When it rains in Super7’s Thundera, it pours! As I’m writing this, the amount of incoming ThunderCats ULTIMATES! is and has been mindblowing, and it’s easy to get lost in all of this excitement. Wave 10 feels like it arrived just yesterday, and now Wave 11 is here a few weeks later, soon to be followed by the LED Lion-O and Mumm-Ra exclusives and my very own holy grail – Cats Lair (yes mine is a little late; blame on logistics, but so be it.) But before I get overwhelmed by what has now been dubbed the best ThunderCats ULTIMATES! wave yet, I’ll take a step back to when this all went live.
From a tease courtesy of Brian Flynn, we learned that a Berbil would be in Wave 11 at the start of 2024. We were talking about the new preorder for Wave 10, which had kicked off 2024, but it would be another 5 months until that tease became a reality with that epic teaser of a Berbil from the back, holding that memorable Cats Lair plan. Either Wave 10 took a bit longer to leave the factory, or Wave 11 sped ahead at one hell of a pace, but getting them in such close succession is wonderful considering we’ve just had Wave 12’s preorder close, and the Cats Lair has been shipping across the globe since before Christmas last year.
The arrival of Ro-Bear Bill has been met with applause but also ill-informed memories. I’ll rip off the bandage right here and get to the point: he is scaled correctly. His bulky appearance has had many collectors scratch their head, wondering why he is so big? Why is he bigger than Snarf? He shouldn’t be, right? Wrong!! While we’re not privy to behind the scenes comings and goings at Super7’s design department, I am confident that they do a lot of research for every character before production begins. And with the cartoon being the best source material, as well as countless other media and official documents that has been made public years ago, it is no surprise that Super7 has everything at their fingertips to do their homework. So why are people thinking he is out of scale? I’m looking at you LJN….
The LJN Companions Snarf and Berbils were the same scale. I’m not talking about the PVC Snarf, but the articulated large one. Even though the scale was all over the place with those toys, a lot of us who had these toys have it embedded in our memories that the Berbils and Snarf are the same height. They’re actually not. If you look at my review here, there’s quite a few screenshots from the cartoon that shows how the Berbils scale with Snarf and the other Cats. So our memories are really what’s deceiving us here. Trust me, I also thought woah this guy is big, but that’s why it’s always better to head to the cartoon to see how they scaled there, so let your mind relax, and enjoy the first Berbil the way they actually were meant to be.
The first thing that impresses me with Bill is that the articulation adds a whole other dimension to him. You’d think he is rather stoic, but there is surprise movement that gives more life to this furry robot from the planet Ro-Bear. His head has great movement, and tilt it a little to the left and you have a whole different expression. There’s even a cleverly hidden cut beneath the fur on his chest, so he can twist all the way around. His arms have great range too, but it is the stubby legs that does wonders for me. It moves so well when you bend the knees – more so because it exposes even more of the upper leg, and you can now actually pose him as if he is running. Sure the legs don’t kick out all the way, but that’s no issue. He’ll run for help just like he would’ve in the toon. Beep beep boop.
There’s always going to be argument that these smaller figures need to cost less. Despite the reasons for this being explained before, you can really feel that this figure is justified by its sheer size. Not just that, it is a rather heavy figure. Much heavier than I expected. The heads themselves are heavy too, and they don’t feel hollow at all. This is sturdy little figure, and I definitely won’t throw anybody with it as I’m sure it will really pack a punch…
Besides it’s bulkiness, it also has some really cool extras. There’s the plans for Cats Lair, printed on a piece of glossy paper, which is cool. I would’ve liked it to be a bit harder or more cardboard like, but it is still really cool. That scene will always be iconic, and I can recreate it now as well. That’s fun. He also has the dagger that he used to free Lion-O. I remember as a kid seeing him raise this weapon to a tied up Lion-O, fearing that our hero might get stabbed. That was a nice twist back in the day. Another scene to recreate just there. There’s also the lamp that they used when the Arietta bird came out to sing for them. And of course there’s a Berbil Fruit. Yum. I hope we get more fruit with the other characters. Candy Fruit please! The torch is likely the coolest of the accessories, because it is so beautifully done. The flame is clear and bright orange, and the handle detailed beautifully. That is definitely my favorite item to display Bill with.
There are a variety of hand options too, and you can have your Berbil with fists, expressive hands, open hands or gripping hands. The fingers are really thick too, so there’s no fear of them breaking off. These hands really do allow for a lot of display options with a figure that seems to not have any expression. Talking about that, there’s the alt head with the light up eyes painted on. Now I know that their eyes do light up in the show, but there’s another use for it too – the Mumm-Ra Berbil. Remember when he transformed himself into a Berbil? Well, if you get two, like I have with a second on the way, you can display him both ways. There’s always room for an imposter Berbil on my shelf.
Would I have liked it if their eyes actually lit up like the LEDs? Yes, of course! That would’ve been rather fun. I know there are custom figures out there already that has that functionality. But this really is a brilliant piece of plastic as is, and I am hopeful we’ll see Belle, Bert, Bob and a generic Berbil in the future. 3 or 4-pack anyone? Or how about an LJN variant. Yes, a nice shiny silver Berbil would look soooo good with the other toy variant ULTIMATES! Just a thought…
We’ve already had characters with a once off appearance grace our toyshelves. Pumm-Ra and Mongor have been part of our collections for a while already. Safari Joe is also on his way but until then, we have another episode-specific character ready to be unboxed: the Thunderian Guard. Never in a million years did I expect to see them in toy form. I’ve loved them since forever. But with their short screentime, I wasn’t sure how much of an impact they’ve made on other fans. Clearly they stood out because when Super7 revealed this wave, I was shocked. You had the amazing Claudus accompanied by his guard!!! How cool is that??? Everyone who is a fan of that episode will automatically have gotten two of them. And with the two facial expressions part of this release, it makes them easily distinguishable and perfect to guard your Cats Lair here on (Third) Earth.
The bio is really well written, I’ll give the writer credit here. There’s not much to go on from their cameo, but with some happenstance the Thunderian Guard’s bio really works for me. Kudos to the inventive creative writing here. The art is also cool. Though I prefer the stoic face between the two, I understand why this face was the one to go with.
The figure’s dress/attire/clothing/uniform is a soft pliable plastic that isn’t removable because of the way the figure has been put together. Just lift up the skirt to see for your self how it all fits together. I’m oftentimes blown away by the ingenious ways toys are made. That in itself is art.
Don’t let his uniform fool you when it comes to articulation. He has great movement, from his legs to the arms, and with slit on either side of the dress, it allows for great kicks Jean Claude van Damme would be proud of. His beard however might get in the way a little if you want to rotate the head, so be careful that you don’t break his shoulder straps.
The weapon holster is another soft piece of plastic that is removable. Think Lion-O’s peg. It clips on/off with ease. And it holds both guns too. I didn’t think the longer rifle would fit, but it works even better than the smaller one. The detail on these weapons are good too. The pole-arm, or lance, has nice detail on the rope that ties the blade to the stick. That blade is painted a shiny coat of silver and it really does look sharp.
While most collectors would display this figure with the gripping hands on to hold the weapons, there are also expressive hands available and an option with a finger pointing. That little nod to the episode really makes me all giddy. When the guards tried to stop Lion-O from entering, and asking him to identify himself, today I am able to recreate that look. That’s really exciting. And whomever chose this option for the hands should know the little kid in me is forever grateful. Smart move! Now if only my second guard would arrive so I can have the duo ready to protect.
That brings us to the other “half” of this iconic episode: Claudus! I’ll get the obvious out of the way – Kano is really missing here. Would I have liked Claudus without the time capsule? I doubt it, but Kano is a big hole right here. I am hoping we get him still somewhere. I really do. That would’ve made this whole setup of having two characters from that episode just better than perfect. But that’s my personal wish, so don’t let that change your opinion. This wave really is fantastic.
Counting Claudus, this wave is one of the most unusual ones, because four of the five characters have never had action figures before. Well, Claudus maybe if you consider the 2011 version, but this is his first appearance as is. I love this about the wave, and the fact that these figures are in such high demand is amazing. Collectors want these characters. And getting the iconic King of Thundera is a moment to savor. Take a step back folks and enjoy the view.
Super7 has already proven themselves masters of design when you think back of the interiors of the ThunderTank, Cats Lair’s many consoles, Mandora’s bike and more. So the time capsule here is just another fantastic example of their craftmanship. The detail is superb. What’s so strange is that despite this being a replica of what we saw on screen, it doesn’t look “cartoony” – but I mean that in a good way. The designs from the show translate so well into the physical world. This is what I love about building out the world of Third Earth and Thundera on my shelf.
Like the Thunderian Guard, Claudus has great articulation. The shoulder pads are designed in such a way that they offer great rotation on the shoulders and excellent movement of the arms. The dress/skirt is soft plastic too, so there’s very good movement and no hinderance when it comes to the legs and the odd kicking stance you’d want on your shelf.
The hands may be simple, but it is all we need. Each set has a purpose and it feels like with just the right combination, a memory from the show unlocks. That’s what I love about these figures. They just bring back so many moments by just posing them a bit like this or bit like that. A tilt of the head or a flip of a wrist will take you back to the 80s just like that. His cane is nice and sturdy. The plans that later helped Lion-O save the ThunderCats are here too – in the cube that Claudus had hid earlier from the vile mutants. It’s all here and I’m here for it.
The two portraits give us Claudus in his later life. They’re good. They’re not as orange as they appear though, but they do match the show. I only wish we got his younger portrait. So I’m saying it here – Super7, please give us a young Claudus and a young Jaga 2-pack. Thank you.
I love the purple of his attire, and that makes me excited for seeing more purple on my shelf in the form of Jagara. Sure, we’ve got the Lunataks, but we gotta balance the good and bad purples here folks! Thank Jaga the Thunderian Guard sports some purple magic too, right?
Talking about purple, this wave gives us two Lunataks in the form of Luna and Amok. This duo was always going to be pricey, mainly because Amok is so huge. If you remember Slithe’s packaging, this is similar – just bulkier. Amok really is big. Much bigger than Slithe. And while Luna is tiny, they fit so well together. So let’s unpack that here.
She is perfect. For such a tiny figure, I’m surprised at how good she moves. The head, arms and legs all have great rotation. Even the hands can move, but there are no wrists flapping here, because let’s face it, these four-fingered hands are sooooo tiny. Yes, they are extremely small. They plug in and out quite easy. She has a few sets of hands, and you have to look closely to see which is which, but when you have the option to point a finger at the good guys, while holding onto Amok’s horn, then you’ve nailed it in my book. Just be sure to keep a close eye on her whip, it can fall out and get lost if you don’t watch out for it.
The alt head that Luna has is a good one too. I do like the stoic one more, but she has sass in both of them. I always thought she was out of scale when I first got to meet her on the screen, and after falling in love with this annoying leader of the bad purplies, I was excited to learn we’ll be getting Lunataks in toy form. She was my first worry because of her size. But she is a perfect little figure. Snarfer is already small, but she’s even more petite – yet she feels sturdy. I am in no way concerned I’ll break her. She’s tough as nails, even in plastic form.
Amok in his breathtaking bulkiness brings life to the display, and having the other two Lunataks posed with him and Luna quickly doubles the Lunataks’ presence. That’s a really nice feeling. Now we only need Tug-Mug and Red-Eye. And if you are picky like me, you’ll want Queen Luna and Luna in her transformed form. That’s basically the same figure, just a little different. We can never have enough Lunataks. I wonder who will be in Wave 13?
The articulation on Amok is surprisingly good. Like Slithe, I worried about how they’d make him move, but the engineering here is just top notch. He even has a waste swivel. The tail can move. The shoulders and legs are just the right length to make him hunch and stand up, and the head has good movement too. The three portraits we have with Amok are perfect, but one is even better – the smiling / squinting one. Pair that with the open hands and he’ll give Luna a nice tight hug. Or squash his enemies in a deadly grip with a deceiving smirk. I’m not sure which hands I’ll be using, but there’s enough options for you here.
It doesn’t really feel like we are short of any additional accessories here. Who needs them when these two go so well together. What more do you want (apart from the Treasure of Thundera). Super7 has really hit bulls eye with this wave. Everything has its place. Sure I’ll always want more, but that’s just me being greedy because of all the great items we got already. What’s not to love about Wave 11? This is the best wave yet. It came out perfect. Let’s give it 11/10.
Thank you to Super7 for providing these samples for reviewing purposes. For more information and future ThunderCats releases, click here.
