Tag Archives: mer-man

New Eternia Mer-Man-SpartanNerd Unboxing and Review

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So, I already reviewed a modern Mer-Man, didn’t I? (Yes. HERE)

My complaints about that figure were the sculpt and the accessories…It was based on the Revelations cartoon rather than vintage sources. Well as you can see, New Eternia Mer-Man solves some of that.

PACKAGING

The top picture shows the typical recent MASTERVERSE packaging. I love this art, and it also features a giant pink octopus. That octopus is very typical of Mer-Man, but I can’t help but think about Aquaman. (The SpartanNerd is a longtime Aquaman fan…from the Superfriends to Jason Mamoa. I always wanted the MOTUC/DC collaboration. I missed it though 😦 )

The back also shows more of that octopus. Once again, I am complaining that this is a photoshopped image of the toy and not more illustration. Furthermore, this specific picture makes him appear too “muppet” ish. It is because this must have been a prototype with a more closed mouth. So Fozzy. We get some action shots of the weapons and also a little profile picture with “MER-MAN: Ocean Warlord|With New Eternia shattered into thousands of islands, Met-Man terrorizes everyone foolish enough to travel the oceans in search of Castle Grayskull.”

Flavor text. Magic the Gathering Cards and descriptions of items in Elden Ring. Mattel has caught on.

The cross-sell images. I have Masters of the Universe Revolution Sorceress Teela (review), but have passed on the Man-Of-War. Battle Armor Skeletor is a bag of hurt. I missed it. I currently have a pre-order at Entertainment Earth for it…maybe January sometime. The truth is I pre-ordered this whole wave on “Backorder” with them. Then got frustrated. So I went ahead and picked up Mer-Man at Target and got Sorceress from Amazon.

This side illustration shows how ugly he is. YES!
I like this extra illustration showing Man-E-Faces doing something useful.Throwing Beast Man into the water.

WHAT DO YOU GET IN THE PACKAGE

Contents:

  • New Eternia Mer-Man figure
  • Ocean Warlord spear
  • Coral sword
  • Pair of swimming hands

What do I wish it came with? A TRIDENT. A fish monster friend. An alternate head.

NEW ETERNIA MER-MAN IN ACTION

Here is New Eternia Man-E-Faces throwing NE Beastman into the water on top of NE Mer-Man. This was a really hard picture to get. Everything kept falling.

Notice the “bump” on the coral sword. (Most of us call this the corn-cob sword.). That stupid bump is so you can mount the sword on a hole in the back of the armor. Which would be fine if it didn’t look stupid.

Comparing the older and the newer. Really, not fair. Revelations Mer-Man has that “play-doh” color scheme when compared the paint on NE Mer-Man. He was based on the cartoon, so he has those scars and stuff which is fine. But compared to NE Mer-Man that one now appears to be generic side henchman. NE Mer-Man also has a much glossier finish. The head sculpt is far better. And don’t think these two share parts…Maybe the feet and hands are the same sculpt?

We don’t see a lot of combos between these two. I wonder why? (Also notice Mekanek is using his new underwater scouting role)

This trident came with Cosmic Legions SSKUR’GE. A weapon befitting the ocean warlord.

SPARTANNERD RATING OF NEW ETERNIA MER-MAN

I need to consider this product objectively, separate from the version that came before. If you read my previous review, you saw I awarded a 3/5. In that context, this is a strict 5/5 improvement. If you are ever given the choice of the two to have, unless you are just a huge fan of Masters of the Universe Revelations I don’t know why you would choose the earlier offering.

So let’s ignore that. New Eternia Mer-Man has a monstrous green paint scheme, with nice paint details, and the grading between the green and yellow on the arms is one of the elements that brings the whole thing together. The armor is meticulously sculpted, bringing that “corn-cob” of scales feeling into it all. The spikes around his collar make him fit with other NE villains like Beast Man. The actual face of the actual toy is an evil look with nice fins on the face. His articulation is pretty much exactly like every other MASTERVERSE figure. He does have single hinge elbows, however.

The accessories…That spear is very savage. Like I said…I prefer a trident for this character. The coral sword looks good on the front, but that stupid bump can’t pass as anything but poor design. If they had done something like paint it red or made it somehow a power gem…that would have been very cool. But it’s just an ugly peg. And that’s where this figure loses a point. I would have preferred a scabbard, or a loop on the armor, or nothing at all…this bump was a conscious and irresponsible design choice.

So SpartanNerd’s rating of New Eternia Mer-Man is 4/5. A strict upgrade over the Revelation Mer-Man. He could use an alternate head, some other accessory like a sea critter, and some other way of mounting that sword on his back that doesn’t compromise the sculpt of the toy.

4/5. Do you agree or disagree, Hub City Geeks? Let me know in the comments!

Masterverse New Eternia Mekaneck – SpartanNerd Unboxing and Review

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I kept putting this purchase off, but didn’t want another faker situation. I caught Mekaneck on sale on BigBadToyStore, and boom, here was my chance

Here was a character that I owned and played with everyday as a child..not only was he cool to imagine a spy, you could also use the action feature to head butt other characters and knock them down. Another memory about this character. The armor was stiff plastic, which was better than the typical rubber armor. But the tabs broke and so my Mekaneck went shirtless a lot. Stinkor’s armor was the same but orange, so you could mix and match

Who is featured on the bottom? Battle Armor He-Man. This makes the second version in the MASTERVERSE line. Tri-Klops. This makes the second version in the MASTERVERSE line. I concede that each version has its strengths, but don’t feel the need for another Tri-Klops. I predict a big clearance on Battle Armor He-Man eventually because of the glut of product out there. Then I will pick up both version. I actually have King Keldor now, and will be posting a review soon.

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PACKAGING NOTES

You can see the packaging art is very nice, and you can see that the blue Road Ripper is featured heavily. Also, whatever species that Clawful is, there are lots of those guys around, so the illustration makes it seem that Mekaneck is spying on their camp. If you read the little bio story, you can see that New Eternia Mekaneck is part of a submarine squadron, a very cool new spin. (This makes the Road Ripper an aquatic vehicle too! Maybe…maybe!!! We can get a MASTERVERSE Road Ripper! How hard could it be?) You can see in the illustration some classic pieces of Castle Grayskull, namely the weapons, and that chest has the same design as the classic trap door.

This is another one of those boxes that is akin to what is going on with Transformers, and I like this very much. It gives more room for story art, and you can see the figure just fine if you wanted to keep them in box. It is also semi-collector friendly. The blister bubble inside isn’t worth much, but the character can stand in there and be seen without it, and there is a storage compartment for accessories to boot.

FIGURE REVIEW

Here is everything you get in the box:

  • alternate fist hands
  • five(!) telescoping neck pieces
  • classic mace, with a new twist (see below)
  • shield featuring the blue Road Ripper

The figure stands well and has very good paint. But something especially striking is the VAC METAL or SHINY FOIL goggles! They can do it here, why not on say…Thunder Punch He-Man? It is notable that this is only on the goggles. The other chrome details on the armor are painted. I like the contrast of the dark “furry shorts” and the green-ish belt. I like the silver straps on the boots also.

ACCESSORIES

The shield has “patina” already on the sticker as a part of the design, which is appreciable. These kinds of stickers wear and fade with age, often showing that white paper backing. So they just built it in to this shield, which is the very opposite of some of the boring shields they have given us on some figures. This shield has a peg instead of a strap, making this the second design like this I have seen. There is hole in the wrist and one on the back of the armor where the shield can go. And like I said, could we get a blue Road Ripper?

And now for the new spin on the mace. This mace is presented as a telescope. This is something that never occurred to me, and I wonder if there was a discarded design precedent in the past for the vintage or 200x line. This mace is in two pieces, so the big diamond-y part can detach just like the head or neck pieces. This will make a great new way to display alternate head sculpts. I didn’t get a photo of it, but the shorter “handle” piece is a convincing telescope by itself.

As you can see above, you can use just one of the neck joints to create a classic vintage feel. Or…

You can go more 200x with this one. And I’m not kidding, if I see Mekaneck on clearance in December or sometime, I am picking up more just to get these neck pieces to play with! So this is a big win, Mattel. Thank you for paying attention to what we probably want.

AND…

PICTURED: MASTERVERSE New Eternia Mekaneck and MASTERVERSE Revelation Mer-Man. Mer-Man is wearing Clawful’s alternate armor, and holding Super7 Ultimates! Black Falcon’s bident spear.

yep. You can use the neck pieces to extend the telescope!

SPARTANNERD’S RATING OF MASTERVERSE NEW ETERNIA MEKANECK

Are you kidding me? This is one of the best MASTERVERSE figures. Why did I put off this purchase? I think I have been holding out for Faker or Whiplash.

PICTURED: MASTERVERSE New Eternia Mekaneck and Mythic Legions Balthor the Tower Ogre. I wanted to highlight just how tall Mekaneck can be…that is like a nine inch figure! Balthor is armed with McFarlane Toys Raven Spawn’s chain.
PICTURED: MASTERVERSE New Eternia Mekaneck and Man-E-Faces. I am titling this one “Two Wierdos.”

Really the fun doesn’t stop. The figure is sculpted and painted well. The articulation is more than great considering the neck joints. The accessories have been riffed on in the best possible ways. And there is extended funtionality because the end of the telescope can be used to display some of the alternate heads in the future. My rating of this figure is a solid 5/5.

MASTERVERSE Trap Jaw

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I already mentioned that I picked up two MASTERVERSE figures on my birthday. Then came Black Friday/Cyber Monday sales which were wrapping up near the end of December. But I missed Trap Jaw from Mattel Creations. This led me to looking around somewhere else to purchase figures, and turns out that this was BigBadToyStore. They had a huge Cyber Monday sale, and I went looking for Super7 Ultimates actually. There was a huge and controversial sale on those. I wound up instead seeing how inexpensive the MASTERVERSE figures were. So I purchased Trap Jaw and Beast Man. Both of them are New Eternia. A video of the packaging below, with me giving commentary.

CLICK HERE FOR THE VIDEO

So I am pretty tired of using the MASTERVERSE packaging as photo backgrounds. Trap Jaw here is giving us a nice new red background. I am going to use that this time, but next time, something different entirely. You’ll just have to wait on my review of Movie Evil Lyn! 

What they have done with the packaging is more like modern Transformers of similar size. There is a small window in, with wraparound artwork. I like it…it is a departure from what we have had so far. But I was surprised to find something else when I opened the box!

There was a contents graphic on the inside. Furthermore, instead of displaying all of the accessories, they put them in this black box piece of packaging. (Actually packed in a little paper bag). I know this is a concession to cut down on the waste plastic. And I don’t dislike it. It is like a compromise between the windowless Hasbro boxes and classic packaging.

So what do we have?

This is everything you get. The figure, a hook hand attachment, a lazer gun hand attachment, and a claw-mouth hand attachment. And a short sword or dagger, which was a real surprise to me.

Looking a Trap Jaw reminds me of all those re-uses of the leg sculpt in Masters of the Universe Classics. I didn’t have many MOTUC figures, but it seems like several had his legs. Which isn’t a bad thing. They look good. Let’s turn him around. They are more science fiction-y.

You can see that behind him we have the expected clips for the hand attachments, and also a strap for the sword. Once again, what a nice new addition! Trap Jaw to me is the kind of guy who never needed a weapon…I mean, his arm does the trick. Mattel really gave us a nice update here.

As you look around the packaging, sometimes the jaw appears silver and sometimes red. So this begged the question…could we swap the classic “stock” jaw with the one on his arm. YES!

This is a bigger jaw, but looks even more “heavy metal.”

Just for fun, here is a comparison pic. (MEGA Masters…Mattel needs to give us more of this. Soon.)

Here’s another comparison. That is Eternia Mini Trap Jaw from the Snake Mountain exclusive set.

So how long is that machine arm? It almost extends his body twice as tall.

So here is a question. How compatible is he with other figures of a similar gimmick? It always bothered me as a kid that Roboto and Trap Jaw couldn’t swap parts. (I don’t have MASTERVERSE Roboto. Going to wait on a New Eternia version).

New Eternia Trap Jaw does not work with Super7 Ultimates Metal Head. You can see that the pegs are a way different design.

How about Super7 Ultimate Cobra BAT (Comics colors)? I really wanted this one to work. NOPE. You can see I have BAT’s gun arm on there, but it is very loose and holding there by gravity/balancing. There is a little ring on Trap Jaw’s peg that keeps it from working. BAT’s design is like a “straight plug.”

Trap Jaw is the perfect addition to the bad guys. Just like Beast Man, this New Eternia Trap Jaw is a real update. I love it and give it a solid 5/5. 

Hub City Geeks, I just joined the ForEternia.com website. I discovered that He-Man.org is no more. So there you have it. It isn’t like I posted there much since they took everything down except for the forum. I actually lost my log in. I got some feedback from Val Staples a couple of times when I e-mailed him questions, so that was cool. And best of all, one of my songs was on the Roast Gooble Dinner CD they took around to PowerCon, San Diego Comic Con, etc. Not that anybody is beating down the door to listen to my music. Just the same, it is an end of an era in my mind. I started with Adam Tyner’s page all the way back in high school, and that morphed into the org. It was the driving media for MOTUC it seemed. There were toxic elements of it for sure also. Fans seem to want a forum divorced from the industry, and I get that. So I am going to try ForEternia. You might see me on there sometime as the username SPARTANNERD, of course!

SpartanNerd Unboxing and Review …Masterverse Haul.

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I couldn’t help it. I received an e-mail from Mattel Creations about a clearance sale, and went to look around. I was pleased enough to buy what I wouldn’t have bought at regular price. The three items here were each under $10. In the video above, I am showing off the package. It seems like the easier thing to do with the amount of things I am reviewing. These are all in the “sporty” packaging that I complained about before, but at least it is collector friendly. I have waxed poetic about the line that is never coming back…Masters of the Universe Classics. After thinking about it for awhile, I believe they are probably doing the correct thing. There is symmetry between this line and Star Wars Black Series and GI Joe Classified, as well as some of the newer Transformers. This box seems pretty similar if you think about it. You get a nice artwork profile on the side, an illustration on the back, and in the window you can see what you get. If you were a collector of this line in package, you could file them on the shelf easily like books and take them out when you want. This is the way I see especially GI Joe Classified on the shelf at places like the Toy Federation in Greer SC.

As you can see, I picked up New Eternia Skeletor, Revlations Stinkor, and Revelations Mer-Man. I also have Revelations Savage He-Man with Orko on the way in the mail. After the shipping, I spent $55. You know, Super7 Ultimates cost $55 each, without shipping… See where I felt this was a good value? Looks like I missed Trap Jaw and Tri-Clops…these were already sold out. But today, I just browsed Big Bad Toy Store, and they have all of these at similar prices. It seems like it might be because of the Black Friday sales going on.

Let’s begin with Skeletor.

This “New Eternia” Skeletor has a barbarian vibe that I really like. Sort of stupid and cool at the same time that he has a goatee. (Skulls can’t do that can they?) The concept that they are referring to on the package is of what became Demo-Man, an early concept for Skeletor. In MOTUC they mish-mashed the story up so that Skeletor is Keldor plus this Demo-Man demon. This begs the question of how much of Skeletor’s evil is his own. Not a big fan of that story. The MOTUC Demo-Man figure was bright green and really evoked the concept art. This one only hints at it. I went back and looked and there really isn’t much resemblance.

You can read the article on Wiki Grayskull here

Above is a similar stance with the scimitar sword.

This figure has loose leg joints. It seems that the thigh cut is loose, and the bottom shin is also. So there is a complaint there. I really had to wrangle to get him to stand. The cape is an interesting piece. It has a large neck hole with a hard piece of bat armor meant to go over the top of the regular armor, really making this figure seem like a two-for-one. It is a soft-goods cape. (On thinking about this line vs. Classics, the soft goods have to be cheaper than those plastic capes. Think about all of the plastic and paint that went into those! With these, its a piece of fabric. The cost is less, and it does the job. However, there is something to be said about the plastic sculpted capes. They are impressive and it keeps a consistent look to the figure.

This is the way that I will generally keep him on display. This alternate head is more jovial but campy evil. The red eyes stare aggressively. The havoc staff is pretty heavy, and the pole is thick. I didn’t break any fingers, but you really have to stretch them. Skeletor also has a trigger finger but no gun accessory.

Look at how evil the goat head appears. This head is so different, like I said before, it could be a different character. Check it out on Movie Skeletor’s body.

Here I have a scene where movie Skeletor is summoning some help. See how this viking type of Skeletor can go as a generic kind of guy? Here is a good comparison now. Look at how much more detailed the paint is on the Mythic Legion army builder skeleton. With the Four Horsemen figure did they scrimp on the paint? No where. Skeletor has mostly unpainted blue plastic. The face is ok. But do you see why this figure is so much cheaper? To be fair, Movie Skeletor has many more paint hits. Maybe more than the Mythic Legion.

Oh the barbary!

This is the kind of thing I am after! Vikor fits pretty good with Skeletor. Yes, Skeletor is more articulated. So why didn’t I buy the New Eternia He-Man that was also on sale? Why would I? It is the same basic figure as Movie He-Man with different paint and a horned helmet.

The New Eternia He-Man doesn’t have a cape or the daggers. Essentially I also didn’t really like the way it looked.

Let’s move on to Skinkor

Here’s what you get. That mouth has a hole in it to plug that mask into. Without the mask it looks like he has an open mouth, giving you another option for display.

Notice anything missing? NO GUN. I think he should have some kind of spray gun. And no. He doesn’t stink. One thing I do like about this figure is the paint job. They really caked it on this time, which makes him fluffier looking.

So I wanted to see if he has a skunk stripe down his back?

Nope. No skunk stripe. No stink. No gun. BOOO.

There would never be a time when these two would fist bump! His hands are larger than the other figures. He has gloves obviously. But He-Man’s fist…I said it before. Deadpool baby hand.

The vintage Stinkor was a repaint of Mer-Man. Here you can see that isn’t true, at least between Revelations Mer-Man and Stinkor. There is some resemblance, and perhaps a different version of Mer-Man has the same head.

Speaking of…

My review of Mer-Man

This is the Revelations cartoon version of Mer-Man. Here’s what you get. Mer-Man, who has no removable armor. Four extra hands. These hands are four fingered and feature webbing. An aquatic scimitar type of sword. And a bident. (I mistakenly said “trident” in the packaging video. SHAME!)

This figure is a wizened and grisly motif for the character.

The box for Skeletor’s scimitar sword mentions that his is a “legendary weapon.” Mer-Man’s is likely generic. But it does look cool!

Never bring a bident to a gun fight!

He can even swim! (Just kidding…photo magic!)

SpartanNerd’s ratings of these three figures.

Skeletor is by far the best. That is exactly what I wanted! The undead knight look of that head is great. I do wish his legs were more sturdy, and that Havoc Staff has a little too much plastic in the handle. Taking off for the weak standing…4/5.

Stinkor is the weakest. I picked it up for just over $8. But no gun or other weapon? No stink. Why? You get a skunk themed biohazard suit character with a blue shield and some hands. 2/5. Pretty low. At least he stands well and the sculpt and paint are good.

Mer-Man is OK. I appreciate that he comes with a couple of weapons…pretty cool weapons. And he does look like the cartoon. I really like that color. Whatever it is … blue. Green. Aqua? The scratches and scars are a new and welcome touch. If they included yellow armor and a corn-cob sword it could be better. I am awarding 3/5. I’m glad to have him.

Savage He-Man and Orko are on the way. Keep an eye on the SpartanNerd Blog for my review!