Panthor!

During my last visit home, I decided to dig out the crate with all my old He-Man stuff in it. I'm sure that I had more figures when I was a kid than are in that crate, but it is still a lot of old toys. Due to the recent release of Battle Cat in Mattel's MOTUC line, what most interested me was Panthor here. I never had Battle Cat, but I can dig a fuzzy purple cat. Figures may be the meat of most toy lines, but vehicles and playsets can enhance a line considerably. The He-Man line was one of those that was well served by its selection of toys that weren't figures. As far as vehicles go, giant cats your figures can ride into battle are pretty badass.

I dusted it off as well as I could without using water, for fear of messing up the flocking. Aside from that, and some of the paint being chipped, I'd say Panthor's in pretty decent shape. When Mattel releases a new version of Panthor (you know they will, it's just a matter of time), I might be interested in picking it up. If I can. I'm kind of curious how much Panthor originally cost, relative to the figures. It's pretty simple, with no articulation, and as far as I know, the saddle is the only accessory it came with.

So far, I don't have a newer version of Skeletor, although I do have the 200x version. Due to its somewhat limited articulation, it can't sit on Panthor's saddle. But, He-Man can! Due to some ankle issues, He-Man has difficulty standing up for any useful amount of time. So unless I get a Battle Cat, he'll remain perched atop Panthor. Or maybe I'll figure out a good way to get him standing, hopefully one that doesn't involve gluing his feet into position.

#39: Hot Wheels '81 DeLorean DMC-12

My first reaction to seeing this was bewilderment. I found it while I was searching through the display in which I found the Ecto-1, and when I saw this I had to stop. Why, I wondered, was there a gold DeLorean, that's crazy, there's no such thing. The packaging offered no explanation. Intrigued by the insanity this represented, I decided to buy it after pondering it a few moments. It turns out that there is such a thing as a gold DeLorean. There are three of them. I don't know if this version was made because of the real gold cars, but I'm not going to complain about a cool repaint of a DeLorean that is based on more than making a random colored repaint.

#38: Hot Wheels Ghostbusters Ecto-1

I finally found it! After fruitlessly looking for the Ecto-1 the past few months, I was beginning to think I would never find one. Then one day I was at the grocery store, and there was a stand-alone cardboard display of Hot Wheels where the Easter candy had been. Figuring it was worth a shot, I searched through the entire display and found the only Ecto-1 contained within. The display was pretty full, so I wonder if that was the only one included. I've heard the Ecto-1 was shortpacked, and if it's only one per shipment, that's insane. I'm not sure if this is significant in any way, but the packaging seemed to be the international version, with the warning printed in three different languages on the card. Either way, it's the toy inside that's of interest to me, so I'm glad I finally got my hands on one, because it's a cool one. The Ecto-1 looks pretty good in scaled down form, although the ladder on the side is just solid black plastic. Some painted detail on the black plastic on the top would have been nice, but for a buck I'm not complaining too much. There is some equipment inside, but it's hard to make it out through the small windows. If you're on the hunt for one of these, then good luck!

#37: Iron Man 2 movie series Iron Man Mark V

I think I said something along the lines of me being done with collecting Iron Man 2 figures until the next wave, but I was wrong. As seen in the trailer, the Mark V is Tony Stark's portable suit of armor which is stored in a suitcase. Due to its folding design, it looks distinct from the various other suits he has worn. Since I'm skipping the Marks III and IV from this line due to being too similar to the Mark VI, I wanted to get the Mark V because it is so distinct. Also, the idea of carrying around a spare suit of armor in a suitcase seems pretty cool. Naturally, the suitcase is included here as an accessory. In toy form, it does double duty as a missile launcher, with two missiles. It's kind of ridiculous. There is also an extra left hand so that Tony can hold the case. With that, I really mean it this time when I say no more Iron Man 2 figures until the next wave shows up.

#36: Star Wars comic pack Yuuzhan Vong and Kyle Katarn

So the other day I was at Target, and surprise surprise, the new wave of comic packs were hanging on the pegs. I don't recall if all of them were there, I wasn't paying that much attention since I already got those I was looking for. Another surprise is that this set was also on the pegs. I've seen its wave mates numerous times already, but never saw this one, and I was beginning to think I never would, with the coming demise of the comic packs.

Now, I'm not exactly the biggest Kyle Katarn fan. I played Dark Forces years ago, and it was a cool game, but it's not like you really got to look at him, since it was a first person shooter. That's about all my experience with his character. Really, you could make any random figure and tell me it was Kyle Katarn, and I would be willing to accept it. Fortunately he turned out as a good figure. He has some weirdo shoulder armor, but that's true to the comic, and it's nice to have a Jedi figure that's not wearing the standard Jedi robes.

The main attraction of this set for me was the Yuuzhan Vong warrior. Remember the YVH droid from yesterday? This is the creature it's supposed to look like. It's been a while since I read the New Jedi Order books, but I do recall the Yuuzhan Vong being described as skeletal at some times, and big at other times. So it probably depends on the individual Vong in question, as well as which caste they belong too. This is a warrior, and the figure's appearance is true to the included comic, so it works for me. The figure is really cool, it looks so different from any other Star Wars character. It's probably also the hugest Star Wars figure, as tall or taller than most Wookiees, and a lot bulkier. So far this is the only Vong figure to be made, so unless the Nom (NOM NOM NOM) Anor figure gets made, it will remain the only one. This pack is definitely worth picking up if you can find it.

#35: Star Wars Legacy Collection YVH-1

The YVH-1 is another build a droid, one that I specifically wanted to complete because I think it is a cool droid. The YVH is from the expanded universe, during the New Jedi Order era twenty something years after the movies. That's the whole Yuuzhan Vong thing. So as you may guess, YVH stands for Yuuzhan Vong Hunter. The cool thing about them is that they were created by Lando. Well, not Lando personally, but by his company. Supposedly, they were designed to look like the Yuuzhan Vong in order to mock them, but it turns out that they kind of look a lot like Terminators. So I dig that. It makes for a cool look, the Star Wars style Terminator. The bright yellow photoreceptors are a cool touch, they really stand out with all the rest of the droid being shades of grey.

This droid was part of the Revenge of the Sith wave, of which I got four of the figures, leaving me without an arm and a leg. I got the leg from the Stormtrooper a while back, but the arm was a different story. It didn't come with any figures I wanted and could find, so I got it by itself from Ebay, which is a first for me. Previously I have acquired all of my droid pieces by getting the figures they were packaged with. I think it's a pretty cool droid that probably won't see any other release, now that Build A Droid is basically done with. I'd say it's worth looking into if you're interested.

#34: Star Wars Clone Wars Nahdar Vebb

About 6 to 8 weeks ago, I sent off for this figure. It arrived in a timely fashion, which is good. Captain Rex and the crystal skeleton both took forever, but the Qui-Gonn/eopie seemed to arrive in good time, so I guess Hasbro has their act back together on sending out mail-order figures. Nahdar Vebb here showed up in oneepisode of The Clone Wars. He was Kit Fisto's former padawan, but he didn't make it through the episode alive. So why is a one episode Jedi getting the special mail-away figure treatment? He's a Mon Cal Jedi, that's why. For all we know, this guy is Admiral Ackbar's uncle.

Similarly to Captain Rex, Nahdar's packaging folds out into a small diorama, which helps set him apart from any regularly released figure. The scene features General Grievous, and there's a pop-up Magnaguard droid that makes it a little more 3-D.

The figure itself is really cool. It does a good job of capturing the look of the character as he appears in the cartoon. One cool piece of design on him is the collar on his outfit which is reminiscent of the one on Ackbar's outfit. The only quibble I can come up with for this figure is that it lacks ankle articulation. Considering that many of the non-clone figures for the Clone Wars line don't even have knees, it's not that big a deal. The knees don't really look like it, but they are actually ball jointed. What's really cool are the shoulders. They have some sort of double ball joint that I've never seen before, so they can move up and down, or to the side, so they have a wider range of motion than other figures with ball jointed shoulders. I don't know if my explanation makes it clear how they work, but they are pretty nifty.

I think you still have time to send in for this figure, so if you are interested, I would definitely recommend doing so. For now, that is the only way to get it. But who knows, Captain Rex was eventually released to retail, so maybe Nahdar Vebb will find his way into stores too. But maybe he won't.

#33: DC Universe Classics vs Masters of the Universe Classics Superman and He-Man

Thanks to James, I was able to get my hands on one of the Toys R Us exclusive DCUC vs MOTUC two packs. The other is Lex Luthor and Skeletor, which I was a bit more excited to get, so I am looking forward to getting my hands on it in the future. I'm really glad they made these sets, because it means I can get some He-Man figures without having to deal with the monthly clusterfuck at Mattycollector.com. Also, these are cheaper: 30 bucks for two figures, which is about what one figure costs when you buy from Mattycollector. If they weren't so expensive and hard to get, I would definitely be collecting this line since I was really into He-Man as a kid.

The only Superman I have is the Public Enemies version, which has a more stylized look, so it's different enough that I don't mind getting this version as well. It's a good basic version of the big blue boy scout: no mullet and no glowing eyes, and that's what I like. Unlike my other Superman figure, this has sculpted boot tops, and the "S" shield on the cape, so I'd call this an upgrade.

One of the first things I noticed about He-Man is how much bigger he is than Superman. They're about the same height, but he makes Superman look like a skinny little wimp. I figure the ridiculously over muscled look is true to He-Man, so it's nothing to complain about, but it just looks odd juxtaposed with the DCUC figures. Also, he has some funny coloration and doesn't come with a sword. Those details are straight from the comic, so they're not really something to complain about either. To get a He-Man with a sword, you'd have to go with one of the Mattycollector releases. I can deal with him not having a sword. Really my only complaint is that his left ankle is pretty week, so I have to be careful when standing him up. It hasn't caused him to fall over yet, but we'll see if it comes into play during the Summer. Otherwise, it's a really cool figure. In fact, it just reinforces my annoyance with the way Mattel is running this line. I can understand that they are reluctant to have the line at retail because there's no current cartoon or movie to help promote it. I think they have been too cautious with the line's production numbers. If they made more, so that everyone that wanted to could get their hands on these figures, they might even be able to sell them for less. That would solve my two problems with the line, and I'd have bought a few of them by now. Alas, that's less money for them out of my pocket, so for now they will be content with their five minute sell outs. I hope they put these out to retail at some point, because I would definitely buy more of them.