About those bodies...

[Boywonder0]

Hello and thank you for this opportunity,

I would like to first state that I like the Mattel retro body. I feel the anatomy and muscles look great in and out of costume. There have been complaints about bow-legs and thunder thighs, however I have no problem with that. The addition of a bicep swivel would be the icing on the cake in my opinion. Not necessary, but very cool.

The problem with the body is due to 1 (and sort of 2) part: The pelvis.

If retooling is out of the question, I have had a fair amount of success adding gaskets to the joints. It's still not perfect, but they at least stand up straight.

In the end, I'd like to see retro figures have a nice long life. Thank you again.

Cool! We are pretty much aligned! Hey, did you also notice that the Mattel Retro Action body legs changed from the Green Arrow run to the retail waves run. The Green Arrow legs didn't have a ball joint fitting to the pelvis like the others do. As a consequence they kind of look bulkier at the thighs. Nonetheless I had found these to perform better with my body repair method. Check at the pictures you posted and you will notice that both Sinestro legs are different from each other. One has the ball joint to the pelvis while the other doesn't (a la Green Arrow)... It seems to be that Mattel did try to make some corrections to the swollen thighs complaints.

[BATMAN89]

Hello and thank you for this opportunity, I would like to first state that I like the Mattel retro body...

In the end, I'd like to see retro figures have a nice long life. Thank you again.

Nice work!!!
That is exactly how I restring a Type 1 Mego, going over the bar in the pelvis just like that.

[CrimsonGhost]

That's a well thought out critique CrimsonGhost. When stinging my Customs...I use the same method of stringing up over the Pelvis Bar that you did.

Thanks, I'm hoping it will help.

As for the stringing, yeah I like the results that way. It sort of emulates the shoulder-to-hip stringing that the originals had.

[BATMAN89]

Perhaps BK. I do like the Body from the Torso up(don't care about swivel Biceps)...but from the Pelvis down, something has to be done to correct this problem. Just so the Figures can stand, and hold a pose.

Agreed!!!

[The Bat]

That's a well thought out critique CrimsonGhost. When stinging my Customs...I use the same method of stringing up over the Pelvis Bar that you did.

[CrimsonGhost]

Hello and thank you for this opportunity,

I would like to first state that I like the Mattel retro body. I feel the anatomy and muscles look great in and out of costume. There have been complaints about bow-legs and thunder thighs, however I have no problem with that. The addition of a bicep swivel would be the icing on the cake in my opinion. Not necessary, but very cool.

The problem with the body is due to 1 (and sort of 2) part: The pelvis.

Here is the top view of both an original pelvis (or in this case a Doc Mego one) and a Mattel pelvis, which is the one on the right. Notice the opening at the top. The Mego one is perfectly round as well as deep. It provides a perfect seat for the torso and because of it's completely round shape, the tension of the elastic doesn't pull it in any direction but down. This type of ball joint construction is very common with 70's figures such as GIJoe, Big Jim, and of course Mego.

Notice the shape of the Mattel pelvis:


I've drawn a circle around both parts to show the difference. The Mattel pelvis is oval shaped and shallow. The bottom of the torso isn't able to seat in it properly and the results are either the figure being pulled backwards or slumped forward. This is because the narrower sections of the oval shape have the least resistance to the elastic.

Here are two images of the bottom of the torso:


I've drawn circles again. The Mego torso is perfectly round, as well as textured, and the Mattel torso is oval shaped, despite the opening at the bottom being round. A change to the top of the pelvis and the bottom of the torso to make a good connection is what is needed to keep the waist from slipping around.

On to the hip connections: Again, the pelvis is the problem here. The sockets are too shallow allowing for the hips to slip around easily.
Here is a shot of the Mattel pelvis, the pelvis with legs, and the Mego pelvis with Mattel legs.


The Mattel legs have nice ball joints on top. Notice how well they seat into the Mego pelvis. With elastic pressure, they pose well, hold position well, and I feel they even look better. So, just like with the waist, the seat for the hip joints need to be deep enough to hold the hips in place.
I did string this together to see how it would work:


The legs worked great, however the oval nature of the torso made it unable to seat in the pelvis.

Speaking of elastic pressure, i have a suggestion for how they should be strung:

The elastic goes down into the hip, over the peg in the pelvis, down into the other hip, over the peg in the torso, and tied at the waist. The upward pulling on the legs makes them sit better.

If retooling is out of the question, I have had a fair amount of success adding gaskets to the joints. It's still not perfect, but they at least stand up straight.

In the end, I'd like to see retro figures have a nice long life. Thank you again.

[bgiles73]

I like what ZICA did with their Z-Body. The elastic bands have been an issue with most of the retro-figures I've bought. In the South Louisiana climate elastic doesn't withstand the test of time. I like the looks of the Mattel body, but agree that the thigh/pelvis area needs to be reworked. Like someone said before, do something similar to ZICA's Z-Body.

[megalomaniac001]

I thought it was interesting reading all of the posts so far. I have to say that I agree with those who mentioned how totally awesome it is that Mattel is making these. I used to have dreams about being in a toy store and seeing Mego's on the pegs. Now, I go to Toys R US and there they are! (Mego like anyway) So these are literally a dream come true for me. My enthusiasm for these figures has been muted slightly by the quality issues that have been mentioned. Here is hoping that Mattel will fix the few problems these figures have and make us some great new 'Mego's'

[Harbingerboy]

I am not up on modern toys, so sorry if this is a dumb question... but several folks have said that the elastic is "out dated". I am curious... do the 3 3/4" GI Joe action figures still have the rubber band in the center?

No, they do not...have not since 2002 I believe.

[JediJaida]

I agree with the others: Get rid of the sodding rubber band system!

Use pins like the ZICA figures do.

Please redo the thighs, and pelvis. The way that the torso is molded, the pelvis looks awkward and clumsy. They look like BVD's, and they should look more like slim Speedos.

Take a look at the Enterbay Bruce Lee series, or the Triad figures. The pelvic joint on the male figures are nice and stream lined; the thighs are lean and trim without looking too beefy or awkward.

And PLEASE, go over the female figures with a fine toothed comb in order to avoid the same issues as the males, otherwise we'll be right back where we started and peeved about spending our money on junk.

[sprytel]

I am not up on modern toys, so sorry if this is a dumb question... but several folks have said that the elastic is "out dated". I am curious... do the 3 3/4" GI Joe action figures still have the rubber band in the center?

[The Bat]

It's because of the small pelvis Dane.

Perhaps BK. I do like the Body from the Torso up(don't care about swivel Biceps)...but from the Pelvis down, something has to be done to correct this problem. Just so the Figures can stand, and hold a pose.

[rockeehorror]

Ball joints!

The rubber bands have not been able to be reproduced overseas without too many issues, complications, and major problems.

Swivel waist, ball jointed legs similar to the arms, that would just be enough.

Lose the idea of stringing anything. It is an outdated concept that has been poorly reproduced.

The arms fall in on Bif Bang Pow/ Doc Mego bodies themselves....Lets move forward as Zica has done impressively for a new start up. That design is really impressive from start to finish.

Lets see others follow suit to really enjoy a Mego figure renaissance!

[BATMAN89]

Make them tighter and able to pose!!!

Who cares about all the rest (swivel biceps, etc.)?
Make them stand, and have the ability to hold a pose.
My Batman is loose, not the worst, but Megos hold their
poses much better.

Mattel will do as little as they can to fix these.
They do not want the costs of revamping the whole body.
So I am being realistic, and asking for very little.

[BlackKnight]

I don't think the "thunder Thighs" are being over stated. They are ridiculously large, and ruin the look of the Figure.

It's because of the small pelvis Dane.