While the paint work was mostly used to help differentiate between the releases, Mattel used the accessories to add some incentive for collectors to buy this version of Grayskull. He includes the standard He-Man shield from the first release, but the other accessories are all new or in different decos.
I’m going to get the one negative in the accessory section out of the way first. When Mattel announced that KG was being reissued, TG had this to say about it:
We did plus him up with an improved deco, some extra little surprises, and slightly different accessories including one all new accessory that is way cool.
Now, if Toy Guru thinks that a plastic blue marble is ‘way cool’, that’s fine. It’s not, but that’s fine. Way cool for me would have been the case for the Power Sword that was featured in his episode.
That’s not to say that the marble is without merit. I like the idea of it – I love prop accessories and this could’ve been a great one, but it did need a stand. In the pic above, I’m using a “Vanishing Ball” Magic Trick stand. It’s a cheap stand that you can probably find in a variety of places, but this particular one came from Target in a boxed set of tricks for $2.50.
King Grayskull also came packaged with two swords. The Power Sword has been done in a new deco, with the classic metal deco transitioning into He-Ro’s energy sword deco (and matching the Orb). This is the best of the new accessories even though it’s the same sword we’ve already gotten a few times over.
The other sword is compromised of the two half swords, this time both in grey. Well, that’s a bit of a misnomer since these two halves have a redesigned internal structure. When it’s not mangled by KG’s “dynamic” packaging, this new design works better at keeping the halves connected. The only downside is that it’s not compatible with the previous half swords.
Overall, I can’t state how happy I am to finally have King Grayskull in my collection. It’s been bugging me ever since I picked up the first three figures in January 2009. This figure seems to be an overall improvement over the original with the lessons Mattel has learned over the last two years being applied to this figure. The new cape deco is just okay and I can see why some collectors aren’t as pleased with it as the original. But the rest of the figure is great. I love the paint work on the head and the metallic paint on the belt and wristbands. The accessories are decent additions – the improved half swords are welcome, the transitioning Power Sword is novel, and I’ll even go so far as to give Mattel a “nice try” on the marble.
No matter the differences between this and the original, though, a hole in my collection is filled and I’m glad Mattel reissued him for those of us were a little late to get on the bandwagon.
The last pic is hilarious!
My King Greyskull was great except for his half swords. They had white stretch marks from being inserted itno the package and I didn’t help anyhting when I was getting them out. What really pissed me off about that was the it says IN THE MATTEL BIO that the swords were split after he died. So whyTF did they pose him that way?
I already had a bit of contempt for the posed-sword-in-package situation, but this raises it to a whole new level of bile. Only more frustrating is Mattel’s continually pre-posing figures meant for “collectors” even though the “collectors” themselves have persistently told them that they hate it.
I think I’ve heard Mattel claim that it benefits the MOC crowd, but I’ve yet to see MOC’ers praising it.
I always wonder how many MOCers there are. I feel like everything gets opened eventually…
R, you raise a great point – he’s pulling the swords apart in the package despite the bio. That’s weird.
And whyTF is hilarious!
I got King Grayskull in just before the weekend. I thought I’d hate the red cape, but it’s not so bad in person. And the new halfswords are great!
Agreed on the Orb though. Lame and nowhere to go.
I don’t mind the red at all, I do wonder what this one would like if we had a brown cape though.
I got a new stand for the orb. I need to grab a pic of it.
That last pic is just cold. Hilarious, but cold.
I agree that this new Grayskull is a GREAT alternative to the SDCC version. I don’t regret having him, but even things like the new eyes make a ton of difference. The only thing you miss is the awesome packaging. I want to place the semi-translucent Power Sword in the old Grayskull’s hand in the packaging to see if it looks cool in the automated light. Damn that thing is loud…
😀 I thought the last pic was funny, poking at the Mattel canon. The morbidity of it didn’t really occur to me until later…
I bet that sword would look cool under lights. I’m working on a new base for the orb and hopefully it will light up when it’s done.
Another funny review. I got all 3 of mine last Monday & can’t put him down.
Thanks! All 3? Wow! I do have 2 myself, but the other is undergoing some renovations.
@noisydvl5 : awesome review!
long time reader first time poster here..
now that the KG review is in..how about posting a review of the classics He-Man action figure?
I am guessing you musta’ve bought one at today’s sale..
Thanks for posting!
I promise I will get to He-Man. I actually have an original and the first reissue, it’s just a long story that sort of turned into a running gag, but we do need to get him catalogued.
that last pic is just low…
Aww… but it’s what happened!
The last pic is mean, but it’s hilarious! That is pretty much exactly the story in Mattel’s crappy bios.
I messed up and had the sword split right then when it happened after, but yeah.
There’s also that little matter of his not having kids yet.
Awesome figure, but mine has loose ankles. I used a small clear rubberband to “tighten” it a bit, but the weight of the cape doesn’t help.
Also, HM’s head looks great on KG’s body!
I was worried about the ankles, but mine came out okay.
I’m working on the He-Man thing… should be up soon.
My King Grayskull had two loose right ankles. Yes, two loose right ankles. Because he came with two right legs. I just got shipping confirmation that my replacement is on the way, but, come on, that’s just amateur quality control there.
My original He-Man has two of the same leg, it’s annoying! I’m glad they were able to hook you up with a replacement, but it bothers me that they even ship obvious errors. I don’t begrudge a guy looking at thousands of figures but maybe a quick onceover before you put it in the box?
I like the magic trick stand you’re using, although I wish it came in a different color.
I’m actually using the blockish part from the GI Joe Weather Dominator for mine.
http://www.yojoe.com/vehicles/08/weatherdominator/weatherdominator_parts.shtml
The larger part is the base, and the orb sits pretty nicely on top. I think it looks kind of royal and the plastic swirls match the vibe of the orb. Also, the dark gray is nice and neutral, so it doesn’t detract from the orb. The only unfortunate thing is that it, just like the magic trick stand, is too low to the ground compared to these figures.
Target has it in blue, but it’s also in red and black on Amazon. The Weather Dominator stand is a good idea!
The height is an issue for me on the stand. I’m working on a new one now, I’ll post it when/if I get it done.
Great review! I love that last picture…
Thanks!
That cape on She-ra, I can’t help but think Tina turner in beyond thunderdome
LOL I was going for that old She-Ra figure with the red cape and the white lace sticking up around the collar.
Poor, dead King Grayskull LOL
Excellent review, as always! “Maybe if you’d done a better job…” HAH! I’m looking forward to my Grayskull arriving, now . . . except I only just got my Roboto a couple of days ago, so I may be in for a wait. Is the fur collar held onto the harness with a sort of tab-lock system? I ask because I’ve been thinking of customising my MOTU Classics with “soft goods” capes for better balance and poseability, and it looks like a tab is just visible on Grayskull’s harness when She-Ra’s trying on his cape.
Great review!! I hope my grayskull arrives soon…