Key Raiders 2016 Prototypes

This post features a check-list that includes all prototypes produced under the Key Raiders line in 2016. Items are categorised by their type and affiliation, and listed in order of review:

Type	Affiliation
	Theriom	Destructomorph	Rexodon	Spektrosaur
Action figure	Apprentice Minister Masq-Lor	Combat Deptilion	Li-Meh-Zor	Lor-Drek
	Possessed Sei-Lha	Steel-Monster Deptilion	Loghar	Blomok
	Bellius	Ultra Deptilion	Li-Gah-Tor	Aktahnor
	Fai-Rha	Tmohrr*	Alatryx	Nar-Aja
	Fire-Fists Masq-Lor	Mal-Ah-Kros	Nibeon	Volcrotran
	Ultra Masq-Lor	LoGoN*	Traark	Denortos
	The Xonatron*	Kinod	Staurok	Strictriss
	Koptros	Todahr	Kon-Rauan	Sphenorat
	Reptile Masq-Lor	Zektax	Loghar-poss.ed Herrion	Kelotur
	Apprentice Advisor Fai-Rha	Destructomorph Rider	Torp-Tor	Noctylius
	Combat Sei-Lha	Pleutron*	Steel-Monster Loghar	Cah-Mal
	Herrion
Multi-pack	Combat Masq-Lor & Ki-Wun°	Alterok & Zor-Kan°	The Tyrannoraptor	Spektrosaur Troopers
	CoBoN*/^	Geel-Ber & Arkiopod^		Spectral Sphenorat* & Serporcraft^
	Tornado Masq-Lor & Merados°
	CoBoN 2.0
	Magda-Lyn & Aviotak^

*Large scale figure.
°Creature.
^Vehicle.

KR Review #76: Spectral Sphenorat & Serporcraft

For better or for worse, PoliganToys has accomplished something that I couldn't have imagined possible when this blog started all the way back in August 2015 - the KR prototype lineup is now complete.

Yes, lurking out of the darkness from the Downfall episode, the Spectral variant of Sphenorat^TM joins the ranks of KR large scale figures as the last item of this amazing line. What is the future of Key Raiders, though, will be explained (or, rather, speculated) in an upcoming post.

As an added bonus, the Spektrosaur sorcerer comes in a multi-pack (the 14^th I have received) that includes an incredible, evil flying machine - the Serporcraft^TM. Wow!

Spectral Sphenorat

Details

Name: Spectral Sphenorat

Subtitle: dark-magical spectre

Classification: spirit of a lepidosauromorph reptile

Sex: male

Home: Tahron

Affiliation: Spektrosaur

Rank: sorcerer.

Since the background story of the character has been covered before, this review is mainly focused on the appearance of the figure and the accessories that come with it.

Articulation

Standard for the neck and the arms; the rest of the body only features a ball joint at about half of its height.

Description

Head: similar to the regular Sphenorat's head with the completely exposed face, although bigger and with a much more detailed skeletal appearance. The face is supposed to resemble a tuatara, but it is flattened in order to acquire a more humanoid look. It has a blue-green skin, three yellow eyes with vertical slit-shaped red pupils (the third eye is on the forehead) and a wide open mouth that displays a number of sharp white teeth. He wears a large loose ragged cowl seemingly made of a coarse, rough dark-brown fabric. On the top, this hood bears three red lines forming an array of crescent-shaped markings, while on the back it tapers to a comb of tips that slightly resembles a spiny crest

Body: the figure is 23 cm tall (around 9'') and is cloaked from neck to toe. His arms are covered by long, wide torn dark-brown sleeves, while his hands, which are posed to cast spells, show a sickly clawed, skeletal appearance, blue-green skin and long black nails

Wearables: a long, loose torn dark-brown robe, a large red pendant (resembling the triple-crescent symbol on the hood) on a chain around the neck and a long, thick light-brown cord with a red tassel at either end (which in the regular figure is used to fit the garment around the waist, but here is untied and held by two loops on the back). The robe does a great job of blending in with the cowl and especially the hanging sleeves, under which we can clearly see two red bracelets. He also wears a tattered burgundy cape, which has a high standing collar, is fixed to the front by a light-brown string and is attached to the arms above the elbows via two pegs (it is soft enough not to hamper the arms movement too much). Unlike with the regular figure, this mantle is pretty short, doesn't fade to translucent towards the jagged bottom and is not removable.

Action feature

In this figure, Sphenorat's ghostly appearance has been significantly enhanced thanks to the bigger size and to the highly detailed cadaverous head, raw-boned hands and tattered robes. Furthermore, the cloak is open and pulled back, to reveal what lays beneath - an intricately sculpted nightmarish scene of ghost-snakes swirling as if in a vortex. All his exposed body parts, i.e., the face, hands and swirl of snakes, are cast in a translucent blue-green plastic that can glow in the dark (of course there are a few painted bits, such as the eyes, teeth, nails and some of the snakes' features), giving him an even eerier spectral feel.

Weapons and accessories

Spectral Sphenorat comes with a few accessories: two ghost-snake attachments and a clear stand. The snakes are cast in the same translucent blue-green GITD plastic used for his body and can be plugged into two sockets hidden inside the hanging sleeves, to look as though he is casting these creepy snaky weapons towards the enemies.

The stand, which has a ball joint on the end, helps render Sphenorat's ghost-like nature farther, so he can be displayed in a floating pose.

Serporcraft

Details

Name: Serporcraft

Subtitle: serpentine helicopter

Classification: aircraft

Home: Tahron

Affiliation: Spektrosaur

Rank: transport.

Description

The Serporcraft is a super-fast, armoured (and armed) snake-faced helicopter. This stealthy chopper is painted dark-green on top and pearl-grey on the bottom in a countershaded pattern, and has lots of tech-mech details all over the main body. Thanks to such features as twin auxiliary jet engines (visible at the roots of the landing gear sponsons and fitted with large air intakes), rotor blades that can be disengaged and a lifting body fuselage, it can fictionally perform incredible manoeuvres, including travelling at supersonic speeds and flying upside down or at very high altitudes. The cockpit resembles the head of a cobra, with a clear windscreen in place of the eyes. The canopy is hinged at the back, so it can open by folding up and backward. The interior is of a high-tech nature and shows tons of sculpted controls, including a joystick on each side of the single seat (in the comics the aircraft is proportionally bigger and can carry up to ten characters, while this toy version only fits one figure). The three rotor blades are slightly curved, have serrated edges and are topped with what looks like a radar dome. The tail boom is shaped like a ridged spine and includes horizontal and vertical stabilisers, but no tail rotor. The sponsons have seemingly retractable landing skids that are similar to monstrous feet.

Action feature

In the comics, the Serporcraft's giant propeller can be launched at the touch of a trigger by its pilot, spinning horribly in the face of the enemy. Thanks to the powerful jet engines, shooting the rip-rotor projectile doesn't affect the helicopter's flying ability at all. In the toy, the rotor can simply spin and detach, but not shoot, which is quite enough in my opinion. Furthermore, the craft is fitted with two spring-loaded missile launchers carried by pylons at the wingtips, which are mounted on the side of the landing skid sponsons. I really like the missiles, which are shaped like bundles of serpents. Plus, the snake's lower jaw (which is the underside of the cockpit) can open menacingly, revealing a retractable pilot's night vision device (which actually looks like a headlight and glows in the dark) coupled with a quick-firing, single-tube cannon.

Weapons and accessories

The Serporcraft comes with a small set of plug-in accessories, which unfortunately doesn't include a flight stand. First, we get three nicely sculpted blasting effects, which can be used for the nose cannon and the jet engines.

Additionally, there is a flexible hose with a nozzle at one end that is fictionally used for in-air refuel of other similar rotorcrafts. This is a reference to a comic strip in which Masq-Lor is shown to climb into a flying Serporcraft using the exact same hose. Nice touch.

Overall, I can only be happy with this 2-pack. Spectral Sphenorat is a cool reinterpretation of the regular figure, infused with a look that perfectly recreates the creepiest nature of the character. The end result is a figure which I believe would surely join the shelves of many collectors. I'm definitely impressed by the incredible level of detail on all sides of his ghostly "body", but I'm also a bit disappointed that an updated version of his sceptre hasn't been included.

About the Serporcraft, this ship's got it all... except for a flight stand! Thing is that the Aviotak's stand just made itself requisite and one would expect all the following flying machines to come with a flight stand. However, this vehicle left a mark on me when I placed Noctylius in the pilot seat and had the chopper "stare" at me. Really, it crept me out after a while.

KR Review #75: Magda-Lyn & Aviotak

With this year having to finish up the prototype line-up, I'd say that this 13^th multi-pack from PoliganToys was all but inevitable.

Even though Magda-Lyn^TM has never been under the spotlight in the comics, she is an integral part of the KR mythos. That’s one of the great things about a collector line – characters that may be considered too "dull" for storytelling criteria, can still fill out the collections on our shelves.

Also, the guys at PoliganToys have added another dimension to the KR line with the first ever aircraft, which was a most wanted item - the Aviotak^TM.

Magda-Lyn

Details

Name: Magda-Lyn
Family name: Norvyre^TM

Subtitle: zealous adviser

Classification: human

Sex: female

Relationships: wife of Tir-Hing, mother of Desion (Masq-Lor), Herrion and Rhadiel (Fai-Rha)

Home: Tahron

Affiliation: Theriom

Rank: Senior Advisor.

Background

Magda-Lyn's initial appearance takes place in the first KR comic issue The hidden halberd. The only child in a humble family of farmers, Magda-Lyn enlisted in the Theriom army during her girlhood and was trained by Captain Tir-Hing to serve in times of war. Proving a heroic soldier in many battles, she eventually fell in love with Tir-Hing, became his wife and accepted to assist her husband as Senior Advisor soon after the republic of Tahron had been established. Admirably coping with the abduction of her children for many years, she was often assigned to diplomatic duties. Now, finally being reunited with her warrior sons and daughter, Magda-Lyn helps rule the free people of Tahron with her intelligence and good judgement.

Articulation

Standard, excluding hinged abdomen.

Description

Head: white skin, blue eyes, blonde hair drawn back into a chignon. She wears an elaborate ivory tiara and a pair of gold earrings

Body: covered from neck to toe. Her hands show a white skin and her fingernails are painted with red varnish

Wearables: a long pink dress with an O-neck and long sleeves, two golden bracelets decorated with ivory stones, two golden boots and a golden belt. The Y-shaped belt separates the fitted part above the waist from the slightly flouncier skirt below, allowing for the waist swivel. Despite the skirt is made of a soft plastic, the fact that it has no slit blocks her articulation from the waist down.

Action feature

In the comics, Magda-Lyn is not exactly a major character and, apart from knowledge and wisdom, doesn't show any particular skills or powers. Luckily, the figure balances this lack of action with a couple of interesting features. First up is the ability of her ivory accessories, i.e., the tiara and the two stones on the bracers, to glow in the dark. Next is the presence of a removable white cape, which is probably my favourite part of her outfit. The cape, which is also GITD, fastens at the neck using a gold choker and incorporates two golden shoulder pads. Like her belt, those spaulders and the attached necklace add a unique touch to a mostly plain costume design. Each shoulder pad is decorated with a golden fleur-de-lis design (⚜) that is disconnectable and can be replaced by an identical symbol attached to the end of a wavy silver wire. In this way, it seems like the dagger-shaped stylised flowers can be shot from the spaulders towards the enemies and, thanks to two extensible cables (made of rigid plastic in reality), can eventually been drawn back.

Weapons and accessories

Magda-Lyn only comes with one accessory, which is her light sceptre. This is a golden staff topped with an ivory ornament that, besides being GITD, bears a striking resemblance to the launching fleur-de-lis seen on her shoulder pads. From the comics we learn that this sceptre used to belong to Par-Sya^TM, Tir-Hing's deceased mother and former queen of Tahron. It definitely looks a symbol of sovereignty, though more monarchical than republican, and I think it's actually a nice mother-in-law's gift.

Aviotak

Details

Name: Aviotak

Subtitle: whizzing flying scooter

Classification: aircraft

Home: Tahron

Affiliation: Theriom

Rank: transport.

Description

The Aviotak is a small open-air, high-speed flying machine that uses a combination of rocket-powered propulsion and anti-gravitational lift. It only carries one rider (who is secured by a 2-point safety belt that goes over the waist) and is used for reconnaissance purposes, as well as rapid transportation in combat zones. Its streamlined red fairing subtly recalls the torpedo-shaped body of a dolphin, with an elongated nose, flipper-like wings, a small vertical stabiliser resembling a dorsal fin and a fairly long tail ending in a fluke-like structure that includes two large turbojet engines. A high-tech silver revolving dashboard/handlebar with tons of sculpted controls fits in a figure's grip and tapers forward above the nose into a laser cannon, which also works as a scanning device that allows the rider to navigate in a sort of augmented reality mode. Its tail can swing slightly left and right, a characteristic that fictionally gives the vehicle a great manoeuvrability and that I'm glad has been recreated in the toy. Although the Aviotak is a flying machine, the toy version can roll across smooth surfaces on two small wheels situated underneath the rear part of the vehicle and another one embedded in the circular counter-gravity field generator in the front.

Action feature

The Aviotak is characterised by a double configuration. When in speed-flight mode, the counter-gravity field generator is located under the nose of the vehicle and the rider lies on his/her stomach. When in attack-hover mode, the aircraft acquires a more vertical layout (but the nose and the tail swing to keep a horizontal position, while a kind of high-tech drive shaft pivots on a transverse axis, allowing the front anti-gravity thingy to remain at the level of the tail) and the rider is positioned nearly straight up. All the swinging parts have joints that are strong enough to hold the Aviotak in position with no problem.

Additionally, each wing incorporates a large silver missile launcher flanked by a small gun; each launcher fires one missile thanks to a spring-loaded mechanism. Also, the lower part of the nose can open in a jaw-like fashion to reveal a hidden silver cannon.

Weapons and accessories

The Aviotak comes with a small set of accessories. First up is a clear flight stand, which has a diameter large enough to be a very sturdy base, so the aircraft will not be falling over. It attaches to a hole in the bottom of the Aviotak and can be rotated forward and backward with a ratchet feature, allowing for a lot of dynamic aerial posing for both the speed and attack modes.

Furthermore, we get two nicely sculpted plug-in blasting effects, which can be used either for the firearms (i.e, the nose cannon and the handlebar laser cannon) or the jet engines.

Overall, I love this 2-pack. Magda-Lyn is a great character, important to the KR mythos and a much needed figure. The GITD and shooting parts add a ton of fun and an unexpected cool factor to this figure. I love that PoliganToys gave me exactly what I expected in a Magda-Lyn figure and even something more that I didn't know I wanted.

The Aviotak isn't perhaps the most fun item produced so far, but I'm still very much into it. This baby is like a tricked-out Ducati made in Tahron, it just does have it all. I think I'm gonna need a couple more, so I can display some Theriom Troopers on them. I'm just surprised that it came with probably the only figure that can't ride it due to the long dress...