Today, in a special bonus review, we're looking at one of the earliest and most beloved MOTU villains, that scaly scalawag himself, Mer-Man! Originally called Sea Man (wonder why that name didn't stick?) during development, Mer-Man has been present since the earliest MOTU media, though his appearance was slightly different in the first minicomics. He has been an ever-present figure since, and is practically guaranteed to make an appearance whenever MOTU characters pop up in any sort of licensed product. There's quite a lot of debate over which incarnation is superior, but Mattel have stuck to the vintage toy's design in his Origins debut. How does it match up against earlier iterations? Read on...
As expected, the figure's sculpt is Skeletor from the neck down. It replicates the vintage figure with a bit more detail, with the calves, in particular, displaying some nice texture work. The head retains the "cat head" design of the vintage figure, though his expression has been altered. Mer-Man's face now looks more aggressive, rather than the "surprise prostate exam" look of the vintage toy. There are numerous details that could have been integrated from other Mer-Man designs that we've seen over the decades, but the design team set out to slightly update the vintage toy with this figure, and it certainly succeeds in that.
Mer-Man's paint apps are limited, but very neat. The belt is painted in light green, as with the early runs of the vintage figure. The work on the head is particularly good, with sharp, clean lines and almost no slop or overspray, even on the tiny sharp teeth. However, it's worth mentioning that the extra figure I bought for my little niece to play with has some glop around the eyes, so it's always advisable to take a moment to choose the figure with the best paint apps if you're able to do so.
Mer-Man has his standard accessories in his sword and armor. The sculpting has some nice detail, and the little points on the top of the armor are surprisingly sharp. The little "bow" over the figure's belt is actually a part of the armor now, rather than a separate piece, which solves the issue many vintage Mer-Man figures have with that piece falling off over time. The sword fits easily in the figure's hand, and unlike some of this line's accessories, is not prone to falling out. The wave three minicomic is also included. As always, despite the limitations imposed by the miniscule page count, it's awesome that we're actually getting minicomics with these figures! Mer-Man has the line's standard articulation, with swivel & hinge shoulders, elbows, wrists, hips, knees, and ankles, swivels at the waist and calves, and a ball-jointed head. All points of articulation work very well, and the head in particular has an excellent range of motion. The pieces pop apart in the usual spots, though I do recommend heating the elbows, hips, knees, and ankles before trying to pop them apart.
This figure doesn't innovate or do anything other than the expected, but what the team did with this figure, they did very well. I still feel that figures with only one accessory should include little bonuses like energy, or in this case, water blast effects, or a swappable hand or two. Despite the very reasonable $15 price point, some of these figures feel mighty light. Still, it's a very well-executed update of the vintage toy, and in the end, that's enough to make him a desirable addition to any given Origins collector's collection. It's also nice to see Beast Man joined by the other original henchman! As the cast of characters continues to fill out, it's nice to have the pair that started it all serving as the bedrock of Skeletor's team, as they were from the beginning. That's all for today, but swim back next week for more! Until then, stay safe out there, and happy hunting!
No comments:
Post a Comment