I was about to say this is the last time we’ll see this packaging, but who am I kidding? I’ll be picking up more of these figures in the future. Suffice it to say, the packaging is awesome and brimming with personality. The bubble insert declares Micky as the “Jokester & Hard-Hitting Nunchuck Hero.” Indeed he is. The back of the card has a nice File Card that you can clip out and save with a terribly goofy shot of Mickey as he appears in the new Nick show. Once again, the bottom of the card has pictures of the rest of the figures that are currently available in the line.

The first thing I noticed when getting Micky out of the package is he’s actually notably shorter than the other figure, which just continues the cool trend of Playmates making each figure so unique. The back of his belt has two loops to store his nunchucks, but we’ll get to more on that in a minute. He has the same basic style of arms and legs, complete with the nicely detailed hand and foot wraps and the cool leathery texture to the skin. His shell has some distinctive scrapes and nicks, although he looks to be slightly less battle scarred than some of the others. I like Mikey’s head sculpt a lot. Beyond the fact that Playmates didn’t go all goofy on us like his screen counterpart, he still has a lighthearted, toothy smirk and just looks very much appropriate to the character as I remember him.

As with the other Turtles, Mikey’s coloring comes more from the plastic than paint apps. The paintwork that is here is very good. I’m not a big fan of the coloring Playmates used on his skin. It’s kind of a puke, pea-soup green and it looks slightly jarring when posed with the other turtles.

Mikey comes with his nunchucks, and here’s where my first big complaint about any of these figures comes into play. The chucks are each molded in one piece of plastic, one with them close together and the other with them a little bit apart. If you flex the molded chain on either in the slightest, you get nasty stress marks that look like they’re going to break apart any second. Unfortunately, to store them right, you need to squeeze them together and tuck them into the loops on the belt. The alternative is to just stick one end of each into each loop. It works, but it looks terrible. I wish Playmates had taken a page from Bandai’s book and given us an extra set of closed chucks on the sprue tree. Yes, Mikey comes with a nice assortment of gear in his Ninja Arsenal, just like the other figures.

And that wraps up my look at the Nickelodeon turtles. Hopefully I’ve properly conveyed just how awesome these figures are. In fact, they’re so well done, I think I actually dig them a bit more than the Classics, and that’s saying quite a bit. If nothing else, this line (as well as the Classics figures) proves that even a company with a track record as spotty as Playmates can go above and beyond and it’s particularly gratifying to see them do it with one of their oldest and greatest licenses. While it’s always tricky to compare different figure lines, I think you’d be hard pressed to find a better made set of figures hanging on the pegs at this price point. What’s even cooler is that Playmates is trying to give the whole vehicle and playset thing a go, and I hope it works for them. I’ll definitely be picking up more of these figures, and some of the vehicles. I’m still on the fence over the mammoth sewer playset. I want to support their decision to release it by buying the thing, but I seriously have absolutely nowhere to put something that big, and it doesn’t look like something that would go back into the box all that easily. We’ll see…

I still love the packages here. Once again, a lot of love and forethought went into their design with a little retro styling and some of that new-fangled hip Nickelodeon wackiness. The front bubble features an insert proclaiming Raphael as “Hot-Head and Sharp Sai Expert” and doesn’t that just say it all? The back panel has the usual clip-out File Card. Woof! I still don’t like the portraits of the Turtles’ TV counterparts. You also get a bunch of photos of other figures in this line.

As with Leo and Don, Raph features both unique sculpting and some clever reuse of parts. The legs are more or less the same throughout, while the arms seem to be mixed and matched throughout the set. I’m still digging on all the little details on the limbs, like the crisscross pattern in the hand and foot wraps, and the leathery texture sculpted right into the turtle skin. The torso features an all new array of scrapes and nicks on the shell, including one pretty cool looking chip right out of his breastplate. The belt is new and features two slots in the back to store Raph’s pair of sai. The head sculpt is brimming with awesome. Raph is definitely the most pissed looking of all the Turtles, showing off all his teeth and furling his brow. I’m also particularly fond of the sculpt on his eye mask and the way it’s whipping off to the side. The sculpting on his teeth is also very impressive. It’s downright amazing how much effort Playmates put into sculpting the details on these guys.

The coloring here is just as good as on Leo and Don. Again, most of the coloring is in the plastic, with some secondary paint applied. Raph has the dark brown foot wraps and light cream colored hand wraps. His skin is molded in dark green plastic and the paintwork on his eyes, teeth, and mask are all really well executed.

By now, we know the drill for articulation. The neck and shoulders are ball jointed. The arms have hinges at the elbows and there are swivels at both the elbows and the wrists. For the legs, you get hinges and swivels in the hips and knees.

Raph comes with his pair of trusty sai, which can be stowed in the slots in the back of his belt, and they look really cool when stored on his back. He also has the sprue tree containing the rest of his Ninja Arsenal. All of his weapons are cast in grey.

I think Raph is my favorite so far mainly because of his head sculpt and his deep green skin color. I also really like that chip taken out of his breast plate. It really gives him a lot of character. His weapons are also very cool, fit well in his hands, and look great when stored on his back. So far, there’s really been no downside to any of these figures, but Raph’s personality just shines through exceptionally well. And that leaves us just one more Turtle… tomorrow we’ll take a look at Michelangelo.

The packaging is basically the same, but there’s plenty to distinguish Don’s card from Leo’s. Besides the individualized insert that identifies Don as the “Inventor and Weaponeer” of the turtle team, the back of the card has the File Card that can be clipped out and saved, just like the good old days. God, look at that terrible portrait of Don from the new series. May I take this opportunity to once again state I’m giving this show a pass? It’s amazing how much better the figure looks. Once again, Playmates, you clearly put a lot of love and attention to this packaging and it shows.

At first glance the body may look like a reuse from Leo’s, but the similarities are only in the broad strokes and these are in fact two mostly unique sculpts. Check out the dents, dings, and scrapes on Don’s shell, knee and elbow guards and you’ll see they’re all different. The wrist and foot wraps are the same basic sculpts, but the finger and foot wraps are differently colored. Don’s belt and shoulder strap are also different, plus Don has a little loop in the back of his belt, which can be used to store his bowstaff. You do still get that same great leathery texture to the skin. Naturally, the head is brand new, giving Don a slightly more stoic and less toothy mouth. Once again, the coloring on the figure is excellent, using a lot of colored plastic over paint, and you’ll notice that Don features a different skin color. All in all, he looks great.

Donatello’s accessories include his trademark bowstaff and a sprue tree containing his “Ninja Arsenal” which can be clipped out. The bowstaff and the sprue are all cast in brown plastic, which works just fine for me, because they aren’t in neon orange or purple or other colors Playmates has traditionally and incomprehensibly used for accessories in the past. The bowstaff is simple enough, but still sculpted well and Don can hold it in either or both hands.

About the only thing that is identical between Don and Leo is the articulation. You get a ball joint in the neck, arms that feature ball joints in the shoulders, hinges at the elbows, and swivels in the elbows and wrists. The legs feature hinge and swivel hips and knees. Once again, the articulation is certainly serviceable for a figure of this size and build.

Don turned out every bit as good as Leo. He’s distinctive right down to the tiny little details, and feels just as high quality and lovingly constructed. I’m going to go with liking the Leo figure a bit more, just because I dig Leo’s swords and scabbards more than Don’s simple bowstaff, but there’s no doubt that Playmates is now two for two on this new line of Turtles. Tomorrow we’ll look at Raphael and see if they can go three for three. And here’s a hint… yes, they can!

Leo comes in a standard carded package and I really dig the way it looks. It’s simple enough, but it’s bright and cartoony and it really captures a lot of the spirit of the original TMNT packaging. It’s kind of retro, but without trying too hard. The sizeable bubble shows off the figure and accessories (oh, I’m sorry… “Ninja Arsenal!”) quite well, and there’s a printed insert to customize the packaging and declare Leo as the “Leader & King of the Katana Swords!” But wait… the figure is actually on a unique card as well, because when you turn it over, there’s an actual File Card for Leonardo that you can clip out and save just like the good old days! I actually saved the whole card. The back of the card also shows off other figures available in the line. This packaging may not be collector friendly, but it is really fun and really well designed. Playmates put a lot of love into it, and it certainly makes me excited to buy the figure.
So, the new show features a pretty heavy redesign on the Turtles. Frankly, I think it’s fantastic and the bulk of the fan feedback I’ve seen across the Interwebs tells me I’m not alone. They are a lot more stylized, which is all the rage in animation these days, but the figures actually look tons better than what I’ve seen of their new TV counterparts. Much like with the DC New 52 figures, which I looked at last week, your mileage with these figures will depend on how you take to the new look of the characters.

Once I got Leo out of the package I was immediately impressed by the feel of the plastic and the heft of the figure. Ok, it’s not so much that he’s heavy, but he just feels like such a solid and well-crafted toy. The next thing to impress was the complexity of the sculpting. For a kid’s line, Playmates went nuts with the sculpted detail on this guy. You can see tiny dents and scratches in his shell and his knee and elbow guards, and even all the little hash marks In the wraps around his hands and feet. His skin is even sculpted with a leathery texture. All this little detail makes this guy look more like a small high end collectible than a kid’s action figure. The head sculpt is also excellent, and while he’s showing all his teeth, Leo looks a lot happier than his larger, angrier Classics version. You also get a pair of functional sculpted scabbards on his back. Unlike the Classics Leo, the scabbards are parallel instead of crisscrossed. They’re also removable, as they simply peg into the back of his shell.
The coloring on the figure is just about perfect. Leo relies more on colored plastic than actual paint, and that’s not at all a bad thing. The paint apps that are here are all precise and clean, particularly on the head. I’m also in full support of the choice to go without pupils in the eyes. I just think it looks great.

Leo comes with his trademark pair of katana swords that fit snugly into the double scabbards on his back. His hands are sculpted to hold them perfectly. He also comes with a bevy of other weapons all attached to a sprue tree, similar to the pack-ins that came with the vintage figures. The weapons are all cast in grey plastic, which is cool, because Playmates has a habit of casting accessories in ridiculous neon colors. I haven’t clipped any of my extra weapons out yet, and I may not. Don’t get me wrong, I love the idea of Playmates packing all this extra stuff with the figure, but for display purposes, Leo’s katanas are good enough for me.

While the figure isn’t exactly super articulated, you do get a good range of movement. The head is ball jointed, the arms are ball jointed at the shoulders, hinged at the elbows, and swivel at the elbows and wrists. The legs have hinges and swivels in the thighs and the knees. The lack of ankle articulation is really the only obvious omission, and with the design of the larger feet, it would have been tough and probably unsightly to work that joint into the mix. Indeed, some of the figure’s overall sculpting does inhibit the range of motion in some of these joints, but overall, I think we still get a nice compromise of style and poseability.

In case you haven’t guessed by now, I really adore this figure. With a great sculpt, great quality build, solid articulation, and a heaping helping of accessories, Leo hits all the right points. And at $7.99 at my local Wally World, it’s hard to think of a figure that delivers this much at such a great price. I’ll be looking at the other three Turtles over the next three days. They are all individual sculpts, but now that we’ve got a good idea what to expect, I should be able to be more brief with the rest of our Heroes in a Halfshell.