Power Rangers in Space - YELLOW RANGER!

Power Rangers Lightning Collection - In Space Yellow Ranger - Hasbro 2020

The Power Rangers Lightning Collection from Hasbro just keeps getting better and better. When I bought the first female in the line. The MMPR Pink Ranger this time last year, I has a lot of trepidation about the quality of these figures. Beyond scrawny limbs and mismatched pink plastic, the unmasked Kimberly head looked pretty frightful. But a mere year later I have this Power Rangers In Space Yellow Ranger which has probably the nicest unmasked headsculpt of the entire line. I'm honestly not even too familiar with the In Space iteration of the franchise, but a quick Google search proves it is a great likeness to actress Tracy Lynn Cruz. Plus the legs are well-structured and not weak and warped like earlier figures. It all combines to give me a renewed sense of confidence in the line. I can admit that I considered dropping Power Rangers all together when the Bandai's Legacy Collection ended last year. But now I'm officially on board for whatever this line produces. Let's check out Yellow Ranger below!

POP Funko - LADY SYMBIOTES!

Marvel POP Heroes: Scream, Carla Unger, and Mayhem - Funko 2020

Who would have ever thought that Funko would be leading the race for the most female symbiote toys? In the past year, they've surpassed Toy Biz (who had an early lead with their 90's Scream, Bride of Venom, and Earth X Venom).  And surprisingly DST Mini-mates and Marvel Legends haven't been tough competitors at all (and they usually cream the competition!)  These three ladies: Scream, Mayhem, and Carnage (Carla Unger) are original symbiotes, but Funko has also released venomized versions of Spider-Gwen, X-23, Storm, and Captain Marvel. It's a pretty impressive collection. But my wishlist is nowhere near complete. Agony, Ann Weyling Venom, and Mania would be a great start. I find it interesting that these three ladies were all exclusives, too; one for Walgreens, and two for Pop-In-A-Box. I think this is likely the new normal for the more obscure female characters, but I don't mind as long as they aren't too difficult to procure. Let's check out these three wicked Spider-ladies below!

MOTU Origins - EVIL-LYN!

Masters of the Universe Origins - Evil-Lyn (Evil Warrior Goddess) - Mattel 2020

All throughout my childhood I would see the classic Evil-Lyn tossed by the wayside in my friend's toy bins. I was so jealous and covetous of this weird yellow-skinned villainess. It wasn't until the mid-2000s when I finally bought her for myself. And then I made the embarrassingly late realization that her toy design was so different from her Filmation look, and also that she shared Teela's body. Captain obvious here. But in my defense, the DVDs hadn't even been released at that point so I was going on 20-year-old memories. Even since then, though, I've been obsessed with the duality between the vintage toy look and Filmation look. I can never decide which I like better, but I usually steer toward the yellow just because I'm fond of bold colors. This Masters of the Universe Origins Evil-Lyn is the figure I didn't know I needed. She is colorful, fun, very poseable and owning her is like mainlining nostalgia. Now I'm just super excited for more of these Origins figures. Let's check her out below!

Five Nights at Freddy's - VANNY!

Five Nights at Freddy's: Security Breach - Wave 01 - Vanny - Funko 2020

I've always been intrigued by the Funko Five Nights at Freddy's action figures. They're always bright, colorful, quirky, and creepy. It's a really intriguing mix of design traits that always catch my eye, but overall the boxy-jaw and buggy eyes aesthetic always kept me from ever making a purchase. But then I saw this Vanny figure for the upcoming "Security Breach" (I put in in quotes because apparently the game is actually going to be called PizzaPlex) game and I knew she would be my first purchase. Not only does she have a unique design to her head (with no boxy jaw, chiclet teeth, or buggy eyes), but she's a rabbit. Lately I've had a thing for anthropomorphic rabbits and foxes and I'm always excited to add a new one to my collection. She also has a distinctly feminine looking body unlike earlier androgynous characters (like Chica). This whole wave actually looks really cool, Glamrock Chica and Roxanne Wolf will very likely be my next two purchases. Let's check out Vanny below!

G.I.Joe Classified - BARONESS!

G.I.Joe Classified (Cobra Island) - Baroness with Cobra C.O.I.L. - Hasbro 2020

When I try to rank all the amazing animated ladies from my childhood, the Baroness from G.I.Joe is always very high on the list. I would run home from school each day and eagerly wait to see what wickedness she was up to in every episode. Her accent was intriguing, her scheming was devious, her glasses were unique (was there even another glasses-wearing female in 80s cartoons?), and her flirtatious interactions with all the other characters made her a back-stabbing wildcard. I was obsessed with seeing how she would fit into each plot (I was especially thrilled when she would be in disguise.. a super common trope for Cobra ladies). Plus her 1984 toy was the second female action figure I ever owned (after Voltron's Haggar). I still get overwhelmed with nostalgia when I hold her. So I was super excited that she was included so early on in the G.I.Joe Classified line, even though she was a highly sought-after Target exclusive and packed with an unnecessary vehicle. Let's check out Baroness below!

Real Life Action figures - RBG!

Real Life Action Figures - Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg - FCTRY 2018

It's very difficult keeping this blog apolitical considering that women in a male-dominated arena is a strong political message in itself. Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg was a prime real-world example of just that. As the second female US Supreme Court Justice ever (after Sandra Day O'Connor), she spearheaded many advancements against gender discrimination and toward gender equality (among many other notable achievements). I found this action figure a few months ago while on vacation. It was in a beachside candy shop among a slew of other "novelty" toys. I thought for a second it was going to have a cheap "boxing nun" gimmick or something, but no, it's actually quite well produced and clearly done with respect and love. The articulated elbows and great face sculpt sold me and I was excited to bring her home. I was at the gym yesterday when the news of her passing hit. I saw her picture popping up on all the TVs one-by-one and knew immediately what had happened. What a sad day.

Power Rangers - RITA REPULSA!

Power Ranger Lightning Collection - Lord Zedd & Rita Repulsa - Hasbro 2020

I always love a ridiculous over-the-top villain. I love crazy schemes, maniacal laughter, and a healthy dose of buffoonery. Rita Repulsa is a quintessential example of this type of character. I only peripherally watched Mighty Morphin Power Rangers when it originally aired, but her image still made a major impression on me. As an adult collector who decided to re-visit the Power Rangers franchise 10 or 15 years ago, I was truly surprised that she had never been merchandised. But with a few years Bandai gave us a 4" figure that would tide me over until now. This Lightning Collection wedding 2-pack is a GameStop exclusive and finally gives us the Rita we've always wanted. Of course, my personal preference would be to replace the bulky shapeless soft-goods gown with a sculpted rubber number, but beggars can't be choosers. The headsculpt, shoulderpiece, and hands are sculpted with fantastic detail. It makes me very excited for a potential Scorpina down the line! Let's check out Rita Repulsa below!

Tron 2.0 - MERCURY!

Reel Toys: Tron 2.0  Action Figures Series 01 - Mercury - NECA 2003

Tron 2.0 is a first-person shooter game from 2003 originally released for Mac/PC. It is not official Canon to the Tron film franchise and features new characters and unique designs. As a video game rube, I had never heard about Tron 2.0 until I game across these action figures clearanced at FiveBelow a decade ago. I was immediately drawn in by the Mercury character and her sculpt which I could tell right away was by Sam Greenwell. He was my favorite DC Direct sculptor at the time so this discovery was exciting. In reading about the game, it's my understanding that Mercury is a non-playable character (voiced by Rebecca Romijn) who is the primary source of game objectives and information but who ultimately gets fridged. Still, it's great to have another female in the Tron franchise. They are pretty scarce indeed and this is by far the best action figure representation so far. One of my biggest wishes right now is for a Diamond Select Yori. Fingers crossed! Let's check out Tron 2.0 Mercury below!

TMNT Cartoon - APRIL O'NEIL!

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles - April O'neil & Foot Soldier (Bashed) - NECA 2020

Unpopular opinion: I'm not the biggest fan of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. I was just never into characters that were supposed to be "cool" - the more hip slangy language a character used, the more bored I got. There were a handful of annoying G.I.Joes (hence my preference for Cobra), Bart Simpson was intolerable (but I grew into him eventually), and of course the Turtles. I'm that one odd kid who wished they were more melodramatic and reminiscent of their artist namesakes. But no, it was all surfer/mallrat lingo and pizza and I wasn't having any of it. But visually I was intrigued and I appreciate their place in pop culture. April O'Neil, as the token female of the show, never really intrigued me because (despite her yellow jumpsuit) I still considered her a boring plainclothes character. However, I recently had a big change of heart and I suddenly own a handful of Aprils. This NECA Animated figure was a actually the big incentive for me to finally start my collection too. Let's check out April below!

War for Cybertron - NIGHTBIRD!

Transformers Generations: War For Cybertron - Nightbird - TakaraTomy 2019

My excitement over the upcoming Earthrise Arcee, War For Cybertron Elita-1, and Kingdom Blackarachnia made me almost forget this Nightbird figure that came out last Fall. Surprisingly this has been the only reuse of the Siege Chromia mold. Considering the Moonracer mold gave us four unique characters, I really thought they'd stretch this one out a little more. But when I see how good the Arcee mold and Elita redeco seem to be, I think this one is likely retired. Nightbird is a very nostalgic for me. In the original G1 show, she was a military robot stolen by the Decepticons and brainwashed/reprogrammed to be evil. I was obsessed with her episode, Enter the Nightbird, and would eagerly watch the repeating shows on syndication hoping to see it again. Something about her just struck a chord with me. She was cool, powerful, and mysterious. (And I used to fill notebooks with my drawings of her). So needles to say I get really excited whenever she gets merchandised. Let's check out Nightbird below!

MOTU Origins - TEELA!

Masters of the Universe Origins - Teela (Heroic Warrior Goddess) - Mattel 2020

It's pretty bizarre how blatantly cyclical the action figure market is. It seems like we are getting rehashed versions of all our childhood favorites every time we turn around. Of course, it's also just as likely that the companies simply know most of the action figure collecting demographic is in prime earning years, raising kids, and addicted to nostalgia. We basically are a huge cash cow. So as predicable as the new Masters of the Universe Origins line is, it's still a shocking sight to see them hanging on the pegs in the stores aisles. At first glance, these look almost identical to the original 1982 products. But the sculpts and articulation are greatly improved, with slight tweaks toward an animated look. When these were first announced, I was admittedly on the fence, but now that they are hitting the stores I am full-on obsessed. I really hope we see a variety of additional characters, including some new characters never in the vintage line like Queen Marlena. I will be buying them all. Let's check out Teela below!

Power Rangers - PSYCHO RANGERS!

Power Rangers Lightning Collection - Psycho Rangers 5-Pack - Hasbro 2020

I first discovered the Psycho Rangers many years ago when researching Super Sentai characters. I got obsessive in my collecting of Japanese vinyl figures and literally went through the cast of every Super Sentai, Kamen Rider, Ultraman, and Metal Heroes series and took note of all the female characters. A large portion of these characters were very forgettable, but I remember absolutely flipping out over these evil Nezirangers from 1997's Denji Sentai Megaranger. I thought their design looked amazing and I was very upset they had never been merchandised. I had never seen Power Rangers in Space so I didn't realize their English name was the Psycho Rangers until Bandai started to include them in the Legacy Collection a few years ago. Of course it took several more years and a company change to finally get Psycho Pink and Psycho Yellow in this Amazon-exclusive set. I was afraid they would have male bucks, but thankfully they are subtly feminized. Let's check them out below!

Even More Ladies of FORTNITE!

Fortnite - A Collection of 5 Recent 4" Female Figures - Jazwares 2019-20

A few years ago I was pretty uncertain about the future momentum of Fortnite toys. As someone who doesn't play video games, I don't have much insight into popularity or longevity of certain games. I just see toys I like and get excited. But all too often these lines get canceled after one promising wave. This has happened so many times in recent years: Overwatch, Evolve, Assassin's Creed (Jazwares), League of Legends, etc. So when Fortnite product launched back in 2018, I had the same trepidation, but the presence in the toy aisles has been consistent and impressive, and constantly improving. Especially in this 4" scale. The eye paint alone is leaps and bounds above their first wave. And the character selection seems to be getting more playful as well. My favorite thing about Fortnite is the innate silliness of the property, like a big morbid pajama party, and some of the recent additions certainly fit the bill. Let's check out Spooky Team Leader, Prickly Patroller, Ravage, Elite Agent, and Fable!

Super7 ReAction - CHEETARA!

ReAction Action Figures - ThunderCats Wave 01 - Cheetara - Super7 2020

Arcee from the Transformers franchise seems to be getting a lot of attention in 2020 for getting an unprecedented wave of action figures. But a surprise runner-up is Cheetara. First she got a Savage World figure from Funko, then this Super7 ReAction figure, and soon we will see her ThunderCats Ultimates figure from Super7 as well. Granted, the Savage World figure came out in late 2019, and the Ultimates likely won't arrive until 2021, it's still three great Cheetara figures in a relatively short amount of time. What excites me most about the ReAction line lately is the teased Jem figures shown at Toy Fair. I always wanted a great "Ladies of the 80s" lineup, but Jem always seems to be the odd girl out. So far we have the MOTU and POP figures, April from TMNT, Cheetara, and now Jem. This could be the line that finally gives me my all-star lineup. My only problem is that the figures keep improving, so by the time we get them all the early releases like She-Ra pale in comparison. Let's check out Cheetara below!

Justice League Animated WONDER WOMAN!

Justice League Animated Series #4 - Wonder Woman - DC Collectibles 2020

Bruce Timm's Wonder Woman design from the DC Animated Universe has become one of her most iconic looks. When the first episode of Justice League premiered in 2001, she hadn't made an appearance in television or film in over 15 years (except for a guest appearance in a single episode of the animated Superman series from 1988). Apparently her rights had been tied up in multiple (unproduced) development projects for all those years. But ever since her re-introduction in the Justice League cartoon, she has been a constant presence in television and film with no gaps lasting longer than 24 months. And a lot of those animated representations seem heavily (if not directly) inspired by this Bruce Timm design. It truly is classic and iconic. So getting a highly-articulated action figure of her as one of the final releases of DC Collectibles is really a great way to go out with a bang. She is practically perfect. And I only say "practically" because she inexplicably has no lasso. Let's check out Wonder Woman below!