An underdog makes a surprising comeback from certain defeat. Now, am I talking about the Rocky movies? No, I’m talking about the Rocky toy line from NECA. After a handful of fun, great-looking figures, NECA’s Rocky line faded away into the annals of toy history. Those of us who jumped on board at just the right time figured that was probably it for the line. As eBay prices began to soar, it was clear that those who missed the boat regretted it.
But as it turns out, the line is getting a second chance, with brand new figures accompanying those hard to get older figures. The first wave trotted out a pair of Clubber Langs that had already seen a release, along with a brand new championship belt Rocky with black trunks, black boots, and red gloves. Coming up will be brand new Creed and a regular-colored version of the previous video-game Rocky figure.
Rocky wore the black trunks in his final fight with Apollo creed in the second movie, where he claimed the championship belt shown here. I like the combo of black trunks and red gloves. This is a very snazzy figure.
The figure is mainly a previously released Rocky with a new coloration and the new belt, so there’s no real surprises here. The boxer shorts are of the same quasi-flexible material overlaying a traditional ball-jointed hip setup. Many have asked if the shorts are made of a more flexible material than previous shorts. The answer, at least for mine, is no. You’re basically going to get the same range of motion as previous Rocky figures. Now, for me, someone who places a high importance on articulation, I do find them slightly inhibiting but not terribly so. He can still move his legs and get into decent boxing stances, and the most important thing about them is that he’s not just a statue from the waist down. He just looks so damn good in them that I’m willing for forgive some loss of mobility.
The rest of him moves great. He’s got swivel-hinge elbows that allow for a nice range of motion. His torso articulation gives him a fluid and “normal” range of motion. Normal there meaning “human.” he can move and twist like a boxer. He gets a nice range out of his ball-jointed neck.
The likeness is there; this is definitely Stallone. The skin has a good texture to it.
The championship belt is a nicely sculpted addendum to the basic Rocky figure. It features miniature portraits of Rocky, Apollo, Clubber, and Drago. The belt is made of the same type of flexible material as the trunks. It isn’t removable, so if you were hoping to have a plain black-trunks Rocky, you’ll have to cut the belt off or hope you can somehow heat it up and slide it off. I don’t know if that’s possible and I’m not going to try, so this might not be the perfect solution for those wanted the Rocky II final fight look for his showdown with Creed.
NECA’s Rocky toy line has managed to fight its way back from almost certain extinction and is continuing to slowly fill in the holes for those of us who are fans of the Rocky franchise and want as complete a collection as possible. While there’s nothing extremely novel or new in this figure other than some color shifts, it’s still nice to have another “moment” knocked off. Anybody else want an old man Rocky?
You can buy it from NECA’s ebay store or wait until he becomes available at Big Bad Toy Store
