In 2007 McFarlane Toys was at the height of their envelope pushing phase, with many horror releases that went to smaller retailers like Suncoast Video and Tower Records and  occupied less shelf space at larger retailers like Walmart.  McFarlane Toys was starting to experiment more with original takes on familiar tropes and putting a horror spin on them to save some money on chasing licenses and developing more original intellectual property.

In the Fall of 2007 they released “McFarlane’s Twisted Christmas” action figure line.  Twisted Christmas was a 6″ scale line that consisted of six figures (eight if you count the “Santa’s Little Helpers” 3-pack as separate figures.   Very few retailers carried this line and it appears they were manufactured in very low numbers.  As a result they all command high prices on the secondary market.

Heading up the line was Santa Claus himself… emphasis on the CLAWS of course.

“Inside the distorted mind of Todd McFarlane, the holidays take on an entirely different twist. Forget the warmth of Christmas past – McFarlane’s Twisted Christmas transforms the characters you though you knew, and the results are undeniably wicked!”

The line was met with much criticism, which is exactly the sort of publicity that McFarlane Toys was looking for.  One of the primary issues that people had with the line was the inclusion of “Mrs. Claus” who, in this line was portrayed as a “sexy” woman in a Santa bikini using the North Pole as a stripper pole.

This line certainly isn’t for everyone, but if you interests point toward horror and darker thoughts then you can still celebrate the holidays and find representation here.