MOTU Origins Despera, Battle for Eternia 4-pk

I wasn't initially bowled over by the two MOTU Origins offerings from Mattel, but the Mattel Creations Despera and Battle for Eternia 4-pk grew on me after a while- in hand they were way more exciting. There are a lot of reused parts in the Battle for Eternia, but some nice adds to your MOTU army build- really glad I picked this up. What a presentation with the box art- Wow! 

Despera made an appearance in the Masters of the Universe: Revolution animated series, but I had no recollection thereof  ...? It was right at the end and never resolved, so I must've blanked out, but fans of She-Ra know it's really Adora- the sister of He-Man, kidnapped at birth by Hordak. There's been some complaints about her oversized swords, but they don't bother me- great little figure, and another female for my MOTU Origins collection.

Below, the Paragon Champion with my King Randor, 

Man-At-Arms, and the Eternian Palace Guards:

The Paragon Champion climbs into the Talon Fighter atop Castle Grayskull...

The Paragon Champion, Man-At-Arms, and the Eternian Palace Guards are joined by my Temple of Darkness Sorceress, Teela, and Prince Adam in King Randor's throne room...

Skel-Knight is supposed to be some being "subservient to the Lord of Destruction", but his horded helmet reminds me of the Skelegod from the Netflix Masters of the Universe: Revelation series. He could sub for your Skeletor figure...

Skel-Knight with my MOTU Origins Screeech 2-pk Skeletor 

and Lords of Power Beastman in the bowels of Snake Mountain...

At first glance, the Pit Warden looked like an absolute mess to me with his radically bisected body, but he quickly grew on me- the snake heads have hinged jaws, and an extra, single neck piece is included, opening a lot of possibilities for parts-swapping fun. He'll fit in great with all my other Snake Men: King Hiss, Sssqueeze, Rattlor, Snake Face, Tung Lashor, and Masters of the WWE Jake The Snake!

Snake Armor He-Man and Serpent Claw Man-At-Arms battle the Pit Warden on Snake Mountain ...!

The Horde Revenant and Despera really round out my 

Evil Horde Army of Hordak and his Horde Troopers ...

The mini comics for the MOTU Origins have been a welcome and nostalgic experience for me, really taking me back to the '80s and the original mini comics drawn by Alfredo Alcala that set my young imagination going!

Despite my initial dismissing of both, Despera and this Battle For Eternia 4-pk were a ton of fun! The MOTU Origins line continues to be my favorite toy line since it's 2020 launch- the numerous vehicles, playsets, and deep bench of characters, as well as the figures interchangeable parts boost playability to a level surpassing possibly all other recent toy lines. Recommended! 

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Five Below: Mini Vending Machine, Gremlins Mini-Pops

Five Below often has some miniature item I can use in my dioramas when photographing action figures, like this mini vending machine that will fit great in my "arcade setup, in which I often pose Marvel Legends figures. The front of the box shows the machine stocked with small charms, but on one of the side panels shows it filled with Tic-Tac shaped candy, but I dumped in sixteen rails of Pez instead. The Pez capsules will dispense, but it can get jammed due to their size. Still fun!

Below, Lynx plays Dance Royale in the arcade, while Meowscles gets some Pez from the vending machine... take note of the Duck Launcher I also picked up at Five Below. So great! The Stumble Guys at the top/left and Care Bear to the right also came from Five Below...

I also found these two brightly colored Gremlins Mini Pops at Five Below that I could not resist! I almost picked up the exclusive Gizo figures, but these weren't that cheap at five bucks a pop. The store I was at had the entire wave pictured on back of the box. But these two will make great background figures on their own, in their neon-bright, blacklight colors- the perfect addition to my 1:12 arcade!

 

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McFarlane Movie '66 Italian Movie Poster & Robot Batman

I've followed this line of McFarlane action figures for a while now, only recently dipping my toes into it, and really find them appealing. Of particular interest to me were the strange variants of Batman, including this Italian movie poster-inspired, red Batman and Robot Batman. Eleven years ago, I read issue #14 of Batman '66 that featured a giant Robot Batman much like this figure, and the Movie Poster Batman merely appealed to my love of foreign, off-model color variants of superhero figures.

Black and red make a great color combo for Batman, and this figure is no exception. Sure, it's merely a repaint, but an exciting one! He can't really get his arm all the way through the Bat-Sheild straps, so he has to has to hold it with his only gripping hand. Still, it can be held and it's a fun accessory you can use with your other '66 Batman figures.

Robot Batman is such a fun, retro-licious figure, I had to have him. He struggles to hold his jets, but the two prongs can be clipped onto the figure's claws. His articulation is only slightly more limited than the regular figures, most pronounced in the hips.

Below, Movie Poster Batman with my Funko Gold Batmobile, which also has an off-model colored version of '66 Batman- something about color variants really appeals to the collector in me...

I have a few Mech Batmen in my collection, including a couple of these really fun Imaginext Exo-Suit Batman toys that has lights, sounds, and a missile launcher...

Below, Movie Poster Batman with my Space Batman...

While we're here, Space Batman Vs. Colossus Rex ...!

And finally, all three of my 6" McFarlane '66 Batman figures- I'm mad for these and kinda wished I'd started collecting these earlier in the series, but ya can't collect everything. I'm just happy to have these unique versions of Batman from the series- they're fun and a little wacky, just like the beloved TV series. Recommended!

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Duck Launcher

Perhaps my greatest find at Five Below, the Duck Launcher...

 

Check out the video:

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McFarlane Cyborg Superman

 

I couldn't believe my luck when stumbling upon this McFarlane DC Multiverse Cyborg Superman a couple weeks ago. Wow! I've never had a Cyborg Superman, but did enjoy the villain in the Sinestro Corps War book (2008). There is a McFarlane Target Exclusive variant of that Sinestro Corps Cyborg Superman in darker colors that I will buy if I see it in the wild. Hank Henshaw first appeared in The Adventures of Superman #466 (1990), but not as Cyborg Superman in issue #500 (1993). The sculpt and presentation of this figure is top notch and appears to be nearly all new tooling aside from the left arm and belt/trunks. Impressive!

Cyborg Superman alongside some other recent McFarlane Superman additions to my collection; World At War Superman, Christopher Reeve '78 Superman, and Gold Label Action Comics 1,000 Superman ...

And finally, Cyborg Superman with some of my other McFarlane "dark Supermen"; Red Son Superman, DC Vs. Vampires Superman, Superboy Prime, and God of Apokolips...

I can't say enough good things about this Cyborg Superman- being my first action figure of the character, I doubt you could do any better, really. My only gripe is a longstanding omission of a flight stand in a considerable percentage of characters that should include one. Regardless, it's a shame McFarlane is losing the licensing when producing figures of this caliber. Recommended!

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