Masters of the Universe Classics Battle Armor He-Man

I am hoping to have some pictures of the recent Masters of the Universe Classics figures from a very talented photographer whose MOTU collection is quite impressive, but in the meantime, I couldn’t resist snapping some pictures of my favorite hero from the line – Battle Armor He-Man.

The vintage figure was also one of my favorites when I was growing up.  I was enamored with the barrel mechanism in his chest that showed progressive damage when it was hit.  Between that and the spring-loaded waists on the figures, I had a lot of fun having fights between the Battle Armor versions of He-Man and Skeletor.

Battle Armor He-Man was the bonus figure for this month.  The bonus figures are intended to be variants of the big hitters in the line, and I guess they don’t get bigger than He-Man.  He comes with a removable breast plate and a battle axe.  The breast plate comes with three interchangeable armor plates to simulate the three sides of the barrel on the vintage figure.  Carded collectors may be frustrated with this package – the lower armor plate in my package had popped out, and I imagine it’s a common occurrence.

When this figure was first announced, I was hoping that Mattel would recreate the barrel mechanism – I know, I shouldn’t call myself a serious collector if I want action features – but instead they went with the interchangeable plates.  Off the top of my head, I believe the battle damage on the plates is the same as it was on the vintage toy – too cool!  To switch the plates, you have to remove the armor – they only come out from the underside.  I suppose they made it this way so the plates can’t fall off and be lost.  A lot of people are worried about switching, because the tabs that hold the armor together seem more brittle than on armors on previous figures.

The torso underneath is painted to match the armor, and the abdominal section is smooth like Hordak’s.  Here I would have much preferred a flesh colored torso and regular abs, but this way is more true to the original toy.

I decided to combine parts with the first MOTU Classics He-Man to make my ideal He-Man.  The head on Battle Armor He-Man has the same deco as the re-issued He-Man, so it doesn’t have the blush around the eyes.  However, the armor is a tight fit on the first He-Man due to how low the head sits on the figure.  Other collectors have pointed out that the neck pegs on the armored figures in the line are a bit longer to allow for the thickness of the armor.

I thought about doing a swap of the pegs between figures, but was concerned about snapping them or cracking the necks.  I ended up going with a much simpler solution – I just didn’t push the head all the way on the peg.  The head still sits snugly on there, but still has the range of motion it would have with a longer peg.

Update – Robokillah asked me about the height of my He-Man with the head seated partway down on the peg.  The first picture shows that figure – he gains some height over Teela.  The second pic shows the head fully pushed down on the peg – here Teela is slightly taller.  The third pic shows the Battle Armor He-Man body – it’s the tallest, because that body can get its legs closest together, giving it a little extra height.

I’m just ecstatic to have an updated version of Battle Armor He-Man in my collection again.  Now bring on Battle Armor Skeletor!