A Kevin Owens Figure With Universal Appeal

The blog entry that you are about to read labels me as a hypocrite. Well, maybe that's going a bit too far. Perhaps "fickle" would be a better description for me after we take a look at this figure. Not long ago, I was not a believer in a few of the concepts presented here. In fact, I was dead set against them. I had my reasons, which I will go into, but I could never have imagined that I would change my mind. Nonetheless, here we are...

Mattel has rolled out yet another Kevin Owens figure. This is the second time that the Monday Night Raw star has received the "Elite" treatment. A few weeks ago I gave my thoughts on what I feel is the best Kevin Owens figure, that being his entry in the wildly popular Mattel WWE Retro line patterned after the legendary Hasbro WWF collection. Will that opinion stay? Let's see.

The big draw here is that Owens is packaged with the title of which he is the longest reigning holder of--the WWE Universal Championship. Also included is the stand on which the championship made its debut before being initially won by Finn Balor. When the figure was first announced, I told a friend that I was looking forward to it. His response? "You just want the red stand." I'm transparent.

Accessories aside, it's a very nice figure. As is the current trend, Elite figures come
packaged with a display stand and sliver of a cardboard diorama that can be added to those with other figures in the series to form a complete backdrop. I still don't care for this gimmick, as I've discussed a few times already this year. The plastic portion is ok, but the cardboard is flimsy and bends as soon as you insert it into the holder. The likeness is good but I think that the Basic stance works better for how Owens carries himself. The old facial likeness from the Basic figure was a bit better too. This looks more like someone cosplaying as KO.

As stated above, the accessories are a major selling point with this figure. It's the debut of the figure-sized Universal Championship. There's no doubt that it will appear many more times in the line, but collectors want it "now." The presentation stand may be a bit of a different story. It's really just a hollow chunk of soft red plastic, but there's no guarantee that we will ever see it released again. The Hall of Fame podium that was included with Bruno Sammartino still has not been re-released even after several years. If you're into unique accessories that aren't chairs, tables, and the like, you may want to see if you can grab this figure.

Now, full disclosure as to why this entry may make me a hypocrite. Truth be told, I was not a fan of Kevin Owens or the Universal Championship upon their WWE debuts. As for Owens, the somewhat psychotic fandom of "Kevin Steen" fans soured me early. It was almost cult-like and anyone who opposed it just had to be wrong. I had seen very little of him, but the odd fan devotion did sour me to an extent. He has since become an absolute highlight for me in WWE, but I let myself decide if I was going to like him or not. No one can deny that his run with Chris Jericho has been one of the main reasons to watch. Hopefully the payoff is equally as good as the build.

The Universal Championship design did not appeal to me at first, either. While I'm still not a fan of so many WWE titles having the same design, if I had to choose, this is the one that would stay. Upon its unveiling, I admit that I took to Twitter and other avenues decrying what I deemed to be the "Christmas Championship." Even though the famous NWA "domed globe" belt originally had a red lining (which quickly frayed and was removed), I just couldn't get behind the concept. As time wore on, the look won me over. Although the fickle Internet fans (and I thought I was fickle...) now suddenly hate Goldberg because he's holding the title, the want for this figure-sized version will not wane any time soon.

Maybe I'm not a hypocrite or even fickle, but I do know that I like this entry into the Kevin Owens figure collection. My pick for "best so far" is the Retro figure, but even that could change down the line. What I do know for a fact is that Owens brings a different look and feel to the table that, even if I didn't think so at first, is a true asset to a company that is often stuck with the "same old, same old."