been multiple repaints and retools as well as an extremely profitable Kickstarter campaign for an original Spawn figure. Unfortunately I passed on it myself because of the high price point, but I feel I will still reap some of the rewards given that Spawn toys, with improved articulation, have once again hit store shelves.

Pros: I LOVE that Spawn is back and I could not be happier with this Mortal Kombat version of him. Overall he has a fantastic detailed sculpt, a good amount of poseability from the standard 22 articulation points designed by Mcfarlane and a character specific Sword that I assume he uses throughout the game.

Cons: As a Spawn figure, MK Spawn is great, but as a Mortal Kombat figure he is lacking. All of the MK figures that I have picked up to date have been amazing with lots of detail, but also had a number of included accessoires whereas Spawn only has a weapon. What's up with that?

[Team Jetfire]

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Toybiz- Lord of the Rings: Return of the King: Samwise Gamgee




There have been a number of movies (for better or worse) based on both the Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. But were you aware of the three animated features that were released back in the 70s and 80s? Most people would know the Rankin Bass classic based on the Hobbit as it was often shown in school after reading the book, but there were also two additional movies that, while extremely interesting, were not that well received and not held in the same regard.

The first simply titled ?the Lord of the Rings? was produced by Ralph Bakshi and featured a much more realistic style and combined animation with live action rotoscoped scenes. Fold familiar with Peter Jackson's LOTR will see a lot of similarities as he was heavily influenced by some scenes from the cartoon. Personally I think it is interesting, but real weird in a 70s psychedelic way. Apparently the Tolkien Estate felt the same way and did not allow Bakshi to continue with part two that would have started halfway through Two Towers and finish with Return of the King. Instead, they once again tapped Rankin Bass to produce a film simply titled The Return of the King that picked the story up right after Frodo Is caught by the Orcs while sneaking into Mordor. Not only is it a jaring start to the story, it has a lot of musical interstitials that makes this movie feel more like a Disney Musical than a fantasy story.

All animated films are relatively easy to find, if you know where to look and I highly recommend checking them out if you are a fan of Tolkien?s work. That said, there is a reason why these are not classics, so temper your expectations accordingly.

Pros: I love these ToyBiz figures and Samwise is just another great little figure. Tones of detail, a surprising amount of articulation and poseability, a removable helmet, STING with a sheath and a second goblin sword. TOybiz really should have gotten more credit for these toys back in the day.

Cons: My only issue is that I think the package is a bit light for what you get. It?s a small little figure and compared to the first wave of figures that came with interactive bases, it feels like a bit of a rip off.

[Team Jetfire]

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Hasbro- Marvel Legends: Cyclops



I?ve always loved the character of Cyclops, but felt that the initial live action movies did him a bit dirty in favor of propping Wolverine up as a much more cool character. Fact is that Scott Summers is not just some uptight, N ?Sync fanboy cuck that is powerless against Wolverine?s advances on his long-time girlfriend Jean Grey, but rather a total badass and responsible for some of the most influential X-Men story lines throughout the history of the team. I also thought it was crappy that his role in the 3rd movie was cut so short, but that had more to do with the actor appearing in the equally bad Superman Returns movie, so you can?t really blame the film makers for that.

And you would think that the new X movies that I hold in VERY high regard, would do better for the character, but sadly no. He was portrayed as a bit of a douchebag in Age of Apocalypse and was unmemorable in the Dark Phoenix, which I can?t really fault him given that EVERYONE was unmemorable in the Dark Phoenix.

I really hope that Disney has a decent plan for the X-Men in the MCU and that includes a proper version of Cyclops, but given that we have had two mediocre kicks at the can, I do not have my hopes up.

Pros: Hasbro has produced one of the best 90?s look figures that a generation of fans hold close to their heart. A solid sculpt, lots of detail with random straps and pouches, a solid head sculpt with glorious brown wavy hair and of course an optic blast hand.

Cons: If you have this figure you know what I?m going to say, but here I go anyways: why did the designers not glue the stupid straps into place. Also, Cyclops is a tier one character, why no accessories? If I didn?t love the character so much I would be beyond disappointed.

[dusty]

Love the Cyc "Why God Why" pose
Great reviews and love checking up on all your updates
Thanks so much for this. Always brings a smile to my face to see a new post by you. One of the major pulls for me to keep coming back to this site.
Keep up the great work

[Team Jetfire]

Originally Posted by dusty

Love the Cyc "Why God Why" pose
Great reviews and love checking up on all your updates
Thanks so much for this. Always brings a smile to my face to see a new post by you. One of the major pulls for me to keep coming back to this site.
Keep up the great work

Wow. Thank you so much for that; it sincerely means a lot. I do these silly reviews to keep busy, but if it brings a few folks a little enjoyment then I?m happy to keep it up.

Much appreciated!