Oh man, finally. FINALLY, the Mythic Legions have returned! Following up on their original, wildly successful Kickstarter campaign, the Four Horsemen are continuing to bring the Legions, and this time, it is under the Advent of Decay banner. Fear not, we have TONS of reviews coming up for this series, but you have to start somewhere, and nothing embodies decay quite like a brand new skeleton warrior — Brother Mandibulus!
At this point, I could probably write a book about the contributions the Four Horsemen have made to the collector sect of the action figure world, and it is almost frightening how many figures I have in my collection that have had a hand in bringing to (plastic) life. DC, Marvel, Masters of the Universe, ThunderCats, TMNT, and countless other properties have had figures designed by the Horsemen, and the consistency for greatness has made them stalwarts of plastic pop culture. However, the boys (and girls) from Jersey have been forging their own path with original properties over the years, and while Seventh Kingdom and Gothitropolis are much beloved, the Mythic Legions property is something else entirely.
Yes, Mythoss is diverse in terms of beings and inhabitants, and everything from knights, to goblins, to elves, to dwarves, and the undead have taken up arms in a constant battle, so you better believe there is something for everyone. While I am in to so many of the figures, it was the skeletons that really got me hooked, and I still remember seeing Skapular on display for the first time at a party at Toy Tokyo in NYC, and falling in love instantly. So, while it is the goblins that are after my heart for the Advent of the Decay, I wanted to return to my first love to kick off these reviews and take a look at the newest skeletal badass, Brother Mandibulus.
Yes, the aforementioned Skapular, along with Brother Malleus, and the Skeleton Legions are what really got me in, and Mandibulus is a fantastic continuation of undead corner of ML. While walking bone warriors are scary and intimidating just on concept, Mandibulus ratchets up the ferocity well past 11, and there is nary an inhabitant of Mythoss I would dread more meeting face to face. Even though he doesn’t really have a face. Right. Anyway, you can tell by his insignias and regalia, along with his resemblance to his brother, that Mandibulus is a powerful being and warrior. I happen to know that Cornboy of the 4H loves the red and black color combination and that used quite well in the tunic and skirt pieces. In fact, there are even two cloth pieces that actually work well for the “skirt” portion, and I like that it is shredded and “muddied” for effect.
The sculpt is, of course, very much on-point and to the level you would expect from the Horsemen. Mandibulus retains some of the basic body pieces and armaments from the last round of ML skeletons, and it works for consistency. Like Malleus, he has the more jagged and imposing armor and while the shoulder guards are optional, I think they really need to be in place to complete the look. New to the Advent of Decay are standard-issue wing and shield plugin attachments, so there are lots of options to plus him up if you have some of the accessory packs. You also, of course, get multiple weapons and this time they include a mace, sword, and wicked bladed staff, which is my preferred piece of this set. To me, the new Advent of Decay weaponry seems to be more streamlined and less bulky overall, and I think that is a step in the right direction.
Now, while you do get a regular skeleton head, or “non-helmeted” version that is cool, this figures defining feature is really the insanely awesome helmet. It has battle-damaged horns and a mask portion that can move up and down. I love the spikes on the side and the imperfections of the face mask portion, those details really bring out jagged and scary features of Mandibulus. The head is also open mawed, so you can practically hear the shrill cry as he heads into battle agains, well, anyone. Malleus is cool, and Skapular is my original Mythic Legions love, but maaaaaaaaaaan this guy is the skeleton badass and can probably take on every other Advent of Decay figure at the same time and come out victorious, to the ruin of us all.
Buckle up, dudes — the LEGIONS have returned. While this only the first figure I have opened, I can tell you — the Horsemen are on their game with the Advent of Decay and are probably running better than they ever have. These figures are amazing, so I hope you got in on the Kickstarter or the pre-orders because you will not want to miss out. Stay tuned, we have a LOT more coming soon!
