For two straight years, Mondo Toys has been teasing He-Fans with Masters of the Universe toy prototypes at San Diego Comic-Con. At last they are ready to be revealed in final form, and they’re even better than expected. To celebrate, the company has made a vintage-style commercial based directly on the original Mattel TV spots, but with more age-appropriate adults handling these far fancier collectibles:
The first of these high-end, foot-tall figures will of course be He-Man. The most powerful man in the universe comes with not just multiple accessories (including blasters based on the Dolph Lundgren movie) but two different portraits as well, depending whether you want his face to look more realistic, or more directly like the original action figure.
One particularly niche accessory is Burbie, the flying elephant-bug-thing from the “Double-Edged Sword” episode of the animated series. It’s the only specific element from the cartoon, but shows that the guys at Mondo are fans of all eras of He-Man.
As they say on TV: But wait, there’s more! Order the Mondo Exclusive version and you get an exclusive extra head for the upcoming Skeletor figure, based on Alfredo Alcala‘s art from the mini-comics that used to come with the figures. He even has an articulated jaw.
Mondo plans on going big with their Masters of the Universe line, as they’ve also revealed an early look at Mer-Man…
…and concept art for Man-at-Arms. Both seem to lean more heavily on the 2002 redesign, though of course they have recognizable classic elements. It looks like Mondo’s going case-by-case and trying to do “ultimate” versions using elements from every incarnation of the character, including the recent DC Comics.
The Mondo Exclusive He-Man is $165, while the regular is $160, which is less than most high end 12-inch figures that go for, i.e. around $200—$5 for that Alcala head is a steal, since for the original, pre-cartoon toy collectors, that was our Skeletor. But the exclusive is only available for preorder through October 23, for a first-quarter 2019 delivery, so act fast if you want the scariest bone-dome available for the lord of destruction. Each figure has 30 points of articulation and cloth “soft goods” elements.
Does your budget have the power to accommodate all this Eternian awesomeness? Let us know in comments below.
Images: Mondo
