Alright, Teela fans, it looks like we’ll be waiting another day or so for a Masters of the Universe Classics Teela review – but VeeBee at the Fwoosh has put up a first look at the upcoming DC Universe Classics Justice in the Jungle 2-pack, with Animal Man and B’wana Beast. Throughout the Mattel product lines, I think there’s been a reduction in paint apps, but that’s certainly not the case here. B’wana Beast has got some of the richest paint apps to date, and his skintones are so warm that you almost don’t notice his lack of nipples.
Justice in the Jungle is currently scheduled to go on sale on December 15th on Mattycollector.com – although I think there’s a chance it may slip into the new year since the Color of Fear 2-pack was pushed back a month from October to November.
DC Universe Classics Animal Man and B’wana Beast
Animal Man – closeup
B’wana Beast – closeup
Blue Beetle, Animal Man, B’wana Beast, and Aquaman
The figures themselves work really well and I want to highlight that Buddy uses the smaller, slimmer male buck while B’wana Beast uses the larger body shared with guys like Captain Atom. People have said that Mattel should have used the Hawkman body for B’wana Beast (you, know because of the nipples?) but it would have been a trade off as I think that body is too big for B’wana. Paint is a real strong point for this set as well, Animal Man’s eyes are perfectly painted under his goggles and B’wana Beast has very nice airbrushing that accents his muscle tone and very clean lines in the stripes of his loincloth and in the spots of his leopard print.
There is not a ton of 100% new parts on either of the figures (as they don’t really require it) but what is there is great, especially with Animal Man – his jack is new (not a Mr. Terrific reuse) and he does have one of the best head sculpts of the line so far, I really, really love it. B’wana has a great head sculpt as well and I really like how his boot cuffs are textured (much like Giganta’s costume). They could have just used Red Tornado’s boots by they opted to go the extra mile and really counts.
DC Universe Classics has been the special kind of action figure line that has continued to impress me. It feels like with every wave that gets delivered, I find myself with a new favorite figure. For those keeping track, my current favorite is wave 10’s Forager. With DCUC wave 12, which was first revealed in Toyfare magazine, followed shortly by press pics released to the online media, I had the same reaction, in this case with Dr. Mid-Nite.
But there’s one figure that I think could use a little tweaking – and that’s Eclipso.
On the left is the original pic of the prototype. I was initially put off by the leering grin, but over time, realized that what was throwing me off was the large gap between the tip of his nose and the top of his mouth. In my opinion, it throws off the proportions, making his head too long.
On the right, I’ve modified the image to reduce the gap between nose and mouth. Again, it’s my opinion, but I think it’s much, much better.
Given that this wave is due in the 1st quarter next year, I’m not sure if there’s still the opportunity to make changes to the figure. I’m not sure if Mattel would be inclined to change it, even if they could.
Whether you agree or disagree a change is needed to the Eclipso head, please leave a comment. I’ll share your feedback with the good folks at Mattel and the Four Horsemen. Thanks!
Mattel has published a MattyCollector.com release schedule for the remainder of the year. As we suspected, the Dark Knight figures were pushed back by a month. And check out December – better start saving up for the holidays! 😀
Upcoming sale dates for MattyCollector.com
Hey gang,
We are working on getting items up on Mattycollector.com about 3 months before the onsale date. Until that goes live in a few weeks, here is an update through the end of the year:
Ghostbusters 12-Inch Egon Spengler
Masters of the Universe Classics Scareglow
DC Universe Classics Animal Instincts Two-Pack
The Dark Knight Harvey Dent
Oct 15:
Ghostbusters 12″ Ray – $60.00
Ghostbusters 6″ Ray – $20.00
MOTUC Teela $20.00 (subscription figure)
MOTUC Zodak – $20.00
Dark Knight Movie Masters Bank Robber Joker – $20.00
Nov 15:
DCUC Color of Fear 2 pack -$25.00
DCU JLU Doom Patrol 4 pack -$30.00
Dark Knight Proto Suit Batman $20.00
MOTUC Scareglow – $20.00 (subscription figure)
MOTUC He-Man reissue $20.00
CARs Die Cast 1:24 Mater $45.00
Dec 1:
3 3/4 Avatar collection (retail items, not exclusive to Mattycollector.com)
Dec 15:
Ghostbusters 12″ Egon $60.00
Ghostbusters 6″ Winston with Trap – $20.00
DC Superfriends Robin $15.00
DC Superfriends Hawkman (brown deco) $15.00
DCUC Animal Instinct 2 pack $25.00
DC 12″ General Zod $60.00
Dark Knight MM Harvey Dent $20.00
World’s Greatest DC Superheroes Green Arrow -$20.00
MOTUC Goddess $20.00
MOTUC King Randor $20.00 (subscription figure)
MOTUC Skeletor re-issue $20.00
CARs Die Cast 1:24 Doc $45.00
Flying Stands for 6″ Mattel figures $15.00 (3 stands)
There may be a few additional item as well and not everything always goes to plan. If any of these dates change we will be sure to announce and update as soon as possible.
Wait until you see 2010! Lots of great items in store!
I was traveling yesterday so wasn’t able to get these posted right away. Here are the latest questions and answers from Mattel. Thanks to Mattel and Toy Guru!
DC Comics
1. You’ve been saying for a while that the fate of the JLU line is in collectors’ hands. At the time of this writing, all three 4-packs and the San Diego Comic-Con Green Lantern Origins 3-pack are still available on Mattycollector.com. How are the fans doing with respect to keeping the line alive? How are the new products doing at Target?
JLU Gotham City Criminals Figure 4-Pack
JLU “Shazam!” Family 4-Pack
JLU Legion of Super Heroes Action Figure 4-Pack
Justice League Unlimited Green Lantern Origins 3-Pack
New JLU packs are currently available at Target and Mattycollector.com. We are reviewing whether the Mattycollector.com packs, with fan demand playing an important role.
Mattel has sent us press pics of DC Universe Classics Wave 12 with a reminder that the Masters of the Universe Classics Webstor has just gone on sale today. These images first appeared in Toyfare magazine. It seems like Spectre will have glow in the dark skin on the regular figure, and not as a variant, but I’ll ask to make sure.Update: Toy Guru has confirmed that the glow in the dark skin will be on a variant figure.
Normally I would optimize colors on these pictures, but as there’s been some question as to what Iron will look like, I’ve not modified these pics at all.
Attached are images of DCUC Wave 12 figures for immediate publication. These are images of the original sculpts. Actual product may vary.
Spectre (with glow in the dark skin!)
Eclipso
Dr Mid-Nite
Iron (with real metal parts!)
Copperhead
Mary Marvel (with white chase version, image not available)
Desaad
Collect and Connect Darkseid
Wave 12 will ship in Spring of 2010.
Also, MOTUC Webstor goes on sale today on MattyCollector.com at 12:00 noon. Images attached.
