Zartan (2009)

I was disappointed in Zartan’s movie treatment. Although his presence was comparatively brief, I found his characterization a little too far toward the creepy end of the spectrum. He was too much of a sociopathic cold blooded killer. I wonder if the writers were inspired by the X-Men film’s shapechanger, Mystique. Either way, he didn’t have much of the appeal

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Zartan (2012 Retaliation)

Is Zartan going to look like this in the new movie?! Uh, no. By all appearances, the master of disguise is going to look like Jonathan Pryce for most of the movie. I’m bummed that the filmmakers haven’t been able to throw even a little nod to the character’s iconic look. Sure, the 80’s style is kind of out-there, what

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Shipwreck (2010)

First there was sailor Shipwreck, then diver Shipwreck, then deck hand Shipwreck. With this Toys R Us exclusive “movie” figure came Deadliest Catch Shipwreck.  I don’t know whether he’s on a mission, or just on leave fishing for Alaskan king crab. He’s decked out in arctic gear, but I just can’t help but see old Shippy on a deck somewhere. His weapons

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Sgt. Stone (2009)

During the Joe A Day podcast special, one of the readers brought up last year’s Nice Pants theme week. While I’m not quite ready to dig up that old chestnut, I was drawn hypnotically to another movie figure’s dungarees while sifting through my storage bins. Sgt. Stone made a controversial appearance (to me, at least) in the Rise of Cobra.

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Barbecue (2009)

One of my favorite aspects of the 2009 movie line was the Toys R Us exclusive figure series. It gave us some straight repaints, a few new combinations of 25th anniversary parts, and also one brand new character. Barbecue falls into the straight repaint category. The 25th anniversary mold has been done up in a more movie reminiscent style. I

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Desert Viper (2009)

Another figure from the end of the Rise of Cobra movie line, the Desert Viper is a fairly successful blending of parts from several Cobra troopers. The extensive use of removable web gear may be the biggest improvement from the vintage to the modern era in terms of the versatility of existing molds. Some folks complain about Hasbro’s reuse of

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