Mattel has announced a number of its new toy offerings for 2004, including a Shaman King Deluxe Battling Figure Assortment, which allows kids to act out their favorite battle scenes from the Shaman King anime series (which appears on the Saturday morning Fox Box).  Viz has already had considerable success with its Shaman King manga releases, and Upper Deck is set to release a Shaman King CCG this summer (see 'Upper Deck to Release Shaman King CCG').  In addition to the battling figures, Mattel is also planning on producing a Shaman King board game.

Halle Berry Catwoman Barbie

Academy-Award winning actress Halle Berry gets her very own piece of immortality thanks to her own Barbie doll dressed in an exquisite gown inspired by her Catwoman character from the July 2004 Warner Bros. Catwoman movie.  While most Barbie dolls don't make much of a splash in the male-dominated comic shops, we think that there may be more than a few 'comic guys' out there with their very own Catwoman Barbies by the end of this year.

MegaMan PET Personal Terminal

Another Mattel 2004 product of interest is the Megaman PET Personal Terminal, which is inspired by the MegaMan NT Warrior anime series (which appears on the top-rated Kids' WB).  The terminal will allow kids to connect with another player and load battle chips into their PET to aid their NetNavi and get help in battles. 

Mattel is the master toy licensee for MegaMan (see 'Mattel Gets MegaMan NT Warrior'), but appears to be developing the property very conservatively, though it will also offer a MegaMan board game.  Decipher has just announced a MegaMan NT Warrior collectible card game (see 'Decipher Gets MegaMan NT Warrior License'), which will be out in May.