Toy Overview: NECA’s Space Usagi Landed In My Office!

Welcome to the table,

When I was a kid one of my favorite toys was a well-worn Usagi Yojimbo figure from the Playmates line of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles toys. I took that thing everywhere with me. Physical therapy, doctors’ office visits, and when it came time for surgeries that well-traveled Ronin bravely came with me as the anesthesia was pumped into my veins and I drifted from this world to somewhere else. When I awoke I would be covered in fresh stitches, body casts, and a long road to recovery that eventually would lead to more surgeries. However, my long-eared samurai would be waiting there for me.

At some point along the way, that figure went missing and I won’t ever be returning to my parent’s home, so that little plastic warrior who served me so loyally was lost to me for a time. I have written about the Usagi figures and comics since starting with Comicon and my editor, seeing how much I love the character, actually went to the trouble of tracking down a classic figure and sending it to me. It stands guard on my writing desk now (as seen above) and means more than I think I have words to express.

I often try and find more Usagi figures in my travels or online, but it always seems like they sell out or are on the secondary market and end up being way more than I can afford with the markup. So imagine my surprise when I was rolling through Target of all places in an early Saturday morning adventure with my wife and I turned the corner to see the NECA Space Usagi figure sitting on a shelf next to a bunch of other non-NECA figures. I almost fell out of my wheelchair I was so excited.

This figure is everything I have come to expect from NECA. The box is phenomenally constructed with a velcro cover that folds perfectly over the blister window giving you a view of the figure without having to expose the plastic to the harsh retail lighting and giving it extra protection from scuffs and dings. The box art is spectacular, feeling very much inspired by the classic 1980’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle cartoon series by way of the always talented Stan Sakai.

This figure is kitted out with so many accessories, including a removable bubble helmet, wakizashi with slip-on electro effect, a blaster pistol and rifle, multiple hands, an angry head swap, and even a little robot version of Spot, Usagi’s trusty dinosaur companion.

NECA truly produces some of the coolest figures out there, and I’m covering a handful of the D&D figures I have been able to find very soon. But for those of you who are looking for top-quality action figures and collectibles, in the same way that WizKids always brings the A-game to the D&D table, NECA really does bring the A-game for the toy shelf

Check out Target to see if you can find one of these space-ready ronin and keep checking back at the NECA site as they are always releasing rad new figures.

Until next time, when I say I almost fell out of my chair, I legit felt like someone kicked me in the chest when I rounded the corner and saw this figure just sitting alone on the shelf. I have no idea how it got there, or why. I texted my editor and it was some crack of dawn time in the morning for him because we are on opposite coasts most of the time and he was stoked for me. I’m still brimming with excitement it is mine all these days later.