{"id":28105,"date":"2014-06-03T20:30:09","date_gmt":"2014-06-04T01:30:09","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.itsalltrue.net\/?p=28105"},"modified":"2014-06-30T23:47:29","modified_gmt":"2014-07-01T04:47:29","slug":"motuclassics-com-battle-lion-review","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.itsalltrue.net\/?p=28105","title":{"rendered":"MOTUClassics.Com
Battle Lion Review"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/a> Every once in awhile, Mattel throws me a curve. When future subscriptions were pared down to essentials, I was\u2026 concerned<\/em>. I\u2019m one of those weird collectors that tend to like the fringes more than the essentials. My favorite characters are b-list on a good day. Now, truth be told, I still am waiting on a \u201cbig\u201d name to cross off my fringe list \u2013 Calix or Red Beast, notably \u2013 but Mattel surprised me when they announced Battle Lion. <\/p>\n

Looking back, it shouldn\u2019t be that much of a surprise that he was included. Take Battle Cat, give him a lion\u2019s mane, a new tail, and some armor and *boom* Battle Lion. That’s too easy for a buck toy line to resist. Looking back, I laugh that I thought a big pink cat (Clawdeen) was more likely than this guy.* <\/p>\n

* – Before I get any hate mail for picking on a big pink cat, I\u2019d sooo buy Clawdeen.<\/em><\/p>\n

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Now, while I\u2019m going to be happy any time anything MO2K drips out of Classics, I have to say I’m not totally sold on the idea behind Battle Lion. I love Preternia. Heck, I love the name. I love the glistening white Castle. I love King Grayskull as an ancestor of Adam that he channels to become He-Man. I imagine this great scene when He-Man has to travel back in time, undisguised, to not too long after Grayskull passed. He encounters Veena fighting for her life, she notices the silhouette, the shape, and she hopes for second, but realizes it can\u2019t be. The pair fights together and stop whatever time scheme Skeletor has devised, but that\u2019s just the plot. The important thing is she learns from that meeting just how powerful and important her husband\u2019s legacy will become. The whole idea is just a powerful setup with lots of potential. I love it. <\/p>\n

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But my guy, He-Man? See, he\u2019s already got a big green cat. Maybe it would just seem wrong to see He-Man\u2019s post-created ancestor, looking mostly just like him, riding around on a giant polar bear or, He-forbid, a horse. But this is a dangerous road. Does King Grayskull have a brunette-bearded, benevolent father? Is he friends with a guy that uses his head as a battering ram? Or a guy covered in moss\u2026 oh, wait. Moss Man was there. Well, at least the villains\u2026 are different\u2026 yeah\u2026 dangerous road, indeed. <\/p>\n

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It\u2019s cute, it is. And King Grayskull\u2019s having a big green cat could just be considered one more piece of He-quipment, though that does a disservice to the character itself, should it get some. The present being echoes of the past, that\u2019s cool. If the past were to be made to similar to the current events in a story though, it would lose some uniqueness. Preternia suffers from that too, but I\u2019m getting off track (like normal). Maybe Battle Lion isn\u2019t part of that or not, that\u2019s up to you. At least we can agree he looks cool. <\/p>\n

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Much as the Battle Lion in the MO2K exists due to Battle Cat, so too does this toy. We\u2019ve got a new head, a new tail, and the armor bits on BC’s buck. That\u2019s how you make a Battle Lion. In his original appearance, Battle Lion was much more massive and that probably helped to distinguish him from Battle Cat. As we know though, the massiveness of things in MO2K is not buck-friendly and was quickly eschewed to keep costs down. I don\u2019t mind that. Clawful, Whiplash, etc., they\u2019re all fine as is. And I don\u2019t really mind it here, but putting Grayskull on Battle Lion doesn\u2019t look quite right because he was so HUGE in the cartoon (which is funny because tigers are bigger than lions, but whatevs). <\/p>\n

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The good thing is that the new pieces are nice. The tail is a tail, but the new head and lion mane look great. It gives back some of the lost mass to be sure. I wish I\u2019d snagged a packaged picture because, in this package, he looked huge! It\u2019s all in the mane, which does block some of the forward leg articulation, but I don\u2019t care. It’s the one part that’s massive. It looks great masked or unmasked. Continue to Page 2…<\/a><\/p>\n

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Unmasked is a bit funny though. Mattel and the 4H did a fantastic thing \u2013 the MO2K armor on Battle Lion is interchangeable with Battle Cat. The saddle wouldn\u2019t be that big a deal, but the mask is. I didn\u2019t think I\u2019d get so giddy over putting Battle Lion\u2019s gear on Battle Cat, but I did. I think I blame the vintage helmet. I have an admission, I don\u2019t like the vintage helmet. Blasphemous, I know. It looked cool in the show. It\u2019s iconic. The sculpt is solid, but it covers up that wonderfully sculpted tiger head. In my collection, Battle Cat hasn\u2019t worn that helmet for years. I had to hunt it down in the parts bin to take the pictures for this review. <\/p>\n

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The MO2K armor is much more subtle, just fitting over the face and I like that better. I\u2019m not going to trade up, once everything is set back up, Battle Lion will keep his gear and Battle Cat will go back to being unmasked and the center of attention in the He-Man display, but I do like it better. The only bad side effect to being able to switch them out like that though? The Lion and Tiger have to have the same face \u2013 that\u2019s why the mask comes in handy on Battle Lion. <\/p>\n

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The two\u2026 paw covers? Pawntlets? Does foot armor for cats have a name? Anyway, they\u2019re nicely sculpted and they fit great. They more than anything have a vintage classicized feel to them. They\u2019re nifty. <\/p>\n

The saddle is the main highlight for the armored up bits though and I like it well enough. It\u2019s very soft overall and that takes away some of the detail from the 4H\u2019s great sculpt, but it looks good. It works. The techy feel is still there with all the knobs and buttons and there\u2019s a slot for the longer Preternia loincloths, so that\u2019s cool. I would\u2019ve liked to see some add-ons or updates here though. No, not missiles, but a spot to store gear. I love that Battle Cat has that and it would\u2019ve been neat to see again in a different form. <\/p>\n

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Articulation is the same as Battle Cat, Panthor, and the Griffin, so if you have one of those you know what to expect. Everything works great except the head and front legs are blocked a bit by the mane. <\/p>\n

The paintwork on Battle Lion was pretty sharp. The cat itself has some airbrushing to bring out details and all the facial bits were well done. I think one eye is slightly off center from the other, but it works. The armored bits are mostly molded one color with the metallic highlight. The saddle already has a few areas where that highlight is flaking off, so that may be a concern over time. <\/p>\n

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Overall, yeah, Battle Lion is pretty much a repaint\u2026 that\u2019s the same color as the original. Well, that\u2019s more on the show\u2019s creators than the toymakers really. That\u2019s been my take away from playing around with him \u2013 any issues I have with Battle Lion in general are with the creators of the show and are ten years moot. The toy itself is a nice recreation from the show. I do wish he were bigger, but I understand why he\u2019s not and the various big cats do look good posed together on the shelf. The great Battle Cat articulation is mostly intact and he\u2019s painted well. That fits my toy collector requirements. Now, it\u2019s just too bad Hordak\u2019s never going to get his Mantisaur…<\/p>\n

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Recent MOTU Classics Reviews:<\/strong><\/p>\n

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For all our MOTU reviews, check out our
\n MOTU Classics Collector’s Guide<\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n

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