You’re damned if you do, damned if you don’t. I wish I hadn’t paid a grand for this lot of Megos, but on the other hand, if I hadn’t, I’d wish I had. So I figured I may as well make the choice that makes me happy now, and help someone make their next house payment in the process.
I just pulled an all-nighter going through these fifteen Mego dolls, analyzing them, and doing hardcore maintenance. As a result, I’ve doubled my collection and left the lot better than I found it (after cannibalizing a couple guys for parts).
A major draw of this lot was the removable cowl Batman. I believe he’s only found on a Type 1 body, being the first version of Batman Mego ever produced. I hate the T1 bodies though, so I gave this one the T2 body I cobbled together from the working parts of several donors (mainly the broken superman and the Aquaman with the horrifically “customized” suit). His vinyl mittens never fit very well, so they’re packaged separately in his box.
After buying this lot, I ended up with three or four Batmen, including TestBat, who I have since retired. This is the most presentable of the regular Batmen, in his none-too-impressive repro box.
I was surprised to discover that Robin was in fact of the Fist Fighters variety, but his legs needed to be re-stringed, and I don’t have any other Fist Fighters. So I gave his head to one of the Type 2 bodies I cobbled together and made him a regular Robin. I never much cared for Robin, and this incarnation is no exception, but I guess I have one now.
All his costume bits are in exquisite condition, so this Robin is almost as close to mint as you can get. So he’s become kind of a highlight of the collection.
Superman was a hot mess. Several broken limbs, a gray, sticky head, and worst of all a frayed cloth Superlogo that was poorly and unnecessarily stitched onto the breast of the suit, which took forever to remove. I initially debated giving the makeshift T2 body to Robin, but gave it to Supe instead (later I gave TestBat’s body to Robin, so it all worked out.)
I always wanted a Supergirl Mego: her suit is nice, her face and hair are cute, and she showcases some impressive cleavage. She lacks her shoes, but still has her super logo, and her hair has taken a sexy Veronica Lake eye-curtain style.
She required some serious work on her neck, though, where someone had done an ugly job of gluing her head down: she bore a tumorous choker of glue residue that had devoured quite a bit of her lovely locks when it dried. (EDIT: I just found out that this is apparently a natural occurrence called “Mego Melt”, where the plastics have a chemical reaction. Odd.) I managed to cut it all away and make her presentable again. Probably still ought to clean her face a bit.
She also needs to be restrung, as her rubber bands have rotted considerably. There’s no tutorial on how to manage this, though.
Wonder Woman is almost a nice specimen. Body in good condition, suit almost pristine. It’s the head that’s driving me nuts, specifically the ratty, greasy hair, and the stains on the cheeks. Here’s hoping some conditioner will fix it up.
Another gem in this collection is Thor, who is in very nice condition and totally complete! And as far as I can tell, no repro parts, either. Sweet.
Equally impressive is Conan, also in good condition and totally complete with no repro parts. A stain or two on his face is the worst of his injuries.
Thing is in near-pristine shape, except that I had to superglue his broken left elbow pin. It seems to be holding together well post-surgery. Also, Lizard loves to photobomb.
The Lizard was in great shape, and I believe his coat is original, too! It’s missing the Mego tag (they usually are), but there’s no markings of repro companies that I can see. I swapped his pristine coat for my Lizard’s dirty one, but that’s it. Both are lovely specimens.
Another set of twins, the boxed Gobby is missing a foot, though I managed to salvage the ankle pin. I swapped the new Goblin’s head with my old one, as well as the suit and boots, to create a more pristine Gobby for my display shelf.
The lot contained three Type 1 dolls. Pictured left is the body that came with Removable Cowl Batman, now serving as TestBat’s new body. Penguin and Riddler could both use re-stringing, but Riddler is the only one loose and jangly enough to need it. Penguin is another nice overall specimen, if only I was interested in the T1 dolls. I like how his box design has an ice cream product aesthetic.
EDIT: I worked on the T1 Batman a bit, gave him a nicer head, and he does have a box that I misplaced when I took the first pic.
Aquaman and Falcon were reduced to a bundle of fodder. Rest in piece, you poor, unsalvageable bastards.
