Necro-Conda Reanimated Snake Men Soldier! Masters of the Universe Origins Deluxe Action Figure Item No.: No. HXH51 Manufacturer: Mattel Includes: Teela sword, curved sword, skirt, claw, wrist armor, tail section, dagger Action Feature: Some elements glow in the dark, all green bits are UV light reactive Retail: $27.99-$35.99 Availability: ca. September 2024 Other: Shared Walmart, BBTS, Entertainment Earth Exclusive
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I was delighted/annoyed by Necro-Conda and continue to be. Why? The shared exclusive seemed to change status at a few places, requiring some degree of chase, and as an army-builder it would've been nice to have components for two figures in the box. It comes close - I'd love another torso thrown in at a higher price, because you get 3 handheld weapons, a cape, armor, an alternate tail, and a trading card. It reminds me a little bit of the very cool Skeleton Warriors, but there, you got two whole guys.

It's a great concept for a character. According to the trading card in the box, a Neco-Conda is a reanimated snake skin. So when the Snake Men shed their skin, their leftovers come back to life to fight as their army. That's a brilliant spin on some sort of undead/ghost/zombie trope, and to a lesser extent not unlike the fate of one Lyndsay Ballard.

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The figure itself is a great mishmash of other parts. His leg armor borrows from 200X Skeletor, his armor is that of Snake Armor Skeletor, the arms are the bracelet-less variety, the legs have been used for other snakes, and I think the head is new here. I don't have all th e Snake Men, but I have a bunch and I don't recognize the extended neck, open mouth, and snake tail wrapped around the neck. It's an unusual design. It's a clever army-builder, but so ornate he seems like he should be his own guy - like a Scare Glow, or some such.

His head paint is a little sloppy, but striking. The eyes and mouth are painted, as are the eyes on teh armor and some silver trim - plus some on the arm, which doesn't seem as successful. It's worth noting the green paint glows fairly well, but not as well as the rubbery glow plastic on the armor. The weapons don't glow at all. Despite being a translucent ghostly green color, they're just green. I guess it's a design choice, but it seems misleading when you have a toy that advertises "Glows in the Dark!" front-and-below-center on the box.

You can pop him apart and swap his legs for a tail - neither seems to be better for stability, but they totally change the look of this toy and allow Mattel to charge an extra 50% with it being a whole bonus half of a figure. There is no paint on it, it's the same metallic dark green that the rest of the body uses and it's a great match for the texture on the arms.

I have been fond of a lot of the new guys in Masters of the Universe lately, and I'm a sucker for glow-in-the-dark figures. If anything this feels more like something Onell Design might do - a clever reconfiguration of mostly existing parts, in sharp colors, with a fun story that makes you say "yes, here's my money, Mr. Toy Man." I admit I'm trying to dial back my MOTU purchases a bit - if it's not something I wanted as a kid, I might skip a few things - but glowing monsters work well for me. If you get a crack at this one, you should consider giving it a shot. Just keep an eye out for paint slop around the eyes and mouth if you have such an opportunity.

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