As sci-fi franchises with popular toy lines go, Planet of the Apes actually pre-dates Star Wars. Getting to four sequels before George Lucas’ baby got to two, Apes also spawned a significant series of eight-inch figures (and a large treehouse playset) by Mego, the company that pretty much ruled the roost with 8-inch figures wearing cloth outfits until Kenner redefined the standard scale downward to get Luke Skywalker to fit in affordably sized spaceships. In more recent years, NECA started a 7-inch action figure line, but didn’t sell enough to keep it going.
Super 7, however, has finally brought the license back around to being compatible with Star Wars figures, which those of us who were too young for the Mego heyday wanted all along.
And who doesn’t want to see a shirtless Charlton Heston try to wrestle Anakin Skywalker on the living room floor?
He needs a horse next. Oooh, help him Dr. Zaius!
The card art is new, based on images from the original movie, by Ed Repka. Both it and the figures look to feature official actor likenesses, a formality often ignored at this scale in favor of more generic looks.
The figures run a surprisingly reasonable $15 apiece, and will be available starting April 18 on Super 7’s website. If they sell well, and there’s no reason they shouldn’t, it’d be great to see them venture into the sequels with some mutants, or maybe a mini-Montalban (Ricardo, that is).
To totally lift a joke from an old issue of Mad magazine, we didn’t plan-et this way, but we’re going ape over them. Can you wait to get your stinkin’ paws on these? Monkey around in the comments and let us know.
Images: Super 7
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