NECA has shared a behind the scenes look at their upcoming Lothar 7″ Scale Figure. The figure is part of the Defenders of the Earth line up. The first three figure; Flash Gordon, Ming The Merciless, and The Phantom are available now in Walmart stores, and will hit general retail in a few weeks. NECA states that both Lothar and Madrake are currently being worked on, and that more is planned for these characters. Check out the new look at Lothar by clicking the banner image above.
New Photos of the Defenders of the Earth Lothar Figure by NECA

Now we Ned Garax. These are really nice well done figures. My only complaint is the paint coming off on the wrist and ankle joints. This is a look into the world of an eventual NECA DC UNIVERSE line....which I believe will happen.....some day. Until then, these are fun.
I would love to see Captain Planet in this style as well.
Yeah I'm concerned they have no plans for Garax since he's not on the back of the packaging unlike Lothar and Mandrake and wasn't shown at Toy Fair last year with the other 5 figures. Surely they aren't going to leave the line incomplete like that when they only have to make ONE more figure to recreate the full vintage set of 6 characters.
The other thought that occurred to me is maybe he'll be some kind of online exclusive (what would have been a convention exclusive in a normal year), and that's why he's not pictured with the rest of them on the packaging. He's the most likely pegwarmer among all 6 if sold at retail, so it would make sense to offer him as a limited online exclusive instead just to get him released for us fans/completists.
The other thought that occurred to me is maybe he'll be some kind of online exclusive (what would have been a convention exclusive in a normal year), and that's why he's not pictured with the rest of them on the packaging. He's the most likely pegwarmer among all 6 if sold at retail, so it would make sense to offer him as a limited online exclusive instead just to get him released for us fans/completists.
In related news, this line is making me wish some company was doing a nice 7" scale Zorro so I can add him to my classic pulp heroes display with the Defenders and my DST Rocketeer figure. It's too bad Boss Fight Studio won't upscale their 3.75" Zorro to a 6-7" size.
This series needs a come back.
On top of that, WB/DC would want to see multiple figures released during the year and to have a physical presence in toy aisles. McFarlane released 46 figures and 1 vehicle in 2020, not including BAFs. Mattel released 20 figures in 2019 when they were barely trying, which doesn't include BAFs or the 2019 SDCC set. Just for cartoon TMNT figures, Neca released 16 figures in 2020. Just SIXTEEN figures in 2020 and a lot of people couldn't find them.
And one final thing to consider:
Does anyone want to go through the same trouble of buying DC figures as they do the Neca TMNT figures?
I love NECA as a company.... But whoever handles their advertising needs to be sacked. Their latest Instagram story is a about giving your toys a hot water bath before moving them to keep the joints from breaking. Guess what, NECA? I SHOULDN'T HAVE TO DO THAT IN THE FIRST PLACE!
On top of that, WB/DC would want to see multiple figures released during the year and to have a physical presence in toy aisles. McFarlane released 46 figures and 1 vehicle in 2020, not including BAFs. Mattel released 20 figures in 2019 when they were barely trying, which doesn't include BAFs or the 2019 SDCC set. Just for cartoon TMNT figures, Neca released 16 figures in 2020. Just SIXTEEN figures in 2020 and a lot of people couldn't find them.
And one final thing to consider:
Does anyone want to go through the same trouble of buying DC figures as they do the Neca TMNT figures?
However. Your bold type has me. The thought of hunting for anything as awful as TMNT by NECA pushes the bile to the tip of my tongue. All though I’d imagine DC would be at all retailers and online.
However
I can't see NECA successfully handling a full DC figure license like Mattel and McFarlane are doing because of the quantity of figures per year a license like that would demand (as stated by others above) , but I think they'd do a great job at a smaller sub-license that specifically just focuses on movie-based characters with actor likenesses, since that's what they excel at. Their Chris Reeve Superman is still one of my favorite figures in my collection. I wish Mattel had expanded on that in 2018 for the 40th anniversary of Superman: The Movie and given us a full wave of figures from the Donner films (Gene Hackman Lex, General Zod, Ursa, Non, Lois, and Clark, and even Helen Slater Supergirl). That's one of the dream lines on my wishlists.
When mcfarlane was announced as the new home for DC 6-7 inch figures most comments were that he would do very few figures in a year. Most commenters didn’t think he could do more than 20. You’d be surprised what toy companies do. Lol.
Full Thread: Defenders of the Earth Lothar
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