SUPER7 Is Releasing Beastie Boys Sabotage ReAction Figures

Founded in 2001, the San Francisco-based design house/toy manufacturer, Super7 has grown into a pop-culture collectible powerhouse during its 2-decade existence. With officially licensed products/collaborations with everyone from Disney The Simpsons and Universal Monsters to Andre The Giant, Toho, and Bruce Lee Family Company there’s no denying that the toy-smiths have achieved a commendable level of respect, but as someone highly susceptible to blowing cash on items that are 100% non-essentials, I can sometimes have mixed feelings about Super7 and some of their output. These days, they offer a variety of products including apparel, pint glasses, enamel pins, and retro Halloween masks to compliment their extensive lines of action figures. Along with reboots of classic toys from our childhoods and sports figures, the Bay Area company has become known for less orthodox subjects connected to the worlds of film, television, and music. It’s the latter that generally sucks me in and with the announcement of a brand new series of Beastie Boys figures, I find myself using one hand to tip my cap to Super7 for their vision, while shaking my other in a fist about being separated from my money once again.

Super7 peddles in nostalgia and, in doing so, it affords them the ability to sell certain items at what can, sometimes, feel like questionable price points. That said, it can’t be denied that they do offer a variety of products to meet several different budgets. One selling point is how much it feels that they themselves are fans of what they produce. This is something that’s reflected when they release things like vintage-style Universal Monsters bubble bath bottles, render the Misfits Fiend in poseable paper Halloween decor, or apply the concept of Japanese Henshin Cyborgs to create Transformers and Power Ranger zord figures with removal parts that allow you to see their “inner workings.” Among the most basic toys falls the Keshi line inspired by non-poseable pocket-sized figures like M.U.S.C.L.E. and Monster In My Pocket that were initially spawned in Japan. On the other end of the spectrum are the highly detailed, intricately sculpted ULTIMATES! line that cost around $55 per figure and includes interchangeable heads and hands, along with a surplus of accessories. Above all, it was the ReAction figure line that first truly made me aware of Super7 by featuring characters from films like The Goonies, Lost Boys, and Big Trouble In Little China and later, metal (Iron Maiden, Motorhead, Anthrax, Ghost, King Diamond, Slayer, Napalm Death, and Venom) and punk rock (Agnostic Front, Circle Jerks, Misfits, Descendants, Discharge, Social Distortion, and Rancid) mascots and musicians.

An homage to the original 3.75″ scale Star Wars toys by Kenner that had limited articulation, the ReAction line is marketed as collectibles, meaning that they are generally more expensive than their “toy” counterparts, while not expected to remain as durable. For these figures, the brilliant art on the backing cards is just as much of a selling point and the company has spared no expense in bringing in renowned artists like Jason Edmiston to help paint, design, and/or recreate them. These toys are also produced in a more limited run than a typical line from Hasbro might be, for example. While I understand how all of this plays into the cost on an intellectual level, it can still be difficult for me to see a GI Joe figure the same size as the ones that I had as a kid, only with less articulation, selling for $20 a pop on a Target rack. My Achilles heel is the music-related ReAction figures and, more specifically, the hip-hop licenses. For me, it is with these more unique and exclusive offerings that Super7 truly connects and I can more easily recognize the value.

The new Beastie Boys figures follow previous hip-hop releases that include Grandmaster Flash, Notorious B.I.G., a Breakin’ 3-pack, the limited edition Run The Jewels set, two separate Ol ‘Dirty Bastard figures, and a continuing series of Czarface colorways. The trio of Ad-Rock, MCA, and Mike D are known for constant reinvention throughout their influential career, but these toys reference what is one of their most successful eras. When Ill Communication dropped in 1994, it furthered the direction that the group had explored on their previous Check Your Head LP, which saw them incorporating more and more live instrumentation into their repertoire. There were funky instrumental jazz grooves, as well as the songs “Tough Guy” and “Heart Attack Man” that harkened back to their punk rock roots, but of all the singles on Ill Communication, none took the world by storm quite the same way that “Sabotage” did. A high-energy genre-blurring effort, the song featured standard guitar (Ad-Rock), bass (MCA), and drums (Mike D) rock instrumentation, while merging their history in old-school rap and punk into a sound that was at once current, forward-sounding, and singularly their own. The Spike Jonze-directed video was, perhaps, even more iconic than the song itself. Parodying the genre of 1970s police dramas, the video essentially recreated a generic intro for such programs complete with undercover cops, stakeouts, and foot chases through the city. Starring each of the 3 members playing fictional TV action stars, it went on to win multiple MTV video music awards. What I like about the new Super7 figures is that they are not only “Sabotage” themed, but are actually created in the image of the fictional characters they play in the video.

Just like with the RUN DMC ReAction release, the Beastie Boys “Sabotage” figures are available to order individually for $20-a-piece, or together for $60. I would imagine that most people who are interested in these will be going for the full set and, since the card art on each of the figures is identical, I would have preferred to see them offered collectively within the same box, much like was done for the RTJ and Breakin’ sets. That said, it’s a minor critique and these are a welcome addition that is substantially cheaper and more accessible than the elusive Beastie Boys x Bathing Ape Hello Nasty-era figures packaged in the sardine can back in 2011. A major grail for hip-hop toy collectors, those fully-articulated 11.5-inch dolls were reproductions of the ones used in the Jonze-directed video for “I Don’t Play No Games That I Can’t Win” (featuring Santigold) and came with a change of clothing consisting of the hard hat and safety equipment getups from the “Intergalactic” video. While it’s commendable that 97% of the proceeds were split between a pair of charities dedicated to fighting childhood cancer, the whopping $750 on those original figures made them unattainable for most of us upon release, let alone a decade later on the secondary market. This ReAction figure line is finally offering an opportunity for a lot of us to obtain a set of Beastie figures for the first time and, if history is any indicator, there’s a pretty good chance that additional versions — perhaps, even an “Intergalactic” set — may very well appear in the future.

Pre-orders for the Sabotage figures are available now through Super7 and the Beastie Boys website with the expectation of other retailers to follow soon.

Check out the product images and description for each of the 3 figures below.

Vic Colfari As Bobby, “The Rookie”

He may ride in the back seat, but new guy Bobby, “The Rookie” (as played by Vic Colfari) makes up for his lack of experience by having the speed and determination to chase down any perp! This 3.75” articulated Beastie Boys ReAction Figure features Vic Colfari playing Bobby, “The Rookie” in the Sabotage music video and comes with a donut accessory.

Alasondro Alegré As “The Chief”

He may have been around the block a time or two, but The Chief (as played by Alasondro Alegré) isn’t too old to take it to the streets and lead by example! This 3.75” articulated Beastie Boys ReAction Figure features Alasondro Alegré playing “The Chief” in the Sabotage music video and comes with a walkie-talkie accessory.

Nathan Wind As Cochese

For any good cop/bad cop routine you need a really BAD cop, and Cochese (as played by Nathan Wind) will never be mistaken for the good cop. This 3.75” articulated Beastie Boys ReAction Figure features Nathan Wind playing Cochese in the Sabotage music video and comes with banana accessories.