He’s heeeeeee-eeeeere… Our DCUC collection is FINALLY being invaded by a Martian, the one and only Martian and final piece to that founding-JLA/last of the Big Seven, J’onn J’onzz, the Manhunter from Mars. This is like coming home, and I am not really sure if it has sunk in yet.
It just seems like we have been waiting so long. Fifteen series, almost three years waiting for him. If you will remember, the last time we got one of the Big Seven was waaaaay back in series seven when Barry Allen sped onto the pegs. So, after all of this time (don’t get wrong, it has been one hell of a ride) the Martian Manhunter is here, and you know what? It was worth it.
This line has always been about building the longevity, in fact, Toy Guru and Bill Benecke were speaking at SDCC about how they were just getting warmed up. Warmed up. Fifteen series in. Oh, how the imagination runs wild. With that philosophy though comes the practice of spacing out the big guns over the life of a toy line. I know many feel that it is more like companies holding their favorite characters hostage, but I can see the logic behind it, as long said company does eventually deliver. So here we are. J’onn has been released and fans are already talking about how Poison Ivy is “next”. Time will tell, but right now I am far too excited for this green DCer to worry about any of the rest.
Like I said, I think J’onn here was certainly worth the wait and not only did we get a classic Bronze Age Martian Manhunter, but a more “Martian” variant as well. He does make use of the Hawkman torso so you get Martian nipples, and I believe those are Hawk arms as well, but that is pretty much where it ends.
He is cast mostly in the green plastic of his flesh but there is some subtle air brushing in the muscle lines. He is also tall, and I don’t mean Guy Gardner tall, I mean J’onn stares down any and all of the standard DCUC figures (C&Cs and Lobos not included) by a good margin. If you like your Martians tall, you should be quite pleased (most of the added height comes from the new shins/boots), if you are more of a Silver Age size fan, you will think he is probably too tall. Though, from his face/head shape and coloring, this isn’t a Silver Age MM anyway.
Like I said, this really feels like a Bronze Age J’onn to me, Satellite era, if you know what I mean. However, the beauty part is, thanks to his until-recent-change-of-heart, J’onn never really had any memorable costume changes so he will stand well in lots of incarnations of the JLA. Now, the moment I typed that I knew that someone would be calling me out on the fact that his cape does not have the embellished clasps so that could potentially assign a small window to date him, but I am just easy, I suppose. And speaking of the cape, I really do love the height of the collar, it is tall to it looks like J’onn’s classic styling, but it is still at a practical height and he can see over the sides. Oh, and the cape is made of that nice rubbery material we all love – keep it up, Matty!
The variant is pretty nice if not a little more quiet than the dramatic turn at two Starmen in this series, and I think from the day this line started, most fans were calling the “Martian head” variant. Well, on one hand, you are right, on his other hand, J’onn has a big ass green blade that will cut you for being a pompous toyboy, so watch it. I like it as it is more than just a repaint and the nice thing is, both heads are soft enough that you can swap them easily if you want to do some mix and matching.
Like I said, finally having my DCUC Martian Manhunter and final piece of the Big Seven puzzle really has not set in yet. I am very, very happy to have him and he turned out quite well, but I am just not realizing it yet. It is going to take one of those quick glances at the shelf while thinking of something else and catching them all together to really send it home. You know the instance I am talking about. There is a safeness to it, a familiarity that I have been missing. Can’t wait to get this feeling again in another 15 waves when we get another long time hold out. J’onn has come home.
*Thanks as always for reading and thanks to Toy Guru, Bill, the 4H, Danielle and all of the gang for getting Martian Manhunter onto our shelves as promised. Stay tuned for a bonanza of First Looks coming this week.
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