Mer-Man - Ocean Warlord

If it wasn't for Mer-Man I am not sure if I would have continued to buy MOTUC. Well, that may not be entirely true but I knew I was 100% committed to the line as soon as I opened up the plastic prison that held this figure.

This was the first MOTUC figure that I had taken out of the package and once I had it in hand that was all that it took to completely convince me I had made the right choice to collect this line. This was the first time that I actually got to really appreciate the sculpts and the articulation. The biggest surprise was the bulk and weight. I could just tell these were durable and solid and Mer-Man spent quite some time on by bedside table where I would regularly change the pose and the weapons.

There are a lot of people who still put Mer-Man right at the top of their list of favourite figures and for good reason. I am not a big fan of the character and this is one of the cases were the figure completely outshines the character. It is possible that if I had started with Stratos as my first figure I probably would have been more than a bit disappointed (I really need to stop ragging on Stratos) but Mer-Man is almost like an ultimate version of the character with all the extras he comes with.

I remember when I first got the original Mer-Man figure for my birthday. I was very disappointed that he did not look like he did on the cartoon. That same day my dog got to Mer-Man and chewed him up. I wasn't as sad about that as I should have been but I guess it was a lucky thing I wasn't real happy with the figure.

For the MOTUC figure, the Four Horseman have definitely made amends by giving Mer-Man two heads. The cat head, which is based on the vintage figure and the cross sell head, which is based on the old cross sell art. My favourite look is the cross sell head, even if it does make him look happier than he should be, and although it still doesn't look like the old cartoon it is much better than the cat head.

The Four Horseman have also gone above and beyond and sculpted an extra piece that look like gills. This was a perfect addition to the figure and really helped to cement it's standing as the ultimate version of Mer-Man. The idea has also been reused on Stinkor and the Snake Men 2-pack which has given them their own, more distinct look than just sharing the same basic torso.

Even though I have accumulated a case full of accessories I will always welcome more, especially if they are as well done as the ones that come with Mer-Man. The armour looks like it has a mixture of lion fish and murex (I had to look it up) plus influences from many other sea creatures (but I am too lazy to look up more) and the sword and trident is definitely modelled after coral.

The sword is a lot nicer than the baby corn version of the vintage sword and fits rather well in the back of the armour. The trident is based on the 200x version and I actually prefer to arm my Mer-Man with this weapon for some reason. Probably because the trident just doesn't sit too well in the armour, although it can work.

You will notice there are no pictures of the Toys 'R' Us MOTU vs DC 2-pack Mer-Man repaint. There will also not be a review on that either as I did not like those packs. I bought the first couple of packs but I am more a Marvel fan than DC and the packs didn't seem to be worth the price for me. There are fans of that particular deco of Mer-Man as it hearkens back to the first few mini comics but for me, I much more prefer this version. Each to their own though.

Mer-Man really is a great figure, there is no denying that. But because I prefer the cross sell head and the 200x inspired head for Stinkor it means the only time the cat head is displayed is in my MOC collection.
In closing, if you are new to the line and haven't yet grabbed this one I certainly suggest tracking one down. There are some figures that you don't need in your collection but this is absolutely one you do, even if you don't like the character.