This isn’t going to be the timeliest article you’ve read this year, as the 2018 Power-Con has been over for quite a while. But those of us who were non-attendees are just now getting our MotUC figures in the mail, so to continue the theme from the last week, we’ve got even more Masters of the Universe characters to take a look at.
The past several years of Power-Con exclusives have been a great way to get characters that might not absolutely essential for a collection, but still fill a certain niche. These could be characters that have had only one appearance, or only a handful, or maybe never appeared anywhere at all. One of my favorite things about Masters of the Universe Classics over its long ten year journey is that it’s a toyline that recognizes that everything has a fan. It doesn’t seem to shy away from obscurity. If you’ve wanted that one character that showed up in that one mini-comic or carton episode looking a specific way, you have a good shot of getting that figure. That rarely happens outside of properties not named star wars.
Last year did double duty by delivering some concept characters and some mini-comics characters, and this year delivers some Filmation versions of a pair of Skeletor’s henchmen and a pair of Trollans . So let’s take a look at Pimphandor, Captain Stabbin’ and His and Hers bath towels.
Wait, those aren’t their names?
Huh.
Well, anyway, up first is Chopper.
Poor Jitsu. Unlike Fisto, who was drawn with his iconic metal hand intact, Jitsu suffered the double insult of having his given name stripped away and his giant golden hand turned into a cruelly misshapen flesh and blood monstrosity hanging at the end of his wrist. That’s really his hand, ladies and gentlemen. What strange Eternian sickness caused such a mutation? What genetic abnormalities did he carry in his genes that caused a single hand to grow out of proportion in this way? The world may never know.
Chopper wasn’t one of Skeletor’s regular goons, probably due to the fact that he wasn’t symmetrical. Trap Jaw was bad enough; they couldn’t handle two characters like that. But you have to imagine he was hanging out at Snake Mountain, waiting for his name to be called, and kind of sad each and every day that it wasn’t.
Chopper does a good job at recreating the Filmation look. He has a simplified version of Jitsu’s overall appearance—he debuted in the cartoon before his toy hit the shelves, and his final appearance hadn’t been nailed down, which explains the flesh hand—and face. The figures limbs use the current standard MotUC articulaton scheme, which means the addition of ankle and wrist articulation. His large hand, however, is only pegged into his wrist, so the articulation there is only a swivel.
His torso is a newly sculpted piece. It is solid, without an ab crunch.
The left hip joint on mine seems a little longer than the one on the right. I’m not sure if that’s a standard flaw or just present on mine.
His face, again, is a simplified, cartoon version of the Jitsu we all know and love. Interestingly, the cartoon face and the prototype face featured a slightly stereotypical squint—the kind you might see in WW2-era cartoon depictions of Asians—and the sculpt here depicts the same, but a pair of dots have been painted right onto the lower eyelids to simulate actual eyes. I don’t know if this was a miscommunication or an attempt to correct some of the perceived stereotyping, but the simplistic dots give him a vintage-type of appearance. I haven’t decided if I’m going to try to remove the pupils or not.
For accessories, Chopper follows a trend continued by the recent filmation Mer-Man and his corn-sword by giving us Jitsu’s vintage-styled sword. Very cool accompaniment.
Up next, we’re got Spikor. 
Spikor is, by far, the most painful Masters of the Universe classics figure I have ever handled. The previous Classics Spikor featured blunted spikes that were dull at the tip, rendering him into more of a “Nubbor.”
But this version, who is no doubt possessed by purest evil, features hard plastic spikes that are pointy at the tip.
You will absolutely, positootly put your eye out with this toy. The photoshoot delivered exactly what Clubber Lang promised: pain.
Spikor was a far more direct translation from toy to screen. Essentially, he has a few less spikes than his vintage or his Classic figure. But he makes up for it in pain.
I remember being a kid and being ecstatic when some of the lesser-used heroes or villains would show up, as infrequent as it could be, and it was no different with Spikor. Of course, my hopes and dreams of a spike-filled bloodbath of epic proportions was not to be due to FCC regulations and all that, but it was still nice to see them on the screen.
Spikor is a very nice figure overall. He features a new chest with a bunch of super-sharp spikes—in case I haven’t made that clear—and again, all the standard current MotUC articulation. His trident hand is even articulated with a hinge. For accessories, he comes with a similar version of his spiked mace, this time without the handguard.
Finally, we have a pair of Trollans to give Orko some company. While Spikor and Chopper were very limited in their appearance, a Filmation line without Dree Elle and Uncle Montork would feel incomplete, as they showed up several times.
Being small, a two-pack was a great way to get both of these figures. Overall, they probably end up being the best overall figures of the group. They don’t suffer in the face of their Classics counterparts, there’s no vintage toy nostalgia to cloud anything, and as the Trollans are simple design anyway, they don’t seem “out-of-place” among the regular collection. At least, no more out of place than Orko himself.
As they’re essentially floating robes, there’s not a lot to them. They have excellent arm articulation, and their heads do rotate. They both feature ball-jointed stands so they can be posed a variety of ways. I do wish the stands had been clear, as the silver is very “there.” of course, it’s not like a clear stand is any less “there,” so that’s probably stupid quibble. To their credit, the stands are balanced very well, so you can do a lot of decent leaning or flying poses.
They each come with a magic wand, with a “D” and “M” on each, respectively.
I can’t believe I’m saying this, but now I need a Yukkers to finish off the main Trollans.
I was very happy with this round of Power-Con exclusives. If you’re not a Filmation fan or a fan of the stripped down aesthetic I can see how they wouldn’t be appealing, but since I’m an “in for a penny, in for a pound” type of guy, I want as many characters in this style as I can. Thanks to the PowerCon crew for making them happen!
Bonus: and now for that hot Trollan-on-Trollan action you’ve been dying for:
