Justice League International - FIRE!

DC Multiverse Gold Label - JLI's Fire (Target Exclusive) - McFarlane Toys 2024

I'm glad that McFarlane Toys is taking the opportunities provided by their exclusive Gold Label and Platinum products to include relatively obscure and under-merchandised characters in the DC Multiverse line. The recent Blackfire and upcoming Huntress (and variant) are great examples. Fire is a character with a huge fanbase. She first appeared in the 1979 issue of Super Friends #25 as the Green Fury (who shot green flames out of her nostrils.. no joke).  I don't know long it took for her backstory to be fleshed out. But now the commonly-told origin is that Beatriz da Costa was a Brazilian model (and secret government agent) who was accidentally exposed to a mysterious substance called Pyroplasm which gave her the green flame powers (pre-Crisis her powers were mystical in nature). She has been a member of many teams over the years and gone by many names: Green Flame, Green Fury, and her most common, Fire. She is a dynamic character who is long overdue in the toy aisles.

DC Club Infinite Earths - ICE!

DC Universe Signature Collection - Ice - Mattycollector Exclusive - Mattel 2014

I think I avoided reviewing this figure for so long because I was so disappointed at the end of the DC Universe Classic line. This final wave was technically part of the subscription-only Signature Series as they were trying to squeeze out a final few fan-demanded characters. I've had Ice sitting unopened on the shelf under my coffee table for six years. I would pull her out like I was going to finally open and photograph her, only to sigh and tuck her away again.. like a time capsule of a time when I had awesome subscription toys coming every month. But I finally followed through a few weeks ago and now I'm excited to set up a Fire and Ice shelf. While this figure has a number of flaws, I still find her utterly charming. Her face, hair, and neck seem oddly contorted and her ab crunch joint is very distracting, but her arms look good (not the spindly appendages most DCUC females got), her colors are vivid, and it's just a really fun toy overall. Unfortunately, I think the days of C-listers is over. Let's check out Ice below!

Justice League International - FIRE!

Justice League International - Action Figures Series 02 - Fire - DC Direct 2009

My first exposure to Beatriz da Costa was in the pages of Super Friends when she went by the name Green Fury. I was always drawn to monochromatic characters, even at such a young age. But on the flipside, I was also so young that the idea of fire that wasn't red or orange baffled me. That's honestly why I remember her so well.. because her powers confused me. I didn't even realize she was she same character as Green Flame and Fire until very recently. When she was Green Flame in the Global Guardians, she first started being paired with Icemaiden. And when Icemaiden was re-created as Ice in Justice League International, Green Flame followed suit and shortened her name to Fire. I really don't know much about the pair, except that they seem so iconic - like a female Blue Beetle and Booster Gold. There have been a handful of good action figures of this pair, but I personally think these DC Direct Justice League International versions are the best. Let's check out Fire below!

Justice League International - ICE!

Justice League International - Action Figures Series 01 - Ice - DC Direct 2009

Fire and Ice are two characters I know next to nothing about. I never read any Justice League books when I was young, let alone Justice League International. But when I got into toy collecting in my twenties, the official DC Direct message boards were overflowing with fans begging for action figures of the pair. There was also a fair amount of shipping going on, but as far as I can tell that was all just fanboy fantasy. Once I started reading about the characters, though, I became kind of obsessed. I love the theme of elemental opposites with coinciding temperaments. Ice is Tora Olafsdotter, a naive girl from a magic wielding tribe of Norsemen. There is some confusion with the character Icemaiden who debuted a decade prior. Apparently the JLI writers thought Icemaiden never had a fleshed-out history when they introduced Ice (who they intended to be the same character). But Icemaiden had a very detailed origin previously published which led to Ice being an (unintentionally) original character.

DC Comics Signature Series FIRE!

Your Favorite Brazilian Beauty Queen, Fire - MattyCollector Exc - Mattel 2013

Fire is such a great character.  Beatriz Da Costa was a swimsuit model in Brazil who was caught in a pyroplasmic explosion which granted her the ability to emit and control green fire.  She was a member of many teams throughout her comic career including the Super Friends, the Global Guardians, and Checkmate, but the most stand-out and long-running role was in Justice League International (where she joined her longtime friend and companion, Ice).  Fire and Ice are probably the most fan-demanded DC ladies from toy collectors.  But, considering their longevity and mass appeal, they've been merchandized very little.  I'm not a big fan of this latest addition to the toy roster unfortunately.  For such a long-awaited character, it really seems like Mattel missed the boat on this one.  The sculpting and articulation is just awkward.  It's such a shame, too because with a little bit of effort this could have been a great figure.  Let's check out Fire in detail below.