There are a lot of incarnations and canons under the umbrella of the Masters of the Universe brand. Mini comics; regular comics; product descriptions; books; character biographies; and, perhaps the most well known, cartoons, have all contributed to the hodge-podge of stories that have somehow come together to build a mythos that is pretty specialized to the individual fan. I really cannot think of any property out there that has morphed like this, especially to this level, and when fans take all of those different media expressions and smash them all up with what adventures their imaginations brought during childhood, it becomes a very personal place. I know my mythos is not exactly the same as anyone else’s world, and, likewise, I am sure. You know what, though? That is what makes Masters one of the best and enduring properties in the pop culture and geek-dom worlds.
So, in the vein of diversity, I consider Mattel FINALLY getting the rights to produce figures of characters created on the beloved FilMation programs the biggest “get” for the line since the actual original inception. There are so many characters that have been a part of many of our worlds for so long that never had the chance to be realized in plastic. Shadow Weaver lead the charge last year, but the action figure production calendar has finally caught up to us, and we are starting to see more figures on the regular schedule. Well, it all starts with Fang Man, and, I can tell you, if he is any indication of what is to come, these figures and characters might just be the next shot in the arm to propel this line forward and further into the future. Just be warned — I am going to take a little latitude to talk about FilMation in general here, so if you want to get right to the figure, skip down a couple of paragraphs. I promise this will be the only time I really do this.
I make no bones about it – I am a FilMation fan. The original toy line came first for me and the figures and card backs of the vintage line will always be my original indoctrination into the MOTU world circa 1984, but I know I am not alone when I consider the FilMation series a cornerstone for my He-Man canon. I do, of course, have nostalgia (not blinded by it as some would like to consider some type of affliction) for the show, but so many of the things about it are so strong, especially when it comes to character design and illustrating the worlds of Eternia and Etheria. Sure, the tone and level was written towards kids (duh!), but many of the stories were actually quite involved, and they fleshed out a lot of the characters and events of Eternia.
Also, while some of the actual translation of the designs of characters were simplified to meet the animation demands (Mr. Scheimer was admirably adamant about keeping those animation jobs in the US), the designs themselves were quite often very solid. You need look no further than the frightening Shokoti and Lord Masque, the stocky General Tataran, the decidedly creepy Evil Seed, and our very own Fang Man. I know that a small (but vocal) part of the fan base has been opposed to FilMation characters solely on their point of origin, but I think that given the chance (and processed through that great Classicizer machine by the Four Horsemen), a lot of these characters stand a chance to be stand out figures in an already diverse line.
Fang Man is really getting that ball rolling and I hope that you can tell from the pictures that he brings the detail we expect from all figures in this line. While opening the figure, the first thing that popped into my head was, “This is very much a MOTUC figure.” I know that there was some concern about him maybe not being detailed enough to fit that Classics aesthetic, but I can assure you — he does. He is built with mostly existing parts: he has the standard legs, the scaly torso of Whiplash and Clawful, the Tri-Klops arms, Demo-Man hands, and new/old Keldor boots with the ankle joint now internalized so it is not visible. So, for the most part, he is very much a Classics figure. Where the new parts exist, though, are obviously the center of the discussion.
For his shorts and tunic, I think they have been translated perfectly and have brought the FilMation designs to the Classics level of detail. His shirt (removable) has cloth folds and sculpted lines and rivets; the back of his shirt also has a great nod to detail in that there are raises down the back to make it look like the fins on his head and neck continue on down his back. That is one of the little details I just love. The shirt (and shorts, for that matter) are also made of a soft plastic so that, even though I thought they would inhibit a lot of his movement, they really don’t at all. The shoulders were my biggest area of concern, but they move great and have a nice range of motion. I do have to call out that fact that Fang Man wears a picture of himself in the design of his belt buckle is hilarious and I am so glad that has been realized in the figure.
As for the head/neck sculpt, I personally think it fits in GREAT with the line overall. Yes, I will admit that Fang Man has a very unique look and build, even for a MOTU character. So, if your beef with his look comes from character design, I cannot really argue with that, if you don’t like something, you don’t like something. However, if your rub comes from the notion that his head sculpt is not detailed enough, I kindly ask you to look again. Seriously, the Four Horsemen have brought his sculpt to the level of the line. His skin has folds and crevices and his neck is scaly and has a ton of lines. There really is nothing simplified about the details in this figure. He will stand perfectly with your Mer-Man, Whiplash, Spikor and the rest of the Snake Mountain gang.
His head and neck are also set in a way that is completely unique to the figure in that, not only does he have a detachable head, but neck as well. The neck itself attaches to the standard neck the same way that the Classics heads do, and then the head attaches to the neck the same way. So, you can theoretically display him without the neck piece, but he looks a little funky without it. Or you can swap heads with just about any figure in the line. He is also unique in the fact that his tongue (!) is articulated and can move back and forth around his lizard lips on a little disk set at the back of his mouth. It can actually really change his expression so I really love this little point. So, if you don’t care for the design of Fang Man, I get it, but he has all of the detail that we have come to expect in Classics and if he is any indication about what is to come from FilMation, we are in for a lot of great figures.
Past his looks, he is a very solid figure and probably has some of the best quality control in the line, at least for a while. He is NOT made from black plastic (from what I can tell), his joints are tight but move well, the right plastic choices have been made for things like his aforementioned tunic and the paints are solid. Yes, he is a very brightly-colored figure (I personally love his color scheme) but that is a staple of MOTU and he does have a subtle wash on his body to bring out some of the muscle detailing and his boots have a slight shimmer to them as well. If you have been looking for a positive sign that Mattel is making strides to stay on target with quality, I am thinking that Ram Man, Jitsu and now Fang Man are all steps in the right direction.
Finally, Fang Man comes with some pretty awesome accessories. First, he has an energy slingshot thing that was drawn in his character sheet for the FilMation show; it is unique and I will be using this as his primary weapon. He also comes with two FilMation artifacts: the Sword of the Ancients and the Wheel of Infinity. I LOVE that he has these and I really hope that we get a lot of these with future figures. In addition to some great new characters, FilMation writers were good at creating weapons and artifacts that expanded the MOTU stories. The Wheel of Infinity was used in “The Time Corridor” (Fang Man’s only appearance on the show) to travel back in time to prevent the construction of Castle Grayskull and the Sword of the Ancients was eventually melded with the Power Sword to make it even stronger. Regardless of if you actually like the stories behind them, these make for some neat accessories and the Sword of the Ancients will look great wielded by any number of existing figures.
So, here is the thing, as much as I have been looking forward to tons of FilMation characters (now tied with the Great Rebellion as my most wanted), Fang Man was not even in my top ten most wanted. He has always been cool and much beloved, but there are a lot more characters that I like even more. However, as a figure, he has joined the ranks of Mer-Man and Fisto as one of my absolute favorites in the line so far. He has been executed rather flawlessly in terms of concept and he is one of the most high-quality figures we have gotten in a long time. Those attributes, coupled with his accessories and decent (see: faithful) bio really make him a standout. Like I said, I get it that some might not like his design, but to say that he is not in line with the rest of the figures in terms of detail is really inaccurate. Give him chance, I think a lot people will like him once he arrives in a couple of months. I am now REALLY looking forward to what the Four Horsemen will do with the rest of the FilMation cast as they are released. Bring them. Bring them all! We will get the vintage guys (so don’t worry your pretty little heads), but I think FilMation (and NA, and PoP and all the rest of the undermined corners) is the future.
*Thanks for reading and hearing my piece about FilMation in Classics, and thanks to Toy Guru for sending this along for a Look. Fang Man goes on-sale at Matty Collector on March 15th, 2013.
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