Category Archives: Reviews

#0401: Composite Superman

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Reviews and tagged with , , , , , , ,

COMPOSITE SUPERMAN

FIRST APPEARENCE

In the 50s and 60s, DC Comics was really king of the absurd idea. Their stories pretty much run on absurdity. When it comes to absurd characters, Composite Superman is definitely up there. Right off the bat, he’s a dude who’s half Superman ad half Batman. But, what’s even wackier is that his origin has nothing to do with Superman or Batman. He’s actually a janitor from the future, granted the powers of all of the members of the Legion of Super Heroes when lightning struck a display of figurines possessing their abilities. So, umm… yeah. On the plus side, the fact that he’s half and half of two of DC’s top characters means he’s gotten not one, but two action figures!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Composite Superman was released in Series 3 of DC Direct’s First Appearance line. The first two series were purely golden age characters, but the diversified a bit starting with Series 3. This is the first of the two Composite Superman figures. The figure is about 6 ½ inches tall and he has 11 points of articulation. In case the name of the line didn’t clue you in, he’s based on the character’s first appearance, drawn by the legendary Curt Swan. Simply put, the sculpt is outstanding. It’s head to toe a perfect recreation of Swan’s art. The two halves are distinct to each character, but still totally in synch with each other. The only downside to this figure is that DC Direct never separated the sculpt out into proper Swan versions of Superman and Batman (though they did release a completely unique Superman sculpt of a similar style in their Showcase line). The paint is fairly straightforward, but that’s not a bad thing. The colors are all nice, bold and distinct, emphasizing the differences between the halves. The boots and glove have also been done in a very nice glossy sheen, which adds a nice amount of depth to the look. Composite Superman included a mini-replica of his first appearance and a gold display stand.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

The Composite Superman, like so many of my DC Direct figures, was gotten from a friend who works for Diamond Distributors. I’ve always loved the look of the character, and I was thrilled to find out he was getting an action figure. To top that, it’s not just any action figure, it’s a phenomenal action figure. This really was one of DC Direct’s best efforts.

#0400: Waxer, Boil, & Numa

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WAXER, BOIL & NUMA

STAR WARS (SIDESHOW)

When it comes to Star Wars, it’s no secret that I’m not much of a fan of the prequel trilogy. The reasons are many, far too many to list here. However, I don’t hate everything about the prequels. In particular, the two spin-off cartoons (The Clone Wars and Clone Wars) were actually not terrible. The latter series kind of meandered and wasn’t always the greatest, but it had its shining moments, and there are a few episodes in particular that I really enjoyed. When Sideshow was looking for interesting ways to expand their 12 inch Star Wars line, they turned to the cartoon for some ideas. Today, I’ll be looking at two of the line’s clone troopers, Waxer and Boil, as well as their small compatriot Numa.

THE FIGURES THEMSELVES

This set was released by Sideshow in the summer of 2011 as part of their Star Wars line. The set is based on the episode “Innocents of Ryloth” which happens to be one of my favorite episodes of the show (it probably helps that the episode is essentially a 30 minute love letter to Aliens). This is the regular release of the set, but there was also a Sideshow exclusive version which had an extra piece for Numa.

WAXER

What’s interesting about Waxer is that he actually wasn’t created for the show. He actually first appeared in a comicbook story. When they got around to adapting that particular story, he had to be replaced by Boil due to having the misfortune of dying one episode previous. Bummer. Waxer is essentially based on his appearance in the episode, but he’s been given a more real world style. The figure is about 12 inches tall, and he’s got a bunch of articulation, which I don’t have an exact count on, as I don’t make a habit of undressing my action figures. Aside from the black jumpsuit, which is very well tailored, Waxer is pretty much all sculpted pieces. They’re all from previous clone troopers, but that doesn’t make them any less impressive. They are sharp and symmetrical, and they really look like the armor from the movies. The paintwork is exceptional, with plenty of weathering and texture to really make the armor look appropriately broken in. The orange accents, denoting him as being a clone under Commander Cody, are vibrant and clean, and really add to the figure’s look. He also has a few spots of graffiti on his helmet, which are true to the episode, and really contribute to the uniqueness of the figure. Waxer includes an extra un-helmeted head, a Phase II helmet, an extra set of fisted hands, extra running feet, blasters in three sizes, binoculars, and a display stand with the basic Star Wars logo. The head, while not Hot Toys quality, is pretty impressive. It’s an alright likeness of Temuera Morrison, though with the baldness and the smirk, it bears an uncanny resemblance to Billy Zane. The extra helmet is fine, though it lacks the personalization of the regular helmet. The hands offer a few options, and are all very nicely sculpted. The running feet are a neat concept, but finding a use for them can be difficult. The binoculars and blasters are pretty standard fare, but impressive nonetheless, and the stand is the new Hot Toys-style stand that allows the figure to be picked up and replaced with ease.

BOIL

Boil was created for the show as a partner in crime for Waxer, which is a role he filled quite well. Like Waxer, he’s based on his appearance in “Innocents of Ryloth” with a slightly more realistic approach taken. He’s about 12 inches tall, and he has the same points of articulation that Waxer has, however many that may be. He uses the basic Sideshow armored buck as a starting point, with the same black jumpsuit as Waxer. The armor is all the same, and it’s still really well executed, so that’s a definite plus. From the neck down, Boil’s paint is identical to that of Waxer. It’s fitting, since that’s true to the design, and it’s still an impressive set of work. Boil’s helmet is slightly different. He doesn’t have the vertical line of orange going down the center, and he has some slightly more elaborate graffiti on his helmet. It looks really good, and it’s minor, but different enough to set him apart nicely from Waxer. Boil pretty much comes with all the same stuff as Waxer: an un-helmeted head, a Phase II helmet, the extra hands and feet, the assortment of blasters, and the display stand. Most of it’s the same, but the helmet is done to match the pattern on his regular helmet, and obviously the un-helmeted head is different to convey Boil’s different look. He’s got a full head of hair, so the Morrison likeness is a bit more immediately apparent. The mustache looks a bit silly, but that’s true of the show’s design. He also has a few extra hands in a variety of gestures, which make for some entertaining poses.

NUMA

Numa is one of the titular innocents from the episode this set is based on. She’s essentially just Newt from Aliens. Her presence is what really makes this an episode-specific set, rather than just a pair of clone troopers. The figure is just shy of 6 inches tall and she features 5 points of articulation, which essentially means she’s only good for slight variations on the basic standing look. Numa’s smaller stature means she gets an all-new sculpt. It’s fairly well done. It seems to be the proper proportions and such. Numa’s head is probably the sculpt most negatively affected by the more realistic style. It’s not bad, but she seems somewhat expressionless. Also, the head seems a bit too small for the figure, which kind of makes her seem out of scale with Waxer and Boil. Numa has a cloth dress with a pleather belt. It’s pretty well tailored to the figure, and it seems to be an accurate depiction of what she wore in the episode. Numa’s paint work is pretty decent. It’s not super high quality, but it’s clean and even, and it does a good job with the colors and such. Numa’s only accessory is a display stand which can plug into the bottom of her left foot. The exclusive set added an extra arm holding the toy that she carries for most of the episode. The lack of accessories is forgivable, since Numa’s practically an accessory herself.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Like I said above, “Innocents of Ryloth” is one of my favorite episodes of the series, so I knew pretty much as soon as this was announced that I wanted it. I remember I actually only saw a headshot of the two clones and I thought to myself, “well if they included Numa, I’d have to get it.” No sooner had I thought that, I scrolled down and saw the full picture and there she was. My super awesome, super supportive parents were kind enough to buy this for my birthday in 2011, which was very nice of them. I really like this set. Sure, Numa’s not perfect, but the clones just about are, and Numa is decent enough that she makes a great complement to them.

#0399: Michelangelo – Comic

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MICHELANGELO – COMIC

TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES (2012)

Okay, last day of Comic Turtles. Here we are. I considered putting off the last review just to screw with everybody, but that didn’t seem very nice. So, here he is, the last member of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Michelangelo.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

“Among his brothers, Michelangelo possesses the most natural athletic abilities. His physical prowess, along with an enthusiastic imagination, comes in handy when action is needed to escape a dangerous predicament. Mikey displays his show-stopping persona and skills with the nunchucks.” Michelangelo is part of the 12th series of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles by Playmates. The line was originally based on the current Nickelodeon cartoon, but it seems to have started to diversify. Mikey is based on his original appearance, back when the turtles all looked pretty much the same. The figure stands roughly 4 ½ inches tall and features 17 points of articulation. The lack of wrist joints is killer, and it’s something that really holds the figures back, but otherwise, everything is pretty good. Mikey’s sculpt is the same-old-same-old; same body with a new head. The body’s not a bad sculpt, so the re-use is perfectly fine. However, Mikey’s head seems a bit more of a disappointment than the others. He just doesn’t exhibit the jovial personality that Mikey is known for. Maybe if the eyes were a bit wider. Mikey’s paint is pretty much identical to that seen on the others, which is reasonably good. I do wish they had done something to bring out more of the sculpted details, but at least it’s clean. Mikey includes is trademark nunchucks, which are the most disappointing accessory in the series. They lack any real texture, and the sculpted pose of the chains doesn’t really allow for much creativity with the poses.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Mikey was part of the set of comic Turtles I purchased from my local Toys R Us. If he hadn’t been part of the set, I could see myself passing on this one. He’s not terrible, and in the context of the full set, he looks fine, but as his own figure? He’s just sort of lackluster, especially when you consider that NECA’s take on Comic Mikey was probably the best in the set. But, that figure goes for an insane aftermarket price, and this one is $9, so that’s what he’s got going for him.

#0398: Raphael – Comic

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RAPHAEL – COMIC

TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES (2012)

Uh… so, two days in, I’m kind of out of compelling things to say about Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Sorry. I just don’t have a lot of interesting history with the property. Um, so today is Raphael’s turn. He’s the only of the Turtles that continued to sport the red bandana when they moved to animation, so some people have a tendency to confuse a comic style Turtles display as “four Raphaels.” So, here he is.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

“Quick to anger and slow to cool off, Raphael has mastered his twin Sai blades, but not his own temper. Easily the most fearsome and fearless fighter of the group, Raphael often leaps into battle no matter what the odds… and often without looking first.” Raphael is part of Series 12 of the current Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles line from Playmates. Raph is based on the character’s original comicbook appearance, but unlike the rest of the series, he can also function as a more conventional version of the character. The figure is about 4 ½ inches in height, with 17 points of articulation. I know I keep harping on it, but the lack of wrist articulation on these figures is killer. It’s almost impossible to get any sort of decent pose out of Raph with his Sais, and the missing wrist articulation is completely to blame. The figures even have wrist bands, so the articulation would be perfectly hidden. Raph’s sculpt is mostly what we’ve seen before on the other turtles, but with the usual character specific head. Raph’s head is angrier than the others, which suits his personality. It’s a small touch, but I like the fact that Raph and Don are opening their mouths on the opposite sides, conveying their opposing natures. On a side note, my Raph ended up with two right thighs. It’s not a major issue, but it’s a little annoying, so make sure to check the legs on these guys if you can. Raph’s paint is essentially the same as the others in the series, which is okay, but not spectacular. His is cleaner than Don’s, which is good, but he still has a little bit of bleed over, especially around the elbow and knee pads. Raph includes his twin Sai blades. They’re rather large, and a bit too flat, but that’s fairly typical for Raphael figures.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Raph was purchased along with the rest of the Comic Turtles from my local Toys R Us. Raph was actually my cousin’s favorite turtle, though he’s only my second favorite. He’s got some additional appeal in that his color is the one most commonly associated with the character, so that’s cool.

#0397: Leonardo – Comic

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LEONARDO – COMIC

TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES (2012)

My fandom of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles is something of a shared one. My brother Christian and I both got into it at about the same time. His favorite was Michelangelo and mine was Donatello, so we were a little different on our opinions of the Turtles. But, there was one character we agreed on: Leonardo was our least favorite. For some reason, I always found the character’s straight-laced nature a bit grating. That’s never really changed for me, but a Turtles collection isn’t complete without all four, I still have a few figures of him. Today, I’ll be looking at the latest take on his original interpretation.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

“Known as being brave, dedicated and a master of his twin Katana swords, Leonardo is the hero’s hero – a force of good fighting against the minions of evil, and, he’s got a really cool shell!” Leonardo is part of Series 12 of Playmates’ current Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles line. He’s based on the character’s original comicbook design. This is before the turtles got quite as individualized as they are in later versions, but it’s important none the less. The figure is roughly 4 ½ inches tall with 17 points of articulation. The lack of wrist articulation is less of an issue here than it was on Donatello, but it’s still annoying. From the neck down, Leo’s sculpt is identical to Donatello. It’s a good base, so no complaints there. The head is new, and it’s pretty good. Leo has a closed mouth, and squinty eyes. He’s got a calm, but intense look about him that works well for the character. Leo’s mask sits better than Don’s, and the ties have a bit more flow to them, with something of a windblown look to them. On the plus side, Leo sports one of the cleanest paint jobs in the set. It’s not really different from any of the others, but the application is better, which makes the whole thing a bit better. Leo includes his two twin Katana. They’re pretty well sculpted, but the total lack of paint is a bit of a bummer.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I got the whole set of Comic Turtles from my local Toys R Us. Leo is pretty much just along for the ride on that one. Like Donatello, he’s not the greatest figure ever released, but he’s really not bad. You could do a lot worse for $9.

#0396: Donatello – Comic

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DONATELLO – COMIC

TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES (2012)

“Back in 1984, a single 40-page black-and-white underground comic redefined the comic book industry and created a world-wide phenomenon. For 30 years, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles have entertained and thrilled legions of fans across the globe – and they’re still going strong!”

While I never seemed to get the timing right with Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (all of the incarnations are well spaced enough for me to be out of the target audience every time), I still have a pretty decent appreciation for the characters. In particular, I love their early comic looks. A few years ago, NECA released a fantastic set of the main turtles in that style. Unfortunately, I only found half the team, and the aftermarket prices are far too prohibitive for me to finish the set. Thankfully, Playmates has seen fit to offer their own set of the original designs as part of their current Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles line, originally based on the Nickelodeon cartoon. I’ll be starting with the resident tech guy, Donatello.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

“The usually calm and collected Donatello has difficulty containing his enthusiasm when encountering new technologies. Or when working on a new invention or being hot on the trail of a scientific breakthrough, plus his kick-butt mastery of the Bo staff, makes him one unique turtle.” Donatello was released in Series 12 of Playmates’ current Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles line. Donatello is based on his original comicbook incarnation, which is a lot less unique than later versions became. He’s about 4 ½ inches tall and he’s got 17 points of articulation. The articulation is pretty good overall, but the lack of wrist joints hurts the figure quite a bit. In this day and age, such joints should pretty much be mandatory. His left hip is also rather loose, but this is likely to vary from figure to figure. From the neck down, Donatello’s sculpt is identical to the other three turtles. It’s a good sculpt, with decent proportions and quite a bit of texture. It’s a pretty good match for the art from the comics. The head is unique to Donatello. It’s a more passive look, though not as passive as Donatello frequently is. His mouth is open on the right side, but only the slightest bit. The texturing and lines on the skin haven’t been a hit with everyone, but I think they look fine. The bandana is a separate piece, and it doesn’t sit as flat as I’d like on my figure, but it’s well sculpted and the ties hang at a dynamic angle. Paint is probably this line’s weakest point. It’s not bad, but it’s nothing all that impressive either. Donatello is mostly molded in green plastic, with red for the bandana. The actual painted details are mostly clean, but there is a bit of bleed over, and the yellow on his torso missed a few spots. Donatello’s sole accessory is his trademark Bo staff. It’s decently sculpted, but it has no paint, which is a shame. Also, due to the lack of wrist articulation, he has difficulty properly holding it.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I purchased the full set of Comic Turtles from my local TRU while killing some time waiting to pick up my brother from a rehearsal. Donatello has been my favorite turtle for a while, so that’s why I reviewed him first. I contemplated just getting him, but that’s what I did with the NECA figures, and it didn’t work out all that well in the end, so all four it was. The figure is far from perfect, but he’s also far from terrible.

#0395: Ghostbusters Video Game Minimates

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CHEF DEMASSI, THE ARCHITECT, BLACK SLIME MONSTER, AZETLOR

GHOSTBUSTERS MINIMATES

Hey, look at that, more Minimates. This time around, I’ll be turning to Ghostbusters Minimates, a line I haven’t shown enough love. DST’s take on the ‘busters was pretty notable for offering just about every character from Ghostbusters and Ghostbusters 2. However, before they had even finished a complete set of the main characters in their signature uniforms, they released this little gem of a set, based on the then current Ghostbusters video game. The set offers figures of four of the more pivotal ghosts created for that game.

THE FIGURES THEMSELVES

This set was released as an Amazon exclusive, but its history is sort of confusing. It was originally meant to be packed in with this super-mega release of the game that had this huge selection of various goodies. Minimate fans in particular weren’t happy about having to drop a rather large sum of money just to get these four, but many signed up for the preorders anyway. Then, the release was cancelled. Most people figured the ‘mates were not to be, but Amazon stepped in and offered the set as their own exclusive, sold on its own.

CHEF DEMASSI

The Chef is one of the early ghosts in the game, fought at the famous Sedgwick Hotel, where the ‘busters got their start. He’s a take on the basic Italian Chef, and he actually fits in with the ghosts from the movies pretty well. The figure is about 2 ½ inches tall and it features 7 points of articulation, due to the lack of a lower half. The figure makes use of the arms and torso of the standard Minimate body, with different pieces for the head, hands, and lower half, as well as add-ons for the rolled sleeves, torso, and skirt. The head is originally from the DC Minimates Series 8 Sinestro, the hands are from Marvel Minimates Series 18’s Venom, the floating lower half piece is from this line’s Slimer, the sleeves are from the first Back to the Future Marty McFly, the torso cover is from Marvel Minimates Series 26’s Blob, and the skirt is from Marvel Minimates Series 18’s Gwen Stacy and Mary Jane. All of the pieces are well sculpted, and they add up to a pretty decent approximation of the character from the game, though the hole in the top of the head is sort of annoying. The paintwork on the figure is great; everything is cleanly applied, and all of the detail lines are nice and sharp. They’ve even given him little food stains on his coat! Chef Demassi included no accessories.

THE ARCHITECT

The Architect is the game’s primary villain, and he actually turns out to be Ivo Shandor, the man who built Dana and Luis’s apartment building from the first movie, which was a nice way of tying things together. The Architect is bout 2 ½ inches in height and he features 14 points of articulation, though most of the leg movement is rendered motionless by the skirt. The figure’s look appears to be based on the big figure towards the end of the game, but it’s missing the horns. He makes use of the basic Minimate body, with add-ons for the hair and skirt. The hair is from Ultimate Sabretooth, way back in Series 3 of Marvel Minimates, and the skirt is from The Spirit’s Formal Wear Sand Serrif. The pieces aren’t bad, though the hair is a little out of date. They make for a decent approximation of the Architect’s look. The Architect’s paint is, if nothing else, interesting to look at. He’s got a molten rock kind of a look to him, which is handled by strategic use of red and gold line work, with some dark grey thrown in for a little extra detail here and there. Everything is pretty well applied, and it ends up looking essentially like the design should. The Architect included an energy blast piece, which adds a bit of variety to the figure.

BLACK SLIME MONSTER

So, the first Ghostbusters had green slime, the second had pink, guess it’s fitting that the game got black slime. And if you’re going to have black slime, you have to have a Black Slime Monster, right? Sure, why not. The Black Slime Monster is just over 2 ½ inches tall and sports 14 points of articulation. The figure uses that standard Minimate body, with specific hands and feet, as well as add-ons for the torso and waist. The hands are from the Marvel Minimates Series 18 Venom (just like Chef Demassi), the feet are from the Series 20 Abomination, and the torso and waist pieces are from the Series 22 movie Abomination. The pieces are all pretty good, and they add up to a pretty decent approximation of the design from the game. The paintwork on the figure is decent. Nothing amazing or anything, but everything’s well applied, and the figure looks appropriately “mucky.” He at the very least makes for a visually interesting monster. The Black Slime Monster included a hook on a chain, which is a re-use from DC Minimates Series 7’s Lobo.

AZETLOR

When you’re making a set entirely out of re-used pieces, sometimes you end up with a figure that’s more than a little off. Case in point with the final figure in the set (and, incidentally, my personal favorite), Azetlor. The character has a few designs in the game, and this one doesn’t really look much like any of them. Which isn’t to say it’s a bad figure, just not a particularly accurate one. The Azetlor is about 2 ½ inches tall and he’s got 14 points of articulation. The figure pretty much the standard Minimate body, but with a DC Minimates Sinestro head in place of the standard one. What’s interesting is that all of the prototype shots show this guy with the normal head, but they decided to change it somewhere along the way. So, with a mostly basic build, he relies on paint to make him work. He’s molded in clear plastic, with details painted on here and there, making him look like bits of debris floating to make up a vaguely human shape. It’s all done very nicely. All of the lines are nice and clean, and the blue parts have some impressive shading, which gives the figure some much needed dimension. The Azetlor included no accessories

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

So, I totally skipped this set when it was first released. And I never really tracked it down. I almost bought the Azetlor by himself a few times, but I never really was pulled in by the rest of the set. So, what changed? Price changed. Cosmic Comix, my local comicbook store, got in a large quantity of this set, and they were selling them for $2.99 a piece. That’s less than $1 a figure! For that, they were more than worth it! It’s actually a pretty decent set of Minimates, especially if you’re just looking for some good generic monsters!

#0394: Tomar Re

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Reviews and tagged with , , , ,

TOMAR RE

GREEN LANTERN (MOVIE)

The 2011 Green Lantern was certainly not the greatest thing to be shown on the silver screen. That being said it’s far from the worst, and I personally found it to be about on par with the Tim Burton Batman films, which suited me just fine. One of the nice things about one of your favorite characters getting a movie is all the toys that are bound to be released to coincide. Sadly, while I found the Green Lantern movie to be inoffensive, the same can’t be said for the vast majority of the toys released for it. One of the few figures from the line I didn’t hate is Tomar Re, the subject of today’s review.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Tomar Re was technically part of the first series of Green Lantern figures, but he was not amongst the initial assortment of figures. I think he came in the second wave of product. The figure is about 3 ¾ inches tall and he features 8 points of articulation. The articulation is one of the most annoying parts of this line, because it was about 10 years out of date at the time of release. It’s completely useless for anything outside of a standing pose, and in some cases it couldn’t even do that. Case in point, Tomar’s right leg is slightly warped, and the articulation is such that standing is not a thing that happens. Tomar’s sculpt is fine. There was a deluxe Tomar in wonky colors that was released first, so technically this one’s a re-use of that one. There’s some okay texture work on the body, which is nice, I suppose. However, the head is rather smooth, and definitely too squat for the character. In fact, the whole body is off when compared to the on screen character. He’s just too bulky. Were this figure 10-15 years older, the scale might be excusable, but come on, Hasbro’s Battle Droids from 1999 looked better than this. The paintwork is rather vaguely handled. In some places, lines are very sharp, but in others, everything just sort of runs together. That’s sort of what they looked like in the movie, but it wasn’t this bad. He just ends up being a bit of a mush of colors. Tomar included a construct of some sort, but I threw all the constructs together, so I don’t remember which was his.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I got Tomar from a Walmart near where I was vacationing the year these were released. This was notably two days AFTER I broke down and bought the wonky colored deluxe Tomar because I hadn’t been able to find this one. Yay. It’s hard to say much about this figure that isn’t negative. I honestly don’t hate it, and I really think it was one of the better small scale figures Mattel offered in this line, but that isn’t saying much. There’s a reason this line didn’t sell well, and it wasn’t the poor performance of the movie.

#0393: Psycho Pirate

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PSYCHO PIRATE

CRISIS ON INFINITE EARTHS

When DC first came onto the super hero scene (then still known as National Comics), they had no idea what kind of success the concept would have. However, the superhero boom of the Golden Age was relatively short lived. It started just as the 40s did, and it was pretty much done a few years into the 50s. But, in the 60s, they wanted to bring it back. To do this, the re-imagined their characters in new ways, resulting in the Silver Age. The old versions were largely forgotten, until a story called “The Flash of Two Worlds” teamed up the Golden and Silver Age Flashes, explaining that they came from two separate universes. Earth 1 held the contemporary characters, while Earth 2 housed the heroes of old. Over the years, DC added more and more universes, resulting in the Multiverse. In the 80s, they decided this was all too confusing, so they created Crisis on Infinite Earths, which did away with all but one universe. So, what does this have to do with Psycho Pirate? Not a whole lot, to be honest. He has a decently sized role in Crisis, and it got him a toy. So there.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Psycho Pirate was released in the first series of DC Direct’s Crisis on Infinite Earths line. The Psycho Pirate depicted here is the second version of the character, Roger Hayden. Hayden was created in the 60s, which means he showed up during the Silver Age, but his first appearance is clearly set on Earth 2, making him a Golden Age villain, sort of kind of. Basically, his deal is that he’s got a mask that lets him control emotions. He’s based on his appearance in Crisis, as depicted by George Perez. The figure is about 6 ¼ inches tall and he features 15 points of articulation. DC Direct was pretty big on everybody getting their own sculpt at the time, so Psycho Pirate’s sculpt is 100% unique to him. It’s a pretty great sculpt, too. The proportions are all pretty decent, and the face is undoubtedly a George Perez face. I also love how expressive the hands are. Perhaps the only issue with the sculpt is how flat the upper arms are. The paint work doesn’t quite match up to the sculpt, but it’s not bad. For the most part, things are clean, but there are some issues with bleed over on the sculpted lines. The red also has a tendency to bleed through where it shouldn’t. Also, while I like the boots having a glossy sheen, I’m not quite sure why the inside of the cape has been given the same treatment. It looks fine, but it just seems odd. On the plus side, the colors are nice and bold, and the work on the face is very nice. Psycho Pirate includes his Medusa Mask, which fits very nicely on his face, and a display stand that reads “Crisis on Infinite Earths.”

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Psycho Pirate is a figure that actually got me to read the source material so that I had a reason for purchasing the figure. I had seen him in the store, and I liked the look of him, so I picked up one of the anniversary trades of Crisis from my library and gave it a read. Then, just a few weeks later, I received the figure as a birthday present from my brother Christian, who had some help from my dad. Looking back at this figure, I was happy to see it had aged as well as it did. It’s really a very nice figure.

#0392: Professor X

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Reviews and tagged with , , , , ,

PROFESSOR X

MARVEL 10-INCH (TOYBIZ)

Frickin’ Professor X! Dude just keeps showing up on the list of figures to review! I swear I’m not doing this on purpose. Anyway, when Toybiz had the Marvel license in the 90s (when Marvel was at the height of their 90s comic boom), they were milking the license for all they could. They had huge success with their 5-inch figures, and they decided to use the same molds, sized up, to create a line of 10-inch figures. Through use of a number of set parts, they were able to create a lot of characters at a low price. However, this meant some characters had to be tweaked to find their way into the line. Professor X was one such character.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Professor X was part of the KB exclusive line of 10-inch figures. The line never really had any wave or series structure; figures were just sort of stocked wherever they showed up. Professor X is about 10 inches tall, and he features 9 points of articulation, which was pretty much standard for the line. Obviously, due to the constraints of the line, he’s not a typical Professor X. He’s decidedly more toy-etic. The design’s not totally made up, though; it’s similar to the look he had during the 90s “Fatal Atrractions” story, minus the goofy headgear. The figure makes use of an up-scaled version of the body of Tony Stark from the Iron Man line, with a larger version of the same Professor X head used on the regular and astral projection variants of the character. The body is a pretty decent sculpt, even if it is in the goofy “techno underwear.” The head is rotocast (meaning it’s hollow), which ends up doing the sculpt some serious favors. It just looks a lot cleaner and sharper. Professor X’s paint work is pretty good, especially for the time. The body had a few spots where there is some bleed over, but it’s mostly good. The eyes and eyebrows are surprisingly clean, and they look very nice. Professor X included a recolored version of the helmet included with Weapon X Wolverine, presumably as a stand in for Cerebro.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I don’t actually have a whole lot of memories about this one. I think my Dad got it for me, but other than that, it’s kind of a blank. It’s a nice enough figure, and it’s certainly a unique way of handling the limited tooling options available. The 10-Inch line really did a lot to boost Toybiz’s creativity!