DC Universe Classics - 2009 Year In Review

The second full year into Mattel's DC Universe Classics and we've seen some pretty cool action figures through out the year.   So I'll just go over some of the main characters and my favs we've seen released through out the 2009 calendar year.

For starter, Mattel gave us the biggest Collect and Connect action figure thus far in Wave 8's Giganta standing at about 10 inches tall.  Easily one of the best looking CnC figures aswell to date. 

We've also seen the dreded return of the Walmart Exclusive set, much like Wave 5 in 2008, wave 10 in 2009 was another walmart exclusive set.  This set featured a very import action figure of The Joker which would be important to any DC Comics fan.  Joker was arguably one of the best DCUC action figures of the year in my opinion.  We also saw and a repainted Batman figure was released again in this set.  That would make this the 4th repaint using this same sculpt.  Mattel thankfully included some cool new accessories with Bats.

Power Girl, also part of wave 10 and Superman from the Gotham City 5 pack (another wal-mart exclusive).  The unfortunate thing about these walmart exclusives is that so many people have a hard time finding them.  It appears that Mattel or Walmart is only releasing this in certain areas around the US.  If you're in Canada (like me) or somewhere else, you can forget about it.  Ebay is your only option. 

Captain Cold and Flash from wave 7 were some of the A list characters released in 2009.  I like how Mattel has been releasing a big name hero with one of their popular arch enemies with each set. 

We also saw some New Genesis/Apokolips characters introduced such as Big Barda from wave 7, Mister Miracle from wave 6, Kalibak also from wave 6, Mantis from wave 9 and Parademon from wave 8.  Look out for more of these characters including a new Darkseid in 2010's wave 12 set. 

Below we have Hawkman from wave 6 and Gentleman Ghost from wave 8.  There were some complaints about low numbers of wave 8 and 9 being released.  I myself still have not been able to finish either set.  Gentleman Ghost was very hard to find at a reasonable price.

Below we have some of the DCUC wave 9 action figures.  Left to right is Black Canary, Green Arrow, Deadshot and Mantis.

As mentioned above, Batman fans saw a few repaints of the wave 1 Detective Batman sculpt and also got some new additions for their rogue collection.  In the pic below we have from let to right, Two-Face (DCSH repaint), Catwoman (DCSH repaint), Killer Moth from wave 6, Batman (Gotham City), Deadshot and The Joker.  Is it just me or is there a lot of purple here?

There were a few two-packs released this year.  Below we see the Clash of the Cosmos Superman and Brainiac pack.

And of course, a classic Lex Luthor which also came in the Gotham City 5 Pack.  This was the only original sculpt in the set and I'm sure a lot of people bought the set just for this figure.  Fans of the old Superfriends cartoon were surely happy with this release. 

Well, thats Mattel's DC Universe Classics 2009 wrap up for you.  2010 looks to have some interesting new releases.  Waves 11, 12 and 13 have been announced and I've also got my own person list of characters I hope to see wave 14 and 15 or any new two packs.  To check out some previews of waves 11, 12 and 13, click on the links below.

DC Universe Classics Wave 11

DC Universe Classics Wave 12

DC Universe Classics Wave 13

DC Universe Classics - Captain Cold

With the San Diego Comic Con going on right now and all the news about the new DCUC action figures coming soon, its got me thinking that its time to catch up on some of my reviews. Still going through wave 7, today, I'll take a closer look at Captain Cold. Personally, Captain Cold is one of the characters from this set who i was looking forward to due most mainly to the old Superfriends TV show from my childhood.

To find Mattel's DC Universe Classics Captain Cold on eBay, click here

As far as height goes, Captain Cold is a noticeably shorter than the norm for this series. Similar to Sinestro from wave 3. See below standing next to Flash, Cap is a good 1/4 inch shorter.

The sculpt is very good and made up of a lot of original parts that we have not seen before on any other figure from the DC Universe Classics series. Probably due to his unique size and costume.

All in all, a very good likeness of the comic book villain. Click on any of these pictures to enlarge for more detail.

Taking a closer look at Captain Cold's face, you'll notice he is mighty pissed about something. The teeth and mouth are painted fairly cleanly. So are the glasses. No paint runs or anything noticeable. As for the rest of the paint job, His parka, boots and gloves are all grey and then the fluffy parts of his hood, gloves and boots are highlighted in white. After that, the majority of his costume is one shade of blue except for his belt which is yellow.

Captain Cold comes with one accessory and that is his freeze gun. Unfortunately it fits very loosely in his right hand and his left hand is a closed fist. Its a minor inconvenience. On the bright side, the gun fits nice and snug in his side holster.

Despite the difference in size, Captain Colds articulation still matches up with the other DCUC action figures. Joints include the neck, shoulders, biceps, elbows, wrists, abdominal, waist, hips, thighs, knees and ankles. Unfortunately Cap's parka restricts some of the shoulder joints movements so you cannot totally raise his arms above his head.

Overall, like many of the figures from this collection, Captain Cold a good action figure. My biggest complaint is how loosely his gun fits into his hand but that's just me being picky. As far as I'm concerned, he is a must have even for the casual collector of this set, especially for those trying to fill out their Legion of Doom roster.

Sculpt - 9, Paint - 8, Accessories - 5, Articulation - 9, Fun - 8

There are a lot of these Captain Cold figures floating around on eBay right now for very reasonable costs. Its really worth checking out.

To find Mattel's DC Universe Classics Captain Cold on eBay, click here




Thats it for this review. I'll be getting into the rest of Wave 7 and hopefully into wave 8 shortly as well as report on some of the new announced figures announced at SD Comic Con 2009.