Ringside Collectibles held their annual RingsideFest event November 21st at Caroline’s on Boradway in New York City. In addition to featuring signings by Kofi Kingston, Mickie James, Hornswoggle, Melina, Christian and John Morrison, the team behind Mattel’s new WWE line made their first public appearance. Mattel chose to use this event to publicly debut their new WWE line. The Basic line, Elite line, Entrance Greats and Flex Force line were all there, and so were we. Here are my impressions of one of the most anticipated lines of 2010.

Mattel is bound and determines to hit the ground running when their WWE line kicks off on January 1, 2010. Mattel has a ton of product planned for launch and they have concrete plans for the months to follow. At RingsideFest, I met the majority of Mattel’s WWE team, including their PR. Representative, Rob Novickas, and Marketing Manager for the WWE line, PJ Lewis. I also met Derek, Alex, and two men named Bill from the Design team. I apologize to them for not printing their last names, they never used them over the course of the day, and if they did, I did not hear them. These talented people have all come together to create one of the best action figure lines and DEFINITELY the best wrestling figure line I have ever seen. The figures are all one size and scale across the entire line, which means they all live in the same universe.

Mattel is launching a comprehensive line designed to showcase the many personalities present on the WWE roster. There are four basic subdivisions to the line and each one was present. Here is a breakdown of the line.

The Basic figure line, which will retail for $9.99 each, will be the main line, with a new wave of six (6) figures every other month. Mattel was showing off the first two series of Basic figures. Series one consists of Kofi Kingston, Batista, John Cena, HHH, Evan Bourne and Big Show. This series will be on shelf January 1, 2010. Series two, due to be released February/March, consists of Rey Mysterio, Vladimir Kozlov, Mark Henry, CM Punk and Kane. In between waves of Basic figures Mattel will be releasing Pay Per View themeed waves. The first of these is the WrestleMania Heritage wave, due in February.  Each of the figures in this series represents that character’s appearance at a specific WrestleMania. This first series of these figures consists of Edge (WrestleMania XXI), Batista (WrestleMania XXI), “Stone Cold” Steve Austin (WrestleMania XVII), Randy Orton (WrestleMania XXIV), Undertaker (WrestleMania XXIV) and John Cena (WrestleMania XXI). Also shown was a figure of the Great Khali from Basic series three.

Also, as part of the basic line, Mattel will be releasing a series of two-packs, representing either great tag teams or rivalries, which will retail for $17.99 each. The first set of these two packs will be out on January 1, 2010 and consists of Shawn Michaels vs. Chris Jericho, Cody Rhodes and Ted DiBiase and Santino Marella and Beth Phoenix. Series two was also shown and consists of Carlito and Primo, Miz and Morrison and Finlay and Hornswoggle. Also shown was a Shad figure from the Cryme Tyme two pack from series three. sadly, due to a mishap, JTG was unable to make the trip to New York.

The next step up from the basic line is the Elite line, which will retail for $14.99 each. This figures, made in the same scale, will come with accessories and “soft goods” (i.e. clothing). Most of the figures will come with removable t-shirts, coats or some other entrance attire. Series one, which is due for release on Janu

ary 1, 2010 consists of Edge (w/ removable vinyl coat), Rey Mysterio (w/removable t-shirt and hood), MVP (w/removable chains), CM Punk (w/ removable t-shirt) and Undertaker (w/removable vinyl coat and hat). Series two and three were also shown. Series two consists of Matt Hardy (w/removable coat), R-Truth (w/removable t-shirt and microphone), Randy Orton (w/removable t-shirt), Ted DiBiase (w/removable t-shirt), Batista (accessory TBD) and HHH (w/ removable t-shirt, sledgehammer and water bottle). Series three consists of Christian (w/removable track suit), The Miz (w/ removable hat and t-shirt), Shawn Michaels (w/removable cowboy hat and shirt), John Cena (w/removable hat and t-shirt), Cody Rhodes (w/removable t-shirt) and Santino Marella (w/removable t-shirt and microphone).

Mattel also has an ultimate collector series. Called Entrance Greats, this series, which will retail for $21.99 each, focuses on recreating a particular entrance from a particular event by reproducing the attire of the SuperStar and including a sound chip in the base that plays the SuperStar’s entrance theme. There are three figures in this series: Triple H (King of Kings entrance from WrestleMania XXII, w/removable cape and crown), Rey Mysterio (WrestleMania XXII attire, w’removable headdress) and Shawn Michaels (WrestleMania XII, w/removable jacket and chaps.). These figures will be on shelf January 1, 2010.

Accompanying these figures are the rings for them. The rings use “Pro-Tension” technology to provide just the right amount of bounce in the ring ropes. The mat is also spring-loaded for a more durable and realistic surface. Rings will be available on January 1, 2010 for all three brands: Raw, SmackDown and ECW. Rings will be priced at $14.99 each.

Naturally, as much as this line is for collectors, it is also for kids. To that effect, Mattel has developed two segments of this line to appeal to the younger demographic. First off, every kid wants to be Champion, so Mattel is rolling out a line of replica toy belts for kids to wear.  These belts will feature imitation leather straps and die-cast belt plates. Currently the WWE Championship, World Heavyweight Championship and ECW Championship belts are scheduled for release. These belts are due on shelf January 1, 2010. In addition, Mattel is releasing a special version of the WWE Championship called the Ultimate Championship Belt. This belt features light and sound activated by touching the center plate. The belt plays six different WWE SuperStar themes. This belt will also be on shelves January 1, 2010. The regular belts will retail for $14.99 each and the Ultimate Championship Belt will retail for $24.99.

Finally, there is also a figure line geared towards younger fans who want to be able to perform their favorite SuperStar move. The line, called Flex Force, may well be ahead of it’s time. This line is scaled the same all the other lines, meaning Flex Force figures live in the same world as the Basic and Elite figures do. Flex Force is unique, however, in the fact that it features action features. In fact, the action figures themselves are unique because they are all spring activiated. This means there are no unsightly buttons or levers neccessary to perform a figure’s action feature. The figures work by bending back the appropriate part of the body to perform a move. To throw a punch for example you bend back the arm and then let go. The line will come in series of six (6) figures. Series one, due in stores January 1, 2010 consists of John Cena, Matt Hardy, Rey Mysterio, CM Punk, Shawn Michaels and Undertaker. Also shown, but not yet assigned to a series were figures of Evan Bourne and the Big Show. In addition, there will be a series of Flex Force figures that come with accessories. Series one consists of Matt Hardy (w/table and ladder)-, CM Punk (w/ring steps, chair and garbage can) and Undertaker (w/speaker and tower). These figures with accessories will be available on January 1, 2010 and retail for $14.99 each.

These special figures require a special ring, and Mattel accomodates with the Breakdown Brawl Ring. This special ring has lainchers over the ringposts and a break-apart ring mat. The ring is available on January 1, 2010 and retails for $24.99.

Inbetween the two autograph sections, Mattel held a short Q & A in the autograph room. Here are some highlights.

• There is a possibility that Mattel will sell a display base similar to the the one they used at this show
• Mattel has loved the feedback from their kid focus groups
• When asked about accessories and playsets Mattel said they would be making “Belts, Rings and more.”
• When asked about Randy Orton’s new tattoos, Mattel’s comment was “stay tuned.”
• There will be  exclusives for different vendors
• They are looking into recreating pyro and lighting effects for entrances
• Series lineups are determined by a visual board in the Mattel offices as well as fan input
• There will be news regarding a Legends line in 2010
• “Role play” items will be represented by the “Tuff Talkers” and “Match-Ups” assortment
• When asked about Jeff Hardy, Mattel said that they would have to wait and see.
• A question was aked about how quickly product would be replenished and what Mattel would be doing to prevent product from becoming stale. Mattel replied that their current schedule calls for a new Basic wave every six weeks and a new PPV wave every other month. There will also be weighted cases, meaning there will be more figures oer case if the most popular stars. Also, Mattel has store reps that will be able to pull old product and replace it.
• Hornswoggle and Rey Mysterio were two of the hardest figures to make due to the large number of deco they require
• The heads for these figures are all Real Scan
• A fan asked about an R/C figure
• All Divas will be made by Mattel
• A fan came up with an interesting idea to pack in reproductions of fan signs with Superstars. Mattel seemed to like this idea.
• When asked about Hulk Hogan, the reply was “stay tuned”
• Mattel will not be making videogames directly, but they have had conversations about figure tie-ins.
• Mattel wants to know what you want to see

This was my first time up-close with the new line and I am incredibly impressed. The Elite line may become some of my favorite figures ever. All of the figures are incredibly detailed and the fact that the entire line is scaled the same is extraordinary. The accessories and fabric make the Elite line well worth the extra money. The biggest things that impressed me with Mattel’s line were the little things. The micropphones the figures hold, for example, have embossed logos instead of stickers. The HHH figure comes with a water bottle, which has a little molded cap. The rings have molded aprons and the best stickers I have ever seen on a wrestling ring. The graphic on them includes wrinkles. In addition, they have solved the problem of the ringposts that bend inward. By making the ringposts a little larger and cutting the ropes to the optimum size, they have eliminated the inward bending of the ringpost and the need to hide the unsightly know that resulted from having to tie the ring ropes together. The people behind the line are working on it because they want to, not because they have to. This enthusiasm shows and it is great to see. The design team is knowledgable, animated and more than willing to talk about how cool their job is. PJ, the marketing manager, wants to pick the brain of every fan to deliver what they want to see.  I know after seeing the product in person, I can’t wait until January of 2010. The question Mattel has for you is: Are You Ready? You can follow the Mattel/WWE lineof Facebook and twiiter

Enjoy the pictures from the show below. They were taken by the newest member of the Figures and More Staff, Andrew Orrino. Just a quick note: the hand in the picture of the “Pro-Tension” RAW ring is mine. The hand in the Flex Force and Championship Belt pictures is Andrew’s

Special Thanks once again to PJ Lewis, Rob Novickas, Alex, Bill, Bill and Dereck from Mattel and Jon Hal and Tim Ash of Ringside Collectibles for all of their help.