Mattel has been extremely tight lipped and many of you (including myself) have been anxiously awaiting more information, pictures to examine and talk to each other about, and just a general feel of what’s coming as this developer shift takes place.  

Mattel’s foray into WWE wrestling figures has been their largest tooling investment ever, never before putting such high stake into a license they’ve never held. They are very enthusiastic and extremely excited about not just delivering to collectors, but delivering to kids as well.

My initial reaction? They look awesome, and I mean that, but I think the fact that they are so different is a bit shocking to me. The bottom line is that these are not Jakks figures anymore. It’s going to be something completely new and different. As time moves on I can only see that as a positive.

The debut will consist of a Basic “Superstars” line, a “Two-Packs” line, and an “Elite” line. A Pay Per View line will follow in February, the first being “Road to WrestleMania.” That is extremely refreshing for me, as there’s no doubt there’s been times when Jakks has felt bloated with the different sets and repackages they’ve released.

Each basic figure comes packaged with a figure stand. The packaging itself is without a doubt one of the highlights of the company switch. The development, the look, and the catering to collectors are like never before. No longer will you have to worry about your plastic bubble falling forward or backward on your shelf. The hourglass-type packaging is without a doubt made to display. It’s also appealing on a simple level. I can see a little kid wanting to rip it open, for sure. As a bonus, some figures will come with a 1 of 1000 commemorative belt made specifically for their debut.

The Superstars figures and the Two-Packs are in “basic scale.” These figures have 18 points of articulation, are in scale with each other, and are actually in scale with the Elite figures. Elite figures will include 23 points of articulation (the ab crunch is there), and special accessories like fabric clothing (Undertaker’s entrance attire, CM Punk’s ‘Fists’ shirt, etc.) The Superstars series will essentially be replacing “Ruthless Aggression” and “Elite” figures will be replacing “Deluxe Aggression.” It’s great to see the entire line in scale. No longer will collectors have to worry about Evan Bourne and Undertaker staring each other in the face eye to eye.

The figures have little relation to the scale of Jakks figures, so unfortunately there won’t be much room to merge for those who like to open them and were hoping to use them together. These are definitely going to be smaller, but that leaves room for them to be in scale with each other. Basically, some Jakks figures will look good next to these new ones and some won’t. It will be interesting to see people find ways around this by altering/customizing (which wouldn’t surprise me) but for the most part, a Ruthless Aggression Rey Mysterio will probably look stupid next to a Batista from the Mattel line. By the same token, a Ruthless Aggression Big Show may look just as good standing next to Mattel figures. And by that same token, an 8 or 9 year old probably won’t care too much about the scale either way and be satisfied with new and old figures, so there’s no reason it can’t be fun to mix and match.

The figures have incredible amounts of detail in their headscans, body molds, and paint jobs. Specific body types have been molded for different wrestlers in this case and are in some cases vast improvements over what we’ve been buying for the past decade. Beth Phoenix, for example, looks incredible, and this speaks volumes for any future Diva figures. She glows as it is in real life and they were able to capture that in her figure by getting as close as they could to her body type and look (she glows, I tell you, glows!) As far as tattoos and detail are concerned, unless something has to be left off for legal reasons, not a whole lot was missed. (No, everyone, they did not forget about Punk’s Pepsi tattoo, they simply can’t do it. Let’s just relax, sit down, and eat some prunes from now on). The only thing I can compare them to are the R3 figures because they were similar in size. They do not have the miserable articulation and lack of detail some of those figures had. Besides that, these figures are like nothing that has ever been released before. Trust me when I tell you, that’s not a bad thing. That’s a GOOD thing. :-)

Mattel plans to go deep into WWE’s roster. In other words, expect plenty of John Cena’s, but don’t expect a shelf-warming number of them to be released. With inclusions like Shelton Benjamin, Primo, and Cryme Tyme to be out before the first half of the year, it seems like this is true. All line-ups are always subject to change (why, Kendrick, why?) but I healthily assume that plenty of different figures will be available by years end.

There are two other series I was given the chance to have a look at that were more specifically geared, one being towards kids and the other being strictly collectors. The first will be called “Entrance Greats” and it will showcase a Basic style figure with that wrestler’s elaborate entrance from a specific event. Each figure will come decked out in incredibly detailed accessories and a display stand that, when pressed, plays a few lines of their entrance music. Booyaka booyaka, ya heard? Although the price will probably be steep, there will only be three released in the spring and three in the fall, so it will be limited enough for collectors to feel they’ve found a treasure and scarce enough for a kid that wants one to save his or her money.

The “Flex Force” series is specifically geared towards children! There are all sorts of action aspects of these figures, most of which showcase finishing moves of certain wrestlers. These figures are also in the same scale as the other series but lack paint detail and articulation so their finishing maneuvers can be given more attention. They come with a sort of “kung fu” grip that lets them grab specific parts of the ring so they can be launched, grab other wrestlers to throw them, and grab surrounding accessories. This leads to special “accessory packs” that will also be sold (with a figure included) and these accessories have the necessary kinks to make your Flex Force figures work. The Flex Force figures themselves will also be packaged with a 20 minute DVD, showcasing that Superstar. These look to be an integral part of Mattel’s kid-friendly look at their product, so we’ll probably be seeing a lot of them eventually.

Figures are about wrapped for now and are specific to those six lines. These will make up the first year of development and there will be plenty to keep Mattel busy and plenty to keep buyers busy. More kid friendly products are on the way, including role playing gear consisting of knee pads and even John Cena wristbands that made noise. Also coming soon is the ring sounds megaphone that plays phrases, boos, cheers, and of course doubles as a megaphone. Mattel did say they hoped this item would become a staple at live events, which I found hilarious because I can’t wait to hear someone start an HLA chant during the middle of a Cena and Orton match and a bunch of other people with the same megaphones catch on and continue it. If that’s the plan then thanks, Mattel, you will make Raw that much more enjoyable for me.

The one kid item I was very impressed with was the kid-size wearable belt. It was made with faux leather and some great detail. Honestly, the WWE Spinner almost looks like a replica to me, it is that good. There is also a ‘lights and sounds’ belt with a little less detail but more audio and visual features. It doesn’t compare really to the general line of kids belts and the detail they had.

So, where do general fans go from here? Many of us like to keep them mint for collecting, many of us like to play with them; many of us are parents who only want something that will make our kids happy. Overall, each of those types of consumers has been catered to better than any line I can previously think of. It’s fairly obvious that Mattel is attentive, enthusiastic, and listening. While I wasn’t particularly impressed with the gimmicky Flex Force line, I’m not 8 years old, although my guess would be that a kid would rather play with a figure from the Basic or Elite line.

They’re going to take getting used to for many of you, but I have a feeling most everyone will adjust to really liking them. There’s also going to be plenty of you who are tired of Jakks and will be jumping for joy when you pick up your first Mattel figure. It’s hard to take a fan base that is in no way used to heavy change and make them accept it but most everyone will agree in the end that Mattel has done that.

I am disappointed with the lack of rings at launch. While there will be a Smackdown, ECW, and Raw ring available at launch, these are essentially “spring rings” and aren’t made to scale, although I didn’t really get to see what a figure looked like inside them, so they may very well still look cool.

I won’t know for sure until I have one in hand, but I would assume the figures would fit great in a Jakks real scale ring, so don’t go throwing yours away just because it’s from a different company.

Also disappointing are the lack of accessories with figures. While the Elite figures have their clothing-style accessories, the basic figures only come with a stand, and the only accessories are molded to cater to the Flex Force figures, with indents so they can perform their action moves on them. These will probably “work” with the main two lines of figures, but they’re not exactly ideal, and they have to be purchased separately. You may not want to throw out your old accessories just yet either.

Finally, an important topic when speaking on Mattel is the subject of a Classic Line. For going on six years now, we’ve had a series devoted to classic versions of modern superstars and figures of those who are no longer wrestling with WWE made impressively and to at times excellent detail, so it’s no surprise many people are curious as to Mattel’s take on classics and whether or not they will be available on launch. While there will be no throw-back line for the initial debut, Mattel informed me that in the Fall of 2010, a ‘Legends’ line will be released. They have no further information on the line other than the fact that it will indeed exist, and the target date.

Mattel said they are striving to provide as many of and the best legends that they can, within the bounds that they are being allowed. In other words, they neither confirmed nor denied any particular wrestler but said they are trying as best as they could. When I asked about Randy Savage, I was under the impression after listening to them that there are no plans at this point for him to be made, so it seems that the Macho Man quandary continues. On the positive side, they made it clear they would do their best to obtain the best classic talent they could, as Jakks did a great job of doing.

And so it is, more sure than Eric Bischoff and Vince McMahon’s love for each other, the Mattel and Jakks switch is inevitable and almost complete. Soon, Mattel will have sole responsibility of WWE figures. It will be fun to see discussion and reactions, both positive and negative, to where fans are headed.

Summing it up, I’ve been looking at it this way. Just say you love Mexican food, so you’ve been going to the same Mexican restaurant for lunch for a year. For the most part, it’s mighty tasty and inexpensive and you’re satisfied, but one day you walk up to it and a sign out front says that it’s closing. Low and behold, it re-opens the next week with the same name but new management. The food’s the same, but the recipe’s are different. For all you know, you might like the taco platter they serve up even better. Just hope it doesn’t cause you any indigestion. Get it?! You know, because Jakks is the first restaurant, and Mattel is the second? Nevermind.

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