#90 Combat Man

Wrestling soldier

Invoking imagery of an elite military super soldier in this figure is part of the aesthetic that made it popular among the many interesting characters in the Mattel M.U.S.C.L.E. toy line. However, in his origin Combat Man is a product of the creative artist-writer duo Yudetamago of Japan whose enormous Kinnikuman universe they still cultivate today.

One of the unique features of the original Japanese manga is the creators would often include fan submitted character ideas through a system they established in their publications. Allowing readers to share their own imaginative character ideas and see them appear in the story line, where Combat man likely found his start.

This ultimately allowed the original manga to have an ever expanding roster of creative characters to grab the imagination of fans around the world. Though the character isn’t a core recurring presence in the various entertainment conduits Kinnikuman is carried he still had some entertaining signature techniques including the Combat Tackle, Battle Grip, and the War Press as a crushing overhead slam of brute strength.

When the original keshi line of the figures was imported from Japan in different material and colors though it’s most likely the new fan base never knew his name. Reason being that Mattel opted to westernize the character set and rebrand under the M.U.S.C.L.E. logo and one carry over a couple of loosely translated original character names. To the kids of the era though he may have been likened to a scuba ninja or space guard, the possibilities were limitless…