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Blue Devil Action Figure Announced!

Dude, I’m totally jazzed!  It’s just been announced that DC Direct will be producing a Blue Devil action figure!  That’s right, because I demanded it!  Yup, just me.  I can’t imagine anyone else besides me has been clamoring for this.  Blue Devil just so happens to be one of my top five favorite superheroes of all time.

Blue Devil action figure

The figure is part of the new “History of the DC Universe” line from DC Direct.  These Series One figures are due in stores on June 10, 2009.  … … Seriously, dude … … June 2009?  You’re killing me!  I can’t wait that long.  I guess I’ll just have to play with my Justice League Unlimited Blue Devil figure until then.  🙁

I’m not entirely sure that I love the face on this prototype figure.  My hope is that the final figure’s face will look slightly more like the comic character.  I love that the figure is patterned on his classic costume.  While his Shadowpact garb is pretty tough looking, I prefer Blue Devil’s original blue & gold suit.  Just for fun, here are a couple classic covers from the Blue Devil comic books series.  Sooner or later, I’m going to write a few posts here about the wonder that is Blue Devil and why he deserves to be one of my top five favorite superheroes of all time.

Blue Devil’s first appearance is below.  I’m a sucker for this comic.  Typically when I stumble across this comic in a quarter/fifty cent bin, I end up buying it.  Even though I know I’ve got a handful of copies of this comic already.  It’s a sickness.

Blue Devil #1

Here is Blue Devil #6.  Around this time it was established that Blue Devil had become a weirdness magnet. Lots of fun hijinks came out of that plot thread.  I’ve always loved Blue Devil’s facial expression and clean lines on this cover.  Just a really nice piece.

Blue Devil #6

Okay, back to the action figures… Here is the official information from the DC Direct website about the new figures:

HISTORY OF THE DC UNIVERSE: SERIES 1

BASED ON THE ART OF GEORGE PÉREZ

The first in an ongoing line of action figures that spans the broad history of the DC Universe, as presented by artist George Pérez in the classic book HISTORY OF THE DC UNIVERSE!

Planned to include more characters than any DC Direct line ever, this series will feature characters from a variety of teams and eras, as well as some renegade solo characters.

The History of the DC Universe will undoubtedly increase the breadth of DC characters available as action figures, while satisfying many oft-requested fan favorite characters.

Here is a shot of the rest of the figures in Series One of the History of the DC Universe line.  I can’t wait!

History of the DC Universe Series One Action Figures

8 thoughts on “Blue Devil Action Figure Announced!

  1. i do! i had that inaugural issue and the next few. i remember being excited that i was able to jump on a new comic from the very beginning and that my issue #1 (which i co-owned with matt scaringe) would be worth big $$ someday. don’t remember much excitement about this title though and i figured it petered out pretty quick. i take it from your post that BD came back in future series/incarnations? Wasn’t he a stuntman who’s movie costume got fused to his skin in a freak accident? it’s bee so long…

  2. Butz – You nailed it exactly! He absolutely was a stuntman who got stuck in the costume. This original series only lasted about 30 issues. Then he disappeared for a long time. He then resurfaced for a short period during a less-than-stellar JLA era. Finally he got some recognition more recently in the magic-based comic “Shadowpact”. Even though Shadowpact got cancelled, I think it helped push Blue Devil back into the forefront of people’s mind.

    And my excitement about the character also came from being able to jump in on the first issue. It was nice to start from the beginning, rather than have to catch up on years of back story.

    Thanks for the comments!
    Shag

  3. Actually, MY excitement with Blue Devil came from co-creating him with Dan Mishkin and Paris Cullins when I was…um…much younger. For those first few issues we had a genuine hit on our hands, and our finest moment was Blue Devil Summer Fun #1. Alas, the series fell apart for a number of reasons, some our fault, some due to mismanagement. BD has had several revivals, including a shot granted to me and Dan in the early 90s…but it’s never been quite right. Bill Willingham had a pretty good take on BD in SHADOWPACT, but I’d still like to get one more chance to play with BD.

    About the figure…it’s close. the tunic is too skimpy, and he should be rangier, taller-looking, and more dynamic. Still, it’s my second BD toy in just a few years, and wow, those royalty checks are amounting to…dozens of dollars! Now if DC will just market that AMETHYST toy line they promised me all those years ago!

    I’m glad you still love BD, Shag. All the best! -Cohn

  4. Gary – Thanks for stopping by. I’m honored! I agree that Shadowpact depicted Danny pretty well. I also enjoyed the “JLA: Black Baptism” mini-series a few years back. However, no one has successfully recaptured the fun that you and Dan Mishkin had back in the day. If you and Dan had another shot at Blue Devil… that would be phenomenal! I’d love to see that.

    I’d be interested to hear your take on how they’ve handled “Kid Devil” in the Teen Titans book. Any thoughts on Eddie nowadays?

    In regard to the “Blue Devil Summer Fun” issue, a buddy of mine recently did a nice review from the Phantom Stranger’s perspective. I love that particular issue! It’s such a blast.
    http://iamthephantomstranger.blogspot.com/2009/02/blue-devil-annual-1-1985.html

    Don’t forget about the Blue Devil Heroclix. Hopefully you got a couple pennies out of that one too! 🙂

    Thanks again for stopping by. You are welcome here anytime!

  5. Thank God another Blue Devil fan!! I couldn’t agree with you more about BD! I love the character and here I am 39 years old. I liked the Shadowpact series, but it lacked the fun the old BD had. From his run in with the Trickster to the great covers…to this day Issue #1 and #14 which was a throw back to when Robin was introduced are my all time favorites. Also believe me I completely understand about buying multiple copies. Seems anytime I’ve ordered comics online I always seem to throw BD issues in my cart. Now in all the years I’ve been collecting I have 5 complete runs plus extras….why?? I don’t have a damn clue….you are right it is a sickness. I only do it for Blue Devil and Vigilante comics….strange huh? As to the Figure…I’m just happy to see Danny getting the plastic treatment, the JLU figure was…ok at best. Since I was an 80’s DC hero junkie I was also excited to see that they are making a Vigilante Figure in the DC Universe Classics line…will be the only one I’ll buy….so far….until they make a Kid Devil figure. ;^)

  6. Jase – Thanks for the comment! It’s always nice to meet another Blue Devil fan. I’ve done a handful of other Blue Devil-related posts which may interest you. You can find them here: http://onceuponageek.com/tag/blue-devil/

    Be sure to watch for further Blue Devil news here on my blog. I’m working on a pretty cool Blue Devil related project that should make it’s way to the blog within a month or so. 🙂

    Thanks again!
    Shag

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