Heads, Belts...And More Pancakes!

As I revealed a few months back, I went on a kick of pre-ordering the Elite sets. It just feels easier than searching the stores anymore. If you're pre-ordering from Ringside, it's a lot faster, too. I believe I have one more set pre-ordered as of press time and then a smattering after that. If you know me, my reasons for pre-ordering Elite 79 may be a bit baffling to you. There isn't a Legend or "Flashback" to be had and there are a few names who've had countless re-releases. There are, however, two who should be relatively difficult to find in stores and some quality re-releases. Plus, wallet permitting, who isn't spending to keep happy and sane these days? Well, I'm certainly not rich but I do like sanity and fun, so here we are.

In this lineup we've got Io Shirai, Bobby Fish, Big E, Xavier Woods, Daniel Bryan, and Roman Reigns. Elite 79 brings us exactly one "First Time In The Line" figure and another who really hasn't seen a wide release. I'm also a big fan of what I deem "definitive" or "ultimate" versions of a star. No, not the overpriced "Ultimate" line which has seen some nice releases, but rather a regular released figure that usually includes some sort of accessories or maybe even just decor that gives you the feeling that you don't need another release of this star. I'd say that we get three of those here, as well.

The packaging is your standard release for this year and probably into next. I'm still not crazy about it and I still preferred the previous boxes, but it is what it is. I have bought very few extras to keep carded lately for a few reasons, but this is assuredly one of them. One plus point is that there are very few "signs" cluttering up the window. The "True FX" logo has been moved to the top cardboard. Another plus is that most of the figures fit the packaging well, so there isn't much "floating." We've still got the issue of all the heads and hands scattered about which is a double-edged sword. I love the inclusion of these and completely understand why they're boldly on display, but it's definitely one of the factors as to why I have little desire to keep any of these in the package.

Kicking it off, the latest version of The New Day is complete. Yes it is. Joining the Kofi Kingston from Elite 78 brings us Big E and Xavier Woods, the latter of which easily sees his "definitive" release here. Woods comes with Francesca II as well as his "UpUpDownDown" championship belt and alternate head. The latter, after some research, appears to have been inspired by a promo at SummerSlam 2019. His sunglasses and hair are meant to resemble Stevie Wonder and they indeed do. The belt, from his popular YouTube show of the same name, is made of molded rubber similar to the Mattel Hardcore Championship, but looks very nice nonetheless. Big E is lacking wrist tape (did he stop wearing it at some point?) but has a welcomed new expression and another plate of pancakes. Combined with Kofi the trio does look great. I think I'm finally done with the boys in figure form, but I've said that multiple times.

I remember when Daniel Bryan having an action figure was a true novelty. If you're a longtime reader you'll remember it, too, as I recall reviewing it a decade ago. Here we are again in what I also feel could be a "definitive" figure. This is one that, had I not ordered the set, I probably wouldn't have picked up right away until I learned of how cool it really is. Not only does it come with two distinctively different hairstyles for the popular former indy darling, but something about the inclusion of the "grappling" hands really puts it over the top for me. The "shaggy haired" head is also another example of how scary good this True FX stuff is. As I do with the Survivor Series Jeff Hardy released last year, I feel as if I'm looking at a real human face here instead of just an action figure.

Bobby Fish is one that will be heavily hunted and fly off of the shelves. He's in a popular faction in a popular brand and was yet another indy darling, albeit to a lesser degree than D-Bry. While it isn't a "First Time In The Line," the only previous way to get a Mattel figure of him was in the Undisputed Era boxed set along with Adam Cole (not going to do it...) and Kyle O'Reilly. O'Reilly is coming back with a matching figure in Elite 80 and will include the second half of the new NXT Tag Team Championships that is started here with Fish. Of the "new" NXT championship designs, the tag team belts are the only ones that I prefer over the old ones. These figure-sized versions look great, but the strap itself is a bit too big for the figure and "hangs" a bit at its tightest. As for Fish himself, I think I do prefer the first release, but we'll see when O'Reilly hits my hands and this blog.

Roman Reigns has recently stated that he's going to start wrestling with his shirt off. As with most figures of the Samoan superstar, this is already possible. This figure is no exception, but what I most appreciate is the inclusion of the "smiling" head with pulled back hair. I believe that this is the first time that this head has been used for an Elite figure. It also includes the "Hang Loose" hand sculpt which we've already seen with Samoa Joe and Matt Riddle. For some reason I'm a sucker for it. Look out, Instagram, for a grouping of those three figures on my account.

Rounding out the group we have the figure that will be the most popular of the bunch, Io Shirai. The Japanese star joins Asuka and Kairi Sane in Mattel's WWE group of joshi. She comes with an amazing soft goods jacket complete with "furry" hood and some alternate hands. I'm not big on the alternate hands with the female figures as for whatever reason they feel as if they could break easily, but I'm not saying to get rid of them, either. The figure is insanely short in stature which is true to life yet still a bit jarring when compared to others. That's how "wrestling figure wave budgets" are made and how lineups are decided: for big figure like Roman you sneak in a shorter star like Io.

This is the happiest you'll ever see me with a wave of nearly all re-releases and current stars, but I am. I cannot see myself ever needing another Bryan, Reigns, or Fish. It's questionable that Shirai will ever get another figure, but I'm not sure that I would need it, either. You simply cannot say "never" with The New Day with their variety of looks, but I wouldn't wait on Woods if you're interested in the belt or "Stevie Wonder" head. Another word of caution is that this set will likely be hitting stores just as the Christmas buying season begins. Between that and everything under the sun being wonky this year, I'd either pre-order this bunch or grab them the minute you see them.

Oh yeah. Right. This is Mattel. You have to do either no matter what time of year...

The "Lost" Retro Series

We're all like jilted lovers. Their decisions and actions betray us, upset us, and annoy us, yet we keep coming back for more. Wrestling figure collectors are the victims. The evil entity luring us? Mattel. Sure, they have a great product that we can't get enough of. But what does it take for us to get it? Lousy distribution. Much-wanted product that is deliberately made to be "chased." But here we are. And here is another review of a series that can be classified under all of the above.

Mattel WWE Retro Series 5 should have been available everywhere. You have one of the most popular acts of the last few years debuting in a hot line and an all-time great making his "re-debut" in the style. Aside from some appearances at online retailers and, shockingly, in the bargain basement, this series really didn't show up much of anywhere. The sad part is that without these four the Retro set and collection has a glaring omission. Nevertheless, "Macho Man" Randy Savage, Big E., Kofi Kingston, and Xavier Woods have arrived.

In my opinion, The New Day was a must for the Retro line. They fit the style, they're fun characters, and the men behind the characters are likely getting a huge thrill being immortalized in the type of wrestling figure that they grew up playing with. The pink and blue color combination is a ray of sunshine in a line that was getting somewhat dull in looks. Sure, many superstars of today lack vibrant colors, but one of the Hasbro WWF figure legacies is exactly that. It was a reflection of the roster at the time and this line should continue that. The current WWE Champion (as of press time) and his crew do just that. Be sure to check out Woods' very Sheik (chic?) boots and the fact that Big E's figure feels very much like Hasbro's Warlord of decades ago.

For me, Randy Savage is the sleeper here. You can't have a bad figure of The Macho Man. It just does not happen with what a larger-than-life character that he was. That being said, I wasn't too excited when this figure was first revealed. The nWo black and white colors just don't do it for me in this style. I would have preferred the Savage that we should've gotten in 1992, but didn't. A simple repaint of the "Macho King" figure with vibrant pants, similar to the figure included in the Hasbro Royal Rumble mini-ring. After having the figure in my hands, I can say that I was pleasantly surprised. It really screams "Savage" (or "Oooooh yeah," perhaps?) in the WCW/nWo era and goes well with other figures in the line such as Sting, Goldberg, and Ric Flair. It should be noted that a packaging variation has been discovered with Savage. In some releases his left arm is raised inside of the bubble.

My only real gripes are the packaging, which has changed for the better in future series as documented in the last entry, and the fact that I would've swapped the "Real Wrestling Action" moves of Woods and Kingston. It's a solid lineup and good to see The New Day released together. If they all weren't so difficult to find I would say that Kingston would be the most popular due to his recent successes, but you'll pretty much have to go the online route to ensure that you pick up the set. There is already another Savage available in the line that I'm sure we'll be seeing here on the blog sooner than later, but it does not really fill the void that I mentioned above. I would not be surprised to see The New Day redone in different colors down the line also.

Thanks for still checking out the blog even on our reduced schedule. There's plenty more to come...

Figures That Ain't...Booty?

Ah, The New Day. An act that got over and sustained. Has it gone on too long? I don't know if I can quite say that. In this day and age you have to appreciate anything in WWE that lasts longer than a couple of months. Certainly all three gentlemen are very talented. Would I like to see them go heel? Maybe with Big E as the main event muscle, Kofi Kingston as the mid-level enforcer, and Xavier Woods as the manager/punching bag? Absolutely. But as long as you're buying those Booty O's, it's not going to happen. In fact, we're opening up a box of the infamous breakfast treat, but there isn't food inside...

It isn't a new item, but it sure has become more affordable. Based upon their appearance at WrestleMania 32, Mattel released all three members of The New Day in a mock box of Booty O's. Yes, there are "real" boxes of the cereal available and even ones with shirts inside, but this version may be the best. However, you do have to rip open the top of the box in order to get the guys out. If you'd rather just watch them about to ease on down a rainbow, you can simply open the front of the box using the convenient Velcro tabs.

This isn't the first time to the figure rodeo for any of these men, but this look is unique to the set as are the accessories. Included are two unicorn...err...bootycorn horn headbands and Francesca 2 in black and gold. While Francesca 2 (or her late sister, Francesca) has been included with other releases, this is the first time that the horns have been released. There are only two. Looking back at photos from that WrestleMania, Big E didn't have one on at the event. It would have been nice to have had three included here anyway, just because.

The real glaring omission is the rest of their entrance gear from the event. While the color scheme on the tights is great, the rest of the outfits are missing. I know, I know...copyrights. It's caused many an issue for figures over the years from band-inspired t-shirts to Shockmaster's helmet. For that show, The New Day wore Dragon Ball Z-inspired attire which obviously wasn't obtainable. Hard to help overall, but when basing a figure set around one-time-only costumes, it does stick out. Nonetheless, those bootycorn horns are present, perfect for the gang to stare at the removable bootycorn mask on the back of the box. Bootycorn...

The figures themselves are great. Has there been a bad figure of Big E yet? I don't believe so. He simply translates well into action figure form, and those massive legs make the figure look just as powerful as the real deal. Kofi has had a lot of figures and the hairstyle here is certainly unique. The torso joint on my Kofi is somewhat loose, but I don't know that it's a widespread issue. Xavier may be my favorite example of "Mr. UpUp DownDown" yet. Comparing photos from the event the figure may have a bit too much hair, but I'm not complaining. Great facial expressions on all three, too.

Is this my favorite set of all-time? No, but it's solid. As mentioned above, it's also come way down in price, specifically on everyone's favorite A to Z "prime" online retailer. It can actually be had for around the cost of a standard Mattel two-pack, but here you're getting three "Elite" figures and accessories. The box is also cool and almost an additional accessory seeing as that they did tumble out of a giant version of it at this event.

Bootycorn...?

The Highs & Lows of Topps WWE 2016

Topps keeps churnin' em out, and we keep buyin' em. It's evident by how fast nearly all retailers sell out of product that WWE trading cards are a popular item. They appeal to a variety of collectors. They're more often than not a well produced product. Thanks to "hits" they offer a lottery feel of possibly pulling an autograph or other premium. They're usually a win-win purchase. Even regular cards can feel special when you're opening your first few packs of that particular series and pull one of your favorites.

Seemingly now settled at three mass retail WWE sets per year, Topps is now on their second for 2016. This time it's the aptly named WWE 2016 set. These sets named only by year usually mirror the sets produced by Topps for other sports in the same year such as baseball and football. A particularly handsome design was chosen by Topps this year, which instantly forces a minor hit with me. If I'm not a fan of how the base cards look, I usually won't invest much into a set. The Topps WWE Road To WrestleMania 2016 set resembles that remark. Aside from the Dusty Rhodes Tribute subset, I largely ignored the rest of the cards.

Topps WWE 2016 boasts a nice 100-card base set. Going through the cards you may notice something interesting: the biggest current stars do not appear. Names such as Seth Rollins, Brock Lesnar, and The New Day instead appear twice each in the "Perspectives" subset. These cards feature each star on two separate cards, one of which is from the "files of The Authority." As gimmicky as this may be, it does help two other views of collecting. For one thing, it frees up space in the base set for names that may not have necessarily made it in otherwise. For autograph collectors looking to try and get as many cards signed in the base set as they can, the larger, harder-to-obtain names won't be an issue.

For those who enjoy variants there are parallels in the set of bronze, silver, and even a rare red. To be honest, the silver and bronze are barely noticeable. While on the topic of parallels, I must point out something that I noticed after a box break. Topps has been good for a few years now about building a complete base set out of one single box. While I was able to do that, I would have had to have used a parallel card to do it had I not pulled the same regular card from an outside pack. In my book, a base set should be included in every hobby box without any parallels involved.

Several subsets are included, most notably a 28-card NXT set. Many of these names are no longer in NXT, with assuredly more to follow with the upcoming brand extension. There are also continuation subsets of The Rock, Triple H, Bret Hart, and Brock Lesnar. This style of subset is beyond boring to me. I know that there was an oversaturation of product in the "Attitude Era," but is it just me or does every card of Triple H and The Rock basically look the same? Personally I have no interest in collecting these subsets and pulling one of the cards in a pack elicits more of a groan from me than anything resembling happiness.

There are also plenty of different "hits." Some of us always want that autograph to be pulled, even those of us who mainly obtain our own signatures. After being spoiled by "on-card" autographs of recent sets, Topps has gone back to the stickers. It was disappointing to see this. For awhile I didn't think that it would make much of a difference to me, but I now see that it does. In my box, I pulled Nia Jax. While you can never go wrong with pulling a female related card (see one of my past card set reviews for the sad commentary on that), Nia wouldn't have been my first choice. Nonetheless, she is a new autograph for me, and with NXT as hot it is, you can't go wrong with that brand name slapped onto anything.

Other pulls include medallions, Divas kiss cards, multi-autographs, autographed relics, shirt relics, and mat relics from NXT Brooklyn and SummerSlam. My pull in this category was a mat relic from the latter event featuring The Undertaker. Again, not my first choice, but The Undertaker is another name that will always hold major ground with collectors. Between my two hits, I probably could have resold the two of them and gotten my investment back on the box while keeping all of the other cards. With that kind of figuring, it's easy to come out feeling good about the purchase.

It's definitely a middle-ground set. I'm very pleased with the base card style as well as the choices in both names and photos. Whoever made the call on including a Mr. X (the Danny Davis version who is also in the set under his regular persona) card deserves a raise. Sensational Sherri Martel, Miss Elizabeth, Kevin and Kerry Von Erich, and J.J. Dillon also brought a smile to my face. On the flip side, many of the subsets are once again snoozers. I realize that the casual fan still wants cards of The Rock and Triple H, but many of us regulars are well past that. At least past subsets of Sting and Hulk Hogan offered images that have never appeared on cards before. It was refreshing.

The next time that trading cards grace this blog will likely be in August, just a few weeks away. At that time Topps will bring us their 2016 installment of WWE Heritage. As longtime readers know, the Heritage sets are my favorite. I'm anticipating a lot of loving for this new set as well, as the design is based on Topps 1986 baseball which was a favorite of mine as a child. Bring on that cardboard goodness...