The Legends Return

I'll admit that during the first official go-round of this series, I had yet to be the fan of Mattel that I would become. Sure, this hit me right where I live, the legends of wrestling, but early reports from inside the manufacturer seemed to suggest that they were less than enthusiastic about bringing my heroes of the squared circle to plastic. The six waves that did make it out felt very begrudgingly done. Then the plug was pulled. While there were classic stars peppered throughout other series and even a few sets here and there once again dedicated to the giants of the past, the official WWE Legends collection was done.

Picking up right where they left off, Mattel has finally brought us Legends Series 7. Exclusive to Target, the series contains Razor Ramon, Bobby "The Brain" Heenan, and Greg "The Hammer" Valentine in the latter's debut in the Mattel line. A fourth figure, an early version of "crow" Sting was scheduled but ultimately pulled due to the WCW icon's contract expiring.

The packaging is a mixture of the current Elite figure boxes and the previous Legends series carding. While I've liked other designs more (Hall of Fame, Hall of Champions, and Elite Flashback to name a few), this is very suitable. I was actually not a fan of the original Legends packaging and I'm sure that opinion is expressed in a blog entry or two from all those years ago. I felt that the huge bubble was distracting compared to the size of the figure. The smaller boxes feel more compact and are a good home for the figure and accessories, while still retaining the Legends style artwork that many collectors love.

Starting with The Bad Guy, Razor Ramon is my least favorite of the bunch only because he's the '90s star, whereas my tastes skew a bit earlier. I like the figure and had no plans on passing it up, it just doesn't hold the same place in my heart as the other two do. Razor is in a unique style and look that has never been done before in figure form. Included are his vest, chains, and two sets of hands. Some collectors were in an uproar as the "thumbs up" hands shown in the prototype didn't end up making it to the final product. I'm generally not sold over extra hands and things, so I'm perfectly fine likely seeing those released with a new Hacksaw Jim Duggan or other character somewhere down the line. Collectors who don't open were upset as some of the Razor's had the chains placed above the hair of the figure, this making it look rather goofy in the packaging. Some reports stated that the chain was left completely off, though I don't know that it was confirmed.

Bobby "The Brain" Heenan makes his third appearance for Mattel, this time in a landmark design. Heenan is packaged in his weasel suit, a costume that was used in gimmick matches for at least a decade with opponents ranging from Greg Gagne in the AWA to The Ultimate Warrior in the WWF. Heenan would lose the match, be knocked unconscious, and wake to find that he had suddenly sprouted paws and a tail. Let the tail chasing ensue. While the costume is great, the highlight for me is that we finally get a mass released figure of Heenan in wrestling gear. Don't forget that "The Brain" is often labeled a very underrated wrestler. Some have complained that the legs of the figure are "pant" legs painted flesh tone, but for whatever reason this does not bother one me one bit. I love the thing.

Another item worth mentioning regarding the figure is the inclusion of the "pointing" hand. While the lack of Razor's "thumbs up" hand didn't bother me, "The Brain" having the ability to point to his greatest asset is incredible. It should be noted that with the inclusion of Heenan's jacket from his Fan Central figure as well as the pants from either Pat Patterson or Jerry Brisco, you can create what is perhaps the "ultimate" Heenan figure done to date.

Note that I listed this as the first mass released figure of "The Brain" in wrestling gear. I'm not forgetting the Jakks Classic Superstars figure which was also in wrestling gear and the infamous weasel suit. The main problem with that figure is that it was a Toy Fair exclusive limited to 100 pieces. It's hard to really say that a figure is out there for people to collect when so few were deliberately made. The second issue is that it utilizes the torso used for Chief Jay Strongbow and Ivan Koloff among others. Heenan never wore this style of singlet. Can you imagine a company going to all the trouble of making a weasel suit and then skimping out on the figure itself? Ah, Chinese New Year.

Finally, we hit The Hammer. Right off the bat I will do a complete 180 with my above criticism of Jakks. Their version of Valentine's robe was simply better. I don't know if it was the small piece of Velcro that held it closed or the general thickness of it, but this Mattel version feels and looks somewhat cheap in comparison. Getting to the figure itself, it's a perfect replica of Greg as he appeared in the late '80s. The facial expression and the hair are on par. What was also a cool inclusion is the "Hart Breaker" shin guard best remembered for being a point of contention in The Hammer's feud with "Rugged" Ronnie Garvin. The shin guard clips on and is easily removable if you're not looking to represent that time period.

When I was first able to pre-order this series months ago, I felt that perhaps a lot of the distribution problems with Mattel were finally coming to an end. I was very wrong. Not only did these figures begin hitting stores before the pre-orders began shipping, but as of press time some have still not shipped. Add that to a very disappointing "pre-sale" for Legends Series 8 and I'd say that we're right back where we started.

That being said, the next few entries will also likely deal with new Mattel product. The next, a look at another full series and another much desired legend, will also include a realization regarding a certainly retailer and these figures, which seem to become more and more like gold every day, and not in a good way.