Issue 37 : Saturday 17th September 2016
d e k s a m n u a c i r e m A n i a Capt e m i r C f o e c Clown Prin o c z e M m o r arrives f m o r f e v i s u l c x e e l t r u T NYCC NECA d e w e i v e R 0 NECA T80
Blinded by a radioactive liquid while saving a stranger, young Matt Murdock gains "radar sense" and experiences heightened senses beyond normal human ability. After the brutal death of his Father, Matt Murdock donned his costume and became the man without fear—Daredevil. Lawyer by day and vigilante by night, Daredevil is the guardian of Hell's Kitchen. Painstakingly developed to capture the unique look of Daredevil as he appeared in the award-winning Shadowland storyline, he is developed on a One:12 Collective body with an intricately detailed costume. THE ONE:12 SHADOWLAND DAREDEVIL FEATURES: ● Hyper-realistic masked portrait ● 1:12 scaled, accurate real fabric uniform ● Sculpted shoulder pads, knee pads, and vambraces ● Billy club holster ● Super articulated body with over 32 points of articulation We are less than a month away from NYCC and the big players are starting to roll out their exclusives for this year show. Mezco will be bringing an NYCC exclusive Daredevil to the show as seen in this teaser image.
Each figure is packaged in a deluxe box with protective slipcover featuring character specific art. Designed for collector convenience, the packaging allows for both maximum protection as well as ease of removal for display.
This Shadowland Daredevil is available on the Mezco website (US customers) and at their booth at NYCC. The box in particular (see gallery below) is particularly impressive.
This limited edition variant is available exclusively through our store and at our booth at the 2016 New York Comic Con (October 6-9).
So far the Mezco One:12 Collective collection has concentrated on the key DC heroes including Batman, Superman, Green Arrow etc. But now it's time for the range to go bad... Shipping at some point between March & May 2017, the Joker will be presented in a deluxe window box and will be packed with an iconic 1960's inspired comic base. He will also come with playing card accessory, revolver and a set of chattering teeth. US pre-orders are already open direct from Mezco at $75. We would expect UK pre-orders to go up in a couple of weeks, with the expected UK price of around £75-£80
The Clown Prince Of Crime has bedeviled Batman since the moment he first appeared in Gotham. Not only is The Joker one of the Dark Knight's greatest villains, he is widely considered one of the greatest villains of all time. The Joker's origin and appearance have been revised countless times since his 1940 debut in Batman #1, but the One:12 Collective unquestionably captures his maniacal visage and malevolent madness. Featuring intricate sculptural work and incredible costume detailing, the final product creates an iconic vision with a "real world" look. THE ONE:12 COLLECTIVE JOKER FEATURES: McFarlane are up to #19 in their Color Top range, and it is another 7" release from The Walking Dead. Paul Rovia, or as he is commonly known "Jesus" (played by Tom Payne) was introduced to the show in Series 6. In figure form he will fall into the Blue wave of Color Tops and will come with the usual stylised base. The US RRP is $19.99 so for UK fans expect to be paying between £17 and £20
● 1:12 scaled, highly realistic fabric outfit ● Hyper-realistic portraits ● Detailed sculpted costume accents, gloves, socks, and shoes ● Super articulated body with over 28 points of articulation
Fans who have been receiving the 3 figures from Diamond’s Marvel Select Civil War range have been complaining that the interconnecting Diorama base was incomplete after assembling the three parts released with the Civil War figures of Cap, Iron-Man and The Winter Soldier. Although Diamond have said you could buy a 2nd Winter Soldier and reverse the back - there has been a longer term plan in the works. And here it is, and as expected it is confirmation that Captain America will be getting a Marvel Store / Disney Store exclusive release with an unmasked head. The figure is identical to the standard release, with the addition of the unmasked Chris Evans head that was used on the Stealth Suit Captain America from Winter Soldier.
This figure is due for release in November, and pre-orders for US customers are up on Marvel.com. As yet there is no UK pre-order, but we would expect Disney Store UK to have these soon in line with previous exclusive releases. What is worrying when you read some of the social media discussions around this figure is the confirmation from Diamond that all their Civil War figure stocks have been exhausted at their end. That means that unless the stocks are on route, there could be a lot of disappointed UK customers as the UK have had no stocks to date that I am aware of, and all UK directly supplied pre-orders have not been fulfilled. In Captain America: Civil War, the Sentinel of Liberty is pitted against Tony Stark’s Iron Man in a super hero battle for the ages! Salute the popular film adventure with our 7'' action figure from Diamond Select Toys.
Although the distribution of the 3.75" Black Series Star Wars figures has not been great - limited to Walmart in the US and Asda in the UK in the main - there has been a reasonably constant supply via independent retailers, particularly via overseas retailers like Robot Kingdom. This week Robot Kingdom released details of four "new" figures in the 3.75" Black Series line. Each of these is essentially a repack from a previous Vintage Collection release, but for fans of the scale it is great news to see some of the more impressive figures of late are getting a new lease of life and of course it means the 3.75" Super Articulated line is still alive in some form.
Backordered: We expect this item to be available by 11/07/2016. You will be notified via email when it is ready to ship.
Although usually absent from NYCC, NECA are going to have a booth at the New York event this year and have just announced they are bringing at least one exclusive with them for the event. As a follow up to their 6" Turtle themed boxes from SDCC, this NYCC version will feature Shredder and his Foot Clan minions as depicted in the original comic books by Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird. The set will retail at the show for $100 and a very limited number will be available via the NECA stores on eBay and Amazon afterwards for US customers only. UK customers are going to have to dip into the secondary market if they want to snag a pack.
Mighty Features... ● Features uniform as seen in Captain America: Civil War ● Highly detailed sculpturing ● 16 points of articulation ● Interchangeable masked and unmasked heads ● Three sets of interchangeable hands ● Detachable shield ● Avengers Base diorama section. ● Comes in display-ready Select figure packaging, with side-panel artwork for shelf reference ● Sculpted by Gentle Giant Studios
Time to kick it old-school style! The villainous figures in this NYCC-exclusive box set are based on the original Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles comic books by Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird.
The four figures are an Emperor's Royal Guard (a trooper who looks to be appearing in Rogue One), Ahsoka Tano (Clone Wars), Lando Calrissian from Return of the Jedi and Admiral Ackbar (also Return of the Jedi). And like the soon to arrive Rogue One figures, these Black Series figures have retained the Red & Black box design. You are unlikely to find these at Walmart and Asda who seem to still be trying to clear the first wave of Luke, Chewie and Vader. But watch out for stocks of these to come to our own independents such as In Demand and Kapow.
This set has been over 8 years in the making, and features brand new figure sculpts and deluxe packaging. Shredder and his Foot Clan minions stand approximately 6” tall and feature over 30 points of articulation, including double knee joints, for dynamic poses. Special paint deco reflects their comic book appearance. The box set is packed with accessories, including swords, bladed weapons, throwing star, Utrom mini-figure and more. The set comes in a gorgeous, display-friendly 5th panel window box that features comic book art!
We saw a few grainy shots of the next T2 Ultimate figure from NECA at SDCC 2016, and have also had a couple of teaser shots. Now, here is the full reveal of the Motorcycle Pursuit T1000 Terminator, as played by Robert Patrick. This revised T1000 will come with 3 head options, including the iconic motorcycle helmet. He also includes 3 pairs of hands, the bladed arms as seen on the first release as well as pistol and machine gun weapons. He is due to hit stores in November. From the action-packed movie Terminator 2 (T2), the #Ultimate T-1000 (#MotorcycleCop) is the perfect companion piece to the Ultimate T-800 and Ultimate #SarahConnor figures. For complete information and photos including packaging pics, please visit: http://neca.io/2clRNmw This deluxe 7” scale action figure features the authorized likeness of Robert Patrick and an all-new fully articulated body. It comes loaded with accessories to help recreate your favorite action scenes from #T2: plenty of interchangeable parts (3 heads, 3 pairs of hands, bladed arm) plus pistol and machine gun accessories. Comes in window box packaging with opening flap. Starts shipping out to retailers in November! "It's time for #monstermonday and here's the final production Choptop all packaged & ready to go. Lick my plate!!" - Randy Falk, #NECA's Director of Product Development, via Twitter The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2 #ChopTop (Bill Moseley) 8" clothed action figure will start shipping out to retailers in mid-October! Front packaging artwork by Jason Edmiston's Artbook!
We got our first Ultimate Freddy Krueger from NECA at the back end of 2014 (read the review here) and later this year we get our second version - based on the 3rd installment of the Nightmare on Elm Street series. Freddy will come packed with accessories, as all Ultimate figures do, including a swap out torso to a ripped shirt version to show off the hideous burnt and misshapen flesh of Freddy's chest. He will also have an alternative head option, swap out hands, the Elm Street House, Puppet and that famous hat.
Freddy is due in October, and you can pre-order him via our affiliate partner Forbidden Planet From the cult classic Nightmare on Elm Street horror films, we present the definitive collector’s version of Freddy from Dream Warriors! Ultimate Part 3 Freddy features plenty of gruesome detail and tons of accessories, including 2 interchangeable heads, 2 pairs of hands, the Elm Street house, Freddy puppet and removable hat. He’s fully poseable and truly terrifying – swap out his regular sweater front to display the tortured spirits trapped in his Chest of Souls! The 7” scale figure comes in collector-friendly deluxe window box packaging with opening flap.
NECA's Series 10 Alien figures, like the Series 17 Predators, will be a Kenner themed wave. Due in November, NECA are now starting to reveal some of the packaging designs - and this first look is for the front insert wrap of the Gorilla Alien. It is all very much in keeping with the original Kenner figures and nicely aligned also to the Predator range.
Series 17 of the Predator range will be a Kenner inspired range of Predators, and as we approach the release NECA are revealing the backstory of each Predator that will be published on the reverse of the blister card. In our last issue we took a look at Ghost, and this issue it’s Spiked Tail and Stalker.
“Can't forget #facehuggerfriday your first look at the insert wrap for the Gorilla Alien packaging. November release” - Randy Falk (NECA) via Twitter
At SDCC we had confirmation that series 10 would contain homage versions of the Gorilla (see above) and Mantis Aliens as well as the Queen Facehugger. The other Aliens on display at SDCC were apparently “future possibilities”. This card back, released by NECA as a #FaceHuggerFriday reveal, indicates that the blue Alien warrior is a little closer to being a release possibility than some of the others. This blue Alien will re-use an existing Xenomorph sculpt but in a vibrant blue colouring that matches the 1990's Kenner figure.
The card itself follows the same design principles as the Kenner inspired Predator figures with a 1990's computer grid feel and the checklist type card back we were used to in the 80's and 90's
NECA have unveiled their first two figures from their newest licence, AMC's Preacher. The two figures, at the usual 7" scale, will hit stores in December 2016, Jesse Custer (played by Dominic Cooper) will come with beer bottles, what looks like a tin of coffee and a bible. The vampire Cassidy (played by Joe Gilgun) will also have beer bottle accessories as well as a larger spirit bottle. No RRP has been confirmed, but we would estimate these to be a similar price to other basic 7" ranges from NECA ($20-$22 / £19 - £22). Packaging type is not known either, but based on all the recent releases you would assume the boxed type.
"Spiked Tail's backstory revealed! #prednesday debut. Tying it together & expanding the universe #kenner" "The backstory of the Stalker Predator for #prednesday #kenner #glowinthedark #nostalgia"
The countdown to Rogue Friday (30th September) is go and across the past week we have seen a wealth of new Rogue One product announced - officially by Disney and their licensees, and of course leaked. For those who are keeping Rogue One a complete secret we are respecting your choice by keeping any Rogue One news behind Spoiler warnings. If you want to checkout all the latest Rogue One merchandise news as well as links for some of the early pre-orders - then head over to www.mephitsu.co.uk or click through the Death Star.
Jedi News have confirmed that 5 Toys R Us branches here in the UK will open at midnight on Friday the 30th of September to allow fans to get their hands on the first Star Wars Rogue One merchandise. The five branches are as follows ● Brent Cross ● Bristol Cribbs Causeway ● Glasgow Helen Street ● Oldbury ● Warrington Head over to Jedi News for the full story and details of their coverage that night. Our own coverage at this point is TBC... but watch this space.
Review : Ultimate Police Station Assault Terminator The Terminator, NECA Wave/Series : Ultimate Series Released : August 2016 ÂŁ22.99 - ÂŁ25.99
These are all laid on top of the same background we saw on Tech Noir. This means the blue theme ends and the back moves to a red Terminators eye view. The top left see's a panel of white text, but this does not detail anything in terms of plot or background and is simply a technical readout or some type of computer programming.
After waiting a year or so to see NECA release the original Terminator figures in their Ultimate series, we've now pretty much got two at once. Having looked at the Tech Noir Ultimate T800 a couple of weeks back, we now have the Police Station Assault T800 in hand to take a close look at.
The front flap is held in place by the usual Velcro tabs, and opens to reveal the figure behind a window. The inner part of the flap has a further full length atmospheric shot of the actual figure. It is interesting that like Tech Noir there is no mention of the character on the box meaning the name of the figure is only quoted in the product listings. The box opens via a top or bottom flap and the figure slides out in its plastic tray with cardboard back wrap, which is decorated in the continuing blue theme and could be used as a backdrop.
Like all Ultimate, the Police Assault figure arrives in a fully enclosed box. Rather than repeat the artwork used on Tech Noir, which was based on the original iconic movie poster, NECA have taken a lesser known promotional poster which is presented in dark blues. The box recreates this movie poster with a wider shot of the T800 stood in an atmospheric alleyway. The film poster theme is taken as far as having Schwarzenegger across the top, and "The Terminator" at the bottom. Round the sides of the box and a 1980's computer grid kicks in, this matches the design of the Tech Noir box - but this time is in a blue hue not red. The Terminator text is repeated down each spine on top of this grid design and here we also find the first NECA logo. Round the back and actual images of the figure kick in. Each of the four images showcases the options packed in with the figure, and are shot in very detailed dioramas not just stale promotional images.
Putting all the parts aside for the moment, let's take a look at the figure. The T800 is packed with the iconic head complete with shades and the sculpt perfectly captures that stern, almost emotionless, jaw that Arnie portrays so well in the film. The shades are fixed, which I think is a good call considering removable glasses very rarely work. The hair is the more iconic crew type cut, varying from the longer side parted version that came fitted with the Tech Noir.
Be clear that there is some re-use in this release from Tech Noir. I would expect the T-shirt to be the same torso, although here it is a plain grey. The jacket is all new and is wonderfully detailed with zips and pockets and when you turn him round three bloodies bullet holes in the back. The trousers and boots are a direct re-use from Tech Noir but it certainly doesn't feel like a repaint or tweak. As well as an awesome sculpt, the paint job's NECA are delivering are also top notch. The face for example has clear shading and variances in skin tone and that brings out the realism. The hair is also variates in colouring, but the big win for this first head is the high gloss sunglasses which add a real menace to the figure.
You do of course have two other head options that can be used, each representing the progression of damage the T800 takes during the movie. These two heads are essentially the same as the two alternative heads that come with the Tech Noir, but have been tweaked so that across the two figures you now have 6 head options - all of which can fit on either figure. The first head continues on from the bloodied eye we saw on the Tech Noir, and this time the robotic eye and the metal skull is starting to be exposed. The second head has further exposed metal skull to the temple and cheek. Once again the paint applications on both of these is top drawer and the damaged areas suitably gory and realistic.
The hands fitted with the figure are black fingerless gloves, with a nice high sheen on the black leather. Both of these are sculpted to hold weapons. These can also be swapped out for damaged burned versions. The damaged versions have holes across the gloved area and beneath this is red and burned flesh. The hands will hold any of the weapons supplied, the first of which is a small wooden handled handgun. This gets a little lost in Arnie's hands, but is of course film accurate. Most fans will be picking up the next choice for their display - the shotgun! This is of course very iconic in many fans minds, and of course was used again in T2. The shotgun is sculpted well enough and is not a repeat of the Tech Noir shotgun, but now the more modern Police type assault weapon. The final weapon is the machine gun which again is nicely made, with some nice touches like the taping of a second magazine to the fitted one. Unlike the handgun which is coloured, the two larger weapons are a simple matt black.
All three weapons fit into either or Arnie's hands (both sets) and the more flexible plastic used on the hands allows the trigger finger to be moved around to sit in the trigger of all weapons. Sadly, the articulation doesn't support the weapons being posed all that well. The shoulders are ball jointed and can be raised to 90 degrees to the side and rotated. The elbow however is a single joint, and although it rotates it can't bend far enough back to have Arnie resting the gun on his shoulder nor can it come round the front enough to allow a two handed pose - ironically something the more maligned Genisys T800 did manage.
The head is ball jointed and the swap out is tight but once snapped it allows all three heads to rotate and move up and down within the collar area. There is a simple waist swivel, but not torso movement that we do see on some comparable lines. The hips are unique to NECA with a ball joint hidden behind a rubberised groin piece. This looks much more natural but can bend a little weirdly when you move the legs too their widest extent. This extent is quite considerable on the T800 allowing Arnie to sit down, albeit a little stiffly. The knees, also beautifully worked into the sculpt, aren't as accommodating and bend to something around 45 degrees. This means that despite the hip movement, Arnie can't kneel or crouch and therefore you will find your poses restricted to standing up, perhaps with a wider stance at times or with Arnie's foot on a piece of scenery. He stands up brilliantly with a rotating ankle joint at the top of his boots and a rocker at the ankle - this T800 won't be doing any shelf diving any time soon.
So there he is, another Arnie to add to your collection - the third in Ultimate scale, and the fifth in the past 2-years if you include the Genisys figures. To me this Police Assault version is the more definitive release for the 1984 movie and I can see the sense in getting Tech Noir out first and then landing this one. Like Tech Noir there is very little to bemoan on this release. I can find no fault with the paint applications, nor with the sculpt. The accessories all do a job and it's nice to have the three distinct head options to choose from. NECA never sell these figures as highly articulated, and for ÂŁ25 they will never be. It would however have been nice to have that slightly wider arm range to allow for the weapon poses we mentioned. That being said this is a minor niggle and the Police Assault T800 is awarded 5 out of 5, the FIFTH Terminator Ultimate figure in a row to achieve this score.
Checkout the alternative covers that didn’t make the front page this week
Issue 37 : Saturday 17th September 2016
d e k s a m n u a c i r e m A n i a Capt e m i r C f o e c Clown Prin o c z e M m o r arrives f m o r f e v i s u l c x e e l t r u T NYCC NECA d e w e i v e R 0 NECA T80