Issue 69 : Saturday 23rd December, 2017
Diamond Select Toys have revealed the final packaged images of their Marvel Select Spider-Gwen. The figure should be in stores imminently.
It seems the Guardians of the Galaxy 2 figures from Diamond Select are finally on their way to stores. Diamond have released these packaged images of the two sets - Star-Lord & Rocket and Drax and Groot. Based on usual timings this means these are less than 4-6 weeks away from stores. The packaging doesn't really reveal much more than we knew already, although some fans may be disappointed to see what looks like just one blaster for Star-Lord? There are no diorama bases for either set - something we suspected considering there are essentially two figures per pack. And of course Star-Lord will not come with the unmasked Chris Pratt head that was originally shown, albeit in error. The packaging itself is very Guardians/Ravagers badge.
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Diamond have confirmed the full line up for the 2nd series of Kingdom Hearts Select figures. First up is Pete who will be accompanied by Chip & Dale as well as a Soldier. We then have Aqua with the Rainfell Keyblade and Goofy as seen in Birth by Sleep.
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We await the arrival of these two sets eagerly - and if you want to guarantee a set, then our good friends Toys in the Attic are taking pre-orders.
The final set is made up of Roxas with Oathkeeper keyblade, Donald with Mage's Staff and another Goofy who will be packed with a shield. The Series 2 figures are due for release in Spring 2018 and will retail at $24.99 in the US.
Kingdom Hearts Select Action Figures Series 2 Asst. A Diamond Select Toys Release! It's time to return to the Kingdom! The second series of Kingdom Hearts Select Action Figures brings fans new, beloved Disney characters as well as characters created for the Kingdom Hearts series of games! Three sets of figures arrive in Series 2, including Roxas with Donald Duck and Goofy, Pete with Chip and Dale and a Soldier, and Aqua with Goofy in his Birth By Sleep Outfit! Action figures range from 2 to 7 inches tall and feature multiple points of articulation. Each set comes packaged in the display-ready Select action figure packaging with side-panel artwork. Sculpted by Oluf W. Hartvigsen! Action Figures SRP: $24.99/ea.
Diamond Select's first wave of Pacific Rim Uprising figures are not due on store shelves until April 2018, but they have already announced a second series of 3 new Jaegers to follow later in the year. This second wave will be made up of Obsidian Fury armed with blades on each arm, Guardian Bravo with the enormous mace in his left hand and Titan Redeemer who is armed with a whip. The figures will include swap out parts under the Select banner and come in the standard Select packaging with side panel artwork. The figures will stand between 7" and 8" tall.
2018 will see Mattel move to a bold new design for their Multiverse DC figures.
As you know if you follow the site, we have been big advocates of the Clect.com platform and over the past couple of years we have been building a large online collection via Clect of both figures (including links to reviews) and our #SatTOYday newsletter.
Starting in February, the first wave to come in this new blue themed boxed packaging will be figures of Superman, Batwoman, Martian Manhunter, Two-Face and Jessica Cruz.
I am sad to confirm that Clect.com has now closed and I want to thank Steve, Karl and the whole Clect team for their hard work.
The figures are badged as collect & connect in the top corner, a new term for the Build-a-Figure that will come with them. For this wave of 5 you can collect the parts to build the lovely looking Clayface we saw a while back at Toy Fair 2017.
With the platform being turned off we will also be removing the links from out site as the link is no longer active. While anything loaded to Clect is no longer accessible, everything we loaded is still available via our site at the following links
The figures will retail around $23 in the US and between £22 and £25 in the UK.
Sat-TOY-Day Back Issues Action Figure Reviews We are also still active on all the social channels and our Sat-TOY-Day newsletters are also published via Issuu.com
Don’t miss an issue of #SatTOYday in 2018, sign up for your fortnightly Action Figure News directly to your inbox.
The figures are due for release at the end of February with a recommended US RRP of $22.99. UK customers will likely be paying around the £22-£25 mark.
Medicom have announced two new MAFEX figures in their Star Wars line based on First Order Stormtroopers seem in the Last Jedi.
The packaging design for NECA's Ultimate Freddy Krueger from Nightmare on Elm Street 2 : Freddy's Revenge has been unveiled on Twitter via CobraJoes. The box art is based on the movie poster for Freddy's Revenge. Like all Ultimate releases, the figure and the pack in parts and accessories are revealed behind the front cover. Freddy will be coming with three head options, his trademark hat, an alternative knife hand and of course the two demon dogs. You also get a flame FX piece to replicate the pool scene. This new Ultimate Freddy should ship in early 2018.
The first is the Executioner, a figure we have seen lots of from other companies including Hasbro and Bandai. The figure will be released with a full set of accessories including the standard First Order Blaster Pistol and Rifle. The main weapon is of course the executioner axe which comes with both closed and open head piece and some electro FX pieces. The figure will retail at 7800 yen, that is £51 or $69 but expect to add more for import. The figure is number 69 in the MAFEX movie releases and is down to ship in August 2018.
The second figure takes on the Black Series Amazon set in terms of accessories - and not only does it match it, it goes to the next level. Using the same sculpt as the Executioner, the figure itself is a standard First Order Trooper as seen in the Last Jedi. Collectors can then arm him with a variety of weapons and pauldrons to create the look they want. The accessories included are blaster rifle, blaster pistol, heavy blaster and stand, heavy weapon strap and ammo pouch, backpack, macrobinoculars, riot shield, riot baton (one open and one closed) and three rank pauldrons - orange, black and white.
Like the Executioner, the set retails at 7800 yen - around £51 / $69 plus import. We can't locate a number as yet for the Stormtrooper release, but expect it to be #70 or thereabouts. A release date is also not known at this point.
Gotham Select 7" figures from Diamond are reduced on Bargainmax from between £8.99 and £11.99. Includes figures from first three waves.
*Bargainmax are an affiliate link of the Mephitsu Archives.
Over the month of December, we here at the Mephitsu Archives have been opening the 24 doors on our Advent Calendar to reveal our favourite 24 figures of 2017. These have been chosen from the figures we’ve bought and reviewed in 2017 and that come from our focus area of 6-7” Action Figures from TV and Movies.
Vasquez - the original Vasquez was shortlisted in 2016, and for me her 2017 tweaked figure in battle dress uniform was a step up from the original release. She may have lost her Smart Gun but there was more detail in the paint with the teardrop tattoo now in place. The working holsters were brilliantly designed and the figure overall is a sublime piece.
If you want to see our full 24 candidates, then click through our Advent Calendar below to see which figures made it to our shortlist. Walter Peck - for those of you who followed our Halloween countdown and our rush to finish the Diamond Select Ghostbusters Rooftop will know that Walter Peck was for me the least desirable figure in the whole series. Yet he has become one of my favourites. He shows that it isn’t just NECA who can sculpt expression onto a figure, and his smirking face is one of the best that Diamond have put out across all ranges - let alone the brilliant Ghostbusters series.
With our short list in place now came the difficult choice of choosing our Top 5 figures of 2017.
Doctor Strange - this early 2017 release from Diamond is one of the best sculpts in their entire Marvel Select line, capturing the likeness of Benedict Cumberbatch brilliantly - and with the bonus pack in of that diorama base! This figure will take some beating in the next few years - and of course with Strange’s role in Thor Ragnarok and Infinity War, I think this will become highly sought after.
Lambert - yes we have two NECA Alien figures in the Top 5. Lambert was a standout figure of 2017, scoring a 5+ on our rating. Everything about her was great - despite re-using lots of parts, but the icing was that terrified face sculpt that lifter her beyond neutral action figure to a thing of beauty amongst your Aliens display.
Choosing just 5 from the wealth of figures I have waded through reviewing in 2017 was tough. Nearly all of them are here on display watching me write this - so time for some honourable mentions.
Tusken Raider - the Star Wars Black Series really came of age in 2017 with the biggest percentage of entries on our Top 24. One stand out amongst these was the Tusken Raider who made his debut on the 40th Anniversary card backs and soon after in the main range. An awesome figure that shows how soft goods done right are really effective. There was also some careful thought around his accessories and the ability to army build with subtle changes to the weapons for each figure.
From the Black Series, my also ran was Snoke. A truly chilling head sculpt with soft goods that flow brilliantly and gold slippers - who could ask for more. From Diamond, the Homecoming Spider-Man ran Dr Strange close and this figure along with Daredevil show the progression Diamond are making on articulation for their Select figures. And from NECA, Rocky was a contender. While the range looks like it is now over, the fact we got the Rocky IV figure with flag was fantastic. And my only personal regret was I waited too long on Apollo Creed and missed out (I wonder if he would have made the top 5?)
Review : Ultimate Gizmo NECA, Gremlins Wave/Series : Ultimate Series Released : May 2017 ÂŁ24.99 Like a lot of kids of the 1980's, I am a huge fan of the movie Gremlins. And yet up until very recently I did not have any Gremlin figures at all in my collection. The early Gremlins figures from NECA are now difficult to obtain, particularly the key characters like Gizmo and Stripe. But NECA have given collectors like me a second opportunity by taking their Gizmo figure and packing it in their Ultimate series.
Rather than open the box to see the figure, the front panel actually opens like the cover of a book - it is held in place by a piece of circular Velcro. Behind the panel we see the figure via a window. Gizmo sits at the top and is then surrounded by the accessories. Below these sit the three alternative faces. The inner part of this cover has a full colour image of the figure in his Rambo gear with bow and arrow.
The packaging is a fully enclosed box that uses the white "Mogwai warning" movie poster design. The white is broken by a large red Gremlins movie logo on top and an image of Gizmo from the movie at the bottom. Gizmo's shadow is raised up behind him and is actually a Gremlin and the words are very apt in "what you see.... isn't always what you get". The two side panels are plain white with the Gremlins logo down the spine and a NECA & Reel Toys logo at the base.
While there are no instructions in the box, check out the bottom of the outer box which confirms the operation of the trackball to move the eyes. With the box open we have an inner tray that sits into a fully enclosed cardboard backing piece. This backing piece is not instantly visible, but remove the tray and you will see this is an image of Billy's bedroom - a nice touch and something collectors can adapt to have a backdrop to the figure on display. There are no twist ties of any kind, the figure and all the parts are held in by means of an outer cover to the tray that means they are fully enclosed in clear plastic.
Round the back of the box and we move from white to black and get our first look at what the contents have in store. There is another Gremlins logo top left and under this in white a synopsis of the movie. To the side and below this text are four image panels, each framed in a wood effect design reminiscent of the ornate box in which Gizmo arrives. Each panel holds an image of the figure in it's different guises taken against the NECA atmospheric dioramas. There is a final image of the figure popping out of the box at the very bottom. Under this final image and in very small text are a list of contents.
Let's start with Gizmo as he comes out of the box. The team at NECA have certainly captured the look of the original Gizmo from the film with sculpted fur detail and those big wide eyes and expressive mouth.
The Gizmo is packed with a neutral face, but there are three more options to play with.
Turning him round you will find a plastic tag inserted into his head. This is holding the trackball secure in transit, and needs pulling out to use the figures eye articulation.
First we have the sad Gizmo, this is really well done and you for fans of the movie it takes you straight to those scenes when Gizmo pulls his sad face.
Gizmo stands 3.5" high (feet to top of his head) and a touch higher with his ears in the upward position. The proportions are well done and the fur detailing continues down the body and out into the limbs. Te painting is quite basic with a single tone brown on the brown sections, and the same single tone white on the white fur. The "flesh" areas are skin toned, but again are a single tone with just the hands and feet having an additional paint app with the finger and toenails painted in a darker shade.
There is then an opposite happy version and here we now have an open mouth and some teeth visible, the eyes are now partially closed and the eyelids more visible.
The belt is real string, and is tied in place and can be moved up and around the waist and be removed if needed.
We then have what I will call the Rambo version. This is more a stern look and the mouth is turned down and the eyes closed even more with the eyelids leaving just thin slits through which the eyes can be seen. This head comes with the head band in a red soft plastic. The head band is attached at the front of the face and the back piece is sat loose. When the face is added to the figure this strap does crown the head pretty well, but it will take some training to have it sit flat to the head - it can look a little like it is floating.
The usual approach with the Ultimate Series is to provide collectors with swap out heads and body parts to give the figure a number of different looks within a single release. That approach was impractical for Gizmo considering the size of his head, and NECA have therefore taken an innovative approach to provide swap out fascial pieces. The joint is virtually invisible when viewed, but with a touch of pressure the face area will fall away and leaves behind a very disturbing action figure "skull" with the eyes rolling around. These eyes are controlled via a trackball at the back of the head. This is initially counter intuitive and you have to roll the ball the same way you want the eyes to go (initially you will be rolling it opposite). The eyes are not as stiff as perhaps I would have liked and while they move well enough they can be dislodged from their pose by moving the figure.
To complete the Rambo look, the set includes Gizmo's bow and arrow. The bow is a very soft plastic, but is designed to look like the paper fastener that Gizmo used in the movie to fashion his weapon. While the bow looks "ok" it is a bit too thick and the string is simply the same plastic but painted a bit darker. On the other hand the explosive arrow is really detailed. You can see the eraser on the pencil and the fuse coming out of the adhesives bottle. The only thing missing really is the text and decoration on the bottle of adhesive. Gizmo's hands are not designed for gripping or holding any of the accessories. There is some gaps between the fingers and the best bet is to use these to prop the accessories on the hands as seen above.
I haven't covered articulation yet, so let's just say it is very very limited considering the build of the figure. I count 12 points of articulation, and that is including the eye trackball we've already covered. The stubby legs are jointed at the hip and while they do move slightly if you take them anywhere past the neutral stance you will find Gizmo gets very overbalanced due to the large head. The arms are more maneuverable and these do raise up and down as well as swivel. There is a further swivel at the elbow that gives some more twisting movement. The hands are similarly jointed and these rotate as well as pivoting slightly. If you want a more jolly Gizmo, then the Trumpet may be a better accessory for you. This is cast in a soft bronze plastic and is very nicely designed and you can see the individual tubes bending round to the finger buttons.
The head can be rotated and being on a ball joint it can look up and down at any point of rotation. The final joints are the ears and these rotate and flex back and forth - adding even more emotion to the expressive faces.
Again, Gizmo cannot hold this in a traditional sense, but again prop the Trumpet next to Gizmo and it looks very nice.
Gizmo is also a very festive release, again reflective of the movie and it taking place over the Christmas period. The final accessory is a candy cane which is simply painted in red and white stripes.
For fans of Gremlins, this is the definitive Gizmo figure. While it lacks the articulation of more traditional human figures, it is very expressive thanks to the articulation that has been put into the eyes, ears and supported by those swap out faces. The accessories are nice, my favourite being the Santa Hat and Candy Cane. The paint might have benefited from some washing on the fur and the flesh areas, its unusual for NECA not to add this.
Thanks to the hook this can be hooked over Gizmo's arms. And of course we have the Santa hat. This is a hefty piece and is sculpted to fit perfectly over the head. It doesn't clip or slot anywhere, the weight of it will keep it in place as will the ears. The hat can be worn on any of the three expressive faces - but of course not with the Rambo face as it clashes with the head band. The hat is cast in red plastic with the white fur trim and bobble painted. There is some red showing through on patches of mine which is a shame.
Overall if you want a Gizmo figure, then this is the release for you - and at sub ÂŁ25 it gives you a number of different options for display. I score Ultimate Gizmo a solid 4 out of 5 and hope we can get a similar scaled Stripe in the future.