Action Figure Overview: Clash of the Titans - Charon (Mattel, 1980)

Charon from Clash of the Titans (Mattel, 1980)

Clash of the Titans was an awesome movie and when it came out in the early 80s, we got a handful of cool action figures from Mattel based on the film!  Obviously there was going to be a figure of the main character, Perseus, and the main villain, Calibos.  They also threw in a figure of the main soldier dude, Thallo, which works well since he hung around Perseus a good bit.  However, it's the fourth figure in the line that was a bit of a surprise based on the movie.

My childhood Charon and Perseus action figures (both missing their swords)

The line was rounded out by a figure of the skeleton ferryman, Charon.  Charon is an awesome figure, but that dude was in the movie for about 2 minutes and didn't do much of anything but ferry a boat.  I'm glad Mattel made him, but if you've seen the movie, it seems like Medusa would have been the logical choice for a fourth character...or even one of the generic soldiers that accompanied Perseus on his journey.  Either way, movie or not, I thought Charon was a cool figure as a kid (and I still think so as an adult) regardless of the fact that he probably wasn't the most logical choice in terms of importance in the movie!

All he needs is a boat...and a coin!

Charon was your basic skeleton in a hooded robe.  He was essentially just one accessory away from being the Grim Reaper, but I had no idea where to get a sickle for him as a kid!  All four of the Clash of the Titans figures came with the same sword accessory even though Charon never had a sword in the movie.  I guess Mattel didn't think they'd sell any more figures just because Charon came with a boat pole instead of a sword, so they didn't make a special accessory just for him.

I may be alone here, but I think he fit right in with the Fisher-Price Adventure People!

Despite being an odd choice for a Clash of the Titans action figure, Charon made his way into the adventures of many toy lines.  What line of 3 3/4" action figures wouldn't be improved with the presence of a Grim Reaper?  Remco's Universal Monsters line, which came out around the same time, could definitely be improved by the inclusion of a skeleton!

Charon looks great next to Remco's Universal Monsters line!

Fans of The Misfits (band) saw Charon and the original action figure of The Fiend decades before ReAction gave us a proper figure of the character...in more than a dozen different colors.

Charon (Mattel) and The Misfits' Fiend (ReAction)

Although Charon works well with pretty much any line of figures, I've heard he played one role more than any other; even more than the role of Charon, which he was literally made to play.  That is the role of The Emperor from Star Wars!  Kenner didn't release an action figure of The Emperor until 1984, but he first appeared in The Empire Strikes Back in 1980.  And he wasn't just a background character; he was the guy telling Darth Vader what to do!  You know the guy's got to be a bad-ass if he's able to boss around Darth Vader!  If that wasn't enough, he had an even bigger, more bad-ass role in Return of the Jedi which hit the big screen in 1983, but he wasn't included with the first wave of figures for that movie, leaving kids in need of a stand-in.

Charon as "The Emperor" from Return of the Jedi with Darth Vader and Luke Skywalker

Did you have the Charon figure as a kid?  If so, did you use him as someone other than the famous ferryman from Clash of the Titans?  Tell me in the comments below!

Also, If you collect toys, you should know about Toylanta, the best toy show in the Southeastern United States held annually in Georgia.  Visit Toylanta.com for more information.


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