Playmates Toys wil soon be announcing their 2018 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles line-up at this years New York ToyFair, which we will be covering in person. So make sure to check back for coverage beginning February 17th. Before we learn more about this years offerings, lets take a look at something that may have slipped under most collectors radar from last year, a new Slash figure that has some changes in deco compared to the 2014 figure.
Slash was given a reissue, over a new deco compared to some of last years offerings that we’ve previously covered. Slash was not a figure that was announced at New York ToyFair 2017, which at the time Playmates Toys had shown off the entire year of figures. Instead, these changes come from the factory itself, which includes painted toe nails rather than just leaving them black.
In the series, Slash started out as Rapael’s pet turtle, then was mutated, and was a temporary villain teaming up with Newtralizer. Slash would later join the Mighty Mutanimals, which was a team of mutants that were allies to the turtles. These two teams would work together against threats such as the Triceratons, the Kraang, and even 80’s Shredder and Krang when they visited this Earth in the series finale. The Mighty Mutanimals is a team that Turtles fans have seen since this was originally launched in Archie Comics in 1992, IDW Comics, and were introduced on television in the 2012 series. While the comics and television show had some different team members, the name remained the same.
Availability: December 2017
Slash is based on the 2012-2017 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles animated series that aired on Nickelodeon, and the figure is scaled down compared to the animated appearance to keep the price point at $8.99. This technique was used on many figures in the line, including Leatherhead, Rocksteady and Mozar. Slash is a repaint of the 2014 figure, and besides the most obvious redeco of the toe nails being lime, we’ve noticed many other deco changes while photographing the figure. As we mentioned above, these were changes at the factory, which is common when companies reissue products years later.
Slash stands at roughly 4″ tall, and has a very detailed sculpt including textures on the skin, bandages and shell. The skin color on the figure has a lighter blue compared to the darker blue on the 2014 figure, a lighter brown chest, pink bandages on the arms compared to a light purple, and even the shell on his back no longer has the black wash as compared to the 2014 figure. In addition, the handle on the mace is a lighter blue. The mace is the only accessory that Slash comes with.
Besides those changes, Slash has the same articulation and sculpt as the 2014 offering. This includes a swivel neck, swivel-hinged shoulders, swivel-hinged elbows, and swivel-hinged hips. The right leg has to be placed in front, and the left leg in back due to how they were sculpted just so he can stand. The chest has detailed lines sculpted on the front and back of the shell. The bandages on his feet and legs, forearms and wrists also have a texture sculpted on. The chest is also made of a soft plastic, and is a separate piece placed over the body. The head sculpt is small and not proportional to the body, and has a black mask around the eyes.
The Mighty Mutanimals is a team that we’re hopeful to see return in another form on the new 2018 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles series, but given how this new show is geared towards younger audiences, it is very unlikely fans will see these characters return to television anytime soon. This team is made up of Slash, Leatherhead, Dr. Tyler Rockwell (Monkey Brains) and Mondo Gecko fought alongside the Turtles and acted as their own team in this series. Pigeon Pete was an original member before Mondo Gecko, but left the team for unknown reasons. Unfortunately, Playmates Toys never offered a figure of this character despite his many appearances in the series, leaving fans without a core member of the Mighty Mutanimals to complete their collection.
Overall, Slash is a great figure and is something definitely for completists and for the most casual Turtles fan. The deco changes on this figure is certainly a nice update to the 2014 offering. The painted toe nails is the most noticeable change on this figure, without having to look too closely and compare it.
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