Toxic Crusaders – they’re gross (but they still get girls)!
Sweet little zombie Jeebus, please bless our dear Lloyd Kaufman and all of the amazing and insane things he has created. Via his Troma Studios, this world has gotten the gift of the Toxic Avenger, arguably him most famous film and character, and without that, New Jersey would not have the hero it deserves. So, leave it to such a mad magician to take a very R-rated property and serve it up as the slightly-reimagined cartoon hero that the kids of the early 90s most definitely needed – The Toxic Crusaders! Yes, there was a cartoon, and YES there were toys. Wonderful toys that were crazier from one to the next, and even if you did not have any kind of historical reference for Toxie and his pals (like me) there was no way you could walk past these action figures and not be immediately intrigued.
As is the ubiquitous case with collector-aimed action figures, what is old is now new again, and thanks to Super 7, we now have a mutated green pile of heroism in their new ULTIMATES! Toxie figure. I have been on pins and needles waiting for this guy since Toy Fair 2019, and now that he is finally here I am beyond thrilled to have his ugly mug in my life. The ULTIMATES! line is really hitting its stride right now, and even though the year is only half gone at this point, this new Toxie ranks as one of my favorite figures of 2020, and at the very least, he is probably the most fun one, too. Super 7 is getting into some really interesting properties for the ULTIMATES! line as of late, and even as a (current) one-off release, Toxie is going to have some great company joining him over the next several months.
For reference, Playmates produced the vintage action figure line, and really, they were the perfect company to do so. They were hip deep in a little line called TMNT at the time, and these crazy Crusader character designs fit in really well the the TMNT aesthetic, and in a well-conceived act of synergy, the action figure style and scale fit right in with the Turtles as well. So, for a kid like me who was living and breathing everything Ninja Turtles related at the time, I was very glad to bring in Toxie and his pals as allies of the TMNT. So really, that is my primary point of reference for the line and characters, and things are definitely coming full circle with Toxie and the Turtles both being featured as ULTIMATES! via Super 7. Say what you want about 2020, but this little part of it makes me absolutely giddy.
As I am sure you know, the ULTIMATES! line has it’s origins in Masters of the Universe Classics, not only for the style and scale, but also with the involvement of Four Horsemen Studios. It is a real treat to be able to see them expand on the properties they are contributing to this style, and getting characters like Toxie, He-Man, Lion-O, Donatello, Conan, and others all in the same basic look and form is so much fun. Plus, Super 7 has amped up the packaging designs and included extras to help support the premium price tags, so with Conan, and now Toxie, it really feels like you are getting a lot with each of these releases. Furthermore, there might have been a bit of a growing curve back when S7 first took over the MOTUC line, but it seems like that as all be resolved, and the quality and engineering of these figures is really, really strong now, so the future is most certainly looking bright, and nicely weird.
I mentioned the packaging above, but again, like almost all of their releases, Super 7 is making me feel guilty about being a opener. The design and colors of the packaging are so appropriate and so beautiful that I cannot yet bring myself to recycle them. The box is very collector-friendly luckily, and you remove Toxie and put him right back in without doing any damage to the package, so that is cool. Much like their ReAction releases, these boxes give some consistency from property to property within the larger ULTIMATES! banner, so it will be fun to see continued expressions from these going forward.
With toys though, the real fun starts when they are removed from their cardboard prisons, and man alive, is Toxie ever a fun figure. The old Playmates figure build, style, and aesthetic translates very well to this style, so you really do feel like you are getting a modern update of the classic Toxie action figure with enhanced articulation and detail. Not all ULTIMATES! figures will have the more “bubbly” musculature that was brought in via MOTU (look to TMNT to see this), but for Toxie, it does well to match the original source material. As you can see in the pictures, he stands tall with the likes of Conan and Skeletor, so the scale consistency works well. The overall sculpting work is, of course, top-notch (this is the 4H we are talking about) and Super 7 has done a very nice job of taking this from a hand-crafted prototype to a quality mass-produced action figure.
I know I have mentioned it before, but Super 7 is currently running on all fronts with Ultimates!, and that is so encouraging. Not only is the overall quality of production very high with this Toxie, but the engineering in the joints is great (his right biceps is slightly loose, but that is it), and material choice from piece to piece is all sensible. For example, the plastic used on the limbs is strong for support, but the hands are a bit softer to accommodate the accessories, and all-important tutu is made of a more rubbery material so it does not inhibit the movement or articulation. Like I said, everything seems like it has been looked out for, and while this figure has arrived later than what as originally anticipated, I have to say it was worth it. Plus, with Toxie being one of these earlier releases, I have a feeling the lead times will decrease now that everything is running in a consistent manner.
If you had the vintage Toxie figure, then you likely know what you are getting in terms of accessories with this release, but there is more here than before as well. Toxie comes with his trusty mop with removable American flag, logo shield, three trash grenades (that can fit on his bandolier) and Bobbie, all updated, but just as you remember. The latter is now cast in clear plastic, but it can still attach to the bandolier, just as before. Toxie also gets a second head this time, and it is pretty much the same as the other, just without the headband. This is a smart and important inclusion because with the headband version most certainly recalls the vintage toy, I would say the one without more closely matches the old cartoon, so you get to pick your preference.
Tromaville is safe from pollution once again! I am so very happy with this release because not only do I get some much needed Toxie representation in my collection, but the ULTIMATES! line is gearing up to be quite the ride at this pint, and possibilities are pretty endless. That said, while we are getting a limited edition glow-in-the-dark variant of this figure (I should have a look at that next week), right now, no other Toxic Crusaders are currently scheduled. Honestly, I hope that changes soon because the vintage line only had 9 figures IIRC, so if we could just get two ULTIMATES! series (and maybe a re-release of this figure if demand warrants) then we would be all set. So, give me Doctor Killemoff, Major Disaster, Bone Head, and Junkyard in wave one, then Nozone, Psycho, Headbanger, and the Radiation Ranger in series two and we are all set. Make it so, Super 7!
Regardless, I hope you did not miss out on this figure because the secondary market looks like it is your only bet at this point (these are made to order), and it is such a fun figure that will instantly make any collection better.
