TMNT – Rat King and Vernon Fenwick 2-Pack by NECA Toys – Toyark Photo Shoot

The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles cartoon series toy line from NECA Toys is rolling along, with a number of releases planned for 2021. One of the more recent releases is a 2-pack featuring Rat King and Vernon Fenwick. The Rat King Figure features some interchangeable hands, a few rats, a soda can ammo belt, and more. The Vernon figure includes swap out hands, a video camera, and interchangeable parts for his mutated were-rat look from an episode of the cartoon. The set is available in Target stores in the US, and sells for $51.99.

Our friends at NECA have sent over the 2-pack fore review. After the jump, you can check out a photo gallery and my thoughts on the figures.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles – Rat King and Vernon Fenwick 2-Pack by NECA Toys

Pros

• Great sculpts on both figures
• Solid selection of accessories for Rat King
• Plenty of varied hands for both figures make for great display options
• The swap out pieces for Were-Rat Vernon are handled really well
• Excellent articulation and range of motion
• Clever use of wired tails on the rats to mount them to Rat Kings arms or shoulders

Cons

• Cracking and paint issues on Rat King
• Were-Rat Vernon’s jaw was paint locked shut

Overall
As the NECA TMNT Cartoon Series grows, you’re going to begin seeing more tertiary characters and accessories pop in. Die-hard fans are going to be seeing a lot of figures and items that likely wouldn’t have been released by any other company. Or at least, not at this level. The Rat King and Vernon 2-pack starts to venture into the less common character territory with Vernon and his alter-ego. With this set you get Rat King who has a few interchangeable hands, three rats, a mutagen canister, three cans of soda, an ammo belt for the soda, and a flute. With Vernon, you get a few interchangeable hands, and a video camera. Swap out arms, and a swap out head and neck allow you to transform Vernon into the Were-Rat from the season 4 cartoon episode “Were-Rats from Channel 6”.

When I was younger, the Rat King was my favorite TMNT figure. The odd look of the toy combined with a character I liked from the toon just hit at the right time I guess. So when this was announced, I was immediately looking forward to the figure, much more-so than Vernon, who I didn’t quite remember well from the old show. The sculpt on Rat King is fantastic. NECA did a great job capturing the look of the cartoon, and gave him just the right amount of accessories to bring that look to life. The figure has a few different hands, and they are nice and varied, with some allowing you to grip the accessories, and other just for alternate posing. I was quite happy with how they handled the three rats. Two of them features looped tails that allow you to easily mount them to Rat King’s arms or shoulder. the third is more appropriate for sitting in one of the open hands. The soda cans and ammo belt are a nice touch. Out side of some issues (see below), this is exactly what I wated from Rat King.

Vernon also looks great as a figure. Even though It’s not a character I’m into, I was quite impressed with how well solid a figure he turned out to be. Like Rat King, the articulation is really solid here, with plenty of posability. There’s a nice assortment of hands too, including ones for holding the camera, or for poses without it. The real draw of the Vernon figure are the swap out parts for the Were-Rat. The arms disconnect at the rolled up sleeves, and the neck disconnects at the shirt collar. The transition is pretty seamless, and basically gives you a whole new figure.

I did run into a few issues while handling the set. Starting with Rat King, I came across the paint cracking and chipping issue that I’ve seen others mention. The most noticeable spots are the soft vinyl on the crotch (see image #006), and one of the yellow wrappings on his chest. There was also a noticeable scraped piece of paint on his face. The paint cracking on the crotch resulted in some paint flaking off, enough that I had to stop handling it for this shoot. Vernon had an issue with the Were-Rat head. The jaw is supposed to be articulated, but mine was practically glued shut. It took about 40 minutes of heating and slowly working it loose, but some paint on the left side of the mouth got damaged (which is mainly seen when the mouth is agape).

Those issues aside, this is a great looking set in-hand. The sculpts are excellent, there’s some great accessories, well done articulation, and the intent of the paint application is fine. Just be mindful of potential issues when shopping. Check out a selection of images below, and the full gallery after that.

CompaniesNECA
CharactersRat KingVernon Fenwick
Scale7 Inch

TagsFeatured NECA Toy Galleries

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