Mattel is expanding their Masters Of The Universe Classics line in 2016 with more Filmation style figures. This year, there is a Collectors Choice Subscription, and a 7 figure subscription called Club Grayskull that focuses on characters collectors have demanded. The first figure from the Club Grayskull line-up is a newly sculpted He-Man figure from head to toe, and based on his Filmation series. This is different compared to the previous He-Man figures that focused on the vintage toy line (200X and New Adventures He-Man also focused on show/toy accuracy).
For most people collecting this line, they grew up watching the He-Man and the Masters of the Universe animated series on television, and grew up watching this show this was the version of He-Man that you would be more familiar with over the toy. The Filmation line will include more figures including Skeletor, Trap Jaw, among others shown at Mattel’s Mattycollector Press Event at New York ToyFair 2016.
Club Grayskull kicks off this month with the first figure of the line, He-Man. This year is going to be a special treat for fans, as Mattel will have many more surprises planned out throughout the year and beyond.
Availability: February 2016
Packaging:
Club Grayskull offers brand new packaging that collectors will want to save for as long as they keep their collection. The packaging consists of a new high-end window box with a flip cover over it. The flip cover features artwork of Castle Grayskull’s door and mouth. The artwork is simply beautiful and the packaging is just as detailed and thought out as the artwork. The flip cover does not have the name of the figure/character of what is inside the box, so it’s like a mystery box until you lift it up. The window box has He-Man as he is standing in front of Castle Grayskull and behind He-Man is a hallway with spiral stairs leading up. This is a very nice addition to the packaging.
It is very possible that other heroic warriors will include this packaging, while Skeletor and his Evil Warriors will include Snake Mountain inspired packaging.
Sculpt & Paint:
He-Man stands at 6-3/4″ and in is inspired from his Filmation appearance. The figure stands taller compared to other He-Man figures based on the vintage toy, and he is also completely newly tooled. This was not an easy task for The Four Horsemen to attempt, and they definitely rose to the challenged and excelled almost in every way.
He-Man’s head sculpt, including his hair was taken directly from 2D cel art and sculpted in 3D, and this was all done to mimic the animated series as best as humanly possible. The result as you can see is excellent, and this figure best matches the version of He-Man as seen in the opening scene of the show.
The chest, arms, legs, hands, and feet use more of a standard He-Man base, but is completely newly tooled just for this figure. We were pleasantly surprised to learn that the figure was newly tooled, and not just another repaint with a new head using the previous He-Man base. He-Man also has a newly sculpted chest harness, gauntlets, furry shorts, and boots. These pieces are smoothed out compared to other He-Man figures, and the overall result is well executed.
Aside from the new sculpt, He-Man was given newly added wrist hinges and much more sturdy ankle hinges. He-Man now has the ability to raise his sword up even higher thanks to this key missing articulation in his wrist. The ankle hinges are a bit too exposes and visually they are a nightmare to look at. This is a great figure sculpt, and to see one tidbit like this is most unfortunate. The ankles can move up and down, and side to side, and this is another key point in articulation that needed an update in the line. Visually it takes away a tiny bit from the figure, but having that extra articulation is always welcome.
His accessories includes the Sword of Power, based on the Filmation series, and a brick block designed to hold two swords. The sword looks a little too wide, and does not match the source material as best as it could have. The sword holder is very nice, and looks good next to He-Man, but not on its own.
Articulation:
Standard for MOTUC. His wrist includes a hinged joint, which is a new addition to the line.
Accessories:
Sword of Power, a brick block sword holder.
Overall:
He-Man is an excellent figure that’s well detailed sculpted and looks great compared to his cartoon counterpart. Club Grayskull has a strong start this month and we are looking forward to more Filmation-inspired figures and hopefully more coming years to come.
Highly Recommended.
Purchase:
