Legion of Doom

[TRDouble]

What size O-ring are you using? If it wasn't for the tightness, the FTC bodies are not that bad. I wouldn't mind trying to salvage them with the O-rings.

I'm not sure, I lost the card that came with the box of them, its just a touch bigger than a penny in diameter. I use a hook made out of wire to pull them thru using the hip pin and the arm metal loop from the original hardware, then they are perfectly good bodies, despite what people say. I have to redo EMCE's sometimes like this too.

Thanks! I will have to give it a try. After I switched my '66 Batman & Robin to Type S bodies, now they are taller than the rest of the '66 figures. It feels like, if I switch one, I have to switch them all to keep some semblance of scale. And most of my '66 figures on regular bodies (The Penguin's fat body is a floppy mess) do not need a body upgrade for quality; they are fine as is. But I would like to make use of the bad bodies I have switched out from the other FTC Super-Hero line.

As for the extra hole in Batgirl's head, what makes it look so bad is that you can tell the second neck hole was made afterwards, like a hot metal rod was used to burn a hole in the plastic, which lends more credence to the idea that the first hole was a mistake in placement and this was a salvage job. It just looks tacky.

I am still looking forward to getting Batgirl and seeing her in person and overall, I am still happy with FTC and welcome the Legion of Doom (bringing this back to the original subject!). My biggest issue is still the female bodies. If FTC can develop two new bodies, they can develop a new, improved female body (if they already haven't), even if it is not bandless. Whoever comes out with a Mego-compatible improved female body is really going to have a shot at making a lot of money off of it. I think the biggest concern will be if it can look good and still use existing clothing; maybe that's why we haven't seen one made yet.

[scott metzger]

Not defending the foul-ups on the Batgirl as far as the head and such goes, but not everyone wants new bodies across the board, especially on the figures that are supposed to be retro-megos, like GL and Flash, figures that should have been in the original line. There's a couple of things that I feel I need to address that has come up about the bodies in general:

The female Mego body: Yeah, it's far from perfect, but it's still better than most of what we've seen since. I'll admit the Yvonne body, which looks like an 8" Cy Girl. looks really good, but it would definitely raise prices on the FTC figures to use something like that. And the alternatives we've seen within this price point are a major step down. The Mattel bodies were a travesty,not just the floppy waist that always bends over, but the gnarled, misshapen skinny thighs, the knock knees causing them to be inverse bow legged, the oddly proportioned arms and the dainty hands; the odd way the thigh go into the hips. The only good thing about the body was the sculpted collar bone missing from the basic Mego gals. The Mego female body has it's issues, the lack of the aforementioned collarbone, the ball at the waist that means you have to be careful not to bulk up around the waist too much, and the lack of any muscle detail or shaping anywhere, but it still works fairly well in this scale at the price point we can handle. Put it in a well designed, well-fitting costume, and it looks good. Not perfect, no, but good. If FTC could adjust the tension on the bands a bit, their version would be just about as good.

And this is my main point; the classic Mego bodies weren't perfect, but for the price point, they work quite well. And for figures that are meant to go with the originals, they are needed. If Flash and GL had come on S-type bodies, the first thing I likely would have done would have been to switch to a Mego or Mego rerpo type 2 so they would fit better with the other Mego repros. As someone who has collected Megos since they were on the shelves, I have a stake in the old format, and switching to an entirely new body for everything would significantly decrease my interest in the figures.

Now, for something like the '66 line, that I can see as its own thing, not directly connected to the old Megos. Same with stuff like the Stooges or Potter. For those, a whole new set of bodies wouldn't turn me away. But for the DC proper line, it would. A big part of the appeal there, for me, at least, is the idea of continuing the old Mego line, and that would be seriously undermined by a major style change in the body. I wanted a Mego Flash and GL, as well as Plastic Man, J'Onn, Alfred, Gordon, etc. That's basically what I got; yes, there are issues with head size (something only five Mego figuresI can think of out of all the ones made had a problem with) and some quality control troubles, but the style is exactly what I want. That part, for me, FTC is getting right for the most part. If they solved the proportion and QC problems, I'd be very happy with their approach as is.

I'm not a 1/8th scale collector; I'm a straight on Mego collector. That's the perspective I'm coming from.

[TRDouble]

scott, I understand what you are saying, and I was happy to get the Kresge Mxy because I did want repros of all the original Megos. But speaking strictly about figures like the '66 Batgirl, like you said, those are not directly connected to the old Megos outside of general style, so I think using a newer, better designed type of body would be nice.

When it comes to this style, my leanings are towards the Mego-style. I know people seem to love them, but I am not a fan of the NECA 1/8 scale figures. I look at them in TRU, study them a bit, shake my head and put them back. They are just not for me. But the Type S and even Dr Mego's female body with the snap-in hips, which is my biggest problem with the female Mego repro bodies, proves that there can be improvements made to the body without sacrificing the style.

And if FTC can release figures on a Fist Fighting body and later on a regular body, I see no reason why they cannot release a standard version of a new character that one would like to fit in with they classic Megos and a later updated version using a better body, cost notwithstanding for developing new bodies. But they have already developed two new bodies, so they obviously are not unwilling to do that.

[jeffbearco]

Maybe what is needed is just some additional parts for the female figures. These parts could be "options" that could be removed or added as appropriate.

I love the way the Jayna gloves/hands are shaped. Maybe a set of these that go back to the elbow done in flesh tone, and exactly as is cast in different colors for gloves. I did email FTC about the Jayna gloves in different colors and someone from FTC did seem interested, especially since the pieces are already cast and would just need to be produced in the different colors.

Maybe an additional chest piece to overlay what is there for a more "full figured" figure and addresses the chest, but also the shoulders. Done in a softer plastic, it would still allow the mobility to pose it. If done right, it would really help a figure like Wonder Woman. An additional waist piece could help make the hips look less out of proportion.

These last 2 could actually be addressed by a "corset" piece done in either cloth or soft plastic so it doesn't stop the figure from being posed.

Just some random thoughts.

JeffBearCO

[Spyweb007]

I think a large part of the problem with the new mego bodies from all the companies is that perhaps the rubber band/O-ring being used is a pre-existing part, and the tension is to tight because it's not designed for specifically for the bodies. If I remember correctly the older megos figures used more of an elastic string that was tied off, and then moved on to more of a rubber band type assembly that at the time was probably made specifically for those bodies. Mego was huge at their peak and it's not surprising that most of the companies making these Re-Mego figures don't have the same resources to invest as Mego did when they were probably one of the top 3 toy companies in the world at the time.

[scott metzger]

I think a large part of the problem with the new mego bodies from all the companies is that perhaps the rubber band/O-ring being used is a pre-existing part, and the tension is to tight because it's not designed for specifically for the bodies. If I remember correctly the older megos figures used more of an elastic string that was tied off, and then moved on to more of a rubber band type assembly that at the time was probably made specifically for those bodies. Mego was huge at their peak and it's not surprising that most of the companies making these Re-Mego figures don't have the same resources to invest as Mego did when they were probably one of the top 3 toy companies in the world at the time.

Yes, the rubber bands on the inside were definitely made specifically for the Mego figures in the old days, but I don't think it's because Mego was willing to spring some extra for it. The company was famous for pinching a penny until it screamed in agony (recall the persistent rumors that Dr. Doom was never made because his production costs were a few cents more than Mego could bear). I think it was the bulk in which the bands were made, which likely made them cheap to produce, which may be the big difference here, if the bands being used by FTC are not specifically manufactured just for them. I agree that's where the biggest problem seems to be, namely the tension holding the bodies together, something Mego had a few problems with over the years, as well (from the Dukes on, the bodies had a tendency to turn to the side at the waist and the torso listed to one side on a lot of figures; basically happened when the blue trunks/crotch piece gave way to the flesh colored version). But there may also be certain things that Mego could do 40 years ago that might not be legal these days. I don't know what regulations might govern materials and stress tolerances and whatever else might be involved in engineering these bodies today. The old Mego bands might not pass safety regs these days for all we know.

[drogge]

I really like the look of Toyman and Bizarro. The Riddler looks spot on, as well. I wounder what the 4th figure in this set will be.

[jayraytee]

I think a large part of the problem with the new mego bodies from all the companies is that perhaps the rubber band/O-ring being used is a pre-existing part, and the tension is to tight because it's not designed for specifically for the bodies. If I remember correctly the older megos figures used more of an elastic string that was tied off, and then moved on to more of a rubber band type assembly that at the time was probably made specifically for those bodies. Mego was huge at their peak and it's not surprising that most of the companies making these Re-Mego figures don't have the same resources to invest as Mego did when they were probably one of the top 3 toy companies in the world at the time.

That's a big part of the problem with the female figures that they produced at first, they used an arm/arm or a leg/leg rubber band to hook to the head. It is far too tough and short causing the neck to pull into the torso and the hunched over look. I don't know if they fixed that issue or not, I have not really bought any figures in a while.