Mars Toys

Mars Toys makes figures for the characters everyone remembers and nobody licenses. Their MAT-coded catalogue includes Gene Wilder's Willy Wonka as "Chocolate Man," Doc Brown as "Doc Time," and a Breaking Bad Gus Fring released as a two-figure set, one composed, one considerably less so.

Their most distinctive contribution might be the Batman 1989 supporting cast. While the licensed brands make Batman himself, Mars Toys quietly filled in Michael Keaton's Bruce Wayne, Alfred, and Joker variants, letting collectors build the actual world of the film. A Vicki Vale prototype has been teased for ages, which regulars will tell you is very on-brand pacing.

They sit in the mid tier on price, sell some head sculpts separately from full figures, and are best understood as a complement to a licensed shelf: the studio you go to for the faces that complete a scene.