It’s Figure Friday and this week I really need a book deal or a sponsor or something to generate a little more revenue. In a shocking turn of events Present Day Me is being held accountable for the actions of Past Me since all of my preorders are coming in en masse. If that wasn’t bothersome enough another figure came in after I had already requested for a grouping of figures to be shipped together. So I’m left with the option to either have it shipped separately or wait until more preorders come in.
With this type of luck I’ll no doubt be selected by Sony for a chance to purchase a PS5 directly from them as part of the lottery they offered last month. I am the architect of my own financial ruin.
Inque As Batman Beyond by McFarlane Toys
Much to my dismay, McFarlane Toys seems hellbent on churning out variant figures that are really just hastily repainted versions of existing figures. Not that that’s a new or shocking practice in the toys industry but it’s the sheer volume of these repaints that made me take notice. I also have a small issue with their figures being reissued with alternate heads and accessories at the same price point as their Marvel Legends counterparts. But I digress.
It’s been difficult to find any official word on this figure, it randomly appeared as part of a McFarlane Toys holiday endcap hanger display a couple of weeks ago. The assortment includes two repainted Supermen and a Justice League Animated Flash. It’s puzzling that these repaints would get a large push like this as opposed to figures from previous waves that were hard to come by (like their first Red Hood).
Like a parent who does nothing to discourage their child’s bad behavior, I caved and bought the Batman Beyond repaint. Yes, this is a figure I’ve bought TWICE before and I probably should have rolled up the $20 I spent on this and smoked it like an old timey cowboy’s cigarette. However, I just could not pass up the cool deep blue/purple bat symbol this figure was rocking. Unfortunately, the wings have a mottled blue/black Jackson Pollock thing going on, making them look like a pair of stone washed jeans. They (still) regrettably) do not detach from the figure.
Let it be known that I am not immune from making “dumb” and unnecessary toy purchases. It’s something we all do as toy collectors to fill that void. I mean, it’s better than smoking, right?
G.I. Joe Ultimates Wave 2 by Super7
Speaking of “Ultimate” I am the ultimate casual G.I. Joe fan. My mom was not a fan of war toys (Star Wars being the notable exception) so I never got any G.I. Joes until the late 80’s when they had moved far away from their military roots. Somehow the shirtless, purple pantsed, and mustachioed Dr. Mindbender was preferable in her eyes when compared to the square-jawed Duke.
As it stands I’m usually good for picking up a Snake Eyes figure from most waves due to it being an inherently cool toy and also one that was perpetually hard to find when I was a kid. That’s not to say I don’t appreciate how cool the current resurgence in G.I. Joe toys is, there’s a lot of great stuff out there for a franchise that’s been dormant for the last several years!
Case in point, Super7’s second wave of G.I. Joe Ultimates figures was unveiled this week and it’s another pretty dang solid offering from them. Some of the other Super7 Ultimates lines have had some…questionable wave lineups that I’ve enjoyed poking fun at but so far both of the Joe waves have really impressed.
These figuers are all based on their appearances in the animated G.I. Joe series which doesn’t sound like much until you actually see the figures. Super7’s Ultimates line is probably best suited for the Joes since the figures look like they just stepped off the TV screen and the 7-inch scale affords a level of detail the classic 3.75-inch figures could never possibly achieve.
The Baroness, Destro, Flint, and Lady Jaye round out the wave, each one complete with an absolute bonkers assortment of accessories. I’m especially enamored with the not-a-real-gun “Joe laser rifle” that both Flint and Lady Jaye come with. For a show that was about a military super organization fighting a global war against a terrorist organization no one was ever really allowed to get hurt or die.
Wave 2 of G.I. Joe Ultimates will be out in late 2022.
