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This year at Comic-Con when it came to exclusive toys, I tried to make a point of picking up the kinds of indie figures that are not only giving the majors a run for their money, but also are usually only available online and rarely somewhere I can look before I buy. In the case of Skeletron, well, they’re doing Action Force Red Shadows tributes, sort of like Fresh Monkey Fiction.

I say tributes even though it looks like Skeletron actually owns some of the old trademarks — they at least own the names Red Shadows, Skeletron, and Roboskull. Every toy company with a piece of Action Force seems to be playing nice; if Skeletron owns Red Shadows rights now, they could sue Fresh Monkey Fiction, but I’ve been assured they’re all friends and like the stuff playing together. Meanwhile, Hasbro made a Red Shadow-style repaint of the SNAKE armor that they can’t officially say is made for Red Shadows to operate, but you do the math. (Valaverse, ironically, owns the name Action Force now, but hasn’t made anything that resembles the Palitoy figures much.)

Skeletron as a company also publishes deluxe omnibuses of the old Battle Action Force comics, which makes their claim seem even more legit. Thus far, however, they’ve stuck to army builders and original characters, which makes me think they don’t have rights to individuals like Baron Ironblood.

This new 6-inch Assault Trooper (they already made a 4-inch one) goes on sale Aug. 26th at noon EST — that’s tomorrow as I write this but probably TODAY as you are seeing it. They tend to sell out, so grab ‘em quick. Because I can say with some certainty that if you think you’ll like this toy…you will.

Let’s compare to Fresh Monkey Fiction’s Red Shadow tributes.

In Masters of the Universe-speak, it’s a bit like Classics versus Mondo. FMF’s version is literally the closest to the original design, while Skeletron’s is an upgrade of the familiar character with more detail and accessories, looking less like the blatant Nazi/Commie hybrid the original was trying to suggest, and more like a G.I. Joe specialized Viper. [I remember a history teacher friend of my dad’s being OUTRAGED that the bad guys were in any way Russian-coded.] He also includes a bazooka, which is the original Red Shadow weapon. He’s leveled it up, too, with (removable) blast forward and blowback effects.

The Red Shadow helmet head is interchangeable with one that looks more like a red Cobra Trooper…

…and the hardhat on that one is removable. (Crazy paint detail, right?)

First, let’s look at the package, which is oddly angular in the upper-right corner, but otherwise, features a backdrop that suggests Baron Ironblood’s canonical home of South America.

The figure is held in the plastic tray by one plastic shirt-tie around his waist. Mot of the gear is visible in the box — the only hidden piece is a triangular, translucent figure stand that sports three foot pegs for some posing variety.

However, there are more surprises. The Trooper’s backpack opens up, after you unlatch two hinged latches on either side, and it’s full of removable gear.

The rockets are spares for the bazooka, the magazines are extras for the machine gun, but you can also see an extra stock and silencer for said gun. Put them together…

This figure is nearly $40, but when you pay that much for a NECA figure, you get interchangeable parts, usually pick the ones you want, and put the others away. Here, your money buys a lot of gear that can be stowed, even apart from the gun and knife holsters in his armor. The backpack peg is also long and firm (huh huh) so it goes in and stays in (HUH HUH) better than some G.I. Joe Classified backpacks.

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Also, his battle vest comes off, and his belt is a separate piece too.

The bodysuit is textured like a Marvel movie costume.

Articulation is akin to G.I. Joe Classified, though I do want to note that the wrist hinges go up and down rather than in and out, to allow for better dual grips on the bazooka.

As for scale, it should work well with most 6-inch figures. Like Marvel Legends Punisher.

Heads are swappable with FMF’s Red Shadows, though the FMF peg is slightly larger. the thing is, the shades of red don’t quite match. Order of the Crimson Moon are, indeed, crimson, while Skeletron’s troops are more orangey. My memory suggests that’s closer to Palitoy, but I could be mistaken. Anyway, more army building variety abounds.

FMF’s Shadow is $37.99 and comes with parts to turn him into a werewolf. Skeletron’s is $38.99, but comes with a ton of gear that he can use most of at once. Your mileage may vary, but if you mainly want a Red Shadow and don’t mind a modern update, Skeletron’s takes it. They even make me want to go back and try to score some of the previous releases, like their take on Red Wolf, the Roboskull pilot.

The launching rocket effect makes this a great display piece, too.

When I bought the figure at Comic-Con, the booth guy gave me a bonus item: a tiny, in-scale apple. Shadows’ mouths are covered, but I brought that nigh-microscopic sucker home just so you could enjoy the following picture: