otis heavy machinery
Photo Credit: Bill Pritchard

Collector’s Corner: Mattel WWE Elite 76 In-Depth Review (Photos)

On this latest installment of Collector’s Corner we take a look at none other than Mattel WWE Elite 76! This set includes:

  • Otis
  • Tucker
  • John Cena
  • Braun Strowman
  • Lacey Evans
  • Christian (plus Chase variant)

You can currently order these on RingsideCollectibles.com where you can SAVE 10% with discount code MBG at checkout!

Photo Credit: Bill Pritchard

The Packaging

First off, I must say that it is exciting Elites are finally shipping again after COVID has made an impact on the world. They should start shipping more regularly it looks like according to Ringside Collectibles’ schedule on their website.

That being said, this set features the 2020 style Elite packaging with the red/white/black/silver color scheme. The box showcases the featured wrestler on one side with their name on the opposite as well as a larger image, statistics and those whom also are in the set on the back.

There is no Collector’s Edition exclusive with this set either, which gives us a little break and great timing with distribution at the moment.

Otis

Otis is more than likely the most sought after in this set being it is his very first WWE action figure and the fact he is so popular right now. It’s actually on back-order over on Ringside at the moment because of this. The sad part about this figure is his outfit is outdated already being he doesn’t really wear his singlet anymore, but that doesn’t mean it’s not a nice figure, which it certainly is!

Otis has a great head sculpt with a serious expression on his face. You can see the detail in his beard and slicked-back hair. Mattel designed a new torso it seems for him, too, due to his unique body build. His chest joint is actually ball-jointed, giving him even more movement than the average Elite. This is similar to the Yokozuna Elite figures. His singlet is quite detailed with the Heavy Machinery logos as well as his name and the like. He features swappable hands, too.

Otis has new leg molds being Mattel sculpted special knee pads for him as well as new boot molds, which were also specially sculpted for him. Not to mention he comes with a rubber Heavy Machinery vest, which is highly detailed, and even a cardboard “Yolo County” tag title belt.

It’s interesting they went all out on this figure with new tooling, but they captured him well. It’s a really nice figure of him and I’m sure they will make a topless one eventually to capture his current look, especially his victory at MITB. I do recommend this figure as he will be the most sought after in the set, but Mattel really knocked him out of the park.

Tucker

Tucker is next up and he looks just as nice for his debut action figure in the line as well. He has a cheesy, grinning head sculpt followed by his heavily detailed Heavy Machinery singlet. You can see his tattoos on his chest and arms as well. Tucker has rubber knee pads that are detailed, no specially sculpted ones like his buddy Otis, as well as typical Elite style boots. He also has swappable hands as well as his detailed Heavy Machinery vest and cardboard “Yolo County” title belt.

Overall, he looks really nice for his first. The vest and overall detail really make him look nice. Being he’s not active right now I’ll be curious how well his figure does. Granted it is his first, but if he’s not as relevant it’ll be interesting to see. That’s just my opinion though. I do recommend picking it up to complete Heavy Machinery as they go well together and thankfully come together in the same set so you can complete them with no issue.

John Cena

You may be annoyed there’s yet another John Cena action figure, but don’t be! This one is based on his WrestleMania 35 appearance in his Thuganomics attire. He comes with a vague “Yankees” jersey, which is made of fabric and is removable. Not to mention his baseball cap, which many collectors pointed out should be a dark navy instead of black, as well as his “Word Life” removable brass knuckles and lock/chain necklace.

Cena features a new, serious head sculpt with his longer hair. It’s nice to see a more “Heel” version of him as most of his figures are always smiling. His baseball cap fits on his head well, too. He also comes with swappable hands to recreate his “You Can’t See Me” pose. Cena also has his older style Elite body, which they used way back in the line. These shorts are longer as well and he has more articulated shoes compared to his other Elites as of late. Cena also comes with a rubber “Never Give Up” armband and his navy sweatbands, which are painted on. Future Cena figures are going to have molded sweatbands, so that will look nice for him.

Overall, this Cena figure is nice. I love the serious/angry head sculpt as it stands out from his other figures. The cloth jersey is a nice touch and the accessories really make the figure special. Definitely one of his best Elites in awhile in my opinion. I recommend picking this one up as it’s one of his more unique figures.

Braun Strowman

Another Braun Strowman figure as of late may make you roll your eyes, but this one, too, is much different than any of his other ones. This is a topless Strowman with an all-new body sculpt. Not to mention he has an angry head sculpt, which looks fantastic. The detail in his face is nothing short of awesome. This figure is also based on his WrestleMania 35 appearance as he comes with the Andre the Giant trophy he won.

Braun features all his tattoos, which some are normally covered by his shirt, so that is a nice detail on the figure. He has swappable hands with his massive arms, but I feel the hands are too small for the torso as are his arms in general. His proportions just look a bit off to me in that regard. Besides that he has a new color scheme of camo pants and his tan boots, which should be a bit shorter but they still look decent to say the least.

Overall, Braun is a nice figure. It’s really nice to have a unique figure of him as his others all look the same pretty much. My only gripe really is his arms and hands as they just don’t look to be sized accordingly but maybe it is just me. It’s still a great figure and not to mention the trophy he comes with has all the previous winner names engraved on the front plate, which is awesome. If you like Braun pick this one up as it’ll stand out from all the others you may already have in your collection.

Lacey Evans

With this being Lacey’s very first action figure, Mattel did a fantastic job! Lacey comes super detailed with a lot of accessories to truly complete her fancy look. She comes with a hat, a removable skirt, a handkerchief and even swappable white glove hands with bows on them. She also has that entitled smile on her face.

Lacey’s attire is very detailed, both with and without her accessories. Mattel went all out on adding all the detail to her outfit and even her knee pads and new boots with bows on the back. She also does feature double-jointed knees for anyone curious as some of the latest female Elites do not unfortunately.

Overall, Lacey’s figure is great. The scan itself seems a tiny bit off to me but regardless it is a really nice looking figure. The rubber skirt doesn’t fasten well unfortunately either, which is a bit of a pain but it looks nice at least. The detail really pops on it and I personally love the glove hands as an added touch. Her overall sculpt is really nice and she will make a great addition to any collection. Do not pass on this one as it’s one of the better female figures in awhile honestly.

Christian + Chase Variant

Lastly we have the flashback Christian figure in his Brood attire, plus his chase variant! This was actually my most sought after figure in the set as I loved The Brood as a kid. All we need now is a Gangrel to complete them. Perhaps one day we can see that happen!

Anyway, the common release of Christian comes in his white shirt and blue tights. The shirt is rubber while the sleeves are molded. They some new tooling for this figure as well. He also features a new, younger head sculpt with his long hair and serious face. The detail on his tights is nice, too. He also comes with removable sunglasses that slide into his hair, which helps hold it in place. Do be careful as the glasses are small and can easily get lost if you’re not cautious. He also has a necklace accessory, which is a nice attention to detail. What’s also interesting about Christian is that he comes with the chalice, which perhaps is a nod from Mattel to customize him into Gangrel? Just a thought to keep in mind. Gangrel of course was thicker and his outfit was a bit more detailed in terms of his tights, but perhaps this was Mattel’s way of helping us out with him.

The Chase variant on the other hand is the same exact figure, but it comes in a black shirt and greenish color tights with logos on the sides. While the Chase certainly looks nice I do not recall him in this outfit, but I was also just a young kid at the time The Brood was around. I’d have to pull up the Network or YouTube to find this one.

Overall, both Christian figures are great if you loved that time of his career. I certainly loved The Brood as you can see in my image above in this post. I think Mattel did a nice job on him and he will be a great addition to your Attitude Era collection!

Overall

Overall I think this is a great set from Mattel. Some of their figures have their pros and cons of course, much like any series they make, but the figures in general in this set look really nice. I was very impressed once I had these in-hand and I’m sure you will be, too! Don’t sleep on the First Time in the Line ones or the unique outfits like Christian as I’m sure they will be highly sought after later on. There’s no word on when these will hit retail so I’d scoop them over on Ringside while you can! Stay safe and healthy and I will see you soon!

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