Sealab 2021's DEBBIE DUPREE!

Cartoon Network: Adult Swim Series 01 - Sealab 2021 - Palisades 2005
 
I have never been a big fan of Cartoon Network's Adult Swim programming.  Irreverent humor just isn't my thing.  That said, I love the fact that shows like Harvey Birdman, Space Ghost Coast to Coast, and Sealab 2021 exist because they breathe new life into the kind of classic cartoons that I love.  Without the goofy antics of this late-night programming, we would never ever ever be getting toys of these classic Hanna-Barbera characters.  For those uninitiated, shows like Sealab 2021 take original animation (in this case, from Hanna-Barbera's 1972 sleeper hit, Sealab 2020) and repurpose it into comical nonsense by means of splicing, dubbing, and adding new animation.  My brothers love this stuff, but it just isn't my cup of tea.  Sealab 2020 was an underwater adventure series reminiscent of Star Trek.  Sealab 2021 was a parody of that same setup, but set 1 year later when all the characters were getting lax with their underwater responsibilities.  Debbie Dupree is actually the character Gail from the original show.

Identity Crisis ZATANNA!

The Resident Magician of the DCU - Identity Crisis: Series 1 - DC Direct 2006

When prepping this review for inclusion in my Halloween lineup, I had it in my head that Zatanna was a witch.  But then I realized that witches and magicians are very different things, even though the lines between the two are pretty blurred.  Even more interesting was the new tidbit I just learned; that Zatanna isn't necessarily even human, but rather a member of an ancient race called the Homo magi.  Zatanna first appeared in the pages of Hawkman in 1964 and has been a regular (and often understated) character ever since.  She also maintained a lot of her trademark costume details; the fishnets, jacket, and tophat to name a few.  There was however a stretch of time in the early-to-mid eighties when she donned a blue and white getup with a lobster-looking thing perched on her head.  It was a very weird look but I kind of loved it.  The costume was brought back in the 2004 Identity Crisis miniseries which luckily spawned this cool action figure.  Let's check her out below!

Superman/Batman CORRUPTED SUPERGIRL!

Apokolips Supergirl - Superman/Batman: Series 2 - DC Direct 2006
 
This one is even in Halloween colors!  The girls sculpted in DC Direct's Superman/Batman lines are some of the most criticized collector figures of all time.   The sculpts by Big Chief are really good and truly representative of the late Michael Turner's art.  Michael Turner's art, however, is exaggerated and ultra-sexy.  But those same exaggerations that work so well in two dimensions tend to lose their illusion when rendered in 3-D.  The lanky torsos (in both the male and female characters) look dynamic on the page, but positively deformed from the plastic perspective.  The version of Supergirl came about when Darkseid kidnapped the newly-arrived Kara Zor-El from Themyscira where she was being trained by Wonder Woman.  Kara was brainwashed to lead Darkseid's Female Furies and donned this "corrupted" look.  I wasn't a fan of this story when I originally read it, and I was even less of a fan when these toys originally came out.  When was I finally sold?  Read on below..

DC Direct Natasha Irons STEEL!

DC Direct - Superman/Batman Series 3 : Public Enemies 2 - 2007

Natasha Irons is a bit of a mystery to me.  She hasn't been in a single comic that I've read, yet I know a lot about her.  For instance, I know that she's the niece of Steel (John Henry Irons) who briefly took the mantle of her Uncle - and was apparently very popular in that role.  I also know that Natasha is one of those chracters who is constantly getting new powers and new superhero identities.  I bought this toy on a whim from a clearance bin when I was on vacation.  All the solicit photos I had seen showed her with her mask on, and I thought her mask made her head look gigantic and her face look all jutted out, so she was always an easy "pass" for me.  When I finally picked her out of this clearance bin years later, my eyes were finally opened.