DC Multiverse Collector's Edition Power Girl & Gold Label Superman

I preordered my Gold Label Superman from Nerdzoic some time ago but only stumbled upon the Power Girl in the wild last weekend while out of town! Since they are cousins, I thought they'd be a nice pairing to post about. I have a love/hate relationship with McFarlane DC Multiverse that's mostly positive, but they have made some great looking figures, and I'm liking the move to wired cloth capes.

This Gold Label Superman looks to be mostly a repaint for the Action Comics 1000 Superman that came out about five years ago, but with a wired cloth cape- with an S on the back this time. For whatever reason, they removed the sculpted chest insignia, replacing it with a flat tampograph, inexplicably printed in metallic red. It has nothing to do with the tomato reds throughout the outfit, but I like it for some reason. I'm unsure the butterfly shoulders help articulation, and we get the original single hinged elbows from the older figure- there are better, updated bucks that have superior articulation. Regardless, the wired cloth cape makes him 10X more interesting, and we were given a flight stand.

I didn't care for the skin tone or facial portrait on this McFarlane Hush Superman, and though he may have better articulation than this Gold Label Superman, I'm not convinced the sculpt is better. The Gold Label looks more natural...

Funny, I posted another McFarlane Toys Superman only a couple weeks ago- 

the fantastic Super Powers Classic Superman!

I felt like this Gold Label Superman had a lot in common with 

my old DC Universe Classics Superman, especially the dark blue.

Below, Superman with Martian Manhunter, The Flash, and Aquaman ...

To my dismay, Power Girl quickly sold out online and I accepted I might not get her but was surprised to find her a Walmart while out of town recently! I love this mostly classic version of Kara- especially the confident, beautiful facial portrait. Another wired cloth cape, but disappointingly no flight stand like Superman. Her cat Streaky has a cloth cape as well.

Below, McFarlane Power Girl with my DC Universe Classics Power Girl, 

and DC Collectibles New 52 Power Girl...

... and Power Girl with my only other female McFarlane DC Multiverse female, Batgirl!

Superman and Power Girl dispatch Lex Luthor ...!

While Superman has a lot of reused parts, and Kara is possibly out of scale with a lot of earlier McFarlane DC Multiverse figures, I did enjoy these figures. They both have great facial portraits, and the wired cloth capes are fantastic. McFarlane figures often confound me with their awkward articulation and instability, and some of that applies here, but the figures look great overall.

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DC Collectibles Worlds Finest Huntress & Power Girl

I picked up this DC Collectibles Worlds Finest Huntress & Power Girl 2-pk eleven months ago, circling back for some of the DC Collectibles and DC Direct figures I'd missed in years past. These two had a real connection for me as I was reading World's Finest in 2012, part of DC Comics' second wave of New 52 books after their 2011 relaunch. I dipped my toe into a few of New 52 titles, this one of interest to me due to it's Earth 2 ties. I read all of the first volume, but moved onto other monthly titles after about the 8th issue, circling back to pick up an annual that crossed storylines with Earth 2.

While Power Girl's outfit didn't get the same treatment as in Vol. 1 of World's Finest, these are two beautiful figures, representative of the classic versions of the characters. They also have serious engineering issues that limit posing, and in Huntress' case, completely fail. The right knee joint on the aforementioned figure just came completely undone. I did manage to cobble it back together for a photo shoot, limited with the additional issue of the stuck joint at her right shoulder/bicep. As unfortunate as this was, reports of QC issues upon the release this 2-pk were well known, and I knew what I was getting into. I didn't pay a fortune thankfully, and was happy with the photos. I actually prefer DC Direct/DC Collectibles earlier figures with a little less articulation- these later first attempts to add articulation were a mixed bag with little improvement on posability. Power Girl has issues simply standing due to lack of a solid, flat footprint and weak ankles. There's seemingly little in the way of a good stance for her, as though her ankles aren't at the correct angle.

Complaints aside, I do love the aesthetic of these figures. I like the segmented armor on the gauntlets and boots, a unifying element on a lot of the New 52 character designs. A lot of fans didn't like the updates to their favorite DC heroes during this period, but I did. DC Collectibles changed their name back to DC Direct before folding recently, and their QC issues may have contributed, but I'm sure an oversaturated action figure market came into play. I hunted down several I missed in the past, and have been happy overall with their clean paint apps and design. I expect less articulation with DC Direct/DC Collectibles, and would have given this pair higher marks if Huntress' leg had not come apart at the knee. I can't recommend them because of poor engineering, but they sure look beautiful.

And finally, Huntress and Power Girl with my DC Collectibles Earth 2 Hawkgirl and Katana ...

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DCUC Haul No.2

I went back to BAM! again on Monday to catch the end of the Memorial Day sale and accidentally bought eight more DCUCs that were going for $6.69 each. I decided that even though I bought eight of these on Sunday, it was too good a deal to pass up getting a few more  :D

*Wave 9 Mantis

This is the classic variant of Mantis, whom I knew nothing of- I bought it because of the unusual cape design, attached to his appendages like some kind of flying squirrel. It's one of the ugliest DCUCs I've ever seen (aside from the variant Mantis that looks like a John Deere endorsed villain), and the sheer oddity of it's appearance appeals to me. The late, great Jack Kirby created some of the ugliest characters of comicdom, I swear! All the ridges & lines throughout the costume and giant ugly mask are a dead giveaway...

*Wave 8 Parademon (red Variant)

While on the subject of ugly villains created by Jack Kirby, this DCUC was the reason I went back on Monday. Another oddity among this line of action figures. Parademons are, of course, Darkseid's swarming troops on Apokolips... this one reminds me of Man-Bat & the Wicked Witch of the West's flying monkeys a little too  :D  What a FUN TOY!

*Wave 7 Big Barda

Another Jack Kirby Character I picked up was Mr. Miracle's wife, Big Barda- both orphans from Apokolips. They released a variant without the big, crazy helmet, but who wants that?  ...Without the helmet it loses it Kirby-ness.

*Wave 10 Beast Boy

Now I've been on the lookout for one of these at a decent price for awhile! I didn't see him on Sunday when I picked up my first batch, so I'm glad I went back. He's the only DCUC I have with the small/young buck, which some people didn't like, and his costume is styled after the Teen Titans cartoon, which I think is cool. The eagle's claws don't wrap around his arm very well- getting a picture was a real trick. The eagle isn't Gar's pet: Beast Boy is a changeling, able to turn into any animal he wants.

*Wave 10 Power Girl & Wave 2 Firestorm (Firestorm II variant)

They had a regular Firestorm at BAM! as well, but I liked the variant a lot better. Such a cool figure! The atomic gauntlets are made of a rubbery plastic that slips off & on easily- cool idea. And Power Girl... who does not love Kara? Does she look mildly similar to Cameron Diaz in this sculpt, or is it just me.

 

*Wave 4 Cyborg & 2009 MattyCollector Exclusive Adam Strange

This is a modernized stylization of Adam Strange, but he's still a great action figure! Love it! This Cyborg two accessory arms that can be changed out at the left wrist- the variant has the sonic gun accessory arm which is a lot cooler, but he's a unique DCUC nonetheless. A couple of really space age characters I'm having fun with on the desk... a Silver Age classic & a Bronze Age Teen Titan.

 

*See the DC Universe Classics checklist at DCClassics.Com! 

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