Sometimes my childhood memories don't hold up to my adult scrutiny. As a kid, my absolute favorite episode of G.I.Joe was "Memories of Mara" (S1E45, Nov 15th, 1985). The story featured Shipwreck rescuing a blue-skinned woman from the ocean. You're led to believe her hue is due to cyanosis, but during CPR attempts, he realizes she has gills on her neck and climbs back into the water with her to continue his revival attempts. Turns out Mara was an escaped Cobra Eel lab test subject. She was supposed to be amphibious, but accidentally turned out completely aquatic and unable to breathe on land. As a kid I found this concept mind-blowing and one of the first mer-people I ever saw represented in my cartoons. As an adult, it's a pretty odd 22-minute story with some major logic holes. But even still the nostalgia is palpable with this new figure. Despite me begging for her on forums for years ("Please! Such an easy re-use of parts!"), I never expected to actually get her. Let's check out Mara below!
UNITING ALL WOMEN OF PLASTIC
Showing posts with label Aquatic. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Aquatic. Show all posts
Thursday, January 22, 2026
Super7 Reaction+ O-Ring - MARA!
Friday, November 7, 2025
Super7 ReAction - UNDERSEA GAL!
The Nightmare Before Christmas was a slow-burn of acceptance and adoration for me. It was released when I was in High School and at the time I didn't love musicals or "dark" aesthetics. Yes, it was playful, but goth was a true social strata at the time that I just didn't fit into. The goth kids were eating this movie up. It was actually my high school art teacher who first started my appreciation of the movie. He made us watch the film (on laserdisc!) followed by the "making of" documentary every semester. In late high school I became huge fan of Ray Harryhausen, which in turn made me appreciate all stop-motion film a lot more. But the big plunge was a decade later when I dated an NBX superfan. I would be coerced to watch the movie several times a year, and I would research all the Neca figures and slowly purchase them as gifts for every occasion. Flash forward 20 years and I love it. Any my favorite character is Undersea Gal, the Creature from the Black Lagoon homage who has several cool cameos.
Wednesday, October 8, 2025
Court of the Dead - GALLEVARBE (NAGA)!
I'm taking a leap of logic and labeling this version of Gallevarbe as a Naga. I base this purely on the lack of a final fluke fin on her tail and the sculpted reptilian scales on her shoulders. On the flip side, her written description and water effect accessory makes me think she might be another aquatic form like her Death's Siren figure. Either way, I'm mentally making making a Mermaid/Naga distinction in my head. This Eyes of the Queen version of Gallevarbe actually looks better than the Death's Siren version (in my humble opinion). Something about the color gradients and the headsculpt just appeal to me more than the mermaid form (which really surprises me as a mermaid loyalist). Plus they both have a sinister creepy vibe which made them perfect for October. I'm also curious to put the BFS parts-swapping intent to the test with these figures. I might just combine all my favorite parts into my ultimate sea witch. I'll add pics if I do. Let's check out Gallevarbe, Eyes of the Queen, below!
Monday, October 6, 2025
Court of the Dead - GALLEVARBE (DEATH'S SIREN)!
This figure was a rough one for me. Overall I love it. But I am super squeamish about gory or zombie-like toys. It's a completely ridiculous mental thing. But after I hold a Walking Dead action figure or any superhero "blood-splattered variant", I feel odd and immediately feel compelled to wash my hands. On the other hand, I love mermaids. Especially if they're evil. Reading Mermaid Forest back in the early 90s was a formative event for me and happy pretty mermaids have played second fiddle to the wicked ones ever since. Luckily, the gory/decaying parts of this toy are a rich pink color against the dark green of her tail, so my brain registers it more as a natural skin pattern rather than open wounds. This Gallevarbe character can change shape and was given two pretty awesome figures in Wave 2: This Death's Siren mermaid figure, and the Eyes of the Queen naga figure I will be reviewing next. I'm hoping for a larger mermaid in the new 1:12 line next. Let's check out Death's Siren below!
Thursday, October 31, 2024
Halloween Kids - THE CREATURE!
Happy Halloween! One of my favorite recent toy trends is the representation of the simplistic Ben Cooper costumes of the 70s and 80s in action figure form. NECA has the Ben Cooper Costume Kids which are 5" fully-articulated figures wearing soft-goods costumes. And Super7 has the ReAction Halloween Kids line, which don't appear to be officially branded for the vintage costume companies, but they definitely give that classic homage. This Creature from the Black Lagoon girl is my first purchase from the line, and I'm quite obsessed. As my favorite of the Universal Monsters movies, she was always going to grab my attention. But the fact that the figure is female (as is the NECA Creature figure), further appeals to me because I feel it pays tribute to the creator of the Creature costume, Milicent Patrick, who was only properly credited in recent years (read The Lady From the Black Lagoon book for more!). I can't help but think the gender of these toys was intentional because of that. Let's check out Creature below!
Sunday, January 7, 2024
Marvel Legends - NAMORITA!
Marvel Legends has a knack for releasing an in-demand character in the wrong costume. I've been predicting a Namorita figure for several years now. The original New Warriors lineup from 1990 is iconic and several characters have already been released. When this Void wave was announced, we already had 3 of the 6 members (plus the brown Nova on the way). So suddenly we got the final two, Namorita and Marvel Boy, announced. But Marvel Boy was in his 2014 costume and Namorita was in her blink-and-you-miss-it 2005 design that she only had for six issues. The saving grace is that both costumes are cool. To be fair, I always hated this Namorita design, but this figure makes me appreciate it in a new light. She's quite a stunning figure. The last few comic-based females in this line have been exceptionally and surprisingly beautiful (Clea and Daredevil Elektra come to mind). And the nice thing is that this sculpt will almost certainly be repurposed for her classic look. Let's check out Namorita below!
Friday, January 28, 2022
Kamen Rider Agito - EL OF THE WATER!
I bought this figure about 18 years ago when I was on a crazy Japanese Vinyl kick. Then just a couple years ago I photographed it for a review and quickly realized I had forgotten every bit of detail about this toy (other than that it was produced by Bandai). I had no frame of reference in my head and googling things like "shark woman bandai" returned zilch. Then tonight I researched hard (hours literally) and finally was able to identify her. In 2001 Kamen Rider Agito aired as the eleventh installment of the Kamen series. There were a lot of villains in this series including a troublesome trio called the El Lords. These three Lords controlled Water, Wind, and Ground. Technically El of the Water is a male entity and voiced by a male actor, but for the majority of her/his screen time in this series, they had possessed the 21 year old human character Masumi Sekiya. And while possessing Masumi, the El of the Water looked distinctly female. Something I love about Japanese villains on action television is the creative designs.
Monday, January 24, 2022
A Trio of ROBLOX LADIES!
Whenever a toy line really establishes itself in the toy aisles, I know I'll eventually have to make a purchase to see what all the fuss is about. I have been noticing Roblox figures from Jazwares in stores for quite a few years now, and I honestly was never super tempted. They were blocky and simple with odd facial expressions. But on the plus side, the themes always seemed fun. I swear every time I glanced at the displays I would see a different mermaid character. I managed to avoid any purchases (not counting their non-blocky Imagination Collection) until a fateful day back in October when I saw three characters lined up: a mermaid, a centaur, and a spider sorceress. The assortment just made me happy and I finally brought a few of these figures home. Plus I was excited to add the first female centaur and first mermaid of color to my collection. And after playing with these figures and swapping parts, I get the appeal. I'm open to buying more if they call to me. Let's check out these Roblox ladies below!
Friday, January 21, 2022
PJ Masks - OCTOBELLA!
The properties being taken over by Hasbro aren't contained to popular collector lines like Fortnite and Power Rangers. Long-lasting preschool lines like PJ Masks have also changed production. Just Play Toys had been making these toys for years and I had acquired a small collection. But when toylines like this (that I only sporadically collect) start over, I get a bit fatigued and rarely continue buying them. But a big exception occurs when they start off with inclusion of an amazing new character. And this Octobella is a prime example of that. I love aquatic characters, and tentacled ladies are especially intriguing to me. Octobella is a villain introduced in Season 3 but not fully featured until Season 4. She is specifically an antagonist to Gekko and I'm obsessed with her design. Her unexpected inclusion makes me hopeful for a Batarina (the purple bat hero) and Orticia (the punky plant villain). Fingers crossed we'll see them. Let's check out the "squiggly giggly octopus girl" (her words, not mine) below!
Saturday, December 18, 2021
Roblox - SEA SERPENT!
Nothing sparks my collecting curiosity more than a character with unworldly-colored skin. Red or Green or (especially) Blue complexions just thrill me. Although I mostly collect toys related to comics and animation, my personal aesthetics lean toward fantasy. Specifically creature fantasy with humanoid characters exhibiting animalistic traits. And for some reason blue skin has always been associated with aquatic people. When I first saw images of this Sea Serpent figure from the Roblox Imagination Collection line a few months ago I was ecstatic. This line has been the source of a lot of unexpected joy for me. Even though I'm unfamiliar with Roblox in general, Jazwares has produced a ton of attention-grabbing female figures. It has already surpassed the Fortnite line as far as diversity and imagination (IMO). And every time I buy a new figure, I unfold the paper insert to see news of even more figures on the horizon. It's a never-ending cycle and I'm here for it. Let's check out Sea Serpent below!
Friday, December 10, 2021
Miraculous Ladybug - AQUABUG!
With the first assortment of Miraculous figures from Playmates Toys finally hitting the shelves, I scrambled to get the last couple Bandai figures I never picked up (before they became impossible to get). Similar to any Batman or Spider-Man themed property, there is some version of Ladybug in every wave of Miraculous toys. She's the focal character so I totally get it, but I usually skip slight variations of a character I already have. When I first saw pics of this AquaBug figure, I wrote it off as just "Ladybug with blue hair" and didn't pay any attention. But a few years later I saw a pic of her and realized she had some interesting details. The most impressive part is that her costume is completely covered in a fishscale texture. It's only noticeable up close and Bandai could have been cheap and just re-used the smooth mold. Her hair gradient from light blue to pink also really stands out. In the packaging, the pink blends in with the background graphics, so seeing it in person was a nice surprise. Let's check out AquaBug below!
Monday, June 28, 2021
Transformers - SCYLLA!
The Seacons were a group of aquatic-themed antagonists in 1988's Super-God Masterforce. They shared a pink and teal color palette and could combine to form Piranacon. The team was impactful but didn't stay around too long. In 1997, their designs were re-introduced in Beast Warriors II as the Space Pirate Seacons in a white and gold palette. They were technically all new characters with new names and personalities, but the designs were identical... except for Scylla who replaced the deceased Tentakil. From all the episodes I've seen, Scylla is largely present for comic relief in the form of unwanted flirtation, and of course to form a leg of God Neptune. The vintage Scylla figure was just a repaint of the male Tentakil, but in this newest TakaraTomy release she gets a massive retooling using a mashup of Moonracer and Tentakil parts (plus a brand new torso and head). The God Neptune set was a Pulse Exclusive for preorder in 2020, but just released a few months ago. Let's check out Scylla below.
Saturday, December 5, 2020
I Am Elemental - ELEMENTS OF WISDOM!
Sometimes I buy a lot of action figures all at once and then get overwhelmed at the thought of opening, photographing, and displaying them. That is literally the only drawback to maintaining this website; I no longer get to experience the frantic tearing open of my toys as soon as I get them home. But on the plus side, the photography process has created a new unboxing ritual that is very enjoyable in its own way... when I eventually get around to it. That brings us to one of my favorite toy lines in recent memory: I Am Elemental. I've had this second series unopened on a storage shelf for 4 years, which is a shame because this is an amazing line that I'm excited to display. The colorfully costumed heroines, the crayola spectrum of skintones, and the trademark domino masks create a unique product that is unlike anything else out there. And this Wisdom series stepped it up a notch with even brighter colors and wilder accessories. I can't believe I sat on them so long. Let's check them out below!
Friday, May 8, 2020
The Ladies of CHOUSEISHIN GRANSAZER!
In the mid-aughts, I was obsessed with Japanese tokusatsu vinyl figures. Besides some vague exposure to Power Rangers and Beetleborgs, the genre was basically unknown to me. I spent a lot of time back then browsing Japanese auction sites (for other non-action-figure hobbies of mine) when I first came across the trend of 1:12 vinyl figures. I was fascinated by these inexpensive and bountiful collectibles. Just when I had written off Japanese pop culture as only schoolgirl uniforms and cat ears I discovered this world of colorful armor and intricate design themes. The vast majority of these figures were produced by Bandai, but this amazing Chouseishin Gransazer is apparently made by Konami (I say apparently because despite the copyright stamped on the figure and the logo on the packaging, I can't find solid proof that Konami ever made toys). I especially like this group because there are a whopping twelve main characters including four females. Let's check them all out below!
Tuesday, April 14, 2020
Sentai Hero Series - LADIES OF MAGIRANGER!
Power Rangers Mystic Force was the 2006 iteration of the Power Rangers franchise and marked my first real fascination with the brand. Every season of Power Rangers had a theme - most of which honestly didn't interest me in the least: ninjas, space, etc. But the Mystic Force season featured a mythology theme and I loved it. The main females were the Pink Mystic Ranger (Fairy) and Blue Mystic Ranger (Mermaid). Even their Zord forms looked like vaguely feminine humanoids. I picked up several of the Bandai USA toys, but my favorite products were the Japanese Sentai Hero Series vinyl figures (released with the 2005 Magiranger series). They beat out the rest because this line included the White Mystic Ranger (Snow) that I don't believe was ever included in the American toylines. The Sentai Hero Series is a really fin and inexpensive line to collect. While not especially well articulated, they have decent, consistent sculpts and great character selection. Let's check out the Mystic Rangers below!
Friday, January 3, 2020
Disney's Atlantis - PRINCESS KIDA!
I've wanted to review these figures for years but my inspiration finally struck when I noticed Atlantis: The Lost Empire on Disney+ last week and watched it again (for the first time since it came out). It's an interesting movie. It reminds me more of the animated adventure movies being produced by Fox and DreamWorks like Titan A.E. or Road to El Dorado. (Funny thing: Disney quickly followed this up with another adventure movie, Treasure Planet, in 2002, then none since). Atlantis was a fun movie, but if I had my way I would have changed a million little things - the CGI would toned down and the Atlanteans would look more alien-like (or at least aquatic in some way) for starters. All that aside though, Princess Kida remains one of the most unique Disney Princesses. Her white hair, face paint/tattoos, and blue warrior garb looks so interesting. It's a far cry from the tiara and gown trope, but unfortunately she never gained much traction and is relegated to the ranks of forgotten princesses. Let's check out Kida below!
Sunday, November 3, 2019
The Shape of Water - AMPHIBIAN MAN!
Your eyes aren't deceiving you. I'm breaking a big rule by posting a review of an ostensibly male character here on this blog. But to my credit, amphibians can have very ambiguous genders, and I honestly don't have any other outlet to post these pictures (I've pretty much withdrawn from the forum and message board scene). The Shape of Water was easily my favorite film of 2017. It combined all my favorite genres: forbidden romance, historical noir, science fiction, cryptozoology, archaeology, and of course a gill-monster. Apparently Guillermo del Toro watched Creature From the Black Lagoon as a child and had the same reaction I did: why doesn't the monster ever get the girl? I saw the Creature as a misunderstood romantic, and this new film tells the story I always wanted. The Guillermo del Toro collection from NECA is a line with a lot of potential. As far as I'm aware, there aren't any more figures on the horizon, but my fingers are crossed for Mimic and Crimson Peak. Let's check out the Amphibian Man below!
Thursday, May 30, 2019
Rescue Heroes - SANDY O'SHIN!
Preschool toys have come leaps and bounds since my childhood. For some reason action figures were always reserved for older children, and the only ones we actually did get were blocky and rather boring. But kids these days have a ton of really fun options. They have aisles full of cutesy articulated animal characters, super heroes, and the most recent additions: the new Rescue Heroes from Fisher-Price. This line is a reboot of a pretty successful run with the same name from 1998-2004. However, these new figures incorporate the design aesthetics of the wildly popular Imaginext line with the larger and more durable construction of the original Rescue Heroes. The initial lineup of characters has been available on the Walmart website for a few weeks. There are seven different figures so far - all featured on a series of animated shorts on YouTube Kids. I'm eagerly awaiting more brightly-colored, punny-named heroes. Let's check out Sandy O'Shin (oh brother, that name) below!
Tuesday, December 25, 2018
Aquaman Movie 6" Basic - MERA!
I saw the Aquaman movie this weekend and found it really entertaining. The visuals and costumes were great. I especially loved the different races/species depicted among the seven undersea kingdoms. And who knew the cheesy seahorse steeds could be so badass?! I only had two issues with the film. Firstly, Black Manta seemed shoehorned into the story. He probably should have been the spotlight villain in the next Aquaman movie and let Orm take center stage here. (Although if they're prepping for a Legion of Doom storyline, they probably needed to get him on screen asap). My second complaint was a lot of weak dialogue. There were "serious" points where the movie morphed into a poorly written soap opera. Don't get me wrong, I liked the story, it was just the dialogue that was weak. I felt that Amber Heard as Mera looked phenomenal, but as an actress I felt that she did the best she could with the words she was given and the end result is a commendable, but not terrific performance.
Sunday, December 16, 2018
Aquaman Movie 12" True Moves MERA!
I'm in the process of revamping my toy room right now and one of the focuses will be to better accommodate my booming 1:6 scale action figure collection. I know there have been 12" action figures for decades, but in the past they almost always have had removable clothing and high price tags and they blurred the lines between dolls and action figures. I have nothing against dolls, but I've limited myself to not collecting them (strict parameters are very important for a compulsive collector like me). But then back in 2016 I first started paying attention to a new trend of lower-cost, fully-sculpted 1:6 action figures. They had been coming out for a while, but female characters weren't included until early 2016 (Wonder Woman and Black Widow). Now this scale seems to be a staple product for most comic-based movie merchandise (I'm eagerly awaiting the inevitable Captain Marvel figures). In a few short years I somehow assembled 25! This newest Mera one is probably the best yet. Let's check her out below!
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