It’s the best time to be a ThunderCats fan; even more so because we’re getting something very unique this time round. We caught up with ToyBro again to talk about this different LJN-inspired group of figures from Super7, aka ULTIMATES! Wave 6.
WWMTC: This line caused quite the commotion when it was revealed back in the day. What was your first thoughts when Super7 debut these figures?
TB: I wasn’t exactly surprised that they were doing this, I was surprised it was a main line wave, though. If anything I expected we’d see something like this as exclusives here and there. I wasn’t upset about it though, I like the idea in general.
WWMTC: Standing here today, are you still feeling the same towards these style of figures?
TB: Absolutely, I think they turned out better than I expected in a lot of ways.
WWMTC: As a kid, did you own Lion-O? If yes, did it take you back to when you first laid your eyes on him back?
TB: I sure did, and yeah there’s something different about these just because of that nostalgia hit. The same feeling I get from the TMNT Ultimates just because I remember playing with these as a kid.
WWMTC: TheFwoosh’s Veebee said that he loves it when toys look like toys, and this is a perfect example of that. Super7 already has it underway with TMNT ULTIMATES! now, but this is the first actual toy reference in U! form for ThunderCats. What do you see this subline of U! turning into?
TB: I hopefully see it as a way to introduce more LJN figures into the line. That said, there are some that don’t necessarily “work” for me. Is Panthro worth doing in LJN style, for example. That figure was very cartoon-esque outside of his squat stance. Tygra too, but to a lesser extent since the heads could be different. So I’m curious to see where this goes, some LJN figures were very close to the cartoon while others were quite different.
WWMTC: Is this all because of how these figures made you feel?
TB: There’s definitely a nostalgic tug with these, no doubt about it. That’s a huge thing for me with a majority of what I collect, if it can make me remember the toys I had as a kid, it’s instantly something I latch onto. That’s definitely part of the appeal of these.
WWMTC: Tell us about Lion-O, of the four, is he your favorite?
TB: He’s up there, but it’s hard to not love Mumm-Ra already.
WWMTC: He mimics a lot of the vintage toy. What do you feel is missing here? Or what would’ve made it extra special to you?
TB: Surely everyone is going to say the same thing here. Light up eyes. Do I need them? No. Would it have been cool to see somehow, absolutely. Even light piping would have been a great addition to try and mimic it. There’s a few other nit picky things that aren’t identical either, like the torso sculpt, the boot sculpt, things like that. But in many ways it nails the idea of the LJN figure while being basically a repaint.
WWMTC: You’re going to get this question with every figure, but do you kinda miss the lever at the back?
TB: Sort of. It’s one of those things that yes it would be cool to have it there, even if it didn’t work, but I also understand why it’s not. Of course the Battle-Matic feature would have been wild to see, but it’s also one of those things that I’d do it a few times and probably never again, so I’m not exactly hung up about a lack of action features at this point.
WWMTC: His accessories also harken back to the vintage toy, but updated. Do you feel that there was room for more? If so, what would you have liked extra?
TB: Definitely would have loved to see more, and I’m sure a lot of folks will say the same. For the same price as a regular figure, these are all somewhat light. A mini unarticulated Snarf would have been the best inclusion for me. But I’d also liked to have seen a 2nd claw shield that’s more orange than red, since there were multiple variants of that, and the orange always stood out more to me. Same with the alt head too, I suppose, one with orange hair would have been cool to mix and match between red and orange.
WWMTC: How does this fit in with the regular cartoon versions of the line? Would you display these together?
TB: I think they mesh together just fine since they’re all built the same, but I don’t think I’ll have them mixed like that. I’ll probably have them bunched together as their own little “thing”.
WWMTC: He is also pinless and this is based on the new sculpt that Super7 did for Mirror Lion-O and “Frozo”. Would you have wanted any other modifications to this figure?
TB: The biggest thing I’d like to have seen modified was to remove the claw shield peg. I still don’t really care for it and the shield has no peg hole anyway.
WWMTC: The second head is a nice departure from the standard expressive heads. What are your thoughts on this?
TB: I like it, I think it might be the one I use, but hard to say, both are pretty solid in their own ways. I’m just glad we got an alt head with this one since the LJN obviously didn’t have one.
WWMTC: Time to choose – which Lion-O is your favorite now?
TB: It MIGHT be this one. Jury is still out, but this figure feels better and I think it might do a better job of being toy-like than the original figure is cartoon-like.
WWMTC: Ok, we’ll be back again very soon. Which one is next on your list?
TB: Probably the big guy.
