Dr. Wily and Mega Man

Dr. Wily and Mega Man

Funko - 4-inch figures

Alright, Funko...I'm giving you some more money with the hope of you not bungling another property.  Wait...your first wave consists of only two sculpts?  Four Mega Man paint variations (and one is a crappy chase variant)?!  No robot masters?!  Ugh, not a great start.  At least the hero and the big-bad look good!

Scale-wise, they match up quite nicely with Jakks Pacific's World of Nintendo figures.  That's really what got me to buy-in:  video game universe cohesiveness.  Wily looks great with other baddies like Bowser and Ganondorf and Mega Man's mega noggin might be able to out-bonk Mario's.

The articulation is comparable, too.  Mega's upper-leg/hip area is a bit lacking in range of motion.  Megaman comes with an alternate set of hands.  That's great, but no blast effect?  Wily gets nothing to hold, which is a shame for a mad scientist.  Nothing to tinker with?  I guess that's the price we have to pay to get one unique character in the batch.

Price-wise, I shouldn't complain too much.  At $10 each, you get a pretty chunk of plastic with some decent playability and great sculpts, much like Funko's Disney Afternoon figures.  That's another line that I was afraid Funko would be one and done with, but they did recently put out a second wave with some great characters.  All I am asking for is a complete Mega Man One robot master lineup, Funko...or anyone, really.  So, so many starts and stalls for a modern Mega Man action figure line.

8-bit Mega Man

Mega Man 8-Bit Figures

Jakks Pacific

Not quite "The World of Nintendo," but these new 8-bit figures from Jakks Pacific sure do fit in nicely.  These are Gamestop exclusive two-packs that have been hitting now at $10 per set.  What sets them apart from the WON 8-bit figures is that they are double-sided with detail, include a removable/interchangeable weapon piece, and feature arm articulation! Nothing extreme, but in line with the 8-bit aesthetic: Mega Man can aim his buster canon up an down and the robot masters can move both arms up and down.  

It's kind of sad that this is the most complete MM offering I've seen in a mass-produced line, and in this scale.  I would prefer fully articulated, 3-D figures of the original games, but the closest we've had to that in 30 years of MM is the wonky Bandai figures from the animated cartoon from the 90s.  I hope Jakks/Gamestop can at lease finish the remaining robot masters from the first game (Bomb Man, Ice Man) and a couple of other key characters (Dr. Light, Dr. Wily).

So, buy'em up if you can.  Even if this look isn't your preference, you might be kicking yourself later. Even the packaging is nice.  I will throw away the outer sleeve, but the cardboard recreation of the level backdrops are worth hanging onto. 

Mega Man X

Mega Man X

Marvel vs. Capcom Target exclusive

Mega Man X is one of the greatest Super Nintendo games ever.  Set a century after the original Blue Bomber, X is the more grown up, grittier Mega Man no one asked for.  Don't get me wrong, he's still awesome, but now he's fighting animal-themed robots instead of industry-appropriate robot men? 

In this Target exclusive 2-pack, he's fighting Iron Man.  Just 'cause.   I don't collect Marvel's 3.75 inch line, so old Shell Head got kicked to the curb right out of the box.  I bought X hoping he would size well with the World of Nintendo 4-inch line. 

 

He's a little short, sadly.  But I can live with it considering Worlds of Nintendo's scale is fudged a bit with the more human characters (Samus, Link).  I was hoping he was at least head to head with his old-school counterpart, represented by this nice Ban Dai figure from a few years back. 

No dice.  X should be taller and lankier.  Oh well.  He's pretty close in size to an old Rockman model character that is almost two decades old.  While his height is disappointing, I don't regret that I bought him other than having to have a generic, repacked Iron Man figure to get him.  His articulation is decent, and he comes with a blaster effect that plugs into my original Mega Man as well.  Also, there isn't a lot of Mega merchandise states side this inexpensive.  Like many fans, we're still holding our breath for a company to pick up an expansive, yet inexpensive Mega Man line.

Funko Retro Video Games Mystery Minis

Funko Retro Video Games Mystery Minis

  

I already expressed my dislike for the blind bag/box gimmick a few posts back with DuckTales keychain.  Luckily, you get to avoid another tirade with the way Funko is bringing us these classic video game characters!  First off, I wanted the whole set, so I bought a whole case.  No chance I was gonna miss out on any of these with 12 figures coming 12 to a case.  Second, characters are packed in corresponding video game cabinets, so its not a total mystery.  Its a dead giveaway for some (Mega man, Frogger, Centipede) that are alone in their game series.  Some games have 2 or 3 characters in the same cabinet design, so when you pick up a Dig Dug box, you may get Dig Dug, Fygar, or a Pooka.  So, save yourself some trouble and just buy a case... you know you want them all!

It's a Pooka!  Dig Dug's Goomba...only instead of stomping him flat, imagine Mario jamming a tire pump into his forehead and inflating him til he pops!

I have a feeling that Mega Man is going to be the hardest to get for collectors that aren't going the whole case route.  It's a bit confusing on why he's even in the mix.  I mean, he never had a classic arcade cabinet.  Oh, well!  He's still a lot of fun!



Ms Pac-Man and her styling heels and bow make the leap to the third dimension alongside "Ms Pac-Man Ghost." What?  I thought they all had names?! Aren't they just the same ones from Pac-Man?  Well, he's pink, so let's call him Pinky.  He does feature different sculpting (nose, cheeks) than the ghost paired with Pac-Man to better resemble the artwork from the cabinet.

Fygar from Dig Dug was the first of these I opened.   I was surprised by the size of this figure.  Definitely bigger than other offerings in Funko's mystery lines.  Bigger bang for your buck.  Speaking of bang, go get him Dig Dug! 

Probably the most impressive sculpt of the line is the Centipede.  Big, scary, and coiled to perfection!

Frogger might be one of the most exciting characters from this line for me personally.  I never thought there would be a Frogger figure, let alone one that stands out from a regular frog by featuring his necktie and briefcase from the cabinet art! 

Can't have wave one of a retro video game series without a big gun like Pac-man.  Unfortunately, my figure came with a broken hand in package (insert Pac-dying music and "game over."). Disappointing, but a lil dab of glue will do him, and he'll be shoveling in the strawberries and cherries and power pellets again in no time!  Watch out, Blinky!  Or is it "Mr. Pac-Man Ghost?"

Last but not least, a duo from Q-Bert...Coily the snake and our favorite foul-mouthed hero!  Probably the only satisfying player death from any video game ever...he does your swearing for you! 

This is how my case was packed out:
(top set, back to front, left to right)
Ms Pac-man Ghost, Frogger
Blinky, Pac-Man
Fygar, Centipede

(bottom set, back to front, left to right)

Mega Man, Ms Pac-Man

Q-Bert, Coily

Dig Dug, Pooka

The figures vary in size from 2-3 inches tall, and 2-3 inches wide. Below are some comparison pics with Jakks Pacific World of Nintendo figures. Mega Man and Dig Dug might be on the small side next to Mario and crew, but I think the others stack up nicely.

A sealed case ran me $70 shipped from an online retailer. Considering the WWE minis I collect from Funko run $5.88 each and are a bit smaller than these, I think its a pretty good deal... especially if you love classic video games!