I love a good sea witch. There is something so captivating about a mer-creature with villainous intent that it trumps all my other vampy character obsessions. An interesting thing about all the various interpretations of The Little Mermaid in popular culture is that the antagonist is always a fairly unique creation. In Toei's 1975 film, she is a very creepy-looking stingray. In the 1989 Disney film, she is voluptuous baudy octopus. And in the 1991 television series, Saban's The Adventures of the Little Mermaid, she is a crone named Hedwig with a mermaid-like tail that has dragon (or eel-like) details. I think she is a fun variation. I especially love that she rides on the back of a stingray and has fingers that magically grow into long tendrils. I believe this 1991 "collectible figure" from The Toy Group is the only time she was merchandised. She is made from a dense, but pliable, plastic similar to a floating bath toy. While I would have loved an actual action figure, I doubt the animated details would have been captured so well.
UNITING ALL WOMEN OF PLASTIC
Showing posts with label Gorgon. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Gorgon. Show all posts
Wednesday, August 21, 2024
Saban's Little Mermaid - HEDWIG!
Tuesday, August 20, 2024
Saban's Little Mermaid - MARINA!
I am a big fan of The Little Mermaid. I love mermaids in general, Hans Christian Anderson's folktale, and almost all interpretations of the story in popular culture. But, oddly enough, I'm not a huge fan of the Disney version with Ariel. I don't hate it or anything, but it's pretty far down my list. My favorite is the 1975 anime film by Toei Animation. It's well-animated and sticks to the original story. A close second though is Saban's Adventures of the Little Mermaid from 1991. The story is more cutesy and the animation isn't as refined, but there are a lot of notable similarities, mostly in the little mermaid herself. In both versions, she is a young blonde mermaid named Marina drawn with an anime influence. In the 1975 movie, she is topless with strategically flowing hair. But in the 1991 show, she has scales that continue up her torso in a design I find very appealing (the Disney seashell bra always seemed silly to me... and uncomfortable). I love Marina's two-tone green tail especially (but I could do without the little earrings).
Thursday, January 4, 2024
MOTU Origins - LADY SLITHER!
An amazing thing about a property as rich and celebrated as Masters of the Universe is the occasion to infuse the lore with new characters and stories. A whole arena of Eternian mythos that never quite appealed to me was the Snake Men. I remember the vintage toys being all the rage among my young peers. And I know the 200x series thrilled those same fans years later with further reptilian exploration. But I think the lack of female characters in the stories just kept me at bay. But then about ten years ago in the height of MOTU Classics, there was a mysterious new character introduced in the mini-comics: Lady Slither, the Queen Empress of the Snake Men. She was surprisingly the only MOTU character to have a serpent's lower body (a design choice I thought would be a given for a diverse reptilian race). The brief glimpses of her created buzz and the fan demand for an action figure was immediate. It took ten years and a new toy line, but we finally have her. Let's check out Lady Slither below!
Monday, October 24, 2022
Percy Jackson - MEDUSA!
The Percy Jackson films were a hard pill to swallow. My coworker was a big fan of the books and insisted I give them a shot. I listened to the first 3 or 4 on audiobook before I heard the news that it would be hitting the big screen. I was genuinely excited for what I assumed would be the next Harry Potter. I was even already a fan of Logan Lerman from his role in Jack and Bobby (a highly underrated show IMO). But I sat there in the theatre baffled by the interpretation I was seeing. Everything was just off. And cheesy. I can't pinpoint any one thing that was wrong, but my disappointment was palpable. I disconnected from the franchise and never even acknowledged the toys until I stumbled across Medusa this Summer. I was impressed at the quality of her sculpt and I always love a gorgon. She doesn't look much like Uma Thurman, but I always have low likeness expectations at this scale. Looking forward to the new show in 2023 and hopefully some new toys. Let's check out Medusa below!
Sunday, July 3, 2022
Monsters, Inc - CELIA!
This 7" Pixar line from Mattel is unexpectedly awesome. I say unexpectedly because I don't typically buy figures from genres that aren't superhero or sci-fi. Sure, I've seen and enjoyed every Pixar movie so far, but I can honestly say I've never finished a film saying "oh man I need action figures of these characters." But when this line started hitting the shelves last year I was really intrigued at the quality and scale of the figures. Especially at the price point of roughly 10 dollars per figure (so 20 for this 2-pack). The first one I bought was Merida from Brave, followed by a few Incredibles. Then I realized they paired well with my Toy Story 4 Bo Peep figure. I didn't know how many others I would buy, but then I saw this amazing Celia figure from Monsters, Inc. I love odd characters with alien-like features, and her cyclops eye, medusa hair, and octopus legs always thrilled me. Even in this Pixar-specific line, she is not a character I ever expected to see, but I'm ecstatic that she was. Let's check out Celia below!
Friday, June 4, 2021
Masters of the Universe - SNAKE TEELA!
The 2002 He-Man and the Masters of the Universe animated series really focused on the evil SnakeMen factions on Eternia. They were a favorite among fans of the vintage cartoon and toys, but they were criminally underused. The 2002 series really fleshed out their mythology and even titled the entire second season "Masters of the Universe vs The SnakeMen." The later waves of action figures featured lots of repainted figures, with snake-themed accessories, and green SnakeMen packaging. But this ToyFare Exclusive Snake Teela figure is special. She is the only repainted figure with reptilian skin as seen in the episode Second Skin. In the episode, King Hssss found the ancient Serpent Ring artifact that could transform anyone into SnakeMen. Only a handful of heroes were changed: Man-at-Arms, Mekaneck, King Carnivus, and Teela. But only Teela's transformation got the toy treatment. The great thing about this is the big nod to Teela's association to the vintage Snake Goddess character. Let's check her out!
Wednesday, May 5, 2021
Space Jam - WHITE MAMBA!
Here's a shocking confession: I know absolutely nothing about organized sports. I may love playing sports, but I have no interest in watching other people do it. Basketball has always been especially difficult for me to focus on. So here's shocking confession #2: I have never seen Space Jam. Despite its place as 90's cultural phenomenon, and the introduction of Lola Bunny, it just never intrigued me enough to actually watch it. I wasn't very big into toy collecting back then, so when I heard about this new movie, my very first thought was that I could finally add a Lola to my collection. What I wasn't expecting was any other action figures that would excite me. This White Mamba figure was an amazing surprise. Diana Taurasi plays for the Phoenix Mercury in the WNBA and was nicknamed White Mamba by Kobe Bryant due to her penchant for scoring in crucial scenarios. I love that Warner Bros took a cue from her nickname and made her into a true white mamba gorgon. Let's check out White Mamba below!
Sunday, September 10, 2017
Imaginext - SERPENT QUEEN!
For years now I've been wishing for an Egyptian-themed Imaginext figure for my collection. I expected a regal Cleopatra-type, but I have to admit I am much happier with this evil-looking Serpent Queen instead. I love a good animal-themed character, especially when it's a villainess. And the great thing is that this figure will very likely be re-released as a more-human looking variation. The sole required change would be the scaly reptilian hands. The only predictions I've made for this line that haven't come true now are a Statue of Liberty and a Rosie the Riveter. I'm hoping to see them in a couple years at this rate. For those unaware, Imaginext had some major DC reveals last week. We're getting Huntress, Batwoman, Star Sapphire, Katana, Killer Frost, Donna Troy, Artemis, Black Canary, Jessica Cruz, and a new Harley. My mind is blown. After this new wave is released I don't even know what figures to wish for (beyond Supergirl). It seems like the sky is the limit now. Let's check out Serpent Queen below!
Wednesday, September 2, 2015
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles - KARAI SERPENT!
All my Turtle education comes from the original animated series from the 1980s. So when I was researching females in the TMNT line about 5 years ago, I belatedly discovered this elusive daughter of Shredder. I was impressed, but I also was bummed because I couldn't afford the eBay prices her action figures were fetching. This version of Karai is from the 2012 Nickelodeon cartoon. They changed her character a lot in this series. Most notably is that she is now Splinter's daughter, although raised and brainwashed by Shredder. In a scheme by Shredder to turn the Turtles into snakes, Karai accidentally fell into the mutagen and became a serpent herself - while retaining the ability to revert back to human form at will (albeit with reptilian eyes). This figure was first teased a long long time ago. So long ago that I had given up hope to find her almost a year ago. Then a couple weeks ago I found her in TRU sitting randomly on a shelf in front of the Power Rangers. It was kismet. Let's check out Karai below!
Sunday, June 22, 2014
Kickstarter: VITRUVIAN H.A.C.K.S.!
So last week I funded my second Kickstarter campaign. This one is different than my first one (I Am Elemental) because it can potentially be much more expensive, but more likely has the potential to be an unprecedented value - thanks to the numerous stretch goals. If all the stretch goals get met, there will be 39 unique figures (including 16 differently-hued blank bucks - and 23 unique sculpts). Plus four additional weapons packs to spruce up those bucks. The first series is an ancient Greece theme with a variety of Spartans up again Medusa and an army of Gorgons. The female-centric antagonists are obviously the focus of this post. There are 11 female figures sculpted and 8 colored female bucks (again, only available if all the stretch goals are met). The Vitruvian H.A.C.K.S. (Highly Articulated Character Kit System) is a line of 4" scale action figures with easily separated body parts for endless customization potential. As of today, there are 15 figures unlocked, with 20 days of funding remaining. Here's hoping that everything gets unlocked! Let's check them out below.
Wednesday, February 12, 2014
Imaginext ENCHANTRA the SNAKEWITCH!
With all my high hopes about potential females in the future of the Imaginext line, I thought it would be fun to skip back in time and visit the very first lady produced. Back in 2004, Imaginext was entering its third year and released the third wave of their Medieval theme: The Dragon Adventure (after The Castle Adventure (2002) and The Forest Adventure (2003). This Dragon Adventure series introduced the very first female after 4 waves of exclusion (there were 2 pirate waves released prior to this series as well). Enchantra (not to be confused with She-Ra's giant swan Enchanta) is similar to a stereotypical Medusa character, but with additional shape-changing abilities. The figures back in 2004 were smaller in scale than modern Imaginext, but her giant head of snakes adds a lot of bulk to the figure and closes that scale gap quite a bit. I love this figure. I have a soft spot for villains, I love animal themes, and I'm a mythology nut. She's basically perfect for me. Let's check out Enchantra below!
Tuesday, October 1, 2013
Hercules: The Legendary Journeys - SHE-DEMON!
Welcome to the first of my Halloween reviews for 2013! I'm not going to stress out about finding a new vampy lady every day like I attempted last year. But rather, I've been saving my creepier reviews all year for the month of October. She-Demon was always my favorite monster from Hercules. She's essentially a hybrid of Lamia and Medusa, but presented as a child of Echidna and Typhon. Unlike this toy, the TV version of She-Demon looked like a supermodel (played by Nicky Mealings), with a really bad CGI serpentine tail. I guess the CGI was actually pretty good for a mid-nineties television show, but looking back now it's kind of laughable. I also loved how this character was seductive instead of outright malicious. I always love characters like that. The toy leaves a lot to be desired, but it also it pretty fun. Anytime an expressive face finds its way onto a toy the results can be hairy. But the more I photographed She-Demon, the more I appreciated her. Let's check her out below!
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