Because of the very brief time span between Toy Fair and New York Comic Con this year, a few companies decided to hold onto some ‘big reveals’ until NYCC and show them off to the public at large, instead of just members of the industry. This made for what some collectors have called ‘a disappointing Toy Fair’, but an exciting NYCC.

One such company was Hasbro, whose Marvel Legends line is the talk of the town. You know, if you’re talking about a town entirely full of XBox 360s and Doritos and people with breathing issues. Despite this popularity, they didn’t show off anything new at Toy Fair, but had the next two waves safely displayed and encased at NYCC, confirming rumors of future character lineups (which crafty techo-nerds had already gleaned from Wal-Mart stock charts and lost bits of HTML on Hasbro’s website). Wave three will include Bucky (the Captain America sidekick), First Appearance Captain America, Marvel Girl (and variant), Black Knight, Astonishing X-Men Cyclops, X3 Colossus, Danger, and a HYDRA soldier (and variant) with a Brood Queen Build-A-Figure tying them all together. These are pictured in the photos above and in the NYCC photo gallery. The late reveal of these might seem unnecessary, but the manner in which they were revealed presents a very collector-friendly stance that Hasbro is trying to make, in spite of allegations that figure quality has dropped significantly since they took over the line. I don’t care what anyone says - my Annihilus is probably one of the most awesome things to ever fall over onto me while I’m sleeping, excluding of course the array of clumsy but beautiful women that I find myself with.

DC Direct revealed series seven of Justice, a continuing series of figures based on the artwork of Alex Ross, but the showing was unfortunately confusing. Two of the figures included in this wave are Armored Superman and Armored Aquaman, both of whom were slated to appear in a canceled wave comprised entirely of armored heroes (along with Batman, the female Nightwing, and Flamebird). Both of these figures appeared to be almost completely solid colored, with no paint detailing. In addition to that, a Gorilla Grodd figure was on display that re-used the body of the previous Grodd figure, and a John Stewart Green Lantern that re-used a Hal Jordan Body and the head of another previous Stewart figure which looked nothing at all like the artwork of Alex Ross. Since series 5 only just came out two weeks ago, and every figure to date has been excellent, we can hope that the figures on display were only placeholders for the actual figures being sculpted and painted. If not, I have to say that this is the first wave of Justice figures I’m going to completely skip.

Mezco didn’t allow photography of their Goonies line at Toy Fair, where we saw them in their full, painted glory, but unpainted prototypes were on display at NYCC, along with a few replica movie props. As mentioned in the Toy Fair coverage, these still present exceptional likenesses. While Mezco sometimes pursues cartoon figures, or portrays properties in a cartoonish manner, but they’re more spot-on with likenesses than any other company producing toys.

WizKids also displayed at NYCC, revealing the entire line of DC Heroclix : Origins figures for the first time, and a few crucial figure game stats. I haven’t been this excited for a wave of Heroclix in a long time, usually just buying a case each wave to keep up on my collection for the next time I actually sit down and play. I recall discussing a DC Comics based Heroclix set with former brand manager Jason Mical at Toy Fair about two years ago, and putting in my formal argument to do a set based on Golden Age characters, or at least classic ones - mostly to satisfy my jones for an Alan Scott Green Lantern. Finally, my dream set is being released, and in only three days! It will feature such characters as First Appearance Batman and Superman, Mirror Master (with an additional sculpt depicting him in a mirror), Shadow Thief (with another additional sculpt depicting him in his flat and flexible alternate form), Doom Patrol’s Robotman, Mister Mind, Golden Age Sandman, Shazam (with a neat, but suggestive, sculpt of him transforming from little Billy Batson). Overall, very exciting to be able to add these characters to an army. The only Marvel Heroclix figure on display was the colossal Fin Fang Foom, two of which were being given away in gaming competitions during the Con. These are not available yet, but will become so during the summer convention season, much like Galactus and Spectre were in past years.

Next year’s NYCC will happen in April, increasing that divide between Toy Fair and itself, and giving companies more time to prepare their annual exclusives, so there’s hope yet to establish a higher volume of new items for sale by then. The Con will also have increased space, hopefully delaying (or preventing entirely) that good ol’ New York Shuffle, wherein you can’t really place one foot more than three inches in front of the other.

Overall, NYCC has become a convention worth attending, so if you’re in the NYC area, check it out. But don’t get in my way.

New York Comic Con has begun today, but before any of that can be processed and photoshopped, organized, recovered from and foot-blisters gently soothed, there’s still a good handful of Toy Fair to get through, so expect NYCC coverage this Wednesday. If we manage to get in the doors, and if we aren’t ushered out by fire marshals, and if Peter David doesn’t start eating people at his booth. Which really isn’t that much hyperbole.

Mezco Toys has stood out in my mind for the past several years due to their completely flawless handling of the Hellboy figure lines, from movie figures and into the Mike Mignola designed comic book figures. Somehow, Mezco Toys (one of the smaller action figure companies) had managed to merge form and articulation in a perfect mix beyond what and major company was doing, and still went severely underappreciated. They are a collector company, staffed by incredibly talented fans and toy enthusiasts.

Check out the full Mezco gallery here.

Unfortunately, there are no future Hellboy products planned at this time except for the comic line’s Abe Sapien, which is a beautiful thing. Alas, it will be a San Diego Comic Con exclusive item, because (and say it with me), “Dammit, SDCC gets all the cool stuff!” We were told that it would likely also be available through Club Mez, Mezco’s online collectors club, which I’m still trying to justify shelling out 40 dollars for. Action figures for the next Hellboy movie have not been determined yet, and figures based on the animated movies are not being handled by Mezco. Though they should be. I’d trust them with pretty much anything.

They will continue with their popular South Park and Family Guy figure lines, which have thrived for a few years now. Bringing cartoon characters into three dimensions has always been a challenge for toy companies, and both the successes and failures could be seen throughout Playmates’ hold on the exhaustive Simpsons license a few years back. Mezco’s holding strong with unmistakable renditions of both core and auxiliary characters from both shows, with an Eric Cartman variation planned for every South Park wave. Admittedly, it’s a visually unappealing show that revels in its 2-D-ness, but the figures remain popular. Some excellent fan-favorite cameos of Family Guy’s Peter Griffin as Bionic Peter, Lando Griffin and Astronaut Peter are also planned, most of which appeared onscreen for about ten seconds total. Also included will be the creepy Performance Artist, Chris on a treadmill, Quagmire in a robe, the Black Knight, Bonnie Swanson and Diane Simmons. Creepy old man Herbert was released as a Club Mez exclusive this past year, to much acclaim (and griping that he wasn’t released to the general public). Mezco is also planning a box set of miniature figures in a Drunken Clam pub playset environment. They continue to bring animated characters to life with their upcoming Underdog line of figures, which has nothing at all to do with the regrettable live-action movie of the same name. Pure classic animation here, which will hopefully sell better than the failed Pink Panther line made by Palisades Toys before they folded.

What we also saw, but could not photograph, was a line of Goonies action figures, done up in realistic style, and featuring an enormous Sloth, and amazing renditions of Mikey, Mouth, Chunk and Data. Needless to say, we were giddy. More news and images will surely be forthcoming.

Mezco also dips liberally into the ‘horror’ end of things, being responsible for the popular Living Dead Dolls, the next series of which will feature the theme of ‘bad luck’. Collect all five and you’ll be able to assemble a creepy little charm! Also, that Texas Chainsaw Massacre babydoll thing is probably the creepiest thing I’ve ever seen. Maybe not so much the idea that a small child could obtain a My Size working chainsaw and go on a killing spree, but that they’d have the concentration to be able to sew a mask out of their victims’ skin. In addition to that horrible fare, Mezco presented the usual array of 7” action figures of horror classics, including a tuxed-up Freddy Kreuger and various Texas Chainsaw Massacre figures. Add to that an array of mini-dioramas of horror movie scenes, horror character dolls, more 7” zombies (including a bowling woman and a guy who looks like a preacher, both covered in blood and brains), and you have Mezco.

NECA carries things in a very similar vein and quality, also addressing cult properties in both horror and fun varieties. The first thing that caught my eye was the display of Nightmare Before Christmas figures, which will be entering their 6th and 7th waves of four figures each. At this point in the evolution of the line, they’ll be revisiting Oogie Boogie (previously only available in a box set), Jack Skellington (this time, with his desk), and a third Sally (with cauldron), with the addition of a 2-pack exclusive Sally in Santa suit. Fans of the line will also note the Creature from Under the Stairs (which had three seconds on screen, literally), the Melting Man, and the Corpse Boy & his mother. As usual, these figures will be packed with great accessories. It won’t be too long before we see every single character brought to figural form. Can we see a deluxe Hanging Tree, guys?

The rest of the NECA gallery is here.

NECA has also just released the first four figures from the movie 300, again with the same tremendous attention to detail that they’ve shown the Pirates of the Caribbean line. While no future 300 figures were shown (and the possibilities for figures seem large, especially with army building characters), a few Pirates prototypes were shown, including a 2-up of Slo Feng from the upcoming third movie. Continuing with their movie properties, they’ll also be producing figures from the upcoming ‘Grindhouse’ films, which got the following reaction from me :

“Holy crap, does that chick and a … gun…. for a … leg?”

Yes, she does. And as far as the action figure goes, you can switch it out with her actual leg, which also comes with the figure. Which is a fairly powerful testament as to why I love action figures. As if I needed more convincing, there’s a Quentin Tarantino figure with an alternate head, featuring a gouged-out eyeball. Which I’ve wanted to do to him at least twice in my life, but now I don’t have to, because the action figure sates my bloodlust. This alone is enough to pique my interest in the clearly gory, pseudo-explotation film that this promises to be. And because it’s a natural progression, they’ll also be doing Harry Potter figures. None of them, unfortunately, will have their limbs replaced with deadly weapons, but at least the prototypes looked pretty scary accurate.

Finally, NECA continues to explore ‘classic’ items, such as David Bowie’s Goblin King character from Labyrinth, which is sure to be a ridiculous hit with the ladies, and should be followed up by a handful of Brian Froud-inspired goblins. The Player Select line will also continue to explore popular video game characters, such as God of War’s Kratos, and the ever-popular Lara Croft, all in the popular 7” scale. And all, of course, absolutely beautiful.

These are two companies who have taken figural quality to new levels and kept it there, creating interesting, accurate toys that appeal to collectors of both toys and movie memorabilia, spanning genres and audiences alike. So watch out for ‘em.