Saturday, July 24, 2010

LVJR - Do you have Attitude?

For the eighth installment of my "Latest Vintage Jakks Receivings" posts, I've scratched two BCA-related items off of my personal list of wants.

So, uh, that would be a good thing.

Thanks to the ever-wonderful world of eBay and combined shipping, I won two separate listings from the same seller, including three MOC BCA figures and a brand new BCA-era ring, for just over $21 shipped!


Yes, the Attitude Wrestling Ring with original BCA box art is finally mine, well, again and it arrived in about the same condition as it could be found on store shelves twelve years ago.

The box itself is a little worse for wear, but all that matters is the contents inside and I was fortunate to evade any factory errors or broken pieces.


Somewhere, the BCA gods are looking out for me (or at least I'd like to think so). Anyway, I'll start off with the singles figures which are significant in their own miniscule ways.


D'Lo's new head sculpt comes straight out of a blender (I'm beginning to think this is what Jakks Pacific actually did 9.9 times out of 10); however, his body is on loan from Vader.


Shane McMahon's first figure is definitely an improvement over Vince's first way back in the LJN line, but the BCA suit mold has its restrictions, as well. Kane's first regular BCA figure (i.e. without the Slammers action feature) is held off to the last minute (almost literally since it replaced a scheduled Billy Gunn repaint), but it is a welcome addition to my collection.


The only accessories to be found are D'Lo's JVC Kaboom box and two WWF scratch logo stands for Shane and Kane (hey, it rhy..nevermind). But, have no fear, there are plenty of accessories to be had with the three-in-one ring otherwise known as the Attitude Wrestling Ring, or Attitude Ring for short.


The first Jakks Pacific ring that is scaled almost perfect to the BCA figures acts a regular ring, a steel cage ring, and a carrying case for your figures. Or, you could always throw some documents in there and walk around your office like you're not living in your mother's basement.


Sure, maybe the steel cage attachment is all-fantasy and little-to-no WWF reality, but kids were glad to have anything after Jakks failed to deliver on a Monster Ring cage. There is an LJN cage available from the late 80s, but how hard would it have been for Jakks to copy or create anew the mold that worked so well before?

The waiting game would continue until a brand new cage was introduced in the early 2000s for the TTL line but, for BCA collectors of the late 90s, the Attitude Ring version would have to suffice for a few years.


Now, catapults were at an all-time high during the BCA-Attitude era because kids loved to be destructive and Jakks was willing to appease them. I never quite understood catapults when steel ring steps would have been more useful or, hell, even a table with a set of chairs.

Maybe the money could have been spent on a more accurate steel cage accessory, perhaps? But I digress.

My take: There's no question that the Attitude Ring is a better fit for the BCA figures than the previous Monster Rings. The cage and catapults likely aren't going to wow you, but everything comes together nicely and is a suitable, playable ring set, even in the year 2010.

If you come across one MIB for anywhere under $25 (as I did), I would suggest going for it. You aren't going to be disappointed, especially if you have had any experience with the later WWF Hardcore Rings (although, the Attitude Ring is not quite as customizable).

If you have to spend $30+ for a brand new ring, I would make sure this is something you really want because there are better alternatives (Hardcore Ring, Real Scale Ring) out there. As for the three figures, I would recommend buying them all if you can for a reasonable price (no more than $5 each new, $2-3 used).

Fun fact: Shane McMahon isn't the only suited figure in Superstars Series 8. Commissioner (Shawn) Michaels is wearing a dark brown suit with similar parts, but the arms and torso mold are different.

Until next time, thanks for looking and have a nice day!

1 comment:

Stank Ass Ho said...

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