The Rise of Evil

The Rise of Evil

Masters of the Universe Origins - Mattel

The Rise of Evil…fitting name for a Target exclusive!  As usual, distribution is uneven and spotty, region to region and store to store.  Target’s online stock comes and goes in the night.  Literally…you get once chance at the in-stock alert and you better be prepared to jump outta bed and fight armies of online bot buyers.  Having the worst Target that I have ever been to as my home Target, I gave up early in the game.  Gas prices are too high, and my time is better spent elsewhere.  E(vil)-Bay scalpers seemed to be the only other option, but I wasn’t ready to jump at prices starting at $60 and rising for a $30 set.

Considering all that, is it worth the headache for a goofy looking, pre-transformation Trap Jaw and the handsome, pre-acid burned Skeletor?  How often is one going to be playing out pre He-man scenarios in their Eternia? 

Kronis’ face is the worst of the line so far.  He looks like Horace from “Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman”, Billy Cole from “Fright Night”, or any terrifying human characters in Gumby’s world.  Neck down isn’t much better. 

 

He doesn’t have the skull and crossbones cummerbund, but does have a fuller shoulder harness.  The harness has slots for extra accessories like the bund does, but he gets nothing extra to store there.  Just weird foreshadowing for his extra claw attachments?  He does have a rather large rifle, but its too big to store.

Keldor is the big seller for this pack.  I’m sure he would have done just fine on his own, in a regular assortment, but nooooo…just had to go the exclusive route.  He looks great.  The purples are a bit darker than on Skelly, and I’m not sure why his future self would ditch the extra green paint detailing and awesome cape in the future.   I get the arm bands and boots, as he becomes a bit more monstrous in those areas…feet and forearms needed some room to grow, apparently.

He comes with his staff and sword, but with a unique, fading/translucent green and purple scheme.  I’m not sure if that is supposed to illustrate his magic powers, or his transformation from the acid wash/melding with Demo-man.  It looks cool, nonetheless!  

What’s more is he comes with a great Alfredo Alcala inspired alternate Skeletor head.  Gotta be honest, this is what drove me to keep pursuing this pack.  I love the old mini comics art.  I have one like it in the Masters of the Universe Classics line.  Where this one differs AND sets the bar higher, is they have given him some ruby, reflective eyes!  Way to amp up the creepy on this already awesome character!

How did I finally snag this set?  Well, Target didnt want my money any more than Mattel did, and I didnt pay an internet scalper.  I follow a fan page for the line on Facebook, where a kind fan was able to grab an armful for other collectors and was selling them at cost plus shipping.  Shipping is a bit high these days, so that’s about all the extra I paid out.  It’s great to be a part of such a giving fan community where there are others looking out for their fellow collectors.  Quite a contrast to the recently violent and greedy turn for the sports card community.  Out of control market speculation has lead to even more Target insanity.  Blind card packs are one thing, but they started limiting action figures to one per customer…with some not realizing that assortments contain different figures in a series AND some contain build-a-figure parts!  Target is the absolute worst in so, so many ways.  I am glad to be done with them…for now, at least.  The evil kingdom of Tar-get sinks back into the abyss, biding it’s time until another ludicrous exclusive is inexplicably given to them to bungle.

Castle Grayskull

 Castle Grayskull

Masters of the Universe Origins - Mattel

Since Masters of the WWE Universe debuted first, and Origins was off to a slow start in 2020 as a Walmart exclusive line, I have been sitting on quite the amount of He-man figures.  The throwback line, which blends the classic aesthetic with modern articulation, has been moving at lightning speed in 2021, with 5-6 waves now available widespread at places like Target, Amazon, and online retailers.  There have also been deluxe figures, vehicles, creatures...and the return of one of the greatest play sets of all time. 

 

Castle Grayskull is just now starting to show up at Walmarts and Targets.  I am not sure how many each store gets at one time.  Judging by the size of the box, maybe two per case?  If you are hunting one, make sure to check other aisles outside of action figures...I found mine in the next over, with MOTU Mega Contrux sets.  It’s $75, which isn’t too bad considering it’s size and that it comes with an exclusive Sorceress figure.  

This all-white Sorceress is a variant from an old mini-comic “The Temple of Darkness.”  It makes sense to include her with this set, being the guardian of the castle.  However, the deco means a double-dip in standard colors somewhere down the line.  Too bad they didn’t go with an Origins debut for the awesome Castle Grayskull Man.  Still, it’s good to have her rounding out my heroic Masters for right now.  She comes with her staff, and the wing gimmick works much better than you’d think...you can almost get her to sit on the throne.

The playset itself is all you remember as a kid, but in a more flexible and less fragile plastic.  The sculpt is great and a little more filled out than I remember the old one being.  It still has the jaw bridge door that is activated by inserting the sword of power.  It has the working elevator, throne with trap door action, dungeon decal, computers, weapons racks, ladder...the same, but better than ever in sculpting and durability.  A couple of the platforms include cloth banners, which I think may be the only new additions.

It took a little bit of time to put together out of the box, and has some large stickers to apply...nothing too difficult, though getting the applications just right always makes me sweat.  Should be ready to play within 20 minutes.  Heroic Masters to arms!  Skeletor and his minions have laid siege to the castle!  

Land Shark vs Sky Sled!  Battle Cat vs Panthor!  He-man and Skeletor clash in their battle armor!  (The battle armors were always my favorites...and the roll-over damage drums carry over to this line!)

I may not have mentioned this in the WWE reviews, but in addition to the added articulation, these figure feature swapable parts.  This means you can outfit He-man with all sorts of different gear, or Frankenstein you own new characters.  Weird and fun!

This line is nostalgia done right.  Not just rehashing the past, but modernizing it and keeping it fresh for fans of old, while roping in a whole new generation.  It’s a sturdy line, meant for play.  And it’s cost effective compared to most other toy lines.  I had given away my original figures many decades ago, so having another go at these and being able to share them with my kids is a real treat.  I hope this line continues for some time, and doesn’t get derailed by whatever Kevin Smith is doing with a new Masters toon and whatever SONY is doing with a Masters movie.  They both have great track records, right?  Right?!  Sigh...Good journey, He-man, whatever the future throws at you.

Macho Man-at-Arms dares you to take a look back at these Master of the WWE Universe reviews:

https://terribletoyman.blogspot.com/2020/07/masters-of-wwe-universe.html

https://terribletoyman.blogspot.com/2021/01/rattlesnake-mountain-ring.html

Conan the Barbarian

 Conan the Barbarian

Super 7

This particular version of the Conan legend may not be on the top of my list of 80s franchises, but it’s still noteworthy for many reasons.  Arnold and his muscles are in top form, ready to jump into even bigger better things down the road (He’ll be back...)  James Earl Jones is always a formidable force. And there’s plenty of testosterone-fueled violence on top of a decent helping of sex and nudity!  Blood, guts, and glory...the kind of stuff they now teach as negatives in our “progressive” society.  So it must be worth a watch, eh?

Eh, if not, at least these figures fit with your Masters of the Universe collection twice-fold.  First off, Conan is part “My Two Dads” for the He-man (Flash Gordon being the Paul Reiser?) concept.  And the second, these figures are quite literally cut from the same mold.  Super 7 took over from Mattel some years back with the MOTU Classics line, and they’ve given the basic body bucks a longer run for our money.  

Are they perfect?  No.  The articulation is a bit lacking (i.e. no double-jointed knees and elbows), but there are still plenty of things to like about them, especially translated to the Conan character.  I like the slightly larger, exaggerated physique.  I also don’t mind that this softens some of the sculpt.  It adds to the fantasy appeal and, again, allows a seamless integration into Eternia. I can still tell that this is Arnold, even without every bulging vein. 

This Conan is “Pit Fighter Conan” from closer to the beginning of the film.  He may not be poster iconic, but I love this outfit:  all the spikes on the helmet, the rugged furs (again, adding to the He-man aesthetic), extra battle gauntlets and blades.  He also has the Atlantean sword and a broken version of his father’s sword, so you have plenty of options to dispatch foes.  

You also get a regular head, and a screaming head (“Crom!”). The ball joint was a bit tight getting these on and off.  I might attempt to sand it down a bit.  They look great swapped onto various He-man figures as well.

Not that James Earl Jones isn’t a big, intimidating guy, but the exaggerated body might be less appropriate for baddie, Thulsa Doom.  But, hey, chalk it up to the bulky armor...which looks spectacular.  Move over, King Hiss!  If Conan can fit in with the Masters no problem, then this suit gives Thulsa an automatic membership into the league of Snakemen.  

Scales/Chain mail sculpting is always a win.  And if armor wasn’t enough, he’s packin’ five blades.  The two larger blades come in removable sheathes...puzzling that they don’t clip onto the figure in any way, but whatever.  

Thulsa has a helmeted and unhelmeted.  I think the sculpt/likeness is stronger here than it is on Conan.  Is this they first James Earl Jones figure proper?  Barring the voiceover work for Darth Vader?  In any case, very cool!

 

I like these, though I’m not sure I’ll be adding any more characters or variants from the franchise.  At close to $50 a figure, I’m just not sure I’m that big a fan.  Still I do like these figures in execution.  And for the fact that Vikor now has a riding partner.

Masters of the WWE Universe

Masters of the WWE Universe

Mattel

Mattel is selling us the same crap thrice (Original line, Classics) with the upcoming Masters of the Universe retro line?!  However, unlike most double-dips (Or triple-dips) into nostalgia, these figures sport all-new tooling and articulation.  So, while your He-man looks as squatty as you remember in the package, you can actually get him in some dynamic poses with added knee, ankle, head, elbow, and wrist joints.  Cool, huh?  Only one problem...they aren’t out yet!  For whatever reason, Matty decided to test the waters with a bizarre WWE/MOTU mash-up.

Weird, yes, but very fun!  I already jumped back in time with the Funko DC Primal Age figures, so why not?  Plus, who wouldn’t want to see the Rock (coming soon) and He-man cooperatively lay the smack down on the Joker or Skeletor?  As with my regular WWE figures, I’m sticking to Classic and Attitude Era only.

Some of the gimmick mash-ups are better than others.  Macho Man-at-Arms was what really sold me on the line.  Translucent “you-cant-see-me” Faker Cena is a riot!  I’m looking ahead hopefully to some more creative pairings, like a Slime Pit Piper (playset is a must).  If Andre the Giant’s size doesn’t make him the perfect fit for Ram Man...

 

The line debuted at Walmart last December with a special MOTU inspired ring, a standard Cena, and Terror claws HHH.  Even if this isn’t your bag, it isnt beyond belief that He-man might have a training ring like this in the basement of Castle Grayskull...so it fits in just fine with my MOTU Classics.  It even comes with some nifty “wooden” steps with accessory posts to help your warriors armor up before heading into the ring.

Again, these may not be for everyone, but there’s a lot to like at a $15 price point per figure.  If the throwback cards and overall style weren’t enough, you get a small mini comic with each figure.

These are pieces of the first two waves.  So far, there are two more on the way which I will cherry pick from.  Rock, Undertaker/Scareglow are definite locks.  Mr. T and Hulk Hogan are also making their way to Eternia soon...I have the power, brother!

Take a look back at the MOTU/DC mash-up:
DC Primal Age