Top 10, bottom 5 of 2012

[kylun flac]

Top 10

1. Fisto
2. Stinkor
3. Fearless Photog
4. BG Evil Lyn
5. S M@A
6. Snake Warriors
7. Cy Chopp
8. Griffin
9. Slush Head
10. Procrustus

Bottom 5

1. Jewlstar
2. DB Skeletor
3. Vykron
4. Sir Lasor Lot
5. Horde Prime

[Pancho]

Frosta
How did Mattel screw up so badly on one of the most anticipated POP characters to date? Frosta's hair was the wrong shade of blue, her back wasn't painted, Mattel used gray instead of white (for a snow/ice character), her face was off-model and her gloves were backwards.[/B]

Excuse me (and I'm not trying to be conflictive here), but why would you say her face was off-model? Just because she doesn't look like the Filmation version? Because, to be honest, this can be said about almost every single figure released on this line. The same thing can be said about the colors. The only complaint I can get about Frosta is the assembly issue, and I'll give you the gray instead of white, but complaining about the hair color and/or the face being off-model is nitpicking.

[Bonehead]

Top 10:

1. Draego Man
2. Shadow Weaver
3. Fisto
4. Kobra Khan
5. Granamyr
6. Rattlor
7. Mosqitor
8. Griffin
9. Snake Warriors
10. Frosta **

Bottom 5:

1. Fearless Photog
2. Star Sisters
3. Sir Lazer Lot
4. TMS
5. Slush Head

** Frosta would have been rated MUCH higher, probably in my top 2, if Mattel hadn't screwed up the colors on her. No question about it, she's my favorite POP character and to see how poorly her production figure came out is a disgrace. For the record, I have zero issues with the sculpt. The colors chosen for the production figure though completely ruined a potentially wonderful figure IMO.

[Nekk-ra]

(Not in any particular order)

Fisto - The vintage figure looked goofy. This guy looks like he could hand you your behind and make you thank him for the privilege.

Shadow Weaver - Beautifully executed, and a shining example of how to do Filmation characters in this line. Her only flaw is that as a sub exclusive she didn't have the availability she should have.

Stinkor - Could care less about the vintage figure, but I fell in love with this little guy. The 200x crazed Mogwai face is just killer. A shame about the arm swap.

Kobra Kahn - One of the figures that I feel veers a little too close to vintage, but the hooded head and Pixel saved him.

Draego-man - He's a near perfect Draconian in the MOTUC universe. His weapons from the new expansion pack only add to his excellence.

Snake-men soldiers - Very well done army-builder pack. Blastic is it's only weakness.

Rattlor - The 4H sculpt anthropomorphic creatures incredibly well, but Blastic strikes again.

Procrustus - A pleasant surprise. Kudos to whoever amped up the Harryhausen on him, because it works beautifully.

TOD Sorceress - The Sorceress is a beautiful figure, but her initial release was marred by the lack of the good hip joints and those huge eyesores/drums. This figure corrected both those problems, and the simple color palette let her beauty shine through.

The following are borderline due to issues.

Frosta - Should be an easy top ten, but as executed (swapped arms, really gray plastic, sloppy or missing paint apps) dragged her down. She is one of my favorites and does have a beautiful face sculpt, but I had to do a lot of work on her I shouldn't have had to do.

Granamyr - Wasn't interested, then saw that beautiful sculpt at SDCC. However, the reported QC issues are making me nervous. Once I have him in hand, I'll be able to judge better.

The figures that just didn't wow me:

Dekker - Instead of a second head, should have come with removable armor or more weaponry. As presented, he's a shelf-warmer. And I actually like the guy.

EP Randor - I don't think civilian gear works out the way it should. The only thing I like about this figure is his pimp cup. Having him in hand didn't change that.

DB Skeletor - The dragon and the Blastic really dampened my enthusiasm for this Skeletor. Should have been a knock-out, ended up a dud.

Tallstar - Classics MOTU figures, more often than not, are devoted to their vintage counterparts. The Star Sisters were copied after some poster art despite having well-documented prototypes. T-Star, who has one of the best female face sculpts, would look a hell of a lot better in toy colors; the MOTUC paint scheme makes my eyes bleed.

Jewelstar - Again, toy colors reign supreme here. A lack of accessories also hurts.

[shadowfall1976]

Excuse me (and I'm not trying to be conflictive here), but why would you say her face was off-model? Just because she doesn't look like the Filmation version? Because, to be honest, this can be said about almost every single figure released on this line. The same thing can be said about the colors. The only complaint I can get about Frosta is the assembly issue, and I'll give you the gray instead of white, but complaining about the hair color and/or the face being off-model is nitpicking.

I myself am quite happy with her....She has 2 major issues....2....at least she can stand up, has a better crotch piece and longer skirt than Sorceress (And I still like Sorceress, but she could be better), doesn't have 50 gallon wing drums, has articulated thighs, isn't a Star Sister, can sit down, can hold her head still, her head doesn't sit a foot above her neck peg like BP She-Ra & Teela....has a visible backside and thighs that actually look anatomically correct, her eyes don't look into space like Marlena, have a drive thru window on his back like Fisto...for a sword mainly 200X fans care anything about, his silver flat abs with a skin color upper body, looks dumb, and most of all doesn't have a 95% painted body that is known to have serious chipping and flaking issues....out of all she has better than other females and other figures in general in the line.

But hey let's focus on the 2 or 3 things she's got wrong. And as far as her face, I think she looks quite good, what the hell does everyone want her to look like Aphrodite or something? She is a great cross between Filmation and her doll....why does the face have to be so dead on, He-Man' s face doesn't look like his Filmation or his figure self, Teela's face doesn't look like her Filmation or her figure model....So people want what exactly?

I am not happy MAA got the cardback colors, I hate the "HI" Mer-Man hand, I think he should have gotten the regular hands both the Vintage toy and Filmation versions had. I hated they purposely reversed Stinkor's brand new forearms. All are more major gripes of mine, but let's not forget an $80 dragon now that apparently has togetherness issues....as well as rotten snout and broken pelvis figures....

[Bonehead]

But hey let's focus on the 2 or 3 things she's got wrong.

I am not happy MAA got the cardback colors, I hate the "HI" Mer-Man hand, I think he should have gotten the regular hands both the Vintage toy and Filmation versions had. I hated they purposely reversed Stinkor's brand new forearms. All are more major gripes of mine, but let's not forget an $80 dragon now that apparently has togetherness issues....as well as rotten snout and broken pelvis figures....

So what you are basically saying is that it's wrong to focus on the "2 or 3 things [Frosta's figure] got wrong" but it's OK to gripe about issues to Mer-Man, Fisto, Granny, and Stinkor.



That sure makes a lot of sense to me.

[CptSpandex]

2012 is the year I finally got a new Spikor, so that, as a die-hard Spikor fan, is my clear-cut #1. Some of these feel like they are older than 2012 to me for some reason:


My top 10
1. Spikor
2. Fisto
3. Kobra Kahn
4. Sorceress
5. Shadow Weaver
6. Draego Man
7. Thunder Punch He-Man
8. Stinkor
9. Snake Men 2-Pack
10. Dragon Blaster Skeletor

My bottom 5
1. Snake Man-At-Arms
2. Mighty Spector
3. Fearless Photog
4. Eternos Palace King Randor
5. Sir Laser Lot

[Orko's Magic Hat]

Top 10

01 Rattlor
02 Fisto
03 Kobra Khan
03 Draego-Man
05 Mekaneck
06 Spikor
07 Mosquitor (even though I don't have him yet)
08 Sorceress
09 Shadow Weaver
10 Mighty Spector / Slush Head

Least Favourite:

Vykron
DB Skeletor
Griffin (novelty has worn off a bit)

[Tallstar]

It's kind of amusing how often the Star Sisters (and Jewelstar and Tallstar in particular) are referenced in the dislike category in these sort of threads.



One hand I feel like laughing because it's hilarious to see them appearing so often in that category, and it's nice to see folks echoing some past thoughts I've had... on the other it's a bit sad to see those characters maligned.

[Niki]

It's kind of amusing how often the Star Sisters (and Jewelstar and Tallstar in particular) are referenced in the dislike category in these sort of threads.

http://i.minus.com/ieiwfhQdfvURi.gif

One hand I feel like laughing because it's hilarious to see them appearing so often in that category, and it's nice to see folks echoing some past thoughts I've had... on the other it's a bit sad to see those characters maligned.

The most obvious reason they are named that often is the fact there are far less female characters in this line

I am disappointed myself and everyone has a different taste. If you ask me Tallstar has one of the most beautiful faces in this line and i totally love her hair sculpt, Jewelstar s final toy suffers and that what´s disappointing me.

And both of them got screwed with awful looking crotch pieces. A point that none of the male figures ever had. The male figures get better and better with more and more pieces to swap and change and the female figures are still in a try out and improve phase which is a shame after almost four year!

[shadowfall1976]

So what you are basically saying is that it's wrong to focus on the "2 or 3 things [Frosta's figure] got wrong" but it's OK to gripe about issues to Mer-Man, Fisto, Granny, and Stinkor.



That sure makes a lot of sense to me.

No, I am using those as examples as to how other figures have as many if not more flaws than her....yes I think those figures are flawed per se, but go ahead....miss the point, it's OK.

Point is, despite the flaws they still adorn my shelf, I do still like them and I don't used every chance to nitpick them like people do Frosta like she is the worst figure in the line.

[RocketPunch]

Best:
1) Shadow Weaver (near perfect)
2) Spikor (excellent)
3) Fisto (love the sculpt; don't like the non-removable 200X sword sheath & brown hair)
4) Fearless Photog (long overdue)
5) Kobra Khan (finally done justice)
6) Rattlor (great colours and rattle feature)
7) Draego-Man (with the weapons pak accessories)
8) Mekaneck (simple but well made)
9) Castle Grayskullman (superb new addition)
10) Griffin (always great to get more creatures)

Worst:
1) Sorceress (the wings are a mess - both the design and colour is off. An essential character, I just hope a 2.0 version is made to do her justice)
2) DB Skeletor (unarticulated dragon, non-removable chain, inorrect skin tone, chain incorrectly attached to collar)
3) TP He-Man (sickly pale skin, only 1 cap, cap is the wrong size)
4) Frosta (badly painted eyes & lips, forearms reversed, unpainted back, should be white not grey, hips should be blue, staff should spin)
5) Snake Man-At-Arms (not enough new stuff, & I preferred the prototype to this kitbash)

[Pancho]

Point is, despite the flaws they still adorn my shelf, I do still like them and I don't used every chance to nitpick them like people do Frosta like she is the worst figure in the line.

I find Frosta to be a pretty cool figure. I didn't get her because of monetary issues when she came out, but the pics of her I've seen, she looks awesome. Definitely not as bad as people paint her to be.

We all know He-Man is the main core character on this line, and he looks nothing like the Filmation version, and has one crappy looking face, but I don't see people complaining that "they ruined He-Man". Yes, I get it, Frosta was a high-demand character, and people wanted her to look as much as possible as her cartoon counterpart, but come on, really, most of the characters don't look anything like their Filmation version. What makes her so special?

[TheShadow]

My top 10!

10. EP King Randor
09. Kobra Khan
08. Sorceress
07. Horde Prime
06. Slush Head
05. Frosta
04. Mosquitor
03. Castle Grayskullman
02. Spikor
01. Shadow Weaver

The Bottom 5:

05. Snakemen Guards
04. Snake Man-At-Arms
03. Dekker
02. Cy Chop
01. Vykron

[The All American]

It's kind of amusing how often the Star Sisters (and Jewelstar and Tallstar in particular) are referenced in the dislike category in these sort of threads.

http://i.minus.com/ieiwfhQdfvURi.gif

One hand I feel like laughing because it's hilarious to see them appearing so often in that category, and it's nice to see folks echoing some past thoughts I've had... on the other it's a bit sad to see those characters maligned.

I liked Tallstar, and I thought Starla was decent. It was just Jewelstar that took away from that pack, for me. I think there was a better way to make her. She's very plain and sterile looking, and doesn't wow.

While overall I liked the Star Sisters, their Filmation bright color look was too reminiscient of the Care Bears, so I thinks that's another reason folks didn't care for them. They don't fit much of what we have in MOTUC so far.

Jewelstar is number 6 on my bottom 2012 figures. Still much better than Sir Laser Lot (the pajama knight) and The Mighty Spector (superhero looking Marvel Deadpool meets Jack of Hearts)

[He-Dad]

Top 10

1. Draego-man
2. Mosquitor
3. Stinkor
4. EP Randor
5. Fisto
6. Shadow Weaver
7. Castle Grayskull Man
8. Kobra Kahn
9. TOD Sorceress
10. Rattlor

Bottom 5.

1. Spector
2. Horde Prime
3. Cy Chop
4. Dekker
5. Vykron

[thexxwatcherxx]

This thread seems fun to me. I don't really have any top 10's as I pretty much love all MOTUC. They are all great to me for diferent reasons but I can list my bottom 5. These figures were either really big disappointments or I just hated the whole concept.

1) Spector (looks like a purple Dead Pool. The concept as crazy as MOTU is, really seems to be stretching believability.)
2 Sir Laser Lot (sold him before I even got him. Bland,boring colors! The first knight in MOTU should have been much more exciting. Helmet looks like Cobra Commander)
3)Snake Man-At-Arms (cheap variant, atleast I can use his body to make a 200x Man At Arms)
4) Jewelstar (very ugly figure, too much red. My wife is a She-Ra fan and even she didn't like her toy rendition)
5) Frosta ( I was looking so forward to her but with the reversed fore arms and messed up colors she was a big let down)

[Veebs]

Top 10

1. Fisto
2. Draego Man
3. Shadow Weaver
4. Spikor
5. Rattlor
6. Kobra Khan
7. Castle Grayskullman
8. Frosta
9. TOD Sorceress
10. Procrustus

Bottom 5

1. Vykron
2. Mosquitor
3. Dragon Blaster Skeletor
4. Snake Man-at-Arms
5. Eternia Palace King Randor

[CaptainMendoc]

Top 10

1. Castle Grayskullman
2. Fisto
3. Temple of Darkness Sorceress
4. Horde Prime
5. Rattlor
6. Draego-Man
7. Cy-Chop
8. Kobra Khan
9. Slush Head
10. Snake Men 2-Pak

Bottom 5

1. Star Sisters
2. Vykron
3. Mighty Spector
4. Sir Laser-Lot
5. Dekker

[Madison Carter]

My top 10 of 2012* in no particular order:

Fearless Photog
Kobra Khan
Sir Laser-Lot
Draego-Man
Rattlor
Slush Head
Stinkor
Spikor
Horde Prime
Frosta

*doesn't include Mosquitor, Granamyr or Procrustus; I don't feel right judging them until they're in-hand, even if I do think they'd all instantly replace three on the current list.

[zodak74]

My Top 10:

10) Fisto... though not one of my favorite characters, he did turn out to be one of the best figures in the whole line. A "surprise hit", if you will.
9) Spikor... I really love his translation to Classics. One of the characters that I guess really benefits from NOT having a 2002 appearance, as his style is pretty much vintage figure all the way, with some slight Filmation touches.
8) Rattlor... not even a big fan of the Snake Men (they were my least favorite faction in the '80s and in the 2002 relaunch), and yet each Snake Men figure released has won me over. I know there's not that many of them, but the ones released thus far are well-done and rank amongst my favorite figures in Classics. To think, the only two Snake Men I loved as a kid- Tung Lashor and Snake Face- are still to come!
7) The Fearless Photog... there is nothing about this figure that I DON'T like. His early entry in 2012 really helped kick off the year in an exciting and new way... and helped MOTUC feel fresh again.
6) The Sorceress... despite the drum wings, it feels really good to have a nicely-colored, beautifully-sculpted Sorceress figure on the shelf in 2012. Heck, with the TOD variant, now I have two!
5) Frosta... yes there are things I would have done differently, but I think as time goes on and I can separate what I wanted to see vs. what we were actually given, I'm going to come around to feeling like she's the all-time best female in the line. As of now, I rank her up just a little bit below Evil-Lyn and Adora as far as my satisfaction with how these gals turned out. I do still want a Frosta-centric snow/ice weapon in a future weapons pak...
4) Snake Men Two-Pack... specifically the blue-armored, lighter yellow one with the closed mouth, sporting a spear and a shield. I wasn't that chuffed about getting these guys, but once in hand I came around to loving 'em. The fact that there weren't more pieces/weapons to switch out a la the Palace Guards set kept these guys from ranking any higher.
3) Shadow Weaver... aside from not actually being able to hold her spell book, she's pretty flawless. And I never thought we would get a Weaver figure. So having a 2012 subscription really paid off in the form of finally having her as part of Classics gang.
2) Draego-Man... by far the best of the 30th Anniversary figures. It's too bad the Horsemen weren't given all the slots outside of the Create-A-Character contest slots... I mourn the loss of what could have been every time I look at Spector and Laser-Lot.
1) Mosquitor... I really do think he might be the best figure of the year. He's colored exactly the way I wanted, the update of his vintage blaster is true to what came before, and mine has excellent joints. Sure, my particular Mosquitor has two of the same insect legs (they go in the same direction instead of having a proper left and right look to them), but it's not the sort of thing that ruins this toy for me.


My Bottom Five:
this year happened to have "the worst" figures released yet in the line. And not only these five, but the ball was also dropped on The Star Sisters (the single most expensive item until Granamyr came along... the characters and concept I was very excited about- a multi-pack of prototype females! And yet the way they turned out, colors-wise they were not shaded properly... plus I would have liked to have seen them stick with prototype colors and details for more of a "WOW!" factor... and for 60 bucks they came with nothing special in the way of accessories. THAT was perhaps the biggest crime here!), the 4th quarter variant slot (looking at you, Filmation Randor), and unnecessary D-Listers taking up valuable MOTUC real estate (you mean I can't have a "D-List" PoP character like Double Trouble, but you can give me a MYP character that appeared in one episode and doesn't have much of anything to do?). Anyhoo... I digress.

5) Vykron Space Ace... sure, the entire "set" could have been executed better (I would have even paid more for three individual figures of a higher quality), but the worst of these has to be the Space Ace version. Regular Vykron looks bad-ass, Tank Top is quirky and unique and the snap-on parts idea works great for this version, but Space Ace looks clunky, is almost impossible to assemble, and the way his belt and backpack came out... they look unfinished and especially cheap. When I first saw the Roger Sweet prototype, and later found out that Vykron was going to be the exclusive, it became a highly anticipated release. "Prototype Zodac!" I thought to myself. When I finally got my hands on one, I was sorely let-down.
4) Horde Prime... I'm sorry, I still think this figure screams "MESS!" to me. I've tried switching out bucks and armor and weapons and heads. Nothing really works here for me. The two best parts of this figure are the UK Comics head (which oddly enough I have on my Mo-Larr buck armed with the Space Ace parts, for a kabuki-looking flying Space Mutant character!!!), and the staff that was released outside of the figure in the Weapons Pak. Also he falls into the category of "character that I never really needed as an actual action figure". I have Hordak ruling the Horde on my shelf. Never really sure where I should put Prime. Plus the fact they cheaped-out on the paint app on what was an otherwise amazing head sculpt... that thick red paint job with no shading or nuances totally kills the sculpt. I could have done without this guy in Classics.
3) Sir Laser-Lot... I've gone so back and forth on this guy over the year that my head spins. I wanted him to come out soooo cool, but he just didn't. The lack of newly-sculpted parts, the poor choice in paint scheme, the fact that the plume on mine is holding on by a thread now, and the unwieldy cape... he's six inches of plastic garbage on my shelf
2) The Mighty Spector... right now I've got my Spector sporting the classic toy Bow head and he's wielding the original Optikk gun with his cosmic key knife out... and he doesn't look half-bad. I have him displayed with no new name alongside Flipshot and Captain Glenn. But The Mighty Spector as he was released and intended? I have no use for him. The masked head just looks too Marvel superhero to me, nothing about the costume comes together and announces "This is my theme! These are my powers! This is who I am!" like the best of MOTU characters... ironically, time will pass and Spector will be nothing at all. A waste of a slot in the anniversary line.
1) Snake Man-At-Arms... my fury over this figure's inclusion in the line is still raging hot. The most this figure has to offer is it give me a body upon which to rest Young Dekker's head. Displayed that way, and with the 2002 cannon blaster, I have a nice unnamed upper ranks Guard character. I will never display Snake Man-At-Arms alongside the Snake Men... he will never be killed by Clamp Champ "in my cannon"... and sadly the ring he came with is so flimsy and cheap that my King Hiss will never wield it because it looks warped and dumb. I will forever look at the 2012 quarterly variant slots with anger in my eyes- alongside Thunder Punch He-Man and Dragon Blaster Skeletor, we should have gotten Classic Toy Costume Catra and Filmation Hordak. Now THAT would have been a very strong year of variants!

- - - Updated - - -

Why ask people what their bottom 5 are? I'm sure the 4H love loading the page to see that.

I think it's VERY important the the Four Horsemen and ToyGuru see what both is and ISN'T working for the line. It's also helpful to throw some comments in too, so they understand WHY fans might feel that way. Learning from mistakes is what got us She-Ra 2.0, after all... so it doesn't hurt to point out the bad alongside the good!