![](\"newsimages\/2013\/sdcc\/aquaman.jpg\")
<\/a> I\u2019ve been a little hesitant to write-up the SDCC Mattel\/DC Coverage. Not because I have a problem with the subscription reveals. I mean, I could nitpick things here and there like Ra\u2019s face sculpt or trying to figure out exactly how much more \u201cunleashed\u201d Doomsday costs over \u201ccontainment suit\u201d Doomsday, but it’s not really about that. <\/p>\nIt’s other collectors that have made me hesitate. Not all of them, of course. Probably not even most of them. And probably not the majority of readers here at IAT. I think you guys get me, or at least tolerate my foolish and generally lighthearted take on things. The thing is that I want to like action figures. I want to enjoy collecting. I wouldn’t spend the copious hours on my articles and reviews if I didn’t. And while I can get just as frustrated with the companies that make toys as anyone, sometimes I just have a hard time understanding my fellow collectors.<\/p>\n
So after the reveals, I was understandably excited. I love DC figures and this line, warts, morts, and all has done a better job than Kenner, Hasbro, or DC Direct ever did in getting me a great, consistent shelf of DC figures. I have gone to Big Lots to buy them. I have travelled an hour to a Ross. Two hours to a KB Toys. Combed the countryside, travelling from Walmart to Walmart wondering why the heck collecting these was so difficult. I\u2019ve done crazy stuff to collect this line and wished that Mattel would just giftwrap \u2018em and send them directly to m- oh, wait… they already do that. Because, yes, I’ve also committed $250+ a year to a questionable website to get the figures directly mailed to my house. Crazy lengths indeed.<\/em> <\/p>\n So, yeah, part of me is over this subscription thing, but then I see the figures. Some of which were pulled right from the top of my most wanted list like Hook-Hand Aquaman. Others, like Batzarro, not so much, but y\u2019know what \u2013 I\u2019ll take him. He\u2019s a DC figure and even though I\u2019m a little tired of subscribing, I\u2019m not tired of DC figures, even ones I wouldn\u2019t have thought to put on my want list. I\u2019m going to have Fire & (presumably) Ice for a JLI set. I\u2019m going to have Wally & (presumably) Hook-Hand Aquaman to build my Morrison JLA. And those figures necessitate others, I still desperately want a Kyle Rayner is his classic (& best if you ask me)<\/em> costume. I want Zauriel. I want the 2nd Dr. Light. I want a proper Bizarro to go with my Batzarro. I want Talia to hang out with Ra\u2019s. I want that Doomsday \u2013 heck, I want both of those Doomsdays. If some miracle makes Tier 2 happen, I\u2019ll be disappointed if we don\u2019t get containment suit Doomsday too. He looks cool. I love DC figures and this 6\u201d foray is the line that got the farthest and one thing I don’t want to do is trade up. I want it to creep along, even at one figure a month. <\/p>\n I wish we could buy them in stores. I don\u2019t remember the last one I bought in a store anymore (maybe the Crime Syndicate 5pk after hours of driving?)<\/em>, but we can\u2019t buy them in stores. And the thing is, I don\u2019t really care why. I don\u2019t care if it\u2019s because DC wants nU at retail. I don\u2019t care if it\u2019s because Mattel doesn\u2019t want to try. I don\u2019t care if it\u2019s because North American buyers have no imagination. I can\u2019t change any of that. And I\u2019ve got better things to do than worry about why they\u2019re sold the way they are. <\/p>\n So maybe Batzarro is my Roquefort, Red Hood my Stilton (can you tell I don\u2019t like bleu cheese?)<\/em>. But I love these DC figures enough to know that most of the months are going to be right up my alley. <\/p>\n And I was wrong about Red Hood, by the way. I thought he was going to be the low point of the subscription for me this year and he turned out to be a highlight. Maybe folks can tell me that I\u2019m just not wise enough to know what I will and will not like from SDCC coverage pics. Maybe they\u2019d be right. But I\u2019ll take a collector that can learn to love a figure they didn\u2019t know they wanted over one that jumps into a profanity-laced tirade because their pet character wasn\u2019t chosen. Then again, I have Jemm, the Son of Saturn, so I don’t know what that’s like anymore. (*Cough* Zauriel… *Cough* Aztek… *Cough* GA Mr. Terrific… *Cough* Gangbuster…. I could go on all day, but my throat’s gettin’ scratchy…)<\/em> <\/p>\n We all have our bad moments. It\u2019s understandable. I think that\u2019s truer for DC fans the last couple years. So I read through the complaints after the panel and I wasn\u2019t schooled about how the panel was disappointing or how the figures chosen suck. I try to just keep in mind that it’s the internet and that, almost always, cooler heads prevail. <\/p>\n I was hesitant to bring that back to IAT though. I read every comment on this site. Every one. (I wish I had the time to respond to each and every one of them like I did in the good ol\u2019 days.)<\/em> But did I want to post something just to read more comments about why Mattel sucks because Cosmo the Phantom of the Disguise was overlooked again? Not really. Did I want to hear more about the straw man \u201cDC Direct already did it\u201d argument? Not really. (Why Mattel should give a crap what some other toy company made umpteen years ago doesn\u2019t make much sense to me. (I mean, I do treasure my under-articulated, bow-legged, well-sculpted DCD Hook Hand Aquaman from eight years ago, but I\u2019ll take a 4H articulated one any day. That\u2019s the line I collect.).)<\/em> Did I want to hear more about how it\u2019s suddenly so important if a figure was intended for retail but scrapped and moved to the sub? I think I\u2019d rather tackle \u201cDC Direct already did it\u201d before even entertaining that one. <\/p>\n I\u2019m already getting e-mails about writing a pro-sub article again this year. I\u2019m not planning on it. I didn’t do it last year and this is as close as I\u2019ll get this year. I don\u2019t really care if folks buy a subscription or not. I\u2019d like to see it go through, of course, but we all know what it is. We all know how it works. Admittedly, I\u2019d like it if some of my fellow collectors could take the time to find joy in what they liked instead of being so negative. Course, I\u2019d also like it if DC figures were readily available in stores, but we all can\u2019t get what we want.<\/p>\n Continue to Page 2 for some Brief Thoughts on Future Retail Offerings<\/a><\/p>\n <\/p>\n But, wait there are DC Retail offerings! 6\u201d Classics does appear to be finally dead at retail. We knew that the Batman Unlimited line had already lost Damian (and, yes, I want that little brat in the subscription if there\u2019s nowhere else for him to go), so all that was left was the Red Rain Vampire Batman. A 6\u201d version of Beware the Batman was also shown with the known Batman Unlimited line-up, but I don\u2019t think we heard anything about him at the panel, so I\u2019m not sure on him. Either way, Vampire Batman appears to be the last 6\u201d Classics figure to be sold in stores (for now, hopefully). <\/p>\n The new 6\u201d line perplexes me. On the one hand it sounds collector-friendly, more classic costumes, 6\u201d scale, all that good stuff, but it\u2019s totally for kids. I think some collectors are going to go for it \u2013 even I can see picking up one or two (I\u2019m a sucker for Dr. Fate or Firestorm, but we know that’s not happening, don’t we, Cyborg?), but this is an all-new thing for Mattel & DC. Hopefully it will work? <\/p>\n So far Superman, Batman, Aquaman, Flash, Hal, & Sinestro were revealed with a fan\u2019s choice poll at SDCC for the next figure (Reverse Flash, Batman Beyond, Blue Beetle, or a DIY Customizable figure). <\/p>\n Finally, Beware the Batman is still set to have toys of some kind, but no details were given. And there is the Classic TV Batman line still in the pipeline too. <\/p>\n AFP Video<\/a> (Panel) For more pics and the most current news, check out our Event Coverage Forum<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"I was at work when the Mattypalooza panel revealed the remaining line-up for 2013: Ocean Master (Sweet!)<\/em>, Ra\u2019s al Ghul (dat face, but alright!)<\/em>, Batzarro (a fun WTF!)<\/em>. And then they kicked things into high gear with 2014: Hook Hand Aquaman (my face melted, I tell you)<\/em>, Ice (expected, but looks good)<\/em>, and T-shirt Superboy (okay, well not everything was perfect, but that\u2019ll scratch someone\u2019s itch for sure)<\/em>, and the sub exclusive was Doomsday. The only thing I found odd was that Doomsday was one of two versions, Containment Suit if the sub goes through okay and the more fan-demanded \u201cunleashed\u201d one if it goes through better than okay, but both versions looked fantastic. <\/p>\n<\/a> I\u2019ll be honest; a part of me is over the Mattel subscriptions. They\u2019re expensive. And I\u2019m the type of collector that after collecting something for so long, kinda wants to move on and diversify. Hot Toys is finally getting into properties that I deem \u201cmust have\u201d. Third Parties are doing amazing things with transforming combiners. But those are expensive obsessions. It would be much easier to afford those if I didn\u2019t commit a $1000 to Mattycollector next year (MOTU & DC subs, plus shipping, and an extra item or two). Granted, that\u2019s only like 4 Hot Toys figures, but still, it\u2019s harder than ever to try and budget everything cool these days. <\/p>\n<\/a> They\u2019re in a subscription, essentially a DC Figure of the Month Club. It\u2019s kinda like signing up for pajamas or cheese by the month. You sign up, you don\u2019t care which one you get because you love pajamas or cheese, they ship it to you, you open it, and you enjoy. Or maybe you don\u2019t. Maybe you got scratchy wool this month. Or Gorgonzola. Disappointing, but maybe next month will be better. That\u2019s the hope. It\u2019s exactly like those \u2013 except better for me, because I love DC figures a lot more than I like pajamas\u2026 and maybe more than I like cheese. Maybe. <\/em><\/p>\n<\/a> Two years ago, I put out an article urging folks to buy a subscription. Well, I wasn\u2019t really urging folks to buy-in. I was more explaining to people the upside of the subscription. The MOTU sub works just fine, but it gets a bad rap from loud complainers and I wanted my fellow DC fans to know it wasn\u2019t as bad as they\u2019d heard. Admittedly, the DC sub hasn\u2019t turned out as nice as the MOTU one. <\/p>\n<\/a> What Mattel did with their \u201cHeroic Partnership\u201d panel was announce new projects. I did see a lot to like, but not really much to buy since my commitment is only to the 6\u201d Classics line. Basically, retail will be reinvented again with a new 4\u201d line and a new 6\u201d line. I think the 4\u201d line, called Multiverse, shows more promise. The sculpts shown for the first wave, based on Arkham Origins, look pretty nice and featured 14 POA. If Mattel can execute them well at production, I think some smaller scale collectors will be happy. The second wave is said to be movie-based, but only one was revealed (and not really shown) 1989 Keaton Batman. I\u2019ll be buying that one for sure. I love the look of Keaton Batman. So much so that the Hot Toys is in my toy room already and I still have to have that NECA \u00bc Scale one! <\/p>\nAvailable Galleries:<\/strong><\/h3>\n
\nAFP<\/a> (Booth – Online)
\nToyArk<\/a> (Booth)
\nToyArk<\/a> (Booth)
\nCTR<\/a> (Booth)
\nAFI<\/a> (Panel)
\nAFI<\/a> (Booth Retail)
\nTNI<\/a> (Panel)
\nTNI<\/a> (Booth – Online)
\nTNI<\/a> (Booth – Retail)<\/p>\n