Imaginext DC Super Friends Series 1 (2024) & More!

 As soon as BubbaShelby posted shots of these Imaginext Super Friends on Instagram, I had to at least snag that Martian Manhunter! And though I had sold off my collection, I compulsively scooped up what amounted to nearly the entire wave. And then I bought some other DC Imaginext...

As a Mego kid from the '70s, this color combo of Batman in his blue & gray with his chest insignia over a yellow oval with black trunks is my jam. Only the "bullet capsule" belt and blacked-out face cowl could have made it better, but he's certainly reminiscent of Bronze-Age Batman.

I found a similarly Bronze-Age Batman in a 2-pk with Riddler a couple years ago...

Oddly, this new Imaginext Batman has a black cape, made only stranger by the fact I bought my Figures Toy Co. Mego Batman an extra black cape just for something different only a month ago. The break of color between cape and cowl is too visually jarring for some, but I say why not?

I completely forgot I have a 4" Spinmaster Man-Bat, but I like this more classic brown with blue trousers and bandolier. He comes with a great katana sword accessory that could be useful to any number of other figures, too.

Bane looked a little plain to me, but the excitement ratchets up when the glow-in-the-dark feature kicks in. I guess the grapple gun is an okay accessory, again it's an accessory that can be used with other figures.

Classic Martian Manhunter is how we ended up here together, Friends- a character I took to later on more as an adult when starting this blog many years ago. J'onn J'onzz is the other alien powerhouse on par with the more popular Superman, and last of his kind from a lost world like the Man of Steel.

Classic Imaginext Martian Manhunter w/my BootLego Martian Manhunter:

Superboy Prime was an unlikeable brat and murderous psycopath in DC Infinte Crisis, but I did like his Ant-Monitor armor! I had a couple other Imaginext Superman figures I loved- I'll be on the lookout for another!

This is a more modern interpretation of Aquaman with the single shoulder pauldron, but he still hits a lot of the classic notes. I also had another Imaginext Aquaman I sold in a lot on eBay, but this is a fantastic, updated replacement! 

I love the classic Ted Kord Blue Beetle, but I also love the Jaime Reyes Blue Beetle in his alien tech, and have a few other figures of this character. I'm particularly fond of the Batman Brave & The Bold Jaime Reyes figures ...

Imaginext Blue Beetle w/my BootLego Blue Beetle:

After opening some Imaginext blind bags, I found a couple Imaginext Batman 2pks:

Both these figures are designed to accommodate Imaginext's more recent light-up feature trend, central to the design of their more recent figure and playset interaction. The unfortunate consequence of this is the ugly slot in the cape in back. I need one of the light-up accessories to make this work better, but I still like the black and blue Batman.

This Imaginext Batman reminded me of my XL Imaginext Bat Tech Batman:

I had the this very Scarecrow before, but w/o the translucent torso- great sculpt!

These are more modern interpretations of Batman and Huntress w/updated sculpts and paint apps- like the Batman/Scarecrow 2pk above, only one figure had an accessory, but I do like the crossbow.

Batman with Imaginext Batwing and Apokolips Armor Batman:

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McFarlane DC Multiverse Ted Kord Blue Beetle & DC Vs. Vampires Superman

I don't buy a great deal of McFarlane figures because while I think they look great, I have a hard time posing them. Their joints often don't have that buttery smooth articulation with just the right amount of tightness to keep them upright in strenuous poses. These two recent Gold Label figures (false scarcity marketing tactic/total hype) are good examples of what McFarlane does well a fair amount of the time, that being sculpt and deco. From the tidiness of Blue Beetle's bright, flat deco to the horrific portrait of DC Vs. Vampires Superman, I had to pick these up.

At first, I wasn't sure I liked the opaque yellow eyes on this Blue Beetle as he is more often portrayed with translucent goggles, but not exclusively. His proportions feel right to me, and that clean deco really looks nice in those bright blues. I like the metallic Blue Scarab and grapple gun accessories. A slightly different figure came with Booster Gold in a 2-pack, but there was something about that Boster Gold I didn't like, maybe the cut boot tops detail. Regardless, I love this Blue Beetle.

Below, McFarlane Toys Ted Kord Blu Beetle with Mattel DC Universe Classics Blue Beetle- the DCUC Beetle is a fantastic figure that included a holster for Ted's grapple gun. DC Universe Classics was a fantastic action figure line that ran long and deep into the DC character roster.

Below, Blue Beetle with some of my other Gold Label McFarlane DC Multiverse heroes: Martian Manhunter, Jay Garrick Flash, and Shazam. I love the bright colors on these classic characters!

As with Blue Beetle, I only took a pass on this DC Vs. Vampires Superman once before taking him home- love the dark blue of the suit, chest emblem and that fantastic head sculpt! And I like this particular swooshing cape- some collectors don't go for that, but this one is really good. What an action figure! 

Below, DC Vs. Vampires Superman with my McFarlane DC Multiverse Black Lantern Batman, which I knew would pair nicely. This Batman is one of my favorite McFarlane figures- I purchased the Vampire Superman specifically to complement him...  a match made in HELL!

Below, DC Vs. Vampires Superman with Red Son Superman and Black Lantern Superman...

And finally, McFarlane Vampire Superman with my Mattel Batman Unlimited Vampire Batman...

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Justice League Action Series 1, Batman Unlimited Series 3 Mighty Minis

Just as I'd come to accumulate some of the leftover Mighty Minis blind bags from the Batman v Superman and Batman Power Attack lines,  Mattel dropped these Justice League Action minifigs. I've yet to see any of the episodes, but these characters are among some of my favorite in the DC Universe.

Okay, comparison time:

Mighty Minis Blue Beetle with my Batman Brave and the Bold Series Happy Meal Blue Beetle...

Below, Mighty Minis Firestorm with my DC Action League Firestorm and Batman Brave and the Bold series Firestorm...

Below, Justice League Action Series 1 Flash with Batman Unlimited Series 1 Flash and with Imaginext Flash...

Below, Justice League Action Series 1 and Batman v Superman Series 1 Superman...

The Batman in this Justice League Action series reminded me of the Beware the Batman action figure in my collection- I really enjoyed what little I saw of that last animated Batman show...

Justice League Action Series 1 Robin with  Batman Unlimited Series 1 Robin, and below that, with Batman Unlimited Series 1 Batman Beyond. Like the Batman Beyond, Robin has a semi-translucent buck- they make a great pair!

While on the subject, I found a couple more Batman Unlimited Series 3 Mighty Minis recently, the Red Robin and Batman...

Batman Power Attack series 3 Batman now joins the ranks of Mighty Minis Batman gang, with Batman v Superman Series 1 Armored Batman, Justice League Action Series 1 Batman, Batman v Superman Series 2 Batman, Batman Unlimited Series 1 Batman, and Batman v Superman Series 2 silver Batman...

And finally, Batman Unlimited Series 3 Red Robin with Justice League Action Series 1 Robin and Batman Unlimited Series 1 Robin. As you can see, the Unlimited Robin shares most his parts with Red Robin...

More Later- Make It FUN!