Tag Archives: dc super powers

Sep 11 2024

DC Super Powers: Green Lanterns and Sinestro by McFarlane

It’s been more than a few months since I checked in on McFarlane’s Super Powers line, but I have still been collecting them! The truth is, I don’t usually review the individual figures unless I have a vehicle to bring along. As much as I love these guys, there’s only so much I can say about and do with 5-POA figures. But, seeing as how McFarlane dropped a bunch of Green Lanterns on us in the last few waves, I thought I’d just check them all out at once. Especially since I’ve been looking for an excuse to sit down and open them all! Not to mention McFarlane’s weird crowdfunding project for some new Super Powers vehicles and figures just ended and thanks to some shenanigans, we’ll actually be getting those!

The packaging for this line is so damn fine it really makes me sad to open them. And believe me it takes every scrap of my admittedly poor willpower to keep from buying doubles of every figure. And yeah, I do have a couple of extras from the first wave that I kept carded just to have an example of the packaging for display. The original Super Powers package design gives me about as much a nostalgic dopamine hit as the vintage packages for Star Wars, G.I. JOE and Transformers, and that’s saying a lot. That blinding blue and yellow deco with the red trim, the logo nestled in an exploding field of stars, it created a hypnotic state of excitement that triggered kids to beg their parents for them. McFarlane has done a beautiful job paying homage to it here without quite doing a straight up copy and the character art on each card looks fabulous. The assortment I’m looking at today includes Guy Gardner, Hal Jordan, Kilowog, and Sinestro. Hal was produced in the original Kenner line, but I don’t believe we ever got Gardner or Sinestro, and the line closed up shop just before Kilowog was introduced in the comics. And yeah, four figures is more than I usually tackle in one review, but I’ll be quick! Let’s start with Hal!

McFarlane’s Hal Jordan is not all that different from the original Kenner figure. It’s the same costume with just a bit of change to the shade of green. It hits all the same classic costume beats with the green top and undies, shoulders and boots. Add to that the black sleeves and leggings, white gloves, and crisp Lantern Corps emblem on his chest and you’ve got a pretty conservative update. I want to say the original had sculpted lines for the shoulders and edges at the top of the leggings, but this one just has paint lines. You do, however get some sculpted lines at the tops of the boots. There are definitely similarities with the head sculpt, but I think this one is much better. You also get a very prominently sculpted ring on his right hand.

As we’ve seen before, this line keeps the articulation of the vintage figures, so you get the classic five-points, plus hinges in the knees. The original figures usually had an action gimmick, but that’s been nixed from this modern line, and I can’t say as I really miss it. Hal comes with a lantern battery, which he can hold in his left hand. This is such a fantastic homage to that original Kenner figure, it’s almost like having a minty fresh original.

Moving on to Guy Gardner, this is a character I would have loved to see in the Kenner line and I think McFarlane did a great job imagining what that figure might have been like. The black, green, and white deco matches Hal’s pretty closely, but you do get a fair bit of new sculpting here, including unique boots, the collar and lapels of his jacket, along with his belt and gauntlets. He even has sculpted detail on his turtleneck.

The head sculpt is a nice balance between retro and modern-retro. The sculpt is better than we would have seen back in the day, even nailing his bowl cut. But, the eye printing really evokes that old vintage Kenner charm. Like Hal, he has a ring sculpted and painted on his right hand, and his left hand is designed to hold an accessory, but no battery for him.

The last of this assortment of Green Lanterns is Kilowog and this may be my favorite of what is a really strong collection of figures. He’s a beautiful slab of retro-styled plastic with chiseled muscles giving him just an all around magnificent shelf presence. You get sculped edges on the boots, gloves, collar, and shoulders, with just paint lines at the tops of his black leggings. The head sculpt is fantastic, and if I were to nitpick anything here it’s that the portrait looks a little too good to be a genuine retro figure. And yeah, that’s more of a compliment than a gripe. The deep set eyes look superb! Kilowog doesn’t come with any accessories, both hands are balled into giant fists, and he does have his ring sculpted and painted on his right hand.

And finally, we get a lovely classic blue-suited Sinestro, and I’ll confess I was surprised to find, when I poked around in the old Kenner catalogs, that he didn’t get a release in the original line. Here we get sculpted boots, belt, bracers, and high collar, while the pattern on his chest is simply painted on. The black and blue looks great together and there’s some white trim along the top and bottom of the belt. His purple skin color is wonderfully vibrant and really makes the figure pop on the shelf.

Once again, the head sculpt here is probably a little too good to really evoke the vintage Kenner line. His pinched face is just perfect, as is his immaculate hair. But we do get the retro-style eyes which helps keep the Kenner spirit alive. His pointed ears look sharp and even the raised eyebrows are sculpted as well as painted. Sinestro dons a sculpted and painted yellow ring on his left hand and his right hand is sculpted to hold his yellow lantern battery.

This is a great assortment of figures and represents why I love this line so much! Add these to the excellent Jon Stewart that we got in the first wave and we’ve certainly had some love for the Green Lantern Corps! And as much as I dig having a minty Super Powers Hal Jordan, it’s the classic characters we haven’t seen before that really get me excited. I’m not sure I can pick a favorite here, but I’m actually leaning a bit toward Sinestro. McFarlane initially released him in his more modern yellow suit, which may have been an exclusive, because I didn’t see it anywhere until the scalpers got him. And all I can say is I’m so very happy that the classic blue suited release wasn’t the more limited release, because this one is perfect.

May 20 2024

DC Super Powers: Brainiac & Skull Ship by McFarlane

To me, McFarlane’s DC Super Powers revival continues to be one of the coolest things in toys introduced last year. I’d go so far as to say this series is near perfect, or would be if it weren’t for the occasional exclusive that seems to be impossible to find anywhere at reasonable prices. Yeah, Black Manta and Reverse Flash are on the top of that list. Because why make them obtainable, right? But, as I get older I’ve learned to let things go and not obsess over a figure missed here and there. Beyond that, I’m loving this line so much and today I’m rolling out another reason why… Brainiac and his High-Tech Space Craft, The Skull Ship!

Here are the figure and vehicle in their packages and the presentation is still as gorgeous as ever! You get the bright blue and yellow deco with red stripes and the Super Powers logo with exploding stars that evokes the Kenner line and milks that nostalgia for all it’s worth. This is retro-style packaging done right! Well, almost… the cards and bubbles used for the figures are not collector friendly, so I’ll have to tear Brainiac out of there. Fortunately, most of the vehicles can be returned to their packaging, and I’ll definitely be keeping all of those boxes. Ironically, if it weren’t for the vehicles, I probably would have been collecting this line mint-on-card, but because we’ve had so many fun vehicles, I’ve gotta open them up and play with them! Let’s start with Brainiac…

Kenner’s Brainiac was all chromed out and undeniably cool, but here we’re getting something more akin to his original appearance in Challenge of the Superfriends before he got the metal makeover. And I’m not complaining, as this is indeed my preferred version of Brainiac. The colors aren’t an exact match, but I really dig what we got here: Green skin, pink shirt with preppie collar, white belt, boots, and arm bracers, and black undies. The sculpt is fairly simple and lets the vibrant colors do the talking, but you do get some nice attention to detail on the belt, the portrait is excellent, and he has his neural network sculpted onto the top of his head. This figure looks great!

Brainiac has the standard articulation for the line, which includes your basic 5-POA plus hinges in the knees. The feet have peg holes and these figures work really well with any Kenner Star Wars compatible stands you may have lying around to help with running or action poses. The Kenner action gimmick where you squeeze the legs or arms to throw punches or kicks has not been brought over to this new line, and that’s fine by me as it probably helps to keep costs down. There are no accessories included, which I think is this line’s only real drawback, but Brainiac has both hands balled up into fists, so he couldn’t hold anything anyway.

The Skull Ship is a thing of ridiculous beauty and really captures the somewhat goofy concepts of the Kenner line’s vehicles. There is a little assembly required here, as each of the tentacles have to be snapped on, and each one is designated for a specific location. This version of the Skull Ship takes the much, MUCH larger and rather iconic design from the cartoon and shrinks it down into a more manageable and toyetic one-man ride. More like a Skull Shuttle, or a Skull Mini-Rig, to keep the Kenner analogy going. The bulk of the toy is cast in some very nice glossy silver plastic representing a giant robot skull octopus, with the cabin cast in a white plastic frame all set on a purple base. The side panels are kitted out with some beautiful light blue translucent plastic with a sculpted hexagonal pattern making it look like some kind of energy forcefield. Under the right light, it actually looks like these are lit up! The black eyes have two horizontal red slits, which I would presume are capable of firing laser blasts. I also really dig the exhaust pipes that flank the mouth grill and also sweep around to the back of the little ship.

While it’s supposed to be a space ship, the toy is designed to roll along the ground, which causes its chubby, segmented tentacles to wiggle back and forth. It’s a simple action gimmick that manages to look both silly and creepy at the same time! The control panel is represented by a colorful and nicely detailed pre-applied sticker.

There is a peg inside the cockpit to secure Brainiac, so this is something that he flies around while standing, despite the art on the side of the box showing a silhouette of a figure sitting inside. He looks really cool manning the controls, although he does need to bend down a bit to reach them, so it’s a good thing he has those knee hinges. And if he gets tired he can rest his butt against the back rim of the vehicle like a seat. I’ll confess, this thing would look pretty silly creeping across the ground, but whooshing it around the room firing pretend lasers at Superman has me feeling like a kid again!

Just seeing this figure and vehicle together puts a huge smile on my face! I seem to recall that a Skull Ship was originally planned to be released in the Kenner Super Powers line, but it never happened, so this is an extra special release for me. And just like nearly all of the vehicles released in this line, I think McFarlane’s version captures every bit of the spirit of that vintage Kenner goodness. It’s much smaller and simpler than Blue Beetle’s Bug Ship, but I like that we’re getting a couple different size classes in this line as well. It looks like the next vehicles will be black repaints of the Whirly-Bat and Bat Wing, but I’m really hoping to see a release of Lex Luthor and the the Lex-Soar 7!

Nov 8 2023

DC Super Powers: Whirlybat by McFarlane

McFarlane has been dishing out some great stuff with their 3 3/4-inch Super Powers line up. The retro-style figures are pretty cool, but I’ll admit it’s the addition of vehicles that really sold me on this line and made me commit. So far, I’ve checked out The Batwing, The Batmobile, and Wonder Woman’s Invisible Jet. Today I’m having a look at the latest addition to the Batcave’s garage… The Whirlybat!

Like the previous vehicles, The Whirlybat comes in a fully enclosed box with that oh-so-beautiful retro-style deco and the Super Powers logo coming at you in a burst of stars. The front of the box shows some simple artwork while the back shows the toy and some features. This one requires a fair bit of assembly as the skids, stabilizer tail, and rotor blades all have to be put together, but I was happy to see that the toy can easily come apart again if you want to store it in the box.

And here it is all assembled and looking pretty damn cool. I’m fairly certain that this is an original design by McFarlane. It’s sort of a What If the old Kenner line had a batcopter, and I think the end result is pretty convincing. It’s a single seater and a serviceable design that manages to be fun, but not as outlandish as some of the old Super Powers vehicles tended to be. Oh, I’ll get to that Supermobile eventually! The deco shares the same beautiful glossy blue plastic McFarlane used for the other Bat vehicles in the line and with the black trim and yellow-tinted windscreen, it looks right at home parked in the batcave between the Batwing and Batmobile. I love this deco so much and I’m glad they have been sticking with it! And while McFarlane showcases the Whirlybat with their 89-style Batman figure released in the most recent wave, I think the deco fits much better with the previous blue and gray style Batman.

The sculpting here is pretty basic, maintaining the simplistic retro feel. You get a little bit of detail in the engine and in the seat cushions. Otherwise, it’s just smooth and pretty plastic. On the other hand, there are some very nicely done stickers for the dashboard controls.

Batman fits in the pilot seat with or without his cape, but I prefer to take it off, because having a flapping cape nearby a helicopter rotor seems like a really bad life choice. There are wedges to represent foot pedals where his feet can rest and while his fists can’t actually grip the control yoke, it looks close enough. Pumping the black piece of the engine in the back will make the main rotor over batman’s head spin so you can whoosh it around the room on the hunt for The Joker.

My gosh, these are some pretty toys! It would have been cool to see the Batcopter from the Adam West Batman movie released in McFarlane’s 66 Retro line, but this Super Powers release makes for a decent consolation prize. With an MSRP of $20, it’s a very simple and yet surprisingly fun toy that fits perfectly in this reimagined line and I have to say I would have played with this like crazy if I had it back in 1984. And here we are 40 years later and I’ll still probably play with it like crazy! Now we really need a vehicle for the Joker to try to escape in!

Sep 11 2023

DC Super Powers: Batman & Robin and Batmobile by McFarlane

McFarlane has been absolutely killing it with their retro 3 3/4-inch DC Super Powers revival. Now, I am not going for a complete set of these figures, as some of the modern versions just don’t appeal to me in this format, but I sure am going for all the vehicles and whatever figures I need to toss into them. So far, I’ve checked out the first assortment of figures and The Batwing along with Wonder Woman and her Invisible Jet. Today I’m checking out a new Batman release as well as Robin and the Batmobile. Atomic Batteries to Power… Turbines to Speed… Let’s start with the figures!

Here’s the dynamic duo on their cards and these look absolutely gorgeous. The recreation of the old Super Powers deco is so on point, it’s enough to make my memory water. The character art is really nice too and I’ll admit to having shed a tear when tearing these open. I actually kept the second release of Wonder Woman carded so I’d have at least one example of this packaging. I’d be tempted to get another of this Batman and do the same, but he’s been tough to find. One big improvement here is that the cloth capes are no longer secured to the tray with a plastic piece, so it’s nice to know that McFarlane listened to that feedback.

Nothing against the first Batman we got in this line, but this is the one I really wanted and I’m glad he got added to the roster so soon. I was also surprised to see that he’s not a straight repaint but rather features new sculpting. The lighter gray and blue suit looks awesome with the blue coming across as particularly snappy and the yellow utility belt and black and yellow oval bat symbol rounding out a wonderfully classic look. My only real gripe here is that the cape is a little rough around the edges at the shoulders, but that may just be the case with the one I got. As usual, these figures have seven points of articulation, meaning the basic five plus knee hinges.

Robin is looking every bit as good as Batman with a gob-smacking, retina melting deco of bright red, green, and yellow with some black thrown in for the boots and the R-symbol. Again, it’s just pure classical design goodness. The head sculpt looks a tad chonky, but I do love the hair sculpt and the mask is part of the sculpt and not just painted on. Both of these figures are just fantastic, and now all we need is a bitchin ride to put them in.

And here we are, the Super Powers Batmobile! The vehicle comes in a fully enclosed box with more of that gorgeous Super Powers art design. You get an illustration of the Batmobile on the front and some photos calling out the features on the back. There’s a little assembly required, popping on the rear fins, and they are designed to pop off again so it can be stored back in the box. It may be a trivial thing for some, but I love it because then I don’t feel guilty about keeping the packaging! Are you ready for me to get gushing? Let’s get gushing!

Because, I am absolutely blown away by how drop dead gorgeous this toy is. I had some pretty cool Batmobiles growing up. The MEGO one in particular comes to mind. But if I had this toy when I was a kid, I would have absolutely lost my little mind. I am not at all exaggerating when I say for me this toy totally upstages the two 89 Batman Batmobiles that McFarlane released. Not to take away from those, because I love them, but this! This is just rocking hot retro-style bat sex in toy car form. It takes the basics of the vintage Kenner Super Powers Batmobile (which was basically the Challenge of the Super Friends design) and adds bodacious curves in all the right spots. It also takes the Bat Mask hood and turns it into a shield on the front of the car, which I think looks much cooler. The windshield is one sweeping horseshoe of transparent orange plastic, the wheels are silver disks with black bat symbol outlines and the raised bat fins give this roadster a sporty ass. This design is just bat car perfection.

And the colors! The midnight blue body and black trim are cast in super shiny plastic making this car look like it belongs slowly rotating on a turntable under the showroom lights. You get a bit more of a matte finish on the front bumpers, ramming bar, and bat mask shield, but everything else is pure sheen. The back of the car has red tail lights and orange thrust stickers to add a splash more color. Oh yeah, I really dig the extra bat mask sculpted into the rear end. The oval yellow and black bat symbols on the doors is the icing on this automotive bat cake!

There are two play gimmicks built into the Batmobile. The first is the extended ramming bar, which springs out when you press the Bat Mask on the hood. The mechanism works well, and it seems to hold in the retracted mode pretty solid. I like this design much better than a capture claw and I could just see this thing smashing through a wall of plastic cups in an 80’s toy commercial.

The second play feature are the added boosters which pop out the back when you lift the engine compartment cover. This is really cool, although some paint or flame stickers would really made the thrusters pop.

I also have to call out the amazing attention to detail in the cockpit. Sure it’s all stickers, except for the bat-shaped steering wheel, but the stickers look amazing with all sorts of controls, gauges and knobs. All fo these are pre-applied and they are nice and straight.

The Batman and Robin figures fit perfectly into the seats, with or without their capes. And boy do they look great in there!

I am absolutely beside myself over how beautiful this toy is. It is a pitch perfect blending of old and new, taking that boxy old design and giving it sensual curves and some inspired design tweaks. Everything about this Batmobile just oozes toyetic charm and it may indeed be my favorite Batmobile toy to date. Yeah, that’s saying a lot! It’s been on my desk since I opened it and I’ve been pushing it around, screeching its tires, and just admiring how bad ass it is with the figures inside. It is just a stupendously gorgeous toy that makes me wish I was 10 years old again. It’s still readily available at many online retailers at $29.99 and I can’t recommend it enough.

Jul 19 2023

DC Super Powers: Wonder Woman and Invisible Jet by McFarlane

I’ve really been enjoying McFarlane’s retro DC Super Powers line, even if some of the figures have been maddeningly difficult for me to find. Luckily the vehicles have been pretty easy to preorder and this week I got all caught up on those. Previously, I checked out a bunch of the figures and the Batwing and today I’m having a look at Wonder Woman and her Invisible Jet!

Egads, I love this packaging! It’s so cool to see the old Super Powers logo of exploding stars again and the blue and yellow retina-blinding colors are enough to make my memory water. Diana looks absolutely striking on the card and I really dig the character art they used. It pained me a bit to tear this figure open, but I’m going to keep an eye out for another to keep carded. The jet requires some assembly: Attaching the tail and the two wings. The tail is a permanent attachment, but the wings can slide off again, allowing the toy to be stored in the box, which is always a big plus for me! Let’s start with the figure…

So, these are basically more modern interpretations of the characters done in the retro format. Part of me would have loved to see straight up re-do’s of the original figures, but I think these are plenty fun too. I’ll note here that Wonder Woman’s cape is not wired to the bubble like the caped figures in the first wave, and that’s a really good thing. McFarlane is usually pretty great about using fan feedback, and I think that message got through. As for the design, I love it! The red corset with the raised gold bands on the top and bottom give it a more modern flavor, while the star-speckled shorts really speak to Wonder Woman’s roots. I like the gold knee guards with the stripes that follow down to her toes and the silver wrist bracers look great too. The cape is held in place by a wire around the neck and is easily removable if you prefer your Wonder Woman capeless.

The head sculpt is really nice with a detailed gold tiara and some nice flow to the hair, particularly around the shoulders. The eyes are painted in a manner similar to the vintage figures, but there’s a lot more definition to the face and the lips are perfectly painted. As with the original Kenner figures, these have your basic articulation consisting of rotating neck and shoulders, a t-crotch for the hips, and hinges in the knees. Diana has a gripping right hand, but sadly no accessories, and that’s the only bummer here. The lack of her golden lasso is pretty conspicuous. Nonetheless, it should be easy to make one for her. OK… let’s move on to her Invisible Jet.

So, when I first started looking at the photos, I thought, “Oh crap, you can barely see it!” I almost scrapped the whole review, but then I was kind of delighted by the fact that it’s so hard to see the Invisible Jet, and I just went with it. The toy is indeed made of translucent plastic with a few bits of sculpted detail, like the WW logo in front of the cockpit. You can also see the mechanism and string for the capture claw, but even that is pretty subtle unless you’re looking at it from the side. I love the retro design of this thing, and yes it has an undeniable super-deformed style to it. It almost looks like a design from the Metal Slug games. That may turn some people off, but I think it works well for a toy in this size and price range.

When you press the WW emblem, the canopy springs open. The cockpit includes a WW-themed steering yoke and a fully sculpted pilot chair. She fits in it very well even with the cape still on her.

There’s no stand included, not that I expected one at this price point, but I improvised for the sake of some inflight pictures. Diana looks really cool in the plane and playing around with this thing brought me back to the glory days of my MEGO Invisible Jet, which was already pretty yellowed when I got it as a hand-me-down from my Uncle.

The capture claw stores in a recessed area under the jet. You simply pull it out and the string will feed out of the bottom of the jet. Press the tail fin and the claw will snap back up super fast. I do love that McFarlane is including action gimmicks with these vehicles. Sure, they are simple, but it really fits with the Kenner homage they are going for.

The Invisible Jet pre-order sold out at a lot of retailers very quickly. I was able to secure one at McFarlane’s online store, which seems to be a pretty good route to take these days. At $20, this is just a super fun toy that’s going to look great on the shelf with Wonder Woman inside. The Batmobile also arrived with it, so I’ll be looking at that in the near future. I also have to double back and do a review of the Supermobile in all it’s goofy glory!

Feb 17 2023

DC Super Powers: Superman, Green Lantern, Batman, Darkseid and Batwing by McFarlane

New takes on retro action figures is a huge thing these days. I think a lot of the credit (or blame) on the resurgence of vintage and 5POA figures can go to Funko and Super7’s ReAction lines, but since then a lot of companies have jumped on board. And while McFarlane is already producing a dizzying array of regular DC figures in their Multiverse line, they’ve found the time to reintroduce the world to Kenner’s old DC Super Powers Collection. These aren’t exact reproductions of those figures, instead some are new versions of the characters done in the old style. And unfortunately, these are all Walmart Exclusives, so I was pretty surprised to find any of them at all, let alone the whole wave. Let’s start with the figures and then I’ll have a look at one of the vehicles!

The first wave consisted of three figures: Superman, Batman, and Darkseid, but since I managed to find Jon Stewart Green Lantern from the second wave, I’m throwing him in here as well. The second wave also included The Flash and Batman Who Laughs, and I’ll only be picking up the Flash out of those two. Obviously, the packaging is going for pure nostalgia with some pretty close approximations of the old Kenner card backs. They look great, but they are definitely not collector friendly. And I was tempted not to open these at all, but my willpower is shite, and I tore into all of them. The wave one figures were on clearance, so I may pick up a second Batman and Supes to keep carded, if there are still any left. We’ll start with The Man of Steel!

Superman is the only one of the bunch that’s pretty close to the original Kenner figure, at least in terms of costume design. He’s got his bright blue suit with red boots and undies, yellow belt, and S-shield. I dig the proportions on this figure, and the sculpted muscles look really nice. The coloring is also outstanding with bright yellow, vibrant blue, and crisp red, he looks like he flew right off the pages of a DC funnybook. The head sculpt is a tad soft in the facial features, but they really captured his trademark cowlick, and I like the bright blue eyes.

The cape is like a cross between paper and cloth. It’s stiff, but looks good, and has a wire running through the collar, which is the only way it attaches to the figure. It hangs on well, and my only gripe here is that the cape was secured to the bubble with a wire, which left a tiny hole in the cape. This won’t be an issue for mint-on-card collectors, but it bugs the hell out of me. As with all the figures in this line, Superman has seven points of articulation. The head turns, the shoulders rotate, the T-crotch allows the legs to move forward at the hips, and the knees are hinged. The figures do not retain the Kenner action gimmick that made them punch when you squeezed their legs.

Unlike Supes, Batman is a completely different version than the original Kenner figure. I think this design is based on the Hush comic, which admittedly isn’t a huge departure. Instead of having the yellow and black bat symbol on his chest, he just has the black. It’s disappointing to me, but not a deal breaker. Otherwise, the figure looks fine with a mix of new sculpting and recycled parts. The cape works the same as Superman’s and yes it still has a tiny hole in it from the wire. Batman is by no means a bad figure, but he’s definitely my least favorite of the four.

Darkseid is also pretty different from the original Kenner figure, with this being the New 52 version, which is nice nod for me because I happen to like this look a lot. Darkseid is the biggest and most complex figure here with a lot of great sculpting for a figure in this scale. The armor bits give him a lot of heft, and I love the detail to his belt. You even get a little sculpted fissures in the skin on his arms and his face. Even the coloring here is fun and vibrant with the bright blue and yellow contrasting nicely with the dark skin. Darkseid has one hand sculpted into a fist and the other able to grab other figures. I love this guy!

Last, but not least is Jon Stewart, who did not get a release in the original Super Powers, as Kenner only produced Hal Jordan as Green Lantern. And oh boy, is this figure outstanding! The costume is pretty simple with a mostly black bodysuit and green boots, bracers, and shoulders, with the lantern emblem on his chest in green and white. The head sculpt is an absolute homerun here! The facial sculpt is so good that it doesn’t feel like it belongs in the same line as Batman and Superman. Jon’s right hand is sculpted in a fist and has his power ring clearly represented, while his left hand is designed to hold his lantern accessory. Wow, what a great figure!

There’s a part of me that would have liked to see McFarlane do the Kenner versions of these figures, but then New 52 Darkseid and Jon Stewart Green Lantern are so great, I’ll happily stick with what we got. Despite being cherry-picked from across the DC Multiverse, these figures still manage to capture the charm and fun of the original Kenner efforts. What’s more, they certainly don’t feel like quick and dirty nostalgia cash grabs, but rather damn fine figures for their scale and style. Even more so at less than $10 a pop. But we’re not done yet… let’s move on to the Batwing!

Kenner Super Powers gave us the Batmobile and the Batcopter, but this Batwing is an original design for this line, borrowing heavily from the 1989 Batman film and retro-fitting it perfectly for the vintage Kenner style. The jet comes in a fully enclosed box that mimics the vintage vehicles for more of that sweet, sweet nostalgia. You get artwork on the front and some shots of the Batwing on the other panels.

The Batwing comes out of the box fully assembled, but with the wings folded up. I’m not sure if this is supposed to be a play feature, or just a method of getting a big toy into a small box. Either way, I dig it, as it’s similar to how some vintage aircraft would fold up the wings for storage on carriers. I’d like to think that this is how the Batwing travels up an elevator to be deployed out of a concealed hanger on the top of the Batcave.

With the wings folded down, we can get a better look at the jet, and it’s a damn cool little vehicle. Again, the similarities to the 89 Batman jet can’t be overstated. This one is a little smaller and cast mostly in blue plastic with black bat wings jutting up from each side of the translucent orange cockpit. There’s a little bit of panel lining, and two gray machine guns, at least that’s what I’m calling them, and finally a very classic black and yellow bat symbol, which doubles as a button to spring open the canopy. The back has a gray thruster cone, and there’s a trigger on the undercarriage to activate the capture claw hidden on the front. I really love the design of this little toy, especially how anachronistic it is. The way it takes a newer design and makes it feel totally at home in this retro line is just genius.

Batman is a bit of a snug fit in the cockpit, but it works! I prefer to remove his cape, just so it doesn’t get all bunched up in there. The cockpit is detailed with some very colorful pre-applied stickers for the consoles, and a bat-shaped yoke for steering.

The capture claw feels right at home as a Super Powers action gimmick, while also employing a feature seen on the 89 Batwing. I can practically see a kid in a vintage commercial swooping in for the grab while shouting, “YOU’RE FINISHED, DARKSEID!” Every bit of this toy just oozes 80’s Kenner charm!

Now, I will confess to some Batwing sticker shock, as for some reason I was convinced that these vehicles were $20, but in fact they were $29.99 at my Walmart. I’m not going to say it’s totally outrageous, but it is a lot for what is a pretty small and simple vehicle. But, obviously it wasn’t too much, because I came home with it. Still, I wish it had been on clearance like the figures! Nonetheless, I have no regrets. This line is just tons of fun and looks great on display in a little corner of my Comic Room. I’m not sure how deep I’m going to go with collecting it, but I am hunting Flash and Wonder Woman now, and I will probably break down and pick up the Superman vehicle as well. It would be great to see Kalibak and Steppenwolf, as those were some of my favorites in the Kenner line, but even if we do get them, who knows what versions they will be. And that’s really just my one nitpick here is that I would have enjoyed more of a cohesive selection of character versions.