Back when I lived in the States, yard sales were a big part of my weekends. My family was never well off and I honestly loved those Saturdays with my Mom cruising around the subdivision visiting neighbors who were trying to clear up some space in their homes, looking for things we needed around the house. Aside from household items and clothes, most of my toys came from these yard sales as well. I was always ecstatic when I found an almost complete Transformer or some G.I. Joe that was missing from my strike team.
These days, yard sales are pretty much a thing of the past; or at least the kinds of finds that I remember from back in the day are. Most people who want to sell things just do it on eBay. Collectables like toys are virtually gone from thrift stores now, since you can find a buyer willing to pay a much higher price for them online. I guess that’s why I enjoy toy hunting so much. It’s the only time I really get that same feeling I remember from when I was a kid.
The Toy Kingdom Warehouse Sale is one of the events that I regularly mark on my calendar because it’s historically the event where I find the most items at bargain prices. This year’s pickings was a little leaner than the past year’s hauls, as it looks like Toy Kingdom has finally exhausted it’s back stock and most of the big discounts on current stock had been implemented months before the event. One of the new things that were brought in, though, was the Warriors of Virtue toys.
I already gave a background on the movie that kicked off this failed 90’s franchise when I reviewed the Rooz set last week. Those toys were in great demand during the first day of the sale, selling out quickly. When they were re-stocked the next day, the kangaroo warriors again were picked off the shelf as fast as they could be taken out of the boxes.
The supporting characters however, didn’t fare as well.
Aside from the five main characters, there were 11 more toys that were made back in 1997: six supporting characters (4 humans and 3 “warmbloods” animal warriors) and five bad guys. Of these, only 3 were available on the same scale as the five Rooz, 2 more were somewhat less so, and 6 were apparently very, very hard to come by. According to the sales reps during the sale, those 6 hard to find figures (Ryan, Elysia, Mudflap, Barbarocious, Mantose, and Dullard) were available but only 1 out of several dozen boxes had them (the figure changed depending on who you asked). I was lucky enough to find an Elysia and Barbarocious early in the day, but was too late to get the lone Dullard and James I saw.
Komodo and General Grillo were still there on the shelf when I got there on day two and some of the boxes for restocks also had them. I came away from day two with 7 more Warriors of Virtue figures. At Php 50.00 a pop that was one of the best hauls I’ve had from this event.
The best subset of this line has got to be the bad guys. They share the same aesthetic as the Rooz, but as they are human, their accessories and articulation vary slightly. Most of the ball and socket joints are replaced by simple swivels here (except for Grillo), while their weapons are better scaled for other 1/12th scale lines like Marvel Universe.
Barbarocious is especially good in terms of accessories since she gets a whip. Yeah, that’s only one include, but it’s a WHIP. If you still have a DC Universe Classics Catwoman without one, this is perfect for her! It’s so sad that she’s so much harder to find than the rest.
Grillo is nice as well, with a polearm and a removable helmet and cape. Again, I’m amazed at how nice the fit of both is considering that if it had been made today the helmet would not line up correctly and you’d have eyes that could not look out through the holes. I love the way his tunic is sculpted and his proportions. If he had a little more articulation, this would be a very good figure.
Komodo is the disappointment of the group, looking so soft and silly with his greasy black hair. It doesn’t help that he can’t use his cool looking sword well because he was sculpted with his arm bent at the elbow, or that his dress hampers the little articulation he has below the waist.
Another thing that bothers me is the smell of the baddies’ cloaks. They’re made of some translucent plastic that has somehow degraded over time. The smell when I opened them was very strong, and all three have a sticky residue on them that feels like the leftover adhesive from a sticker or cellophane tape. I guess you can remove it with lemon juice or vinegar or peanut butter, but it’s something to think about before you give these to a kid.
The good guys are somewhat less striking
The “warmbloods,” or the anthropomorphized animal warriors that populate the fantasy land of Warriors of Virtue, are probably the ones that are the most disappointing. Both Willy Beest (that’s his name, seriously) and Mosely are supposed to be big, strong warriors that rival the prowess of the “Rooz”. However, both figures are noticeably smaller than any other figure except maybe the dwarf or the human kid, Ryan. It’s pretty ridiculous considering it says right on the back of the package that these are supposed to be the largest of the warmbloods.
Neither of the two figures comes with any accessories. They’re hands are sculpted in awkward looking karate chops and posed, they look like they’re priests serenading an audience rather than warrior monks ready for battle. They also suffer the most in the articulation department since their lower limbs are trapped inside a skirt of rubberized plastic.
And to top it all off, they’re both ugly as all get out. It’s no mystery why these were the figures warming shelves at the Warehouse Sale.
The last subset is the human supporting characters on the good side: Elysia and Master Chung. What goes for the warmbloods goes for the humans as well. Though they look better than the moose and bison (at least I think it's a bison...), neither sports much in the way of articulation. They still have the same basic 5 points, but they also share the same rubber clothes that hinders movement below the waist.
They still come out better than the animals, though. Like Barbarocious, Elysia was one of the figures that was hard to come by during the Warehouse Sale. I saw only one of each and I got them both. A quick check of online sellers shows that they’re also sold out of these, too, despite having stock of the other figures. Even in an obscure toy line like this, female figures always become chase figures because toy companies don't believe they sell.
Master Chung thankfully was easy to find as he’s another one that parents don’t seem to want to buy. He was left on the shelf along with Willy Beest and Mosely. However, he gets plus points because he's got accessories: a staff and a ring of prayer beads. Both fit well in his hands and add a little something to his display-ability and hence his score.
Even at a Php 50.00 price point, these still seem like a questionable purchase, but one thing swung me back into a favorable stance. Their accessories actually fit with the other 1/12th scale figures in my collection. That's awesome, since I recently bought Hasbro's Comic Series Loki and they forgot to give him anything. What's a scheming god to do when your archenemy carries around a hammer? Borrow other people's stuff.
While I don't think I'd give these figures as high a recommendation as the 5 Rooz, I think they're still worth the sale price. The only problem is, now that I've got 75% of the total number of figures in the set, I feel I'm obliged to complete it. With Ryan, Mudflap, Dullard, and Mantose nowhere in sight locally, it looks as if I'll have to get them online. Each costs at least $7.00 or $8.00 (about Php 350.00) now, before shipping.
Facepalm.
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