The Looking Glass Man

Remco are often associated with quasi-bootleg MOTU figures, ancient and inter-galactic warriors with hideously over-developed musculature that parade around like Peplum heroes with elk, wolf and snake heads signifying some ancient pseudo-Greek mythology.  And that's somewhat accurate if you consider the Warrior Beasts, but often Remco are mis-attributed to inferior brands like Sewco or Sungold.  To me, Remco represents Monsters, AWA Wrestling, and, The Saga of Crystar, whose eponymous hero is pictured below, in full, original kit.

Crystar emanates from the Marvel comic, telling the tale of a mythical Crystal Order and their epic battle against the Magma men and Zardeth, the evil wizard leader of Chaos.  Crystar, Leader of the Crystal Warriors, looks like he'll shatter at any moment, but in reality, he's a very robust seven point articulation with quite intricate features chiseled into his glass-like design.  Certainly his accessories are delicate, and as a consequence, quite rare in loose format.  The head-dress is almost impossible to find off the card, such is its size and fragility, while the shield and sword are also relatively brittle.  It's these fragile features in battle that turn Crystal Warriors into Crystal Worriers, concerned for their welfare as kids everywhere punish them with relentless disregard.  Not the most practical design for what is essentially a child's toy, and probably easy to see why this line never really propagated in the early 80's, aside from its better promoted/constructed competition at the time (which Remco was also contesting, as aforementioned).

Versatile and unique in appearance, Crystar conjures the sense of ancient nobility transformed into the rock and crystal natural forms, an earthly contest between water gods and rock lords (oops, that's another line), competing for custodianship of the ancient lands of Crystallium.  Of course, the reality is not so noble, simply an arbitrary turf war incorporating lust, greed, sacrifice and ultimately, transmutation of prisms and lava to preserve the feuding leaders so they can embark on a long drawn-out civil war.  In other words, a saga.  

Remco can at least be congratulated for continuing to diversify their action figure lines, and offering these somewhat ephemeral and obscure concepts a chance at immortality.  For his part as the fearless defender of the free-world, Crystar, Leader of the Crystal Warriors is an impressive looking hero, stoic and brave and though not as sought-after as some comic-strip characters, a rare find nowadays in full garb.

Crystar | 1982 | Remco | The Saga of Crystar