Just when you think the ThunderCats train is slowing down, Captain Bragg puts it into another gear and bam!! Super7 hits you with something new. The DELUXE line, aka DX, came out of nowhere. It just showed up one day early September on Target’s website as a featured preorder for their Fall Collector’s Spot. Needless to say the figures sold out instantly. There was a lot of unhappiness. Then the news came via Brian Flynn as he commented on a post on Instagram that these two figures – a brand new sculpt for Lion-O, and Monkian – will be available, come October, in Target stores nationwide. People breathed a sigh of relief. Well, some anyway.
As an international collector it was relatively easy to preorder these on Target’s website – probably because of the US-based courier service I use. So the order was in and the wait began. Then the first pictures arrived of these figures in store long before their expected delivery date. There was a sense of excitement in the air. It was happening. At last. And then I recalled the interview with Brian from June where he said that Super7 is going to make ThunderCats more accessible to collectors. Who knew what that meant back then. But here we are. ThunderCats are back in stores. In the USA at least. For now…
Long story short, Monkian shipped early October, survived Hurricane Milton in a Florida warehouse, and arrived with its new toy smell still in tact. Lion-O however kept getting delayed and delayed, and with eBay filled with store-bought Lion-O’s, it was an easier choice at the time to get him before the festive season’s silly shipping delays began. The DX figures also popped up internationally, with online stores in the UK and Australia offering them. And early November this line expanded even more – with BBTS and Entertainment Earth offering preorders. I’m really glad they did, because there is a big market out there who rely solely on these two big digital stores. The demand is clear – collectors want DX!!!
So what is this DX line? It is in essence a slimmed down version of an ULTIMATES! release. One figure with its main weapon, and no extra anything else. So no alt heads, no extra hands, no accessories, nada! A lot of collectors have asked that Super7 do this to trim on costs. I find this a brilliant move – not because I could’ve waited for the DX line to begin – but because those who have been admiring from afar because of the pricey nature of collecting can now jump on board and still enjoy the quality that is Super7 ThunderCats.
There are differences, make no mistake, but these are the exact same scale as their ULTIMATES! counterparts. And in the case of Monkian, it is simply a duplicate. Since Super7 already has the molds of these figures, it’s a smart move to just “reprint” the previous characters in this format and offer it in stores for anyone interested in this line. I don’t feel done in by this. I’m thrilled! If it means more people will support ThunderCats, why not? And at $35 each, it’s a steal. Plus Lion-O is a brand new sculpt…
We all know by now that this is the sculpt that the upcoming LED version will sport. So for Super7 to offer a regular non-light up version is very good. That was actually the first thing I wondered when they revealed the LED figures – will we get that Lion-O in a regular format? And here he is. And what a body he has. The articulation on this figure is sublime. This is my favorite articulation of all the figures so far. SilverHawks had this type of articulation for several good guy figures. I’m loving this. The “ab crunch” is totally different here. You can pose Lion-O in so many different ways now. Even his arms can pose the sword in a way the previous version was limited to do. The head sculpt is just perfect to me. The colors pop with that red hair and pale blue uniform.
So this is something I don’t know yet – does this Lion-O have shading on him? It does look so in the light. Some reddish shading. But then again it might just be the plastic. I’m questioning this because it looks like the DX figures won’t have shading on them. Monkian has none. It doesn’t make him a lesser figure. I just noticed it after a while. I wouldn’t have picked up on it if I didn’t have the ULT! version to compare him with.
So Lion-O’s skin tone may be a sticky point for some. Yes, he is much lighter than what we’re used to. I dig it. It makes the figure stand out for sure. Will the LED version be different? Who knows. We’ll see in a few months. But in all honesty, he fits in perfectly with the gang. This is my go-to Lion-O now. I never knew I needed a new one. A better one. And he is better. So much more cartoon accurate too. Look I loved the head of the Wave 5 Mirror Lion-O. That was already a big improvement on the Wave 1 Lion-O.
One thing to notice in terms of his weapons, and this is the same with Monkian’s mace – they’re more “simplistic”. For example – the Sword of Omens does not have the blue paint in the hilt like the ULT! one. The gold on the claw shield is also not as muted/shaded as its predecessors. If this is a money saving tactic, I’m all for it. It’s a tiny difference. And if it really bothers me, I have lots of other Swords of Omens to pick from.
There’s just one little snag here – Lion-O’s peg is basically useless in the context of this release. There is no claw shield to peg onto him. And the peg itself is a bit bigger than the previous Lion-O’s peg. So the existing claw shields don’t really fit on. You might have to heat one up first to see if it will. I don’t want to risk it. Perhaps the LED’s version will fit? I understand if it is the exact same sculpt then it makes sense having the peg. It might be as simple as that?
You can pop off the hands (and head) with ease. The claw shield just slides onto the forearm. His finger nails are nice and sharp too. I like that. He is pinless of course, so it’s a grand upgrade. Some people say that his biceps are the wrong way round. So far I haven’t picked up on it. But I’ll head on over to YouTube to check out the recommended video that shows you how to change it.
While Lion-O is a new sculpt, Monkian is not. He is exactly the same. That gives me hope that hard to find characters like Tygra, Slithe and the kittens will one day be available again in this format. That also gives me hope that Jackalman and Panthro will be pinless when they get released as DX figures.
With Monkian, the big differences is in the colors. The flesh tone is brighter and without any shade. The fur on his shoulders are slightly darker. Plus his weapon, which was advertised as having paint on the hilt, has none. It is all one color. And that my good friends are the only differences. You can swop out his hands and head with the other Monkian to army build if you want. This is something I do love for the line because now you can army build affordably.
When Monkian arrived, I was surprised by the new toy smell. None of the ULTIMATES! have ever had a toy smell – so strong. I love the new plastic smell and Lion-O had it too. The packaging is a clear throwback to the vintage toy line. The back of course has the epic art we remember from back in the day, which means that there are no individual bios or art for these characters. Again, for mass production this makes sense.
This line ushers in a new era for ThunderCats. I wish it every success. I hope it finds the unsuspecting ThunderCats fan in the toy isles of Target and takes them back to the 80s and straight to the till!!! I also hope that those who have not yet been able to afford these figures can now join in the celebrations of this unique line that Super7 has been spoiling collectors with for over 5 years.