Battle Beasts Series 2
Item No.: #45 Manufacturer:Hasbro Includes:Screw Spinner trident, second randomly-selected figure) Action Feature:n/a Retail: approx. $3.99 Availability:ca. 1987 Other: This sample has a "Fire" color rubsign
Another Battle Beasts I've had since it was first in stores, Slasher Seahorse is my buddy. It looks like we'll get at least one semi-updated version of this sea creature in Beast Saga eventually, but he ain't out yet. Let's look at an original!
Like most of the vintage Battle Beasts, Slasher Seahorse manages to combine Takara's robotic eyes with an adorable house style, resulting in a collectible figure that appeals to children and adult man-children alike. His glowing red eyes don't really shine in his brown plastic head, but they contrast nicely with his blue armor complete with silver lights. Much like the fire-spitting dragons in Metroid, his snout and crest come off as cute and you're probably also just so gosh darned happy to have one that it may not bother you that his paint spray isn't terribly even, and when you have dark plastic it can show through any light paint errors much more easily.
With two points of articulation, the figure has a heat-sensitive rubsign and the traditional robo man panties. His "feet" are exposed in his boots, and the outfit (when you get right down to it) has body coverage similar to that of Masters of the Universe. The real-life creature's fins are represented by fleshy growths on the shoulders, and unlike some other early figures Slasher Seahorse has textured hands. The armor is covered with panel lines and vents, which look great for really no good reason. His entire body has a fairly consistent and boxy texture, and this contrasts nicely with the fairly smooth look of pretty much the entire line. In other words, this is one of those figures that's not like the others.
His trident, or spear, or whatever fits in his hands perfectly because in the 1980s, that was considered normal. Figures which couldn't carry their gear from major toy companies were far and few between, and its bizarre, angled pole vaguely recalls undersea life like rays. I might just be reading into something that wasn't there. Sorry this one wasn't more amusing, I never really looked at this figure under the hi-res lens of a camera before and it's weird realizing that one of my best plastic pals from childhood is actually a finely-sculpted action figure worthy of your attention. Even today, it still looks great and gives current Beast Saga figures a run for their money in terms of sculpted detail, if not deco or articulation. To this day I don't g.shtml why he has such a horrifying name. Heck, lots of these guys have pretty gritty names, I suppose it was easier to get away with as none of the toys were named on-pack and were revealed through a mail-in poster offer.
As a kid I made it a point to get as many ocean-based Battle Beasts as possible, as I've found many of you have as well when you write in. (Don't forget, you can leave comments too!) The vintage figure/weapon/figure+weapon are actually pretty cheap on the secondary market and you shouldn't have too much trouble scoring one in good, complete condition for under $10. I'm seeing several closing for around $7. Considering modern Battle Beasts Minimates 2-packs are close to $10 and Beast Saga imports are impossible to get for under $7, why not get some vintage, OG-style figures while the prices are still decent?
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