Friday, November 21, 2008

DC Universe Classics - 2 Pack preview

I'm not sure why Mattel has decided to go exclusively with certain stores on some of their products. First the DC Universe Classics wave 5 becomes a Walmart exclusive and then they announce that their DCUC 2 packs will be Toys R Us exclusive. This just makes it even harder to find these action figures.

Anyway, according to Mattycollector.com, these two packs are now available so go check out your local Toys R Us stores. I have yet to see a trace of them myself but I'll be keeping an eye out for them up here in the Great White North. I have a feeling that I'll have to resort to eBay for these as well.


Lets take a look at these new packs in no particular order. (all pictures are from the Mattycollector website) :

The first pack is the Batman figure pack which includes a couple of re-released figures from the DC Superheroes line, Batgirl and Azrael.

Back in 2006, this Batgirl action figure was only available via the Batman/Batgirl two pack. From what I've read, there is no difference between the original figure and this new one. Azrael was part of the DC Superheroes series 3 set and was and still is one of the hardest figures to find from this toy line. I for one am glad to see the Azrael re-release as it gives collectors a 2nd chance at getting this figure at a reasonable cost.

The next set is the Super Enemies Figure pack and also consists of re-released action figures of the DC Superheroes toy line.


First we have Cyborg Superman from DCSH series 6 which is probably the #1 most wanted toy from this series. There were so few Cyborg Supes available during it original release that it was next to impossible for people to find this action figure. eBay prices for this action figure go for between $50-$100 so hopefully with the release of this two pack, collectors can get this figure at retail cost. The second figure is also from DCSH series 6, Mongul. This figure did not have the same distribution issues as Cyborg Superman and the current asking price on eBay for this figure alone is in the $10-$15 range.

The third set is the New Gods Figure Pack and includes a brand new character that we have not seen before in this toy line.

The first figure is a variant of Orion from the DC Universe Classics series 1 set. The difference between this figure and the series 1 version is that Orion's helmet is removable. The other difference is that you do not get the Collect and Connect piece of Rex Mason in this 2 pack. The new figure is Lightray. He appears to have the same body sculpt as Orion with a new different head and paint job.

The final Toys R Us exclusive pack is the Green Lantern figure pack which again includes a variant of a previous released figure and a new character.

First, we have a variant of Hal Jordon from DCUC series 3. This sculpt is exactly the same as the previous version but the uniform is painted slightly different. There is no green on his shoulders on this new version and you do not get the Collect & Connect piece of Solomon Grundy. The second figure is Abin Sur and appears to be the exact same body sculpt as Hal with a new head sculpt. Included in the pack appears to be only one Lantern, which is of course, green.
Mattycollector.com is also releasing a separate two pack with all new characters and can only be ordered online from their store for $25.00 plus shipping.

This Mattycollector.com exclusive is called the Space Heroes 2 pack and consists of Adam Strange and Starfire. Unfortunately this pack will not be available until sometime in December. A hard date has not be set yet. I believe that Mattel has also promised to release an online exclusive 2 pack once a month in 2009 but don't quote me on that.
Some might also be interested in the DC Universe Classics stands available. For $12 you can get a pack of 25 of these stands if you feel you need them. I for one find that my DCUC figures stand well enough on their own so, to me, they're not all that necessary. Depending on how you display your figures, they may prove to be useful. One negative in my opinion though is that they are blue. Why not make them colorless???

I'll definitely be getting the packs with Cyborg Superman and Azrael since they are missing from my collection. I'll see what I can get my hands on and of course post a review.
Thanks for checking out Action Toy Review currently featuring action figures from Mattel's DC Universe Classics and DC Superheroes toy lines. Be sure to check back for more news, reviews and information.

15 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hey again Steve,

Those two packs look great. I'll be on the look out for the Batgirl/Azrael pack as well as the Orion/Lightray since I don't have any of them.

So far I only have the Tech suit Mr Freeze. I've just ordered the Batman Beyond figure too from e-bay.

Today I went to my nearest toy store and all of the DC Direct figures they had in stock didn't interest me.

They did have the Ra's Al Ghul Trinity DC Direct figure in stock and I have to admit seeing it close up I'm not all that keen on it. Feel free if you still want to do the review though but you don't have to if you don't want to since I've seen it now.

I really went to the store for the Mattel figures (especially Clayface which I guessed would be a longshot). Ironically the one Mattel figure they had there in stock is, again, the one you are interested in (Knight Shadow Batman) for £10.99

A.T.R. said...

Hey Geoff,

Did you end up getting the Batman Beyond unmasked variant? I noticed they started popping up on eBay recently but are selling for well over $30 US. Very pricey

I agree that the Ra's is nothing special. I bought it for the sake of having a Ra's Al Ghul in my collection. Hopefully Mattel will do one eventually.

I too went hunting for toys today. Still no sign of the DCUC series 5 or any of the two packs at my local walmart and toys r us yet.

Maybe I should take a trip to England to find me a Knight Shadow Batman.

Anonymous said...

I didn't even know the Unmasked variant is out. Thanks for letting me know. $30+ dollars is too pricey for me as well despite the fact that the figure does look nice. I'll keep an eye on it to see if any go a bit cheaper.

Thanks as well for the Orion review. I think I might wait for the two pack version since I don't have the Orion figure yet and I'd also be getting a new figure with it.

To be honest I think it was just extreme luck that the Knight Shadow Batman Mattel figure was in Forbidden Planet. I've never seen any Mattel figures on sale before in any toy store I've been in. Most likely it was in stock either by an error when they placed an order for their batches of figures or possibly someone sold it to them. It is a very nice figure but I have so much Batman merchandise already (I have three Batman figures already in some form) that I don't need another figure. The reason I'm getting the Batman Beyond ones is because it is a different character as Batman.

A.T.R. said...

ya, i just started seeing the unmasked version on eBay in the last couple of days, however, because its so new and a bit rare, its going for crazy prices right now as i mentioned before. Better off waiting until DCUC wave 6 comes out next month and you'll see the prices on the figures from the older waves drop to normal. You'll be happy with the regular version of BB anyway.

Anonymous said...

At the moment it's Clayface I'm really on the lookout for but despite the rarity of it at $40+ dollars it's just too expensive for me since I also collect the DC Eaglemoss figures too.

Wave 5 is the Walmart exclusive set right? Is that out yet?

Also just want to correct an error I made. I have seen Mattel figures, such as the Justice League animated series figures, on sale here in the UK. They are very common. It's the figures from the DC Superheroes and DC Universe lines that I have never seen in shops aside from the Knight Shadow Batman figure.

A.T.R. said...

Clayface is quite high. Sometimes he'll go for as low as $25 on eBay, but im sure shipping will hurt you a bit.

Ya, Wave 5 is the walmart exclusive and is out in a few areas. Its still going for about 150-170 US on eBay right now for the full set before shipping costs and people are buying it up like crazy. The sellers know its hard to get. I can't find it at any of my local walmarts.

Ya, those Justice League Unlimited toys are all around here too. They have a big selection but are a bit too cartoony for me. It makes me wonder why they make the DCUC toys so much harder to find...

Ive seen some Eaglemoss on eBay recently but the shipping costs practically doubles the price tag for me.

Anonymous said...

Regarding the DCUC range I have the same problem as you do for the Eaglemoss figures. Shipping is the major factor since not many UK sellers sell the figures and so I have to usually resort to US sellers. I got lucky with the Mr Freeze tech suit as someone was selling it on Amazon UK.

Do you plan on getting the Wave 5 set when it comes down in price? We don't have Walmart over here. I remember that they bought out ASDA but it's still the same shop that doesn't sell many figures based on comics. The only DC ones I've seen are, again, the animated ones. Marvel has better luck and some figures can be found but even then they're quite scarce.

I'm trying to build a collection of the major Batman villains and Clayface is one of the few I don't have. I plan on getting Bane eventually as well as Killer Croc but it's Mad Hatter I'm upset over considering how prominent of a villain he is in Batman's rogues gallery. To the best of my knowledge there is only one figure of him from DC Direct and I don't like it. I pray Mattel will do one eventually as it doesn't look likely that DC Direct are going to do any for the foreseeable future.

Despite the fact that I really enjoyed the majority of the DC Animated Universe series I'm not all that keen on the figures for the same reason as you and I agree with you about the DCUC toys, especially since they are produced for the general market unlike the DC Direct figures, and yet it's the latter you see a lot more of in stores.

They've announced the next batch of figures for the Eaglemoss collection along with pictures which will be (in order):

Donna Troy (as Troia), Creeper, Spectre, Deadshot and Penguin.

There's quite a few Batman characters in the set so far. Spectre and Creeper haven't had many figures, if any - I'm not aware of Creeper having any, so it's quite well balanced.

A.T.R. said...

I am getting wave 5, its just a matter of how much lower the cost will go on eBay if i can't find it at my local walmarts. This exclusive thing really gets to me. Im like you too with the batman villains. I want all the good ones and Mad Hatter is on my list too. Hopefully Mattel will do him....They're doing killer moth for god sake, why not Mad Hatter?

Not surprising that Eaglemoss has stocked up on the Batman characters, they really are, in my opinion, the best of the DC Comics world. Cant say that Ive ever seen a Creeper figure either.

Anonymous said...

I just happened to be searching for figure reviews on Youtube when I found your video. I like some of the little setups you did with the figures.

I just found your other blog too. Hope your recovery is going well. I sometimes play some sports myself such as Cricket but more often Tennis since we do have some Tennis courts and it's my favourite sport.

I've always liked Canada for it's scenery and want to visit someday. I really want to visit and like New Zealand too for the same reason. I'm quite lucky where I live as there is a nice countryside view from the window at the back.

Anyway I digress. Sorry if I've rambled on a bit. Back on topic of this blog I totally agree on your comments about the Batman characters. I've just seen that DC Direct is releasing a Creeper figure next year too.

The exclusive figures also gets to me too. It's hard getting the normal figures (because of the shipping) but it's even worse for the exclusive ones.

Keep up the good reviews. They've been very helpful for me.

A.T.R. said...

ha-ha. Ya, its a crappy little video i put together in about 10 minutes with a bunch of extra pics. Ive got some other sites i've posted pics on to. Its hard to get noticed by google so you have to use other means to get visitors. If you haven't already, check out the videos on youtube by "Its just some random guy". They are action figure related and hilarious.

Im surprised you found my other blog. I didnt think i had it linked to this one. The knee surgery blog is what started me blogging. I had a lot of time on my hands. I just started a Sony Playstation blog too but i find i really dont have time to consistantly write in all 3 blogs. This one takes up a lot of my time on its own.

The Creeper is interesting and could be a cool figure but i hope that Mattel decides to go with the more popular villains first (Hatter and P.I. and a remake of the Joker)

Anonymous said...

Those videos are hilarious. Thanks for letting me know about them. I particularly liked the one about Iron Man angry at Batman for getting the better movie of the year.

What was your Playstation blog about? I can see this Action Figure one taking a bit of your time because of the photos as well as the writing.

My Batman Beyond figure arrived in the post today as well as my Eaglemoss Nightwing figure. As you mentioned the Batman Beyond figure is very glossy but I agree that it's to be expected when you think about the suit he is wearing and that it'd be made out of some sort of plastic.

I've also bought the Unmasked version too. Someone was selling it on Amazon UK for £14 which I thought was relatively cheap (a lot cheaper than they are going for on e-bay at any rate). If you want I'll let you know what it's like. I can take pictures if you want but they will be a bit blurry.

Thanks for the review on the Bane figure. I'd probably go for the all black version myself since that's the costume that's mostly associated with Bane. Personally I think Bane is one of the underrated villains. He's one of the few to actually work out Batman's secret and actually uses a good strategy to bring him down although in recent years he hasn't been as well written as in the past.

A.T.R. said...

Cool, I hope you enjoy the Batman Beyond figure. Hopefully my review gave you a good idea of what it is like. If you can get some good pics of the BB unmasked that would be cool. How do you like the eaglemoss nightwing?

Anyone who likes superheroes or comics would enjoy those youtube videos. They are great and Itsjustsomerandomguy is a genious.

Bane is a very cool character. They really butchered him in that Batman movie with MR Freeze and P.I. But those movies in general butchered everything about Batman in my opinion. You're right, the black outfit is definitely the one he's best known to have. For the right price, id consider buying it just to fill out my DCSH collection.

By the way, the new 2 packs have slowly started popping up on eBay.

Anonymous said...

Your review did help and it is exactly as you described it.

I got the unmasked figure today which I was extremely surprised to see as it arrived very quickly. They must have shipped it the same day I ordered it. Paint wise there's a small black spot on his red symbol but it's not really noticeable far away. He comes with the same Batarang from the masked version and the mask that he is holding in his other hand is removable.

The Nightwing figure is very nice and is posed quite similar to the Hush figure although personally I think the Eaglemoss one is vastly better. I haven't noticed any painting problems either.

Since your a Batman fan I've uploaded some pictures for you of the pre-production Eaglemoss Penguin figure. I also did some searching on E-bay and I found some pictures of an Eaglemoss Nightwing from someone else's collection which shows Nightwing on his own and then next to Superman and the recently released Booster Gold figure:

http://img84.imageshack.us/my.php?image=penguinbo4.jpg

http://img444.imageshack.us/my.php?image=nightwingeaglemosspw4.jpg

http://img237.imageshack.us/my.php?image=nightwingboostergoldsupts8.jpg

I've actually been tinkering with the camera and I might be able to get a picture of the Unnmasked Batman Beyond. Will try at the weekend. Unfortunately though I can't do it for the Eaglemoss figures since they are so small and when I try to zoom it loses the focus and makes it look blurry.

I think they butchered all the characters in the Schumacher films (particularly Bane, Two-Face and Ivy). I actually quite like the Burton movies, in their own continuity but I personally think that the Schumacher ones are abysmal. I've never understood why even Batman Forever did well, story wise that is, as I've seen reviews that praise it for not only it's story but also the portrayal of the characters. Personally I thought it was terrible. Obviously it did well at the cinema since it was made not long after the huge success of Batman Returns but also the name of Batman itself would be enough to get people flocking to the cinema, just as Spiderman did for Marvel when it was made.

Thanks for letting me know about the 2-packs.

A.T.R. said...

Glad to here you're happy with the BB figure and that my review was helpful and accurate. I certainly dont want to mislead anyone.

I forgot that unmasked BB comes with a mask....does it actually fit on his head? Or does it just go in his hand?

Thanks for the EM links. They look cool. Supes looks a little small next to BG.

I can't say i was a fan of the Burton films. Im just not big of his style i suppose. Schumacher's films only did well, because of the success of the first two films....I think people caught on for the forth film and just didnt bother and thankfully putting the franchise out of its misery. I am a huge fan of the newer movies thats for sure.

Anonymous said...

I was able to take some pictures but that are a bit blurry so I haven't bothered uploading them.

With regards to the unmasked figure as part of the moulding on the mask there is a black plastic rod behind the mask so it is unseen which slots into his hand and holds it in place.

I do like the new movies though I think both are a tad overlong, especially the first.

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