By Michael Moore, PWTorch Collectibles specialist

In Brief: Wrestling toys have changed considerably over the last 28 years. Each week, Action Figure Evolution will highlight five figures of a particular wrestler.

For 52 weeks, the Pro Wrestling Torch Collectibles Column shone the action figure spotlight on everyone from Austin to Ziggler. After a full year of columns focusing on 52 unique wrestling action figures from the WWF, WCW, AWA, TNA, ECW, and independent companies, it’s time for something a little bit different.

Beginning next week, the Tuesday edition of the PWTorch Collectibles Column will present an Action Figure Evolution. Instead of focusing on one specific toy, this new feature will examine how toys of a specific wrestler have changed over the years.

Kids and collectors have been scooping up toys of their favorite wrestlers for nearly 30 years now. The AWA and WWF unveiled the first wrestling toys in 1984 and 1985 and, aside from a brief period in the early-1990s when the entire wrestling industry was in a funk, wrestling toys have been a major part of toy departments in all major retail stores.

Over the last 28 years, wrestling toys have changed dramatically. The WWF initially offered solid rubber figures that didn’t move, while the AWA’s jacked up toys looked like they were ready to do battle with He-Man and the Masters of the Universe. Many collectors would argue that the quality of wrestling figures didn’t actually improve until the early 2000s, when Jakks-Pacific, which had been producing WWF toys since 1996, unveiled its Ruthless Aggression styled figures, which featured real capture head scans, multiple points of articulation and detailed ring gear.

Today, Mattel offers toys of current and past WWE wrestlers, while Jakks is cranking out TNA figures that are similar to that company’s WWE Deluxe Aggression toys. Other companies have also entered the wrestling toy market in recent years, including Playmates, which issued a line of Lucha Libre USA toys in 2011 that never really caught on.

Each Tuesday, Action Figure Evolution will present five figures of one wrestler to show how wrestling toys have changed over the years. Most of wrestling’s top names from the last 30 years have multiple toys from several different companies.

If there is a wrestler you would like to see included in Action Figure Evolution, send your suggestions to michaelmoorewriter@gmail.com .

Action Figure Evolution #1: Andre the Giant




(1) 1984 LJN WWF Wrestling Superstars. Andre’s first toy was included in the first wave of WWF toys from LJN. Andre is bigger than most other figures in the set, but the toy doesn’t much resemble the actual wrestler. LJN later made toys of Andre with short hair, both as a babyface (blue trunks) and a heel (black singlet).

(2) 1990 Hasbro WWF. Andre wrestled his last match before Hasbro released its new WWF toys in 1990, but the first series still included a toy of the heel Andre. In the mid-1990s, this toy was a favorite among hardcore collectors, often selling for $80-$100 at toy shows and through classified ads. Today figures are plentiful (and considerably cheaper) thanks to sites like eBay and Amazon.

(3) 1997 Jakks WWF Legends Series 1. Long before throwback jerseys and collectibles of old athletes were cool, Jakks produced statue-like toys of four WWF legends. Andre’s toy was considerably larger than the rest, with most of his features exaggerated to almost cartoon-like proportions.

(4) 2006 Jakks WWE Classic Superstars Series 7. Andre is always one of the first wrestlers toy companies include, and things were no different when Jakks launched its Classic WWE Superstars line. The heel version of Andre was included in the first series, with many other toys produced through 2009. One of the coolest figures is this one, which captures Andre in his 1970s heyday.

(5) 2011 Mattel WWE Legends. To kick off its Internet-exclusive series of WWE Legends, Mattel offered collectors the chance to purchase the company’s first Andre toy. This toy presents Andre as he appeared the night he defeated Hulk Hogan for the WWF Title on Saturday Night’s Main Event, and comes with a classic WWF belt.

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