Jeremy Padawer of Jakks Pacific has made the following announcement on his blog at Jeremy.com:

I’ve just returned from Hong Kong Toy Fair.

After meeting with toy buyers from around the world, I am saddened to announce that we’ve shipped the last new assortment of Rocky action figures. 

Shipping 7 waves of action figures on a movie property is an accomplishment at today’s retail environment:  Rocky I, II, III, IV, V/VI, Best of I & Best of II.   We truly embraced the Rocky line at Jakks.  We deeply cared about doing it right.  I simply can’t think of another toy company that would have put the time and resources that we put into the Rocky line.  In return, we achieved at least some placement at Wal-Mart, Toys R Us, KB and other major US retailers… as well as decent placement around the world.

We took the Rocky brand because we love it.

Here’s to the most complete Rocky line ever.

Jeremy Padawer

Jakks Pacific, VP Entertainment Brand Marketing 

Hey Rocky Fans! Jakks Pacific has just released images of the newest "Rocky" action figure series- "Best of Rocky" Series 2. This set of seven figures includes: Rocky Balboa(Tiger Jacket), Rocky Balboa(Battle Damaged w/American Flag), Rocky Balboa(Training on the beach), Apollo Creed(Training on the beach), Tommy Gunn(Street Fight), George Washington Duke, Jim Lampley.

Check out the images below!

Hey Rocky Fans!

I have just received a finished sample of the upcoming exclusive "Rocky 6-Pack" from Ringside Collectibles, and have taken some loose images for you. Since this 6-pack contains mostly re-releases, I will not do a full review, but it is worth noting that two of the figures differ from previous versions we have received. The Rocky IV figure has the snarling Rocky III head, and the Rocky V figure has the Rocky III and IV fight gear head. Aside from the obvious lack of robes, the other figures are the same as previous figures already released. If you're a loose collector, this may not be for you, but it is a nice item to keep MOC, and is also a nice item for new collectors to start building their collection with!

This 6 pack is available for Pre-Order at Ringside Collectibles now and will be shipping in Late-August.

"Best Of Rocky" Series 1

Hey Rocky Fans, I recently received a set of "Best of Rocky" Series 1 figures from Ringside Collectibles, and have reviewed them for you, the Rockyfigs.com readers!

"Rocky Balboa(vs. Apollo Creed)"











Originally planned as "Rocky with Championship Belt," I can see why a lot of our collectors on the forums are disappointed with the way this figure turned out. It is basically a re-release of the fight gear Rocky figure we got in Series 1. This is both good and bad. As you may know, Rocky Series 1 was incredibly hard to find, and was last seen selling on the secondary market at some rather high prices. While this is not the same exact figure, some people may be upset that a less expensive alternative has been released, and some may be upset that this may tarnish the value of their series 1 figure. Regardless, this is still a nice figure. The differences from series 1 come from the fact that it (obviously) doesn't have the red and yellow robe, the skin tone is a little darker, and the packaging is different. Aside from that, we're dealing with essentially a re-release.

Overall: 9/10(Reviews are given on quality of the product, unfortunately not based on expecations)

"Rocky Balboa(Post Fight vs. Apollo Creed)"









Another figure that was advertised differently, and wound up as a straight re-release. This figure was initially planned to be Rocky battle damaged with taped hands, but except for a darker skin tone, is the same battle damaged figure that we received in series 1. Again, this has its pros and cons, as it gives people another opportunity to add an essential figure to their collection, but may also hurt the future value of those series 1 figures. I think this figure would have been better off with a little something to differentiate it from the series 1 version(taped hands, perhaps?), but it is still a nice figure, and I guess its nice that more collectors have a chance to add Rocky to their collections..

Overall: 10/10

"Rocky Balboa(vs. Spider Rico"











This figure falls into the category of "repaints," but its certainly a repaint most of us wanted. Rocky Balboa from the very first scene in the 1976 film "Rocky" when he is fighting Spider Rico. I personally love this figure. Many feared it would be a mere Spider Rico body with a Rocky head, but Jakks paid attention to a few little details and gave Rocky the black trim on his trunks, and the correct color gloves. The only thing that would have perfected this figure is the robe he was wearing after the fight in the locker room, other than that, this is a perfect figure.

Overall: 9.5/10

"Apollo Creed(vs. Ivan Drago)"









I'm sorry if you fall under this category, but I can't help but laugh at the people who shelled out big money for the "European Exclusive" version of this figure. For those of you unfamiliar with the story, over the past couple of months, this figure was popping up on eBay, mostly in the U.K. and collectors feared they may never get a chance to have it any other way, so naturally paid top dollar to acquire it. I guess if you're a "completist" you want both versions anyway, but me personally I'm happy with the regularly priced version. Anyway, since I never purchased that version, and never had a chance to review it, I'll give you my thoughts now. My first impression is that the head sculpt is a little too large, and does look a little goofy. The expression is a little fitting considering Apollo took the fight versus Drago lightly, but also a little morbid if you know Apollo's fate after the fight. Other than that, its flawless. Jakks paid great attention to detail on this one, and it is one of my favorite figures in the entire line thusfar.

Overall: 9/10

"Ivan Drago(vs. Apollo Creed)"













I teased on the forums that my favorite Rocky figure is in Best Of Rocky Series 1, well here it is. Most forum viewers know I'm a big Drago fan, so what makes this figure better than the Series IV version? A few things: In the MOC images, some may not have noticed, but Drago is sporting a different torso, with toned down shoulder/neck muscles. If I had one complaint about the Series IV figure, it would be that the torso was a little too big at the shoulders and gave Drago this odd "no neck" effect. Jakks fixed this, and perfectly. Another thing is that his skin tone is a bit lighter. Other than those two corrections, we're dealing with a repainted figure, but the two corrections go a very long way, and perfect an already excellent figure. Drago has certainly been stealing the show thusfar in the "Rocky" line, and continues to do it in this series with another great figure.

Overall: 10/10

"Adrian(Rocky IV)"









Adrian has only had one other figure to this point- Series I, which was a little lackluster. This figure is certainly a step up. Adrian is seen in the white and teal outfit(hey, it was the 80's!) she wore in Rocky IV. Jakks did a great job on this one. I was pretty unimpressed with the series I version of Adrian, and think it could have been executed better, but honestly have no complaints about this one. The head sculpt and hair are very well done. For those wondering, this figure uses the same basic body as the Adrian Series 1 figure, with different lower legs. It does suffer from the same fate as most figures with high heels do, and that is it can be a bit tough to stand her up sometimes.

Overall: 10/10

"Frank Stallone(Street Corner Singer)"









No, your monitor is not broken, and no, nobody hacked our site. Jakks really did make a Frank Stallone action figure. For those of you unfamiliar, Frank Stallone did appear in "Rocky" as the street corner singer singing "Take You Back" near the beginning of the film. While the character is unarguably a dubious selection for the Rocky figure series, let alone the "Best of Rocky" series, all kidding aside, its actually a pretty nice figure. Frank is wearing a neat varsity jacket with "South Philly High" on the back. For those of you wondering, he is wearing a plain grey t-shirt under the jacket. Frank may not be an essential character to the Rocky collection, but it is a neat little oddball item, and conversation piece.

Overall: 9/10

Final Thoughts: Overall, the "Best of Rocky" series 1 was what it said it was- the "Best" of Rocky. Some people may disagree, but I think this series has given us several top notch figures, with limited minor characters. While some people are disappointed in the two straight re-releases(as am I, I would have preferred new figures as well), none of the figures except for Frank Stallone are what I would consider "peg warmers." The argument could be made that this is the way the Rocky series should have started- giving us more Rocky Balboa, and the main characters packed heavier, and mixing in one or two minor characters per set. While its too late to dwell on the past, "Best Of Rocky" Series 1 gives us five great new figures(yes, I consider Apollo a new figure, eventhough he was released in a limited fashion), and whether you are for or against it, it gives more collectors a chance to obtain two harder to find earlier released figures.

Click Here to Order Your "Best of Rocky" Series 1 Figures Now!!!

Click here to discuss this new series on the Rockyfigs.com forums!