If you bought this figure to get a Bubble Power She-Ra, my hats off to you. I may not have wanted this particular variant on its own merits, but I did want the Battle Armors, I do want Snake Armor, etc., so I certainly don’t begrudge a figure being in the line that I might not want personally.
Like the original, Bubble Power She-Ra is largely pulled off by the use of add-on pieces. I’ve already mentioned the clip-on mask, but there’s also an additional tunic piece that slides over the regular figure and clasps in the back. It’s a little weird to me because it makes the figure look bulky again, but it captures the original for the most part. The colors, gold and pearlized pink, look sharp together but even when combined with the pink mask and gold cape, the figure doesn’t quite feel like a cohesive piece to me. I should point out that all the pictures on this page feature the original She-Ra figure sporting the BP gear. This is a nifty thing because it allows me to display both She-Ra’s while having the cobbled together She-Ra at the same time.
BP She-Ra also has a nice complement of accessories. The axe/comb is repackaged here (I neglected to snag a pic of it), but we also get a new sword, a redecoed shield, and the “Bubble Blaster”. I don’t entirely get how the original Bubble Blaster was supposed to work, so that tempers my annoyance that this one doesn’t. I know that sounds dumb, it doesn’t really need to blow bubbles, but if there were some way to have made it functional, I would’ve been all for it. For my $20 I want these things to be as fun as possible.
BP She-Ra’s sword is all-new, recreating the original that came with the first BP She-Ra. It’s done in a nice two-tone gold with the jewel attached. It’s a more sturdy plastic than the last POP figure (Catra) but there are still some indentions in it from the packaging, so it could still have been a little sturdier for my tastes. BP She-Ra’s shield is the same sculpt as the original but features a much cooler two-tone color scheme that really brings out the little details and a pink gem instead of a blue one.
Overall, I have to be upfront and say that I’m not sure I would’ve bought Bubble Power She-Ra had I not needed her to assemble a better She-Ra (she thankfully wasn’t a subscription figure). I’m glad Mattel released BP She-Ra this way to allow collectors the chance to fix their own She-Ra (though this prevents there being a definitive She-Ra toy as she must be cobbled together from two different figures), but if Mattel wants to explore any more of She-Ra’s alternate costumes whether it be Starburst or Frosty Fur, they need to sculpt some new dresses and accessories instead of overlays to make those designs. The figures will feel much more like standalone releases and will increase the incentive to pick them up.
That said, I really appreciate the utility here and the customizing options that Mattel made available (albeit as a byproduct more than by design) make for a both a good apology figure and a decent unique figure in its own right. It may not be a figure we all wanted/needed, but I think we should all be open to finding the positives behind figures we may not initially want (especially if we’re buying them in the subscription anyway).
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MOTU Classics Collector’s Guide.
Last picture is classic.
I thought the first She-Ra looked bad too. My marketing slogan for her was “Boxy IS foxy.” Not sure why Matty didn’t go that route to sell her though. 🙂
The new figure has a better hourglass shape, and she looks great on Swifty. Overall I’m pleased; it simply burns a wee bit that I had to buy two figures to make one good one. Well played Matty, well played.
Loved the last picture. Can I ask what camera you use for your reviews – the MOTUC pictures always end up looking so bright and vibrant – brings out the colours.
As always, great review with excellent pics! I got one of these to make a cobbled-together “good” She-Ra myself, and ended up drilling out Original She-Ra’s neck-hole too much, so it’s extremely loose on the ball joint. Can’t win sometimes.
I just hope when they get around to re-releasing a She-Ra for day-of-sale buyers, it’ll have this 2.0 body with the Filmation head. Nah. That’d be a decent idea.
Great review Noisy! pics are superb as always
Great review!
BP She-Ra’s bubble blower looks like those hand attachments players use in Jai Lai.
My only beef with BP She-Ra is that She isn’t appreciated enough on her own… Sure, her sculpt is amazing, the extra toy details and Holy crap! she CAN KICK ASS! Literally thanks to the skirt slits… but over 90% of folks are taking her body, popping the Filmation head on her, then putting the BP stuff on the Mannequin-Ra and forgetting about it… (guilty of this as well)
Now Mattel better make Starburst She-Ra with a Vintage Toy inspired chestpiece so we can Mix and match our She-Ras to get the one we prefer…
(since Mix and match seems to be She-Ra’s theme)
This upgraded version is way better than the 1st version. Glad that she fits perfect on Swiftwind. Now Catra needs her updated version along with her steed Storm. Great pics & review by the way. Happy Holidays also!
Funny, my Goddess has the same busted left leg…
Ditto. Seems to be a common problem. Got a replacement for her, who is now relegated to standing straight and not assuming any interesting or action-oriented poses whatsoever. Considering her hip-joint’s under her bodice (or whatever that ubiquitous Eternian female garment is), they could’ve forgone the clear plastic and used something a bit sturdier for her hips.
The skeptic in me feels this was an ingenius way to get a lot of people to buy a She-Ra variant. The enthusiast in me, however, feels it was an ingenius way to fix the sore points of the original She-Ra release.
I love that Mattel gave us a way to do this, and gave us the option to have a She-Ra variant or not (although I know subscribers will complain that they couldn’t combin BPSR with their sub order).
So does either one go into that “perpetual store” with He-Man, and when does that begin?