He may be not be feared on a universal scale, but Batman is certainly one of the juggernauts of the comic genre. Brought to life by Ridley Scott in 1979 and made infamous by James Cameron in 1986, the Alien franchise is nothing to balk at either. The world-clashing genre is something that Dark Horse Comics has been doing for quite some time. In fact, Superman vs Predator was a cross over between DC and Dark Horse in 2001; and Batman/Aliens first hit shelves in 1998, with a follow-up in 2003. Dark Horse has been bringing licensed franchises to the unlikeliest pairs for well over two decades. They may have lost their Star Wars license when Disney took over, but Dark Horse has plenty of nostalgia at its fingertips from video games to films and television.
These characters are made even more famous with the plethora of comic conventions around the world each year, but this time of year is when toy manufacturers get their time to shine. Toyfair kicked off this weekend with its 114th annual event for industry professionals. The trade show is a major launching point for new product lines and unique, collector's items. What better place to release a mashup of three of the most iconic pop culture brands into one collection?
NECA's new line brings DC's two biggest heroes face-to-face with the galaxy's most frightening aliens. These two pack action figure sets include Batman vs Aliens, Superman vs Aliens, and Batman vs Predator. NECA's blog notes this is the first set in a line of "versus" sets, saying:
"The first release in the “Versus” line comes from the 1997 Batman/Aliens comic book mini-series co-published by DC Comics and Dark Horse. In it, Batman faces strange new Aliens produced using DNA from some of Arkham Asylum’s deadliest inmates. The set includes two brand new, comic book based figures, both with over 30 points of articulation. Batman features a fabric cape, and the “Joker” Alien has a bendable tail."
[vn_gallery name="NECA Toyfair Batman vs Alien Xenomorph" id="905466"]
Though not listed on NECA's blog, there are also Superman, Predator, and armored Batman action figures included in this collection. Captured by attendee Toyark, the Superman and Predator figures appear to have interchangeable heads; Predator is available masked and unmasked, while Superman is available normal and with his heat vision active.
Their blog hints at these figures being the first in a series, which means we could see something like Predator vs Judge Dredd vs Aliens appear next. It will be interesting to see which new action figures "inspired by comic book mashups" will be hitting shelves next.
The DC vs Alien Xenomorph vs Predator action figures will be available for purchase in July of 2017.