MOTU Origins - SKELETAL LADY SLITHER!

Masters of the Universe Origins - Skeletal Lady Slither - Mattel Creations 2026

I love when a female character can be creepy and scary. For some reason, aside from the occasional witch or vampire, these traits are almost always owned by male characters. (Note that I didn't say gross or gory. There seem to be no gender hang-ups with blood-splattered or mutilated figures. But I digress). I have a special fondness for skeletons. I can see six skeletal things in my house as I type this from my couch - and they are year-round, not seasonal. So when Mattel announced this Skeletal Lady Slither as part of their Snake Lair crowd-funding campaign, I was obsessed. A skeletal female action figure in a retro style seems like something custom-made for me. The reptilian details are just icing on the cake. The only downside was that she was included in a $300 bundle that took a year to arrive. But I'm patient and irresponsible, so it was the perfect product for the perfect customer. I meant to review her sooner, but she seems very appropriate for spooky season. Let's check out Lady Slither below!

Transformers - VERTEBREAK!

War For Cybertron: Kingdom (Core Class) - Fossilizer Vertebreak - Hasbro 2020

There have been a decent amount of new factions introduced in modern Transformers lore. My favorites are the Armorizers (rocky looking robots that transform into rocky looking vehicles... apparently inspired by Inhumanoids) and the Fossilizers (Maximals and Predacons with skeletal dinosaur beast modes). I think these are both really fun concepts with some really great designs (and some not-so-great designs as well). There is also a fun added gimmick with these two lines in that the figures can be broken apart into all their component pieces and reassembled/swapped with other figures, creating new characters and combiners in limitless variations. However, my only female Fossilizer, the Predacon Vertebreak, does not have this feature (except for her tail!). This figure doesn't look entirely feminine, but she's small, uniquely designed, and I always appreciate another female "dinobot" in my collection - especially if she's an evil skeleton pachycephalosaur. Let's check out Vertebreak below!

G.I.Joe Classified - PYTHON PATROL VYPRA!

G.I. Joe Classified Series #88 - Cobra Vypra (Python Patrol) - Hasbro 2023

I remember very fondly when the Python Patrol faction was released in the Hasbro G.I.Joe toy line. I was just about losing my interest in all things 'Joe (it was 1989 and I, along with the rest of the world, was renewing their obsession with Batman). But those Python Patrol repaints sucked me right back in. It seems silly considering how young I was at the time, but I found the nostalgia for those re-used original sculpts irresistible. The cartoon explanation of the faction was pretty generic (magically-induced camouflage) and the actual deco with yellow (geometric) diamond patterns and splashes of red, wasn't very snake-like at all, but the alliterative name, Python Patrol, and seeing all those old figures again was all my young brain needed to get me fully obsesssed. This Python Patrol Vypra figure is a repaint of the Cobra Blue Ninja. It's amazing to get a female character in the faction, even if we had to wait 34 long years. I hope they repaint one of the Classified Valkyries now too. Let's check out Vypra below!

Amazing Heroes Retroverse - FANTOMAH!

Amazing Heroes Series 7 - Fantomah (BBTS Exc) - Fresh Monkey Fiction 2022

Fantomah, Mystery Woman of the Jungle first appeared in the February 1940 issue of Jungle Comics #2, published by Fiction House and created by comics legend Fletcher Hanks. She starred in a 7-page solo story and continued to be a regular feature in the next 50 issues until March of 1944. Fantomah appears as a beautiful blonde woman who transforms into a frightening blue skeleton to enact gruesome revenge scenarios on anyone bringing harm to her jungle home. Most comic heroines of the time were built on a solid foundation of beauty. Every other character was a model or a pageant queen in her backstory. And even in their masked crimefighting eras, beauty was always an essential trait. I believe Fantomah was the first female character to embrace being frightful. Even in modern comics, very few characters ever exhibit unattractive appearances. She has been rebooted in modern comics a few times and the skeleton effect is still jarring, even in these desensitized times. This figure is a standout in the series.

DC Universe Classics - SILVER BANSHEE!

Superman/Batman: Public Enemies Series 1 - Silver Banshee - Mattel 2009

My favorite villain in Superman's vast rogue's gallery is definitely Silver Banshee. I think villains that need to be stopped with brute force tend to be boring - and that rules out a ton of his foes. Second only to Kryptonite, Superman's most criminally underused weakness is magic. So a creepy nether-witch is a wonderfully contradictory image to his Boy Scout appeal. There have been two distinct versions of Silver Banshee in the comics (1987 and 2012 respectively) but both are young Gaelic girls named Siobhan who are stricken with a curse due to their family's legacy with the netherworld. Both versions of Siobhan take on a ghostly skeletal visage when they become the Silver Banshee and can emit a Death Wail that shrivels her victim into a lifeless husk. Shrieking skeletons are honestly a true childhood phobia of mine so I find her terrifying. In 2009, Target had a DC Universe Classics spinoff line for the Public Enemies animated movie that gave us this cool figure (and others). Let's check her out below!

Fortnite - SKULL SQUAD!

Fortnite - Skull Squad - Skull Squad Leader and Bone Ravage - Jazwares 2022

As long as I can remember I've had an obsession with skeletons. My favorite special effects movie growing up was Jason and the Argonauts. My favorite arcade game was Golden Axe. My favorite toy was the Pocket Power Glow Bones. I loved the skeleton costumes in Karate Kid. And in high school my big comic obsession was Andi Watson's Skeleton Key. All feature skeletons heavily. And on an amusing note, I never recognized this pattern until a few years ago when someone pointed out how many skeletons I have in my house (year round). Fortnite has always had a good track record with skeleton-themed characters. From the very beginning, Skull Ranger was a major player. And thankfully all the other characters are slowly getting skeleton repaints. This Skull Squad 4-Pack is my favorite multipack so far. The uniform deco is super appealing to me and make another great addition to my Halloween series. Let's check out Skull Squad Leader and Bone Ravage below!

Roblox - VIE BATTLE WITCH!

Roblox Imagination Collection - Wave 02 - Vie Battle Witch - Jazwares 2020

Merry Christmas! I feel like I am often left out of the fun holiday toy trends. This year my friends are going bonkers for the Holiday Storm Troopers and constantly sending me pics of their cool displays. But I find female holiday figures can be pretty rare (and often cheesy). So imagine my surprise to find one of the weirdest and coolest seasonal action figures I've ever seen right before the holiday. Vie Battle Witch is in the newest wave from the Roblox Imagination Collection (realistically-proportioned figures apparently designed by players using the library of virtual add-ons in the Roblox system). Vie wears a shocking giant deer skull headdress with festive holiday details. I love skulls. I don't find them creepy or dark, but rather like interesting curiosities. But I must admit I love how the antlers and holiday details give a krampus-like vibe. The overall look is intended to be creepy, and I can totally see that, but I just think she's adorable. Plus the title of "Battle Witch" is just damn cool. Let's check out Vie below!

Mythic Legions - SKELETON SOLDIER!

Mythic Legions: Advent of Decay - Skeleton Soldier Builder - Four Horsemen 2018

It's taken me seventeen months to open my Mythic Legions: Advent of Decay figures from Four Horsemen. I backed the original Kickstarter and got every female figure. But the problem with bulk toy purchases, is that I get absolutely overwhelmed at the prospect of opening and displaying them (let alone photographing/posting about them). That's why I currently have three large cardboard boxes in my basement: one full of dozens of unopened Boss Fight Studios figures, one with I Am Elemental, and one with Mythic Legions. The one good thing about Shelter in Place orders is that I'm forced to spend my excessive toy hunting time appreciating what I already own. This Skeleton Soldier Builder was one of my most anticipated figures from the entire lineup. As a kid I was kind of obsessed with skeletons: The skeleton girls on flying horses from the 1980 Return of the King cartoon gave me some of my first nightmares; I loved the Glo-Bones Pocket Power; and Jason & the Argonauts was always a favorite movie.

Marvel Universe - MISTRESS DEATH!

Marvel Universe SDCC '14 Exclusive - Infinity Gauntlet Boxset - Hasbro 2014

Happy Halloween!  I didn't have the forethought to do my typical series of Halloween reviews this year, but I did save this spooky lady that I've had on my shelves since August.  My first exposure to Mistress Death was in 1991's Infinity Gauntlet.  To be perfectly honest she always confused me.  I didn't know if she was the Grim Reaper, Thanos' wife, some sort of God, whatever.  All I knew is that she was omnipresent and creepy and she definitely made an impression.  She was honestly one of my favorite things about that series.  If I can rant for a second: that comic series was the first time the comic market made me feel like a sucker.  I was thirteen and busting my butt mowing lawns and delivering newspapers to fund all my emerging hobbies.  I got sucked into the "Infinity" storyline and spent all my pennies on a million crossovers and follow-up events.. a three year endeavor.  I approach all "big event" comics with trepidation now because that was a soul-sucking experience for an impressionable young nerd.  Rant over!  Let's check out Death below!

Skelanimals HARLEY QUINN!

DC Skelanimals 3" Vinyl Figures - Series 01 - Marcy/ /Harley Quinn - Toynami 2014
 
I've been impressed with Toynami's Skelanimals line since I first discovered them many years ago at a Hot Topic.  This was before skulls became a popular mainstream design motif on kids' clothing so it was something of a shock to see a plush cat skeleton.. especially a cute one.  I intended to buy them for all my friends' little babies, but every time I either couldn't find them or had second thoughts about their appropriateness for a 2 year old.  I actually just wanted one for myself, but couldn't justify having a stuffed animal amongst all my "super mature" collectibles.  Then at Toy Fair last year I finally saw a perfect Skelanimal for my picky sensibilities:  The Harley Quinn 3" Vinyl figure.  It took forever for her to be released and ever longer for me to find her in store, but she was worth the wait.  Now I can't wait to get all those upcoming DC Hello Kitty products so she's not so lonely in her adorableness.  I didn't realize till I had her in my hands that the 5 figures in Series 1 are all existing Skelanimal characters dressed up as DC Heroes.  In this case Marcy the Monkey is dressed as Harley (the curly tail tipped me off).  Let's check her out!