We are fortunate to bring you a new round of First Looks thanks to Matty, Toy Guru and the gang at Mattel. First up is figure with long and storied history – before the figure has even been released! Do you smell that? That’s right, it is the March-shipping Masters of the Universe Classics Moss Man. Read on for a look at the Eternian champion of nature and all-round pleasant smells.
If you have been paying attention in the least you know that Moss Man has been through a lot already. It all started back at SDCC 2009 with the Four Horseman’s beautiful prototype. People were in love. Seriously, even when 85% of a figure is covered in green flock the Four Horsemen’s work STILL stands out as beautiful. I make no apologies for being such a fan of them, they really are on top of their game.
Anyway, not long after the initial unveiling, Mattel had some potential production challenges getting the flock on the figure without hampering the articulation. Thus, Matty took it to the fans – do you want your Mossy flocked with limited articulation or un-flocked, but fully articulated? Fortunately, a compromise between the two was met and the final product sees him with a full flock, except around the joints. Really, it works functionally as well as aesthetically, you really do not miss it around the joints and most of the clean portions can be hidden by posing the joints just so.
Finally, when Matty showed the first production shots of Mossy on Face Book, eagle-eyed fans noticed that his ears (on both) heads were flocked, a departure from the prototype. Well, fortunately Mattel was able to jump in midway through production and get the ears changed so they are not flocked. However, some figures had already completed production with flocked ears so www.mattycollector.com will have BOTH version available for purchase on March 15th, and Club Eternia members will be receiving the un-flocked version automatically.
Whew! Get all that? Like I said, quite a bit of history before he even hits the virtual toy peg, but all is in place and ready to go, let’s get down to the actual figure, shall we?
When I was a kid my brother and I shared the MOTU collection. I was in charge of the Evil Warrior and he the good so my heart lies mostly with Skeletor and his cronies. However, just to keep things honest I had a couple of good guys as well – Fisto and Mossman were MINE. Thus, this figure holds a special spot for nostalgia for me. Sure, as kids we shared figures and I had plenty of turns at bat as He-Man, but Fisto and Mossman will always be my favorites. Furthermore, Mossman was (and still is) my favorite good guy. I remember the Christmas morning very clearly the year that I got him, the sight, the SMELL everything. So there are some things about Moss Man that are very near and dear to me.
There are three things with Moss Man that made him stand out as a vintage figure: his flocking, his “look to the left” and, of course, his pine scent. Well, ring-a-ding-ding, we are getting all three of those features in this new figure so he is certainly carring on the tradition of the 1980s but, like Webstor before him, there are a few updates to bring out some modern sensibilies.
Let’s take a look (and a wiff) at the classic things. First and foremost – Moss Man smells all nice and piney and you will know it even before you open the white mailer box (even though his blister does NOT have the standard vent holes, he is cooking in that plastic). They say that your sense of smell is one of the strongest senses attached to memory and I am getting a caught up in being 5 years old again. I remember the smell of the vintage Moss Man quite vividly. Like Stinkor, I don’t think I will ever forget that smell, burned on my brain. While this figure has a very strong smell of a pine forest, it is not EXACTLY the smell of the original, but you know, it is awesome. I really hope Matty baked that smell into him, I want the pine fresh scent forever.
Next is the flocking, the new flock feel just like the old flock. It is so weird of have both of these figures in hand and even though the scent is long gone from my vintage Mossy, it is that same old feeling. I know there are stong supporters and strong opponents of flocking, but it is just not Moss Man without it and I am happy to say that, for all of the drama surrounding the production, Mattel did a very nice job getting the flocking right.
Finally, there is the “look”. Yeah, you know it. For some reason that will probably never have an answer, the old Moss Man figure’s eyes were painted so that he looked to the left. Not all shifty-eyed, the left eye was to the left while the right eye was, for the most part forward. Why this was done, I am not sure, but I think that maybe the Mattel artist from back in the day was a big time Men at Work/Colin Hay fan and was paying tribute to the Who Can It Be Now video…
Uncanny right? For some reason, that simple dab of paint was always one of the most defining things about the vinatage figure. It never really struck me that he was just a fuzzy green Beastman, even though I was well aware of that fact. So down to the last paint detail this new figure captures that look, and I love it.
Like I said, there are some updates to the figure, as well as some departures. In the latter category, Moss Man now is 100& Beastman from head to toe as he now shares his feet (the vintage figure utilized the Stratos kicks). Also, the new figure has a very dark green plastic for the unflocked parts of the hands and feet as opposed to being the same green color as the rest of the body (a significantly lighter tint). Not that these are nit picks, just pointing out some differences (though vintage purists might take umbridge with the feet). He does have the requisite long furry shorts too to properly mark him as “Pre-ternian”, a touch I really hope continues as it is kind of neat.
For the updates, we are now getting a more gentle, modern-influenced head. I know a lot of people are really digging this one as it seems to fit the character more than the pissed-off Beastman head. I can see that for sure, especially based off of his new biography (one of the coolest so far) that describes him as god-like and ancient – he is a tree-hugger after all. The verdict is still out for me – my senses are speaking to me for modern but the vintage guy is wanting to keep the old one. Yeah, I am probably going to need two.
His accessories are a departure as well from the vintage counterpart. He still has his old timey mace, but it has been refitted to look like it is made of natural wood, an update I welcome. Back in the 80s, all Moss Man needed was his mace and a pine scent, but the Four Horsemen have added a cool vine shoulder strap, a dagger with sheath and a bag most certainly filled with magic “green”. Again, the shoulder strap is removable just in case you want to be 100% old school.
There you have it. For some of these characters, it gets hard to write about them because it is more of trip down memory lane, a super-fun trip down memory lane. Moss Man though is so much fun though that you just have to consider him – he is flocked AND pine scented. That just makes for a fun toy. If you are a Club Eternia member you will be getting this version automatically come March 15th, if you want the flocked ears version you will have to take your chances on the order screen and I wish you luck, especially after Trap Jaw/Battle Cat day. Now, bring on Perfuma so Moss Man can have some help in making your display a greener place, Hordikins.
*Thanks so much for reading and, as always, thanks to Toy Guru, Rhobyn and the gang at Mattel for making this look possible!
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