Batman Unlimited: The Dark Knight Returns Batman by Mattel

Batman Unlimited has been an interesting line from the seemingly flailing Mattel DC Universe series. Admittedly the DC Universe 6 inch figures were doing very well from what I could tell. Figures were flying off the shelves and seemed like they were out with a new series every few months. The beginning of the end was the Matty Collector DC Club Infinite Earths subscription. Same price per figure in the store plus shipping and no build-a-figure piece. Granted the line did produce a Metron with his chair and Monsieur Mallah with the Brain but we also got a weak Golden Age Flash and pathetic Poison Ivy. Anyways, with DC Universe being a thing of the past and Club Infinite Earths on the verge of being shut down, Mattel produced the Batman Unlimited series to keep fans involved till the '66 Batman classics line hits shelves later this summer.

Through the Batman Unlimited line we've gotten some stellar figures. A pretty good line up of Injustice: God's Among Us video game based figures, "Kenner Super Powers" influenced Penguin, Planet X Batman and Earth 43 Batman (Crimson Mist Vampire). But the stand out figure from the line is by far the Dark Knight Returns Batman. I'll be the first to admit I love the sculpting on most of the DC Direct figures but sometimes the play value suffers from the lack of articulation. The newer Batman: Arkham City figures from DC Direct and some of the larger "Deluxe" figures are sporting more impressive articulation though so don't count them out yet. The Dark Knight Returns Batman though was a figure people were speculating on for a while now, especially with the fact DC and Masters of the Universe are shared brands of Mattel. The over-muscular body of the He-Man figures lends itself very well to the aging Bruce Wayne from my favorite Frank Miller Batman book.

The Mattel Dark Knight Rises Batman sports your average Masters of the Universe Classics articulation (swivel/pivot at the neck, shoulders and hips. swivel at the waist, wrists and top of the bicep and pivot at the ankles, knees and elbows.) The sculpt is from none other than Mattel's go to guys for epic toys, the Four Horsemen. It's apparent all over the figure from the detail on the utility belt, folds in the costume's gloves, the top scallop of the boots and Batman's grim and grissled expression. The figure comes packaged with a lonely batarang but for a series that's usually devoid of accessories it's an OK throw in.

 There's only a few complaints in my mind. The cape is made of a softer plastic / vinyl but it has such a stiff look to it. The cape does not retain any poses, it looks like Alfred over starched when doing the laundry. The batarang is just this thin sliver of bat-shaped plastic that is just kind of lost in Batman's giant hands. Not sure what could have been done to make it better but it just feels like the figure could have done without the batarang altogether. My last complaint is with the bat symbol on his chest. I know it costs more to put additional sculpting on a figure but I was hoping for the bat symbol to be raised or have some kind of relief to it. My complaints are small and damn near unnoticeable, all in all I give the figure a solid 4 1/2 stars. Don't hesitate grabbing this figure, it's available for decent prices on Amazon and Big Bad Toy Store (roughly $18 and that's not bad considering it's $15 at
retail).

DC Direct Solomon Grundy from Arkham Asylum

Normally I don't buy DC Direct figures. I can appreciate the time and effort that goes into a sculpt and the precision of the paint applications, I can even admire the fact they'll tackle a non-mainstream character the fans are asking for but it's not my cup of tea. I'm not much for newer figures, my real passion is older figures from the 80s and 90s but every so often a newer toy grabs my attention. For instance, the PlayArts Kai figures are fantastic and I could go broke two times over buying all the NECA figures I like. Hell, sometimes I even go all in on Marvel Select figures that appeal to me. I'm also a reviewer that believes in giving credit where credit is due and shaming other toy lines for producing crappy figures (Jazwares and Mattel, I'm looking at you). Needless to say, a trip to my local comic shop (Heroes' Haven) introduced me to a figure I had no idea I wanted until I saw it for myself.

(more pictures here)

I have a good relationship with my local comic shop, they reblog my stuff and I reblog theirs. Toys especially; PlayArts, DC Direct, Marvel Select, MAFEX, Hot Toys, ETC. Wednesday being new release day had some interesting stuff, restocks on PlayArts Kai Dark Knight Returns Batman and Robin from Arkham City, newly released DC Direct 3 3/4 inch two packs, PlayArts Kai Poison Ivy and DC Direct Solomon Grundy. In the Twitter picture Grundy just looked like an 8 inch figure, nothing impressive. But I'll be damned if that figure wasn't 13 inches tall and weighed as much as a cinder block (maybe a couple of bricks, it's heavy as something I'm no scientist)! DC Direct had gotten some shit for shoddy craftsmanship on Titan Joker and Killer Croc, both figures were known for falling apart just minutes after getting them out of the package. Worst thing about buying these figures, you have little to no recourse getting a replacement or a swap out. Some comic shops function on no returns or Flying Spaghetti Monster help you if you picked it up at a convention and have to deal with DC Direct directly. They made good on quite a few replacements but even those replacements were plagued with the same issues. But, this figure is a solid hunk of plastic, so that means it's sturdier right?

(even more pictures here)

Solomon Grundy stands an impressive and intimidating 13 inches tall from the bottoms of his rotten feet to the top his grungy hair. Holding the figure is really pleasing, the figure retails for $90 and he's heavier than a gallon of milk and solid as a brick. The joints ratchet into place which is seriously important because he's definitely a little top heavy. The paint job is perfect, it's dead on to his video game counterpart. Best part of the paint job is the eyes, they really captured that undead marbled glaze to his eyeballs. Just like in the video game, Grundy has a removable chest piece revealing a very grossly accurate reproduction of Grundy's guts. The entire chest cavity has a great sickly red sheen to it and great shading showing off the heart and other organs exposed. For a $90 figure I'm rating this figure at a solid 8.5 to 9 out of 10. I usually don't feel expensive figures need a review, either I think they are overpriced or like a Hot Toys figure they sell themselves but this was the exception for sure. If your interested in picking up this big bastard, hit up your local comic shops, I don't think he's going to hang around for long.

Matty Collector SDCC 2012 panel

Announcements from Mattel brought a rollercoaster of emotions from the crowd. Excitement over prospects of Ram Man, Mosquitor, Castle Greyskull Gollum, DCIE subs for 2013 and the latest Club Black Frieghter for all of your Watchmen needs. Then came the sticker shock of $25 a throw for Watchmen figures and Masters of the Universe chilled the reception of all this great news. I, for one, was thrilled to find out I can complete the GB2 Scolari brothers ghosts by the end of the year. Granted, no mention of the highly anticipated Back to the Future line but these things are expected when you read the internet rumor mill. Am I excited for 2013, yes I am. My general outlook on subscriptions is I'll go for DCIE and the Watchmen (even though I'm still sore hearing about the $25 price tag.) and cherry pick my way through MOTUC for 2013. Ram Man is a must have and well worth the $30 price tag. I wish they'd show the packaging for the Watchmen figures, the packaging they used for this year's DCIE figures made them well worth the $18 price tag and maybe that's the case with the Watchmen but only time will tell. At least there's only 6 of them. Metron looks amazing and I haven't been disappointed with any of their offerings yet. Not too thrilled to see Wally West making his way into the line. Kind of the reason we all bought into the concept was for non headliners and fan favorites.

(totally random, but this figure was made by custom figure artist BOSKOES years ago and shares the same premise of the winner's concept of the Greyskull Stone Gollum.)

Club exclusives for the rest of the year bringing us the Ecto Goggles with a sweet animation of Slimer that will sync with your PKE meter (which is available here), the final dozen or so JLU figures (been waiting a lifetime it seems for Dr Midnight!) and the last 2 6 inch Young Justice ( $50 is steep but the crowd reception seemed optimistic and eager to buy them).


Get on top of this year's subscriptions here

Get ready for this month's sale


Matty's Coverage of the SDCC show

Really good pictures of the panel from the fine folks at Toy News International

Totally over Matty Collector dot con

Yes I meant to type dot con, as in over Matty and their laundry list of underhanded business tactics that only ends with them neglecting their biggest demographic; the adult collector. The demographic with the biggest and deepest wallets, their bread and butter. Some may argue that Fisher Price and girl toys (Barbie sales) outrank the adult collector market, but which demographic is more likely to consecutively spend upwards of $100 a month on themselves without flinching? That and also a good portion of the Barbie and Monster High doll sales come out of adult collector wallets (myself included). But Mattel is the 1200 pound gorilla, right? Their products make up more than half of toy store shelves with DC Universe, Barbie, Monster High, WWE, Toy Story, Hot Wheels and Cars movie branded products to name a few. I mean, who'd be crazy enough to go after the giant of the toy industry? Just call me Don Quiote because I have a dragon to slay.

My gripes with Mattel may not be the same opinions of other toy collectors, there is also a large group of Matty fans that put up with the buffoonery that I have grown to loath over the last 3 years. They cling onto hope like a battered wife does about their partner, hoping they will eventually change and life will be happy again. I admit it, I bought into yearly subscriptions and held tight hoping that slight mistakes would eventually become a thing of the past. I put up with paint apps that look like a mildly retarded 3 year old hit it with a paint roller. I accepted crushed boxes shipped in "padded" envelopes because their warehouse had no more to send as a replacement. "Padded" envelopes is being generous, these things were padded with a mixture similar to compost, asbestos and soggy frosted flakes. I bounced payments for cell phones and water when they overcharged my bank account, but tried to take it in stride because they threw about a dozen $5  off coupons in my box. It's a nice gesture but DC Universe coupons aren't accepted as currency with AT&T, I tried. And finally, I tolerated manufacturer errors like backwards shoulders, two left legs and flocked and unflocked ears. If your company makes 8-15,000 of a figure and no one on the production floor, supervisory staff or management realizes that all the figures have mismatched shoulders until it's in a consumer's hands, that's real frickin' pathetic.

 A monthly treat to myself became an absolute terror, constantly wondering what curve ball Mattel was going to throw next.

When you buy a figure at the store, you get to carefully inspect your purchase before you leave. And, if something is actually wrong you can return it with little to no hassles. When you buy online, what you get is your problem when you open the box. I expect it from eBay, dirty deals are done every minute and sellers disappear and resurface under new names. But when I buy from an alleged reputable company, I expect to be justly compensated for my problems. Calling Mattel with a problem is like trying to get through to God, they hear you but they sure as heck aren't going to do anything about it. And if you mention Matty Collector, they give you another number to call. My Matty Collector calls remind me of the Capital One commercials with the "Peggy" joke, except "Peggy" is "Bob" and he's more than likely from New Delhi. And I'm totally cool with that, everyone has to have a job but "Bob" gives me Mattel's number and at the end of it I'm so ready to throw carded Masters of the Universe Classics and Ghostbusters in Toys For Tots cans and be done with it. Customer service doesn't exist, they won't replace it or refund your money (even partially) but in six months they'll release a "corrected" version of the same figure and you'll have to fight everyone else online to get one.

Even us brave souls cringe at the white screen of death.

That and Mattel blames Digital River, their Matty host, for any and all issues. Sorry, but you are ultimately
responsible for the actions of your employees. Business 101 my friends.


I've even gone so far as to boycott the entire website, refusing to purchase anything from it for now no matter how cheap it is or how bad I want it.

I review every figure fairly, Mattel's had some wins the last year but a ton of losers. I don't get my figures for free or three months early like some other sell-outs, so you get fair and unbiased breakdown of why I don't care for the figure. Some of these reviewers Mattel has in their pocket aren't even really reviewing the figure, it's almost a 5:23 commercial for fanboys. I just can't sacrifice myself and my good name for freebies.

I considered it a win/loss this year when Mattel said Ghostbusters subscriptions were cancelled and MOTUC sales weren't as high as projected. The fans had spoken I thought, they were over Mattel's shenanigans and said it with their wallets. But, then again it's a rough economy and I'm not sure if it's more people over the monthly headaches or if their demographic is feeling the pinch in their wallets. That and also it is basically the end of Ghostbusters figures, they had announced Dana Barrett was on deck for 2012 and the rest of the team was going to be slid in to the other 5 slots for the year. The jury is still out on the subscriptions but it never stops Mattel from threatening the livelihood of the rest of the subscriptions of the table. MOTUC production won't be much more than the amount to cover the subscriptions plus those who want to buy ala cart on sale day will be paying a $2 penance for not openly supporting the line.

Honestly I could care less. I never wanted to be on the hook for 16 figures for this year, of which only about 7 of them I'd end up keeping and be stuck trying to sell the rest. We are into year three of this line and we don't have a Mecha-Neck, Ram Man or even a Two-Bad. That's sad from a production standpoint and fan standpoint if you take a step back. We do have 3 versions of Skeletor already which I think is redundant for a collector's line of figures. How'd we get Leech before Stinkor? How'd we get Adora before, well anyone else? They already have a Snake Man Man-At-Arms ready for 2012 and I still haven't seen plans for a General Rattlor. Character selection has been a little on the disappointing side over 3 years.

In the end, if you continue to spend money on products that aren't what you expected, you will never get what you want. Or you will, but you will have put such a mind boggling amount of time and money into it that by the time you get it the magic will have worn off. I think the collecting world has congratulated Mattel for too long for them doing a mediocre job, at best.

Like I said, my opinion but I'm not alone.

Tom Khayos