Xodiac

Of all the figures so far, it took me the longest to warm up to Xodiac. He has the least unique pieces (he shares everything but his head & torso). His first two monochromatic releases didn’t really show off the sculpt and his one-piece torso wasn’t as nice as the two-piece versions on the other OSM. The details in the sculpt are much better on the full-color Infinity Edition and the metallic blue really makes the figure pop. He’s gone from being a zero in my eyes to rounding out the set and making sure all four figures ended up looking sharp.

I do wish his head could turn, but his design would have to have been significantly altered to allow that, so I understand. One thing I’m not sure on is why the 4H opted to not make his chest emblem a separate piece like some of the other figures. It would’ve been awesome to have swappable logos. Xodiac included his removable helmet, staff, gun (with a Glyos plug!), and two extra bent arms.

For my Xodiac, the pink accessories and translucent helmet stayed in the package. The colors are based on the original, but my Xodiac is on display with the gold vac metal helmet and ray gun from the Galactic Holiday release. That vac metal helmet screams “outer space” to me.

Astro-Nautilus

Astro-Nautilus is as easy figure to like. His design is so different from the other OSM that he stood out even in the translucent colors he was offered in last year, but again, it’s his full-color Infinity Edition that really impresses – the tentacles, the copper uniform, and that big ol’ noggin’.

His four tentacle arms are probably the most fun part of the line so far. Each arm is two pieces and they have some great range when they’re in the “factory” order, but swapping around the tentacles will increase that range further. Nautilus is one of the ones where I really wish I had more figures just so I could make some more elaborate arms. Again, I wish that his chest emblem had been a separate piece and that he’d had another joint in his “nose”. It would really open up the figure.

Like Xodiac, I’ve swapped out his clear trident for the silver vac metal trident from the Galactic Holiday release. I like to think of his clear blue trident as a hard water construct, but the vac metal one is just too cool not to use.

Metamorpho

When I first looked at the original 60s OSM, Metamorpho was the one that really jumped out at me. I loved the design and color scheme and I was impressed by the three-face action feature and the 4H sculpt replicated the original faithfully – all three of the faces look great and Metamorpho looks slick in his “basic” space suit.

I guess I should point out that the paint work is great on all the figures I received. I had one small scratch on Xodiac’s leg, but that’s no biggie. Metamorpho really exemplifies the paint work. The black/white contrast lines are fantastic and the three faces are all spot-on. I do wonder about his color a bit though – the two accessories are bright white which leaves MM looking a little dingy. He’s look great, and this could simply be how the original MM was painted, but the colors are a bit odd.

In addition to his two accessories, Metamorpho also included two bent arms. For my display, I’ve kept the Infinity Edition mostly intact using a bent right arm and his more pistol-like accessory, but I did swap out the knob for his action feature and his emblem piece for the vac metal pieces (am I starting to sound like a broken record?).

Inferno

Inferno is my favorite of the figures. He shares a lot of parts with Metamorpho, but he does feature unique gloves and boots with gold flame accents, helmet, head, “backpack” flames, and I love the lightning bolt coming down through the chest emblem.

Inferno’s silver suit is also a nice standout on the shelf. Again, the high contrast on the paint has been well handled and the figure has a great “metal” look. The translucence on the head is a little lost by the design (the original line has a light-up feature), but creator Mel Birnkrant posted a short tutorial on how to fix it. If you’re brave enough to cut a hole in the back of the helmet, more power to you. I don’t think I could unless I had a spare.

Inferno is also one of the neater figures to play with because he looks great with any of his previous heads/flames from the other releases. I would still like to see a clearer red or orange for these two pieces, but the colors available – red, yellow, & blue – all look great on Inferno. I’ve been using the blue for my basic one.

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The Infinity Edition Outer Space Men are actually the 13th-16th releases in the new OSM line. I’ve enjoyed the Alpha, Beta, & Holiday releases, but they just didn’t compare to finally getting in the fully painted Infinity figures.

The Outer Space Men exist in this new space between traditional action figures and the future represented by the “Glyos System”. The main appeal of the Outer Space Men for me so far has been their history, their design, and the sculptwork of the Four Horsemen to bring those designs into the 21st century. It’s definitely going to be a fun line to collect over the next few years, but I find myself hoping that future figures will take better advantage of their Glyos nature (as the 4H budget will allow).

I hope to see more opportunity for customization – more opportunites for separate pieces, weapons that are more compatible with Glyos plugs, etc. I love the bent arms, but I wish I could get a little more range out of the legs too. In any case, the line has been fun to collect so far and I think it’s going to get better and better as we round out the original thirteen OSM (and hopefully some new ideas/characters await us after that).