Raise your hand if you had ever heard of Wotan before the Brave and the Bold show. I hadn’t. After doing some research on him, I think I figured out why Wotan wasn’t exactly a top-tier villain and that involves the phrase, “he was once a Stone Age woman who was raped by someone claiming to a servant of God.” Yeah, that’s the kind of stuff you want to put on the packaging of a kids’ line.

Dr. Fate must summon all the power of Nabu to halt the magical misdeeds of Wotan.

Both Wotan and Dr. Fate first appeared in More Fun Comics #55, the first publication by what would eventually become DC comics. But Dr. Fate is better known as the helmeted guy in the Justice Society, but he’s also one of those characters that suffers from multiple identities (not in the same way as Moon Knight), because there have been four Dr. Fates.

But all versions of Dr. Fate have followed the same general look, excluding the abomination that was Jared Stevens who turned Dr. Fate’s helmet into a set of daggers. Whichever version of Dr. Fate this is, he looks great. While all the figures in this series have bulky chests, Fate’s is smaller than Green Arrow’s which helps distinguish him.

What’s most amazing about Dr. Fate is that his entire body has a new sculpt, including his arms and legs that have sculpted. His head does look pin-headed since he’s a guy in a helmet but his head is smaller than Green Arrow’s! His left hand looks good with a flare to demonstrate his powers, but I wish it was translucent and had the shape of an ankh.

His paint work is great, with clean and crisp breaks and no flaws. Even the ears on his helmet are painted! And the blue used for his suit looks great, with it being different enough from Batman’s to really make them different. Fate’s articulation is the standard four points: neck, arms and waist.

Continuing the theme of completely random villains that haven’t been relevant in half a century, Wotan works well as a pairing with Dr. Fate since they faced off against each other during their first appearance. Much like Iron Man’s foe the Mandarin, Wotan is one of those evil characters who with a generic Chinese sounding name. But as messed up as his (hers?) history is, the concept of Wotan is easy to grasp: evil sorcerer!

Sporting an outfit that I’m pretty sure Mr. Miracle stole several years later, Wotan has great visual pop especially when paired with Dr. Fate. His red and green outfit with black and yellow details looks sharp without looking Christmas-y. With his pale blue skin, he looks unlike any other figure released so far in the Brave and the Bold Action League.

Wotan’s face is great, with sunken red eyes, large fangs and a hair style that is equal parts Mr. Sinister and Pointy-Haired Boss from Dilbert. It is disappointing though that Wotan isn’t showing off any powers, since his pose is just begging to be shooting dark energy blasts out of his out stretched hand. His articulation is the same four points, though his head’s rotation is limited by his cape’s cowl.

This is one of the best two-packs released so far. Even if Wotan is some fringe guy, he’s got a great design that a simple enough concept for any kid to understand. This pack’s got both the evil sorcerer and the good sorcerer and probably two of the best designs released so far because they can stand on their own! But Mattel in their infinite wisdom decided to make this shortpacked along with Blue Bowman & Owlman, while packing three Batman vs the Top in each case. If you can find this pack, grab it because it’s one of the best examples of what this line can be.

Batman the Brave and the Bold Action League Wave 3
The Dark Knight & The Demon Etrigan
Dr. Fate & Wotan – Owlman & Blue Bowman
Batman & the Joker – Batman & the Top