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If you love all of Mattel’s MattyCollector.com product then you had better have deep pockets today as there are three high-dollar items going on sale as part of their December 16th sale. In today’s sale we have the MOTUC Castle Grayskull day-of sale for $300, the Ghostbusters Neutrino Wand for $130 and the 1966 Batman utility belt and bat-a-rang for $125.
Santa Matty came early this year and rushed over some samples this week so we could take a look at them and talk about them before you place your orders. I wanted to do a couple of quick videos of these to show off their features. They really do shine in person once you see them in action, unfortunately, ’tis the busiest season and I wasn’t able to get that together in time. I’m going to do my best to describe them and show you all the pictures I took.
First up:
Negative vibrations from ectoplasmic entities bumming you out? Give them a positive blast with your Neutrino Wand! Developed with Sony Entertainment, this authentically detailed wand delivers vibrations and a force kickback when blasted, light-meter animations on the base that ramp up or down depending on how high you’ve adjusted the proton stream setting, and an extending tip that lights up with orange, red, and yellow LEDs (does not actually shoot a beam).
The wand’s buttons and switches are loaded with lights and sounds sampled directly from the Ghostbusters™ films, including the main power on/off switch and the proton stream on/off switch, length-adjuster knob, and “blasting” button. And if total protonic reversal is your thing, then you’ll want to cross the streams and see what happens! Fire two Neutrino Wands at each other and watch the lights change color as the light-up meter transforms to a unique pattern and new sounds and vibration are triggered.
I got this item on Thursday, was able to open it on Friday and since putting the batteries in it my family and I can’t stop messing with it.
The Nutrino wand comes in a box that looks similar to the other “crate” style packaging we seen with the other Ghostbusters props like the ghost trap and the PK meter. The “stickers” on on the crate are very clever. It was interesting to me that the prop is called the “neutrino wand” everywhere on the package, except for the bottom of the box under contents: 1Proton Wand.
I never actually picked up this prop and played with it at any of the cons where it appeared this year so I was surprised at how light it was when I got the finished product in hand. That’s because it’s made of plastic, but has the appearance of something heavier and sturdier. That’s not to say it feels “cheap”, it’s really a testimony to how heavy and authentic the prop looks. There are some nice touches from Mattel on this prop including the “weld” marks on the wand and the fact that they filled in the screw holes.
There is quite a bit of electronics packed inside this thing. It’s amazing the amount of LEDs used in this replica and the sound effects are loud and clear. The series of switches along with the authentic sounds (once you get the pattern down) is INCREDIBLY satisfying to flip on and shoot! It does take a little figuring out for the proper sequence for everything. At one point I thought mine was broken and wouldn’t retract properly and at one point I didn’t think it would “fire” properly, but it’s just a matter of doing everything in the right sequence.
The wand comes with a metal clamp that might someday attach to a proton pack. Mattel has made is VERY clear that they don’t have any plans for a proton pack at this time, but they did leave a hole in the end of the wand for possible future expansion. I HOPE they do a proton pack. It does feel like a “missing” to not be able to reach back and pull it off the pack and “heat it up.” Even a hose would have helped, but I get why it is what it is.
One other thing worth mentioning is the installation of the batteries. The artwork showing the bottom of the wand in the instructions, specifically the speaker are not quite the same as the actual bottom of the finished product. When you look at the bottom of the wand you will see the 2 exposed screw holes that are marked with a tiny screwdriver icon.
All in all a very well done prop that rivals the ghost trap in cool and fun factor.
No joke… if you’re going to vanquish villains and save Gotham City, you’ll need a groovy utility belt just like the one worn by Batman™ in the 1960s television series!
Created with Warner Bros. Entertainment and designed to fit adults, the 43” belt is authentically styled and includes four pouches that open from the bottom, just like they did on the show. It also features four opening tubes and a 12” blue plastic Batarang that folds up neatly to slide right into one of the pouches for hands-free crime fighting.
I was not a child of the 60′s so I never saw the classic Batman TV series in first run, but I CERTAINLY grew up on this version of Batman. Like most kids in the 70s this show was almost a religion and was never to be missed – same bat-time, same bat channel.
The utility belt prop is solid and feels high quality. The buckle is metal and ships with a protective piece of plastic on it in the package so it doesn’t get scratched or finger prints on it. Its got good weight to it and it stays on well.
The snaps on the pouches are plastic, which doesn’t feel authentic to the time period or the original prop necessarily, but they do hold firm. The capsule caps are also plastic so if you open and close them a lot you will start to see stress points on the clasp holders.
The batarang does NOT fit in any of the pouches, but that’s accurate to the show in that we never saw him pull a batarang out of a pouch. The batarang folds in the center, and you can flip it down into place with one hand which is also very satisfying. I flipped it open several times and my 10 year old did it several times and the plastic clasp on a spring that holds it in place never showed any signs of wear.
Mattel has said “one size fits most” in regards to the belt. It looks like it would fit someone from about a 28″ waist up to about a 36″-38″ waist.
A word of warning on this product – If you get this and wear it you will have an uncontrollable urge to call everyone around you “citizen.”
Both items are on sale TODAY on MattyCollector.com.
These samples were provided by Mattel.
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