Let us start off this review by saying why would Mattel start the minis line with a 2013 SDCC Exclusive Masters of the Universe Classics Mini He-Man & Skeletor Figures, then continue the line as a 50% scaled down releases of Battle Armor He-Men and Mer-Man? The answer – Toyguru stated that it’s to ensure the longevity of this line. We will give Mattel that. With prices going up each year, it is understandable that Mattel wants to keep prices as low as possible for fans, while keeping the same quality to each new release.
However, that is not the case here and we think that Mattel should have offered the SDCC 2013 release as also scaled down by 50% instead of 
The good news is that Mattel is bringing the connect & collect concept taken from DC Universe Classics to this new line with the front of Castle Grayskull being offered as pieces included with all six 2 packs coming this year. The bad news is that the SDCC 2013 exclusive packaging was a cardboard Castle Grayskull diorama (shown in the gallery below), and now fans will have two Castle Grayskull’s in this line when the 6″ Classics took 5 years to get Castle Grayskull and we still don’t have Snake Mountain in either line.
Availability: February 2014
Sculpt & Paint:
Battle Armor He-Man and Mer-Man are all new sculpted figures that do not share any reused parts from each other. If you look closely, the arms, legs, chest, back, are slightly different than each other, which is some different for Mattel to offer two MOTU characters not using shared parts compared to the 6″ Classics line.
Mer-Man has is the only figure of the set that has a holster for his sword on his back, and Battle Armor He-Man is left holding both weapons.
The sculpt on both of these are disproportionate as the feet and legs and thin, while the chest and arms are bulky. Mattel can only get away with this with this size scale as having this on a larger figure would upset most fans. The colors chosen match the likeness of each character well and we are very pleased that Battle Armor He-Man is painted silver and not grey.
Articulation:
Swivel heads, swivel arms, swivel waist.
Accessories:
Battle Armor He-Man – sword and shield
Mer-Man – staff and shield
Overall:
Despite some of the comments above about what is wrong with this line, these are actually quite fun to play with. While these might not be for all fans, parents can introduce He-Man to their kids with these new minis as a cheaper alternative to the adult-aimed 6″ line Masters Of The Universe Classics.
Highly Recommended.
Purchase: You can find this figure at our sponsors below:
