Tag: NECA

From the Archives: Oroku Saki (1990 film)

Recommended music: Queen – Cool Cat

Are you ready for something cool this #TurtleTuesday? Today, we’re taking a look at the NECA Toys Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Oroku Saki!

This version of the Shredder is based on his look in a flashback scene during the 1990 TMNT live-action film. The figure was only available in the “Shadow Warriors” 2-pack with Hamato Yoshi.

While there have been a handful of figures released based on the live-action look for Shredder, this is the first time we get this version of Saki, who comes with a slightly different backstory than in the animated series.

The figure features a fully articulated sculpt and comes with a pile of accessories. While some of the pieces included are geared towards Hamato Yoshi, most are interchangeable. These include a whole footlocker worth of weapons, including two axes, two bo staffs, a set of nightsticks/short club weapons, and a pair of nunchucks. The set also contains a pair of Splinter rats (one of which can attack Saki’s face), Splinter’s rat cage, a removable kimono with clothed arms, and a set of bare arms. Finally, also exclusive to this set is an additional head for Oroku Saki, complete with bloody scratch marks following his first encounter with Splinter. Overall, it’s a fun set and a welcome addition to the TMNT 1990 display.

#ActionFigurePhotography
#teenagemutantninjaturtles
#TMNT
#ToyPhotography

From the Archives: Foot Soldier – Split (Cartoon)

Recommended music: The Dickies – Banana Splits

So, on this #TurtleTuesday post from the archives, we’re taking a look at yet another NECA Toys Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Foot Soldier!

This release of the character, also based on the 1987 animated series, features another new split head/torso piece. Packed in with the second release of cartoon Casey Jones, this design of the character features a new damaged torso piece that is completely sliced from head to belly, exposing well-painted robotic innards resembling the split head of the T-1000 in Terminator 2.🤪

#ActionFigurePhotography
#Teenagemutantninjaturtles
#TMNT
#ToyPhotography

Napoleon Bonafrog (Cartoon)

Recommended music: John Swihart – Nap Rico Van

Now this #TurtleTuesday, we’re taking a look at the NECA Toys Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Napoleon Bonafrog!

This Napoleon figure is based on his look in the 1987 TMNT animated series. During the season two episode “Invasion of the Punk Frogs,” Shredder creates a quartet of mutant frogs from the swamps of Florida. He names them after conquerors and dictators, with this particular frog being named after the French general, Napoleon Bonaparte. He then weaponizes the hillbilly frogs and personally trains them so they can carry out criminal activities while still naive.

Unlike the Napoleon figure in the vintage toyline by Playmates Toys, this one closely resembles the character in the cartoon series. While Playmates also made a Genghis Frog figure in the vintage line, the Napoleon was something else entirely, as it was modeled after a horny toad, which is technically a lizard, and not an actual frog. 😄

Napoleon was available in a 2-pack with Attila the Frog (who was not included in the vintage line) and a good amount of accessories. Besides his extra head with a worried expression, he includes his bull whip, a frog that hasn’t been mutated, two extra sets of hands, a money bag, and a scrapbook. The paint is spot on for the character, as the sculpt is nearly identical to the other three frogs in the line besides his necklace. Overall, it’s a fun release and a huge upgrade to the vintage figure.

#ActionFigurePhotography
#TeenageMutantNinjaTurtles
#TMNT
#ToyPhotography

From the Archives: Foot Soldier – Slashed (Cartoon)

Recommended music: Velvet Revolver – Fall To Pieces

So, this #TurtleTuesday post from the archives, we’ve got another NECA Toys Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Foot Soldier!

This release of the character, based on the 1987 animated series, also sports a new torso piece. Packed in with the first cartoon version of Casey Jones, this release of the character also features even more damage than the bashed version, as the robotic parts are barely held together by a couple of wires, and he is about to break into two pieces.

#ActionFigurePhotography
#Teenagemutantninjaturtles
#TMNT
#ToyPhotography

Ultimate Count von Count

Recommended music: Sesame Street – Counting Is Wonderful

Sunny days are here again, as this #WhateverWednesday, we’re taking a look at the NECA Sesame Street Ultimate Count von Count!

Debuting in the fourth season of Sesame Street in 1972 and performed by Jerry Nelson for the next 40 years, the character of Count von Count is a friendly yet mysterious numerical vampire. Meant to be a parody of Bela Lugosi’s Count Dracula, the Count is hooked on physically counting items in the scene around him.

The Count has appeared in numerous Sesame Street books, episodes, specials, video games, and films, including Follow That Bird and The Adventures of Elmo in Grouchland, as well as in cameos during the finale group shots of The Muppet Movie and The Muppets Take Manhattan. The Count even co-hosted The Today Show with Meryl Streep back in 1988. Following Jerry Nelson’s passing in 2012, Matt Vogel fully took over the role, as he had already been providing the puppetry for the character for a few years.

The Count action figure for the NECA Sesame Street Ultimates toy line was first shown at San Diego Comic-Con 2024. It appeared at Target stores during their Haulathon event in early 2025. It was nice to find this one at retail, which allowed us to select the one with the best painted eyes. His packaging is based on the 1980s Sesame Street Treasury book series and is labeled volume 3.

Unfortunately, the group of bats shown with the prototype at SDCC did not make it to the final release. Hopefully, NECA will include them in the planned accessory set with other Sesame Street set pieces. Count still comes with a decent amount of accessories, including a candelabra, a large brown number, “2,” and a telephone.

In addition to his excellent soft goods cape, the figure also features a variety of display options, including two heads and a number of hands. Let’s count them: One hand, two hands, three hands, four hands, five hands, six hands, seven hands altogether. The number of the day is SEVEN, ah ah ah ah! 😄

#ActionFigurePhotography
#TheMuppets70
#ToyPhotography

Mutagen Man (Cartoon)

Recommended music: Krause – No Guts, No Glory (Seymour Bits Remix)

Moving on this #TurtleTuesday, we’re taking a quick look at the NECA Toys Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Mutagen Man!

The design for this Mutagen Man figure is based on his brief appearance in the 1987 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles animated series. Though the character debuted in the vintage Playmates TMNT toyline in 1990, he did not make an appearance in the cartoon until the fall of 1991 with the season five episode “Enter: Mutagen Man.” In the show, a wayward deliveryman (Seymour Gutz) falls into a vat of a random chemical, like so many Batman villains, and gets put right into service for Shredder.

The TMNT toy line featured many accessories and action figures that were designed to be gross-looking, including Mutagen Man. The original Mutagen Man toy had peeling skin. It revealed bones and fleshy muscle tissue. It also held a tank for a body with a scary brain head inside.

As this modern figure is based on the cartoon, he really comes off as much more of a cute aesthetic than a total gross-out. While the vintage Playmates figure could be opened so that ooze could be poured in, the cartoon and modern toys accomplish a cool look without the use of additional slime.

Mutagen Man arrived in a two-pack with Ace Duck and plenty of accessories. In addition to an interchangeable head that is accessed through the tank, he comes with seven hands to pick from, a canister of Bindex-3, which impacted his mutation on the show, and an additional weapon.

Even though I never had the vintage Playmates figure, I really enjoy this NECA version as the paint apps and design really fit in well with the other cartoon figures, while also including modern articulation and plenty of display options.

#ActionFigurePhotography
#TeenageMutantNinjaTurtles
#TMNT
#ToyPhotography

From the Archives: Foot Soldier – Bashed (Cartoon)

Recommended music: Queen – Don’t Stop Me Now

For this #TurtleTuesday post from the archives, we’ve got another NECA Toys Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Foot Soldier!

This release of the character, based on the 1987 animated series, sports a new torso piece. It’s designed for the moment just after Raph (or another turtle, I guess) inflicts enough damage to reveal its robotic innards. Packed in with the first cartoon version of April O’Neil, this was the first Foot Soldier to also include this sci-fi-looking blaster rifle.

#ActionFigurePhotography
#Teenagemutantninjaturtles
#TMNT
#ToyPhotography

Ultimate Ernie

Recommended music: Sesame Street: That’s What Friends Are For

Sunny days are here as this #WhateverWednesday, we’re taking a look at the NECA Sesame Street Ultimate Ernie!

Created for the first episode of Sesame Street in 1969 and performed by Jim Henson for more than 30 years, the character of Ernie has always been a star of the program. A typical Bert and Ernie sketch would see Ernie bothering his longtime best friend and roommate right in the middle of one of Bert’s solo activities so that the pair could hang out together. Ernie also has several memorable sketches (and songs) revolving around his passion for bubble baths with his rubber duckie.

Ernie has appeared in countless Sesame Street episodes, specials, Follow That Bird, The Adventures of Elmo in Grouchland, and also cameos during the finale group shots of The Muppet Movie and The Muppets Take Manhattan. Following Jim Henson’s passing, Ernie was limited to non-speaking cameos for a couple of years before Steve Whitmire stepped into the role for the next 20+ years. Ernie has always been performed as a live-hand Muppet, with a puppeteer putting his left hand in a sleeve (Ernie is left-handed). A different puppeteer then controls the right hand.

Ernie was released along with Bert as the debut wave for the NECA Sesame Street Ultimates toy line. His packaging is labeled volume 1 and is based on the 1980s Sesame Street Treasury book series. Ernie comes with a few good accessories. He includes a large letter “C,” a framed picture of Bert and himself that can be hung up, as well as his Rubber Duckie. The portrait of Bert and Ernie has been a common sight onscreen in the pair’s apartment since the 1970s.

The figure also has a variety of display options, coming with two heads and six hands. What a great way for NECA to kick off this line, as they absolutely nailed the look of the character.

#ActionFigurePhotography
#TheMuppets70
#ToyPhotography

Mousers (Cartoon)

Recommended music: Modest Mouse – I Came As a Rat

On this #TurtleTuesday, we’re right in the rat race, and taking a look at the NECA Toys Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Mousers!

This set of mousers is based on their look in the 1987 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles animated series, and initially was a NECA Store exclusive. The accessory pack comes with seven total mousers, including three in various states of battle damage. It also contains six mice (likely rats), plus another one poking out of a mouser, a slice of pizza, Swiss cheese, and a VHS tape.

One last accessory is the “Tubular Transport.” This little Spybot is seen in the third episode of the 1987 TMNT animated series, “A Thing About Rats.” In the episode, Shredder is actually the one who uses these tiny robotic helicopters to seek out Baxter Stockman and his mouser inventions. The mosquito-like devices appeared in the TMNT arcade game from Konami just a couple of years later.

I was pretty pleased with this release from NECA, as the amount of mousers and rats is certainly enough to set up a good scene reminiscent of the animated series. The ample amount of articulation also allows you to pose them in a variety of ways, as seen in the cartoon.

#ActionFigurePhotography
#TeenageMutantNinjaTurtles
#TMNT
#ToyPhotography

From the Archives: Foot Soldier (Cartoon)

Recommended music: Gorillaz – DARE

For this #TurtleTuesday post from the archives, we’ve got another NECA Toys Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Foot Soldier!

This figure was the first release of the character based on their look in the 1987 TMNT animated series. I really like how he is fully upright like a human ninja would be, so it is ambiguous when you’re looking at him that he is a robot, and not a human in ninja garb. This is a big improvement for me as the foot soldier in the vintage Playmate Toys Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles line looked much more like a gorilla drone than a tall standing foot bot, and the color scheme never really matched up with what we saw on our TV screens.

#ActionFigurePhotography
#teenagemutantninjaturtles
#TMNT
#ToyPhotography

Ultimate Bert

Recommended music: Pigeons on Parade

Sunny days are ahead as this #WhateverWednesday, we’re taking a look at the NECA Sesame Street Ultimate Bert!

Designed by Jim Henson himself, the character of Bert has been a staple of Sesame Street since the program’s debut in 1969. Always playing the serious, straight foil to the wackiness of his best friend and roommate, Ernie, Bert is often the victim of Ernie’s shenanigans.

Voiced by Frank Oz for the first 30 years of the character, Bert has appeared in countless Sesame Street episodes, specials, movies, and even had cameos during the group shots of The Muppet Movie and The Muppets Take Manhattan. The character is known for being detail-oriented and also for several hobbies such as reading Boring Stories, collecting bottle caps and paper clips, and studying pigeons.

The main pigeon in his world is his pet, Bernice. The character has been around since the mid-1970s and is played on the program by real-life pigeons, trained to be on set with the Muppet actors.

Bert was released in tandem with Ernie as the first wave for the NECA toy line. His packaging resembles a book and is labeled volume 2. Bert comes with a perfect set of accessories. He includes a large letter “A” and both his bottle cap collection and his cigar-box housed paper clip collection. He also comes with a book of Boring Stories and his pet pigeon, Bernice. The figure also has plenty of display options, coming with two heads for varied facial expressions, along with interchangeable hair and eyebrows. That’s the first figure I can think of with swappable brows. Finally, he has three different sets of hands for open, closed, and pointing finger looks. As with other NECA releases, they really nailed the look and detail of the character.

#ActionFigurePhotography
#TheMuppets70
#ToyPhotography

Michelangelo (Turtles in Time)

Recommended music: Ozzy Osbourne – I Don’t Know

On this #TurtleTuesday, let’s take another trip through time with yet another NECA Toys Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Michelangelo!

This version of Mikey is based on his inclusion in the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles side-scrolling video game “Turtles in Time.” The game was first available as an arcade cabinet in 1991, before being ported to the Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES) the following year and re-branded as Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles IV: Turtles in Time. The pixelated deco again works well for Michelangelo and all of NECA’s action figures in a video game design. This version of the turtles all came in individual window boxes with artwork in the style of that Turtles in Time arcade cabinet.

For accessories, Mike includes his dual nunchaku bearing a simple paint job, a spinning nunchuck effect, alternate “thumbs-up” hands, and his hoverboard. The board looks great on the included clear stand, allowing the turtles to gain a bit of elevation in your display. This vehicle, for one, also looks very accurate to the design that is seen in this level, “Sewer Surfin,” as well as the futuristic (2020) level “Neon Night Riders.”

#ActionFigurePhotography
#teenagemutantninjaturtles
#TMNT
#ToyPhotography

From the Archives: Foot Soldier – Melee Weapons (1990 film)

Recommended music: GaMetal – Menu 2 (Super Smash Bros. Melee)

For this #TurtleTuesday post from the archives, we’re taking a look at another NECA Toys Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Foot Soldier!

This version of the Foot Soldier is based on their look in the 1990 TMNT live-action film, and comes with “melee” weapons. As this is the exact same figure as last time, it retains the movie-accurate sculpt and paint job. It also retains the soft goods belt and modern articulation. However, this pack-out came with interchangeable hands, a bo staff, nunchucks (with a real metal chain), and a baton for taking on other turtles in a “fair fight.”

#ActionFigurePhotography
#teenagemutantninjaturtles
#TMNT
#ToyPhotography

Michelangelo (Secret of the Ooze)

Recommended music: Squirrel Nut Zippers – Missing Link

So this #TurtleTuesday, let’s take a look at yet another NECA Toys Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Michelangelo!

This version of Mikey is based on his appearance in the 1991 film Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: Secret of the Ooze. As with the other turtle bros, Michelangelo was first available in a San Diego Comic-Con 4-pack containing the turtles and later in a 2-pack with Donatello. The likeness is pretty spot on, and NECA really made this a worthy release, as the paint job reflects the textures on the updated costume from the second movie , and gave us a newly sculpted head as well.

For accessories, Mikey includes his standard nunchucks even though they did not get much use in the film. He also comes with the sausage links that stood in as a less violent version of the ‘chucks, helping to set the tone for the lighthearted sequel by the time the opening credits started. Finally, he comes with a pizza slice, a mostly eaten pizza crust, a pair of alternate hands, an extra forearm for some reason, and a canister of TGRI ooze. All in all, it’s a good addition to any TMNT collection.

#ActionFigurePhotography
#TMNT
#ToyPhotography

From the Archives: Foot Soldier – Bladed Weapons (1990 film)

Recommended music: David Bowie – Let’s Dance

For this #TurtleTuesday post from the archives, we’re soldiering on from Donatello figures and taking a look at the NECA Toys Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Foot Soldier!

This version of the Foot Soldier comes with bladed weapons and is based on their look in the 1990 TMNT live-action film. I think this is another great-looking modern figure with a movie-accurate sculpt. He comes with just a minor amount of soft goods (the belt), and the articulation allows for all sorts of life-like poses. The first release of this figure came with interchangeable hands, a katana sword, and a large axe as seen in the flick.

#ActionFigurePhotography
#teenagemutantninjaturtles
#TMNT
#ToyPhotography