NECA ran their virtual Comic-Con panel this week, revealing a number of new items in their various lines and licenses - replacing the usual booth presentation we'd have seen had SDCC 2021 gone ahead. We break down all the announcements, with screen grabs, in this article. Or you can watch the panel via the NECA YouTube channel.
The panel started with Back to the Future and a first look at the painted Griff Tannen from Back to the Future. He was followed by a new reveal with an unpainted prototype for the Back to the Future Doc Brown.
The next stop was Defenders of the Earth and the confirmation of three new figures of Flash Gordon, Phantom, and Ming - now based on their classic comic book appearances rather than the animated series. Each will feature alternative heads, as well as appropriate accessories.
We can also look forward to two exclusives of Flash Gordon and Ming the Merciless, which pay homage to the Flash Gordon 1982 movie. These were planned for SDCC 2021 and will now be sold as Walmart exclusives. There are also two retro carded figures that take us back to the original figures from 1979-1980 as made by Mattel. These will be Target US exclusives.
The next stop was The Boys, and following on from the Homelander and Starlight figures we got a tease of A-Train and a look at Black Noir.
The panel moved over to Horror next, with a number of new reveals. The first was the arrival of Chucky in the 8-inch Retro Line, with a 2-pack of Chucky and Tiffany from The Bride of Chucky. Chucky will get two head sculpts in the set, as well as a good selection of weapons.
The Halloween line will see the debut of Loomis, who will be packed in a 2-pack with Michael Myers. Michael will feature two head sculpts, while Loomis has swap out arms so he can be displayed with or without his trenchcoat. Dr. Loomis comes with two revolvers, and a hand with his lighter - ready to light up Michael. And that effect can be recreated with the inclusion of a number of snap-on flame effects.
The Creepshow will get an Ultimate action figure of The Creep, celebrating the 40th Anniversary of The Creepshow movie. Only the packaging was shown but they talked about the inclusion of a soft goods wired robe as well as alternative heads and a candle.
As expected, there will be more figures of RJ MacReady from The Thing. The next is the 'Station Survival MacReady' and he will come with the flame thrower and a flame thrower effect piece. Other accessories include dynamite, pick-axe, and a Petrie dish with blood sample which apparently carries the name of the person who was The Thing. NECA have more The Thing products planned for 2022,.
Universal Monsters has The Mummy as the next release, and we got our first look at the figure during the panel.
We then moved swiftly through Aliens, where the news is the re-release of the Alien Xenomorphs from the arcade game, but with deco to now match the movie Xenos. This looks to be a three-figure wave. There was also a quick stop-off with Gremlins where a Demolition 2-pack was shown (lining up with those explosive accessories from a few weeks ago). And a teaser that Brains from Gremlins 2 is in the works.
And this segment then ended with Gargoyles where we saw the packaging for Goliath. We then had a much better look at Demona, who will come with two heads, two laser weapons, and a book. She will feature a wired armature tail as well as articulated wings. The Gargoyle segment ended with a look at an upcoming figure of Thailog. He will have two head sculpts, flare gun and a briefcase full of money.
That first half of the presentation covered a lot, but the entire second half (well 25 mins or so of an hours panel) were dedicated to Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles! That means anyone expecting news for Jaws, or perhaps Predator were potentially disappointed.
The Turtles segmented started with a look at the box for the Lootcrate Danny Pennington. The unmasked Casey Jones (as teased in an image when April was revealed) is confirmed. The figure will be redone as an Ultimate figure again, now with the unmasked head, and will also feature some tweaked articulation.
The panel then moved on with a reveal of a TMNT Secret of the Ooze movie Shredder. He features updated sculpts and decor, a new cape, and comes with various weapons, an ooze canister, and a mutated dandelion accessory. There is also another Super Shredder incoming, retooled, and repainted to pay homage to the original figure and the actor who portrayed him, wrestler Kevin Nash. His cape is 'mutated' with iridescent colouring. He would have been an SDCC 2021 exclusive, and will now be sold via Walmart.
NECA will also be returning to the Mirage Comic Book series in a big way with a new line of figures. They cant reveal anything fully yet but showed one teaser image that looked to be Fugitoid.
The animated series will continue to march forward. We saw 2-packs of Antrax & Scumbug, Dirtbag and Groundchck, and Wingnut and Screwloose. Each two-pack comes loaded with accessories as usual - with Dirtbag coming with a mound of earth and the ability to remove his legs to display him as though emerging from the hole. There was a final silhouetted tease for a future 2-pack as well which looks a lot like animated cartoon versions of Tokka and Rahzar.
The big exclusive set, originally planned for SDCC 2021, is a Channel 6 News studio set featuring April O'Neill, Vernon Fenwick, Burne Thompson, and Irma. It is themed around the episode 'The Catwoman of Channel 6'
Vernon features a new head sculpt, while April is presented as the Catwoman of Channel 6 rather than her standard look. Irma features too different looks, with the second allowing the figure to be transformed to a Were-Rat.
The packaging folds out to a TV studio backdrop, and the set features pieces such as Channel 6 cameras, studio lights, and microphones. This set will now go to Target as a US exclusive, but there will be an online option via the NECA store as a bundle with a T-Shirt, Press Badge, Iron-On Channel 6 patch, poster, and an enamel pin.
And then it was all over, although the team did confirm more reveals later this week as SDCC 2021 comic-con (at home) week continues.
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About Me : As a child of the 70's and 80's I grew up in a golden age for action figures and in my youth bought and sold myself through collections of Star Wars, G.I. Joe (Action Force) and M.A.S.K. while also dabbling in He-Man, Transformers and Ghostbusters. Roll forward and I am now reliving that Youth with the action figures of today and am a collector and fan of the larger 6-8 inch figures from my favourite movie and TV licences - including the ones mentioned above, but also the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Doctor Who and the Aliens. I launched The Mephitsu Archives in 2015 with a view of creating a UK focused site or these figures where fans can pick up the latest action figure news, read reviews and get information on where to buy their figures and what is currently on store shelves. I hope I am delivering that to you guys...
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