Customizing action figures has been around practically since the dawn of the action figure itself (or certainly since Mego left certain gaping holes in their World’s Greatest Superheroes lineup). But it’s only in the last decade or so that we’ve seen a growing industry of fan-made figures and accessories, from reproductions of long-lost Star Wars weapons to Masterpiece Grimlock‘s crown. These efforts are of varying degrees of legality, but often they’re no different than Remco creating a He-Man knock-off line in the 1980s and selling it with the phrase “Plays with Masters of the Universe and other toy lines.”

On that note, today’s reviews are of two weapons that can “play with” Masters of the Universe Classics, but are also neat accessories in their own right.  They’re the brainchild of Jeremy Sung, a.k.a. SpyMagician, and his company Spy Monkey Creations. I’d like to thank Jeremy for sending along these review samples.

So far, SMC has created two items: the Master Blade of the Empyrean and the Witching Axe of Ruination. The Master Blade is intended for Zodac, while the axe looks good with Skeletor.

Each weapon comes in extra flavors: the Axe has an orange version for Faker, while the Master Blade has a red version with a clear blade for Zodac, a red version with a blue blade for Zodak, and a black version with a clear blade for the upcoming Wun-Dar.

Design & Sculpt: The Master Blade of the Empyrean takes it stylistic motif from Zodac’s armor, with the “W” shape on the hilt.  I chose the blue blade for Zodak, as I think his design better matches the science fiction look of the Master Blade. The sculpting is very good, with clean straight lines along both sides of the blade, and circles around the grip.

The Witching Blade of Ruination appears to take its cue from the first He-Man episode, “The Diamond Ray of Disappearance,” when Skeletor famously used an axe instead of his iconic Havoc Staff throughout the episode; like that axe, the WAOR has a “crystal ball” at the top and is twin-bladed. It also has a skeletal face between the blades, somewhat resembling a ram’s skull like the Havoc Staff, but with enough stylistic differences that Mattel’s lawyers won’t come calling.

The Witching Axe is quite large, too. It’s a barbaric weapon for a less civilized age.

Plastic & Paint: The sword is molded in clear plastic and there is silver glitter throughout the weapon, both giving the sense of an energy blade. The hilt and pommel are painted red, with the “W” shape left clear, which adds a nice touch.

The Witching Axe has been designed to match Skeletor’s sword; it has silvery, lighter paint along the edge of the blade, much like Skeletor’s sword. The eyes and nose of the “skull” are also filled in with flat black paint.

The orange Witching Axe has similar highlights, with darker orange for the skull parts.

Quality Control: Both weapons are very strong and sturdy, reminiscent of the weapons that came with He-Man and Skeletor and not the more rubbery weapons we’ve seen since then. They are easily of a production quality on par with MOTUC itself.

Overall: There’s no question at at $10 apiece, these are a bit expensive for fans already paying $20 per figure. But if you love MOTUC and are looking for some diversity from all the staffs and swords, I highly recommend these weapons. They look and feel like something Mattel and the Horsemen might have made. And while yes, I did get these review samples from SMC, I would have bought them myself if he hadn’t been able to spare a set. SMC has big plans for the future (see my interview with Jeremy) and I eagerly await their next items.

You can purchase them directly from Spy Monkey Creations’ store.

[raven 4]