SDCC 2025: Action Figure Reveals

As the dust settles from another whirlwind Comic-Con, it’s time to take a look at what in the world of action figures got us most hyped. This year’s SDCC delivered a treasure trove of pulp-worthy plastic gold, but I’ve narrowed it down to a few personal relics that sparked adventure, nostalgia, and display envy.

I’m Mark, author, educator, and toy photographer, and now the action figure and toy reviewer here at Fanboy Planet, and I wanted to share with you some of my favorite action figure reveals from the con. Let’s crack open the vault.

Hasbro:

Hasbro has always felt like the big dog in the yard. Their lines cover not only some of the biggest IP’s out there, but they release with a width and breadth that other toy manufacturers have trouble matching. They definitely came out swinging at SDCC this year.

GI Joe Classified-

The GI Joe classified line had what were possibly my favorite reveals this year. From figures that tickled the memories of old heads like me to new craziness, GI Joe Classified went hard. Here are a few of the standouts.

Ghost Viper – Peak GI Joe weirdness and I am absolutely here for it. Spectral accented troopers with great green translucent effect parts, including werewolf and werecobra heads. While straying from the grounded military aesthetic that some fans prefer, this is absolutely right up my alley. One of my favorite figures of the entire con.

Pythona – Another dose of funky weirdness, in the best possible way. GI Joe the movie has its fans and haters, with its Cobra-La snake people shenanigans, but this figure is bananas and I love it. The facial sculpt is amazing, and the sculpted detail on the body suit gives it an almost HR Giger vibe that works great with the techno-organic accessories.

Cold Slither – The Comic-Con exclusive pack and absolutely ridiculous in the best possible way. Glam Metal versions of the Dreadnoks? Yes please! And Hasbro went all in with this, creating not only an amazing figure set, but also releasing Cold Slither records and hosting a full concert with the band for Comic-Con attendees. Just the fact that this exists makes me so happy.

Desert Scorpion – The team took a beloved figure from 1990 and dialed it up to 11 like it was a Spinal Tap amplifier. Great looking figure, including a soft goods cape for that desert wanderer vibe. But let’s be honest. What we’re really after is the absolutely enormous mutant scorpion that comes with it. This thing is the size of your palm and articulated to the nines. I ordered two of these the moment pre-orders went live.

https://youtu.be/AlOhHT1SdAY?si=zeh0V_k_KbwdgMhv

Marvel Legends–

Marvel Legends is one of my favorite lines to collect. Great variety, good consistency, and the figures just tend to feel good in hand. They had some great reveals, and more than a few tickled my particular fancy.

Man-Wolf – Man-Wolf. Seriously. Man-Wolf. In full Stargod green tunic and everything. Part of the collaboration that Marvel Legends is doing with Magic the Gathering, the figure will come with a card playable in the TCG. While cool for Magic players, the card doesn’t matter to me. Because there is going to be a Man-Wolf figure. And that is just neat!

Rachel Summers – The X-Men spin off team Excalibur has always been a personal favorite of mine and now they’re coming out with a Rachel Summers Phoenix figure. Definitely a deep cut, but one that brought me a great deal of joy.

X-Men ’97 Wave – X-Men ‘97 is fantastic and the figures so far have really captured that animation style in a wonderful way. Highlight here has to be the new Emma Frost and a Civilian Logan in his brown jacket, but all the figures in the wave looked great.

Mephisto & Throne – This was the last reveal of the panel and definitely made an impression. With Mephisto gaining heat from an appearance in the MCU, this is a great time to go big and the team certainly has. The sculpt is excellent and the accompanying hell-skull throne he comes with is like the best piece of van-art you’ve seen since the 70’s. This will be a made to order figure, rather than the HasLab model they have used for big ticket figures in the past. Excited for this one. Might have to splurge.

Star Wars: Black Series-

Black Series didn’t have quite as many reveals at the Con, but a couple of things they showed absolutely caught my attention.

The Stranger (Qimir) – When the first set of Acolyte figures came out for Black Series, a lot of us were bummed at the lack of this character. Now he has been revealed and I love the look of this sculpt. The design mixes soft goods and plastic for the robes, the creepy grinning helmet looks great, and the lightsaber design is accurate. Pre-orders are already sold out most places, and for good reason.

Obi-Wan vs. Anakin Duel Set – This was the SDCC exclusive set for Black Series and it is, as the kids say, fire. A two pack of Anakin and Obi Wan from the duel at the end of Revenge of the Sith, the real star of the set is the set pieces they include. Floating platforms with fiery jets and lava underneath give a fantastic mini-diorama quality to the set. Great cinematic energy.

NECA:

I’ve mainly come to NECA figures through the love of classic horror movies I share with my son. He is a big fan of their Michael Meyers Halloween figures and their Jason figures from Friday the 13th. I’ve really loved the sculpts on their Alien line and I have a few of their Predator figures waiting to be unboxed and shot. However it was the more whimsical side of NECA’s reveals that really captured my interest this Comic Con.

Sesame Street-

NECA’s Sesame Street line was one of my favorite developments over the last few months. Their Count figure is exceptional, and I am eagerly awaiting getting my hands on their Bert and Ernie figures. From what they showed at San Diego Comic-Con, they are going even harder with their new stuff.

Big Bird- The Big Bird figure looks absolutely fantastic. Appropriately towering over the other figures in the line, the sculpt is on point. Even with just the pictures, I love him already.

Grover (and blue restaurant patron?)- Not sure if this will be a two pack or separate releases, but the absolute hit of nostalgia this delivered is possibly illegal in some states. Grover looks amazing, and the fact that he comes with what appears to be soup and a hot dog to serve to our favorite mustachioed blue muppet diner just makes me smile.

Oscar- Everybody’s favorite trash-loving, can-dwelling grouch was on display and looking so good. I’m interested to see how they incorporate some of the accessories he has with him, but that’s a small matter next to how absolutely right he looks, particularly next to the other characters. I may have to build myself a little Sesame Street diorama.

Ben Cooper Halloween-

This line has captured quite a few hearts lately and with us now officially in the pre-Halloween season, it’s a perfect time to add a little bit of retro-spooky joy to your desk. At the con, NECA revealed they are going to add some more modern properties to the line, but keep that same retro, iconic, Ben Cooper styling. I particularly like the take on the classic LJN Dungeons and Dragons characters like Strongheart and Warduke (which NECA already makes great figures of), and the JAWS one. They’re eerie, campy, and above all, fun, and I love them for that.

The Golden Girls-

The Golden Girls holds a special (and some would say, infamous) place in my heart, and I love the idea of getting some figures of the girls. Especially considering that NECA revealed they would be coming in a box designed like a cheesecake and with a card attached that says “Thank you for being a friend.” Thank you, NECA!

MATTEL:

I’ve been a little slow getting into the Mattel lines since I began my journey into toy photography, though I will say that their Hammond Collection Jurassic Park/Jurassic World dinosaurs photograph beautifully! However, with what I saw from their Masters of the Universe reveals at San Diego, that might be changing very soon.

Masters of the Universe-

MoTU Origins 200x Cartoon Collection Line Reveal- Under the Masters of the Universe Origins banner, this line revising the Masters of the Universe cartoon from 2002 looks absolutely fantastic. The figures on display absolutely captured the stylized edge of that particular show in a way that was both faithful and sharper and I have to admit, I kinda fell in love with them. I may have to take the plunge hard when this line goes live. Not only were He-Man and Skeletor on point, but they also gave us a fantastic looking Zodak and Stratos. A cool Zodak? I am down!

Vintage Castle Grayskull- A new version of Castle Grayskull inspired by the prototype from artist MarK Taylor looked really stunning in a new gray and green exterior. I was particularly tickled to see a figure of the Space Suit, which back in the 80s, had been an enigmatic sticker included in the original. I vividly remember that sticker and now seeing it brought to figure form is definitely earning some nostalgia points for me.

Masterverse line- I really dug the look of some of the Masterverse figures on display at the con. Enough to make me think about picking some up when they go live. While long time MoTU fans loved the Mosquitor on display, I kept looking at the delightfully unsettling Mantenna with super creepy eyes and the Anti-Eternia He-Man. Both brought an edge that I did not think MoTU had in it and I really liked it.

Jada Toys:

In the last year, Jada has become one of my absolute favorite toy makers. Their Street Fighter line of figures was hands down the best value action figures on the market. They were inexpensive, readily available, and most importantly, absolutely delightful to play with. As modern collectors and photographers, we often get distracted by sculpt over everything. But Jada’s Street Fighter line not only looked great, they were pure hand-candy. Super poseable and incredibly fun. Now, not only are they filling out the roster for Ultra Street Fighter 2, but they’re revealing a number of exciting new lines as well.

Street Fighter Alpha- With the roster for Ultra almost complete, Jada is introducing figures from Street Fighter Alpha. I was never a big enough Street Fighter fan to differentiate between the different iterations of the game series, but if the Alpha roster is as good in hand as the Ultra line of figures has been, then I will be picking up a few of these for sure.

Scooby Doo- When Jada revealed they were doing Scooby Doo, I was so excited, and as the first wave of figures (Shaggy, the Mummy, and the Creeper) hit shelves, that excitement grew. They have a perfect cartoon look, great articulation, and some really fun accessories, including masks removed to reveal the various greedy old men who were behind the monsters. At SDCC, Jada showed off wave 2, including an absolutely perfect looking Scooby. Can’t wait for these.

Invincible- Absolutely one of the biggest announcements of the con for action figures. Invincible is huge now, with the combined success of both the comic and the show, and the idea of getting super hero figures from that universe with Jada sculpts and especially articulation is definitely worth getting hyped about. This line has the potential to put Jada into the next tier of figure makers.

Big Bad Workshop:

I’m not going to lie. This company may be my current favorite figure maker out there right now. While their production schedule has been slowed down a bit by current events, based on the figures I have had in hand, they are absolutely worth waiting for. The collection of IP that they are working with seems to speak directly to my desires and the execution thus far has been spectacular. At Comic-Con, they not only showed off a number of things they have been working on, but revealed some gems that absolutely made me giddy.

Operation Monster Force-

Dieselpunk meets occult horror? It’s like they were reading my dream journal. I was fortunate enough to get one of the Delta Red figures and a Sleepwalker Crimson Moon Division soldier, and they are near perfect.

Mr. Legacy- Occult scholar and a great addition to the line. Was great to see this figure present at the show.

Ambassador of R’lyeh- Squid faced Cthulhu cultist? Hell. Yes. I need this badly.

Chatsworth-Sasquatch with a mini-gun and donuts. Totally delightful.

Longbox Heroes Prestige-

This was the biggest surprise of the con for me, and no line brought as much excitement and joy with their reveals. More than anything else I saw, this is the line I am waiting on with pure, rabid anticipation.

Grendel- That classic black and white mask bringing that 80s comic vibe. Love it.

Michael Allred’s Madman- Another comic classic coming in figure form. So glad to see this.

The Tick – You know him. You love him. You likely yelled out “Spoon!” As soon as you saw this. The Tick looks to be one of the first of the line being released, and has a special SDCC exclusive beach edition as well.

The Rocketeer- The Rocketeer is one of my absolute favorite characters ever. The pure pulp goodness of the character is everything I want and the fact that a figure of our boy Cliff Secord and his rocket pack will be made by Big Bad Workshop brings me absolute joy. Instant pre-order for me.

Sky Captain- Good lord. I actually did a triple take on this one. Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow is one of the most underrated film gems of my lifetime and I will die on that hill. My love of pulp adventure should not come as a surprise, given I post my toy photography under the name Pulp Arcana Studios, but if you had told me a month ago that I would one day be looking at a prototype Sky Captain figure, I would have accused you of mocking my dreams. Monster Forge Productions is helping to make this happen and my gratitude knows no bounds. This is genuinely amazing.

Raven Society-

Teased right before the con, from the creators of Operation Monster Force comes what looks like a collection of 19th century occult weirdos and my god, do I want that! On display at the booth, Big Bad Workshop was showing off the first figure, the man with the big black bird.

Edgar Allan Poe- I’ve taught Poe’s works for years in the classroom, but the idea of him involved in occult adventures that I could recreate in action figure form is delicious beyond words. I am so excited for this figure and this line. I cannot wait to see what comes next. They did tease the next figure with some accessories and I think a certain magician and escape artist may be up next.

 

Special Shout-Out: Nacelle Toys – Power Lords

Every geek of a certain age has their favorite, underappreciated toy line from the 80s. For me, one of the top has to be Power Lords. Back in the day, they featured a crazy transformation gimmick, where the character’s torso would spin to reveal their powered-up form. It seems Nacelle is bringing back not only the line, but even giving a nod to the classic gimmick, and I kinda love them for it.

Adam Power – Heroic and sharp, faithful to the original with modern polish.He comes with not only the split front/back power version, but exchangeable torsos as well.

Arkus – A villainous standout with all the right alien menace. Also, he’s big. Like real big and chunky. And just looks so good in that deep purple color scheme.

Here’s hoping we see more cosmic weirdness from this revived line.

Final Reckoning

San Diego Comic-Con 2025 wasn’t just about reveals. It was about revivals, deep cuts, and at least for me, some dreams coming true in figure form. Whether it’s glam-rock Cobras, gothic poets, or werewolves in space, adventure is alive and well on collector shelves.

And this is just the beginning.