Review – Battle Beasts War Weasel

With the recent explosion of interest in Battle Beasts (IDW’s New Battle Beasts Comic Announced, Spotted Online – Takara’s Beast Saga Brings Battle Beasts to Life) it felt right for me to grab this original 1987 Battle Beasts toy from the shelf and take a close look at it. Why is this series, 25 years after it was first launched, still capturing the imagination of collectors today? Are the old toys really that great?

2-Inches, Articulated, with Removable Weapons

War Weasel here is pretty representative of the entire Battle Beasts toy line. The toy’s quite small with only two points of articulation — swivel shoulders — and it would be pretty easy to dismiss it after a quick glance. But it’s obvious that a lot of collectors have never dismissed or forgotten the series, and once you’ve held one of the toys for a few moments and really studied it it’s easy to see why these are popular with a small number of collectors.

Sculpt

War Weasel’s armor looks great, with blocky bits covering the character’s chest, shoulders, shins, and forearms. And the gas mask is a nice touch, giving the figure a sinister look that makes him way more fun than if his animal snout had been visible. It’s not an overly complex or detailed sculpt, but it’s a unique approach to character design (or, at least, it was 25 years ago) and those bulky shin armor pieces really give the toy great stability. No fears of this guy falling over on your shelf.

Paint

Nothing great. It looks like the entire figure was cast in an orange plastic and the blue was painted on. The green and gray spots of detail, including the same green for the eyes, is the only extra paint over the armor. Really, if you click on the pics you’ll see that the paint is very basic . . . but it’s enough and it works. And playing with War Weasel has me again thinking that I should search for some more of the original Battle Beasts toys.

Closing Thoughts

The Battle Beasts War Weasel isn’t a toy that you must run out and grab — chances are you already have one if you’re a Battle Beasts fan — but it’s a good example of what you can expect from the original line if you have never owned any of the toys. It’s not a great figure, but it’s a neat character design and it’s fun. In my opinion the price on these guys today is way too high for what they are, but I cannot say that I’m not often tempted when I see a lot of original Battle Beasts figures for sale online.

Philip Reed only has one other Battle Beasts toy, but he will be grabbing a few of the Beast Saga toys once they hit shelves. Dice? Sold!