Fresh Monkey Fiction Presents "Operation Monster Force" (1/12 Scale)

[MeatHookGekko]

Gridiron gear

^
@screamingmetal noted last month that Gridiron Studios is making some weapons for this line

Some of this line appears to have crossover military/GI Joe Classified RAH/Valaverse application, etc, etc. Looks interesting.

 

[MeatHookGekko]

 

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[Wor-Gar]

What a brilliant idea and amalgamation of monsters, military and mayhem!

 

[ragacin]

How is the quality of FMF figures? Haven't seen any.

 

[MeatHookGekko]

How is the quality of FMF figures? Haven't seen any.

The product is still too new AFAIK, so there are no active reviews.

However, since it's been established that there is money in the 1/12th scale, there will be other brands popping up and either creating support items or competing lines. FMF's price point looks to be 35+. With inflation, you can see it edging to 40 after not too long. IMHO, there is probably a niche to be exploited that's more detailed and more accessories than Classified/Valaverse, but not as expensive as DAM or Soldier Story type 1/12 offerings.

I'd say 50 is the sweet spot. Where many collectors could go if there was a mix of soft goods and a lot of accessories, cool ones and there was a clear quality upgrade against the 25-30 dollar figures. I hate to say this, but IIRC, Classified started at 19.99 MSRP. Given where the economy is going and where it will likely head, the 30 dollar figure price point might not be enough to release an enticing 1/12 military offering. The cost to ship things has exploded. The cost/shortage of diesel, etc, becomes a factor as well that trickles into our end costs.








^ These dios are pretty cool offerings. Given there's also stuff like NECA and Marvel Legends, the 1/12 range is expansive enough to make "fringe" product more viable.

 

[ragacin]

I'll check out the videos. I am guessing by the offerings that the story is over a long period of time since there is a mix of very modern military, 1930's serial movies, and classic monsters. For me, I like the modern military without the zombie-missing-body-parts figures, Declan VanHelsing, and the Donnor Party because of the clever name and design. The modern general is interesting because it gives us "Carl Weathers" and "lifelike hair and beard" heads . We'll see how all this pans out once they show up.

 

[MeatHookGekko]

Some alternate expanded photos (first video) and some additional lore text background (second video)

 

[SwedishHeat]

I really love this concept., it reminds me of the Dead Cell series from Triad Toys many years ago. Those figures didn't really get going enough to flesh out the story, but I understood what they were trying to go for. Government agents fighting classic movie monsters is a pretty cool trope.

That 6-inch scale is not really my thing, and I don't think it makes sense to army build at anything bigger than 3 3/4. But I really admire what they're trying to do. Having said that, they are putting a lot of things up for order without delivering anything first, which is a red flag for me. Maybe put out one wave of 3-4 figures. But there's like 20 figures out for pre-order right now.

 

[MeatHookGekko]

...But I really admire what they're trying to do. Having said that, they are putting a lot of things up for order without delivering anything first, which is a red flag for me. Maybe put out one wave of 3-4 figures. But there's like 20 figures out for pre-order right now.

IIRC, in one of the videos ( there are a lot of them in the thread, so I understand if it got lost in the weeds here), there is some mention that FMF is being funded or partially funded by Big Bad Toy Store itself as a "house brand" item.

Unless BBTS is going to go under ( at this point, anything is possible in the hobby), I'd wager the situation is at a point of no return. I.E. both sides are literally forced to deliver this product to market. There's a concurrent FMF 4 inch line for Eagle Force, and I can see that sinking FMF eventually. Asking 27 bucks plus tax and shipping for a single 4 inch figure is a massive push. Maybe I'm not hip on the potential wealth of Eagle Force collecting though.

It's unclear how the hobby will react to the 37 dollar price point though. How resistant they will be. The "squad builder" type figures in the line, I can see moving well. (However they split off their helmets into the accessory sets, which is actually a bit disconcerting, as they are trying to milk a 60 dollar total standard trooper tier between two sets) There's some cross over appeal to GI Joe Classified and Valaverse. Things like the Dracula or the guy in the white suit and headdress, I just don't know....

 

[MeatHookGekko]

This one looks new on the preorder list.

What's interesting is Grid Iron weapons are clearly a massive upgrade in quality of firearms. So a rationale is the elevated price point above Valaverse and Classified will partially be offset by not needing to upgrade parts. It's easy to see you can remove this guys head, replace it, and turn him into a Classified type vehicle driver or troop builder of some kind. Imagine him as a tactical version of GI Joe RAH Barbeque with a headswap.

This one looks a bit like homage to The Phantom, with a little He Man thrown into it.

 

[screamingmetal]

I've had my eye on these, have the Delta Red Nocturnal Trooper, The Eraser, and the Zombie Defense loadout on pre order. I'm going to wait until I see reviews before ordering any others. Love the Idea of Monster Force and how a lot of Fresh Monkey Fiction 1/18 figures happen to look similar to other properties that will never get made into figures let alone good ones. happy to see that will continue with the 1:12 Monster Force line.
The line's biggest issue at this point is the price. If these were $25, they'd sell much better.
Halloween boy looks kinda stupid both as a comic and a figure but, swapping that head out for any other head like one of the skull balaclava ones might improve the look a lot.

 

[MeatHookGekko]

 

[screamingmetal]

I was going to post those! It would've sold the line better if they had shown how these are designed, their scale to other figures, and what accessories these come with, from the beginning. Love the pouch swapping details, allows better customization, something Action Force was going to have but Bobby thought it wasn't possible so it was nixed. Too bad the figures with coats are so limited in movement. I hate it when companies have coats and they for some cheap stupid reason, make the outer coat one piece with the inner waist coat because it so limits articulation. Had they made them separate pieces, the figure would've had much batter range of leg movement but now it's just a standing traffic cone.
I'll pass on the figures with coats but the rest are going to be mine!