Toys

Just when you think you've seen everything Mezco had to offer --- thanks to visiting with them at Toy Fair just a few weeks ago --- the company goes ahead and sneaks a surprise out into the wild. Though Mezco's One:12 Collective already has quite a packed slate for 2017, it turns out there's still room in the schedule for an all-new Wolverine. Or should we say, an Old Man Logan.

Since debuting with the New York Mets in 2015, pitcher Noah Syndergaard has become a fan-favorite in the Big Apple. As one of the most awe-inspiring aces pitching in Major League Baseball today, Syndergaard was quick to establish a memorable persona. That was doubly helped when a photo of him working out dressed like Thor made the rounds. The flowing blonde locks, the Norwegian name, and the larger-than-life profile made the nickname stick. Now, Marvel and the Mets have teamed up to give "Thor" his very own bobblehead in a promotion this season. Rather than just making a plain Thor in Mets colors however, the team and publisher are going all out with this original and exclusive design.

So whose your favorite Star Wars droid? I don't mean C-3PO or R2-D2, or BB-8 or K-2SO. I'd even be a little disappointed if you said Chopper. Those are all fine droids, but there are so many interesting robots lurking around the edges of the Star Wars Galaxy, just waiting to be discovered and appreciated. Two of the very best are BT-1 and Triple Zero, who first appeared in Marvel's Darth Vader comic, by Kieron Gillen and Salvador Larroca.

I love GI Joe in all its forms, but even with 27 different variations of Snake Eyes and a small army of Destros, I've always felt like my action figure collection was missing something. Like, say, a godlike figure who could walk among them, shaping their extremely complicated destinies. And now, I finally have the chance to add that with the Larry Hama: A Rea American Creator action figure, currently available from Bill Murphy in an unofficial, not-at-all-affiliated-with-Hasbro-or-GI Joe Kickstarter campaign.

It didn't take long for Hot Toys to jump all over the Marvel Netflix license when it was made available. We've already seen Daredevil in sixth-scale form, and now his season two rival, The Punisher, is getting his chance to prove his mettle. At least now you'll be able to set your Netlix heroes against your Marvel Cinematic Heroes, even if Marvel is taking a spectacularly long time to figure out how to make that happen in real life.

If you've seen the first Guardians of the Galaxy film, you know Rocket Raccoon has a thing for big attitude, big guns and even bigger explosions. The little guy just likes to make things go boom and yell loudly about it. When you're as good at it as Rocket is, it's not hard to understand why. Judging by the few teasers and trailers we've seen for Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 2, Rocket's taking things to a new level when it comes to the carnage he can create and celebrate. Now thanks to Hot Toys, we know for sure Rocket won't be speaking softly, and he definitely will be carrying a big heckin' gun.

At New York Comic Con, we got the first look at Super7's take on the Masters of the Universe, which it took up from Mattel last year. Though many of the first wave were characters we'd seen before, the next few waves look to have even more deep cuts from the subscription service previously under Mattel's command. As strong as those Four Horsemen-designed figures look, Super7 had even more interesting products on display, including a rare Jack Kirby character getting his first toy ever.

Once upon a time I didn't know what a Nendoroid was. That was a time when my wallet was a lot safer from the cutest import collectibles on the market. Good Smile did not have much new at Toy Fair this year, but the company did have a handful of products I hadn't yet seen in person in finished form. Though it would have been better to see a lot more of the upcoming Figma and Nendoroid pieces coming in 2017, Good Smile's limited offerings didn't disappoint.

Real talk: Magikarp rules. Of all the Pokémon who made their debut 21 years ago, it's the one that I think we can all truly identify with, a literal fish out of water who flails around uselessly, but then one day, one day, through hard work and persistence, turns into a flying laser-breathing dragon that can devastate the land in its rage. Or maybe I've just revealed too much about myself. Either way, Magikarp is finally joining the pantheon of Generation 1 superstars in the Pokémon Center's new line of Gallery Figures. The first four hit shelves with a set of incredible little figures of Eevee, Mew, and, of course, Pikachu.

Last year, McFarlane Toys reworked its strategy a bit. Instead of focusing on a few longrunning lines, the company switched to a primary series that encompassed all its licensed properties. Dubbed Color Tops, each wave mixes up comic, gaming, television and film characters into a larger collection. While the big guns like The Walking Dead still make up the primary focus, now things like Mass Effect, Attack on Titan, and even Spawn all fall under one banner. Add in building sets, and you have quite a bit of promising content coming from McFarlane in 2017.