Happy Franksgiving! Frankenstein's Creature from Figura Obscura by Four Horsemen Studios

 

   Wait? What's this? Hasn't October's 31 Days of Toy Terror Takes the Universe ended? Yes, it did. So welcome to Happy Franksgiving, a month long celebration of the Frankenstein Monster and the Bride of Frankenstein. How did this come about? Well, for one there are some pretty good Frankenstein action figures that came out a little too late for me to get them lined up for October. Also, not only have I finished watching through Universal's Frankenstein series of films as part of my classic Universal Horror watch through but I've also recently finished Mary Shelley's 1818 novel Frankenstein. To kick off Franksgiving I'm first checking out Frankenstein's Creature from the Four Horsemen Studios' Figure Obscura line. We've received some excellent figures from classic horror literature in this line such as the Headless Horseman, the Masque of the Red Death, and the Ghost of Jacob Marley, and Frankenstein is a fine addition to the collection. It's pretty cool to have a version of the Creature based on the book's description rather than based on or inspired by Boris Karloff's iconic portrayal. This set went up for sale in late September and did arrive to me in early October, but I decided to hold back on it a bit. Not only does the set come with an excellent figure of Victor Frankenstein's Creature (or the Monster, or Adam Frankenstein, or call him Frankenstein, too, as that's perfectly acceptable, too) but you get a bunch of Victor's lab equipment. Ready for a look at the complex and complicated Creature from Mary Shelley original Victorian masterpiece? Then join me after the break...

31 Days of Toy Terror Takes the Universe: Bride of Frankenstein #1631 from POP! Movies: Universal Monsters by Funko

 

   

   Happy Halloween! Today's the day to go out and enjoy lots of spooky fun, so don't just sit around online all day; make the most of this Halloween! Today I've got a rather brief review of the new Bride of Frankenstein POP! vinyl from Funko. This is a fairly new release and while it's not the first version of the Bride that Fynko has released, it certainly is the most colorful. On Funko's website they call this variant Bride of Frankenstein (Deco), which I assume is how they're referring to this cool colorscheme that reminds me of 1970s comic book art. Despite the Bride only being in The Bride of Frankenstein for under 4 minutes (and appearing in no other films) her unique appearance and the creepy mannerisms Elsa Lanchester gave her have still made her one of the most recognizable and iconic monsters in the world of horror. James Whale's  original cut of film would have been 87 minutes long but Carl Laemmle Jr. wanted it cut down, so the only version we have today is only 75 minutes. The film is excellent and top tier Universal Horror, but wouldn't you have liked to have seen that original director's cut? Let's celebrate the Bride of Frankenstein by checking out this cool, colorful POP! after the break...

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!