WWE MATTEL : Basic Series Tamina Snuka and Ricardo Rodriguez

Here is a review of two figures from the WWE Mattel Basic series. Tamina Snuka is listed as figure number 59 in the series and Ricardo Rodriguez is listed as superstar # 65. ( NOTE ) To end confusion these two action figures do not come together, they are two separate figures. I just chosen to review them together. First I'll review Tamina since she is listed at # 59 coming before Ricardo's # 65. Tamina is a nice new addition for your divas collection in what appears to be somewhat of a new upper body sculpt. Unlike most of the female figures in the line, Tamina appears to have a more muscular build in her upper body.

As you can see this is Tamina's first figure in the line, as she is just slightly a little over 6 inches. In real life she is the daughter of WWE Legend "Superfly" Jimmy Snuka. If you have a WWE Legend Jimmy Snuka in your collection than feel free to purchase Tamina so that you can display her next to her father, just like I did in the pic below.

Even though Tamina 's outfit is a nice shade of red with black trimming, the most standout feature in her attire is her boots, or shin guards in my opinion. If you look closely, the shin guards are nicely sculpted onto her boots, looking as if they may could come off however they do not.

For those of you that like variety like myself, Tamina's hands are posed differently. Her right hand is a closed fist, good for punching poses. Whereas her left hand is an open palm, good for lifting maneuvers such as power / body slams . Most of Tamina's hard plastic hair is over her left shoulder, therefore it is easier to turn her head to the right than it is to the left . Tamina Snuka comes with no accessories but the figure alone is definitely worth adding to beef up your WWE Divas collection.
Now on to Ricardo Rodriguez. He comes with one accessory which is a microphone. The microphone is already in his hand when you purchase him . He also is one of the first few non-wrestler characters in the line. Here's hoping that we see more non-wrestler characters in this line in the near future. I think this line may need more managers, valets, referees, ring announcers, commentators, etc . to be included with the wrestling figures. Other than the microphone I think the other unique feature involving Ricardo is his bow tie . Plus it's not a normal looking bow tie at that.

The first thing you may notice about the microphone is that there is no writing on it, no WWE logo at all. It is just a plain normal looking microphone. Which in my opinion is good or bad depend on how you view the situation. Good in that this allows you the option to display the mike with any action figure, not just WWE Mattel figures. The bad is that if you wish the WWE logo was displayed on the mike, your best bet might be is to look back at some of those old Jakks Pacific figures as a lot of those figures came with WWE labeled microphones.
Of course the most fun thing about figures with microphones in my opinion is displaying them as if they are interviewing someone. Below are two pics of Ricardo supposedly interviewing Tamina Snuka. In the first pic the figures are displayed in reference to Ricardo asking questions. The second pic Tamina is supposedly answering his questions.

                                                  FINAL   THOUGHTS
(1) ARTICULATION - The women figures in this series are more articulate than the male figures. Just about every basic body part is movable with the exception of no ab crunch on either figure, as all Basic WWE Mattel figures have no ab crunch. Plus Ricardo has no outward leg movement, just up and down,back and forth mobility.
(2) STANDING  ABILITY - Both of these figures stand very well with no balance issues. Tamina's shin guards tend to add a little extra stability in her stance.
(3) WHAT I LIKE BEST ABOUT THESE FIGURES ? I like Tamina's shin guards and her boots. Also a nice outfit and I like her muscular build, something quite different and unique from some of the other divas with the exception of the first Beth Phoenix figure, which has a similar build. As for visuals with Ricardo, I like his shoes I think they are nicely done. The suit is nice, the slick back hair and his microphone allows him to be displayed in good interviewing situations .
(4) WHAT I LIKE LEAST ABOUT THESE FIGURES ? There is nothing that I dislike about either figure.
(5) WHAT COULD HAVE BEEN DONE TO IMPROVE THESE FIGURES ? On Tamina, softer hair for better head movement. For Ricardo , if the jacket was removable so that you can put it on other figures would have been nice. For both figures an ab crunch would be nice however the ab crunch was not meant for the Basic figures. Plus for Ricardo an extra interchangeable hand that allows him to hold the microphone like a sword, would have been neat for displays of interviewing tall figures such as Big Show, Undertaker, Kane, etc.
(6) GRADING  SCALE - On a scale of 1-10 I give Tamina a 9.5. The minus is for the hard plastic hair somewhat restricting head movement. Ricardo gets a 9.5 also with a minus for no outward leg movement.
(7) FINAL  ANALYSIS - Overall I am pleased with both of these figures. However I added them both to my collection for different reasons. Tamina to boost my WWE Mattel Diva collection. I don't want to miss out on any of the female figures, since there are not as many of them as the male figures. Ricardo because it feels good to add a suit and tie guy to the collection, a non -wrestler. Plus I wanted a figure that I could use for interview displays, and Ricardo fits that bill .  Rather you are a WWE Mattel Basic or WWE Mattel Elite collector, or both, I highly recommend these two figures for your collection.