Tag Archives: Figura Obscura

Figure Obscura Father Christmas…SpartanNerd Unboxing and Review

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I remember when I first heard the words “Figura Obscura.” This was two years ago in 2022 when they announced this product. I thought it was great, but if you have been following the SpartanNerd Blog for awhile you know my interest was more in the now extinct MEGA Masters of the Universe.

Since then I have bought in heavily to MASTERVERSE figures and Mythic Legions. As the years (really only two years) have waxed on, they released a Headless Horseman, which I think I might actually get now. But the specific reason I haven’t (besides price) is that … when will you use a Headless Horseman outside of the Halloween season?

This isn’t a problem with Father Christmas. Read on to find out why!

PACKAGING

Really. No question. Of all of the packaging I have ever opened or reviewed on the SpartanNerd.com blog, this is the greatest I have ever seen. And I’ve seen some great stuff. This stands like five heads taller. Seriously…let’s go ahead and drop a 5/5 rating on this whole product just based on the packaging.

Father Christmas comes in a Saran wrapped windowless box. I don’t have any idea what sad person would leave that plastic on it. I took it off to minimize the glare for the photo.

Some reader out there is crying “foul!” SpartanNerd, you hate windowless packaging. Hang on, o cynic.

What you have is an outside “cap”. It removes from the box…it is actually an encasing booklet! It works magnetically, making this an optimum collector friendly package! You get a description of Father Christmas on the back…(did you really need that?). But I am glad they did it!

We have some Nate Baertsch artwork depicting Father Christmas, an owl flying overhead, and a caribou behind him. The words Father Christmas are in beautiful Christmas card font, with the four horsemen studios symbol beneath. On the “spine” there is Figura Obscura with a key symbol.

And if all of this wasn’t enough, let’s flip this capper around.

The other side is another beautiful illustration, this time providing a backdrop for your Father Christmas figure! Absolutely over-the-top.

So now onto the box. Yep. We haven’t even seen Father Christmas in package yet!

Here he is, in box. You can see everything clearly. They have him in package with a longer beard than most American versions have…that is because the Four Horsmen went with the widest interpretation of Father Christmas that they could. This isn’t a modern-pop “fat Santa”… this Father Christmas recalls the SpartanPapaDavid (he’ll have to read this blog from heaven) and the stories that he told of the rough life growing up in rural Pennsylvania. Santa Claus would bring the Christmas Tree on Christmas Eve, and “Mr. Take-back” would come and get it on “Old Christmas.” He also would take back your presents if you were being bad. As an adult I understand all of this to be Father Christmas, Epiphany, and Krampus, interpreted in the country ways of the past.

You can see that he comes with a ton of accessories. Notably a drum, a doll, a trumpet, a lantern, an alternate shorter beard head, and a Christmas Tree. This is a double blister…It has the shepherd’s crook, two identical wreath crowns, a plastic-sculpted toy sack, soft goods hood, and a soft goods sack with presents inside on the bottom.

Now there are two versions of this product…I have seen the green Father Christmas at a store before. I was very pleased to see the red version released on Storehorsemen again for this 2024 season in red. That version has the same illustrations but with green on Father Christmas’s robe. And if you get that version, you will have the same opening experience as me with that main difference only.

One more thing about the packaging. If we didn’t have enough diorama with this, we also get an inside illustration that you can use for an “in the house” photo.

AND ONE MORE THING STILL…A Christmas card of the artwork. These are not expensive if you wanted more from the StoreHorsemen.

FIGURE: HERE’S WHAT YOU GET IN THE PACKAGE

Father Christmas comes with: (I’m going to photograph in pieces.

  • Father Christmas figure
  • Soft-goods robe, hood, and inner robe.
  • Rubber belt
  • Two heads, one with a long wizards beard and the other traditional (pictured above)
  • Two wreath crowns
  • Toy drum
  • Toy trumpet
  • Doll
  • Rubber duck
  • Dog…it is up to your interpretation on these three. Are they cartoons…toys…characters…is that dog a live dog? That duck one to annoy you when fishing or one to put in your jeep?…that doll an elf worker, or a child stowaway?
  • Shepherd’s crook
  • Lantern
  • Christmas Tree, which is a wire tree, plastic trunk, and white stand
  • Additional sack of items.

SO…the duck and dog came in that sack. And because it is 2024, I assume I am not spoiling the “surprise” items in the sack. So if you are sensitive, time to go look at a different blog entry…try the SpartanNerd.Com home page for starters. Where you can see recent reviews of New Eternia Mer-Man and Mythic Legions Boreus.

….

Turn back now if you don’t want to be spoiled

…

OK.

Here

Is

The

Spoiler!

  • Knight’s head with pointed faceplate
  • Knight’s head with back neck protector
These are the two heads. One is on Sir Godfrey, and the other on Father Christmas, sans robes, with added armor. This is Father Christmas’ surprises for Mythic Legions collectors!

Impressive amount of accessories, really.

HOW DOES FATHER CHRISTMAS WORK

Essentially, the robes are doll clothes. They are very well made. The hood and the outer robe are different pieces, both having a clasp on the front. The purple underdress is basically the same thing that MASTERVERSE Revelation Tri-Clops came with, only in purple. That has Velcro down the back.

The good thing is that when you take off the robes you don’t have a naked Santa. What you have is a really skinny knight. After looking into it, this is actually a Mythic Legions elf body. I don’t have any of those (yet…)

But because Mythic Legions have entirely modular parts, you can put any head on there. So this body can be on display all year, while the Christmas items can go back into that terrific package for storage! YAY! VALUE!

BUT what they have done with the neck is out of proportion to the body. Essentially Father Christmas has kind of a “giraffe” neck if you put his head on the neckpiece and armor. This makes the knight heads look strange on this body without some additional bulk. This is a non-complaint because Mythic Legions neck pieces are also modular. I DID have to use the hairdryer to loosen up Father Christmas’ neck joint enough to pop off.

Still, the utility of having an extra Mythic Legions for the rest of the year makes this Figura Obscura mean so much more.

PICTURED: MASTERVERSE Revelation Evil Lyn alternate head and hands on Figura Obscura Father Christmas body. She is feeding Boreus.

I find that female heads in the same scale work very well with this body. It’s true that Evil Lyn here has no neck, but can you tell? The hands were a perfect swap for this photo.

PICTURED: Figura Obscura Father Christmas and Mattel Creations Fisher Price Little People figures.

You can see above that Father Christmas is actually very articulated. He can sit on a knee and give out presents to the good little boys here. (He-Man might be the bad one…he is holding a sword after all.)

PICTURED: Figura Obscura Father Christmas and Mattel Creations Fisher Price figures.

The toy sack is very detailed. These toys are not removable…but you get the drum sticks, teddy bear, nutcracker, toy lion, toy bugle, three balls, and a book that Reverend SpartanNerd has to assume is a bible.

I am showing Father Christmas holding that trumpet. Be very careful, Hub City Geeks. This is one delicate item. It fits very well in the robe pocket, and probably should stay in there or in the sack. Father Christmas didn’t come with any additional hands, so he can’t finger the valves or anything like that. He can hold it, but be careful getting it into the hands. With the robes on, he can’t have two hands on it as if to play it, and if he can I was too afraid to try, not willing to bend the instrument. Incidentally, the doll also can fit in the robe pockets well. AND, the drum has a chain with a hook on it so that it can clip to his belt.

Ah. SpartanPapaDavid’s story, kind of.

The Shepherd’s Crook and Lantern…Father Christmas doesn’t need a weapon, does he? Of all the Mythic Legions figures made, I bet this is only one of a handful that didn’t have some means of attack. BUT, the shepherd’s crook could be a weapon that someone else might use all year long.

I have only one singular, true gripe with this whole product. And that is that when you have the lantern on the crook, the heaviness of it causes the wrists to buckle, knocking him off balance. He doesn’t really have a counterweight. If ever a figure could probably have come with a stand, it is Father Christmas. Just think, someone might only ever own this product from the Four Horsemen Studios. He is a fine Santa Claus. Maybe the best I have ever seen anywhere. But if he has trouble standing as a long-term display that is kind of a problem. For me, he has face-planted several times while holding the hook, usually with the lantern. And that lantern comes right off and goes who knows where. I wasn’t there when he fell over! And as I type this, one of those wreath crowns is missing. I believe he fell over, his crown landed in the floor, and a SpartanPet got it. Or it went down in the AC vent. Or something else. All I am saying is it is good that it came with two of them. (Dork Lair seems to think this was an accident, all of them coming with two wreath crowns.)

PICTURED: Mythic Legions Boreus and Figura Obscura Father Christmas. Boreus seems to be the perfect match with Father Christmas.

SPARTANNERD RATING OF FIGURA OBSCURA FATHER CHRISTMAS

Are you kidding me? Seriously?

If I could award 6 points I would. This thing is incredible. If you are a Mythic Legions fan and also like Christmas, this is for you. If you do Christmas and want a nice Santa decoration, this is a great choice. He could also sit on top of a tree…he’s about the same size as one of those angels. (Rev. SpartanNerd wouldn’t do it, but you could…)

And the value here…just take all those Christmas pieces off and put them in the collector friendly package for storage, and you have another Mythic Legions that you can use all year.

Which brings me back to the Headless Horseman. I have punted on that for two main reasons. Price and functionality. But I got to thinking about it. His body can be used all year. Just put a different head on it. That horse is ghostly, so who could ride it all year…OH YEAH…Skeletor. Scare Glo. Blah blah blah. Why was the SpartanNerd so unimaginative?

So not only has Figura Obscura Father Christmas delivered so much awesomeness, he has convinced me to move on the Headless Horseman, and also…The Monkey KING! Figura Obscura is where it is at, people! I won’t ever get the Egyptian Gods on religious grounds, but I might actually go for Greek Gods if they make them.

So the SpartanNerd rates Figura Obscura Father Christmas a solid 5/5. The packaging is superior. The sculpt, paint, and soft goods superior, and the accessories varied and awesome. He delivers the Christmas joy and so much more!

Please post your agreeing comments, Hub City Geeks. (How could you complain?)

Super7 Ultimates! King Conan- A review 18 months in the making.

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Why do I like Conan the Barbarian so much? Basically he is the “anti-SpartanNerd.” Whatever I would do, Conan would do the opposite. For instance, if he gets mad…chop! Accompanied with “splish!” and then “Thud, thud, thump” head rolling down the steps. If I get mad, I might look at you funny…

I have anticipated this product for a LONG TIME. So long, in fact that I am not pre-ordering these Ultimates anymore. Yes…they cost more on the shelf. But I haven’t seen many rare ones. I have seen some Conan the Barbarian Ultimates! on the shelf at different stores, ranging in price from $55 (asking price) to $100 (Collectors market price). And for massive fans of the 1982 movie, this is great. I am a more casual fan of barbarians in general. But at this point I have seen the movie three times over the past 18 months, counting just last night so I could catch up for accuracy as I blog. I give the movie a solid B-Minus, that is if The Empire Strikes Back gets an A+ for reference. (Mattel wasn’t exaggerating when they passed on making Conan the Barbarian toys on account of a movie with gratuitous sex and violence…but the movie DOES capture what the comics and literature are about far better than its sequel, Conan the Destroyer). But I have a MASSIVE collection of Conan the Barbarian comics. I especially enjoyed the Dark Horse books. What they are doing now is OK, and they are going to drop a “Howardverse” on us all in the fall time. I don’t know if I will be all into that, but it might be cool! (Robert E. Howard, for anyone who doesn’t know. He is perhaps the inventor of “sword and sorcery” literature, and Conan’s creator).

Click the link here for a review of the packaging.

KING CONAN PACKAGING VIDEO LINK.

Let me go ahead and say some things for the haters:

  • I have been doing the SpartanNerd blog for years now. I have rarely done a video! Camera shy. I cringe as I hem and haw. But I am honest.
  • The lighting in the room isn’t great, and my glasses weren’t helping me read off of the package. I assure you…I CAN READ. My synopsis of the movie was purposely not detailed. I wasn’t even trying to do a movie synopsis!
  • A couple of errors. After watching the movie last night another time, I realize the villain was Thulsa Doom, not Thoth-Amon. This is really unforgivable. Sorry! I guess my nerves got the best of me. And then the other is that it wasn’t the Sword of Aquilonia that was broken in half…it was his father’s sword that we saw forged at the beginning of the movie.

REVIEW OF THE KING CONAN.

He is just SO EPIC!

Now this is just me geeking out. Some reference…my worst action figure is Marvel Legends Thor (classic comics appearance). I say this is the worst because he is not very posable. He has kneepads that break off and have to be glued. He doesn’t stand well with the heavy plastic cape. He came with Mjonir, that doesn’t fit in his hand well. That hand is a weapon holding hand where the thumb is attached to the fingers (creating a circle,) so that the weapon has to be slid in from the top. More like “forced” in. He came with a plastic rock to stand on, and I have gotten more use out of that rock than Thor!

Why this commercial about a different toy? King Conan soundly defeats that and is in the same collectors category, that’s why. We have multiple, swappable hands to be sure he can hold his weapons. (Just that sentence has TWO strictly better cards.). He has an alternate head. (It’s not THAT different). He is super articulated, and stands very sturdy. The sculpt is brilliant, and some of this toy WAS sculpted by the Four Horsemen…there are reused parts from Masters of the Universe Classics Vikor. (Vikor has so far been my favorite action figure, along with Battleground Teela. I kept them after selling off most of my MOTUC collection).

Pictured: Masters of the Universe Classics Vikor and Super7 Ultimates! King Conan. Both are flexing for the camera. Vikor has been my favorite action figure. Pretty much hands down. And if you read the SpartanNerd Blog enough, you know I have lots of pictures of him.

It is apparent when you look at that ab-crunch joint. And I haven’t tried to take off the belt (probably shouldn’t) but you can also see the belly button. Super7 solved one problem with that wrestler-style belt in that twisting his waist doesn’t give us that awkward “table shelf” apparent on the MOTUC figure. You can see from this shirtless flex that Vikor has unsightly pins in his elbow and knee joints. You can’t see a single joint on King Conan except for the torso. All of the cuts in the arms are very well concealed by the sculpt, and the knees and ankles have armor pieces that cover the joints.

Pictured: Masters of the Universe Classics Vikor and Super7 Ultimates! King Conan, with head swaps. It works very well…another clue that this is part re-use. Also, the figure on the left is holding the flail from Four Horsemen Studios Demistros.

Let’s talk about the “portrait.” He does look like Arnold Schwarzenegger, and this is what is important, isn’t it! I was tempted on the last time I went to Wal-Mart to pick up a NECA Terminator 2 action figure of The Govenator…just to compare. (I’m also a fan of that movie, of course. Almost anything Arnold. Even Mr. Freeze). No need for all of that. My only issue is that one of the head sculpts doesn’t have pupils. This is kind of un-nerving to me. There is alot of “fog” in the cinematography, and they didn’t record in high-definition either, but you can still see the pupils anyway. If anything, his eyes are darker. Just white spheres doesn’t do it for me. Now my child can probably remedy this with painting skills…I know I can’t do it!

Pictured: Super7 Ultimates King Conan and The Worst Black Falcon.

The accessories that came with King Conan are the Sword of Aquilonia and another short sword pictured above. (It is good that it comes with a scabbard). I am uncertain where the design of this sword came from. Is it something extra that Super7 came up with, or is it a part of the costume that we can’t really see in the image from the movie? (Like…is it from production notes or something?) Someone out there knows this answer!

The Sword of Aquilonia…it does have a drab paint-job. But after watching the movie last night, I realize that this is accurate to what came with the toy. King Conan isn’t specifically pictured with it in the movie, so this can actually be considered an extra piece. Unfortunately, I have to report that the brown paint on the handle has flaked off. It’s no wonder, Conan’s gripping hands are so tight you can’t arm him with weapons without using a hair dryer.

Pictured: I call this one The Coup D’etat-Back to the Wheel of Pain. Super7 Ultimates! King Conan is being led away a prisoner by Masters of the Universe Classics Vikor and MASTERVERSE 40th Anniversary He-Man. Notice the handle on the Sword of Aquilonia (Vikor has it.)

The other accessories are things that go with the clothes…this is a chest harness with built-in paldrons, a mink stole sculpted from plastic, and a soft-goods cape.

Pictured: MASTERVERSE 40th Anniversary He-Man wearing Super7 Ultimates! King Conan Armor and cape. He is armed with the jeweled sword from Animal Warriors of the Kingdom Gold Loot Box, and is holding Mythic Legions Sir Godfrey’s helmet. Also standing on King Conan’s rug.

You can see in the above picture that the armor and cape work pretty good even for a figure that is an inch taller.

Pictured: I call this one Revenge- After the Wheel of Pain. This is MASTERVERSE He-Man’s body armed with Super7 Ultimates! King Conan’s cape and armor, and King Conan’s head swapped in. He is holding the golden axe from The Animal Warriors of the Kingdom Gold Loot Box, and Mythic Legions Xylernian Guard’s shield. Also standing on King Conan’s rug. And this is about the most awesome-non photoshop picture of a barbarian action figure you can get at this price point.

THE THRONE OF AQUILONIA

Somewhere up above in this same review blog entry I mentioned Marvel Select’s Thor coming with a plastic rock for him to stand on. King Conan’s throne is just another way that Super7’s offering is so much more. But to be fair, you had to pay for it separate. I personally think they should have made this all one box. You don’t get one without the other kind of thing. I don’t own it, but maybe I will…The Figura Obscura Headless Horseman comes with a horse. This is inseparable from the character. It should have been the same here. Who is displaying a King Conan without the throne? Now early on when I was deciding whether or not to purchase King Conan, I watched video commentary about the reveals, and people were torn on if this was worth $45 or not. They have released a couple of other thrones, and they are all a similar price. (Mon-Star from SilverHawks is one I can think of). I am happy with King Conan’s throne, but it could have been a smidge cheaper on shipping, etc if it was bundled together. Or maybe they didn’t think they could sell it at a higher price. I don’t know…I just collect.

As I mentioned in the video, I felt a little burned about the rug not being removable. (Actually I kind of down-played my feelings as “an observation”). Somehow, for 18 months, I thought this would be a cloth rug. Is this communication on their part or me just being a dum-dum? It is well painted. Beautifully painted actually. But we have soft goods for the cape. Something different could have been done here.

So with the throne, you get a plastic base sculpted to be concrete, with a rug sculpted on and painted, the throne itself which is more like a bench and less like a chair, and this ornamental spear. I mentioned in the video that I was glad it wasn’t a scepter. King Conan is an unhappy king in the comics. Sitting around ruling everyone is boring for the guy. He would rather be out there busting snake cult people. That it is a spear was a way that the movie writers could express this to us without giving us a story. It is said that Netflix is wanting to make some media for King Conan, and Arnold Schwarzenegger is very much behind the project.

Pictured: Super7 Ultimates! King Conan Throne of Aquilonia, which is occupied by MASTERVERSE Revelation King Grayskull.

The above photo tackles one of the questions I had. Does it look good with other characters. I find that King Grayskull doesn’t sit so well, which has me concerned because I have ordered MASTERVERSE Skeletor with throne.

Pictured: Super7 Ultimates! King Conan Throne of Aquilonia, which is occupied by GI Joe Classified Cobra Commander.

The throne works very well for Cobra Commander.

One thing…the box that King Conan came with has a terrific diorama featuring a nice shadow behind the throne and two torch-sconces. This is just too terrific. It adds a whole lot to the whole set. The floor I used for these photos is from MASTERVERSE packaging.

How else can you use such an item?

Pictured: I call this one Over the Top Icons. Masters of the Universe Classics Vikor, MASTERVERSE Evil Lyn from the 1987 Masters of the Universe movie, and SUPER7 Ultimates King Conan and Throne of Aquilonia. Anyone out there get what I meant by Over the Top?

A very out-of-character photo. But you can see the other hands well.

Pictured: Super7 Ultimates King Conan and Throne of Aquilonia, who is defending his throne from Four Horsemen Studios Demistros. Demistros is armed with McFarlane’s Redeemer sword. The concrete slab almost disappears in this lighting and filter.

After watching the movie last night, I notice a large disparity in the throne we are given and what was in the film. The concrete slab was three times as large! We only have a straight-ahead shot, but it is clear that the rug is sitting on concrete that is symmetrical on both sides. Super7 could have given us this…it would have been two more pieces of plastic, and then no one would have anything to say about the price point of the throne. Now that this is the SpartanNerd’s summer vacation, I have time to customize this.

SPARTANNERD’S RATING OF SUPER7 ULTIMATES! KING CONAN AND THE THRONE OF AQUILONIA

I’ve had this for about two-weeks now, and have had a couple of photo sessions with it. It delivers for the price you paid for it if you collect action figures or if you are a fan of the movie. Movie fans might be casual like me or serious. Probably a serious movie fan would go for something by Hot Toys or Sideshow or someone, where you pay more like $200. But as what is basically a Masters of the Universe Classics 5.0 figure…(Original wave 1.0, Subscription 2.0, Filmation 3.0, Ultimates! releases 4.0, and now non-MOTU is 5.0 by my counting)…$55 for the king and $45 for the throne isn’t too bad considering the current economy. Considering that this was done at what is on Mythic Legions, non-retail price scale. This is my interest. I am certainly glad I ordered the Battle of the Mounds figures that will be coming maybe in July. It checks all the boxes with little complaint. I am going to list things down below and offer two ratings…one for the king and the other for the throne.

  • King Conan PROS- Outstanding sculpt. Looks like Arnold Schwarzenegger. Comes with two weapons and removable armor. Excellent paint details. Plenty of hands to swap and also an alternate head with different hair.
  • King Conan CONS- Pupils on one of the head sculpts not there. Gripping hands are so tight they have to be heated up to work. Paint on Sword of Aquilonia is flaking off with very minimal use.
  • Throne of Aquilonia PROS- Great sculpt. Terrific Vac Metal paint job. Spear accessory makes all of the other accessories with the figure look sad. The platform has pegs for helping stand action figures that have holes in their feet.
  • Throne of Aquilonia CONS- The “concrete” slab isn’t the correct size to depict the movie scene accurately. The “rug” is a sculpted and painted detail…not a separate piece.

All of the excellent things I list add lots to the product, and has been more fun for me with time. The pupils issue and the paint flaking are both QC issues that Super7 should address, but they don’t take away from the toys much. I haven’t been displaying the head that doesn’t have pupils…I almost forget that I have it, and the two sculpts are so similar. Look at all that the Throne of Aquilonia has added to King Grayskull, Cobra Commander, and really almost anyone else who might fancy themselves to sit on a throne. Look at how useful that platform is…it has pegs that fit Mythic Legions feet, MASTERVERSE feet, and Ultimates! feet. AND a bonus…the diorama that came as part of King Conan’s package looks too great with all of these fantasy figures to throw away. I can only give a 5/5 when I take everything into account. Maybe not a perfect 5/5, but fairly close.

Pictured: Super7 Ultimates! King Conan and Ultimates! GI Joe Cobra B.A.T. The platform has pegs that made the balance required for this action possible.

Like I said…if you are a different kind of collector, you might disagree. Out there is a larger scale figure, perhaps in 1:6 scale, that you can dress in all manner of looks. Out there is a hyper-detailed statue to sit on a shelf. A large full-scale statue for your yard. That’s not what this product is meant for. It’s meant for the plastic adult collector semi-play with action figure market. The 1:12 MOTUC scale collector. And it does that terrifically.

Will he supplant Vikor? It seems like maybe Battle of the Mounds Conan might be able to when he arrives. Having this makes me wish I had the “iconic pose” version. Watching the movie last night also makes me want the camouflage version. I feel like this figure adds much to all of the barbarian things I have already. We’ll have to see if over time King Conan moves into that favorite slot!

Do you agree or disagree, Hub City Geeks. Let me know in the comments!

Also, Super7. I did what you said. I made a video. I posted to Instagram. Both things I never do. I also answered your summons to apply for the affiliate links program…and WAS DENIED. I am not Pixel Dan or Action Figure BBQ or Dorklair. Don’t claim to be. (I am very inspired by all three, and also by Poe Ghostal …great news I just found out he’s back!)

I am a real consumer who runs this blog as a hobby. It is Summer vacation. I will work on it. But Super7, you guys should reconsider! I give honest opinions and reviews. Readers, send me some advice in the comments!