The Greatest Boxer Or The Greatest Referee?

Hard to believe that it’s already the tail end of summer. Nice for someone like me who doesn’t care for the heat, though the ease of not having to worry about coats and things nor weather prohibiting travel is always nice. With the end of the season always comes the San Diego Comic Con exclusive to many of our doorsteps. This year it seems that more of these are being delivered as something changed with the availability. As far as my beliefs go, that’s a good thing. Nevertheless, Mattel once again created a SDCC WWE exclusive to thrill not only wrestling fans but also the masses. The name? Muhammad Ali.

Ali had several tie-ins with wrestling over the years. He was said to have been a fan growing up and attributed his “promo style” to Gorgeous George. It was later contested that he was likely confusing the household name of George with who he was really watching – the similarly able-mouthed Fred Blassie. He would end up working with Blassie in his first foray into wrestling in 1976 when he fought Antonio Inoki in a “Boxer vs Wrestler” match. While the match was considered less than spectacular both in athletics and money-drawing power, it is well-remembered. In the ‘80s Ali was a special enforcer during the main event of the first WrestleMania and became involved in a Mid-South Wrestling match featuring Jake Roberts. Later, Ali would make a brief appearance or two with WCW.

For their SDCC exclusive Mattel has brought us a two-pack representing Ali’s first two ventures into wrestling. His iconic boxing look, patterned after the Inoki match, is one while the other is in is referee gear from WrestleMania. The figures are “Ultimate Editions” and come in the same type of elaborate packaging that Mattel has brought us with The Coliseum Collection and other exclusives. An outer box houses a very striking inner “hinged” box featuring a mock WWF Magazine cover on one side (The Referee) and a mock boxing publication (The Boxer) on the other. When opened (held closed by a magnet) you see both figures displayed behind plastic adorned with Inoki (unnamed) and Hulk Hogan, respectively. It’s a stunning display though a bit much for openers.

Packaged below “The Boxer” is a box full of accessories. You get a plethora of additional hands, two extra heads and Ali’s terry cloth robe. While the variety of hands is great, it’s curious that the set of “gripping” hands is repeated. Would you really want to display those on both figures at the same time? The larger grip hands, included with many figures over the years, should have been included for completely accurate “raising the victor’s arm” poses. Yeah, you can do it with the completely open hand, but it isn’t quite the same. Also one of the heads is completely repeated. I can understand that a bit more if you want a neutral facial expression on both figures at the same time. The “two-count” hand is the most pivotal piece here for me as it seems like Ali was flashing the peace sign a lot in his day.

The figures themselves are great. You won’t be sorry if you add them to your collection. I don’t know that we needed a referee in the “Ultimate” style, but it does help to resemble Ali’s body shape. They got “The Boxer” version down pat, too. You not only have three other “boxing” figures for him to tangle with (Rowdy Roddy Piper, Cowboy Bob Orton and Mr. T) but you can slide the boxing gloves onto many of the other figures that now have removable hands. I already have an idea for some figure photography there. Also in that realm I can see “The Referee” figure making it into shots as a generic classic ref. It’s all about smoke and mirrors.

As mentioned above, this one was not hard to get. In fact it’s still available as of press time. Why is that? It can only be that Mattel realized that making enough for collectors to buy directly from THEM is the way to do it and not to let secondary market scalpers get all the money. It will sell out eventually and will rise in price a bit, I’m sure. There will always be a market for Ali from all angles. I’d say that these two will also be the “definitive” Ali releases. Just like when Mattel grabbed the license for Mr. T, there’s already another Ali on the way in the form of a Retro figure. While I feel it’s unnecessary, I’m sure that I’ll enjoy it in-hand. Anyone can also see them milking the license as much as they can. Suited Ali? Could happen. How about his look when he jumped into the ring to confront Gorilla Monsoon? I’m sure the company has it all thought out. Again, I can’t see us getting standard sized boxing and referee versions outside of this set. 

Another cross-genre SDCC release from Mattel and WWE. I could definitely see Mike Tyson fitting that mold. And boy could they get their money’s worth out of that one. Boxer. Referee. Degenerate? But that’s not who I want. I want Mona Flambé. I just wanna have fun…

There's A New Enforcer In Town

There are some figures that Mattel just won’t give us. Some for ridiculous political reasons, others because WWE holds a grudge. One of them doesn’t even have to have a given name. He could simply be “WWE Referee.” Yes, Mattel has brought us a few “guest referees” and Danny Davis, but after over a decade kids (and adults alike) still don’t have a proper modern WWE referee figure. The Mattel spokespeople who parrot the company lines say that it’s a WWE decision. It probably is, but it still makes zero sense. Could Figures Toy Company have provided the answer?

Just a few weeks ago FTC quietly unveiled not only a new figure but one in an entirely new style to emanate from them. Their “Ultimate Referee” is in a style very similar to the Mattel WWE Elite figures with multiple points of articulation. This is certainly a departure from the “Jakks Ruthless Aggression” style bodies used for the other FTC wrestling lines such as Legends of Professional Wrestling and Rising Stars of Wrestling. There’s no word yet on if this new style will find its way into any of the FTC lines with licensed names. One does tend to think that doing a referee in the style initially is a marketing test of sorts. Nominally priced, it was well worth the dive to see just how the new ref in town measures up and if he finally quenches the thirst for such a figure.

Packaged in a sturdy, fully illustrated cardboard box, you have no doubt who’s inside before you even open it up. Remove the bubble wrap and there you have The Ultimate Referee. He does indeed have articulation similar to “the leading brands” and the plastic feels like it isn’t far off from the type used by the “big guys.” His face is generic, as it should be. The referee should always blend in and we’ll expand upon that shortly. His left hand is open and can clutch the ring ropes or even a small accessory. The right hand is giving the “two” sign, which, aside from a pointing finger, is exactly what you want on a referee. There's been a lot of fuss lately over "pinless" figures. For those of you who enjoy that, this guy is indeed pinless. There isn’t much paint here since it’s a referee, but what is there is all good. You could easily apply a sticker or two if you want to give your referee some affiliation. If you’ve got a steady hand you could even grab multiples and paint a ref for each promotion. You could do WWE, AEW, NWA…

Early concerns, as with most wrestling figures, are with height. Our ref here is on the shorter side but by no means does this disqualify him. He’s taller than Mattel Rey Mysterio and that’s all you need. He does his job and does it well. As stated above, the best referees shouldn’t be noticed much. He’s there to count, argue with a heel or a manager and maybe even get intimidated or roughed up a bit. This is exactly who you need to do all that. Some have mentioned alternate hands or even heads, but for this price point you just can’t beat what you get. Certainly those things could come along with a future release. Perhaps even retro styled refs? Sure ‘80s bow tied refs would be great, but how about the less uniformly-attired officials of the ‘60s and ‘70s? An aging guy with a gut and a sour expression to match? I’d be all for it!

You need a ref and you can’t go wrong with “The Ultimate Referee.” He’s available at Figures Toy Company right now. Don’t forget that when you follow the link just provided you can use code JWS_WRESTLING_MEMORABILIA for 10% off of your order of $20 or more! Need a new ring? Steel cage? Chairs? Tables? Singapore canes? It’s all there to fully equip your arena. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, wrestling figure photography is hot. It’s the adult way to play with your toys. If you’re going to do it right, get all of the essentials. And if you don’t have a referee you have absolutely no excuse now thanks to FTC!

Move Over Dick, Earl & Danny...Aubrey's Entering The Ring

Let me start off by making a statement upfront: I hate "real scale" rings. I don't care what anyone says, they're all too big. They're cumbersome, hard to build and who has room to display them? None of them really seem durable to last long in a kid's hands, either. Sure, I would've taken care of mine, but remember those kids who would come over and slam the figures together as if that was how to properly wrestle? Yeah, these rings wouldn't last long with those brutes. Nevertheless I now own four. I've had various reasons to purchase them over the years and now in 2021 I've been given yet another reason: the first female wrestling referee figure.

A Ringside Collectibles Exclusive (it's printed right on the box so I don't see Amazon getting this thing), the ring is said to be the only way that we'll get a figure of AEW's Aubrey Edwards. For someone like me who just doesn't care for real scale rings it's quite an investment for one figure, but it isn't like I'm throwing the ring away or anything. I built it. I photographed it. It will likely now be disassembled and shoved in a closet. But what we're really here to highlight is Aubrey herself so let's start out with the positive of this playset.

I had a chance to briefly chat with Aubrey about the figure last month in New Jersey. You could tell that she was thrilled by it and she seems like someone who recognizes what a milestone that it is. The figure is spot on. From the scan to the body type, it even features a tattoo on her arm. Extra hands are included with the best being those counting "one" and "two." Aubrey had told me that it was going to include gloved hands for when blood spills. I would imagine that this was something that Jazwares told her and/or was included on the prototype as it didn't end up happening. It's a shame, but not a deal breaker.

The ring itself is nice looking. I will not dispute that. I'm just not a fan of the size of any scale ring from any company that's been released as of press time. Although it wasn't as frustrating to build as some in the past, it definitely tried my patience. I like the rubber turnbuckles and how they apply just as the real AEW pads do. Tag ropes are always a nice bonus and here they are. The steps are pedestrian but necessary. I've been a fan of the square AEW turnposts since day one and they're well-represented here. A negative is that the ring is themed to the pay-per-view event "Double Or Nothing." The first scale ring put out in the line was the basic AEW ring, but was not worth buying for the figure. It would be nice if Jazwares released a generic AEW ring accessory pack down the line, though I wouldn't bet on it. It serves them better to keep releasing more rings. The mat is fabric and that's yet another scale ring feature that I've never warmed up to.

I found a way to make room in my budget for this thing being a fan of the miniscule amount of referee figures that we've received since the 1980's. At a price point of over $100 it isn't for everyone and, at least at this point in time, not everyone is going to have Aubrey in their collection because of that. I can't imagine that the AEW line will end before she gets another figure but there isn't anything guaranteeing that. I will advise that the best action figure ring that I've encountered in years is the AEW version sold at retail. It's a bit bigger than the basic Mattel WWE rings and isn't quite "scale," but it's certainly a solid and unique looking ring. I've kept the stickers off of mine and in doing so it works with just about any era of wrestling figure.

Congratulations to Aubrey Edwards for breaking ground and in the process becoming a fantastic addition to the AEW figure line! Now, don't count me out...

The Remco AWA Ref Squad

I've always appreciated it when toy makers go that extra mile with their wrestling figure lines. Wrestlers and wrestling rings are great, but it takes more for a kid to put on a whole event. Managers, announcers, and of course, referees. The two big wrestling figure lines of the 1980's each had the latter represented. The WWF Wrestling Superstars line from LJN had a referee figure that was released in both white and blue shirts. The Remco AWA line had a whopping three different referees, including one man who really donned the striped shirt in the ring.

Some kids probably wouldn't care if a referee figure existed or not, but children who truly wanted to immerse themselves in the world of pro wrestling absolutely needed one. Remco came to the rescue by including a referee figure in their All-Star Wrestling Battle Royal playset. The sets included six wrestler figures, a referee, and a ring. There were several variants between the wrestlers included and package art, but today we're focusing on the referee figure.

In the early releases of the set, included were either a referee with a sort of smug expression and brown curly hair or a rather ferocious ref with bushy hair and eyebrows. Somewhere in the past ten to fifteen years, collector-dubbed names of "Curly Brown" and "Nasty Ned" were bestowed upon these figures. These are not Remco-given names, but have certainly caught on over the years. The heads of both figures were actually reused from another Remco action figure line, DC Comics The Lost World of The Warlord. The curly haired ref was from a figure named Machiste while the bushy haired ref was named Mikola (who, in the original figure, reminds me a lot of Memphis wrestling legend Sputnik Monroe).

Later on, the Battle Royal playset was re-released, this time with a figure of real-life referee Dick Woehrle. The facial likeness of Woehrle is incredible and very much brings to life the referee who is probably best remembered for his work in the WWWF.

There are two misconceptions about the Woehrle figure. It is consistently written that the figure itself is very rare. In actuality, the two earlier referee figures are much more difficult to find. This misinformation likely began when an article about Woehrle's career reported that the figure had sold for several hundred dollars. That figure was the later carded release in the final Remco AWA series called "Mat Mania" and was still on the card. That, coupled with loose examples of the figure flying up on auction sites with exorbitant asking prices (which were not received), caused the fables to continue flowing.

The second falsehood regarding the figure is that the Woehrle from the playset is the same as the carded figure. The latter has "All Star Wrestling" molded into the back of his belt, as most of the Mat Mania figures have molded into the back of their tights. There's no doubt in my mind that some of the original figures without that imprint made it onto cards, but a loose example that has the imprint can assuredly be traced back to the carded version.

The Remco AWA line is just simply fun. When getting feedback for the blog, it's one of the topics that most people bring up. The popularity of the figures has never waned and likely never will. With as fragile as some of the figures and accessories have become as time goes on, there will forever be a market of collectors looking to "upgrade." Just don't forget the referee crew nor the fantastic stories behind each one of those men in stripes.