So, does your Mattel WWE collection feel a little incomplete with out a “Defining Moments” NWO Hogan? Storm Collectibles has an answer for ya, brother.
It is really nice to have some options at long last in the Wrasslin’ figure arena. Mattel has done an impressive job of cranking out a massive set that spans the WWF well into the WWE era, but it does feel like they’ve lost some steam. There’s some neat-looking exclusives here and there, some prototypes, but man …
And, of course, if you have a soft spot for the Hulkster, then you don’t need me to tell you that Mattel and WWE have left us S.O.L. Say what you will about the man, but like many of his flawed counterparts, you cannot deny the indelible mark he has made on wrestling over the years. I’m not going to wade into the rights or wrongs of his being dropped from the label, but I will tell you any time you lose the ability to get figures of as big a feature as Hulk Hogan, it’s a bummer.
And Mattel, bless their hearts, danced up and down Hogan’s costume alley without finishing off the Attitude Era. Hollywood Hogan, anchor member of the NWO, was sadly just shy of a “Defining Moments” figure. So the surprise announcement of a Storm Collectibles and Ringside Collectibles exclusive Hollywood was a pretty big surprise!
Storm Collectibles has done a couple things, right off the bat, that are at once endearing and a little thumbing-of-the-nose to that collection. First, they made a serious effort to keep him in the scale of the Mattel figures. Second, they upped the ante on the paint, sculpt, and articulation significantly, with a fairly paltry $10 more over a premium Mattel one.
You get a pretty badass bang for your buck, once you get the box. He has an extra set of hands, two feather boas, a cloth shirt, removable necklace, sunglasses, belt, bandana, and a “Hollywood Hogan” base. Really, for the $35-ish price point, that is a great loadout.
The sculpt is really nice, especially on the upper body. He is a good portion bulkier than his Mattel counterpart, and the flesh color is definitely a step much closer to that orange-y tone. The face sculpt is really good, if the chosen gritted teeth look might not be for everyone. I suspect there is some printing technique used for the face, and the colors, eyes, complexion — all outclass anything Hogan has seen previously.
That printwork is echoed on the tights and boots, and they are really … nuts. I’ve rarely seen better applications than these on a figure of any scale.
So the only thing that stops this guy from being a total knockout over the other Hogan figures is the articulation, or rather the … “import-ness” of that articulation. The formula is definitely here, with ball-jointed torso points, double elbows and knees, butterfly shoulder joints, and full-range ankles. And for the upper body, it’s on the money. It’s only once you get the waist, and particularly if you remove that damn lifting belt like I did, that you hit some snags.
Most of the issue comes down to … the crotch piece. Har har har. It’s a soft rubber piece, sort of like NECA uses, and that’s usually not a problem. The difference here is, where most figures have that rubber piece attached to at least some kind of rudimentary t-crotch, this figure has no structure to tie it to. Instead, it just floats over the large hip-joint barbell and sort of just “cups” the lower part of the torso.
It doesn’t stay put, it creates gaps in the torso when moved, and it even occasionally gets snagged on the tops of the hips. With so much else done right, it kind of leaves me just scratching my head. A more traditional hip setup, or even just some pelvic skeletal structure underneath would have solved the problem and made this figure a total recommend. There are a few other little nitpicks, like the feet coming disconnected a little too easily on mine, but otherwise everything else on this thing screams “premium,” which makes a gaffe like that crotch section all the more odd.
A couple other minor notes: as I stated above, if you ever want to put it back on, DON’T remove that damn belt! It’s a major pain to get back on there. The other, which may more may not be a big deal, is that, of course, the “NWO” labeling is absent, for obvious licensing reasons. But, it’s worth mentioning.
Overall, though, I think I still give this figure a decent recommendation. The issues, weighed with the pricing, balance out in the end. And he is an excellent addition to your Mattel NWO, even if he is kinda a class of his own.
