WWE Superstars are the spiritual successor to the cancelled Masters Of The WWE Universe line, with a bit of the WWE Retro line thrown in for good measure.
The bodies are definitely in the MOTWU mold, with very basic body types and less of the nuanced physiques that, say, the main line of WWE Mattel figures has (some could even compare them to the old AWA figures, in fact). But unlike their He-Man counterparts, these figures have outfits and accessories that are more wrestler-friendly and true to their original characters.
Let's took at the third series, released exclusively in Wal-Mart stores.
Much like the first two sets of WWE Superstars, if you line up each of the cards side-by-side, you notice that the background pictures kind of run onto each other... which is a neat little piece of continuity. But even if you're over that little trick by now, this is definitely the most detailed set since the series' inception.
Surprisingly, I didn't have any Papa Shango figures in my collection until now, despite him having several ones on the market. This Superstars figure MORE than makes up for that with a perfect face paint job, the classic Papa Shango hat, and a robe of... feathers or something that is worth the price of admission alone. Papa also comes with a necklace made of bones, but mine came slightly bent in the package.
In his green tuxedo, The Million Dollar Man Ted DiBiase looks a bit "puffy" but it's actually very similar to his Series Two Hasbro figure. If you attempt to take the green jacket off, you can see the sleeveless tuxedo vest he often wore to the ring. All that's missing here, really, is his Million Dollar Belt, but beggars can't be choosers.
Finally in this set, we have Mankind. As a massive Mick Foley fan, this figure definitely scratches me where I itch. Wearing the brown outfit and mask he debuted in the WWF with in 1996, this one has a ton of detail. One minor complaint - because the Superstars figures' bodies are all built fairly similar, you have a pretty jacked Mick Foley if you happen to disrobe him. But it's not noticeable so long as the outfit is one.
Where does this rank among the three series of WWE Superstars to date? Definitely the top for me, not only because of the incredible detail on display, but because of the range of legendary characters.
OOv