Figures Toy Co. Legends Of Professional Wrestling Series 1 Review

WARNING: What you’re about to read is going to be one of the most scathing reviews I have ever had to write for a product. I spend a lot of time (and money) writing these articles to help you people out when it comes to making purchases. I consider myself a consumer advocate for action figure collectors. So strap in, it’s only going to go downhill from here.

About a year or so ago, a company called Figures Toy Co. announced that they would be producing action figures for Ring Of Honor, as well as two other lines, Legends of Professional Wrestling (which is available now), and Rising Stars of Wrestling (which will be released somewhere down the line). But first, let me explain what Figures Toy Co. actually does. They are more or less a subsidiary of WrestlingSuperStore.com, and in recent years, have gotten into the custom action figure market (myfaceonafigure.com). The thing is, I’m sure they had the best intentions going in when they agreed to produce these. But best intentions can only go so far….

You see, Figures Toy Co. has the rights to use several of the old Jakks WWE Ruthless Aggression body molds for their lines of action figures. And if anyone reading this is familiar with that series, you’ll remember 2 things: lousy articulation and poor use of scale. Their Rey Mysterio was the same height as Brock Lesnar for fuck’s sake!

When the Legends of Professional Wrestling line was announced, I’ll admit it, I was hopeful. I saw it as a chance for a lot of indie talent I loved watching in ECW and elsewhere to finally get their dues as action figures. The first wave includes New Jack, The Blue Meanie, P.J. Polaco (AKA Justin Credible), and Jim Cornette. Since I was quite skeptical about these and they carry a fairly high price tag ($29.99 each), I only picked up 2 of them, and decided on New Jack and The Blue Meanie.

First, let’s talk about one of the only saving graces with these, the packaging. The figures are packed in a resealable clamshell, which is a great idea, considering there are both MOC collectors and loose figure collectors. This is kind of the best of both worlds. I’m just sorry it’s being used for such a shoddy product.

Moving along, let’s talk about the appearance of the figures themselves. It seems fairly obvious that Figures Toy Co. does not have access to Real Scan technology, so these 2 come off looking more like cartoonish caricatures than the wrestlers they’re supposed to represent. Meanie and New Jack’s head sculpts are decent (check out the scar tissue detail on New Jack’s forehead), but the heads are a bit oversized (much like the old WWE Jakks figures), so using these for custom Mattel figures doesn’t look like a possibility.

Time for quality control! Both of these figures have the loosest joints I have EVER seen on an action figure right out of the box! Meanie’s arms are flailing constantly and his head nearly popped out of its socket when I tried to turn it. New Jack has floppy ankles making it fairly hard for him to stand on his own without falling over. The paint jobs on these aren’t great either. Meanie has a big stain on his right forearm which I’m going to have to use acetone to remove.

As far as accessories, they decided on fabric clothing for this line of figures. Once again, also shoddily made. Blue Meanie’s Daisy Dukes are constantly sliding down, giving everyone a view of his non-existent genitals. THEY DIDN’T EVEN BOTHER PAINTING TRUNKS ON THESE FIGURES! THEY’RE COMPLETELY NUDE UNDER THE CLOTHES! (No, I’m NOT posting pictures of THAT on here). Meanie’s belt also snapped less than 2 minutes after removing him from the package. Where is New Jack’s 187 shirt with the tattered sleeves? Where is his backwards bandanna? Both are missing. They opted for a singlet and some camo pants with some poorly placed velcro. They threw in a plastic 2×4 with New Jack and a folding chair with Blue Meanie (which he can barely hold), so I feel they may be trying to overcompensate by doing this.

Final thought: SAVE YOUR MONEY! Unless you’re an ECW diehard or action figure completist, you can easily skip these. Customizers may wanna pick these up only for the heads to have them recasted and rescaled to fit Mattel bodies but that’s all I can think of. I’ll be back with a much more positive article in a few days, I promise. I’m so sorry if you actually read this all the way to the end.

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DJ Maniak

7 thoughts on “Figures Toy Co. Legends Of Professional Wrestling Series 1 Review”

  1. Tough but fair review. They don’t look very good. I’m only considering Meanie because I’m a fan of the character. Out of curiosity, how do these look scale wise with Mattel WWE figures?

  2. There’s a lot of incorrect information in this review. FTC has been producing figures for years if anything Wrestling Superstore is considered a division of that. If you’re going to review a product you should know facts about what you talk about.

    As a collector with extensive jakks and Mattel collections I like that they went the jakks route because there is a larger variety of talent in that scale. They did not obtain parts from Jakks. FTC figures are a similar style, but not using the same parts. The clothing blows jakks and mattel accessories away. The likenesses are provided and approved by the wrestlers. They are more hands on than either of those companies ever were.

    I think they’re great but that is my opinion. Still sad to see a review that starts off with a lot of wrong information. Or maybe you left it out purposely.

    1. Hi Tom! Thanks for reminding me that Figures Toy Co. has been producing figure for years. In fact, I can remember the last time they attempted wrestling action figures! It was that Legends of Professional Wrestling line from around 2000, wasn’t it? You know, the one that gave us an Abdullah the Butcher with 2.5 points of articulation and a likeness like King Hippo from Punch Out.

      And are you sure about the clothing “blowing Jakks and Mattel accessories away”? Considering Blue Menaie’s belt snapped right out of the package and his shorts don’t stay up, and New Jack has a lovely dye stain on his arm from the cloth elbow pad?

      While you claim this company may be more hands on than Jakks or Mattel, and hopefully the wrestlers represented are making a chunk of change for use of their likenesses (or lack thereof) You know something? A real scan Mattel figure has facial recognition on a camera. New Jack’s sculpt doesn’t.

      Anyway, thanks for your commentary. I’m glad my article reached you and the rest of the staff over at Figures Toy Co.

  3. The staff at figures toy co? Seems like a petty response to a simple comment. I’ve been a collector of many lines, for many years. I’ve given more money to Hasbro and Mattel than I can count. More than I ever have to Figures. So I guess by your outlook on things I must also work for them too? The funny thing is I regularly visit your site, but now I know not to in the future.

    That response comes off as juvenille and shows biased behavior. Yet you claim to be an advocate for collectors. I think I’ll pass on your input from now on.

  4. Hey, thanks for the review.

    One thing I’d like to see (maybe you can post it as a comment?) is these figures next to some Ruthless Aggression or TNA Impact figures for a size and parts comparison.

    1. Sadly, I don’t think I have any of either to use as comparison. This is strictly a Mattel household now, lol, with the occasional odd Toy Biz throwback. Sorry I haven’t done a review in a few months, I’ve had some health problems. Should have a new article up sometime soon though.

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