My Five Favorite Figures of 2022
2022 has been one of the strangest years for me as a toy collector. After turning 38 earlier this year, I had this sense of pending doom. It was like a mid-life crisis but instead of going out and buying a pickup truck or getting my ears pierced, I started to liquidate all of my assets. There were a few months there when I was sure that I didn’t have enough money to retire on and I had to correct that immediately. I started to sell off my figure and shoe collection as fast as I could. For weeks, my kitchen table was lined with boxes with shipping labels strapped to them. I was hitting up the post office so much that the attendant stopped asking me if there was anything perishable or lithium in the contents. She knew that was nerd shit. All of those Marvel Legends that I hunted down over the years…gone. The WWE figures that I amassed…gone. Those Yeezy’s and Jordan’s that I kept in air-sealed boxes so that they’d keep that fresh China workshop smell…gone.
Thankfully, that anxiousness began to die down as the year went along. After selling off the majority of my collection, I would walk into my home office and feel a bit depressed when my empty Detolf’s greeted me. Don’t get me wrong, I still have that sense of pending doom, but that doesn’t mean that I need to overreact and make myself miserable. It was time to collect again, but this time, instead of buying into the hype of the community or being a completionist, I was going to go with quality over quantity.
So as I start this new phase in my toy collecting, here are the five figures that I’m most appreciative of from 2022.
5.) Ramen Toys – Quicksilver
Yes, I made a post earlier this year where I bitched about the quality of this Quicksilver figure. But as time has passed and my initial disappointment has subsided, I’ve come to appreciate it a lot more. I still have my complaints about the quality, but at the end of the day, all that I wanted from this Ramen Toys figure was to be able to look at my display case and see a chrome-painted Quicksilver. At the very least, this figure checks that box.
4.) ISH – Scott Pilgrim
In a time where every toy maker is focusing on facial scanning, accessories, and points of articulation, this Scott Pilgrim from ISH is a throwback to simpler times.
Sold exclusively through Bottleneck Gallery’s website earlier this year, this figure was designed by Scott Pilgrim vs. The World creator Bryan Lee O’Malley himself. And while I do wish that it had more articulation so that I had options when it came to posing him, I love looking up at my display and seeing this vibrant figure staring back at me.
#3.) 4 Horsemen – Mythic Legions Dark Templar
It was about 5-6 years ago that I started to go deeper down the toy-collecting rabbit hole. As you’re going to these conventions, joining these Discords, and making these friends in the community, you start to see the hype around things that you don’t understand. Mythic Legions was the fandom that I was most confused by – aside from Hot Wheels, obviously. Collectors went ape shit for Mythic Legions, and while they looked nice, I didn’t understand the high price point nor the thrill of collecting figures that weren’t based on a cartoon, comic book, video game, or anything of that nature.
On a whim, I purchased my first figure a few months ago and I totally get it now. The quality of these figures is so impressive – especially for the price point. And having these characters not based on anything that I’m familiar with is actually another big benefit. I don’t have to be a completionist and can just buy the figures that I think look cool.
#2.) Filix Toys – Inkblot
When I think of bootleg, third-party figures, I think of those toys that you would see being peddled in Mexico or on your local Dollar General store shelves. We have all received one of those from our grandmother at some point. Inkblot is the first third-party figure that I have ever sought out. Zack Snyder’s Watchmen is the greatest comic book adaption ever made, and I will gladly die on that hill. It’s a franchise that you would think is prime for figures from the Mafex and Mezco’s of the world – heck, I’ll even take a McFarlane – but it just hasn’t happened.
Enter Inkblot. The amount of love and detail that went into this Rorschach-inspired figure is top-notch. Not only do you get three mask-covered heads, but you also get a Jackie Earle Haley head that is so realistic and menacing that I feel awful for not displaying it. There are also an overwhelming amount of accessories to choose from. Filix Toys could have offered this with just the heads and some hands and I would have been happy, but they didn’t stop there. The Comedian’s infamous Watchmen pin, Rorschach’s journal, a rose, a cleaver, grappling hook, and most impressive, a paint can and lighter combo along with a large flame.
I’m not a fan of soft goods on my figures under most circumstances, but that also works with this Inkblot. His trenchcoat, scarf, and trousers really help set this figure apart from the others. He even has socks!
DC, give the folks at Filix Toys a call so that they can make more of these.
#1.) Mafex – Homelander
Pre-ordering a figure from Mafex can be one of the more stress-inducing things that toy collectors can do to themselves. Adding it to your cart and checking out is the easy part, but knowing that the release date you were provided is nothing short of a pipe dream is where things get more challenging. In some cases, that figure isn’t going to be in your hand for close to two years.
Thankfully, in the case of this Homelander, all that waiting and toy anxiety was worth it. There was a part of me that felt foolish for ordering this guy for over $100 when there was a $20 NECA alternative in stores, but in hand, I have no regrets now. Just look at that face sculpt. It’s so good that I have to restrain myself from not punching it. It’s a perfect figure, and that’s why Mafex’s Homelander is my 2022 Figure of the Year.
