Mattel just notified us that their newest Masters of the Universe Origins figure is going to go on sale on Mattel Creations in a few days. This new Masters of the Universe Origins figure? Well, it is none other than Frog Monger! This is a figure that fans have been excited to get from the moment that Mattel first unveiled that they were making this figure.
Frog Monger has never been made into an action figure, but he has ties to the vintage Masters of the Universe line of toys. The vintage Castle Grayskull had a sticker that you placed on the floor of the playset that displayed various monsters who were trapped in the dungeon.
You will notice Frog Monger in the lower left-hand corner of that dungeon sticker. I love that Mattel is giving us another figure from this dungeon sticker. We already got the tentacle monster that is in the upper left-hand corner of the sticker. That monster was a part of the Masters of the Universe Origins Mysteries of the Castle Grayskull Deluxe Accessories pack that was sold on Mattel Creations a while back.
This is a brilliant move by Mattel to use something from the vintage toy line as the basis for new figures. Collectors of the vintage toy line have always looked at this sticker and wondered about these odd monsters and probably wished we had figures of these creatures.
It would be cool if Mattel continued giving us figures of the monsters in this dungeon sticker. We could get a Wolf Man figure, a skeleton figure, a red insect figure, a brown furry bear-type figure, and a large orange monster figure. These all need to happen! Get on it, Mattel!
At any rate, let’s get back to Frog Monger and check out what this new figure delivers and if it is worth buying or not.
Sculpt
Frog Monger recycles some older MOTU Origins parts. It appears that Frog Monger has the legs, boots, and feet that have been used on figures like Skeletor and Stinkor. Frog Man also has the belt and briefs that have been used on figures like He-Man and Stinkor. Frog Man also has the arms that have been used on figures like Skeletor and Stinkor. The re-using of so many parts will help keep the costs down on the Frog Monger action figure. I am totally fine with this approach. This is a classic technique that has been employed by MOTU since the vintage line.
Now, Frog Monger is not just a bunch of recycled parts. Frog Monger also has plenty of new sculpting. Frog Monger has unique frog hands that look fantastic! I love these hands. I dig that he has the bulbous fingertips that frogs have at the end of their fingers. What is interesting to note is that frogs have four fingers while Frog Monger only has three fingers. At any rate, Frog Monger’s hands are excellent.
Frog Monger also gets a new head sculpt that looks amazing. Mattel killed it with the head sculpt. I love his big yellow eyes and his open mouth displaying his large fangs. Do frogs have fangs? Nope. But, I am glad Frog Monger does because it makes him look more ferocious. This is such a great head sculpt that gives Frog Monger tons of personality.
Paint
The paint looks fantastic. I dig the color green for Frog Monger which dominates the entire figure. It looks like there are splashes of darker green to create some shadowing in the torso and arms.
I like that yellow spots are added to his shoulders, arms, hands, and thighs. This helps to add some color contrast and helps break up the sheer amount of green on the figure. The eyes appear to be painted the same yellow as the spots. It is tough to tell, but the fangs also appear to be painted the same yellow. The use of yellow as a secondary color works perfectly with this figure.
The brown furry trunks pair perfectly with the green color of the figure. The yellow belt helps to add a dash of bright color to liven up the figure. The yellow belt also compliments the yellow spots on the shoulders, arms, hands, and thighs.
I like the small touch of painting the main circle in the collar a metallic silver. This really helps to set off the collar and make it look special. Little paint details like this always make a figure more interesting.
Extras
Frog Monger also comes with some truly awesome extras. First up is a cool-looking gun. I love the retro Sci-Fi rounded metal look of the gun. I dig the details of the rivets in the gun and the small fin. It reminds me of a Buck Rogers-style ray gun. The best part of this gun? The muzzle mimics Frog Monger’s hands! This is brilliant! The muzzle of the gun has three prongs with balls on the end of each prong just like Frog Monger’s fingers. This is such a cool touch that makes Frog Monger’s weapon incredibly unique and designed just for him. I love that Mattel actually gave Frog Monger a unique weapon rather than just repainting an existing gun from another figure.
But, that is not all! Frog Monger also comes with a kick-ass jet pack! Yes! This dude has a jet pack! This is so cool. The jetpack has a neat metal collar that fits under Frog Monger’s head. This means that you should be able to pop off Frog Monger’s head and remove the jet pack. Then you can display Frog Monger without the jet pack if you prefer. You can even then slap this jet pack on any other MOTU Origins figure that you desire. I love this.
The jet pack itself has the same design language as Frog Monger’s gun. I dig the sleek look of the jet pack. The jet pack also has an interesting collar that has a similar design language as his belt. The chunky metal collar is incredibly cool looking. The silver of the metal collar is a smart design choice since it helps break up all the green that dominates Frog Monger’s body. The metal collar is an important decorative addition to make this figure look more exciting.
One note, the fake orange flame in one of Mattel’s photos is not going to be included with the figure. This was just a cool effect that Mattel added to make the photo look more dynamic.
Frog Monger is also coming with his own mini-comic! Yes! I love the cover with the horde of frogs surrounding him. I dig that Mattel is giving us a new mini-comic. It is interesting to note some coloring differences between the Frog Monger on the cover of the mini-comic and the Frog Monger figure. The figure has brown trunks while the mini-comic Frog Monger has purple trunks. The figure has a metallic silver circle on the jet pack collar while the mini-comic Frog Monger has a metallic purple circle on the collar.
Packaging
Frog Monger is going to come in standard Origins blister card packaging. This is a bit of a disappointment. I was hoping that we were going get the collector-friendly packaging of Cobra Kahn. I like having the option to slide the blister pack off of the card so I can remove the figure without damaging the packaging.
Having said that, we get some gorgeous Axel Gimenez illustrations on the card. That is going to be fantastic for sure. The blister pack will come in a DTC shipper box featuring a pencil sketch of Frog Monger escaping the Castle Grayskull dungeon. That is incredibly cool! I love these boxes and always keep them for display purposes.
Price and Availability
Frog Monger will go for sale on at Mattel Creations on January 17, 2023, at 9 am PT. There will be a limit of three figures per customer. I hope this means that Mattel has made enough Frog Mongers for collectors to be able to get one. I have a feeling that Frog Monger is going to sell out fast. This is a figure that elicited a huge fan reaction when Mattel first unveiled him. Frog Monger also stokes the desires of collectors due to the fact that he has ties to the vintage Castle Grayskull. If you want Frog Monger then you better be at your computer and ready to buy it when it first goes on sale.
Verdict
Buy, buy, buy!!! This is an easy no-brainer decision! Frog Monger looks incredible. His sculpt and paint are amazing. His extras are phenomenal. This is a home run hit by Mattel. No doubt about it. Personally, I will order two Frog Mongers so I can display him with and without his jet pack.
Frog Monger is another excellent offering by Mattel. I continue to be impressed with the incredible job Mattel has done building out the Masters of the Universe Origins line of toys. It just keeps getting better.
