Review: Takara-Tomy Beast Saga Wonderriver Action Figure

Upon first glance Wonderriver could just as easily be a jokey custom figure as it is the real deal. After the Admiral Turtle, also known as Tarlock, it seemed that Takara-Tomy was going to allow these figures to go beyond the template of "animal in armor" set by the original Battle Beasts toys. Personally, I wish they did a lot more of this - the animal faces were fairly realistic, so giving them hats or other real-world equipment helps to add a little personality. The 1980s figures had those robotic eyes and bizarre coloring, while this wonder retriever seems content to wear a sensible set of armored scrubs. With what I assume are the T-Virus and antidote on the shoulders.
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Toy Fair 2014: New Battle Beasts Minimates

Some previously-unseen Beasts (last seen at SDCC 2013) have been revealed in the 16bit.com Battle Beasts Toy Fair coverage!  Diamond Select Toys revealed the latest batch:  Giraffe and Hammerhead Shark, Cow and Bear, Cobra and Bat, plus Anubis and Thrush.

 
Click here for the full gallery and my coverage at 16bit.com.

Review: Takara-Tomy Beast Saga Moreek Action Figure

Part of the Sky Kingdom, the non-bird Moreek was one of the better designs in this line. The original Battle Beasts Blitzkrieg had a hook for a hand and a cybernetic eye, making this one look a little better for wear. Moreek has cybernetic goggles of some sort, purple armor, and a face that would be right at home in Snake Mountain with Skeletor's evil warriors. The big leathery wings look great, and he has deco on the interiors of his ears as well as his teeth. Takara-Tomy should be commended on a nice job here.
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Review: Takara-Tomy Beast Saga Dacker Action Figure

When I first saw this Beast Saga figure, I didn't know his name. I thought Dacker might be a platypus, but now that I have it in my hands I think it's a regular duck. There was a little yellow duck in Battle Beasts too, but this one is a lot more clever. The 3-inch figure not only has armor that looks like a plane, but he's wearing a flight cap and goggles! As the Beast Saga line went on the people at Tomy put a lot more thought into the whole "animals in armor" idea, so we'd get a dog doctor, or an admiral turtle, or a figure that is for all intents and purposes a cyborg Launchpad McQuack.
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Review: TheGodBeast Kabuto Mushi Standard Pearlescent Brown Action Figure

The delivery on the Kabuto Mushi Standard Pearlescent Brown in nothing short of miraculous - on Friday, orders were placed at 7 PM Arizona time. By noonish on Monday, the figures were delivered. I've been through dozens of releases of indie figures over the last few years and usually, at best, things tend to ship out in about a week. To be shipped by Monday would be amazing, but delivered? In a crazy cold snap in which all sorts of mail delays are going on? That takes dedication - but that's just another day at the office for creator Marty "TheGodBeast" Hansen, who has been crafting all sorts of Glyos heads, prototypes, and hand-cast figures for collectors and others for years now. It's rare to see someone with the collector gene, a keen eye for toys, and tons of talent put out a figure like this but here we are!
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Review: Takara-Tomy Beast Saga Ogre Action Figure

Sometimes a toy line can't surprise you - Beast Saga is one of those lines. If you bought one figure, you know what to expect - it's limiting and liberating all at once, because I knew I'd probably like Ogre before I opened her package. I also knew she wouldn't have new weapons and there would be little to get excited about after opening it - if you don't like how she looks, well, there ain't much here.
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Review: Takara-Tomy Beast Saga Aljaylo Action Figure

As a kid, I loved the armadillo. So when Battle Beasts made Armored Armadillo and as a kid, I had to have it. When this line got one as Aljaylo I got it and the clear "Burst" version too. How could I not?
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