Masters of the Universe Classics Feature: Callix

Callix is the first figure in the new Masters of the Universe Classics Club 200X subscription and a long-requested figure. Callix had a very brief appearance in the 2002 cartoon, but his design was pretty memorable, and I’ve consistently seen requests for him over the years. Besides, it’s always good to add to your Evil Horde. Let’s take a closer look at Callix!

Callix™ Bio

Real Name: Callix

A Vebex rock man from the Tri-Solar system, Callix was recruited by the Horde Empire during his youth and quickly rose through the ranks due to his insight and perspective into enemy strategy. Assigned as lead council to Hec-Tor Kur, Callix traveled with him to Eternia to ensure their foe He-Ro had been destroyed. He remained with the Horde army on Eternia fighting the Snake Men and King Grayskull for rule over the planet. His ability to crumble into pebbles and rebuild himself has made Callix a deadly enemy of all those who oppose Hordak and his evil minions!

The idea of “rock men” is a sci-fi and fantasy staple, and Masters of the Universe has had a few different variations of them over the years prior to the creation of Callix for the 2002 cartoon, so it’s nice to see Callix added as a rock man representative. He’s also one of the few brand new characters and Horde members invented for the 2002 series, so as a Horde fan, I am particularly happy to add him. I also like the name of his people.

“Vebex rock men” has a great comic book ring to it, recalling the “Rock Men from Saturn” from Thor comics. It’s interesting that the bio basically ret-cons his on screen destruction in the 2002 series, saying that he can reconstitute himself. Now She-Ra and friends can also kick his rocky butt!

Accessories

Callix comes with an axe that can also double as a rocky facsimile of a Horde crossbow and a small shield. I like that they are keeping the crossbow theme going, but it looks great as an axe too. My only quibble is that the handle is a little soft. The shield is a neat addition that adds a little more color, but is also interesting in design being the first smaller shield we’ve seen in the line. Both weapons have a fantastic rocky texture to them.

Sculpt

I’m blown away by the sculpt on this guy. While still using a regular MOTUC base body, the additional sculpted arms and boots and armor add a lot of height and bulk to Callix. The rocky textures are so nice looking and detailed.

I’ve read complaints online that the “bare” sections on Callix stand out a little too much and look too smooth. I can see that point for sure, but, in hand, Callix works for me. I think the more “rocky” bits read like additional armor, similar to how all of the MOTUC figures have that base body with additional armor parts.

Paint

Paint is nice and subtle with some washes/drybrushing to bring out the different stone textures. I especially like the sandstone color on the Horde symbols.

Articulation

Articulation is pretty standard, but the ankles don’t have much movement, they just swivel. A ball-and-socket joint would have been nice to help with posing there. The nice thing here is the armor and loincloth don’t inhibit movement too much as they are fairly flexible.

Overall