Way back in February, as part of our Toy Fair coverage, we ran a report about a relatively new company called Wicked Cool Toys. Lured to their booth by the promise of a 31″ WWE figure, we instead found the shock of a lifetime. Because, one of the co-founders of Wicked Cool Toys is, in fact, Jeremy Padawer, who is best known to readers of this site as the man who ran boys’ brands at Jakks Pacific. And, one of the products he was directly responsible for making a reality while there was the Real Scale Ring. Never before had a toy wrestling ring been attempted on this scale. The ring was approximately 2′ by 2′ and featured die cast metal ring posts, metal turnbuckles and fabric ring skirts. It was a truly awe-inspiring sight when finished. Fast forward ten or so years and it seems only fitting that Jeremy should be the one responsible for the ring’s return to market. Now called the Authentic Scale Ring, it is still every bot as impressive as it was way back when. Jeremy has been kind enough to provide me with a sample before they are available so I can bring you this exclusive look at a one of a kind item.

FIGURES AND MORE EXCLUSIVE REVIEW

Product:                    WWE Authentic Scale Ring

Company:                  Wicked Cool Toys

Price:                           $79.99

Available:                   September (Toys R Us), Ringside Collectibles (Mid-June)

When I first saw the original Real Scale Ring at the Jakks Pacific showroom 10 or so years ago, my intial reaction to Jeremy was “I can’t believ you built that.” When I walked into Wicked Cool Toys’ booth at Toy Fair in February and saw this product, my reaction to Jeremy was “I can’t believ you built this AGAIN!” So now, almost 4 months later, that is sitting here assembled, what is my reaction? To quote Joey STyles: “OH MY GOD!” First off for those of you who have never owned a “Real Scale” Ring before, you should know ont thing: THIS THING IS HUGE!! It is 22″ by 22″, and if you don’t know how big that is, I implore you, get a tape measure and see, because you will likely need to plot out where you are going to put it. On the plus side, you will likely be able to keep a good part of, if not your entire WWE figure collection in it, because the ring easily holds OVER 50 FIGURES. OK, those are the basics, now onto the more in depth analysis.

WHAT’S IN THE BOX

• 2 Ring Base Plates
• 3 Connector Brackets
• 3 Double Riser Pegs
• 6 Single Riser Pegs
• 12 Ring Mat Brackets
• 12 Turnbuckle Connectors
• 12 Turnbuckle Pads
• 1 Steel Steps Bottom Piece
• 1 Steel Steps Top Piece
• 4 Ring Posts
• 3 Ring Ropes
• 1 Ring Mat
• 1 Fabric Ring Skirt

So, how does this miscellaneous collection of pieces become the magnificent Authentic Scale Ring? Here are the steps involved in construction.

First, place the two base plates next to each other upside-down.

Next, Secure the two halves together down the middle using the Connector brackets. These brackets fit much tighter than the original ring’s brackets, marking a design improvement by Wicked Cool.

Next, add the six single riser posts and the three double riser posts, pushing each one into the appropriate hole until it stops. These posts raise the ring off the ground allowing the ring skirt to hang down correctly.

Next, add the four ring posts. There is a slot on the back of each ring post, which matches a tab in the hole where the ring post will go. Simply push the post down until it clicks into place. The posts are made of plastic, which will prevent them from falling forward. This is another design improvement by Wicked Cool, as the original posts were prone to wiggling around in their holes. The original ring’s posts were made of die cast metal, and were much heavier, so they fell forward quite often. These ring p0sts do not move once inserted. The ring posts are colored white, to match the current color scheme of WWE programming.

Next is really one of the only tricky parts. Spread out the ring mat and attach it to the side of the ring using the ring mat brackets, 3 per side. There are slots underneath the ring that the brackets clip into. You have to tuck the ring mat in between the clip and the ring base. The attention to detail here is insane. The clips actually have The design of the metal girders that hold a real WWE ring up.

Next, add the ring skirt, using the elastic at each corner to stretch it over each ring post. This is a HUGE change from the original ring, which required you to tuck the ring skirt into the ring post holes. This new system is so much easier and leaves no room for error. I LOVE this change. The ring skirt itself is adorned with the current RAW and WWE.com graphics used on TV.

Next, attach the 12 metal turnbuckle connectors, inserting the larger hook into the hole in the ring post, 3 for each side. This is where these types of rings differ from the “basic” rings that you buy in stores, In those rings, the ring-post and turnbuckles are made from the same piece of plastic. The turnbuckle covers do not come off, and there is no resistance to the turnbuckles, as they are hard plastic. The Authentic Scale Ring goes the extra mile, providing a turnbuckle system that mimics the one used in real rings, utilizing metal connecting bolts.

Next, attach the ring ropes and we’re almost done. The ropes are attached by clipping the rope into the smaller hook on the connectors. The ropes are white, again to match the current look of WWE programming,  The ropes are made of the same maltreat as most other toy wrestling ring ropes. The material is similar to the rope used to play the popular children’s game “Cat’s Cradle.” It has a spring to it and figures can bounce off it fairly realistically.

At this point, all you should have two pieces that make up the ring steps. Assemble them by placing the smaller top piece on top of the larger bottom piece and snapping them together. Slide the ring steps into the corner of your choice, making sure that the slot in the middle of the steps fits around the ring post.

Ok, everyone, last step. This is the other tricky one. Attach the turnbuckle pads by folding them over the turnbuckle connectors and pushing the two small thin posts through the holes at the bottom. Again, there are three pads per side. This is another change from original ring, which had a small foam pad and cloth turnbuckle covers. The foam has been sacrificed, but i believe these are easier to assemble than the original ones. I don’t miss the foam personally. The only potential problem I could see is if you had a match featuring George “The Animal” Steele, he wouldn’t have anything to chew on.

CONGRATULATIONS! You have now fully assembled the WWE Authentic Scale Ring.

Now, to give you a sense of how some figures may look inside of it, I tool the opportunity to stage a little face-off between the Undertaker and Brock Lesnar, with Mr. McMahon caught in the middle for good measure.

Here’s Undertaker bringing up the lights.

Brock and Undertaker each grab a piece of the steel steps

Brock gets the worst of it and there’s no place to go…..

But down!

Mr. McMahon makes his way down, stands in his ring, and approves.

And, so do I. So, Let’s wrap this review up.

THE VERDICT: Should you buy this ring? Do you collect WWE figures? Do you have a sizeable collectiuon? Would you like a ring large enough to have a Royal Rumble match in? Do you like your rings to look as authentic to the one on TV as possible? If you answered yes to any of these questions, then the WWE Authentic Scale Ring is for you. Seriously, buy this as soon  as you can, whether you get it at Toys R Us in September, or pre-order it from www.ringsidecollectibles.com, get it. You will not be disappointed. I’m not.

I am elated to give thw WWE AUTHENTIC SCALE RING a 5 out of 5

For more information on Wicked Cool Toys, visit www.wickedcooltoys.com

My undying gratitude to Jeremy Padawer and Janis VanTine for their assistance with this review.