If you grew up during the 1980’s, then you would most definitely remember the old style of action figures of that era, with big bulky muscles for a 5.5″ figure, 5 points of articulation, and this particular look and feel that would begin to reshape toys during this time. In the 1980’s, fans were introduced to this now vintage style of toys, which would see many brands including He-Man and the Masters of the Universe, ThunderCats, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, BraveStarr, The Real Ghostbusters, Marvel’s Secret Wars, and many other toy lines that would later become nostalgic to those that played with this classic style of figures.
Funko is bringing back these retro figures as part of a new line-up of collectibles, which follows the success of their 3 3/4″ figures that have been around for the past few years. These Mortal Kombat X figures are just the beginning, and Funko will be offering ThunderCats, Horror icons, Conan the Barbarian and possibly other lines down the road as shown during New York ToyFair 2018 as part of this retro style.
This wave includes five characters, which includes Liu Kang, Kitana, Scorpion, Sub-Zero, and Raiden. There are also chase variants of Scorpion, Sub-Zero, and Raiden, which are not shown in this review. Unlike the vintage figures however, these feel a little more bulkier, but the style comes together nicely and has exceeded our expectations as this is the style of action figures that we had in the 1980’s. These figures are also modernized with the distinct style of the video game, and are backed with beautiful sculpting and deco that fans have become used too in today’s market.
Thank you to Funko for providing their Mortal Kombat X figures for review.
Availability: December 2017
Mortal Kombat X was launched in 2015 and available on Xbox One, PlayStation 4, Android, iOS, and Microsoft Windows. The game introduced classic as well as new Mortal Kombat characters to the franchise as well as new character designs and costumes. Late last year, Funko offered a new style of action figures based on the Mortal Kombat X game that pays tribute to many of the 1980’s toys. These are some of the most detailed and well made action figures that Funko has ever produced, which includes great quality, paint applications and overall detail that fans will love.
The first wave of these figures includes Liu Kang, Kitana, Scorpion, Sub-Zero, and Raiden, and some of these figures come with their iconic accessories. In some cases, paint applications are a common problem especially to fans that want to pick out and choose one at stores, and we’re happy to report that these figures are as perfect as can be. On these particular samples, there is no bleeding or spots of another color on any of the outfits, and each figure is made with great quality and detail. This particular style of figures and the attention to detail on these figures will capture the eyes of most fans, as many of us that grew up in the 1980’s had figures that look like this and want that nostalgic feeling, and have a modern design based on the latest Moral Kombat video game.
If you grew up in the 1980’s, you will recall the vintage style and how some of those old figures such as Masters of the Universe fit into your hands as a child. Well, these are not that, but are offered as bulkier figures to fit into you adult hands. These include 5 points of articulation, but again are modernized using some of today’s techniques, such as posing the legs and all of these have a hidden waist swivel giving them a 6th point of articulation. The hips joints are all ball jointed, allowing various poses as part of their modern update.
Raiden is sculpted with a non-removable hat, and the gold and blue detail sculpted on his outfit is excellent. Liu Kang has a nicely detailed dragon sculpted and painted in black over the red part of his costume, as well as a belt that is made of soft plastic, and nicely detailed gauntlets and boots painted in brown and gold deco. Kitana has a slightly different style of figure than you may remember from the 1980’s. as she is something different and modernized to fit in with these new figures. She has a leaner sculpt, and the only female character in this wave. The outfit is painted in a dark blue and silver, and the cloth around her waist is made of soft plastic. Her face is covered and her hair goes down her back. Scorpion includes great details to his sculpt include the area around his hips that are made of soft plastic, as well as the chest details that are painted in silver, brown and a dark shade of yellow. The gauntlets and boots include silver deco with brown straps around them. The head sculpt is nicely done and is almost completed covered with a mask and hood, with white eyes. Sub-Zero is also nicely detailed, and the area around his waist it is also made of soft plastic. The outfit is also nicely sculpted on he chest and back, including the blue and black deco and the details. The gauntlets on the forearms include non-removblae daggers and the boots have a metallic dark blue on the front. The head sculpt is also masked and hooded, as well as the white eyes that Scorpion has.
Except for Liu Kang, each of these figures includes their iconic accessories that fit into their hands, or on their wrists such as Raiden’s. Raiden includes lightning effects, which are made of soft plastic. Kitana has her fans that tend to fall out of her hands, and are painted in the same dark blue as her outfit, as well as a dark grey. Sub-Zero’s ice weapons include a sword and a hammer that are made of translucent light blue. Scorpion includes twin swords that are nicely sculpted.
Overall, Funko has done an excellent job capturing the look and feel of the retro 1980’s action figure and modernizing it for today’s adults. The style, detail and overall quality of these figures far exceeds expectations and we believe this style of figure is some of the best offerings that Funko has ever created. We are particularly fond of the strong paint applications as well as the superior figure sculpts. These are solid figures with nice bulky figure sculpts, and if you are into 1980’s style of figures, you will definitely be pleasantly surprised here. Look for additional franchises including ThunderCats, horror icons and Conan the Barbarian to be done in this style as shown during New York ToyFair 2018.
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