Sep 24

Sep 24 Matty Collector Toy Review - September, 2011

Chief Carnivus, Leech, and Hurricane Hordak

The September release from the Masters of the Universe collection included two new figures and one re-release. We get two new figures in Leech and Hurricane Hordak, both part of the 2011 subscription. Chief Carnivus was the figure available as a re-release. All three are pictured below.

If you remember the original Leech figure from 1985, it was quite hefty. The figure also had suction cups for hands, feet, and a really powerful suction mechanism for his head. You would push a button on his back, then press his face against a smooth surface and release the button. He would stick right to it. That's the one thing missing from this figure... any sort of suction mechanism. That all being said, this figure is really quite stunning. It still has a bit of heft to it. The Four Horseman have done an amazing job with the head sculpt. It's gorgeous in the most grotesque way possible. And who doesn't love a great bat style crossbow.

The articulation, like most of the others from this series, is good. You have to be careful with the left arm since there is an attached piece of armor there that could be pinched and broken. Aside from the crossbow, Leech also ships with a suction cup netting in the shape of the Horde bat. It's a fun accessory, but I was a little bummed that the way it was packaged caused one side of mine to be deformed.

Next up we have Hurricane Hordak. This is easily the least impressive of the three figures. I was very excited about this figure because I was under the impression there was actually a spin mechanism to him like his 1986 original design. They paid homage to the design by sculpting a non functional spin wheel on the back of his removable armor. The design of the figure is nice, but nothing special. In my opinion the previously released Hordak figure from Matty Collector was much more impressive.

Hordak comes with updated versions of the same three spin weapons the original figure sported. There's the bat blades, the thunderball mace, and the fork pincher. They all attach by plugging into the hole in the figure's right arm. Again articulation is pretty good, although the bulky armor tends to limit movement a little bit. A small price to pay for so much bling!

I discovered the Matty Collector Masters of the Universe toy line after they had already been out a couple years. While I am signed up for a 2012 subscription, I am still missing a good number of the previous year's figures. When I have the opportunity to pick up a figure re-release, I absolutely take it. This month, we had the opportunity to pick up Chief Carnivus. This is a character I'm really not that familiar with. Outside of what I read on his card, and a brief appearance in the 2002 cartoon series, I really had no idea who he was.

That all being said, this is one wicked awesome figure sculpt. The detailing is one of the best I've seen from this series so far. The Chief comes with a sword, shield and full length cape. The armor, weapons and head are all highly detailed and well sculpted. The figure articulates well and displays amazingly.

And just for fun, here's some "action shots". Click 'em to make 'em bigger. As of this posting, Leech is already sold out, but you can still pick up Hurricane Hordak and Chief Carnivus at MattyCollector.com. Enjoy!