Tuesday, September 29, 2015

World of Nintendo: Goomba, Princess Peach, and Fox


The Nintendo train keeps rolling!  Jakks Pacific has yet another wave of five inch figures out in stores.  Which new faces do we need to look out for?

...those ones.  The picture, up top.


You have no idea how happy I am that this toyline keeps running along!  It may not be full-steam ahead, since Target shoved them off to the side and no one but Toys R Us stocks the larger figures (WHERE IS THE METROID?!) but at least these are showing up at Meijer (my local grocery store).  That's...three places, for me.

Come on, stores: Order these figures!  You think Nintendo things don't sell?  Are you crazy?  Don't make me come over there!  And look at your toys.  'Cause I will!  And I probably have.

...why don't we get to the review, eh?


GOOMBA!  The first enemy encountered in the first Super Mario Bros game.  Usually small, the Goomba has changed size and shape over the years.  This one is particularly big, though I think they were kinda big in Mario 64.  Perhaps this works?


Far be it from me to call the shots on how big Goombas should be.

Each World of Nintendo figure comes with a "secret accessory", that is usually pretty obvious, depending on who it is.  I wasn't sure about the Goomba, so his actually was a mystery!




...it's a coin.  There are sooo many items in the Mario Bros games!  I wish they would take the chance to give him something a little more interesting.  On the other hand, if you're buying a lot of Goombas, then I guess you get a lot of coins!  So that makes sense, in terms of army building.


The Goomba doesn't do much:  He has a swivel "waist", if that's what the middle section is.  Also his feet sorta twist at an angle, allowing you to get a cool mid-waddle pose, though it's hard to photograph (looks better in person).  I kinda wish they had added something else, just to spice him up.  Maybe a button on the back that opened his mouth, or perhaps made his main body out of a softer plastic so you could squish him down when Mario inevitably smashes him.

He looks great and certainly gets the job done, but I still feel like they could have done something.  I wouldn't let that stop you from getting a giant Goomba, though.  He'd make a good toy or desk accessory.





By the way: The Goombas with the holes in their heads are from K'Nex, the slightly darker hole-less ones are from Figuarts, and the one with the suction cup on his chin is an old McDonald's toy (the only Goomba I had, when I was a kid).






Next in line is someone I hope will get a Figuarts toy, at some point.  Princess Peach!  Or Toadstool.  Depends on how old you are.



Peach doesn't have a whole lot going on, but much more than I thought she would.  Her arms are on disc hinges, allowing them to move outward (and a tiny bit inward, if you push 'em).  Her elbows have hinges allowing for 90 degrees, but sadly she is lacking a bicep swivel, so you can't get her hand to her mouth in that classic "Oh!" expression.


Amazingly enough, the dress isn't a chunk!  It's...kinda weird.  Just Peach's naked legs and some pink hot pants.  No articulation, except at the waist, and her legs go down slightly past her skirt, which makes her teeter-totter around a tiny bit (not enough to make her look crooked while she stands).  Not the chunk I expected, but pretty much the amount of articulation I expected.

Her neck can also turn, but her hair gets in the way.  The hair is rubbery and you can push it over her shoulder, but it's a tight fit, and you'll be bending the neck peg, slightly.


Peach fits in perfectly with your Figuarts Mario and Luigi, so she's a great stand-in until Bandai adds her to the Figuarts collection.  I doubt they'll be able to get her to do much more, but I expect they'll at least give her arms some more range.

Not that this one is a disappointment!  It certainly does way more than I expected.  Just...could have used a bicep swivel.




Peach comes with an umbrella that you can clip on to her open hands.  It's a tight fit, so you can actually get her to do a couple things with it.  I wish they had given you an option to open it too, but it's nice as it is.












I have no idea when Bandai will do a Figuarts Peach.  This one is inexpensive, looks great, and moves more than you'd expect!  I wouldn't hesitate to pick one up, if you see it.


Our last one is Fox McCloud, from Star Fox!  I'm not much of a Star Fox player, but I do love Smash Bros, so I decided to get him for the Smash collection.  He looks like he's based on his original look, from the SNES or N64 days.  Meaning: There's no fuzzy details on his fur, like he has nowadays.


Doesn't mean he isn't nicely detailed!  The paintwork is smooth and he is unmistakable as Fox.  I like the "smooth" look to his face, making it look like he pops from the older games.  I would still like to see a more modern version, at some point.



His articulation is good, for a toy, but a little lacking for a guy who likes to pose things, like me.  I'm able to have fun with him, but I would have liked some wrist swivels and some outward movement for the legs.


The socket on the leg could use a cut at the top, allowing the leg to move outward.  Also: The knees swivel, but it's not the same as a thigh swivel.  The pants are sculpted to fold down over the sides, so when you turn the knee, you can't bend it very far, making the swivel knees nearly useless. 

I don't mind so much, because he still functions as a toy, and that's enough to have fun with.  Any kids looking for a Fox to work with other "Smash" figures will not have to look any further.




Fox comes with...a tiny Arwing.  I knew he wouldn't come with his pistol, since his hand was closed into a fist, but it still seems like an odd choice, when he could have come with something he could use.  On the other hand: Perhaps a more modern version of Fox will come with the pistol?  If that's the case...then yeah, I kinda like the tiny Arwing.  It's like a model, for Fox!

Overall: His limitations irritate me when trying to pull off cool poses, but then he's a lot of fun for my hands, when I'm just playing with him.  He'll be great for kids or collections, honestly, but a little stiff if you want to pull off Smash toy comics.  If you're a fan: I'd get 'em.







The World of Nintendo toyline is filling out nicely!  Granted, I'm skipping a few here and there (like Mario and Luigi, since I like the poseability of the Figuarts line), but the WoN ones would have been bought in a heartbeat, in the absence of the Figuarts versions.  If you're only buying World of Nintendo, then you're getting a collection that every Nintendo fan my age would have killed for, back in the day.  Most of these look like they pop right off the artwork for the game (or right out of the game!) so I can't find many reasons to skip these, if you're a Nintendo fan.  Presently reviewed figures included. 

The only problem appears in the distribution.  As I said in the beginning:  These are at Toys R Us, but they stock them infrequently (at mine) and are stuck on the deluxe Donkey Kong and won't put out any others (I'm looking at you, Metroid).  Target has them, but they regulate them to an endcap now, and only put out a few of the five inch figures.  My local Meijer has them, which is a grocery store in my neck of the woods (might be some in Ohio too...?) so stores like that might be a good place to check...but they still won't stock the deluxe figures either.  I don't know what it is with those.  They're a steal, at the price and size of the figures!  At the very least, everyone needs Bowser.  It's just too bad barely anyone will stock him.

Buy 'em if you see 'em!  I don't know how well this line is doing, but if it keeps going, we're gona keep seeing more and more awesome stuff we've always wanted.  We just need to keep buying the product to let them and retailers know that...Nintendo is popular? 

...man, what world am I living in where that needs to be said?

29 comments:

  1. You lucky dog! I was actually at a Toys R Us this past weekend and managed to find a Princess Peach. They also had Pink Yoshi and Fire Mario but, for the inflated TRU price, I figured I could wait on those two. The Goomba and Fox I really want, however. This line is really fun but it really needs to find a way to overcome the distribution challenges it always seems to be facing. I've never even seen this wave available on etailers like BBTS and the Metrodi and Ganon have been MIA for almost a year now.

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    1. It's all thanks to Meijer, honestly! TRU would have never stocked often enough, and Target is a joke right now. Meijer also doesn't make the prices crazy, and somehow they're regularly stocking...I just wish they'd stock the big ones! What IS it with those? Like you said: The Metroid and Ganon should have showed up awhile ago! In fact, I did see the Metroid at a convention for forty freaking no-thank-you dollars (though I would have gladly paid him a punch in the face and called it even, for that insult).

      I'm not sure if these problems come from their end, or if the retailers just aren't ordering them right, but they gotta figure this out. I want your product, Jakks!

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    2. Alexx: Ganon and the Metroid are in stock right no at BBTS. Only $40 for the set!

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    3. YUS! GOT IT! Remind me to hug you if we ever meet (or remind me to refrain from hugging you, depending on your preference). Finally! I'm glad I didn't have to pay crazy prices for these.

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  2. Tiny Arwing for trench runs on the Death Star with the Star Wars Micro Machines.

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  3. Just so you know, I'm still hearing the "Goombas! They want me to tap dance!" in Arnold Schwarzenegger's voice. Gotta keep those personal dank maymays real.

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  4. C'mon World of Nintendo,we demand CAPTAIN FALCON! FAWLCONE PAWUNCH! SHOW ME YOUR MOVES! ETC. Zero-suit Samus wouldn't go a miss either!

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    1. I believe in the FAWL-CONE PAWNCH, and that Jakks simply MUST know of it's importance. Plus, if Falcon doesn't come with some sort of PAWNCH effect, there will be lines of people up against their office doors, demanding to know where the PAWNCH is.

      ...eh, who am I kidding - Falcon will probably just come with a tiny F-Zero racer.

      If they do manage to do Zero Suit Samus, I hope they base it off the first appearance in Zero Mission, rather than Smash...but that's probably just wishful thinking.

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    2. Samus must have her whip as that's always how I beat my brother at Smash Bros, I would accept the gun though.

      It'll be a amazing/dreadful day when the wii fit trainer gets a figure, complete with balance board!

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    3. Perhaps they can package her with the whip and toss the gun mode in the mystery box.

      Man, I'd still buy the Wii Fit Trainer! That'd be hilarious!

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  5. Now buy another Fox, throw away all of your other Nintendo characters, and you can have a Smash Brothers tournament!

    Anyway, kids today don't know how lucky they are to be saturated with Nintendo merch. When I was a kid, I was desperate for any sort of Mario figures at all. I had the "Mario Mania" players guide that was mostly for Super Mario World, but also had quite a few pages of general Mario info, including a two-page spread full of mid-80s merchandise that I constantly pined over.

    Even those McDonald's items were precious gems for me at the time, particularly the Koopa Paratroopa and Goomba, since they were the "neutral" ones, and all the rest had some sort of thing attached to them. I used to fill up notebooks with drawings of Mario enemies.

    When I was a teen, Toy Biz put out some Mario Kart figures that I think were the first true Mario action figures...there was a Mario, Yoshi, Bowser, and maybe a Luigi? And they all came with a kart that could shoot out some sort of item from the game. Those were pretty good figures, considering the manufacturer.

    I also had a great need for Sonic and Mega Man toys, which also were in short supply. Mega Man did eventually get some action figures from the Ruby Spears cartoon, though, and those arrived in time for my childhood.

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    1. - Do people really use Fox that much? I am ignorant to the ways of tournaments. The closest I've ever come to that is some few months in a row that me and some friends played the ever loving CRAP out of Guilty Gear XX.

      - Preaching to the choir! Heck, many of the earliest video game figures were McDonald's or Burger King toys! I had that Goomba, but that was it - totally wanted that Koopa Troopa. I also had a Sonic and Knuckles from...Burger King, I think? But, as usual, they were stuck to things, like Mario. Still, like you said: IT WAS ALL WE HAD. Nowadays is a freakin' GOLDMINE of video game toys!

      - "notebooks with drawings of Mario enemies" Oh man, I hear you there. I've got a few pages of "my own game", so to speak. I didn't draw out the levels, but I wrote down the ideas, drew all the enemies, etc. (Heck, considering some of the ways you can mess with enemies in Mario Maker, I might be able to make some of them now!) Then, of course, I did the same thing with Sonic the Hedgehog. I have a friggin' million pages of my own Robotnik machines and ways to beat them. I made up my own shields, did some levels, and even developed a usable Mecha Sonic as a playable character with his own moves and whatnot. All when I was probably supposed to be paying attention in class.

      - I remember the Toy Biz Mario Kart figures, but I never ended up getting any. Not sure why.

      - I coveted the Ruby Spears Mega Man figures, but never got any of those either. Rarely saw them in stores, for some reason (probably because I was at the mercy of parents and we weren't always able to go to the toy section). Thankfully, Mega Man has gotten a lot of merch lately! I still wish he had gotten a nice playable toyline, though. Ya know, rather than the expensive ones you wouldn't want to bring out to play with kids. Sonic at least got that, for what it's worth, from Jazwares. One of their rare gems...still plagued with some basic QC errors, but better than most of their other stuff. They mostly did the stuff I had always wanted, as a kid, so it all works for me!

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    2. Fox and Marth were the top tier characters back in Melee, yeah. I'm not too hip on the tournament scene (they take everything FAR too seriously), but as I understand it, the current Smabro has a wider range of top tier characters.

      "My own game" that I doodled out constantly as a kid was called Handman. It was a sidescroller and the main character was a person's hand running around on its index and middle finger. I drew out full levels and lots and lots of enemies, but amusingly I couldn't ever draw Handman himself. My brother and I would act out Handman levels using our actual hands (the second player ran around on all its fingers like Thing, and was named Femur).

      I really liked games with huge explosions like Gunstar Heroes and Contra, so later on I invented a "sequel" called Super Handman Blow-up, which was just like Handman but with bigger explosions.

      I drew some Sonic fan-comics back in high school, mostly just panels of him and Tails fighting the enemies from Sonic 2. But I never really got very good at drawing Mario himself.

      Oh and the Ruby Spears figures were pretty funny, they had this very "americanized" design, with Mega Man having adult proportions and lots of well-defined muscles. Also all of the Robot Masters had projectiles that could fit into Mega Man's buster arm so you could simulate him "gaining" their powers.

      Funniest of these was Gutsman. He came with a fire hydrant that he could just sorta...lift...and it had a peg to fit into the Mega Buster.

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    3. - Wow, Fox and Marth? Weird. I mean, not that I don't like them (I was a Roy man, personally), but they were always a little too fast for me. If they're too fast, all my attacks end up running past people. Hell, Smash isn't my best anyway. The screen moves way too much - side to side, in and out - for me to be able to land an attack on a regular basis. I like it for the chaos, but precise movements always elude me.

      - Ha! Ya know, I think there is a game with a hand for a main character. Glover, I think? My "game character" was a guy called Jack Cyborg (made it up before Samurai Jack was a thing). It was my own personal "Mega Man" style, though you would get weapons and items from the various levels, and upgrade them at a main base. I think I drew up at least four games in that series, detailing weapons, upgrades, levels, bosses, and other junk.

      - It's funny how ideas change when you're growing up and learning about new things! Just like explosions effected your style, I was effected by each new thing I ran in to. When I was big into Sonic, I had a ton of stories where the main badguy had a huge space station and the heroes ended up in space. I friggin' loved the end of Sonic 2 and then Sonic 3 and Knuckles. Then, of course, you could tell when Dragon Ball Z came around and my stories started including HUGE battles with powers 'n such.

      - I was never very good at the comics, back in the day, so all my Sonic stuff was a lot of bosses and stuff. I loved drawing machinery, for no good reason. Eventually I ended up doing stickman comics back in high school, along with a friend.

      - Oh yeah, I'm totally aware of the Ruby Spears ones! I would honestly like a few just for the historical value, and hilarity. A friend of mine gave me Gutsman, so I'm totally on board with that hilarious monster. He actually looks pretty close to the game, though! One guy I'd REALLY like is Snake Man, 'cause he looks so close to the game design, and I haven't found any other Snake Man merchandise. Sadly, he doesn't seem to come cheap - at least, not a good one.

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  6. Hilarious as always, Alexx.

    I want Wart, Tryclyde, Mouser, and Fryguy.

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    1. Man, I hope they hit Mario 2 stuff! I mean, I'm pretty sure a Shy Guy is on the way, but that's a given. I want some Sniffits and bosses, like you said. Maybe some more of the crazy ass enemies in that game.

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  7. That McDonald's jumping Goomba hits me right in the nostalgia core, man. He's still sitting on a shelf at home.

    The new one... I dunno, two smaller ones instead of one big guy seemed like the way to go.

    Oh, and they need to make a Peach where you can take her skirt off (SHUT UP, THIS ISN'T CREEPY) so you can get her Mario Golf / Tennis shorts look.

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  8. the next wave coming out is ocarina of time link, gravity suit samus, tanooki mario, shy guy, and fire luigi. here is a link with pics.


    http://thefwoosh.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=141&t=86808&start=1770

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    1. AWESOME! Thanks! I had heard about these awhile back, but I didn't know we had pictures already. Ocarina Link is lookin' great! I love that they made him a new Master Sword too, to match that specific style. Also, from the looks of it, they may have cut the sides of his skirt, this time! That'll free me up from having to do it.

      Samus is a repaint, but I'll buy anything Metroid! I'm more looking forward to other versions of her suit, though. Hopefully she comes with some other item instead of her ball form, again.

      OH MAN, giant Shy Guys!! I have no idea why I'm so excited that they're gigantic.

      I have a feeling S.H. Figuarts will do a Tanooki Mario at some point, but I'ma get this one, in the mean time. Looks great! Would love it if they packed him with his statue form, but that'd be the size of a whole other figure.

      I hope these will eventually be easier to find!

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  9. I am Japanese.
    I hope that Bandai sell Princess Peach and Bowser,
    I could buy Princess Peach from Amazon (about 30.00$)
    But I could not buy Bowser, it is so expensive(about 70.00$! )

    I want more high quality Princess Peach and inexpensive Bowser(><)

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    1. http://news.toyark.com/2015/10/08/nycc-2015-bluefin-s-h-figuarts-super-mario-bros-177963

      On one hand: Bandai just announced a Bowser! On the other hand: he's gona be 60 bucks! There's just no way to win in this situation.

      I agree on Peach, though. I'm looking forward to a Figuart Peach, at some point.

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    2. http://p-bandai.jp/tamashiiwebshouten/item-1000099137/

      Sounds great! Figuart Bowser is very high-quality. But, a bit small (about 5.11 inch)

      Actually… I could buy world of nintendo Bowser ($25.00+shipping) yesterday!

      Thank you very much for you help!(^^)

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  10. What kind of axe was that on the bridge in the mario one with mario peach and bowser and were did you get it

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    1. The axe came with the castle you see in the background, Castle Grayskull, from the Master of the Universe Classics toyline. It's a silver repaint of the axe that came with Vikor, of the same toyline.

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  11. Very informative article which is about the Call of Duty game and i must bookmark it, keep posting interesting articles.
    Call of Duty merchandise

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