Outfit Set vs. Accessory Set

A few days ago, in a comment to “Realm of the Underworld Battle Accessory Pack on eBay”, Poe Ghostal (website) wrote:

“Hey, Mattel did what, three or four weapons pack for MOTUC? Often with alternate armors?”

Poe’s comment was in response to my stating that I’d like Mattel to create outfit sets for use with their Masters of the Universe Classics action figures (Amazon.com search*). Poe is absolutely correct that Mattel has released four packs, but in sitting back for a few days and thinking over things I don’t feel any of those four sets qualify as “outfit sets.”

I’ll explain.

Accessory Sets

In my opinion, all four of the Mattel-crafted Masters of the Universe Classics packs fall squarely into the realm of “accessory sets.” Like earlier accessory sets — such as the 1983 G.I. Joe Battle Gear Accessory Pack (see yojoe.com) and the 1981 Star Wars Survival Kit (see the swca.com) — those four packs are loaded with a variety of different accessories and are not dedicated outfit sets.

Now there is absolutely nothing wrong with accessory sets. Hell, I love that Mattel has produced so many accessory sets for Masters of the Universe Classics and I wish Hasbro would embrace the idea again and start adding some of these to their G.I. Joe and Star Wars lines. But an accessory set just doesn’t offer the same level of customization that a dedicated and detailed outfit set can provide. Accessory sets are cool, but all an accessory set does is let you maybe snap on a helmet or piece of armor and swap out weapons.

An outfit set does much more than that.

Outfit Sets

An outfit set, such as the one shown here from Gabriel’s 1970s Lone Ranger line (see Plaid Stallions), is a completely new costume that dramatically changes the look of the action figure. Traditionally, these outfit sets have been cloth works and the action figure is stripped and then redressed, but Hasbro has demonstrated with their G.I. Joe figures how much can be done with soft plastic parts and the idea used in those modern G.I. Joe figures could be easily scaled to fit 6-inch and 7-inch action figures.

Now it’s true that the Masters of the Universe Classics weapon packs released to date do include some snap-on armor accessories, but none of the pieces are so large that they have the same visual effect as a full outfit set would.

Plus, most of what Mattel has provided for armor in the sets are recolors of existing pieces:

• The original Weapons Pak (review at Poe’s site) includes Beast Man’s armor.
  
• The Great Wars set (review at It’s All True) includes Mer-Man’s armor.
  
• The Great Unrest set (review at Doomkick) includes Teela’s armor.
  
• The End of Wars set (review at The Fwoosh) includes Rattlor’s armor. This is the only new armor in all four sets.

Mattel Knows Outfit Sets!

And while I never intended this post to focus on Mattel’s Masters of the Universe Classics series, it shouldn’t be surprising that Mattel is mentioned often since it was me wishing for outfit sets for He-Man that even sparked this entire article. And we all know Mattel has experience with outfit sets . . . it was even Barbie’s success in the sixties that sparked the creation of G.I. Joe and the entire action figure industry. I went into this in my own post, “The Death of Action Figure Outfit Sets”, so check that out if you’re unfamiliar with how Barbie influenced the action figures you own today.

Maybe Outfit Sets Aren’t for Adult Collectors

It’s possible that the entire idea of outfit sets — dedicated clothing and accessories to completely change the look of one action figure — doesn’t work with the whole adult collector community. It’s possible that collectors prefer completely new action figures over outfit sets; it’s tough to display every single outfit set you may own if you’ve only got one action figure for multiple sets. But I strongly suspect that some collectors would love the ability to swap outfits around every now and then . . . after all, how many outfit sets are released each year for 12-inch scale action figures?

Was There a Point?

I know I’ve been rambling on for the entire article, but I hope that the difference between outfit set and accessory set — as least as I see them — is clear for everyone now. But to try and summarize this entire mess of words into a simple statement I’ll close with:

Accessory sets are packs of (often random) weapons and equipment for multiple action figures. Outfit sets are dedicated costumes and gear that change the look of a single action figure.