Perhaps to salve the disappointment of the SDCC exclusive not being revealed (and there are some out there theories regarding that figure springing up around the Web), Mattel dumped some serious surprises on us at the Gallery 1988 affair last night, including a look at the very first New Adventures figure in Masters of the Universe Classics: Optikk! (more…)
Mattel updated their Facebook page again yesterday. Here are the highlights:
Mossy is already in production. If (and that is an ‘if”) we can effect a change it means some fans will get flocked ears, some no flock. And it will be random. Are you okay with that?
Ugh. Get ready for $100 no-flocked-ears Moss Men on eBay. Still, I have to say that in this instance, I am OK with it–basically because I don’t care enough about Moss Man for it to matter to me whether mine has flocked ears or not, so why deprive others if they really want it? (more…)
On their Facebook page, Mattel has posted pics of the post-clusterflock Moss-Man:
He has much more flocking than I think any of us thought he would after Mattel first revealed the problem and solicited fan advice. I mean, as far as I’m concerned, that figure is fully flocked.
Thing is, he’s really more like Fur Man, am I right? But I guess there is moss that looks like that. As someone who doesn’t really have much invested in Moss Man as a character, I’m fine with this figure, but there seem to be some fans unhappy with this compromise and the amount of flocking, especially on the head(s). I love the monkey-head, though–and the wooden club. But what’s the deal with the (moss) man-purse? What’s in there? I can’t see from the angles of the photos and I’m too lazy to search for the prototype images.
Oh, the update also mentions this (emphasis mine):
Also, for those in the LA area, be sure to head over to Gallery 1988 this Friday night for the Art of MOTU show opening. Not only will this free event feature some of the hottest artists interpreting the world of MOTU, but we will be revealing one of our SDCC MOTUC items at the show! Full details for the show are in the news section on Mattycollector.com!
The original Masters of the Universe toy line went through a mere six waves from 1982-1987 (OK, seven if you count the two “Laser Light” figures that were never released in the U.S.). The last wave offered a much more diverse assortment of characters than the previous waves, from Scareglow to King Hiss to Snake Face to, well, Gwildor. And it also finally gaves MOTU fans a figure of one of the prominent characters in the cartoon series: Prince Adam’s dad, King Randor.
Of course, King Randor goes as far back as the original He-Man and the Masters of the Universe Bible, written by Michael Halperin in 1982 before the cartoon was even created. He’s appeared since then in every incarnation of the He-Man story, including the New Adventures (where, in the first episode, he and his wife Marlena finally found out the truth about their son Adam).
Since those early days, Randor’s history has been greatly expanded. We now know that Skeletor was once in fact Keldor, Randor’s half-brother, and that Skeletor’s facial deformity is a result of a battle with Randor. (Keldor may even be the true ruler of Eternia by birth, but the Elders rather understandably interceded with the right of succession). (more…)
I mentioned in my reviews of Teela and the Goddess that the pins used for the heads created something of a “bobblehead” effect. Well, in a post on He-Man.org, ToyGuru presents fans with the following dilemma:
Hey He-Fans,
We’re well aware that a lot of fans are receiving Goddess figures that have a “bobble head” effect. Here is the 411 on that:
In order to have removable heads, the pin used to connect the head and neck is creating the undesired effect. We’ve already looked into it and here are two options we can explore to correct this:
1: Make the head non removable on future female figures (no future females will have a second head option)
2: Use a larger pin, but lose all up and down articulation. Head will only move left and right.
What are your thoughts folks?
TG
My thoughts…? Fix the heads without sacrificing anything! (more…)
Every so often, Action Figure Times catches my attention with a preview of some desired figure. That Captain Collector sure has some good connections. He has the Web’s first look at a production Battle Cat. The toy looks great–and it certainly dwarfs the 200X Battle Cat (no pics with the original BC, sadly). I try to tone down the hyperbole on this site–which I like to think helps my credibility–but I think we can safely say MOTUC Battle Cat will be the toy equivalent of everlasting peace in the Middle East.
Note that the “sword holders” on either side of the front legs appear to be stirrups–which raises a question: why didn’t Captain Collector take a photo with He-Man on Battle Cat? Or any MOTUC figure, for that matter? We know he owns some.
AFT also has a good look at (part of) the new DCUC Darkseid and a few other figures. I think a lot of fans are going to be very happy with that Darkseid.
The second Masters of the Universe Classics bonus figure, the Goddess, is a product of the line’s two imperatives: to offer a lot of character variety, and to re-use molds as often as possible.
In the early days of MOTU, the origins of Teela and the character who would eventually become the Sorceress were very murky and intertwined. They were always intended to be different characters, as concept art by Mark Taylor shows; but somewhere between the early concepts and the production of the first mini-comics it became unclear who was who. Rather than producing two separate figures, Teela and the Goddess/Sorceress, Mattel produced one figure with aspects and accessories from both characters: the staff and snake armor of the Goddess, and the shield and hair-bun-wearing head of Teela.
Those first mini-comics confused the matter even further. I’m planning to go into this topic in much more detail later, but in her first mini-comics appearance in “He-Man and the Power Sword,” the character was called “the Sorceress”–and she was green. It isn’t until “The Tale of Teela” that she’s referred to as “The Goddess.” Over the years, fans began to view the Goddess as a different character–apart from Teela and the Sorceress–and now Mattel has canonized that idea in MOTUC.
Oh, and then there’s the whole “Her real name is Sharella” thing. That comes from a one-sentence mention in the description of He-Ro from the “Powers of Grayskull” licensing kit, where she’s described as a “tribal chieftess” who helps train He-Ro. But wait…there’s more. The “Sharella” name on the package is actually a sticker, and if you peel it off, you’ll find the name “K’yrulla”! That name seems to be original and doesn’t have any historical significance for MOTU, but it’s amusing that even now, the Goddess’s identity is something of an open question. (more…)
Poester Emerald has suggested that MOTUC Battle Cat may be smaller, in relation to He-Man, than the prototype. The basis for this is this brief appearance from Attack of the Show.
Thanks to He-Man.org member Tallstar for the video.
I’ll confess, I can’t really tell from this video either way, but it seems OK to me. Your thoughts?
