By Michael Moore, PWTorch specialist

In Brief: The Jakks-Pacific TNA Genesis figure of Samoa Joe is one of the least accurate and laughable-looking wrestling figures ever made.

Action Figure Spotlight #14: Jakks-Pacific TNA Genesis Samoa Joe
Originally Released: 2010
What you can expect to pay: $5 or less (loose or packaged)
Recent sales: None

There have been plenty of inaccurate and ridiculous-looking wrestling figures produced over the years, but this cheap figure of Samoa Joe might just be the worst of the bunch.

The TNA Genesis figures were released individually and sold in three-packs in 2010 at discount stores like Big Lots. Jakks-Pacific produced plenty of these types of WWE figures over the years: they use the regular high quality heads, but place them on generic, smaller bodies that have much less articulation and detail than the figures sold at larger retail stores and online. The first – and so far only – line of these TNA figures included Joe, Jeff Jarrett, Sting, Suicide, Kurt Angle, and A.J. Styles.

While none of the Genesis figures looked great, none was as bad as Joe. The figure has the same head as Joe’s Deluxe Impact series 1, complete with tribal paint. Joe’s large head sits on top of a skinny, yet ripped, body wearing black and brown tights.

The Genesis figures – and their WWE predecessors – were made as toys for children, and collectors haven’t shown much interest in them. The only real upside to the line is that each figure comes with a title belt, either the TNA World or X Division. The regular Deluxe Impact figures did not come with title belts, so if you’re looking to get one, this might be one way to go.

If you’re looking for a good figure of Samoa Joe, there are some available. The fifth series of Deluxe Impact figures includes Joe in his traditional wrestling gear, making it the most popular of his figures. A figure of Joe in his face paint and hideous pants – sans Rambo knife – was included in the first series of Deluxe Impact figures, and also was included in a two-pack with Mick Foley. There is also an older figure of Joe available from Toy Biz that was made around 2006.

Collectibles News

-- The first WWE Legends figure from mattycollector.com – a detailed toy of Andre the Giant, complete with removable singlet and classic WWF Title belt – went on sale yesterday. The figure costs $20 and some are still available. Also, if you’re a fan of Andre, make sure to check your local Kmart store. Many of the stores somehow wound up with Andre t-shirts that were produced not by WWE, but by Andre’s estate. The shirts feature an old black and white picture of Andre and say “King of the Ring.” Some readers have reported finding them as cheap as $3 on clearance.

-- TNA Reflexxions, the latest trading card offering from TRISTAR, went live last week, and there are plenty of individual cards up for sale on eBay. The set features the first certified autographs of several wrestlers and personalities, including Austin Aries, Eric Bischoff, Garett Bischoff, Jesse Sorensen, and Kid Kash, among others. The most valuable cards to hit the secondary market so far are those that have been autographed by Ric Flair. One Flair autograph, which also includes a piece of his tie and another piece of his Armani suit, recently sold for more than $170.

-- Several items are being sold for considerably discounted prices at shoptna.com. The remaining Skellebrities paintings of Jeff Hardy, Velvet Sky, and Rob Van Dam that were featured in the Collectibles Column a few weeks back have been marked down to $74.99. The price of the popular glow-in-the-dark figure of Jeff Hardy has been cut in half; it is now available for $14.99.

-- The gold parallels from the 2011 Topps WWE Classics set have become surprisingly popular with card collectors. Many of the top stars are selling in the $10-15 range, and a gold card of A.J. recently sold for $19.99. Although the cards are not serial numbered and Topps has not released production numbers, some knowledgeable collectors have estimated that there are around 200 of each card. Because of the holofoil finish, the gold parallels are very difficult to differentiate from the base cards. Look closely at the holographic border around the wrestler to see if you have a gold card that you may have overlooked.

Trivia Question of the Week

The sloppy signature in last Thursday’s Collectibles Column stumped most readers. Only Pete Griffin submitted the correct answer: Chris Jericho. Thursday’s collectibles column will include another sloppy signature from a top star.

Reader Comments

Derek Hamel: “I’m a collector, and more recently, seller of wrestling figures. In the last few months, I sold all three of my Blue Blazer boxed figures (all from 1999). In near-mint condition, they went for about 25 bucks each on Amazon. When I first priced them, I was surprised they weren’t more valuable. But, with loads available on Amazon, I had to price comparably.

Another item about the new glow-in-the-dark Jeff Hardy figure: besides the ones the TNA website was selling for an awesome 19.99, they also had about 100, or slightly less, that were autographed. ShopTNA.com was selling them for an unbelievable 29.99.

Unfortunately, i could only afford one of each. But, if I'd had the money, I would have purchased every single signed copy I could grab. Jeff Hardy figures still sell at tremendous prices – almost all of them except recent TNA Jakks figures, which were heavily produced. And I'd bet that those, too, will go for a good chunk of change in a few years.

It seems that Jeff is unfazeable, at least in the action figure market. Because he has that bad boy/loose cannon image, the only thing I think would do harm to his old merchandise sales would be to go back to WWE and start reading scripted promos like a good boy.

The success of Hardy figures, by the way, is proof that females do collect action figures. Of the 100 or so customers I've had over the last four or five months, I'd say 60% were women. Now, how many of those were women buying figures for their young sons, I don't know.”

Questions and comments about wrestling collectibles can be sent to michaelmoorewriter@gmail.com.

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