My take on the Retro Batman line so far

[JediJaida]

I knew it! The Evil Side is also the Cheapo side!

No cookies? UGH!

What's Heisenberg Blue anyway, and why would anyone want it?

[thunderbolt]

My bad. By '1/9th scale', I meant customizing. By 'dark side of the force', I meant evil. By 'cookies', I meant Heisenberg Blue.

I have too much 9 inch materials to switch, besides, I like it too much.

[dr_cyclops]

I knew it! The Evil Side is also the Cheapo side!

No cookies? UGH!

What's Heisenberg Blue anyway, and why would anyone want it?

At first, I was all, What do you mean "Cheapo"? Then I realized I had promised 'cookies' and only offered Meth.
Please understand, I spent a lot of time extracting this recipe from the TV show. It was an 'uphill battle' all the way! I had pages on amber liquid flowing through a clear tube, before I realized it was kemo therapy. Then they started changing labels!In the end, I lucked out. While thumbing a ride to Albuquerque, I got a ride from Jesse Pinkman. I really shouldn't say anymore about this.

[Corellian Corvette]

Finally ordered both series 1 and 2 and got them in tonight. I've been out of toy collecting for a while now, but these things just sucked me back in.

I'm really super impressed. It's obvious there was a lot of care put into this - and frankly this effort SHAMES Mattel in so many aspects. I would put this up there with the EMCE Trek line in the level of care and detail - and even those had some minor issues that happen when you mass-produce.

They aren't perfect. But little details like shipping the blisters with the nice Figures Toy ziptie so the clamshell opens cleanly... the thickness of the cardback even though it's not a structural part of the packaging... shipping with a plastic wrap over the bubbles to prevent scratching are all really nice.

There are minor nits to be sure. Batman's belt. Penguin is too tall. Hero heads a tad too narrow (which is surprising since their older heads were much closer). Of course the rubber bands are tight. But unlike other efforts in this space I don't feel the need to re-engineer the package or the figure itself to make it presentable.

I wish they would spend a bit more time on the packaging. There is sloppiness to the font choices and layout that feel amateurish. I actually offered them all the layer files I complied for my cardbacks but they declined. I wish they would get slightly better designers.

Most importantly - opening that box gave me a rush I haven't felt since I was a kid. They nailed the overall aesthetic.

I hope this line does very well for them. They deserve it. This doesn't feel like a cash play it seems like they care.