For awhile now, I’ve been buying DC “Super Powers” Classics, 25th Anniversary Joes, MOTU Classics, and others. It’s like a second childhood. I loved the toys as a kid and I love them again now when they’ve been rebuilt for my “adult” sensibilities (and my “I have a job” wallet). But if you asked me what my favorite show/movie was as a kid, I would’ve answered Ghostbusters.

Like a lot of Ghostbusters fans, I’m still anxiously awaiting some cartoon-based merchandise to be truly ecstatic, but the rest of me is happy to see Harold Ramis get his due. I’m still excited to get figures based on the movie, crushed that Venkman is still nine months away, and blown away that my favorite property is being treated so well by the Four Horsemen. It’s just that despite warnings from my wallet, I want it all now. But, I’ll settle for Egon, Slimer, and the knowledge that Mattel is off to a great start…

I’m guessing the first figure was supposed to be a Slimed Venkman, but some issues must have arose and Egon is the first Ghostbuster to see release. It looks like they scaled back the slime a bit and I’m glad they did. My Egon just appears to be a little dirty, maybe from more toward the end of a film than the beginning. Mattel has said they’ll release a “clean” version with a PKE meter similar to their tease that a future release of Ray could have goggles and be a “Hotel Sedgewick Ray”.

Hopefully, Mattel’s not planning on reissuing these guys with such slight variations. At $20 a pop, we need some substantial differences to make multiple buys worth it. And at the pace these are being released, it will take years to assemble a collection if we get hung up on “Science Lab Egon” or “Outside the Opera” Venkman. Hopefully, Mattel will process through the limited roster the films provide and skip on to the greener pastures of The Real Ghostbusters before that happens.

Egon features an all-new sculpt, but it’s one you will be seeing again. It’s full of excellent details – hoses, wires, zippers, and different textures. I love the 4H’s DC Classics work, but those bucks don’t give them as much of a chance to shine. This Ghostbuster buck does. Each time you look at it, you can find a new sculpted detail.

Specific to Egon is the head sculpt. In my opinion, it looks mostly like Harold Ramis. The funny thing about the human face is that we don’t always look like the same person from different angles. This head gets it right from a lot of the angles, but occasionally, and I blame the nose, I get a hint of Dustin Hoffman in there. I don’t know why, but I just look at Egon and instantly think “fifteen minutes to Wapner”. It’s a problem, I know.

Since it’s a new buck, there’s new articulation. It sports ball-joints for the neck, shoulders, elbows, and wrists. Swivel joints on the waist, thighs and calves. Hinge joints on the knees and ankles (rocker joints too). And finally, those newfangled Mattel hips that DC Classics use. All the joints are sturdy and Egon can easily be left on the shlef in a variety of great poses. If you’re wondering how big Egon is, he’s really a Movie Master, so he fits in with the recent Dark Knight figures and clocks in at six inches.

Technically speaking, Egon has no accessories. Slimer is a pack-in of a separate character and the proton pack isn’t removable. The proton pack’s wand is molded in a softer rubber/plastic and can be clipped to the the pack or posed with the figure. It’s a little too soft sometimes – mine came bent in the package – but after keeping it on his back for awhile it mostly reverted back to its proper form. Continue to Page 2…