POWER-CON 2018 EXCLUSIVE FIGURES
The 2018 Power‑Con figure selection took a very different direction from the previous year. 2017 was strongly focussed on the most interesting source material for Classics figures, namely the minicomics and concepts. By contrast, 2018 went totally Filmation. The shift was rather disappointing after two years of great Classics figures for fans like me, but absolutely appropriate considering the strong support for the Filmation line.
But I'm going to throw in a caveat. The signals at the moment seem to indicate that Super7 is putting much more effort into the Filmation products than the Classics. Having saved the line when Mattel lost interest, Super7 effectively took on the responsibility for keeping up the Classics momentum. At the time of writing, it seems that some of that momentum might have been lost. Hopefully 2019 will ease those concerns.
Most visitors to this site will be aware that Power‑Con is a He‑Man and She‑Ra convention organised by He-Man.org owner Val Staples and a dedicated team of volunteers. More information can be found on the Power-Con website. The selling of exclusive figures has become a way of partly funding the event. The figures are sold online in advance of the convention and dispatched a few weeks afterwards.
I think the 2018 selection sits well with Filmation fans. I've seen a fair amount of online discussion in favour of the two Trollan figures released with this batch in a two-pack, and the two standard figures also seem to be popular. But therein lies a curiosity: Power‑Con has – with this set – shifted from selling variants or obscure characters to figures which could hold places in a regular wave. It's an interesting development.
DREE ELLE is a character I vaguely remember from the Filmation cartoon in which she was Orko's girlfriend. The figure is quite accurate to the source material. Apart from the right hand being slightly too open to grip the wand properly, there's nothing wrong with the figure. I've always found Dree Elle's appearance to be sinister rather than cute, but that's probably just me.
UNCLE MONTORK is basically Orko with a different face. The beard looks more like a cravat to my eyes, but that's probably unavoidable. I'm glad that a redesigned stand has been included with Montork (and Dree Elle). The base is slightly broader and, as a result, more stable than the Orko stand. My only gripe is that it should have been colourless like the original.
CHOPPER is the Filmation name for Jitsu. He's a nicely designed figure. What's interesting is that Super7 has gone for a single-piece torso. The absence of articulation means a tidier look for the armour. The head is pointed slightly downwards and can only rotate sideways. I rather like this figure, and it's nice to see him with a normally-proportioned head after the flawed Classics version.
SPIKOR is the best figure in the set. I really like what the Four Horsemen and Super7 have done with this design. It's a close-run thing to decide whether he's better than the Classics version. I think I'm still leaning towards Mattel's figure because it was a good update on the original Spikor. There are no arm extension pieces with Filmation Spikor, but we finally get sharp spikes! He's really very good.