Mattel’s Whiplash figure is the newest Masters of the Universe Classics figure on sale at
MattyCollector.com. Like most of their Masters figures, it sold out within minutes of its August 16 release. Don’t worry; I am sure it will be reissued at some point in the not-too-distant future.
When I first opened this figure (provided on the day of release), my first reaction was a little lackluster. Honestly, Whiplash was never one of my favorite characters. I barely remember him from the original cartoon, and I never owned the original figure. I did have the 200x version which was nice looking, but it still didn’t do a lot for me. Whiplash always seemed like one of the more generic characters in the He-Man rogue gallery. A lizard-looking dude with a big tail that knocked people over, I mean really. Compared to cool bad guys like Trap Jaw, Tri-Klops, and Skeletor, this guy just seemed boring to me. Even Beastman, a somewhat generic-looking character, had more appeal since he had a more dominant role in both the original series and the 200x one.
Still, I sought to keep an open mind while I reviewed the figure, and I am glad I did. The added articulation in this figure (versus previous incarnations) is really nice. As with all the Masters of the Universe Classics figures, the Four Horsemen did a great job adding articulation to really great looking sculpts, something that was sorely missing from the 200x line.
This figure shares almost the same points of articulation as previously released Masters of the Universe Classics figures (ball-joined shoulders, ankle joints). All the joints on the figure are tight. What stands out most for me on Whiplash are the ball-jointed neck allowing the figure to move its head in a wide range of movements and the swivel waist and chest articulation under the figure’s armor allowing the tail to be used as a weapon as intended.
The tail starts at the figure’s shoulders and attaches to Whiplash’s back almost like a backpack accessory. Two pegs on the figure’s back attach to holes on the inside of the tail. It can take a little finesse to line up the holes with the pegs just right so the tail is secure, but the tail remains fairly tight once attached (a definite improvement over the 200x version with a tail that fell at the slightest movement). A swivel point halfway down the tail on the new figure also allows you to turn the bottom inward- or outward-facing.
Accessories for the figure include a basic trident staff (similar to the original figure) and an almost Klingon Bat'leth-looking sword (similar to the weapon provided with the 200x version). The figure also comes with two interchangeable heads. One resembles the classic figure while the other is very similar to the 200x version. I may be in the minority, but I prefer the 200x looking head over the classic and really like that we were given a choice of the version to display on our figure.
The paint apps on the figure are decent. The green color of the figure’s tail seems to be a little lighter than that used on the figure’s chest, but it is nothing terribly noticeable unless examined closely under the light. The weapons and the figure’s belt use a bright shade of orange which seem a bit gaudy on its own but looks pretty decent next to the dark green and blue colors used on the figure.
I still think the Whiplash character is somewhat generic looking overall, but the figure itself remains very true to the source material and is nicely constructed. Though not vastly larger than other figures like Skeletor, Whiplash is taller when compared back-to-back like he should be.
If you haven’t already and you get an opportunity to add this one to your Masters of the Universe collection, then I would recommend doing so.
Appearance 19/20
Articulation 9/10
Poseability 8/10
Final Judgment 39/40
