Still, Kenner Toys (and Hasbro eventually), kept pressing on with more and more realistic looking action figures, and fellow mass-market retailers like Mattel, along with collectible figure-makers including McFarlane Toys, Sideshow and NECA have produced some pretty impressive product over the past several years.
Action figures have come a long way since Star Wars figures revolutionized the movie marketing industry in 1977.
One of those coveted licenses that was finally freed up in the last few years is for Tim Burton’s Batman from 1989 and 1992’s Batman Returns, as Hot Toys has produced 12-inch figures from the first film and NECA has lassoed the 1/4 scale line and released product from both.
NECA’s latest coup is the production of two key characters from Batman Returns, releasing two different figures of Danny DeVito in the guise of The Penguin, and this week, Michelle Pfeiffer as Catwoman.