Action Figure Overview: Masters of the Universe 200x - Mekaneck (Mattel, 2002)
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| Masters of the Universe 2002 Mekaneck |
The original Masters of the Universe toys first came out in 1982. Each year, new figures were introduced all the way through 1988. The character "Mekaneck" was part of the third wave of figures which came out in 1984. Mekaneck's action feature / gimmick was that his neck could extend. When the original action figure was twisted at the waist, his neck would extend straight up. Although the figure came out in the third wave when the line was very popular, he wasn't really one of the main characters for Masters of the Universe back in the 80s. While characters like Beast Man and Teela were featured on all kinds of merchandise in the 80s including stickers, lunch boxes, drinking cups, paint-by-numbers sets, erasers, etc.; Mekaneck only appeared on one puzzle (off to the side fighting Clawful). He was only included in three episodes of the original cartoon series and five of the mini comics (and he was just a background character in a couple of those).
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| 200x Mekaneck (Mattel, 2002) |
When the series was re-launched in 2002, Mekaneck was better fleshed out as a character and given a more prominent role in the overall storyline. In the 2002 cartoon, Mekaneck lacks confidence and he thought he doesn't have as much to offer as the other his friends despite the fact that he's actually a more capable and useful part of the group than his 80s counterpart. His neck stretched out much longer than the 80s version and was able to snake around like a rope. He also wore goggles that worked as binoculars and offered him night vision. Plus, he was more of a warrior than he was in the 1980s where the character was mainly just a spy for He-Man and company.
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| 2002 original Mekaneck & 2003 Serpent Track Mekaneck |
In action figure form, the 2002 series offered three different full-size versions of the Mekaneck figure (2002 original Mekaneck, 2003 Serpent Track Mekaneck, & 2004 Mekaneck repaint) as well as a mini-figure of Mekaneck! The vintage figure had a solid head, but the 2002 version has a viewer so that you could look through the back of his head and what he sees.
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| Mekaneck 200x - Now More Than Just He-Mam's Spy! |
Although Mekaneck still isn't a first-tier character in the Masters of the Universe mythos, there have been a few more versions of the character to appear since the 2002 (or 200x) line ended. There was a Masters of the Universe Classics version of Mekaneck, but then again, there was a 'Classics' version of every single figure from the original run plus numerous characters who hadn't ever been released as action figures before, so it would have been more noteworthy if they hadn't released Mekaneck. There was also a Mekaneck bust / statue in 2004. The Loyal Subjects released Mekaneck in their second wave as a Hot Topic exclusive in 2018 and in the same year, Super7 added Mekaneck to their ReAction line. He may not be the most popular character on Eternia, but if he's one of your favorites, there have been several versions for you to collect!
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| Various Mekaneck figures: Serpent Track 200x, Loyal Subjects, Carded 200x, Loose 200x, Vintage |
What do you think of the the character Mekaneck? Do you have any of the Masters of the Universe 200x line of figures? Do you have Mekaneck in any of his toy incarnations? Tell me in the comments!
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