Toy Fair 23: NECA shines with TMNT, Assassin’s Creed, Gargoyles, and loads more

Tons of fantastic licenses highlighted a phenomenal showing from NECA at Toy Fair, including a ton of new Gargoyles.

Star of the show?

All things considered, NECA might have been the star of Toy Fair this past weekend. While you do have to take into account that some big companies didn’t show, even if they did, NECA might still have taken the prize. And that’s due to the huge amount of stellar properties that the company is taking full advantage of.

You already know about Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, as it’s pretty easily NECA’s premier line, but Gargoyles is running a close second at this point. That line is exploding, and took the central spotlight in the booth with a stunning clocktower diorama and tons of new figures.

Gargoyles

If you’re a 90s kid, then you know that one of the best loved shows of the decade was Disney’s Gargoyles. Sort of a superhero show, sort of a (kid friendly) horror-esque production, Gargoyles was a staple of after-school viewing. It was a legitimately cool show, and featured loads of great designs and memorable moments.

NECA is now bringing all of that to life with a comprehensive and collector-focused series of figures, that works in all of the key characters. Or at least it did, as it’s now starting to branch out. From its debut in 2022, NECA’s Gargoyles is now set to work in lesser known heroes and villains, and has become the marquee toy line for the resurgent brand.

As mentioned too, the NECA booth at the show cast the license in what was pretty much the starring role, and featured a shockingly cool clocktower diorama loaded with characters.

TMNT

If Gargoyles was in the #1 spot at Toy Fair, then TMNT was maybe a 1-A. NECA once again showcased its incredibly depth with the license, as the company gets into not just classic cartoons, but Mirage Comics in an increasing way.

Still relatively new, the Mirage line had Baxter Stockman and the awesome looking Rat King on hand, as well as a shockingly deep Usagi Yojimbo sub-line that will be coming, and… Jack Kirby? Yep, the iconic comic book artist will be getting a Mirage figure of his own.

Additionally, we got a first-look at the Party Wagon packaging, for the soon to ship vehicle. That was awesome to see, though we don’t want to overlook the fact that the Wagon itself was on the shelf too, and was looking excellent with its toon-accurate styling and scale.

Speaking of “scale”, check out the giant Krang in the gallery, which was shown as a compliment to the standard action figure line. Though he’s basically quarter-scale, this particular figure is meant to reflect the character’s super-sizing abilities.

Other notables included the movie line, which continues to grow, and the series dedicated to the post-apocalyptic The Last Ronin series.

While there was plenty of everything else, it was a little disappointing that the Archie-themed seemed stagnant. It certainly could be the case that there’s just nothing to show right now, and that there’s more stuff is in the works, but as huge Archie-Turtles fans, we had a minor case of the sads with only the original four figures on display.

Horror, Flash Gordon, Batman, and Pee-Wee too

There was plenty of other stuff to gawk at in the NECA booth other than its top two licenses. Horror will always be a part of the company’s offering slate, and there were plenty of examples of that, with characters that continue to be more or less a ‘who’s who’ of the film genre.

Also on hand were re-offered Batman quarter-scale figures of Catwoman and Penguin from Batman Returns, the Predator from the “Prey” film, a knockout of a Vincent Price figure, better looks at the Dungeons & Dragons and Flash Gordon (movie) line, and the re-debut of Assassin’s Creed. That last one was a nice surprise, with a first wave that looks to include a pair of Ezio figures, featuring his original and final-appearance looks.