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Monday Morning M.U.S.C.L.E. Musings #80


M.U.S.C.L.E. figure #10
by Professor Terry

MMMM #80 is about the second figure supposedly from Hawaii – M.U.S.C.L.E. figure #10 (Jesse Maybia).

Unlike Prince Kamehame who was featured in MMMM #21, I didn’t find any information linking Jesse Maybia to Hawaiian culture. In fact, I think Jesse Maybia is much more like the USC Trojans College Football mascot!

This is actually the reason I went and bought some extra Maybia figures as I follow Trojans football and the resemblance is certainly there – the Romando pictured looks like he’s been in the Californian sun for some time.

I personally thought this figure was fairly ordinary until I made the USC connection. I haven’t ever been a fan of Gladiators or Ben Hur-type movies and the figure itself doesn’t seem to be included in many different Japanese lines.

Let’s talk a little more about the Romando, as it’s the standout in the Jesse Maybia collection. He is the Hawaiian champion and comes packed with a Championship Belt. Unfortunately, it’s quite a lame belt – certainly not on the level of a WWE Championship. The articulation on the figure is quite poor too.

I really don’t understand the Romando line. Sometimes certain figures are fantastically well made and some are downright pathetic – yet they are made by the same company.

The fact the Romando is the best figure in my small collection of Jesse Maybia figures probably says enough about the figure. There isn’t enough sample size to really enjoy it as a standalone collection but as it is a part of the M.U.S.C.L.E. set, that makes Jesse Maybia good enough for me.

And for those that are familiar with Trojans football – Fight On!!!!

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This entry was posted on October 10, 2016, 10:16 am and is filed under UofM News. You can follow any responses to this entry through RSS 2.0. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.

  1. #1 by TheOrgg on October 11, 2016 - 11:43 am

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  2. #2 by Toyhandle on October 12, 2016 - 6:47 pm

    I’m loving all these updates. I was going to point out the same thing as TheOrgg.

    I noticed you spelled his last name “Maybia,” and I double checked the kinniku-wiki because I thought it was “Maivia.” It is indeed Maivia, in reference to Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson’s grandfather, former Pro-Wrestler and promoter for the National Wrestling Alliance in Hawaii, Peter Maivia!

    I don’t know anything about pro-wrestling, and have never heard of a family of pro-wrestlers before. That makes The Rock so Kinnikuman-like to me now. 10x more interesting.

    As far as Hawaiian culture goes, both Kamehame and Jessie wear (or have heads shaped like) Mahiole, which are Hawaiian Feather Helmets that indicate royalty/status.
    The kinniku-wiki says Jessie wears an ʻAhu ʻula, which is a cloak. I guess that would be Jessie’s cape, but also the example used in the ʻAhu ʻula Wiki page has a pattern very similar to the symbols on both Jessie and Kamehame’s chests.
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ʻAhu_ʻula

    Jessie is far more interesting to me now than he ever was.

    Also, hadn’t seen the anime colors of Jessie before. He looks wrong to me as a blonde. Wonder if there is some reasoning behind that design change.

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  3. #3 by Terry on October 13, 2016 - 2:59 am

    Thanks for the comments guys

    I know of the Chief Peter Maivia though I don’t think this character is based on him and the spelling has always been different to me

    http://nathansmuscleblog.blogspot.com.au/2010/03/muscle-010-jessie-maybia.html

    In saying that I think there is some loose connection to actual wrestlers in the M.U.S.C.L.E. line such as Dusty Rhodes & Hulk Hogan (covered in the very first MMMM)

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