As mentioned in recent reviews, Mattel is really stepping things up in the paint department.  We are seeing less and less sloppy paint jobs which each new DCUC wave that gets released.  My Parademon's paint job is very good.  There were some minor areas of green paint on the skin around his nose but nothing too noticeable.  I guess my only complaint is they used some red shading over the yellow boots for highlighting.  Mattel has used this color combo before and I've never been a big fan.  That being said, the red shading is very faint and not too obvious. 

So I'm still stuck in wave 7 trying to get through all my reviews meanwhile, Mattel has released wave 8 and very recently, wave 9, along with a couple of 2 packs and a walmart exclusive 5 pack. So here we go with my 2nd last wave 7 review, Kid Flash.

For starters, Kid Flash comes in your standard Mattel DCUC packaging. Nothing new here folks.

Significantly shorter than you're standard DC Universe Classics action figure, Kid Flash stands at about 5.5 inches tall similar to fellow Teen Titan, Robin from wave 3.

As far as sculpt goes, Kid Flash has his wings on the sides of his boots and on his head but other than that, is fairly basic. His head sculpt is unique of course with his wavy red hair.

As far as paint job goes, the face is very clean. Kid's blue eyes are neat and there are no runs or overlapping or paint blotches of any kind.

The final review for Mattel's DC Universe Classics wave 7 is the collect and connect figure Atom Smasher. Before we get on to the review, be sure to check out the selection on eBay or Amazon. if you're looking to by purchase any of the DCUC wave 7 action figures.

Mattel has been doing a great job with the collect and connect action figures. The sculpts are nicely detailed and the paint jobs are usually very clean and Atom Smasher is no exception.


A close up looks at the action figure gives us a better look at the paint job. There is a little bit of dark shading around Atom Smasher's eyes and in the chest, ribs and leg areas. Also on the arms, specifically around the veins on his arms, there is some orange highlighting.

Atom Smasher's Articulation is fairly standard. He has all the same joints as any of the other DCUC figures have. My only complaint is that I find the neck joint does not allow him to look upwards very well. Other joints include shoulders, biceps, elbows, wrists, waist, abdominal, hips, thighs, knees and ankles. All joints work well and are not too tight or loose.

Don't expect any extras with Atom Smasher. He's a hands on kinda guy, so no weapons are necessary.

Overall, Atom Smasher is as good as any other DCUC collect and connect action figure but may not really appeal to those who are just looking for the main or popular DC Universe Characters. Those who collect wave after wave religiously or DC fanboys will appreciate Mattel going deep into the DC Universe library to bring us a large variety of characters.

If you're into variants of previously released action figures than this is the set for you. Mattel has released Wal-Mart exclusive Gotham City 5 pack which mostly consists of previously released DC Universe action figures with different paint jobs. Lets take a closer look.

The "Gotham City 5" includes Catwoman, Two-Face, Batman, Superman and a brand new sculpt of Lex Luthor. But how different are some of these action figures from previous versions you may already own. Lets start with Superman.

First, I'd like to point your attention to some new additions to the blog. I've decided to add some interaction and have added a few polls, videos and slideshows to the sidebar on the left side of the screen. Feel free to scroll through and participate.

Now, not to long ago, Mattel released information regarding the line up for DC Universe Classics wave 12 set. Well, now there are photo's have been released and Action Toy Review is ready to give you a preview. If you're looking to pre-order this set which is due to release sometime in early 2010 (around March), check out the "Entertainment Earth" link on the top left corner. Now on to the preview:



In no particular order we will go ladies first and start with Mary Batson. A variant with a white costume is also said to be part of the set:

Next we have Spectre. There will be a variant of this action figure but no photos are available yet.

The next figure is Metal Man. He will have removable hands similar to Cyborg in wave 4.

The next figure is Copperhead.

Then we have Eclipso:

Next is Dr Mid-Nite:

So there you have it. A quick and dirty preview of the DCUC wave 12 which probably wont be out until March 2010. As mentioned, you can Pre-Order your set now at EntertainmentEarth.com. Just click on the link on the very top left of the page. I've also added a poll on the left side bar menu. Tell Action Toy Review what you think of this latest DCUC set of action figures.

I am starting to fall way behind on my DC Universe Classics reviews. This is partially due to the fact that it is hard as hell for me to find these figures. I'm also finding that the prices seem to be going up these days on eBay. Especially for the more popular characters. With Wave 9 and 10 starting to make an appearance in stores and online, I figure, its time to finally get started on my Wave 8 reviews so here we go. This review will be on Vigilante:

For starters, the packaging has not changed at all over 8 waves. Same style graphics etc. Its been two years now since this toy line began so, it has that been there, done that feeling. Personally, it doesn't matter to me, I do not keep my toys in their packaging.

Vigilante is one of those figures that pretty much consists of the standard DC Universe Classics body parts. The head sculpt is of course, original and does justice to the comic book character.

Similar to Captain Cold from DCUC wave 7, Vigilante supports a belt with a gun holster on his left side. The rest of the body, you've pretty much seen before on other figures with some minor differences which is not a bad thing IF the paint job is done right.

If you've been collecting these DCUC action figures, then you'll know that Mattel has been generous with the articulation and because Vigilante's body is basically made up of standard parts, his articulation is not different then the vast majority of the previous DCUC figures. All joints moved fairly well and were not too loose at all.

One of the things that really makes me like this action figure is the cool accessories that come along with it. Vigilante is armed to the tooth with an revolver which can be placed in his hand or his side holster, an automatic pistol and an automatic rifle which also has a strap and can be worn around his shoulders, on his back. All accessories fit fairly well in his hands.

Vigilante has a lot of guns but i think Deathstroke from DCUC wave 3 out arms him. One more note, Vigilante also comes with, of course, a connect and collect piece which is the left leg of Giganta.

Despite Vigilante's standard looking sculpt, I really took a liking to this action figure. Probably because I like the colors of his uniform and he comes with a sh*tload of guns. The extra accessories really increases the fun factor in my opinion and even though he is probably not an A list character, this action figure is still worth the purchase.

Some of the 2-Packs Mattel released recently either have not really appealed to me or include figures which I already have (example: Clayface) but the Clash in the Cosmos 2 pack featuring an early version of Brainiac caught my attention right away. So I bought it and will give my impressions:



Packaging for the 2 packs have similar graphics, colors as you would see on the average DCUC action figure package, just slightly bigger. On the back you do have a little blurp about each character's origin which is always a cool feature. First, we'll take a look at Brainiac.

Brainiac's paint job is good in the sense that there is no slop or colors crossing over lines but if you look closely at his pink shirt, the color on the arms is more of a purple compared to the color on his torso. Not the greatest job at matching colors up here.

Just to compare DCUC's Brainiac to some previous versions of the character. On the left you will see a DC Direct version of Brainiac as well as on the right, the DC Superheroes version. The good thing about the Brainiac character is that there have been so many versions of him over the years so there are multiple possibilities of action figure versions of him. As far as Articulation goes, this new version of Brainiac is very standard compared to the rest of the DCUC toyline. All the right joints in all the right places and all joints out of the package were not too loose.

Clash in the Cosmos Brainiac comes with a ray gun but the crappy thing is, this gun is a re-use part itself. Mattel had previously used this weapon with their DC Superheroes Battlesuit Lex Luthor a few years back before the DCUC toy line began. Its a cool looking gun and has a slot on the back for a piece of Kryptonite which also came with Lex Luthor, however, it is not included in the Brainiac/Superman 2 pack.

Sculpt/Design - 8.5, Paint - 6, Articulation - 9, Accessories - 7, Fun - 8.5

Brainiac fits in nicely with the rest of my Legion of Doom collection. Still missing Giganta, Cheetah and Toyman.

So now we move on to Superman. Now, I did not care too much about getting this Superman figure for one MAIN reason. This Superman has heat vision eyes which means his eyes are pure red.

Taking a look at the sculpt itself, the face looks great (except for the eyes). I believe this is the same head sculpt used for Eradicator from wave 5 just without the glasses. (I havent confirmed this yet).

If you can get over the red eyes, it is actually a very good version of Superman. HOWEVER, if you can't get over the red eyes, look into getting the Superman from the DC Universe Classics Gotham City 5 pack. It is the exact same version as the Clash in the Cosmos Superman except he has normal eyes.

Some different versions of Superman brought to us by Mattel recently. In the back you see Blue and Red Superman from DCUC wave 2. On the left is a Superman figure from Mattel's previous toy line DC Superheroes. And on the right, is the Superman variant action figure from DCUC wave 6 with Superman in his Recovery Suit and has him supporting a very unpopular mullet head.

The paint job on this figure is great. No mistakes, smudges, slop or anything. Colors are match the classic version of this character. Nothing to complain about really.

Articulation is just as you would expect from the DC Universe Classics toy line. Joints include the neck, shoulders, biceps, elbows, wrists, abdominal, waist, hips, thighs, knees and ankles. All joints moved very well out of the box. One small issue is that the cape weighs Superman backwards a little bit. No accessories were included with this Superman action figure.

Sculpt/Design - 8.5, Paint - 9.5, Accessoreis - 0, Articulation - 9, Fun - 8

So who's gonna want this version of Superman? Well, Superman junkies of course. It is a very very good version of Supes, its just the red eyes take away from him if you're looking for that one classic version of him. No question that it is a good set to get but the main figure for me in this set was Brainiac. I think if you're looking for the BEST Superman figure on the Market, then take a look at the Gotham City 5 pack Supes (which i have already previewed and will be reviewing shortly)

Next up for review is DC Universe Classics wave 8's Dr. Fate. He comes in a classic and modern variant. This review will be on the modern version.

Below you'll see the packaging. Nothing new here.

As far as the sculpt goes the torso legs and arms are made up of basically standard parts. The cuffs around the cloves are a little different. The head is obviously a new sculpt but there is really not much too it. Just a big tin can over his head. No details to speak of. His right hand is also sculpted a little differently than most DCUC figures. It is an open hand which i don't think I've seen on any other figure yet.

Dr. Fate comes with of course the collect and connect piece of Giganta (right arm) plus a Ankh-shaped electric bolt which plugs right into the open right hand.

Dr. Fate's articulation is also very standard compared to other DCUC action figures. Joints include the neck, shoulders, biceps, elbows, wrists, abdominal, waist, hips, thighs, knees and ankles. When i took Dr. Fate out of his packaging, all joints were working properly and none were too stiff or too loose.

Overall, I really don't have any complaints about this action figure. Its a good likeness of its comic book counterpart so what more can you ask for. Paint job is clean, joints work well and you get a little accessory included.

Mattel's DCUC Wave 8 is getting to be yesterday's news these days thanks to release of DC Universe Classics wave 10 (which is a Wal-Mart exclusive set). So trying to finish off my Wave 8 action figures, today's review will be on Commander Steel.

The other major difference I thought was the lack of accessories included in the Gotham City 5 pack. Again, comparing the two action figures in the picture above, the old Battlesuit Lex Luthor came with a gun and a piece of Kryptonite. GC5 Lex Luthor comes with Zippo, nadda, nothing. He is sculpted with one closed fist and one open hand so he could've been given a weapon of some sort.
DCUC Lex Luthors articulation is standard from the DCUC toy line. If you have any of these DCUC action figure then you've got a pretty good idea of what you're getting. All joints were in proper working order out of the box.

Jumping into Mattel's DC Universe Classics wave 9 set, my review today will be of the only female action figure of the set, Black Canary.

The packaging for the most part is standard so don't expect anything out of the ordinary here. Other than the background picture that changes each wave, there is nothing new.

Enough about the boring packaging and on to the action figure inside. Black Canary is has a couple of features that are unique. For starters, the four horseman have created a beautiful head sculpt.

The paint job looks great and really there is nothing to complain about. The paint on her face made to look like makeup is very clean. The rest of the paint job is also very solid.

Now as for articulation, there are a couple of differences between Black Canary and the other DCUC female action figures like Wonder Woman, Harley Quinn and Big Barda.

As you can see in the picture above, Black Canary lacks the Mattel trademark hip joints we seen on practically every single other DCUC figure and instead have the regular T hip joints we normally see in a lot of DC Direct action figures. Because of this, Black Canary's legs can only move forwards and backwards and really makes it hard to pose her in many cool fighting scenes. To make up for this Mattel has added a twisting joint in at her boots.

No question that Mattel's DCUC Black Canary is a great looking action figure but looking good comes with a price and that is in this case articulation. Still, its not that big of an issue that would make me want to skip out on this great looking action figure of this classic character. You should not hesitate picking this action figure up if you get the chance.