Batman Legacy: Catwoman Classic

Officially, DC Universe Classics just came to an end with wave 20. Unofficially, it's still going pretty strong with a handful of spin-off lines. The Batman Legacy line is actually a bit more complicated than that. It's actually a bizarre hybrid of DCUC, Movie Masters, and new Arkham Asylum/Arkham City figures. What I'm looking at today, however, is pretty clearly an extension of the Classics figures Mattel's been putting out for years.

I skipped the first two waves, with the exception of a Gordon/Prototype Batsuit 2-pack I found on clearance (I'll get around to reviewing that soon). The new wave, which is just showing up at retail now, is split between retro and new styles, featuring two classic designs and two video-game inspired figures.


Before I get too involved with the figure, I've got a few thoughts about something I generally ignore: the packaging. I'm impressed with the amount of character-specific art included on both the front and back of this. In addition, take a look at a close-up of the character bio:

There's some impressively obscure info on there. I'm especially impressed they mentioned that Selina was simply called "The Cat" in her first appearance: that's the kind of detail that usually gets glossed over.

But of course I don't buy toys based on their packaging. In this case, there were a few factors. For one, both my wife and I are fans of this look. While I still prefer her modern black, I also love the glamorous, purple design she sported in the Silver Age.

I expected to like this from pictures I'd seen, but frankly my expectations were exceeded. This is a beautiful figure. While I'm not completely sold on her cape, I think the purple dress (reused from Raven, I'm sure), works fantastically. In addition, the Four Horsemen delivered an amazing head sculpt. The only thing you want to watch out for is paint: while I couldn't be happier with how my figure looks, there were two others on the peg who were nowhere near as lovely.

Articulation is basically the same as we're used to, though there is one point worth celebrating. Unlike almost every other female character Mattel's made, they actually took Catwoman's hair into consideration. She still doesn't have much range vertically, but there's enough space between her hair and cape to allow you to turn her head side-to-side.

While I love the figure, I have mixed feelings about her accessories. She comes with a stand which is at least somewhat personalized, including a sticker containing her name on the front. The top has a raised bat-symbol. Overall, this is a decent character stand, certainly better than the clear plastic ovals that came with DC Universe Classics figures (correction: that should have read, "that RARELY came with DC Universe Classics figures). But it's still very light and very simple. Considering what DC Direct's offering at the same price point, I'd like to get something better. Also, be aware that her heals don't work perfectly with the stand. She can stand on it, but the fact they inserted the peg holes right beside the gap in her shoes leaves her a bit unsteady.

The only other accessory is a small poster. Normally, these are just about worthless, but Mattel's actually taken a few steps to make this at least interesting. First of all, they rolled it up instead of folding it, which means there are no creases. Secondly, they used a classic Catwoman cover, a nice touch, and had the common sense to make it actual size.

While it's certainly nothing spectacular, I have to admit it's well-executed. By the way, in case you were wondering, the coins are there to keep the poster from rolling back up.

The reason I'm a little disappointed in her selection of accessories is that she's missing her trademark whip. I'm kind of surprised Mattel didn't include one, seeing as her right hand has the same grip the Superheroes Catwoman had. Here's the Legacy Catwoman borrowing the other's weapon:

Despite that omission and despite her price point (expect around $16 - $20), I really like this figure. I wound up paying the higher end of that scale, by the way: I found her for twenty at a toy store in Queens and grabbed her. She's worth that to me, but I'll be the first to admit it seems a bit high objectively.

Picture: Version 2.0

Green Lantern Constructs

Recently, I've been buying a lot of cheap 3.75 inch Green Lantern merchandise for their energy constructs, and I wanted to post some pictures showing how those look with 6 inch figures.

Above, I've got Sodam Yat posing with a crossbow from the Ultimate Construct Collection, along with Sinestro's smaller energy sword. The crossbow is attached using the connector that came with Kilowog. It's a tad awkward: it seems to work best with the more 2-dimensional constructs, like the pinchers pictured below:

I'm pleased to report I found an even better use for a few of these constructs that doesn't require the connectors. On a hunch, I pulled my Katma Tui off the shelf. To date, she's the only female member of the Lantern Corps Mattel's produced (a shame: there are some great characters out there), and the constructs she came with were a bit lacking:

I like the idea of her having a sword and shield, but those are quite possibly the crappiest constructs Mattel's made to date. On top of that, none of the other 6-inch constructs fit her hands, because they're so much smaller than the male characters'.

Fortunately, the miniature constructs made for the 3.75 inch figures are just right. Like I said, I wanted to maintain the sword/shield combo, but I gave her an upgrade:

Much better. She has trouble standing up with the shield, but I've got her (along with most of the Corps) wired up in flight anyway, so that's no real problem.

The next step is to take a look at some of the extra connectors I've got and see if I can build some new constructs off of them using various green plastic parts I have lying around.

Picture: It's Old Mr. Brand, from the Circus!

Lego Friends: Olivia's Invention Workshop

When Lego created the new "Friends" line, I don't think they anticipated how controversial it would be. In the past week, I've engaged in several online and in-person discussions about these. There seem to be several different schools of thought around why these are bad, but most concerns center on the message these are sending to young girls.

I respect where people are coming from, but personally I don't see it. Anyone who's been paying attention to toys for the past decade knows that Lego sets haven't been gender-neutral in this age range for quite a while. And, frankly, if Lego's innovating new and better Star Wars sets for the boys, don't girls deserve some attention from their designers and marketing team?

Also, the mini-dolls are awesome. They're a little larger than the old mini-figs, and all accessories (and hair/hat pieces) are interchangeable.

The concept here is that each set contains a number of small projects, rather than one big one. Supposedly, Lego's research determined that pre-teen girls prefer this structure. I can't speak for young girls, but my wife decided this was adorable and picked it up. If she hadn't, I would have.

This set is of Olivia and her "Invention Workshop." Kudos to Lego for including a science lab in their first wave. With some luck, this could inspire a generation of young girls to grow up and become mad scientists and super-villains.

Along with Olivia, you get five projects, none of which should take you more than a few minutes to snap together. At first, I wasn't keen on the blackboard, due to the miniature hearts and flowers included. But the more I think about, the more it grows on me. Sure, it's girly, but that's the point, isn't it? And the message that math and science can be girly isn't a bad one to pass on to the next generation, given the gender divide in interest in those subjects.

The spectroscope (or whatever it is) is also pretty cool, if exceedingly simple. I like the included gem. As you can see, Lego was thoughtful enough to toss in an extra blue block, so Olivia's at the right height.

You also get to build your own miniature robot and remote control. The robot sort of looks like he's related to Wall-E or Johnny-5. I do wish they would have made him a bit larger, but that's just my opinion.

The workbench is one of the cooler aspects. It has working drawers and includes an assortment of miniature tools for Olivia's unholy experiments.

Finally, you get a shelf of jars and a beaker. I really love that beaker. I know Lego was trying to be cute with the colors, but it just looks radioactive to me. Cool.

The new mini-dolls are pretty awesome, too. They come apart in a few places, in case you want to swap out the heads or bodies with another of the Lego Friends figures. Unfortunately, the heads aren't compatible with traditional Lego mini-figs. However, the hair pieces are, and the hands are the same size, allowing them to trade tools and the like.

If you're not a fan of pastels, you're definitely not going to like these toys. But if you like the color scheme (as I do), then these are a lot of fun. And at $10 a pack they're a hell of a lot cheaper than Lego Star Wars sets.

Green Lantern Ultimate Construct Collection

I just looked at a few of the 3 3/4 inch Green Lantern figures yesterday and found them... lacking. In fact, the only redeeming aspect was the green energy constructs. As such, this set holds a bit more interest to me: it's almost entirely made up of constructs.

You do get a Hal Jordan, but who cares? He sucks, just like the other figures in this scale. But some of those constructs are pretty sweet. Of course, you'll want to get some of the connectors packaged with the larger toys in this line, so you can use these with your 6 inch Green Lantern figures.

I paid around $10 for this on clearance at Toys R Us. If you've got a collection of Green Lantern figures, that's an enticing deal.

Green Lantern 3.75 Inch Figures

Now that we're a solid six months from the most disappointing movie of the year, the toys are finally hitting clearance. Mattel went nuts getting products onto the shelves in preparation for this thing, and I suspect they were even more underwhelmed with the film than I was (had the movie done better, there likely would be fewer toys left in clearance).

These are actually only a few of the toys I picked up. I'm focusing on these two, because - frankly - they get redundant.

Taken out of context, these toys suck. There's just no getting around that: the sculpts are crap, the paint can't save them, the articulation is about two decades out of date, and their accessories are grossly oversized for these figures. I mean, look at Sinestro:

That sword's as big as he is. It looks absurd and garish, even for something aimed at kids. Likewise, Kilowog's accessory is useless unless you buy other toys: he comes with a connector to make up the difference between his large hands and the others in the line. It works, for what it's worth:

The only other accessory you get is a ring with each figure. By the way, these seem to photograph better than they look in person:

Be aware these are scaled for young kids: don't think you're getting a cheap Halloween costume if you're over the age of twelve. In addition, these are far thicker than they should be. I was far more taken with these in the package than in reality.

So, these are completely worthless, and you shouldn't waste your time.

Except... all of that is looking at what these toys are in and of themselves. In the greater scheme of things, there's something of value here, if you're willing to look for it.

It's those constructs. The connector that Kilowog comes with doesn't just fit his hands: it also fits 6 inch figures. Which means you've got the ability to turn any of the movie constructs into accessories for your DC Universe Classics and Green Lantern Classics figures.

If you can find these things cheap enough, go for it. I wound up paying around four bucks each for these: I wouldn't be at all surprised if they're cheaper outside New York.