This figure is one of the biggest surprises for me in 2024. I had a total turnaround in my appreciation level in the span of a few months. When she was first revealed earlier last year, I was very excited to be getting another female character in the Turtles of Grayskull line, but I was very underwhelmed with the design. I viewed her as an unimaginative mashup that didn't satisfy either the TMNT or MOTU genres. But now that I have her in hand, I don't know what I was thinking, because I think she's incredible. I like her very specific visual references to Sorceress while paired with unmistakably April O'Neil face. Plus the the newly-tooled wings have tons of potential applications. I know Vultak has been shown, but Queen Angella and a 200x Sorceress would be awesome uses as well. I don't know if there will be any more ladies in this line, but I hope the same level of quality and fun goes into the ThunderCats figures. The early pics look great. Let's check out April O'Neil as Sorceress below!
UNITING ALL WOMEN OF PLASTIC
Showing posts with label Mashup. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Mashup. Show all posts
Friday, February 14, 2025
Turtles of Grayskull - APRIL O'NEIL!
Wednesday, February 12, 2025
Turtles of Grayskull - TEELA!
Toy property mashups are a pretty fun trend in modern toy lines. The longest-running and most notable examples are definitely Transformers with their early Crossovers lines with Star Wars and Marvel (2008-2010) and then their Collaborative line with Ghostbusters, Back to the Future, Jurassic Park, TMNT, Top Gun, etc (2019-present). But back in 2019, Mattel started doing mashups with their highly versatile Masters of the Universe Origins line and WWE. These we fun and I loved the three ladies produced: Chyna, Steph McMahon, and Becky Lynch. But it wasn't until the Turtles of Grayskull line where two truly iconic lines were combined that I got obsessed. While the two figures I've purchased haven't quite been the combination of two characters the way I expected, they are still fun reinterpretations of the characters in the other universe. In this case, Teela as an armored turtle warrior. She's very weird but very cool and I hope there are more in the works. Let's check out the Turtles of Grayskull Teela below!
Sunday, March 19, 2023
Transformers - ARCEE as CHUN-LI!
Funny story about my acquisition of this set. I was mildly intrigued at a Chun-Li version of Arcee when I first saw the solicitations way back in 2017. But when they were released years later (2019 I believe), I passed. Then as soon as she was unavailable, I suddenly wanted her, but the inflated prices on eBay were just not doable. Then in 2021 they announced a reissue (FYI, the box specifically says 2021 so I used that date on this post). When I finally saw the box in person on Black Friday 2022, I experienced sticker shock at the $75.99 price. I was at the self checkout already and a temporary (holiday) employee asked what was wrong - I was literally shocked and probably looked it. I said "oh, nothing, I just thought this was more like $49.99 but it's ringing up $75." Then the kid said "no problem, let me change that price for you." I protested, but they insisted. I used to shoplift as a kid so I'm very sensitive about any perceived theft on my part. But it was out of my hands and now I have my own discounted Chun-cee.
Tuesday, March 1, 2022
Masters of the WWE - CHYNA as SHE-RA!
In the past two years I've become a big fan of Mattel's Masters of the WWE series. Who would have thought that wrestling toys and He-Man toys would provide such a great mashup? I've eagerly looked forward to each new female in the line. And I'm pretty sad that this 8th Wave will be the final one. But for a final female figure, Chyna as She-Ra is quite a high note to go out on. As the most recognizable female wrestler, the late Chyna was an unexpected but fitting choice to become the Princess of Power. The tiara accessory in particular made me very excited for a future Filmation-style She-Ra, and also to attempt a kitbash version myself. (Although this proved very difficult... details below). But this Chyna figure on its own is great. The purple and silver deco is a rare combination for a hero, but it looks terrific and makes a great addition to my MOTUO collection. It's a bummer my prediction of a Charlotte as Sorceress figure (in a peacock feather deco) will never happen. Boo. Let's check out Chyna below!
Wednesday, April 21, 2021
Masters of the WWE - STEPH as EVIL-LYN!
I'll be honest, I wasn't over the moon about these Masters of the WWE Universe figures until I saw this Steph McMahon figure. The Becky Lynch figure is great and I really enjoy it, but out of the package she doesn't immediately read "MOTU" to me. I think this is because the head had no special adornments. But on the flipside, this Steph figure is almost too reminiscent of MOTU with Evil-Lyn's headdress being such a prominent feature. Luckily she has long flowing hair coming out the back and a great skull mask accessory to distinguish her. The mask is a signature look from Steph's Skull Queen entrance outfit. I think it's genius how reminiscent it looks like Castle Grayskull and adds an extra level of MOTU homage to the figure. I can't see what mashups Mattel will come up with next. I already predict a peacock-themed Charlotte Flair as Sorceress. But maybe we'll see an Alicia Fox as Panthor or Sasha Banks as She-Ra. There is endless potential. Let's check out Steph as Evil-Lyn below!
Tuesday, April 20, 2021
Masters of the WWE - BECKY LYNCH as TEELA!
After four waves of all-male figures, I had pretty much given up hope for any female inclusion in the Masters of the WWE line. This line was actually on the shelves over a year before the first MOTU Origins wave hit, so our first look at the articulation and sculpt (and for quite a long time after) was these wrestler mashups. And of course if was almost a full year until we saw Teela and Evil-Lyn revealed and even knew female figures were an option. The best part is that I predicted a Becky Lynch Teela a long time ago. Becky seems to be one of the most merchandised female wresters and her red hair made her a nice match with Teela. I only wish her headsculpt had some kind of MOTU-themed adornment. But otherwise I think she's great. And to get my next prediction down on paper, I fully expect a Charlotte Flair as the Sorceress (specifically in her peacock-themed feather entrance outfit). As soon as I saw the Sorceress figure that comes with Grayskull I wished it to happen. Let's check out Becky Lynch below!
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