The year is only half over but I’m already ready to give out the award for best action figures of the year. Playmates attempt at bringing us updated version of our four favorite heroes in a halfshell not only succeeded in my opinion, but it has revitalized my interest in something that was only “something I was REALLY into” as a child. Truth be told, I never grew tired of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles but my interest lay dormant since no other version connected with me the same way the original had. Playmates Toys’ TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES CLASSIC EDITION is the line we’ve all been really waiting for. We looked at Raphael and Leonardo previously but today, we’re checking out the party animal of the bunch: Michelangelo.
The retro packaging is a sight to behold, resembling the original toy packaging from the 80s. The card and bubble for each of the turtles is just about identical with the same artwork and text with the exception of the character name. The one thing that sticks out for me, however, are the illustrated turtles themselves. These are certainly a tribute to the original toon AND toyline but they’re using the marketing artwork used on products and merchandise. They’re the super fun, happy, kid-friendly version of the Turtles which isn’t exactly the right mood for these figures.
Michelangelo is the orange masked master of the nunchucks, and I’m not going to lie, probably my least favorite of the four. But that’s not to say I dislike him, he was just always my fourth choice. Playmates has given Mikey the most neutral facial expression between the four. His mouth is completely closed, which is a bit out of character somewhat. This is the party turtle but here he’s definitely focused on attack. It’s an expression I would prefer on Donatello but it still looks great nonetheless.
The scale is a new thing on these Turtles as they’re much taller than the 6” scale (almost appropriate for Masters of the Universe Classics). It makes these turtles even more display worthy.
Articulation on Michelangelo and the rest of the turtles are greatly improved upon from the vintage figures that had only about seven points. These new figures boast 34 points of articulation! It says so on the box! But my own count, there’s about 40 unique joints (two in the thumb alone) so that’s quite an impressive count. There’s basically enough joints to do all the poses you’ve always wanted to do. Some joints are slightly looser than others so you might need some support for some of the crazier poses.
Michelangelo comes with only two nunchucks and a manhole figure stand. The nunchucks are painted orange and gray with a chain in between… like real! Both weapons have holders on the back of the belt. The only bummer about the nunchucks is that you aren’t really able to display him spinning them in the air. They’ll just hang there naturally. A minor quip.
The majority of the parts are produced in that specific color plastic so there’s not too much paint going around, but in the eyes you might want to look out. Michelangelo seems to look okay but I’ve also seen some derpy looking ones.
The last thing I want to touch up on is toy vs toon accuracy. These Classic Collection figures boast their inspiration from the original cartoon. But if that were really the case, Michelangelo would be the same shade green as everyone else. Mikey is actually the same green as the vintage figure. Also the belt buckles would be gray in the cartoon but here they are black with yellow lettering. These aren’t deal-breakers to be sure, but it’s always bewildering when a few things aren’t 100%.
In the end, I couldn’t be happier with Playmates’ Classic Collection Ninja Turtles. Now if only there were swappable heads!
Michelangelo and the other turtles are available at retail for about $15-17 RIGHT NOW!
To buy action figures, take a look at BigBadToyStore.com, TheToySource.com, Toynk.com, BriansToys.com, ToyWiz.com, MonkeyDepot.com, EntertainmentEarth.com, Amiami, HobbySearch and Hobbylink
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