Toybox REVIEW: Power Rangers x Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Lightning Collection Morphed Shredder

Release Date: December 2021
RRP: $31.99/£37.99

One of the biggest delights of the Power Rangers comics from Boom! Studios has been the opportunity for them to crossover with other heroes previously thought limited to the realms of fan fiction – including the likes of Godzilla and the Justice League. The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles however they have some history with though, with Power Rangers in Space having previously crossed over with Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Next Mutation. This six-part comic series though saw the heroes in a half shell meet the original Mighty Morphin rangers, with the Turtles themselves even getting the opportunity to morph. To mark this fusion of childhood icons, Hasbro produced a series of Power Rangers x Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Lightning Collection figures – consisting of three two pack sets (featuring the four turtles, April O'Neill and a Foot Clan Tommy Oliver) and a deluxe Morphed Shredder figure. This figure is based on Shredder after he has harnessed the powers of the Dragon Coin to transform into his own twisted version of the Green Ranger.

Upon first glance you'll immediately see that while Morphed Shredder has packaging largely similar to that of the main Lightning Collection range, there are subtle differences that highlight it as something special. As usual the character artwork on the front and spines is provided by Lightning Collection regular Tom Whalen, however it's a front face view that's usually reserved for two-pack in the main range. The bright green colouring of the box immediately makes you think of TMNT, and then just below the front window you can see the Power Rangers x Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Lightning Collection crossover logo. The back of the box is a bit more familiar territory with the single CG render of the figure, but note that the green background is now plastered with logos, slogans and character names from both franchises. The size and the shape of the box is a little different too, opting for a taller/thicker but still relatively square box as opposed the usual rectangular deluxe figure packaging. Open it up and the figure/accessories are neatly laid out on a moulded plastic tray, but against a backing card sporting a turtle shell as opposed to the usual lightning bolt.

Morphed Shredder is one of those concepts that simply exists to be cool. In fiction there's absolutely no reason the Dragon Coin would warp Shredder's existing outfit instead of just giving him a standard Green Ranger costume, but ultimately it doesn't matter – the design is cool as hell and that's the only thing that matters. The Green Ranger design already has that slightly evil aura to it due to its origins, but taking those design cues and adding it to a villain as iconic as Shredder just elevates it to new heights. It looked amazing on page, and arguably looks even better in figure form. Hasbro have really brought their A-game to this one, far more than they have to any other figure in the Lightning Collection with perhaps the exception of the Tenga Warrior. The sculpt is perhaps – capturing all the bulk and menace of Shredder's design from the blades adorning his body to that iconic helmet, its design merged with that of the Green Ranger's. But it's not just the sculpt that stands out on this figure – it's the finish as well. With the exception of the kneepads all of the gold has been painted on this figure, with the Dragon Shield also featuring additional texturing (not present on the standard Green Ranger) to give it more depth. While there's less painted silver, the plastic used blends far better than the dull grey Hasbro tend to use in these situations. Then there's the cape – a gorgeous soft goods piece with all the ridges and holes properly shaped into it. It's a shame that it's not inner-wired to give it some poseabilty, but just getting a cloth cape is a rarity in this line. Of course keen-eyed fans will tell you that the Morpher is inaccurately painted silver instead of gold and that the inside of the hand straps haven't been painted, but ultimately neither of these things detract from the presence and quality this figure has. 

Despite the obvious size and build differences Shredder has to standard Lightning Collection figures the articulation remains largely the same, which isn't all that surprising since it's relatively standard across all of Hasbro's collector lines. Altogether he features;
- Ball jointed head, torso and hips
- Swivel hinge shoulders, wrists and ankles
- Butterfly joint shoulders
- Double hinge elbows and knees

- Single hinge neck and ab crunch
- Bicep, waist and thigh swivels
First and foremost thanks to that wonderful soft goods cape there's no worry of impeded articulation here, so Shredder is free to show off his full range of mobility without being weighed down by a heavy soft plastic cape. Despite being more armoured in certain places overall it's a figure relatively free of restrictions, with the only place really of note being the soft plastic shoulder pads attached to the torso (not that you can really see them under the cape anyway). The torso joint has a nice range of movement, and even with Shredder's big helmet the head still has good articulation as well. Best of all the figure actually balances really well despite the more muscular proportions, so even though the design is pretty intimidating in vanilla poses there's plenty of scope to make it look even more intimidating.

Accessories are perhaps the one area Shredder falls a little short on, but at the same time given his limited appearance there wasn't exactly a lot he needed to come with anyway. Also included in the box are a pair of alternate closed fist hands (his default ones being an open variety) and two translucent blue slash effect parts. These effects have been designed especially for Shredder, slotting perfectly over his knuckle blades. What's particularly cool about them is they can be attached to the figure in two different configurations, with the "tail" of the effect facing backward for the intended slash effect or facing forwards as an energy extension to his standard blades. It gives Shredder that little bit more play value, and the fact these effects were created especially for the figure (as opposed to the repeatedly recycled ones in the main line) make it feel all the more special. So yes this figure might not come with much in the way of accessories but the little he does have are very well thought out, and honestly given the quality of the figure itself he could have not included anything at all and it wouldn't have changed much.

Power Rangers x Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Lightning Collection Morphed Shredder is an absolutely fantastic figure, but there's also one huge problem with it that's hard to overlook – it's SO good that it puts pretty much everything Hasbro have done with the rest of the Lightning Collection to shame. Between the size, sculpt, paintwork and accessories Morphed Shredder is well worth its deluxe price tag – and all of which is more than enough to overlook little errors like the morpher being painted the wrong colour. As the one figure in the TMNT crossover range that can be fully enjoyed without all the others, it is most definitely worth the purchase even if it's just to see what Hasbro could (and should) be doing with the actual Power Rangers figures in this line.