Predictably, after Super7 dragged their feet in confirming the new figure leaks from August, their next wave of figures just appeared in Asia, only weeks after Super7 officially confirmed their last wave. Rather than wait for them to catch up, I'm going to talk about these, now. These will, likely be 2027 releases that show up at retailers in January. But, late December is possible, too. Especially for the Ninja Force figures.
I've only got the Cobra Commander render. But, you can find the pics of the wave all over the usual places. We saw two new Ninja Force figures, 3 figures in the next wave and the Python Patrol Zartan exclusive. Oddly, there are only 3 figures shown on the cardbacks. Usually, they are released in waves of 4. No word as to why this is. Without further adieu:
Armored Cobra Commander:
Not sure why we need this figure. The armored 1987 Cobra Commander is great. There are lots of cheap repaints of him that are available. He's not a figure who's materially different from his cartoon appearance. So, this guy is an easy skip.
Firefly:
There's lots of Firefly figures. They're mostly really well done. This color scheme is new-ish for the mold. But, the sculpt is weak and a definite downgrade. He's got some weird flamethrower instead of his standard sub-machine gun. The upside is that we're going to get a real Sabretooth from this mold. So, I'll just wait for him. So far, we're 0 for 2.
Alpine:
This should be great. But, this figure is weak. The lower body looks like a Wave 1 figure with overly smooth detailing. But, the head and chest seem to be overstylized. Alpine doesn't look like he fits with the rest of the line. And, he appears he would stand out even among ReAction+ figures. The best analogy I can find for him is the difference between animated Clone Wars figures from the 2003 era animated series vs. more "realistic" Star Wars figures. The two lines are kind of compatible. But, the styles are so different that they really stick out when looked at together. I love Alpine as a character. But, this figure won't work among the rest of my collection. Another skip for me.
Python Patrol Zartan:
I'm not a huge fan of this Zartan sculpt. The Python Patrol coloring is kind of weird. So, that's fun. I'm finding the Python/Tiger Force repaints are getting a bit played out. It might be time to look at bringing in Night Force, Sky Patrol or some other subset to liven up the releases a bit. If you're really into Python Patrol (I'm not) this is a nice Zartan. And, his skin still changes color.
Ninja Force BAT:
The colors on this guy are cool. They are very reminiscent of the Sludge Viper. He has ninja hand attachments. One looks like a morning star. Though, the execution is lacking. But, the head is a direct rip off of Boba Fett. It's so bad that I could see it being actionable. It's that blatant. And, it ruins the figure because all I see is a Star Wars rip off on a figure that should, otherwise, have been solid. But, I'll still get one because I think I'm going to end up being a completist on the Ninja Force line. It's that strong.
Ninja Force Lady Jaye:
The Ninja Force line has been the most creative and powerful addition to the Joe line in at least 20 years. Lady Jaye continues that tradition. She has an '80's Dungeons & Dragons vibe, in a good way. Her cloak is a new entry to the Joe line. The Robin Hood coloring works for Lady Jaye. She is the highlight of the leak. She'll be joining my collection for sure.
Overall:
This is one of the weakest waves we've seen in a while from Super7. Firefly and Cobra Commander just aren't figures that really needed an update. Getting them together kind of sucks. Alpine's a solid choice. But, they flubbed the sculpt and missed a chance at something cool. They're going to need to step it up a bit and lock in some better character selection and standardize their sculpting improvements for the rest of 2027.
The Ninja Force subset, though, continues to impress. Copyright infringement on the BAT aside, the line continues to be innovative, cool and fun. The designs take characters to new places and introduce some badly needed new concepts to the Joe brand. I'd love to see Super7 extend their Ninja Force creativity into the standard line. Take some chances and create some memorable figures that break through the Joe zeitgeist. They've proven they can do it.
No comments:
Post a Comment