Do you know what today is? It’s the first Sunday of October! Do you know what that means? Well, nothing particularly special in and of itself, but it does mean we’re just under four weeks shy of Halloween! We’re celebrating Halloween big all month long here at Nerdist, and if you’re aiming to keep on top of things, just bookmark our Nerdoween tag. Pumpkin Spice Latte aromas are wafting through the air, Hocus Pocus marathons are just a channel-flip away, and the original Cosplay Day is ready to be conquered! Feel free to join us on social media with the #nerdoween hashtag while you’re at it.

Thanks to live action comic book adaptations basically ruling the TV airwaves and the box offices at the moment, we don’t have to give up celebrating the macabre after Halloween is over. The Walking Dead will be going strong (albeit with a hiatus in the middle of the season) until all the snow has melted away next year, and its new spinoff Fear The Walking Dead has been priming us for the spooks and scares all summer long. Both series are not Halloween-themed, mind you, but when it comes to the undead, this October holiday rules supreme.

We’re going to take a look at three different toy versions of fan-favorite The Walking Dead character Michonne today. McFarlane Toys has had the license to produce the official line of action figures for the series since it launched, and in fact, the company has been producing figures based on the comic books since well before Rick Grimes and his merry band of walker slayers transitioned to television. As it stands, there have been two McFarlane TV-based figures, with one released in the third wave of toys and one in the seventh wave.

The first Michonne, from Wave 3, mirrors her first appearance in the television series. Hooded with her iconic poncho, this Michonne is clad in a pink tank top, a leather vest, travel-worn boots, cargo denim pants, and her fingerless gloves (for preventing katana callouses.) The figure comes with said katana, as well as its shoulder-strapped sheath for storage, and the hooded capelet. Sure, it’s listed as a poncho, but I feel that referring to it as a capelet brings a much-needed sense of style to the Zombie Apocalypse. Wave 3 Michonne consists of 14 points of articulation. Two each in the feet, knees, hips, shoulders, elbows, and wrists, plus one at the head, and one at the abdomen. McFarlane Toys has long been known for their impressive likenesses, especially when it comes to creating figures based on actors, and not just fictional characters drawn on a page. Both Michonnes are no different.  Though each facial sculpt is original, they both resemble actress Danai Guirira very well at such a small scale. The Wave 3 figure bears bare arms, making her much more conducive to awesome katana poses. There is a lot of leeway in the articulation points of the hands that make her poses feel more like a $40 action figure rather than her list price of $14.99.

The Wave 7 Michonne, based on the season four episode “Claimed”, includes additional props besides the katana, whereas Wave 3 Michonne’s only real non-weapon prop was her removable poncho. If you’ll remember, there’s a scene after Rick, Michonne, and Carl have raided some supplies where she pulls out a can of crazy cheese to amuse Carl. A very tiny version of Cheese-In-A-Can, as well as a candlestick (with a solid blunt base for whacking walkers in the head) comprise the included props. Wave 7 Michonne is almost entirely a new sculpt with two more points of articulation — clocking in at a total of 16 — than her Wave 3 counterpart. The two new points are in her hips, allowing for roundhouse kicks with posing. Her legs actually detach from the body with a moderate amount of pressure, but if this happens to you, don’t fret!  That’s not a malfunction, as they’re molded in such a way that allows for easy reattachment. The vest, boots, and katana moldings are the same on both figures, which makes for some fun points of comparison. Wave 3 Michonne has a muddy paint job on her boots, denoting the time spent traveling through the murky woods where she found Andrea. Wave 7 Michonne’s boots are clean, mirroring her months spent in the relative safety of the prison where washing clothes and leather care would be possible. The reuse of the leather vest mold is actually a conceit that McFarlane Toys apparently took so as to retain the abdomen articulation point. In the episode, Michonne wore the vest open, not closed. The katana, however, has been cleverly aged in its paint job as though to remind us that, yes, Michonne has killed a shitload of walkers since she first hit the screen.

Finally, Funko POP! Michonne closely mirrors McFarlane Wave 3 Michonne, as they are both based on her first appearances. But true to form, the POP! Michonne has a much brighter and more cheerful color scheme. Her katana is bathed in fresh walker blood (cuuuute) but her gear shows no sign of the muddy travels she’d been making. Like most other POP! vinyls, her only point of articulation is in the head. Still, we don’t love Funko POP!s for their boastful articulation. We love them because they’re adorable. Even when they’re decked out with weapons of mass walker destruction.

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Toy News Round-Up

Here’s a look back at the week’s best action figure and collectible news!

• Disney’s Playmation inspires players to take the fun out of the living room and into the world.
• Home Geekonomics collects the best ways to create your own Iron Giant playthings at home.
• Nerdist: PLAY reviews virtual reality for the home.
• Titan Toys debuts NYCC Exclusives, including Doctor Who and Ghostbusters figures.
• LEGO’s real-world toy/virtual-world game series, Dimensions, introduces Weeping Angels to the fray!

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Body Images: AMC//Gene Page