Pulp Arcana Studios: Now You See Me

Now You See Me: Operation Monster Force Lt. Griffin “The Eraser”

Sometimes, a toy line just catches you.

It’s kind of the photography/collecting equivalent of love at first sight. You catch a glimpse, maybe on a shelf, or maybe on a web site. Maybe even just a digital render. Wherever you see it, you immediately know that this is something that speaks to you. That inspires your imagination. That connects directly to that inner little kid who got so much joy from the toys of your childhood.

When I saw my first Operation Monster Force figure, that is what it felt like.

Operation Monster Force is a line of essentially occult action, coming from the relatively new Big Bad Workshop. Big Bad Toy Store is one of the best online toy retailers and Big Bad Workshop is their new creative and manufacturing arm. Operation Monster Force has been one of the first lines coming out of BBWS, and quite honestly, they are killing it.

Operation Monster Force is built around the rise of the Forgotten King, a powerful former pharaoh and sorcerer. The military forces sent against him were defeated and repurposed into his zombie legions. Nefarious occult forces like the evil Dr. Caligari and his Sleepwalker troops join the Forgotten King. In desperation, the government enlists the aid of Declan Van Helsing. Van Helsing knows he needs to tip the balance back in their favor. He frees his family’s old enemy Count Dracula and enlists the vampire to join the fight.

So yeah. You can see why this line had me at hello.

This mixture of action and horror tropes is music to my pulp-loving ears. So today we will take a look at the Operation Monster Force Lt. Griffin. “The Eraser.” This is OMF’s re-imagining of the classic Universal Monster Invisible Man, now as a dangerous assassin. Let’s see what Big Bad Workshop has been cooking up.

A PULP ARCANA FIGURE FIELD REPORT Mission Brief:

Artifact Identified:

Lt. Griffin “The Eraser”

Operation Monster Force

Big Bad Workshop

OUT OF THE CRATE:

The Operation Monster Force box is genuinely impressive. Combining the best of both visibility and packaging design, this is one of those releases that makes me almost hesitate to open the box.

The front has a fantastic close-up photo of the figure, showcasing the bandaged head of the Eraser, and immediately evoking that Claude Rains Invisible Man aesthetic. The package has a flip-open, magnetized tab that when opened reveals the Eraser figure and accessories. On the back of the tab is a single page comic, used to give the backstory of the character. I love this little touch. Not only does it leverage the incredibly fun world-building that this line has going for it, but it hits that little bit of nostalgia for me. It reminds me of being a kid and getting the Masters of the Universe figures with the little mini-comic inside.

The back of the package has a full shot of the figure in a pose, a write-up of the current state of the narrative, and the cross-sell pictures of the other figures in the wave. The dark grey and maroon colors of the packaging is suitably grim and gothic, yet at the same time feels more restrained than you might think from such larger than life pulp story-telling and tropes. I think this is a perfect combination for the line. This is something that, should you want to display the Eraser in box, you have strong options.

THE DEVIL’S IN THE DETAILS:

Out of the box, two things struck me immediately. The first is that this figure looks absolutely fantastic. The amount of detail on the sculpt is almost ridiculous. From the carabiners dangling from the tactical belt to the texture of the wrapping on the head, and everything in between, this is a figure that has such a richness of detail that I was constantly finding something new to notice.

The paint apps also need to be called out. It is not as visible in the box, but in hand, there is an almost scale-like pattern to the grey body suit that the Eraser wears. Rather than a simple dull grey all over, this patterning feels like tactical tech, and gives a complexity to the simple color scheme of greys and blacks. The use of vibrant red accents on the gloves and the tactical vest also pop in a really delightful way. The overall effect is that this is absolutely a character that feels “stealthy” yet can still have presence, whether on a shelf or in a photo.

The second thing that immediately hits you is that Operation Monster Force figures do not lack for accessories. The Eraser comes with multiple sets of hands, rifles, pistols, a knife and sheath, and even some blast effects for the weapons. However, it doesn’t stop there. Lt Griffin here, being the Invisible Man, comes with a translucent head and hands for that invisibility effect. It works surprisingly well, and is such a cool display option for this figure.

MOBILITY AND MANEUVERS:

While relatively new to the figure world, Operation Monster Force figures are garnering tons of well-deserved praise. But what I don’t see mentioned as much as much is how good the articulation suite is on the figures. All the joints are pinless and, after heating up the figure, everything moved beautifully.

Quick side-note: Heating figures is now something I do standard now whenever I unbox a figure. A thirty second once-over with a hair dryer does wonders for any figure, and most high-end figures like this OMF figure, or anything from Savage Crucible or Mythic Legions, will come with a piece of paper recommending that you heat the joints. Simple, quick, and really helps your figure’s movement. Not to mention really helps joint pegs from snapping.

Lt. Griffin here moves beautifully. Double-jointed knees and elbows, butterfly joints at the shoulders, and good neck movement all combine to give a wide-variety of posing options. The only place I found the movement a little limited was at the ab crunch, but this is a limitation of the tactical vest, rather than the figure buck. Without the vest, you gain a ton more flexibility at the torso, so that option is there for you if you want it.

All this combines to make a figure that moves around an abandoned secret laboratory or the dark corridors of a haunted castle with grace and style. And, perhaps even more importantly, the Eraser is fun. I kept going back during the writing of this review to try out other poses, and was always really happy with what I got out of him.

RECOVERED EVIDENCE:

FINAL RECKONING:

This is not my first Operation Monster Force figure, and I can assure you, it absolutely won’t be my last. Of the toy lines I discovered last year, this one from Big Bad Workshop is up there with my absolute favorites, on the basis of design, look, and accessories. When you add in the pulp monster/horror vibe that is at the center of this line, it may just carry it over the finish line to my favorite. The Eraser is an absolutely excellent figure, and the perfect place to dip your feet in this line. It has enough of a tactical look that it would not look out of place alongside your GI JOE Classified collection, but it also embraces the classic horror aesthetic of the Invisible Man in such a great way.