The Golden Compass - MRS. COULTER!

The Golden Compass - Mrs. Marisa Coulter - Corgi/CardsInc/PopCo 2007

I remember when The Golden Compass film came out back in 2007, it was a very buzzworthy film. Between its intriguing trailers, strong cast (Nicole Kidman and Daniel Craig, among others), conservative group boycotts, and general appetite for YA fantasy at the time (Harry Potter and Narnia franchises were in full swing), this movie seemed like a slam dunk. But I remember watching it and being unimpressed. There were details I loved, like the cold arctic setting, the armored intelligent polar bears, and the characters' souls being represented by dæmons with the appearance of animals. But something about the movie just didn't capture the magic of the books (the His Dark Materials HBO series from 2019 did a better job). But still, I remember my 2007 anticipation well and when I stumbled across this Mrs. Coulter action figure in a collectible toy shop this Summer, I had to get her. This line is made by Cards, Inc (a subsidiary of Corgi - makers of car replicas and figurines), and distributed by PopCo

DC Universe Classics - CHEETAH (PRISCILLA)!

DC Universe Classics - Series 13 - Cheetah (Priscilla Rich) - Mattel 2010

I will always have a powerful nostalgic draw to the original Priscilla Rich incarnation of Cheetah. She first appeared in the 6th issue of Wonder Woman way back in 1943 and became Diana's fist costumed adversary until her eventual death in the 1980s (twice). I can't quite remember when I first discovered her, but I know it was in backissue bins and reprints in the 1980s. Of course I know some of my memories are conflated with the Paula Brooks version of The Huntress who I also developed an early obsession with, but Cheetah was clearly the more prominent cat-villain. Her spotted bodysuit with cat ears and tail always makes me very happy. It's cheesy, but oddly relatable. As an animal-obsessed kid this costume is the exact sort of thing I would have come up with for myself. This figure was a 50/50 variant with a Barbera version in the 13th Wave of the groundbreaking DCUC line. The figures definitely had issues, but the character selection was mindblowing. Let's check out Priscilla below!

DC Universe Classics - CHEETAH (BARBARA)!

DC Universe Classics - Series 13 - Cheetah (Barbara Minerva) - Mattel 2010

DC Universe Classic was a very interesting toyline. It was the first modern DC action figure line in mainline retail stores, it was reasonably priced, and it hit some very obscure characters over its four-year run. I was on-board from the start, but I was also highly critical of this line. As a collector who focuses on the female characters, the production quality was left wanting. This is especially a shame because the 2-Up sculpts and paint masters by the Four Horsemen were always beautiful. But the figures we saw in stores had squished faces, scrawny short arms, and most egregiously, a neck peg that often entered the skull in a too-far-forward position giving the character no neck undercut. These problems seemed isolated to the female figures and were a constant source of disappointment for me. But the interesting character selection kept me hooked. The fact that we got two versions of Cheetah (modern and retro) in the same figure slot is a testament to the fan service Mattel was providing.

DC Comics - WONDER WOMAN!

DC Direct Page Punchers - Wonder Woman (1st App) - McFarlane Toys 2025

McFarlane Toys has made a lot of Wonder Woman figures in the last five years. I personally own twelve, and I skipped a lot of variants and retools. Aside from a super classic bronze age design, my most wanted was always a first appearance figure was always top of my wish list. Her early stories in Sensation Comics and Wonder Woman are iconic and her costume is still instantly recognizable after 80 years of redesigns. I'm always a little surprised that there aren't more collectibles featuring this look. My historical knowledge of 1940's Wonder Woman is a little scant, but I gather that different artists interpreted her as wearing either a star-spangled skirt or short culottes, but I think I prefer the skirt interpretation for this figure. The only odd thing about this figure is that she is very tall. I feel that Wonder Woman's stature has gradually increased over the years, but I usually don't associate this First Appearance design with towering Amazonian height. She looks awesome, but looks odd in a lineup. Let's check her out below!

Super7 ReAction - UNDERSEA GAL!

Nightmare Before Christmas - ReAction Wave 2 - Undersea Gal - Super7 2022

The Nightmare Before Christmas was a slow-burn of acceptance and adoration for me. It was released when I was in High School and at the time I didn't love musicals or "dark" aesthetics. Yes, it was playful, but goth was a true social strata at the time that I just didn't fit into. The goth kids were eating this movie up. It was actually my high school art teacher who first started my appreciation of the movie. He made us watch the film (on laserdisc!) followed by the "making of" documentary every semester. In late high school I became huge fan of Ray Harryhausen, which in turn made me appreciate all stop-motion film a lot more. But the big plunge was a decade later when I dated an NBX superfan. I would be coerced to watch the movie several times a year, and I would research all the Neca figures and slowly purchase them as gifts for every occasion. Flash forward 20 years and I love it. Any my favorite character is Undersea Gal, the Creature from the Black Lagoon homage who has several cool cameos.

Superthings - NEBULAXIA!

Superthings: Rivals of Kaboom - Evolution - Nebulaxia (GITD) - MagicBox 2023

When I travel to other countries, I love to hunt down toys I've never seen or heard of here in the United States. Last year I was in England for a week and annoyed my travelling companions by stopping by every toy and candy shop we passed. I only found a single solitary "unknown to me" toyline the entire time though. Superthings is a kid-focused franchise featuring toys, merchandise, and a cartoon with a ton of fun vibrantly-colored characters. I believe the toyline was first and spawned the rest of the franchise. Googling now, I can see a handful of cool female characters (my favorite is Sourbette). But when I was there, the only lady I could find was Nebulaxia, a space-y adventurer with a UFO-shaped helmet, a cool space blasters, and a sidekick (Star Explorer) that looks like Saturn with wheels. Plus she glows in the dark, which is my favorite gimmick in all of toydom. I was very happy to find a figure so weird and quirky. Plus she could easily fit in my luggage. Let's check out Nebulaxia below!

NECA GITD Retro - BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN!

Universal Monsters  -  SDCC Retro GITD Bride of Frankenstein - NECA 2025

The 70s and early 80s were a dark time for female action figures. Despite some iconic ladies in pop culture like Wonder Woman and Princess Leia, they had almost no merchandise. You could fit all the female action figures in existence into a shoebox (I'm excluding soft Mego figures). With Universal Monsters, it seems there was always toys around (notably from AHI and Remco), but the Bride was always excluded. In fact, I believe (with the exception of an old Aurora model kit) she was never represented in plastic until 1998 when both Hasbro and Sideshow released figures. The TMNT April O'Neil as the Bride (1994) has such notoriety, because it was the first time her image (even in homage) was in action figure form. Since 2023, NECA has been gifting us with Remco-styled redeco's of the Ultimates figures on vintage cards. I had assumed this line would be limited to the original 6 Remco characters. But then we were surprised by the inclusion of The Invisible Man, Nosferatu, and of course, the Bride.

NECA Ultimates - BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN!

Universal Monsters Ultimates -  The Bride of Frankenstein - NECA 2023

I don't know why I waited two years to open this figure. I was very excited to get her back in 2023 and faked an appointment to leave work midday when my local toy shop posted that they got her in. But then time got away from me and I never circled back to her until I picked up the SDCC GITD version of her this Summer. She is really a great action figure. I especially love a Bride figure when there is an alternate mummy look to display, I think the last mummy head included was way back with the 1998 Sideshow figure. When I first saw this NECA Ultimates Bride, I was confused by her brown hair. I always assumed her hair was black in the (black and white) movie and every piece of Bride of Frankenstein merchandise I own sports raven hair with a shock of white hair. But I've come to terms with the fact that the true color is auburn (Elsa Lanchester's natural hair). Plus I really like how it pairs with the off-white color of her robes and her brown-hued makeup. She looks great. Let's check out the Bride below!