Has Mego changed the head sculpt style?

[TrekStar]

The classic originals are what I love best, that’s the kid in me talking. The new mego sculpts are a bit more artistic and more thought process put into it, maybe not everyone’s cup of tea of a modern version update.

Being a big trekkie fan, I have mixed feelings on the new trek figure sculpts, Love Spock, but not so much Kirk, same for Sulu and Chekov and not so much Uhura. I like Scotty but the verdict on McCoy is still out, but I think the McCoy body is to milky light.

I’d like to get the short sleeve med shirt separately and put it on the original body over a sleeveless black undershirt.

[Mego-Amigo]

I have to agree the sculpts on McCoy and Scotty are great. Would like to see other characters with new sculpts too though I do love the originals.

[Krypt0nite]

Scotty and McCoy are fantastic---I hope we get updated Kirk and Spock, too.

[Goblin19]

Not a Trek guy but I did see them in person. The first thing I thought when I saw the sculpts was how great they looked.

[TheVintageToyKid]

If we put a long sleeve shirt (much like the original wore) on the new McCoy figure and add a few reddish/pink "splotches" to his skin for lack of a batter word, he could pass for the sickly McCoy from "City On the Edge of Forever" after he accidentally injects himself and goes temporarily mad.

[palitoy]

You got me thinking...maybe I should have used pine!

[CrimsonGhost]

You got me thinking...maybe I should have used pine!

[ODBJBG]

I'm not a big fan of the new Trek heads (nothing personal I just don't think the final product quite nails either likeness, even though I can see shades of the actors in them) but they definitely just look kinda wonky in general. They do look like they were carved out of wood. Not something I really see on any other nuMego things, just these two.

I think Mego and Mego-like figures have always had to walk a careful balance between being good and being too good. I find the best ones are often the ones that are a little softer and feel like they would have been made back in the day.

[Atomikhammer]

Aside from the QC issues behind McCoy, there an interesting discussion lying beneath this. I've noticed a catch 22 Mego seems to face- Take advantage of advances in technology to make more detailed sculpts or more realistic outfits and some collectors rue that the new figures don't match the old ones. Stick to exact duplicates of the original and other collectors feel there's no reason to buy new ones.

Neither perspective is wrong, of course (though, personally, I lean more towards the latter so that's probably more right ).

I fall somewhere in between these two. I don't want duplicates of the old figures, but want the new ones to match the esthetic of the originals. So far i feel that they do very well. For myself I want Megos to have the appearance of toys, even though, let's not kid ourselves, they are no longer just toys, or even toys at all. I think NECA and the more expensive (and also very, very good) figures they produce fill the "display item" spot for me and I am glad for the variety we have to choose from these days. Even though I have only just posted, i joined this forum almost ten years ago and read the site alot before that. The "Re-Mego" era was still pretty new, i was buying the EMCE and Mattel figures and was very happy but even then if you had told me that in 2021 it would be going even stronger and Mego would be back, i would have never believed you. These are good times no matter where your opinion fall on that spectrum.

[MysteryWho]

Perhaps the raised price point will address some of these issues. You are right, there are some problems adding new things to the old formula. I am on board for a mild price hike if it translates to quality improvements. I don't want 8 inch Hot Toys, but I'd love to see them up their game, just as they did in their original incarnation when they made small improvements here and there. These are never going to mass market items like they were, so why not have them become a more collectible and sophisticated version of what they could be.

Those are good points. I just received a bunch of new Megos from BBTS yesterday and I was surprised at how much of a mixed bag they were to me.

Speaking a bit to what you are saying, the thing that has bothered me the most with some of the figures, not all, and starting with the original DC Trinity release, is that the costume work doesn't always match the quality of the new, more detailed head sculpts. Especially with the DC Comics figures, the costumes feel cheap -- my John Stewart Green Lantern's chest insignia is blurry -- but seeing the seams on the S:TNG uniforms, while not a deterrent for me to buy them, bothered me when I first got them.

That's why I am so curious to see the new 14" figures; the originals are good, and outright excellent for the price, but if we see a costume quality improvement for the extra cost, I am definitely in, even for some repeats.

If we are going to get detailed painted head sculpts like Scotty, then I feel that the outfit quality needs to match. Then the question becomes, are people willing to pay for that quality, and how many hardcore Mego fans decide that these are no longer "Mego" and drop out? I am in the "take advantage of new technology" camp, from head sculpts, to outfits, to band-less bodies.

EDIT: I wanted to add that The Flash costume looks really well done. The best of the DC figures for me.

[Spyweb007]

Vintage Mego figures improved in sculpting and costumes & accessories as they went, and some of those later figures like Green Arrow are favorites among them. I don't ever recall anyone complaining about Mr Fantastic's sculpt being more realistic than Batman or Thor's costume being too detailed. I like the direction they have chosen so far, and think it may be needed to compete in today's market.

[TRDouble]

Aside from the QC issues behind McCoy, there an interesting discussion lying beneath this. I've noticed a catch 22 Mego seems to face- Take advantage of advances in technology to make more detailed sculpts or more realistic outfits and some collectors rue that the new figures don't match the old ones. Stick to exact duplicates of the original and other collectors feel there's no reason to buy new ones.

Neither perspective is wrong, of course (though, personally, I lean more towards the latter so that's probably more right ).

Those are good points. I just received a bunch of new Megos from BBTS yesterday and I was surprised at how much of a mixed bag they were to me.

Speaking a bit to what you are saying, the thing that has bothered me the most with some of the figures, not all, and starting with the original DC Trinity release, is that the costume work doesn't always match the quality of the new, more detailed head sculpts. Especially with the DC Comics figures, the costumes feel cheap -- my John Stewart Green Lantern's chest insignia is blurry -- but seeing the seams on the S:TNG uniforms, while not a deterrent for me to buy them, bothered me when I first got them.

That's why I am so curious to see the new 14" figures; the originals are good, and outright excellent for the price, but if we see a costume quality improvement for the extra cost, I am definitely in, even for some repeats.

If we are going to get detailed painted head sculpts like Scotty, then I feel that the outfit quality needs to match. Then the question becomes, are people willing to pay for that quality, and how many hardcore Mego fans decide that these are no longer "Mego" and drop out? I am in the "take advantage of new technology" camp, from head sculpts, to outfits, to band-less bodies.

EDIT: I wanted to add that The Flash costume looks really well done. The best of the DC figures for me.

[Wee67]

Aside from the QC issues behind McCoy, there an interesting discussion lying beneath this. I've noticed a catch 22 Mego seems to face- Take advantage of advances in technology to make more detailed sculpts or more realistic outfits and some collectors rue that the new figures don't match the old ones. Stick to exact duplicates of the original and other collectors feel there's no reason to buy new ones.

Neither perspective is wrong, of course (though, personally, I lean more towards the latter so that's probably more right ).

[Atomikhammer]

The new sculpts made me buy figures I wouldn't have if they were straight-up reproductions.

This is a very good point as we are up to several versions of some of these figures. Also just ordered the 3 issue Toy Ventures bundle, looking forward to some good reading! Cheers

[palitoy]

The new sculpts made me buy figures I wouldn't have if they were straight-up reproductions.