I have fond memories of Clawful as a kid. A crab guy with a lobster claw that car really pinch you…that’s the good stuff right there! So this is the first Clawful figure I have owned in maybe 40 years. (I never had the 200x or the Classics version). So for me an important thing will be, “how does it stack up to my memories of the vintage figure?” Keep reading for my review and rating!
PACKAGING
You can see the main window box in the top picture. Once again this is the older style “boring” package. BUT…you can see everything in the box clearly, and I keep finding uses for that rock background in taking photos.
The back of the package has a terrific illustration that really captures the fantasy world of Eternia. Is this the Sea of Rakash? The swamplands? Clawful belongs in this landscape, and as a bonus we can see the Battle Bones parked on an island in the back! Strangely, we don’t get any bio or other story blurb.
The figures below…I don’t have any of them. They are listed as “on backorder” at Entertainment Earth, and I signed up to be notified when they came in. The only one I REALLY want is Faker. I have a Mer-Man (from Revelation), I prefer a hairy Grizzlor (rather than sculpted), and this Buzz-Off looks weird. BUT, I signed up to be notified. I wan’t Faker bad enough. That is an upgraded Mer-Man, and I need a Buzz-Off. so…
There is one more image.
The image on the back shows him fully decked in “New Eternia” mode. This side image is of the vintage appearance, which is actually what you see in the window box.
The same orange shield that came with Teela (and Stinkor, but his was blue.)
a green mace
This figure is very articulated! The vintage Clawful had a spring-loaded fiddler crab claw. But this one doesn’t have the spring…instead you can pose it how you like and it will stay. The left hand also has articulated parts.
I think this is some of the best paint on a $25 action figure. Nice shading on the claws. The torso and loin cloth were obviously “washed” first, and then details applied. This head sculpt doesn’t look like a muppet, but it doesn’t look like the 200x sculpt either. And yet this is clearly Clawful. Dare I say they nailed Clawful much better than any of the He-Man figures they have done. The blue belt, boots, and horns are metallic and shiny, and you can also see that nice shading on the back shell with the blue into red. Every line of chitin is sculpted evenly. The ugly bumps add a delicious grotesqueness. It is terrific!
There is nothing restricting his articulation at all, either. AND he is one of the tallest MASTERVERSE figures. Here is a pic for some reference. Still shorter than Two-Bad at his tallest point.
PICTURED: MASTERVERSE Clawful and Two-Bad, as well as Marvel Legends Thanos (comics appearance)PICTURED: MASTERVERSE Clawful and Ram Man. Ram Man is armed with MASTERVERSE New Eternia Beast Man’s spiked club.PICTURED: MASTERVERSE New Eternia Clawful vs. Man-At-Arms.
The articulation of these figures makes for some dynamic combat poses.
The big shell adds so much to the character. And I’m pretty sure the green mace was the weapon that came with the vintage figure, so Mattel probably figured that an auto-include. BUT. Just like the old days, Clawful has a hard time holding it.
But now for the next big elephant in the room. The yellow power harness. Why? I mean, it looks cool. But what does this bring to the table? Is this a story element like Sir Lazer Lot’s Gem of Tamage?
PICTURED: MASTERVERSE New Eternia Clawful and Masters of the Universe Classics Sir Lazer Lot. Suggested dialogue “You have a gem? I have a gem!” Also pictured are Mythic Legions Magic Effects.
This armor with gem adds more to Mer-Man in my opinion. It looks better, and Mer-Man didn’t come with any armor as this is the Revelation cartoon appearance.
I’m not complaining that we got it…I just don’t believe it is an item that carries Clawful’s story forward any without us having context. Look at the back of the armor. That clip is so that you can clip the shell on. But that is completely unnecessary. The shell stays on around the neck just fine.
Is the gem removable? I spent some time with the hair dryer, and I am going to say “no.” It seems like I could have removed it, but then not been able to get it back in. It doesn’t seem to be glued, more like attached when the plastic was still warm or something. Or maybe its glue. I just review them…I don’t make them.
SPARTANNERD’S RATING OF MASTERVERSE NEW ETERNIA CLAWFUL
Clawful here is akin to Beast Man. Both New Eternia figures give you options on how to display them. And this is very welcome! You feel like you have a more “grown-up” toy. Like you could see this as a modern translation in some comic or movie or something. I say bring it on!
I don’t see any reason not to award MASTERVERSE New Eternia Clawful every point he can get. The sculpt and paint are spot on. The accessories are good, even if the harness is a little strange. The green mace even doesn’t fit right, which might be a point off except that is exactly how the vintage was, making this even more nostalgic. And nostalgia, Hub City Geeks, people pay the big bucks for nostalgia. But this was a low cost item.
I award MASTERVERSE New Eternia Clawful 5/5. Do you agree or disagree? Let me know in the comments!
There was a bevy of announcements back in April, 2024 for MASTERVERSE and also Origins. Maybe these were a leak, and then Mattel just went ahead and made official announcements? Among this news, I ordered New Eternia Thunder Punch He-Man. (I also ordered New Eternia Skeletor with throne!) And I was surprised to see it ship in May. What are the SpartanNerd’s thoughts on this interpretation of the classic He-Man variant? Keep reading!
PACKAGING
Watch the SpartanNerd’s commentary on the packaging HERE.
I really did enjoy looking at the box for awhile. What I didn’t mention was it looked like He-Man was “sticking out his gut.” And indeed, when I took him out of the box, I was dumbfounded that his torso WOULD NOT MOVE. I got a little bit of bowing back even further…and this exposed a definite “daylight” in the ab crunch. I was so upset about this, I left it on the kitchen table and would mess with it every few hours. Then finally, I broke out the hairdryer. IT DIDN”T WORK! So I looked this issue up, and apparently on Reddit some people have had trouble with Tri-Klops. The solution was to just run hot water over the figure while holding it upside down. The water will penetrate the joint and allow things to loosen up. And am I glad this worked! It was bothering me seriously. Like, I was ready to categorize this figure with Marvel Legends Thor. He-Man can’t have issues like that! But with the ab crunch corrected, I decide to get in more photographs.
CONTENTS
Here’s what comes in the package:
Thunder Punch He-Man with backpack
New “power-up” bracers
gold Power Sword
classic Thunder Punch style shield
2 fake caps, one gold and the other red
yellow fireball punch effects
alternate hands (2 punching, 2 gripping)
Lots of accessories, but, with some extra functionality.
PLAYING WITH THE FIGURE
Let’s look at the back of this figure first. The backpack is what Thunder Punch He-Man is all about actually anyway.
What you do is you open the backpack and place one of the caps in. I prefer the gold one in the backpack because it adds a little pop of color. This serves no function except for nostalgia. There is a small window where you can see the caps in there, but you can only barely see them and then only when viewed from the top angle.
With the backpack closed, you can see this knob. And this is also a throwback to the 1980s. This knob has a satisfying ratchet sound effect and feel when you turn it. There is a hole in the middle of the knob which serves an additional purpose.
You can put either of the caps in the shield for storage and aesthetics, and also the sword which I definitely remember from the vintage days. But the ability to store all of this on his back is new, as is a welcome improved detail which should have been a no brainer. I suppose you could look at this differently though. Unless another figure comes with a peg hole in its arms or back, this shield can only be used for Thunder Punch He-Man.
As usual, you can see where the armor straps are coming loose with really minimal play. (All I did was open it and put a cap in.). Not horrible, but this is a consistent struggle really with all Masters of the Universe action figures.
Here is He-Man “armed to the teeth.” The only accessories not here are the extra fists. I would like to note that the fireball effects fit on either kinds of hands, but fit best on the punching fist hands. When armed this way, if He-Man punches with his left, the shield becomes a “buster shield” as seen in Gundam.
Notice that the shield pegs in to the bracers, not the arms.
If you want more of a vintage look, then the bracers remove easily. (This photo was an attempt at the “Iron Man” pose…).
THOUGHTS ON THE PAINT
Now for my first real complaint. you can’t have that vintage look with this figure. For you see, the colors are very muted. I remember the original figure having candy-apple red armor and vac-metal parts. For instance the center of the armor and the shield. These should be vac-metal. I don’t understand what it takes to do vac-metal on a toy. But this was a place they shouldn’t have skimped on it.
I have other complaints about the paint. His skin tone is “orange.” Because I teach middle school chorus, to largely female students, I know this “spray-tan” look well. Not flattering for the most powerful man in the universe.
I have heard people rave about this head sculpt. It is supposedly the same head that Faker came with. (I ordered Faker but he got lost in the mail 😦 ). But as in any sculpt only as good as the paint job. His eyes appear to have eyeliner. This time he has blue eyes also, and his eyebrows aren’t as engaged.
PICTURED: MASTERVERSE 40th Anniversary He-Man and MASTERVERSE New Eternia Thunder Punch He-Man.
Don’t know if the skin tone is coming through in this photo, but trust me. It is there. My complaint about 40th Anniversary He-Man’s head sculpt is that he looks indecisive and lacking in confidence. But I have to prefer it to Thunder Punch’s softer features. On the upside, these are brown boots with white fur on top, and a brown loin cloth. 40th Anniversary boots can only really go for another He-Man or barbarian super hero, while you could use Thunder Punch’s body almost anywhere a fury loincloth can work.
PICTURED: Clawful and Thunder Punch He-Man. Both are MASTERVERSE New Eternia figures. You can really tell the difference in the reds…He-Man has a more muted, less striking red. Not quite pink but approaching. Also notice that the SpartanNerd painted that boring shield that came with Clawful.PICTURED: MASTERVERSE New Eternia Thuunder Punch He-Man and Masters of the Universe Classics Battle Cat.
In the above two pictures, you can see where the red on New Eternia Thunder Punch He-Man doesn’t stack up to other reds where he should drop right in with. Clawful has beautiful dark-red paint as well as glossy details. He-Man from the same line has minimal paint. Things are “molded” in their color, without hardly even a wash. And the choice to tone down his coloring is baffling and disappointing. As for MOTUC Battle Cat, we all know that is a whole different level of sculpting and paint (and money!) But, this is what the true A-Lister of Thunder Punch He-Man deserves. Somehow on the deco it seems they cut the corners.
SPARTANNERD’S RATING OF MASTERVERSE NEW ETERNIA THUNDER PUNCH HE-MAN
It seems I wrote alot of complaints about the paint. But this is a really good figure! Very posable, even if none of the MASTERVERSE figures so far can really do the “Iron Man” pose. I don’t have a picture yet, but Thunder Punch He-Man sits on Battle Cat beautifully. His loin cloth is softer, and allows for better sitting poses…a plus if the upcoming Skeletor with throne does the same. He also came with terrific accessories and good play value.
I mentioned this before, but as an adult I am not spending much time playing so much as displaying any of my toys. And this is where sculpting and paint takes a higher priority in my ratings system. A kid or other person who plays heavily with the toys will get very much out of Thunder Punch He-Man. But for me, it is the nostalgia, and that paint misses it for me.
My other complaint about the ab crunch doesn’t get dinged in the ratings. The hot water really did cure it, and because I pre-ordered my figure, perhaps mine has “early production” issues. If I was a Mint-On-Card collector this would have been sent back, the way he was contorted in the box. But I’m not, and this might not be an across-the-board problem…maybe even only my figure.
The SpartanNerd’s rating of MASTERVERSE New Eternia Thunder Punch He-Man is 4/5. Do you agree or disagree, Hub-City Geeks? Let me know in the comments!
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.
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!
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.
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.
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!
I picked up MASTERVERSE Revelation King Grayskull at Toy Federation in Greer, SC for $20. I had picked him up a couple of times and thought about getting him, but kept punting. Until finally I decided to go for the touchdown. (Did that make any sense?)
Elephant in the room. Yes. They did it. It has grown on me over time. He doesn’t look as much like He-Man now, and this cuts down on the cognitive dissonance that people have when they see the 200x design. They have the same reaction as Prince Adam in the show. “He looks like He-Man…only bigger.” It kind of makes sense the more you think about it. AND the diversity is welcome. What they did with him in Revelation and Revolution was brilliant.
PACKAGING
This is the original package design. When I bought King Grayskull he had been sitting on the shelf for at least four years. Probably at Target or Wal-Mart before landing at Toy Federation, but maybe not. You can see everything he comes with clearly.
The side image is awesome! But notably, he didn’t come with this sword.
And the back image…
This is such an awesome image! ….. I have recreated it a couple of times now.
Pictured: MASTERVERSE Revelation King Grayskull with Mythic Legions Heroic Magic Effects lightning.
CONTENTS
So what do we get in the package? (Lightning Effect from a different set).
The Power Sword divided into good and evil sides. Alternate hands. You have two gripping hands, a punching right hand, and a chopping left hand. An alternate head with a more menacing expression. A shield with the 200x “asterisk” symbol. Notably this might be the only time we get that symbol on a shield and on the power harness. Also the cape is soft goods.
The only thing that really bothers me about this figure is the pauldrons do not want to stay on the shoulders properly. They want to sag down the back. In fact, you can see that the way he came packaged the pauldrons were hanging down. I keep getting them back up like they are supposed to be.
The Power Sword halves do not combine into a full sword like the vintage toys. No way to do it…I tried and they just didn’t design it that way. I think they were going with “hot metal that has cooled into this shape.” And this is fine. It is different, but fine. The abomination that came with Scareglow was NOT WELCOME.
FIGURE REVIEW AND OBSERVATIONS.
Pictured: MASTERVERSE Revelation King Grayskull and MASTERVERSE 40th Anniversary He-Man in similar poses.
As he was in the first wave, you can see that he is a little smaller. NOW who is bigger…(40th anniversary He-Man probably isn’t a fair comparison.)
Pictured: MASTERVERSE Revelation King Grayskull and MASTERVERSE New Eternia Skeletor with Masters of the Universe Classics Faceless One’s Havoc Staff.
But New Eternia (Viking) Skeletor is also bigger.
Pictured: MASTERVERSE Revelation King Grayskull and Sorceress. King Grayskull is holding 40th Anniversary He-Man’s sword as well as a crystal ball I picked up at the mall.
There’s this story that King Grayskull transferred the power of Grayskull into “The Orb” or something like that. Here I present the scene. This was harder than it looks. King Grayskull is very “leggy.” That blue crystal ball doesn’t want to balance on the chopping hand so easily. And when it works, the weight kind of knocks the balance off. And I had to keep fixing the shoulders!
Here’s a shot at kitbashing a 200x He-Man with King Grayskull’s parts. I took Tri-Klops’ body, which has a darker loin cloth and boots. King Grayskull’s shield and Power Harness. Savage He-Man’s massive axe. And the chrome vac-metal power sword from the 200x Castle Grayskull. (I never owned this toy, only a couple of its pieces. Not a fan). And which head? The not-Dolph Lundgren head from the 1987 Movie He-Man figure. It is the best I can do so far. But King Grayskull made it possible because of the shield and the power harness.
One more recent development.
Pictured: MASTERVERSE Revelation King Grayskull and King Conan’s Throne of Aquilonia.
He can’t sit on the throne properly. Which has me concerned about the Skeletor that I ordered which will come with the bone throne. I was determined NOT to break the right knee on King Grayskull. The left works fine and bends all the way back, but the right does not, even with hair dryer heat or hot water. And I wasn’t going to force it.
SPARTANNERD’S RATING
This is a terrific figure. He-Man that came out in the first wave alongside King Grayskull was very off-putting. But the King is done right. He comes with appropriate accessories, but I wish he also came with a normal Power Sword. The sculpting is great and the paint also. But the soft-goods pauldrons are irksome. Movie He-Man had good pauldrons, and all of the Mythic Legions I have came with better solutions. And finally, the issue of articulation is a point off.
But do I feel like this figure is a 2/5? Not really. 3/5 is my feeling about it all, even with those three marks off. He’s got some issues. But look at the hole in the collection he fills. We have some 200x options…I might not be a fan of that Castle Grayskull toy, but I really like the character designs and the show was SOOO GOOOD. 200x options have to count for something. And I like King Grayskull as a character. All versions of him.
So my rating of MASTERVERSE Revelation King Grayskull is 3/5. Do you agree or disagree, Hub-City Geeks? Let me know in the comments!
Pictured: MASTERVERSE Revelation Orko, armed with Animal Warriors of the Kingdom magic staff, displaying Heroic and Evil Magic blast effects.
Maybe you didn’t know, but in addition to being a SpartanNerd and Reverend, he is also a chorus teacher…Yep. With a MMED in Music Education with an emphasis on sight reading music.
Now that I got that qualification (perhaps dis-qualification) out of the way, here is something they teach you at Music Teacher school. You shouldn’t tell the kids that Major sounds happy and Minor sounds sad. They can be either one. A great many country songs with sad subjects are in a Major key, and plenty of party-down rock and pop songs are in a Minor key. So…where is this going in regards to reviewing toys?
Did you catch what I might be talking about from looking at the above four images? The Four Horsemen are presenting the primarily blue and green magic effects as good, and the red and purple as evil. I have learned that the image on the back of the heroic effects depicts Aracagorr, who is a good-guy boss, and the one on the back of the evil effects depicts Poxxus, a bad-guy boss. Why are they pigeon-holing these effects? Outside of Star Wars, this kind of color-coding doesn’t happen much. I mean, it does. It seems like GI Joe might have green-blue blasts and Cobra has red-pink blasts. But some things turn this thinking on its head. The Joker looks cheery and happy, and someone who never saw him before might not think he was evil, but Batman might be construed as evil with the black cape and dark armor. Magic the Gathering flips this script also, Liliana is part of The Gatewatch and is a black-aligned character…White-aligned Heliod showed himself to be a Villain. Final Fantasy X and X-2 also have black mages on the good side. Elden Ring…is anyone good and evil?
How about this? Elemental magic. Lightning is orange or yellow. Ice is clear or white or blue. Life magic tends to show green. Fire orange, red, black. My point is that magic effects is one of the areas of the toy collecting and photography hobby where the fans can be more creative. Right off the bat I disagree with the philosophy the Four Horsemen are giving us for magic and blast effects. And I intend to prove that in the review below.
What do we get in the boxes?
Both are identical, but with different color schemes. You can see them in the packaging clearly, but here is one unpacked.
I’ll go from left to right. A long stringy swirl. 2 large discs, 2 medium discs, and 2 small discs. 2 swirling mists. (I believe the one on the left to be warped…even better then). A long lightning effect and a short lightning effect. A long magic snake effect. And a short skull effect.
Photos of the Mythic Legions Magic Effects in action
I am not going to show that many Mythic Legions toys in this review. So brace yourself. I don’t actually have that many, but I have wanted magic and blast effects for a long time for my action figures. These are the perfect size of six-inch scale. So prepare to see Masters of the Universe Classics, MASTERVERSE, Marvel Legends, and maybe some other things, as well as Mythic Legions.
Pictured: Marvel Legends comic book Thanos with Infinity Gauntlet hand. Mythic Legions Evil and Heroic magic effects skulls.
The little skulls are my favorite. The different colors highlight that Thanos is holding two different souls. Not necessarily good and evil. Because I am talking about mixing it up, why couldn’t one be Green Lantern and the other The Flash!
Pictured: Marvel Legends comic book Thor with Mythic Legions Heroic and Evil lightning effects. What we really need is that lightning in yellow, orange, or white.
Marvel Legends comic book Thor is my worst action figure. The lightning effects really add something to a character like this!
Pictured: MASTERVERSE Revelation Evil Lyn and Teela, both with their hair-down head scupts, and MASTERVERSE Revelation Sorceress. Teela is also armed with the MOTUC Great Unrest Staff of Ka. Also pictured are a variety of Mythic Legions Heroic and Evil Magic effects, and the two halves of the Power Sword from MASTERVERSE Revelation King Greyskull.
That “Pictured” caption took forever to type. Anyway, here I depict a scene where the Sorceress tells Teela and Evil Lyn about the two halves of the Power Sword. The magic effects add a lot to the scene.
Pictured: MASTERVERSE Revelation King Grayskull with Mythic Legions Heroic and Evil magic effects.
The back of King Grayskull’s box depicts an image that looks something like this. (I suppose I need to post a review of King Grayskull and the Sorceress soon.)
Pictured: Four Horsemen Studios Demistros, Mythic Legions Skeleton Legion Builder, who is armed with MASTERVERSE New Eternia “Viking” Skeletor’s scimitar and MASTERVERSE Revelation Teela’s shield.
Here they are with some actual Mythic Legions figures. Demistros is bringing this skeleton warrior back to life. The swirling mist adds something. It is given life by the green soul skull escaping from the red portal. If I had used the red skull, would that story be as clear? Nope.
Pictured: MASTERVERSE Comic-Con exclusive Scareglow with diorama box, MASTERVERSE Revelation Teela, armed with The Great Unrest Weapons pack armor and staff of Ka. Cosmic Legions Silver Figure Stand, Mythic Legions green snake effect and green skull effect. An aquarium plant hides the stand.
I didn’t realize that the snake effect was actually a snake until I took this picture. While I am at it, notice that I have Scareglow mounted on the Cosmic Legions Action Figure Stand. So I am going to take a break for a quick review of that as a bonus under the ratings section below.
Pictured: MASTERVERSE Revelation Evil Lyn and Teela. Evil Lyn has Mythic Legions swirling mist effect. Teela has the red snake effect.
It seems to me that the red snake effect is perfect for the Staff of Ka. Which brings up another point. The Four Horsemen sculpted the Masters of the Universe Classics, and there were a bunch of snake staves sculpted for that line especially for the Snake Men faction. Dare I assert that this magic effect calls back to that?
SpartanNerd Rating of Mythic Legions Heroic Magic Effects and Mythic Legions Evil Magic Effects
Before this review, I actually already used some of the effects in my pictures in reviews on this site. This is a new and very useful item. It adds so much to really so many toys. I only scratched the surface! We need more things like this. The Mythic Legions Magic Effects plays nice in any sandbox. You could definitely use that lightning in Star Wars. You could put those smoke effects behind a Hot Wheels car or something. Disney Barbie dolls. Maleficent. Pokémon. Zelda action figures. I don’t own any of these, but oh the potential! Multiple scales, too. And apply them to the vintage toys like you always wanted.
My hangup is the assertion that the red effects are evil and the blue effects are good. That’s like saying you could only use Metallic crayons for transformers. You can only put ketchup on french fries. You can only add rubber ducks to Jeeps, not Ford trucks (I saw one today with ducks on the dash). I am surprised that this assertion came from such a well-rounded studio.
The sculpts are nice. The product does seem a little bit brittle. I am careful, but some kid out there probably wouldn’t be. But these were made for adult collectors, so…
I bought both sets and am scoring them the same. 5/5. They add very much to all of my collection, and I know they will to yours too!
BONUS:Cosmic Legions Silver Figure Stand.
After such a glowing review…time for a not-so-glowing one, lest you assert I am some kind of loyalist…(Everyone who reads this stuff knows I am honest to a fault perhaps.).
The stand stinks!
The stand came in this polybag with a yellow sticker- (see the photo near the top of the page.)
When you assemble it, well…it seems like the vertical end of the stand should be flush with the platform, doesn’t it. And in fact I have seen pictures of other peoples stand where it is. But mine would not click in. And I used a good screwdriver and a good wife to try and tighten it up. No matter what pressure I put, no matter how tight I made the screws, this “daylight” wouldn’t go away. I was afraid I was going to break it if I kept trying to force it.
If only that was the only problem.
When I was posing my figures outdoors reviewing the Animal Warriors of the Kingdom Red Weapons Loot box, I made a picture of Man-At-Arms using the bow and arrow. (See the review with the picture here.)
I put Duncan in the stand, but realized a problem.
The business end of the stand has this metal claw. Now there were these little rubber bits that covered the metal “points” of this claw. As I was posing the figure, they came off! Luckily no damage was done, and miraculously I kept them from being lost in the grass. But they didn’t make it this review, did they? Now if I use the stand, I have to consider that it might scratch the paint or damage the figure. (You can see these rubber pieces in the Scareglow picture).
My advice, SKIP THIS ONE!
Rating of the Cosmic Legions Silver Figure Stand: 1/5. This thing is awful. I know it is for the science fiction version of Mythic Legions, and I don’t even mind the silver metallic stand. That is fine for whatever. But the assembly went wrong. The rubber things came off and have since been lost while using the stand for its intended function. I worry about damaging figures if I use it. There are better stands out there for your money.
One might argue that it is because I used MASTERVERSE figures instead of Four Horsemen figures. To that I assure you that there isn’t enough difference in the thickness of their waists. I also assert that a figure stand should be versatile. Any action figure within reason should work. Thanos wouldn’t be within reason, so I didn’t try that one. Man-At-Arms should have been fine.
I really don’t have many “good guys” from MASTERVERSE line yet. (So far, three versions of He-Man, Orko, and Ram Man.). This is a little odd, because it was the good aligned characters that appealed to me the most as a child from Masters of the Universe. But as I have gotten older, I find that the villains are definitely more interesting designs. As a child I always stuck with the Decepticons as toys, and Cobra also I believe because of the color scheme. And for Star Wars I am generally a dark-side type. But the good guys have nostalgia for me more because these were the toys I owned. One of my brothers had Skeletor’s guys and the other had the Horde. Meaning the big brother SpartanNerd always got to “win” at something else!
Man-E-Faces was yet another Valentines item for me. I picked it up in Columbia South Carolina along with Scare Glow and Khotal Kahn (from Mortal Kombat.)
And I have so many questions…I remember having this guy as a child. And I remember the filmation episode vaguely. It seems like 200x had a proper story where he could be controlled by Beast Man when he had on his monster face. So I looked him up on the internet to review some details. Wow…there is alot to this character that I either never knew or forgot. For instance, Peek-a-blue is his wife. European stories are more psychological, giving him a split personality, while American stories are lighter…he is an actor. But there are other questions. Is that his skin, or is it some kind of space suit? If it is his skin, then that is kind of gruesome that he has these hoses all over him. His face is orange…which is why this might be his skin. Other questions, who are the three extra faces?
Well, I should back up.
So the bio on the back of the box also says that Man-E-Faces has a shattered mind. Throwing back to those multiple personality issues European stories gave him. That his faces are the key to learning to restore Eternia is another mystery.
(Let me point out now that made a mistake in the package video, referring to Pig Head as a movie figure. Evidently Pig Head is Sun Man’s version of Skeletor. It is Pig-Boy that I was thinking of.)
Anyways, back to the figure review.
Here is everything you get in the box. The figure with the traditional Human-Monster-Robot faces. Three additional faces in a case, which are Prototype Man-E-Faces (so I hear), Keldor’s face (assumed), and Skeletor’s (assumed) face. The extra faces have a storage case. You also get two fists, a laser gun, and also his helmet is necessarily removable. That shiny blue paint is no joke!
I almost missed this detail in the packaging…(I was in the process of throwing it away)
So they made the gun into a tool! I don’t need it to turn the knob, but some kid might. What utilitarian purpose the laser is useful to me for is getting the faces to pop off of the turning drum or the carrying case.
Don’t know why you would, but the helmet looks pretty good on other characters. I feel like this is a space suit helmet.
The case has an unsightly problem. It is a perfectly fine item except for the hinge. That white stripe is where the plastic has stressed…this could have been handled differently. It seems like vintage GI Joes had this problem alot when they came with some type of ammo case. It has this “eye” design on it that fits right in with Masters of the Universe. In fact, this case reminds me a little bit of the one that held the Power Sword from 200x in the Mike Young show. (a different complaint from the Scareglow review…look how big that sword is on He-Man’s back.)
I mean…is this Skeletor? The color scheme is definitely different. But who else is a smiley skull-face? (OK. Scareglow.). Masters fans would automatically assume this. And if so, then the blue mustache has to be Keldor, right? Maybe this is a Mandela effect thing. I am remembering something from the “correct” universe. (Because if there are other universes, this one is definitely not the correct one!). What I think I remember is Man-E-Faces showing Skeletor and even Orko faces to Orko to prank him. Anyone else remember this, Hub-City Geeks?
I already mentioned the 200x story. I got to thinking, though. If he is primarily a man or a monster, and it is a split personality…couldn’t the robot version be something Man-At-Arms devised to “regulate” the two personalities?
(This pic shows an actual self defense tactic… Also, this is Metalhead from Super7 Ultimates TMNT)
So who is this?
Somewhere on the internet people are saying this is a prototype or design sketch artwork. It reminds me of Space Ghost…The colors match very well, and you can tell who he is. Would I have rather had a different face? Beast Man would have been cool, or Man-At-Arms. Or Orko. Or even He-man.
Here you can see Man-E-Faces can carry the case on his back.
How do I think this figure can be improved? The sculpt and paint are good, and there is variety of what you can do with the figure. He is very posable…no problems there. The gun is faithful to previous versions, and the carrying case is cool, but flawed at the hinge.
Hear me out, Hub City Geeks! What if you could remove this drum like you can the other figures’ heads. Just think. Now Man-E-Faces could be anyone, literally! I don’t know the logistics of it. But this is how this figure could be improved. I already show how the “space helmet” works on other figures. How much of a stretch to think about totally changing this mechanism?
I am giving Man-E-Faces a 4/5. What I say above is actually my imagination thinking of possibilities, not so much of a criticism. My criticism is that we could have had more faces, or at least different faces, and the hinge on that carrying case…as issue that Mattel would have known better than produce. They should have created a different design.
Do you agree or disagree, Hub City Geeks? Let me know in the comments!
spartannerd 