I’m a self-confessed vintage toy nerd. I collect vintage wrestling action figures from the 80’s & 90’s. I started purchasing some vintage toys out of nostalgia. Well, WWE and Mattel sucked me into their new stuff. I now buy a few figures a month. You can view photos of my collection on my Instagram account.
The lineup in Elite 46 is decent. It’s really hard for a series to stand out, since so many have been fantastic. It has been a banner year for Mattel’s WWE line of figures. The WWE Superstars included in Elite 46 are Finn Balor, John Cena, Sheamus, Rusev and Harlem Heat (Booker T & Stevie Ray).
We give our thoughts on each figure and include some pictures.
Finn Balor – This is an elite of Finn Balor’s attire he wore during the WWE Network special from Japan, ‘The Beast in the East.’ Balor won the NXT Championship from Kevin Owens at that event. Mattel is really going out of their way to get Finn Balor’s bodypaint correct. I expect Balor to have a new elite about as often as John Cena due to his popularity and freshness of his attire for every big event.
Harlem Heat (Booker T & Stevie Ray) – Adult collectors have been wanting more WCW guys in Mattel’s line for awhile and I’m glad we are finally getting a lot more. I heard over a year ago that Stevie Ray signed a Legends Deal with WWE, so I was expected a Battlepack from Mattel, but they came out strong with elites right out of the gate. I loved Harlem Heat as a kid and these are great additions to my collection.
John Cena – Cena was due for an updated elite, but I really expected him to come with a cloth shirt. This now makes two Cena elites in a row that came without shirts…the first time that has happened. There are plenty of custom Cena shirts you can buy from the secondary market, but this is a missed opportunity.
Rusev – I’m surprised Rusev came with this headscan, since his recent ‘Then Now Forever’ Walmart exclusive elite came with a screaming headscan. I’m also shocked this figure came with a cloth jacket…I’m glad, but would have rather had a cloth Cena shirt instead of a Rusev jacket.
Sheamus – I’m glad this figure came with the WWE Championship and mohawk headscan, because Sheamus elites have historically been an extremely tough sell at retail. There’s a reason he hasn’t had an elite since Elite series 25.
You might be wondering what the hell this ‘diorama’ thing is lists on the front of ever elite. Well, it’s a figure stand with a piece of a background that all connects together. Here is what the diorama looks like if you were to buy all six elites in Elite series 46.
Elite 46 is expected to hit retail for the holiday shopping season.
The lineup for Elite 47 has already been released, but won’t be hitting retail until mid-January at the earliest.
You can pre-order everything at RingsideCollectibles.com. I’m not getting paid to plug them (although it would be nice to get a nice discount – wink wink). I just highly recommend them. I’ve been pleased with every purchase.
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About the Author…
Bobby Roberts (otherwise known as Sweetbob) is the creator of ‘America’s White Boy’ and contributor at Project Shanks. His writing has been featured on ESPN’s ‘SportsNation’, Sports Illustrated’s Hot Clicks, Guyspeed, and various other sites. You can follow him on Twitter at @Sweetbob.