Adam West Goes Mego in the Classic TV Batman 8-Inch Action Figure Series


Last April, I published a post about how various toy companies are planning the release of Batman merchandise based on the live-action TV series from the '60s and other classic collectibles. Of those companies, Figures Toy Company has been producing figures under its "Batman Retro Action Figures" line that are identical to the figure designs used by Mego during the '70s. Two sets of these 8-inch figures have already been released, and a third set is on its way.




Along those lines, Figures Toy Company is currently taking pre-orders for another line of Mego-based Batman figures, the "Classic TV Batman Action Figures". Like the Mego designs, these 8-inch figures have cloth costumes and multiple points of articulation; however, as the toy line's name suggests, the figures' likenesses are based on the actors who appeared on the '60s Batman TV series. The first set of Classic TV figures will include Batman, Robin, the Joker and the Riddler, and their head sculpts match how they were portrayed by Adam West, Burt Ward, Cesar Romero and Frank Gorshin.

Even though the original Mego Batman action figures weren't intended to capture the likeness of any actor, the Batman TV series was so widely distributed on syndication during the '70s that Mego based some of its Batman toys and advertisements after the aesthetics of the live-action show. As you can see in the Mego toy commercial below, the Batmobile for the Mego figures looks like the Batmobile from the show, the background music matches the show's theme song, and the commercial is narrated in a way that matches William Dozier's narrative style. Thus, by producing figures that are directly based on the live-action Batman series, Figures Toy Company is bringing this particular chapter of the Batman franchise to a full circle.




Below are individual pictures of the Classic TV Batman Action Figures that provide a closer look at the new head sculpts. Future figures will include The Penguin, Catwoman, King Tut, Mr. Freeze, Bookworm and Mad Hatter.








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