31 Days of Toy Terror Takes the Universe: Wolf Man from Universal Monsters by NECA

 

   It's Werewolf Wednesday once again at Action Figure Barbecue's 31 Days of Toy Terror Takes the Universe and today I'm checking out an incredible figure of Lon Chaney, Jr. as Larry Talbot, the all time greatest Wolf Man of them all! Lon Chaney Jr. was in well over a dozen Universal classic horror films and played some of the main Universal Monsters including Dracula (in Son of Dracula), Kharis the mummy (in three Mummy films), Frankenstein's Monster (in The Ghost of Frankenstein), and, of course, Larry Talbot, the Wolf Man. While Chaney played roles made famous by other actors, he was the only person to play the Wolf Man during Universal's classic horror era. NECA released this figure in black and white in 2022 with this full color version following in 2023. I'm not sure a better, more accurate figure of the Wolf Man has ever been released. Ready for a definitive figure of my favorite of the Universal Monsters? Then join me after the break...

Action Figure Review: Sgt. Slaughter (Mad Marauders) from G.I. Joe: Classified Series by Hasbro

 

   Sgt. Slaughter was a huge part of the G.I. Joe: A Real American hero franchise in the 1980s and he had four different figures available during the decade. He also had a few groups of his own that he was the commander of. In the 1987 G.I. Joe animated movie Sgt. Slaughter led the Renegades (Mercer, Taurus, and Red Dog), released as a three pack of action figures, while in 1989 Sarge received his own subset: Slaughter's Marauders. In the Classified Series the name has been changed to The Mad Marauders. This version of Sgt. Slaughter is largely a Mad Marauders/ Slaughter's Marauders repaint of the first version with blue, green, and brown, though he does come with quite a few more accessories than the first release, making him a much better deal. While I'm nuts about Tiger Force and Night Force, the Mad Marauders figures don't appeal to me in quite the same way, though I do own the three already released (Barbecue, Spirit, and Low-Light). Ready to check out this Mad Marauders take on Sgt. Slaughter? Then join me after the break...

31 Days of Toy Terror Takes the Universe: Van Helsing from Universal Monsters Alliance by Pop Mart

 

   We are almost to Halloween and today I've got an unusual character from the Universal Monsters canon: Gabriel Van Helsing from 2004's Van Helsing starring Hugh Jackman. Yes, Van Helsing is a Universal Monsters film! Sure, everything I've been looking at is pretty much pre-1960 but the Universal Monsters have lived on not just in nostalgia and rewatches but in attempts to rejuvenate the franchise. 1999's The Mummy is without a doubt the best movie in the entire Mummy franchise (and I'm a guy who regularly wears a Universal Studios The Mummy had based on the Boris Karloff original) and due to the success of both that film and it's sequel, The Mummy Returns, Universal Studios returned to the same well, bringing back director Stephen Sommers and recruiting Hugh Jackman and Kate Beckinsale to fight the classic monsters with a mixture of Victorian charm and steampunk sensibilities. Dracula and his brides, Victor Frankenstein, Igor, and the Monster, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, and a wolf man, too? Sign me up. Honestly, just hearing about it makes it sound like possibly the greatest film ever made. In reality... it's just OK. I saw it back in 2004 when it was released and I even watched it again quite recently. It's a decent  movie with a great visual style that just tries to jam too much stuff into one movie, over does the CG, and could stand to slow down a bit at times. It's a shame we never got another one, perhaps to rectify some of the issues with the first film, but it wasn't a hit. Still, Van Helsing is a recognizable character (Hugh's Van Helsing isn't directly Professor Abraham Van Helsing from Dracula, and may actually be the angel Gabriel, oddly enough) and Pop Mart's Universal Monsters Alliance line included him in their roster last year. Want to have Van Helsing chill out with the creatures he's sworn to hunt down? Then join me after the break...

31 Days of Toy Terror Takes the Universe: Bela Lugosi as Dracula from Universal Monsters ReAction by Super7

 

   Mondays mean Dracula reviews during 31 Days of Toy Terror Takes the Universe! Today's Dracula review for this week is the Bela Lugosi as Dracula figure from Super7's Universal Monsters ReAction line. The original ReAction Dracula was released by Funko back in 2014 while this version is from 2018. Most of the Super7 ReAction figures are superior to their Funko counterparts, but what about Dracula? I'm honestly not so sure. There's nothing wrong with him but there's also not much that makes him clearly superior to the previous Drac. Ready to check out this small version of Bela Lugois in one of the most iconic horror roles of all time? Then join me after the break...

Action Figure Review: Violent Ken (Deluxe) from Ultra Street Fighter 2: The New Challengers by Jada Toys

 

   What do you get when you cross Ken Masters with M. Bison's Psycho Power? Violent Ken! This deluxe figure released on Jada Toys' Next Level store over the summer (it's still available, too)  represents Ken surging with Psycho Power energy and intent on taking down everyone in his path. He's brainwashed by Bison, sometimes to be in his service but often just running with his own agenda to be the best and violently destroy anyone who stands in his way. The regular Ken figure shipped as part of the second series of Ultra Street Fighter 2: The New Challengers figures earlier this year and this is an enhanced version of that figure. He's a repaint with three portraits this time around, a new energy effect for his Shoryuken, and some barrels from the background that can be broken during a fight or attached during the bonus stage. Ready for battle? Then join me after the break.... 

Fight!

31 Days of Toy Terror: The Mummy from Universal Monsters Alliance by Pop Mart

 

   It's another Mummy Monday as we enter the week of Halloween and today I'm checking out the Mummy from the Pop Mart blind boxed Universal Monsters Alliance line. These came out last year and feature the classic Universal Monsters (and a few less often seen friends) chilling out in movie theater styled chairs with snacks. Get it? They're watching their films! I love it. This is such a cool and cute line of little figures. There are 10 figures in the set but only 9 figures in a case as Dr. Jekyll/ Mr. Hyde is a 1/108 chase figure. My case didn't come with him and he's pretty pricy, so I don't have him. I have the rest of the crew, though, and I thought this would be another fun chance to show off Boris Karloff's Imhotep. Let's take a look at this blind-boxed classic after the break...

Action Figure Review: Robin (Batman Forever) from DC Multiverse by McFarlane Toys

 

   

   Halloween is almost here and while this isn't a 31 Days of Toy Terror review, nor is it a scary action figure in any way, this version of Robin from Batman Forever absolutely reminds me of Halloween. In 1995, when Batman Forever came out, I though Chris O'Donnell's Robin was the coolest. I remember finding the Kenner Street Biker Robin on the same trip to Target that I found the Riddler and Two-Face, so that was a huge deal, but it took me quite a bit more time to find Hydro Claw Robin, the first Robin that was actually in his costume. I think I put the animated series Robin on that figure and gave him the staff from the Toy Biz Joker figure to complete my ideal Robin at the time. For Halloween that year I dressed up as Robin and had a great costume that actually had a hard plastic chest plate. Sadly, my parents have not been able to find any pictures from that Halloween, so that's a bummer. Recently a friend shared an old picture of him and his brother as the Riddler and Two-Face from 1995 and I really wanted to show off my Robin costume. I'm pretty glad to get this guy as Robin is definitely the best part of Batman Forever (though Dr. Chase Meridian, Sugar, and Spice are close). I don't dislike Val Kilmer but I think he's pretty much the most boring Batman we've ever had. Chris O'Donnell as Robin, however, really worked quite well. It's a shame we didn't get to see him teamed up with Michael Keaton's Batman. This guy is a darn fine Robin figure, so let's take a look at him after the break...