UofMUSCLE.com – M.U.S.C.L.E. Figures from Mattel

M.U.S.C.L.E. collectors are an excitable group. When there is something interesting, unique, desirable, or seemingly scarce the impact of that discovery can resonate for years. The perfect example is Satan Cross. During the earliest days of M.U.S.C.L.E. collecting, websites, and message boards the figure was quickly labeled as rare and valuable. However after hundreds of appearances and many collectors possessing at least one figure, the figures still garners excitement and higher than normal prices.

Satan Cross and many other seemingly Super Rare figures continue to garner accolades. M.U.S.C.L.E. collectors can become so enthralled with the impression and history of a figure that it can even retain its value after being proven NOT to be a Super Rare figure. This was the case for a figure called X-2 or The Futuristic Goalie.

Brant Snell was the first M.U.S.C.L.E. collector to discover this interesting figure. He noted the Y/S*N*T trademark and M.U.S.C.L.E.-like qualities of the figure. His orange coloring differentiated him from the other Super Rare figure of the time, Satan Cross. This was generally attributed to X-2 being a colored Super Rare figure – released at the beginning of the colors, but quickly cancelled. Almost nothing was known about the figure when it first appeared.

The sudden disappearance of Brant Snell to the emerging M.U.S.C.L.E. community only added to the mystery. Then a member of the Kinnikuman Email Group spotted the X-2 figure on eBay. The figure was with a group of Kinkeshi figures, however they were not Kinnikuman figures – instead, X-2 was part of a Kinnikuman spin-off called Ramenman. The original auction picture is below featuring the Ramenman carrying case.

– Auction picture courtesy of Jon Karis from : LittleRubberGuys.com.

Surprisingly, this did not put a sudden stop to the figure’s popularity. Collectors continued to look for this false impression Super Rare. When another collector found a green version of the figure, it only seemed to add excitement.

– Green X-2 picture courtesy of Jon Karis from : LittleRubberGuys.com.

It is not clear when X-2 finally lost his Super Rare mystique. In August of 2002, an eBay auction was noted and followed on the LittleRubberGuys.com message board. Collectors were aware that it was not a legitimate M.U.S.C.L.E. figure, but something still created excitement. The figure ended up selling for $80, one of the most expensive M.U.S.C.L.E.-related auctions at the time. As a point of comparison, a Spinning Head Ashuraman (SHA) had sold for approximately $100 in the same timeframe.

With the advantage of more accessible information and the passage of time, X-2 is widely ignored by the modern M.U.S.C.L.E. collecting community. The consistency and color of the figure are clear indicators that the figure is not an authentic M.U.S.C.L.E. figure.

For a short period of time, when the X-2 first showed up, there was another potential Super Rare figure, “The Light Bulb Guy.” Copies of this figure were quickly dismissed as either being a bootleg or Kinnikuman Kinkeshi. It is interesting to consider why one dismissed Super Rare generates mystique and another is a forgotten footnote.

– Light Bulb Guy Kinnikuman picture courtesy of Jon Karis from : LittleRubberGuys.com.