Flash and Arrow ReAction figures

[palitoy]

^Some knee articulation on those two would really be welcome as well. I'm thinking of the ZICA SMDM figures, which I've been spoiled by.

I think the ZICA SMDM and the original Super 7 Alien figures crushed it and should be the benchmark.

I really love the Universal Monsters overall, and the Nightmare Before Christmas figures are surprisingly nice. I wish the line was more consistent.

Yeah those lines get it right but like you, I feel the consistency is a weakness.

[Hedji]

You guys should look at the new Big Trouble in Little China figures. The Gracie Law and Lo Pan are fantastic.

And I agree that the ZICA figures are the benchmark. They even best the human characters of the Super7 ALIEN line in plastic quality and texture.

[Spyweb007]

The Star Trek figures are nice too, especially Uhura, the likeness is really good for her figure.

[Hedji]

I got the Star Trek wave. Their heads are a bit big. Perfect? No. Worth buying? Heck yeah!

Look, even as a kid, I had things I didn't like about my Kenner Star Wars figures. There was plenty that bothered me. And likenesses? No way. Rose colored nostalgia is affecting our love. Now, they were very organic in their sculpt, and there were lots of incredible details. They had the right heft, the right sheen, the right tightness of limbs. But there was a lot that bothered me, even as a kid.

Hated Han Carbonite's thick neck (and he was a later figure, you'd think they'd have it down pat by then).
Hated that you couldn't turn the Stormtrooper's neck.
Hated that C-3PO's limbs became ridiculously loose.
Hated that the TIE Pilot was chunkier than the AT-AT pilot.
Hated that you couldn't remove Endor Luke's helmet, but you could remove Endor Leia's.

Confession: I even hated certain aspects about (gasp!) Boba Fett! Where was his cape? His colors were wrong. His blaster was wrong. He didn't match the prototype they advertised.

If, as children, we applied our same picky adult logic that we apply to ReAction (and lots of ReMegos for that matter), we would have had very small toy collections as kids.



I don't think you can please everybody in this format. But I am having a blast!

[Werewolf]

Rose colored nostalgia is affecting our love.

It's not rose colored nostalgia. Kenner did over 100 SW figures and the ratio for good to bad was excellent and a lot of the Jedi era ones still really shine. The bad ones were also not bad on purpose. That's what really rubs me the wrong way. The Mindset that Kenner equals intentionally bad sculpts on any random license doesn't sit well with me.

There's also more to Kenner than SW. Like I mentioned before, I think the DC figures done in Super Powers style would have been wicked.

When they get it right like with Nightmare before Christmas and Universal Monsters I will heap them with well deserved praise. I will also support lines were they even do a decent job like with Trek. But intentionally bad sculpts and head scratching random licenses? I'll pass and or criticize them politely when deserved.

[Earth 2 Chris]

^I get your point, but I think the difference is, Kenner was trying their best. Look at how the figures evolved from movie to movie, and then to Super Powers, and even M.A.S.K., at it's small size. Lots of character in those tiny, tiny sculpts. My feeling is Funko thinks "hey, make it look rough, that's retro". I could be wrong, but I feel like Funko's massive output is making them rush through these licenses, and giving us subpar figures here, great figures there, and "meh" figures in between. I just wish they all looked as good as the Universal Monsters. Sure, some of those are a little soft (Frankenstein's Monster, for instance), but Kenner's output, although there were variances, was far more consistent.

I feel like I'm beating these guys up, so I'm going to stop now. I do enjoy much of their output, I just wish they'd tweak things more before throwing all of this out there.

Chris

[Hedji]

Meanwhile, on Earth 1, Chris is throwing back his head with glee as he has a blast with his ReAction collection.

[palitoy]

I just wish they'd tweak things more before throwing all of this out there.

Agreed, they need somebody at the helm giving it a line look. Too many highs and lows.

[RickD]

I could be wrong, but I feel like Funko's massive output is making them rush through these licenses, and giving us subpar figures here, great figures there, and "meh" figures in between.

I have to agree with this completely. For example I want the Big Trouble in Little China Figures, but I hate the sculps for Jack and Gracy Law. Made me not want to buy the entire series.

I hate to be so negative, but I would love for Funko to just have some consistency and slow down a bit.

[jacoblb]

I wholly agree with this assessment. I know Alien was made by another company before Funko bought it and also based on past history prototypes, but anything Funko has made since doesn't even look like they're trying. For those that are happy with the ReAction figures: more power to them. Whereas, BBP/Zica are doing glorious work with a great mix of retro and new. I know some are put off on the leg and arm joints for the Zica based figures for aesthetic reasons, but there's a lot of charm of playing with a pose able, articulated toy, at least for me because I hoped ship from Star Wars and directly into GI JOE ARAH 3 3/4" as a youngster.

^I get your point, but I think the difference is, Kenner was trying their best. Look at how the figures evolved from movie to movie, and then to Super Powers, and even M.A.S.K., at it's small size. Lots of character in those tiny, tiny sculpts. My feeling is Funko thinks "hey, make it look rough, that's retro". I could be wrong, but I feel like Funko's massive output is making them rush through these licenses, and giving us subpar figures here, great figures there, and "meh" figures in between. I just wish they all looked as good as the Universal Monsters. Sure, some of those are a little soft (Frankenstein's Monster, for instance), but Kenner's output, although there were variances, was far more consistent.

I feel like I'm beating these guys up, so I'm going to stop now. I do enjoy much of their output, I just wish they'd tweak things more before throwing all of this out there.

Chris

[Hedji]

I have to agree with this completely. For example I want the Big Trouble in Little China Figures, but I hate the sculps for Jack and Gracy Law. Made me not want to buy the entire series.

I hate to be so negative, but I would love for Funko to just have some consistency and slow down a bit.

Jack ain't a home run. Gracie is. Easily can stand beside Bespin Leia or even 1999 Queen Amidala.

[Hedji]

I The bad ones were also not bad on purpose. That's what really rubs me the wrong way. The Mindset that Kenner equals intentionally bad sculpts on any random license doesn't sit well with me.

I can't agree with the assessment that Funko is trying to do "poor" or "bad" sculpts on purpose. I think they are trying to do simple, toyetic sculpts that give off a vintage vibe. It is debatable if that vibe is specifically Kenner.

It's a tricky thing. If they sculpt the hell out of them, then you don't have vintage, you have modern figures with 5 points of articulation, sort of like the modern Star Wars Mission Series figures. Those don't feel Kenner to me. And if you want better likeness and sculpting, Funko is doing the Legacy line, and NECA has your other bases covered.

So I don't think they're trying to do poor or soft sculpts.

There's also more to Kenner than SW. Like I mentioned before, I think the DC figures done in Super Powers style would have been wicked.

There's also more to Vintage style than just Kenner. Mattel, Mego, Remco and more. Not everything looked identical in the old days. There was variety. Funko IS failing if they are trying to nail precisely the Kenner look. But they are succeeding at a vintage vibe, which is more than just Kenner. The only company who succeeded so far with the Kenner look has been ZICA's $6MDM. I picked up a color set of BBP's Twilight Zone figures, and I love them to death!!! But even they don't precisely nail the Kenner aesthetic. You could slap a Funko ReAction Logo on the Henry Beemis (Burgess Meredith) or Bob Wilson (William Shatner), and no one would know the difference. And I love them just the same.

I distinctly remember Brian on either Plaid Stallions or Mego Museum Podcast, lamenting that people were criticizing FTC's Batman 66 figures and suggesting that we adjust our perspective to see the good more than the bad with them. After all, we got 66 Batman Megos for Chrissakes!

I think many of you would enjoy these more if you took a similar approach. Try to see them for what they are, not what they aren't.

All I can say is if these actually came out when you guys were kids, you'd've been all over them. Well, not the stupid Pulp Fiction ones, but… you get what I mean.

[Werewolf]

I think many of you would enjoy these more if you took a similar approach.

My approach is not to give them a free pass on bad figures when they are perfectly able to do very good work.

The Universal Monsters and Nightmare Before Christmas figures are spot on. The Upcoming Jaws and Gremlins look to be as well. But they don't deserve a free pass on poor figures when they clearly can do better. Nor do I agree with the mindset that retro, obviously meaning Kenner here, equals intentionally bad sculpts so we should just over look the figures done poorly because that's how Kenner would have done it. The concept that Kenner equals bad sculpts is not an homage to the era or the Kenner style, it's insulting it.

[Hedji]

I don't buy them all either. I can't bring myself to pay full price for the Terminator figures, because I find them lacking in that special magic. Once I find a sale though, I will. Same with the Goonies.

Which ones specifically do you dislike?