
Back when DC Direct was releasing actual Bombshells action figures, there was an entire third series planned, but McFarlane Toys seemingly wasn't interested in rescuing those from the cancelled pile like they did with DCeased. And while you had to read reviews to see them, we've already told you about the planned Black Canary, Supergirl, and Zatanna figures. The fourth character planned for Series 3 was Bumblebee.
In the story, Karen Beecher was a student at the Honolulu Academy for Extraordinary Young People, and built herself a pair of wings that let her fly around. The statue just made her a cheerleader. And since the toys (mostly) followed the statues' lead, that's what the action figure would have been, as well. And now this Lil Bombshell.
One detail that slipped through when the comics had to come up with a backstory for what was originally just a cute pin-up design? Her sweater. Why does her sweater have a big letter B on it if her school doesn't start with that letter? You know cheerleaders don't wear their own names on their uniforms, right? Even Archie wears a sweater with a big R for "Riverdale," not an A for "Archie." Or "Andrews." The mini couldn't be posed jumping into the air, like the statue could, so she's just raising one pom-pom cheerfully. Although Ant Lucia's original concept art put some vertical black stripes on her yellow skirt, that was dropped before the design was finalized, so them being absent here isn't a mistake
or a limitation of paint on such a small figurine.
Just like Series 1 received a full set of repaints as "Series 1.5," there was going to be a "Series 2.5," as well. Those were cancelled, but we do have concept art of what they would have been. Bumblebee's variant would have seen her in a white and gold uniform, while her pom-poms would have been two-tone yellow and black instead of just plain yellow. It's a pretty good look, honestly, even if it's not as "bee" coded as the original.
