Cthulhu vs. Mothman in the Wrestling Ring? Cryptid Combat Is Gloriously Ridiculous!

Somebody looked at Cthulhu, looked at Mothman, thought about the glorious madness of old-school professional wrestling, and said, ‘You know what? These two need to settle it in the ring.’ And you know something, fam? I respect that level of insanity! Wandering Planet Toys and sculptor VELIKAN are bringing us Cryptid Combat, a line of collectible figures that takes monster mythology and gives it a full-on wrestling makeover.

Meet Cthuluchador and the Ultimoth Warrior. Yeah, those names are ridiculous, and that’s exactly why they work. You’ve got the cosmic horror of Cthulhu reimagined with lucha libre attitude, and a Mothman-inspired bruiser who sounds like he belongs in an arena packed with screaming fans. It’s the kind of mashup you didn’t know you needed until somebody actually made it.

Now, these aren’t your standard action figures with a million points of articulation. We’re talking five-inch, non-articulated soft-vinyl collectibles inspired by the sofubi tradition. That’s a different collecting experience. These pieces are designed to be displayed and appreciated as sculpted art toys, with the character designs doing the heavy lifting. If you’re a collector who likes unusual shelf pieces, that’s part of the appeal.

VELIKAN’s sculpting is central to the project, and I always want to give the artists behind collectibles their proper shine. A fun concept can get people laughing, but the sculpt has to make the characters worth owning. You want details, personality and a silhouette that immediately tells you what you’re looking at. Monster wrestling figures give a sculptor plenty of room to get weird, and that’s half the fun.

The campaign is offering three colorway matchups: Insanity Smackdown, Midnight Matchup and Fire Versus Ice, with that last one planned as a BackerKit exclusive. The figures are listed at $75 each or $120 for a pair. And because apparently these monsters need somewhere to store their lunch between matches, there are retro-style lunchboxes in the mix, too. That little throwback detail cracks me up.

I’ve been around collectibles long enough to know that the best conversation pieces aren’t always the most expensive or the most famous. Sometimes it’s the oddball figure that makes somebody walk into your room, stop dead in their tracks and ask, ‘What the hell is THAT?’ Then suddenly you’re spending twenty minutes explaining a monster wrestling feud that doesn’t exist anywhere outside your imagination. That’s collecting at its most fun.

And let’s talk about the inspiration. Cthulhu and Mothman already have enormous followings in horror, folklore and pop culture. Professional wrestling has its own rich history of larger-than-life characters, dramatic rivalries and unforgettable entrances. Put those worlds together and you’ve got something that understands the joke while still giving fans a cool collectible.

Of course, these are premium art toys, so collectors should pay attention to the pricing and campaign details before backing. This isn’t a bargain-bin impulse purchase. But if you love sofubi, monster culture, wrestling nostalgia or just bizarre creative ideas, I can see why these figures would catch your eye.

Big love to Wandering Planet Toys and VELIKAN for taking a wonderfully strange idea and running with it. Independent toy creators keep proving that there’s room for imagination beyond the same old licenses and familiar faces. That’s worth supporting.

Crusaders, if Cthuluchador and the Ultimoth Warrior ever actually step into a wrestling ring, somebody better call me for commentary. Until then, check out Cryptid Combat on BackerKit and decide which monster deserves the championship belt.

https://www.backerkit.com/c/projects/wandering-planet-toys/cryptid-combat/pre-launch?ref=pr