Advice re: DC character/Figures…

[Stormbreaker]

Hey gang,

The Avengers set got me to do what I wanted to do since the Spidey set got released: open up my Megos and fool around with them a bit. What a blast!

I recall asking quite a while ago about the DC figures. I missed out on the 50th Anniversary figures. (I’d love 4-pack sets like we’re getting with Marvel, but that’s neither here nor there.). I’m really only interested in some of the figures I had as a kid. Superman, Captain Marvel, and Green Arrow are the three musts. Aquaman is a “probably,” while Batman, and Robin are maybes.

Anyway, I see all these offered at Figures Toy Company and Classic TV Toys. My questions are:

Are those figures the same product offered at two different sites? If not, is one better than the other?

I remember a couple of you guys were very helpful and informative with your takes on the quality of some of these figures. I recall some had some very bad quality issues; some may have been in storage for a long time, or something like that…

Anyway, I’d love for your takes/suggestions on which reproductions to get. I’m not looking to spend a lot on these, so I figure the 50th Anniversary figures are not an option. And I’m only interested in the figures that look like the originals.

Thanks for any tips!

PS: Were the Super Knights repros and Robin Hood repros any good? Are those still around? I’d love a Black Knight and the Robin Hood set.

[BudgetMego]

It's a mixed bag. The Superman 50th ann is still pretty affordable on Ebay and Amazon. The Aquaman is still cheap on Ebay. If you wanted the Bat villains, they're still cheap on both sites. For Batman and Green Arrow , you have to go to CTVT. They're different things manufactured by Figures Toy. They look identical, but can be a little loose. The heads bob around a little, as the neck plugs weren't wide enough. Same with CM(Shazam). For display, they're fine. This is how I rebuilt my WGSH. A mix of 50th ann and CTVT. Hope this helps.

[Megotastrophe]

FTC and the Mego Deux figures are visually very similar with similar packaging they share with the original figures from the 70s. Both companies had issues with their vintage style figures and some people like certain ones better than others. I feel they both display well and have both.

[Z-man 307]

FTC and CTVT are related (same company.) Quality can vary significantly as their product sits here in hot & humid Tampa, FL.

I do find the current mego products to be so much more enjoyable than FTC (although I do have a few FTC figures {Metamorpho, for example} that I really enjoy. Don't give up on the 50th anniversary figures! Check your local toy shows and comic book shops. You may be surprised at what you find.

[EMCE Hammer]

Quality wise, the CTVT Knights were pretty bad - all their early India stuff was hit and miss. Save your money for real ones. As for the DC Heroes, Mego first whenever you can. If you get the FTC/CTVT versions you may want to swap them over to Mego bodies or the Type S body that FTC/CTVT carries. There are still a lot of the 50th WGSH available for reasonable prices in comic shops and online through places like Amazon, Deep Discount, ZLC Collectibles, Big Bad Toy Store, etc. And of course there's Ebay and Mercari too. Green Arrow and Flash are pretty hard gets for the Mego 50th. There are some characters that Mego will probably never make that you can get from FTC like Metamorpho, Phantom Stranger, etc. Those are fun to buy the pieces and kitbash them together with a Mego/FTC mix.

[Stormbreaker]

Thanks everyone for the good tips and info!

[Stormbreaker]

Hey again all,

Re: the 8 Inch Type S Deluxe Male Action Figure Body from Figures Toy Company…

Can you just swap the head from a Retro/Kresge style Green Arrow figure from FTC onto a FTC Deluxe body without any major difficulty? How is the fit?

[Stormbreaker]

I guess I could do the same with another Anniversary character I regret missing out on (Shazam). I could get a 15 or 20 dollar Retro style figure, and take the head and costume from the Retro, and put them on one of those Deluxe 8” figures. Should be easy enough, I hope…

[TRDouble]

Hey again all,

Re: the 8 Inch Type S Deluxe Male Action Figure Body from Figures Toy Company…

Can you just swap the head from a Retro/Kresge style Green Arrow figure from FTC onto a FTC Deluxe body without any major difficulty? How is the fit?

Sure. Some of the FTC neck plugs are small and pop right out of the Type S bodies, regular or deluxe (the only difference between the two being the arms and legs), but Green Arrow is one of the better repro heads made by FTC and fits in the Type S body just fine. I used that combo for my modded Topps Green Arrow.

[Frenchy99]

To answer your first question :

The Mego figures are of better quality and can be found at better prices.

Get FTC figures to fill in the line of unique offerings or different head scupts that look good. The FTC figures are exactly that, great figures that never been made.

Its a shame that you need to replace the FTC bodies with a S-Type body afterwards. Makes the FTC figures quite expensive in the end.

Good luck on your collecting.

I havent yet replaced the bodies on mine so dont know about the the adapters but saw lots of info on this forum on the subjet. Still reading and trying to learn myself.

[Stormbreaker]

Thanks for the replies, gang.

I received my bagged Green Arrow and Cap (SHAZAM!) figures yesterday, along with the two deluxe 8” bodies. Swapping the hands from GA and Cap onto the blank bodies was a breeze, as was Cap’s head onto the blank body. GA’s head was another matter entirely. It came off easily, but no matter how long I soaked the “neck bulb,” no matter how much I tried, I could not >ahem < fit it in.

So, I reached into my quiver of trick arrows and pulled out my Dremel Arrow. A few seconds of gentle shaving around the neck piece, followed by thirty seconds of hot water soaking, and it plugged in with minimal effort.

Both Green Arrow and SHAZAM! look fantastic. They came out great. And they’re super sturdy.

So, they cost me around $29.00 apiece ($15.00 per retro figure, and $14.00 per 8” Deluxe body). About $10.00 more than the MEGO 50th Anniversary figures, but I’m ok with that, since I got into the game at such a late stage.

I’m not sure if I’ll go for any other previously released figures. We’ll see.

But it was fun to make these two for sure.

[TRDouble]

Wait... you didn't unscrew the Type S body to put the heads on them? And you re-used the Shazam hands instead of the Type S hands that came with the body?

Sorry; just trying to understand what you did. Thanks!

[Stormbreaker]

Wait... you didn't unscrew the Type S body to put the heads on them? And you re-used the Shazam hands instead of the Type S hands that came with the body?

Sorry; just trying to understand what you did. Thanks!

I used Shazam’s original hands with the Type S body. I figured the color was better, and since Cap’s entire body is covered apart from his head and hands, it would look better. They fit fine, and seem solid enough…

As for the head swapping, Cap’s head popped off the old body and went on the Type S with ease.

GA’s head was ridiculous. It came off ok, but I swear no matter how long I submerged it in hot water, and no matter how hard I tried to place it in, it would not go into the Type S body.

Next, I tried unscrewing the body, but one screw refused to budge, so I said “Screw it” (ironic pun intended), and shaved a bit off the part of the neck that bulged the most; just enough to force it in after heating it again.

The problem with the plastic on the neck of my Retro GA head/neck was that it didn’t remain soft long enough for me to plug it in the S Type body. In any event, it came out great.

[TrekStar]

This was a great idea, something for me to think about for a custom or two I have in mind.

[Stormbreaker]

This was a great idea, something for me to think about for a custom or two I have in mind.

Oh, good, I’m glad that my first foray into customizing MEGO figures was helpful to you. That’s great!