The Walking Dead's SASHA WILLIAMS!

AMC's The Walking Dead: Series 10 - Sasha - Walgreens Exc - McFarlane 2017

With the advent of McFarlane Toys' new Color Top series, I fully expected my Walking Dead collection to grind to a halt. Coincidentally this revelation came to me at just about the same time that I stopped watching the show so I wasn't terribly upset. But at the same time, there were a couple great characters that I felt deserved inclusion in the line before it ended: Rosita and Sasha. There was a digital sculpt of Rosita floating around the internet (which I have a gut feeling will never see the light of day), but I honestly thought Sasha was a lost cause. Then McFarlane surprised us by announcing this awesome figure as an exclusive addition to Series 10 available only at Walgreens. The figures in this series have been hit or miss as far as character likenesses go, but it's befitting that possibly the last female turns out to be one of the best. They are really going out with a bang. Sasha first appeared halfway through the third season and I instantly knew she was a strong and formidable character. Let's check her out below!

The Walking Dead - LYDIA!

The Walking Dead - Comic Series 5 - Lydia - McFarlane Toys 2016

It's pretty sad that the 5" scale Walking Dead series seems to have drawn to a close. The new larger-scale staction-like Color Tops figures seem to be the new standard going forward. I'm not sure how I feel about the shift honestly. I haven't bought any yet, but the upcoming Labyrinth and Dark Crystal Color Tops will definitely be added to my collection. There are rumors that Walgreens will carry some additional 5" Walking Dead figures this year, so I'll be keeping my eyes out for that. I still haven't read any Walking Dead comics, so this Lydia character is unknown to me. I know she was a member of the Whisperers who wear skinned zombie heads as hoods to blend in with the walkers. I'm so disturbed and intrigued by this group. Lydia's mother, Alpha, is the leader (and was a Skybound exclusive figure in 2015). Lydia's story has her getting rejected from the Whisperers and joining the main group (eventually having a romantic relationship with Carl). That's all I've learned so far. Let's check her out below!

The Walking Dead's BETH GREENE!

AMC's The Walking Dead: Series 09 - Beth Greene - McFarlane Toys 2016

In my first few months doing this blog, I randomly picked up a comic-style Walking Dead Michonne from a Toys R Us that was clearancing all its inventory. At that point I had never read a single Walking Dead comic nor seen a single episode. But since that fateful review I fell hard for the property (at least the TV side of it). This crew of amazing characters trekking their way up the east coast while avoiding zombie pitfalls has been one of my favorite stories for years. One of my favorite aspects of the show is how so many characters start out afraid and helpless, but grow into strong formidable members of the group. Beth never becomes a total kickass character like so many of the others, but she definitely became one of the most likable. I'm not sure what the future holds for this line. I have a feeling this wave may be the last of the AMC line. There is at least one more comic wave, and a new Fear the Walking Dead spin-off line. But I'm still holding out hopes for Sasha and Rosita figures. Let's check out Beth!

The Walking Dead - ALPHA!

The Walking Dead - Comic Series - Skybound Exc - McFarlane Toys 2015

I still haven't read any of The Walking Dead comics, but this figure is really making me want to start. All information I'm gleaning about this figure is pure conjecture from the packaging graphics.. but it's some pretty awesome conjecture. I gather that Alpha is the leader of a band of survivors that wear skinned walker heads as masks to "cloak" themselves. It's a pretty gross and cool concept. I really hope Alpha and her tribe make it into the show. I'm guessing she's on the "good" side since The Walking dead always likes to play with the "appearances can be deceiving" concepts, and she looks pretty gruesome... so she must be friendly, right? Time will tell. Skybound.com has released a lot of great exclusives over the past few years. (Skybound is Robert Kirkman's Entertainment company FYI). It seems to be a great way to get us characters that aren't a good fit for the stores. Hopefully there are many more.  Let's check out Alpha below!

The Walking Dead's MICHONNE (Comic Style v2)!

The Walking Dead - Comic Series - Skybound Exc - McFarlane Toys 2015

I still haven't read any of the Walking Dead comics, but the show is absolutely one of my favorites.  Michonne seems to be a fan-favorite on both the AMC show and the Image comics.  This is the third unique action figure we've seen of this character (not including variants and figures re-released with new accessories). I don't really know much about the rest of the toy line, but I think Rick might be the only other character with that many toys. This new comic version is a great improvement over an already fantastic figure.  She looks much more like the comic art now, but in a realistic 3-dimensional way that lets her fit in nicely with the AMC versions. She's available at Skybound in a full color version as well as gray-scale with blood spatter. I feel like this figure wasn't heavily advertised. I stumbled across her when I accidentally clicked the Skybound bookmark I had made last winter when I was hunting Clementine.  I'm glad I did though because this figure is gorgeous.  Let's check her out below!

The Walking Dead - CLEMENTINE!

The Walking Dead (Video Game) - Skybound Exc - McFarlane Toys 2014

The Walking Dead is a pretty amazing property.  A few years ago you never could have convinced me that I would be obsessed with a zombie television series.  I don't like gore or horror and honestly I don't watch much TV.  Then I bought the Michonne comic-styled action figure and that convinced me to start watching the show.  Now a few years later I find myself inexplicably drawn to the show every season.  I never even considered additional characters in the video game franchise until I saw this Clementine figure solicited.  Clementine is the 11 year old protagonist of the Season Two game.  She is in the Season One game as well, but not as a playable character.  She's known as a smart and capable character peppered with the understandable naivety of an 11 year old.  The toy is cool.  She's so much smaller than any other figure in the line, but she looks like she has the gritty determination to hold her own alongside the other figures.  Let's check her out below!

The Walking Dead's CAROL PELETIER!

AMC's The Walking Dead: Series 06 - Carol Peletier - McFarlane Toys 2014

I love Carol.  Of all the characters in AMC's The Walking Dead, she is by far my favorite.  When we first meet Carol, she seems nothing more than a meek victim of her husband's abusive nature.  But over the course of five seasons, we've seen her grow into one of the most complex characters in the series.  She is fiercely maternal, shockingly pragmatic, and a surprisingly competent survivor. Her comic book counterpart died off ages ago, but the TV character is so much more dynamic and interesting that she'll probably stay alive forever. The sad part for me is that I'm not sure what other ladies are on the horizon for this line.  Sasha, Beth, and Rosita are likely candidates, but at this point all the heavy hitters are done.  The sculpting on this Carol figure is great.  However, every version I saw in stores had pretty awful facial paint.  I looked at the paint master photos on spawn.com as a guide for a quick touch-up and I'm pretty happy with the results. Let's check out Carol (and my customization) below!

The Walking Dead's ANDREA (Comic Style)!

The Walking Dead - Comic Book Series 3 - Andrea - McFarlane Toys 2014

I still haven't read any of the Walking Dead comic books (despite owning them all).  I love the show though and that's enough inspiration for me to buy these toys.  I half-thought that the Comic series might be over because of their slow release dates.  The Television Series toyline is already at series 6 despite debuting several months after the first comic wave.  Andrea is one of my favorites from the show.  Most of the survivors eventually evolve into tough characters, but in my mind she was more dynamic; transforming from a simple passive nobody into one of the most formidable members of the group.  She was also flawed, making decisions that weren't popular with the other characters nor the viewing audience.  But that's what made me like her so much.  Predictability in a zombie show is just boring.  While I really like this figure, I feel like it is a departure from the other comic figures (I only one Michonne).  She's a little bit larger and a lot more grim and realistic than I expected.  Let's check her out below!

TOY FAIR 2014 Coverage - OTHER COMPANIES!

 

 LEGO - McFarlane - SquareEnix - Monogram - NJCroce - Dark Horse

The Walking Dead's MAGGIE GREENE!

AMC's The Walking Dead: Series 05 - Maggie Greene - McFarlane Toys 2014

In honor of new episodes starting up again this past Sunday, I wanted to review the third amazing lady in the McFarlane Toys The Walking Dead (TV Series) line so far.  This show has a surprising amount of fantastic female characters.  My future wants are Carol and Sasha.  And judging by the momentum that show and toy line is currently holding, I think there's a very good chance we'll see both of them in the next few years.  Maggie Greene is the tomboyish farmer's daughter (of Hershel) introduced early in Season 2.  I was instantly intrigued by her character.  She was strong, self-sufficient, a bit rebellious, and smart.  Over the course of the next few seasons we've seen her grow into one of the most formidable characters on the show.  If I had to pick a crew for a supply run into walker territory, Maggie would definitely be on my list.  McFarlane has hit yet another figure out of the park.  While the likeness isn't perfect, she's still instantly recognizable to any fan of the show.  Let's check out Maggie below!

AMC's The Walking Dead ANDREA!

The Walking Dead (Television Line) Series 4 - Andrea - McFarlane Toys 2013

McFarlane Toys just keeps on impressing me.  Back in the day, I avoided this company like the plague.  I thought the figures were oversculpted, oversexed, and way too gory.  But lately I've changed my tune completely.  It's not just these modern figures like Walking Dead and Halo either, I've backtracked and now own plenty of vintage 90's figures that I love.  The Walking Dead season 4 is about to premiere in a few weeks and I am very excited, but not as excited as I was to find this second female at Walgreens this week.  Andrea was one of my favorite characters in previous seasons.  A lot of people really didn't care for her.  She made very odd decisions and it was always hard to tell where her loyalties were.  But overall I viewed her as tough, competent, and a very interesting character to be roaming around with the gang.  In the first few episodes she could barely hold a gun, but by the end of season three she was one of the most formidable people on the show.  Let's check out this great figure of Andrea below!

AMC's The Walking Dead MICHONNE!

The Walking Dead (Television Line) Series 3 - Michonne - McFarlane Toys 2013

The last time I wrote about The Walking Dead, I knew nothing about it.  Since then, I've become thoroughly addicted to the show.  I still haven't cracked the comics yet (which is shocking since I'm a big Kirkman fan), but someday I'll take the plunge - which I'm sure will prompt me go out and buy all the comic-version action figures, too.  Michonne is a great character.  She's tough, mysterious, sexy, creepy, quiet, and really really angry.  I reviewed the Comic version of her early last year and was intrigued by her character design and bio.  Now that I've seen her in action I'm in love.   This action figure is absolutely amazing.  It's actually inspiring me to do a "Best of the Year" review just so I can award her the prize.  I'm glad she was the only character on the shelf in TRU when I found her, because I would have bought her pets in a heartbeat - even though I am actually really grossed out by gory toys.  I would have to lock them away and pretend they aren't in my house.  But I digress.  On to the review!

TOY FAIR 2013 Coverage - OTHER BRANDS!

Bandai (SHFiguarts) - Toynami - NJCroce - McFarlane - Little Mates

The Walking Dead MICHONNE!

McFarlane Toys - The Walking Dead - Comic Series 1 - Michonne

I feel like I've been writing a lot of reviews lately about characters and brands I know nothing about.  I have never watched The Walking Dead nor read any of the comics.  What I do know is that I've been spying this beautiful action figure on the shelves for a couple months now and when I found her at a liquidating Toys'R'us, I couldn't pass her up.  I need to do some serious research into what McFarlane Toys has been up to the past few years because this is the second time they've impressed me so far in 2012. (And this is after many many years of being quite the opposite of impressed).  It's always surprising to me how few female action figures are produced, and even more surprizing how few African American females are produced.  This fantastic figure has inspired me to create a series of posts dedicated to Black History Month.  I honestly don't have enough figures to do a daily themed post, but I have some really interesting figures I will be reviewing.  (Click Black History Month (BHM) in the post labels to see them all.)