how would you have changed Super Powers?

[Earth 2 Chris]

^I'd like to say that, but I was scratching my head in 1986 with Cyclotron, Golden Pharaoh, and even "Man-E-Faces" Orion to a point. Had they continued, and course, corrected a bit, I'd still have been in, even though my "toys for play" days were closing out around that time.

Chris

[huedell]

^I think the Super Powers line was special the moment that iconic first wave appeared in that ad on the back of DC Comics. The then-amazing level of sophistication in the sculpting, the character selection, and yes, the thought that went into the Power Action feature set it above anything anyone had ever done with the DC license. Add in two of the greatest accessories ever made, the Hall of Justice and the Batmobile, and you have a legacy even Golden Pharoah coudln't muck up. Head-scratching choices like him ride on the coattails of the things Kenner did absolutely perfect early on in the line.

I love Golden Pharaoh. In hindsight, that is. That's all I'm saying. And I disagree that Pharaoh puts SP's legacy at risk (of "mucking" it). GP and other oddities have helped define the SUPER POWERS legacy just as much as the "sure things" have IMHO. then again, I'm sure my opinion is different than those that were clamoring for them in the early 80s. I was into my "too cool for toys" phase when SP was originally released, so, I'm sure that others that grew up with them as "playtime nostalgia" have a certain slant that I won't jive with.

My slant is more along the lines of that once 1989 rolled around (and I started nerding-out again as far as collecting superhero stuff), I then became an eternal fan of the SP line, and have been happy as heck to collect all of 'em in both Kenner AND the quasi-SP stuff that DCUC had to offer. And every inch of the SP line is special to me---although the "action features" and vehicles are down more on the pecking order for aforementioned "childhood playtime" reasons.

Mattel has mined every aspect of their own MOTU property with the Four Horseman as well. Even stuff most fans dislike, like the sci-fi He-Man iteration. So their mentality appears to be "redo it ALL", not just "redo what was GOOD".

LOVE that mentality---Case in point: I own every one of the MOTU Classics figures they've put out.

[samurainoir]

Lest we forget Mattel really has strip mined Super-Powers in the DCU Classics line...

[samurainoir]

and it looks like they were going to go further with the original characters created specifically for the line-up...

[huedell]

Lest we forget Mattel really has strip mined Super-Powers in the DCU Classics line...

Forget it? I applaud it!

[Actorman]

I would have liked to have seen a Cheetah and purple dress/green cape Catwoman in the line.

[thunderbolt]

More ladies for sure, poor Wonder Woman was the Smurfette of the line.

[huedell]

More ladies for sure, poor Wonder Woman was the Smurfette of the line.

Definitely. And although I adore Batgirl and Supergirl, BLACK CANARY, an iconic blonde who wasn't part of a more popular "family" (i.e. Bat-, Super-, etc) would've been my first tweak in the "add the female" department.

Speaking of an iconic blonde Canary to WW's brunette... sure red-head MERA is part of the "Aqua" contingent (and kinda diluted as Batgirl Supergirl are), but I would've brought in Mera soon after Canary---Mera's always been kinda "strong" B-list (and had some steam from about 15 years prior what with her Filmation prominence).

[Earth 2 Chris]

Supergirl was mocked up for the pitch to DC, using one of Kenner's Glamour Gals 3.75" dolls. But poor Kara never got into the series, even with a movie on the way!

Chris

[huedell]

Ya know... as crazy backwards as we all know it was/is.... I think the "Kirby re-designs/Super Powers TV show" aspect really defined the choices made for the line---which I don't think was 100% crazy, when you consider He-Man's success UNTIL you take into account that He-Man had daily exposure (as I know someone mentioned earlier). So, yeah, maybe they were 100% crazy. Again, I'm in love with every bit of the line, but I surely wouldn't have went the way they went back THEN if was I business man in charge of the SP line choices.

The Kirby re-designs were a good starting point (but, again, as many already have pointed out), they didn't maximize that aspect all that well.

Sad, because Luthor and Brainiac's redesigns were a lot better than they could have been, and the idea of Darkseid bringing them and the Penguin and the Joker on as "specially-fitted-w/new-artillery weapons lieutenants"-of-sorts was a cool concept to link the New Gods villains to the DCU old guard villains. They just dropped the ball somewhere along the line.

[EmergencyIan]

^I think the Super Powers line was special the moment that iconic first wave appeared in that ad on the back of DC Comics. The then-amazing level of sophistication in the sculpting, the character selection, and yes, the thought that went into the Power Action feature set it above anything anyone had ever done with the DC license. Add in two of the greatest accessories ever made, the Hall of Justice and the Batmobile, and you have a legacy even Golden Pharoah coudln't muck up. Head-scratching choices like him ride on the coattails of the things Kenner did absolutely perfect early on in the line.

Mattel has mined every aspect of their own MOTU property with the Four Horseman as well. Even stuff most fans dislike, like the sci-fi He-Man iteration. So their mentality appears to be "redo it ALL", not just "redo what was GOOD".

Chris

It really was magical for me the first time I saw the figures. I hadn't seen the DC Comics ad. The first time I saw them (at Target) was the first I knew of their existence. I was in love with them at first sight. Christmas 1984, I was 10 years-old and it was a Super Powers Christmas.

- Ian

[Earth 2 Chris]

^Me too. Just turned 10 in that December, and got the HOJ for my birthday, and the rest of the line I was missing for Christmas.

Chris

[samurainoir]

[samurainoir]