Toy Review: April O’Neil & Mousers from NECA

April O’Neil & Mousers

I became a fan of NECA after I bought their Raziel (Soul Reaver) action figure. This was around the time when they were starting to include a lot more articulation in their figures, which put them above McFarlane Toys. Far above. Then their first wave of TMNT figures hit and floored me. They were by far the best toys I had ever seen. They still are, as a matter of fact. When the second wave of TMNT figures was announced, I was excited. Then months past. I was like “huh. I wonder when… Now it’s been a year and I’m like “meh.”

Oh, I’m still gonna get them, IF they ever are released, but I think NECA really killed momentum when they shelved their plans for wave 2. Now with Playmates getting the global license for TMNT, it’s looking less and less likely that their prototypes for the Shredder and foot clan soldiers will ever see production.

Luckily, we at least can get our hands on the third figure announced for wave 2, April O’Neil.

Sadly, she’s not the yellow version that was announced last year, but the blue suited SDCC Exclusive version. Since I got my turtle fix from the cartoon series and not the original Eastman/Laird comic, I really wanted the yellow clad news reporter. I’m still hoping that 2rats will be able to bring in some of those eventually, but for now, I’ve got this one to keep the Turtles company.

Did that ever bother anyone? 4 teenage anthropomorphized turtles, hormones going nuts, all hanging out with 1 busty babe in tight coveralls? That I haven’t seen this Rule 34′d is amazing. I mean if they can do “Snow White and the 7 Dwarfs”…

But back to the figure. It’s again based on Mr. Laird’s art and not the cartoon, so she does look different. She’s short, about 6″, the same as the NECA turtles. April in the series was taller if I remember correctly. She’s actually shorter than revoltech figures.

Short or not, the figure is a nice scuplt that goes well with the 4 original figures. It’s got some seriously deformed features though. Look at that melon sized head! It’s like a planetoid with it’s own gravitational pull!

The size is understandable since we are talking about a franchise that has been taken from comics. The art was always kind of like that. Her hands and feet though seem in proportion. I tried popping off her head, see if I might use her body for another figure, but no go. It’s on there tight.

Paint wise, she’s nothing special. She’s painted in flat colors; brown, blue and skin tone. Instead of washes, she’s got lines drawn on her in strategic places. Her lips for example are a flat color that’s been outlined in black. It makes for a really weird look, but one that isn’t too far from the concept of the line.

She does however fail in articulation. Now I wouldn’t expect April to have the same number of joints as the Turtles. She’s not a ninja, after all. But NECA missed a couple of key things.

For example: WTF, NECA, YOU FORGOT THE THIGH CUTS! Since I’ve gone over this point over and over in my reviews, I’ll leave it at that.

She also is lacking upper arm swivels that would have help her make more realistic gestures [edit: forgot that her elbows swivel, which is essentially the same thing. Mixed up this figure with the DC Direct Nightwing/Flambird.]. I’m telling you, both these joints should be made into an INDUSTRY STANDARD, as in mandated, with a severe penalties handed out to any manufacturer who doesn’t comply.

She does come with a few accessories. Two Mousers. Their bodies are identical to the SDCC exclusives from last year, but they have articulated jaws and one has a busted leg. I’m glad they gave her these to play with, but I was also hoping to see a sidewalk base to go with the one from the Mouser 3-pack last year.

Sadly, you can’t switch out the Mouser heads, nor can you replace the busted leg. Both features would have been appreciated.

I was able to get both of the SDCC sets on sale; April at p1000.00 (500 off), and the Mouser 3-Pack at p700.00 (1300 off). The price point is why I finally decided to get this version instead of waiting for the other. If I ever do find it, at least I’ll have 2 more mousers to add to my little army.