My take on the Retro Batman line so far

[dr_cyclops]

The old Bob Seger problem. "Little too tall. Could have used a few pounds."
While building my custom Mego Doc Ock, I found that the difference is in the torso. Originally I planned to use the CTVT India fat male body. When I realized that it would make Doc Ock much shorter than the others, I purchased an original Wizard from Oz taller fat male body. I didn't see any scale difference in the limbs.
Judging by the photos I've seen, I'd guess that FTC's new fat male body is the taller torso version.

[Iron Mego]

Got my Penguin yesterday, and freed him from his packaging today. He's pretty awesome, other than being a little too tall. I never owned Penguin as a kid, but it's obvious from all the pics I've seen that the Mego fat body had stumpier legs. The hat made up the difference in height back then, now he stands a little taller than every body else. However, he is strung much more loosely, and even the knee and elbow joints aren't as tight. Don't know if this means something was adjusted between W1 and W2, but he's definitely easier to move than my Joker and Riddler. Guess it could be the fact that the torso is a little shorter due to not having the pelvic piece. I would give Penguin a solid A-. The suit and jacket are very well made, paint apps are perfect, and his face doesn't seem to have been elongated like some of the others. I wonder if FTC will be selling the 7" body at some point. I think maybe they should have used those legs of the 8" legs.

[The Bat]

Ok, Just completed my Wave 1 collection when I picked up the Joker today at the Comic Shop! And good news...another good body that doesn't need to be replaced. so out of 4 figures I got 2 good ones and 2 that need replacing or restringing. So I guess we've got about a 50/50% shot at getting a good FTC body that doesn't need replacing.

That aside....this Joker is AWESOME! The colors are so bright and vibrant it's incredible to look at...I LOVE this figure!

[Hedji]

That's pretty cool, actually. I'm not much of a Mego surgeon. I wish I were good at fixing and restringing. I spent way too long on Christmas Day trying to fix my BBP Daggit so his arms wouldn't fall off.

[boss]

My local comic shop had a Robin with a broken arm (the old strung too tight problem). He sold it to me at his cost and I fixed him up and recarded him (looks perfect). He said he also had a Batman with a busted arm that he'd sell the same way. Looks like I might get these on the cheap after all. Yay!

[dr_cyclops]

Recently purchased, Batman, Joker, and Riddler.
The good news is that the quality of the parts are very nice.
The bad news is the new bodies inherited the flaws of their new design and more. New torso/waist plug fits deep in to pelvic/waist hole, reducing waist articulation to a loose swivel. While the new rubber bands are stretchier than the old ones, they are shorter, so they end up too tight again. Shoulder mounts are pulling out of shape and in some cases pulling through completely. Even those that have yet to pull through, are now in a V-shape inside the torso. Causing the shoulder articulation to freeze up. (Basic physics, explains why this is so.)

While the parts of the body are better made, the design flaws and damage caused by the stringing process have me disappointed. In the end, I used restrung India production bodies to replace these new ones.

My concerns for the quality of the new FTC 'female' and 'teen' body designs, has greatly increased.

[Astronut]

I got a CASE of Retro Batman Series 1 for Christmas! I hung a set on my bedroom wall for display, opened a set, and saved the 3rd set for investment ... Have already ordered a case each of series 2 and 3 and Teen Titans, will do for all future series and Batman TV!

You're not married, are you?

[ovenmitt]

I got a CASE of Retro Batman Series 1 for Christmas! I hung a set on my bedroom wall for display, opened a set, and saved the 3rd set for investment!

Bottom line: I LOVE THESE!

I am 43 and had most of the Mego 8" WGSH 40 years ago and these bring back FOND MEMORIES! I tried to start collecting WGSH again in 1989 when I was in college but it proved too expensive. I collected Mattel DC Retro Action but I wanted EXACT REPLICAS of Mego WGSH like EMCE Star Trek Megos! That is why FTC DC Megos are a DREAM COME TRUE!

I like Batman's darker blue! Silk screened emblems (why did Mego ever use STICKER?!) Robin, Riddler, and Joker are perfect, too!

Packaging- Capture style of Mego cards, same color for each character and almost same logos above bubble! Do not like plastic tray and twist ties, I will know to use wire cutters in future not to ruin cards!

FTC DC Megos is my new favorite line! Have already ordered a case each of series 2 and 3 and Teen Titans, will do for all future series and Batman TV! Thank you, FTC for bringing back Mego WGSH! Now just get Marvel, too!

[Hedji]

I got the first four for Christmas. Here are my two cents.

For me, it's all about materials when it comes to tactile enjoyment of Megos. There are some real hits and misses all around.

Batman's dark blues - it's too bad they couldn't match the original color, but boy they do look sharp. The silk screened emblem is terrific. 5 year old Me loves the way his blue boots shine. Spiffy! The oven mitt material, while different, seems tighter, stretchier, and clingier. So while not faithful, they are an improvement because they stay put.

Robin's elongated head is a bit of a bummer. He looks less youthful with the stretched face. His tunic and cape are fantastic! But I hate his boots. I always loved the rubbery boots vintage Robin had. They somehow helped him stand firm. The hard plastic boots rattle and slip.

Joker is an a around home run. I don't see how they could've done any better.

Riddler is solid, but his face sculpt and paint make the lopsided smirk more exaggerated than I remember. Riddler's suit, like Batman's, is a shinier, more synthetic feeling material than vintage. I like the vintage fabric better, as it seemed to stretch and cling better.

The bodies... Well, I'm happy to say, mine all stand just fine. I like the stiffness at the elbows and knees. But they are a bit tight at the shoulders and hips. I tried to raise. Batman's arms and his shoulder popped out of the socket. Not a dealbreaker. I guess I'm sort of accustomed to handling Megos gingerly, so I really haven't bashed these around.

So while there is room for improvement, the total is greater than the sum of the parts. So great to reunite with old friends. I'll be buying more for sure.

[megomania]

Bought Wave 1 for my son to play with, he opened them on Christmas morning. Within 5 minutes he had Robin's tunic off and Batman's cape, mitts, and boots were strewn about the floor. Like father, like son!

Anyways....they've held up just fine and although it was cool for me to give them to him so he could have ones like daddy, this wave isn't really providing any nostalgia or 'wow' factor for me. I'll buy more waves - hopefully the future ones will be ones I want to display. These ones just didn't grab me.

-Chris

[Figuremod73]

I wish FTC could use the original Mego card art. At least the card color for each character is the same as Mego and the logos above the bubbles almost. Anxious to see future art!

I agree or at least stock DC 1970s art of some type. FTC isnt known for having the best graphics on their packaging, lol.

[weshightower21]

I got a batman and joker and so far joker IMO is by far the best of the bunch. I will purchase more but i dont care for batmans oven mitts, something just seems off and the black shorts on batmans suit is to long. Like i said i will support the line but i am alittle dissapointed in their batman but luckily i still have a boxed & loose mego bats so its all good. oh yeah the bodies are extremely tight especially the legs. These are my first ctvt figures and i must say they just seem very fragile and thin.

[ovenmitt]

I wish FTC could use the original Mego card art. At least the card color for each character is the same as Mego and the logos above the bubbles almost. Anxious to see future art!

[PNGwynne]

The card art is a bit off-putting IMO, esp. Joker & Catwoman. Had FTC been able to use DC style-guide art like Mattel did, these would be raised yet another notch.

[Relic]

I just got the 4 figures from wave 1 and am happy with the overall look of them. Only thing I would change would be the backer card. While the art work is very nice, it just doesn't feel like the 1970's to me. Maybe the art work was done this way to distinguish new from old? I look forward to wave 2. Hopefully these figures get enough intrest to expand the waves down the road. Would love to see figures that were not part of the original WGSH line.