8-bit Donkey Kong, Mario, and Bowser

8-bit Donkey Kong, Mario, and Bowser

World of Nintendo - Jakks Pacific

Walgreens exclusive 2-packs

Finally Jumpman and original, mane-less Bowser are here to join Jakks Pacific's World of Nintendo lineup!  The downside is you have to pay twice as much for them, as they come in 2-packs with some previous offerings.  Seriously?  We couldn't get the same, flat 8-bit characters in another pose at least?  DK in profile or holding a barrel over his head?  

Eh, at least the diorama package presentation is nice.  And, at this point, you would probably be paying more than $10 for a single-packed Bowser alone.  If you're a fan of the retro look, and don't mind the more "display over play" approach to the 2.5 inch line, then don't pass these by.   They make great little desk ornaments.  The DK/Jumpman set is hitting Walgreens now, so happy hunting!

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.

WWE Slam Mobile

WWE Wrekkin' Slam Mobile

Mattel

While I do enjoy professional wresting, the appeal to buy this gimmicky accessory was to have another vehicle that scales well with my superhero figures.  It's a bonus that you can tear the thing apart!  And, hey, Braun Strowman is on top right now, so I am glad to now have a figure of him in my collection.  He sure beats boring, old Brock Lesnar, who this car was originally going to have been packaged with.

You get a basic figure ($10 retail value) and a red convertible that has opening/breakaway doors, opening/breakaway trunk with storage space, tear away seats and steering wheel column, tear away front bumper, 2-part breakaway windshield, and 2-part smash-in/break away hood in a $30 packaged deal.  Not too bad for a toy of this size.  Paint apps are minimal, with some pre-placed stickers in areas of detail (headlight, license plates.) 

Side note - While packaging is for the trash, I laughed at the posed demonstration of the tear-apart features on the back.  Seeing the members of the Shield get terrorized by other, more exciting wrestlers was highly satisfying.  Only one member left to go...watch out Seth Rollins!  Get these hands!

I immediately though of Joker and Harley Quinn pursued by the Batmobile when I first heard about this release, so they got first dibs.  In his review, Joker found the trunk storage very handy, but rated the overall durability/wear and tear very low.

These pictures also feature the Gamestop Exclusive Injustice 2 Armored Batman and an old "Dark Knight" Tumbler.  This Arkham Knight-esque Batman has cool die-cast metal parts!  This cuts down on some articulation, but he's so heavy and badass looking to turn away.  The Tumbler was modified to fit a six-inch figure by removing the firing Batpod gimmick.  It was pretty cheap on EBay and fits in well with my ever-growing Batmobile collection.

While it may not be as crazy as the old Crash Test Dummies break-apart car, you'll be hard pressed to find a fun vehicle in this scale for the price.  I got mine from Amazon, but also spotted it on the shelves at Walmart.

Mr. Freeze

Mr. Freeze

Batman Missions True-Moves

Mattel - 12-inch figure

Mr. Freeze has been a tough one to track down.  Quite a cold case, if you will.  Ba-dum-ching!  He was a late assortment refresh pack-in that I have only seen once on the shelves so far.  In fact, I picked up the one and only one I have seen.  He's been on Amazon for some time, but priced at $20 or more.  Too rich for my blood, but I might have caved if I had not been lucky enough to nab him.

The design on the suit is fantastic.  Lots of mech-tech sculpting, buckles, and straps.  And the color scheme...black, silver, and blue never looked so good!  The only thing that might have made it better would be some white, cold-frosting effects...especially on the base of the dome.  

Oh, it was a complete shock that the dome is removable.  Does that qualify as an accessory?  Maybe not, but Mr. Freeze has a gun!  Oh, wait...it's molded to his hand!  Wah-wah.  So close to perfection, but not a deal breaker.  Still loving these big, cheap Batman dolls!  As I mentioned before, they sport a decent amount of articulation for $10 and the comic book designs set them apart from all the movie garbage on the shelves.  Great for kids and collectors alike...unless you're a lame articulation snob.  Chill out!

Venom

Venom Wave

Marvel Legends

Hasbro

I'm a little late with these, but no later than Hasbro was ready with these figures to coincide with the Venom movie.  I got these about the same time it hit Redbox.  If you weren't already drowning in Deadpool figures, someone pulled the level on the chute marked "More Symbiotes."  Somebody defrost "Green Jelly!"

Carnage and his offspring are totally 90s comic garbage, but they are so colorful and toyetic.  I skipped Cletus the first time around, and I am glad I did so.  I would have missed out on his alternate "unmasked head."  The slimy tentril pieces really add to the very Bagley look...very good translation from page to figure.  You also get some alternate murder hands!

Carnage was the tops for accessories in this wave.  No frills for Scream, unfortunately.  I guess you have to have a built in gimmick like Lasher.  Still, she looks great.  Always a fan of the colors.  We're still a couple of symbiotes short of "Separation Anxiety."

The Venom figure is the least exciting of the bunch, mostly because its a slight re-release/retool.  However, it could be considered a completely different figure, Pork Grind:  Spider-Ham's arch nemesis.  If that wasn't enough for a rebuy, you do get a great McFarlane-esque Eddie Brock head and some "unmasking" symbiote shoulder attachment.  Also, the Venom head (open mouth, no tongue) is new, so more variation for a favorite character.

Spider-Ham is getting a lot of flack because of his lack of articulation, especially in his lower half.  Yeah, it is lacking there and maybe he should have been a bonus pack-in elsewhere.  (Ah, the good old Toy Biz days.)  He is basically a pack-in for the largest piece of Monster Venom.  I still really like the overall figure.  If I did not want the full Venom, Spider-Ham would still be hard to resist picking up.  I had to throw Spider-man Noir into the pictures with him!

Poison was an odd choice, one that I could have skipped as he is an alternate timeline/universe version of Spider-man.  Wait...I take that back...after seeing the best picture of 2018, "Into the Spider-Verse," I definitely need any and all Spider-man variations!  While not all that familiar with the comic, he does look nice.  Very clean, Iron Man-like armor.  An unmasked head would have been made it better...thanks, Cosmic Spidey!

"Monster" Venom, while not as big as I had expected, is pretty massive.  Veins galore!  And the metallic purple really makes him unique to the others on the shelf.  Though I must say, if I had not wanted all the figures in this wave, he would be an easy pass.  Sorry, but Eddie Brock is Venom, and Mac Gargan is Scorpion.  Period.  And if Mac must be Venom for a bit, I prefer the scorpion tail as part of his look.

The last figure in this wave, Typhoid Mary, I am saving for a Daredevil review.  Or at least the next Spider-man wave, which is due any day now.  More to come on that soon!