I own a lot of action figures. (You can guess this by the number on this column.) There's a very short list of figures with a memorable, long-lasting odor and Moss Man remains one of the most intense to this day. The figure shipped to you in carded, in a white box, which was in another box - and let me tell you, the smell was like a punch to the face. Tiny holes on the side of the carded figure let a tiny bit of odor out, allowing it to retain an intense smell to this very day. In July of 2013, I found this figure got dumped at Big Lots! for $10 per. Do you know how I found it, in the piles of disorganized Matchbox playsets, Batman overstock, and unlicensed die-cast? Because I could smell it.
I had a room with some unusual odors, so I opened up Moss Man to act as an air freshener. Guess what? He kicked the smell's butt. It was astonishing and horrifying.
At about 7-inches tall, this figure is basically the most clever Beast Man redeco anyone thought of - the original 1980s figure was a green Beast Man with flocking and a pine scent that could bring a man to tears. The new version is very similar, but it adds a second head based on the 2002 cartoon series, a unique pouch with removable knife, and a club. You definitely got your money's worth. The articulation is more or less normal for this kind of a toy - there are no surprises to be had here, about 19 points of articulation
Moss Man as a toy has had numerous odd developmental turns since the 2002 line, where he debuted as a horrible mail-in offer. The figure required you purchase 3 action figures, on the same day, at the same store, on the same receipt, and pay a fee to get him - which at the time was quite the challenge, as new figures were scarce and stores mostly carried He-Man variants at that point. The 2010 release (this one) allowed fans to give input on if they wanted the figure with a little flocking, a lot of flocking, or no flocking, and the end result is this guy. The picture on the back of the box shows no significant flocking, but it didn't stop there - the figure came in flocked and unflocked ear versions, which caused a frenzy and a sell-through in minutes. At the time this was pretty uncommon, but nobody wanted to be left without getting either variant. (Well, except me, one Moss Man is plenty.) Additional figures were, of course, sold later and as you can see it went from being the hottest figure in ages to a bit of a dud, with the final units being unceremoniously dumped at Big Lots! for half price... I assume it was just a bid to clear room for inventory.
I am paranoid about causing the flocking to flake off, so I've put almost zero play time in with Moss Man since opening him in 2012. He looks good, the joints work, and the smell has been described as upsetting by visitors to my basement. It's a fitting update to the classic figure, with the new head sculpt providing a wonderful alternative to the default classic noggin. I prefer the original myself but either way, it still stinks.
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