Tag Archives: DC Collectibles

#1429: Supergirl

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

SUPERGIRL

SUPERGIRL (DC COLLECTIBLES)

In spite of a largely dreary, depressing, and rather boring slate of movies, DC’s actually got a pretty solid little universe of live action TV-properties running.  The Flash is my definite favorite of the bunch, but I definitely appreciate Supergirl for essentially running counter to all of the things the hated about what Man of Steel did to the Super Family.  Supergirl’s initial start on CBS meant that it was in an odd spot as far as merchandising went.  It would seem that the show’s move to the CW smoothed out some of the issues, as we’ve since seen a handful of figures and the like.  Mattel was the first company to put out a figure of Kara, but that one was…well, it was a modern Mattel figure, i.e. not super great.  Fortunately, DC Collectibles followed it up with their own version of her, which looks to be the superior offering.  Let’s find out if that’s truly the case!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Supergirl is part of DC Collectibles’ over-arching TV-based line, specifically under the Supergirl heading.  She was released alongside Martian Manhunter, towards the beginning of the summer.  The figure is about 7 inches tall and she has 23 points of articulation.  Ready for the same complaint I almost always have about DCC figures?  Yep, Supergirl has no lateral movement on her legs.  Hinged hips and double-jointed knees, but still no way to get her to stand anyway other than pigeon-toed.  It’s still a little annoying that this problem keeps cropping up.  I’m also a little bummed by the lack of waist articulation, but that’s more minor.  She’s not going to be getting into any super limber poses, but there are more than a few manageable poses with what’s there.  She isn’t unnatural looking, and that’s a good thing.  Issues with the articulation aside, Supergirl’s sculpt is most impressive.  The likeness of actress Melissa Benoist is spot-on; she’s even got the nice, friendly smile she’s frequently sporting on the show.  Even the hair does a quite respectable job of capturing Benoist’s style, and it’s a soft enough plastic that posabilty isn’t too hindered.  The body isn’t quite the same level of quality as the head, but it’s certainly solid work.  The proportions are all pretty balanced, and all-around quite realistic looking.  The clothing even has all the proper texturing and everything, which makes it look quite nice.  In terms of paint, Supergirl is generally pretty good.  Once again, the head gets the best, cleanest, and most lifelike work.  The rest is okay, but there are a few slight bits of slop, and I’m also not sure how I feel about the bright white paint used on her fingernails.  Still, very nice work in general.  Supergirl is packed with three sets of hands in fists, gripping, and open poses.  They all swap in and out pretty easily, and make for a nice variety of posing options.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I mentioned a while ago in my review of the Dark Knight Returns Armored Batman that I had found the Mattel Supergirl at retail, and was deeply disappointed by her.  I knew DCC was releasing this one, so I was definitely keeping my eye out.  When this figure actually hit, I wasn’t in a good place financially to be picking up figures on a whim, so I held off on her.  Fortunately, my LCS Cosmic Comix held her in stock long enough that I was able to go back and grab her several weeks back.  She’s still a slightly compromised figure, there’s no denying that.  I wish the articulation were better, but the figure’s look is so nice that I’m willing to let it slide.

#1352: Power Ring

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

POWER RING

DC COMICS SUPER VILLAINS (DC COLLECTIBLES)

“Fearful, doubting, and self-destructive.  A coward at his core, Power Ring is able to negate any Green Lantern rings with his Lantern.”

Oh hey, it’s a DC thing.  That’s cool and different, I guess.

So, I don’t actually know if I’ve discussed the DC Multiverse here on the site just yet.  Back when DC was doing things other than being the worst at everything, they decided that they wanted to have multiple versions of their characters in play, and thus introduced the multiverse concept.  It started with Earth 2, which housed the Golden Age versions of DC heroes, but Earth 2 was quickly followed by Earth 3, a world that was the exact opposite of the primary Earth.  Columbus was an American explorer who discovered Europe, President John Wilkes Booth was assassinated by actor Abraham Lincoln, and instead of the heroic Justice League, the world was patrolled by the villainous Crime Syndicate.  Even after the destruction of the Multiverse, the Crime Syndicate have cropped up a few times over the years, most recently in the big crossover event Forever Evil.  Today, I’ll be looking at the evil Green Lantern-equivalent, Power Ring!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Power Ring was released as part of DC Collectibles’ post-New 52 DC Comics Super Villains line.  He was part of the first half of the two Crime Syndicate assortments, alongside Ultraman, Superwoman, and Owlman.  The figure stands about 6 3/4 inches tall and has 27 points of articulation.  All of the figures in the set were, of course, based on the versions of the characters from Forever Evil, and Power Ring was no exception.  That being said, Power Ring’s design was the one that was almost completely identical to his classic design, which is cool by me.  The sculpt was unique to this figure, and is a pretty solid recreation of David Finch’s depiction of Power Ring from the mini-series.  It’s largely pretty clean, it’s well proportioned, and the articulation is worked-in rather organically.  The head sculpt is a slight bit more heroic than Power Ring is usually depicted, but it’s still a little more sinister than the average Hal Jordan, and that’s what matters.  The one thing that really solidifies this as a modern Power Ring is the right arm, which is showing the weird spreading infection thing that he had in the mini-series.  It’s not my favorite concept, but the actual detail work on the figure is well-rendered, adds some extra oomph to the sculpt.  My one major issue with this figure is an issue of durability; he hails from the time before DCC stopped using clear plastic for all of the joints.  While taking the photos for the review, my Power Ring’s hand just sort of fell off.  I was able to fix it with some glue, and the mobility wasn’t lost, but it’s still not a very comforting thing to have happen to a figure, and it certainly made me more cautious when posing him.  The paintwork on this figure is solidly handled; the dark metallic green is quite clean, and sets him apart from other figures.  I also really dig the pearlescent white on the gloves and boots.  I do feel like the green on the raised veins of his right arm are a little too present; slightly more subtle would have been better, I think.  Still, pretty solid overall.  Power Ring was originally packaged with his power battery.  My figure, however, was picked up loose, so he came sans the battery.  I’m not much of a fan of the modern battery design, so I can’t say it’s a huge loss on my part.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

This is a figure I’ve almost picked up a ton of times, but always passed on for other things.  I ultimately ended up finding him at this place called Orbit DVD, just outside of Asheville, NC, just a few weeks ago.  Ultimately, despite his New 52-inspired origins, he’s probably the best version of Power Ring on the market.  He’s not perfect, but he’s pretty fun overall.  It’s a shame that he juuuuuust predates the switch to the new Icons scale, because it means he doesn’t fit with much in my collection.

#1154: Firefly

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

FIREFLY

BATMAN: ANIMATED (DC COLLECTIBLES)

firefly1

Batman has perhaps the most memorable rogue’s gallery in comics.  It’s colorful, diverse, and has produced several of comics’ greatest villains.  But, when you’ve got a 75+ year old character with two to three appearances a month, you need a lot of villains, and they aren’t always going to be the most thrilling.  When it came to Batman: The Animated Series, the creators rather quickly realized that there were only so many top tier villains that could be used, so they started picking up some of the more minor foes and trying to inject a bit more life into them.  One of their less successful attempts was Firefly.  Oh, they gave it their best try, believe me.  He got a pretty sweet design and he was even voiced by Mark Rolston (Drake from Aliens), but he amounted to little more than a villain of the week.  He was also one of the characters totally left out of Kenner’s The New Batman Adventures line.  But, it seems DCC is determined to cover just about everyone they can, so he’s got a figure now!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

firefly2Firefly is part of DCC’s Batman: Animated line.  He’s figure 28, which places his in Series 7 of the line.  The figure stands about 6 1/2 inches tall and he has 24 points of articulation.  Firefly was a TNBA-exclusive character, so there’s just the one design to choose from.  This figure is listed as specifically being based on Firefly’s first appearance “Torchsong,” but he could just as easily be based on “Legends of the Dark Knight” or even his brief Justice League appearance.  As I noted in the intro, it’s a design I quite like.  It’s fairly simple, but that gives it a sort of sleekness, which makes it really fit with the rest of the animated series designs.  The sculpt on this figure does a pretty reasonable job of capturing the design and translating it into three dimensions.  There are some liberties here and there.  The most obvious is the antenna on the right side of his head, which is about ten times larger than it should be, presumably so it would be less likely to break.  Apart from that, he stays pretty close.  One area where he takes a bit of a hit accuracy wise is the paint.  In every appearance, Firefly’s suit was depicted as having a definite metallic sheen.  Here, it’s just flat grey.  It sort of robs him of any sort of pop, since grey isn’t the most exciting color.  Even if silver was too much, at leas a slightly shinier finish to the grey would have gone a long way, making him not only more visually interesting, but also much more accurate.  Also, in the show, his lenses were black with a red highlight, which they still are here, but the highlights aren’t angled the same way, which makes them look less like highlights and more like really askew pupils. It’s mostly the left sense; if it were just a smidgen to the right, the whole thing would look much better.  Firefly is packed with four sets of hands (fists, relaxed, gripping, and trigger finger), his flamethrower gun, and a display stand.  It would have been nice to also get his flame sword that he uses in both of his TNBA appearances, but I guess what we got here is nice.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Firefly came from Cosmic Comix, specifically their Biggest Sale of the Year (TM).  I wasn’t actually able to be there in person this year, so he was picked up by proxy (i.e. my dad).  The figure is decent enough, but for a line that initially prided itself on remaining accurate to the source material, I’m finding more and more of the figures have had severe liberties taken, which can get a little frustrating.

firefly3

#1073: Etrigan & Klarion

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

ETRIGAN & KLARION

BATMAN: ANIMATED (DCC)

klarionetrigan1

For the most part, Batman: The Animated Series stuck to the more…grounded (?) side of the DCU.  Sure, there were some slightly more out there concepts (Man-Bat is in the very first episode, and R’as shows up a few times), but they at least mostly stuck by things with more plausible explanations.  Superman: The Animated Series was really the first to bridge those more out there concepts, so, when Batman came back, I guess the creators were just a little more comfortable with the stranger side of things.  “The Demon Within” doesn’t even try to ease people into it or anything, throwing the viewer right into the thick of things, and just sort of hoping they won’t get too lost in the DCU’s supernatural side.  Today, I’ll be taking a look at that episode’s two focus characters, Etrigan & Klarion.

THE FIGURES THEMSELVES

Etrigan and Klarion collectively are entry 26 in DCC’s Batman: Animated line.  They’re the deluxe item for the latest series of figures, and, along with R’as Al Ghul and Zatanna, make for a rather supernatural-themed series.  Both figures are based on the appearances of the characters in the episode “The Demon Within.”

ETRIGAN

klarionetrigan2There’s no denying that Etrigan’s supposed to be this set’s star figure.  He is the episode’s titular character after all.  Etrigan comes from a pretty nice pedigree, being one of Jack Kirby’s early creations for DC.  He’s never been much more than a fringe character, but he’s always pretty cool.  The figure stands about 6 1/2 inches tall and he has 23 points of articulation.  Like Bane, Etrigan features the mid-torso joint, which I really like, and hope we continue to see on future figures.  I do wish he had rocker joints in his ankles, as it can be a little difficult to keep him standing without having his feet flat.  As far as Etrigan’s sculpt goes, I’m of mixed emotions.  Let’s talk about the good first.  Pretty much everything below the neck s pretty much spot on.  The sizing is good, and I really like the overall proportions of the figure.  The legs could maybe stand to be a little less simplistic, and the feet seem a little goofier here than they were on the show, but those are rather minor issues.  Etrigan’s cape is certainly well sculpted, but as with Phantasm, I’m worried about the integrity of the rubber over time.  Mine is already showing some signs of wear, especially on the one painted spot.  That’s concerning.  What really drags this figure down is the head.  Simply put, it’s just wrong.  It’s too big compared to the rest of the body, it’s too wide, the mouth is too small, the ears are too detached from the sides, his  forehead lacks the always present worry lines, and above all his eyes are at least twice as large as they should be and they’re the wrong klarionetrigan4shape to boot.  Any one of these issues would have been okay on its own.  Heck, all them but the eyes could have looked okay too.  But as it stands, the head isn’t even close.  The problems were present on the prototype, and I’d hoped they would fix them prior to release, but it actually looks like they just got worse on the final figure.  I’m really not sure how there was no one at any step of the process to look at this and say “that ain’t right.”  It wouldn’t be so glaring if it weren’t for the rest of the line being so accurate.  Paint is another area where I’m a little iffy.  The prototype showed him with a more vibrant color scheme, which seemed more closely matched to the episode.  The final product is rather dull by comparison.  I suppose that it could be seen as matching the episode’s darker lighting a little better, but it just seems a little bland.  Etrigan includes three sets of hands (fists, gripping, and open) and a display stand with his design sheet on it (which just further showcases how off the sculpt is).  Given Etrigan only appeared in one episode of the show, it would have been nice to get an extra head with the brand on it, since he spends a fair portion of the episode looking that way.  Perhaps they could put that in with another figure down the line and use it as an opportunity to give us a more accurate sculpt…

KLARION

klarionetrigan3Klarion the Witch Boy is a bit less known than Etrigan, but is also a Jack Kirby creation, who’s been Etrigan-related since his creation.  The show made him a little more mundane than his initial incarnation, but maybe teenager from another dimension was a bit too much for a Batman show.  The figure stands 4 3/4 inches tall and he has 20 points of articulation, which is pretty impressive for a figure of his stature, especially in this line.  Klarion’s sculpt is far more consistent than Etrigan’s.  By and large, he’s just a lot closer to his design on the show, which is a definite plus.  His sculpt is nice and sharp, and he gets a lot of the smaller details right.  For a more klarionetrigan5minor character like Klarion, accuracy is really key, and DCC’s really got this guy spot on.  Klarion’s paintwork is pretty straight forward, mostly being blacks and whites.  The application is all nice and clean, and the shades are all a pretty good match for what’s on the show.  Klarion includes three sets of hands (same configurations as Etrigan’s), his cat Teekl (who is fully articulation), a display stand, and the branding iron from “Demon Within”….which I somehow managed to leave out of the photos, and now can’t locate.  Sorry guys, Ethan’s a doofus…

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

“The Demon Within” is the first episode of The New Batman Adventures I remember watching.  At the time, I didn’t know anything about Etrigan, so it was a pretty great introduction, and it’s one of my favorite episodes of the show to this day.  So, I was pretty pumped when this set was announced and snapped it up as soon as it arrived at Cosmic Comix.  There’s no getting around the inaccuracies on Etrigan.  They really hold the figure back, and I was really let down by the final product.  He’s not awful, and I do really hope DCC does that extra head thing somewhere down the line.  On the plus side, Klarion’s pretty awesome, which is good, since he’s far less likely to get re-released.

#1071: Commissioner Gordon

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

COMMISSIONER GORDON

BATMAN: ANIMATED (DCC)

comgordon1

Batman: The Animated Series is in many ways a defining take on the Batman mythos, with a particular definitive trait being the voice actors portraying the characters.  Of course, everyone knows and loves Kevin Conroy and Mark Hamill’s Batman and Joker, but it goes beyond the two of them.  I’ve written before about how Lorren Lester is the only voice I hear when I read Dick Grayson’s dialogue in a comic, but beyond him, there’s one actor who epitomized my view on the character he portrayed: the late Bob Hastings* as Commissioner Gordon.  Hastings got down both sides of Gordon perfectly, playing him as a strict and confident leader, who was still capable of being a warm, fatherly figure to his men (and his daughter…and Batman.  He was very fatherly), something Hastings’ predecessors never quite got.  As a rather normal looking guy in a trench coat and tie, Gordon wasn’t privy to many action figures. He got exactly one during the run of the Kenner/Hasbro Batman: The Animated Series lines, and even then it was based on his later New Adventures look, of which I was never a huge fan.  Fortunately, DC Collectibles’ ongoing line of Animated figures is proving to be far more complete than earlier attempts, meaning we finally got a proper B:TAS Gordon figure!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

comgordon2Commissioner Gordon is figure 23 in DCC’s Batman: Animated line.  The numbering places him in Series 6, I believe, alongside Zatanna, Ra’s Al Ghul, and the Etrigan/Klarion two-pack.  It’s a little hard to keep track, especially since DCC doesn’t solicit them with Series numbers.  He’s new.  That’s the point.  The figure stands 6 1/4 inches tall and has 22 points of articulation.  One of the more notable features of the early Batman: The Animated Series designs is the certain level of fluidity they all possessed.  Sure, Batman was fairly consistent, but a lot of the other characters would have little changes in design from one shot to the next.  This was especially true of Gordon, which makes this figure sort of an amalgam of his best looks so to speak.  His body was always pretty consistent, so the sculpt has a pretty easy time capturing it.  He’s appropriately stocky, which is a nice  change of pace when compared to the others in the line.  Gordon actually looks like a pretty normal dude (well, by Bruce Timm standards, anyway).  The area with the most artistic license is definitely the head.  While the face is a pretty good recreation (it varies depending on the angle you’re viewing from), the hair is where things are really off.  In the show, Gordon had this pretty crazy cowlick at the front of his hair, which had a tendency to move around in relation to the rest of his face depending on how he was angled in any given shot (it was allegedly hard to work with, which is why his redesign removed it entirely).  Here, rather than pick a definite side for the hair, they just kind of put it roughly center and scaled it down.  It’s alright, but it means that no matter the angle, he never looks quite right.  The glasses are also a bit off, mostly due to the scale of the figure, and them needing to be permanently attached to his face.  That being said, on comgordon3the show the lenses were very definitely rectangular, and they aren’t at all rectangular here.  How did that happen?  The paintwork on Gordon isn’t anything spectacular or amazing.  It’s actually rather drab, truth be told, but that’s accurate, so kudos to them on that one.  There is one issue in regards to the chosen colors: his pants are sort of a pale beige here, when they really should be a slightly darker warm tan.  The prototype actually had a much more accurate coloring, so I’m not really sure what happened.  It’s hardly enough to ruin the figure (and, quite frankly, it’s the sort of thing that 99% of people will never, ever notice), but it’s just a little weird. Gordon is packed with three sets of hands (fists, trigger  finger, and normal grip), a revolver, a megaphone, and a display stand with his design sheet on it.  It would have been nice to get something specific to one of his episodes, but what’s there is pretty reasonable. 

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Gordon was purchased from Cosmic Comix, making use of a pretty nice coupon.  Of the three regular figures in this set, Gordon was the one that jumped out at me, which is kind of a bit surprising, since he’s really rather average looking.  As it stands, he’s really one of my favorite figures from this line, even with his slight inaccuracies.  Here’s to more figures like this!

*Fun fact: back in the 60s, one of Hastings’ earliest roles was as Superboy on Filmation’s cartoon of the same name, so he was with DC for the long-haul.

#1036: Batman

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

BATMAN

DC COMICS DESIGNER SERIES (DCC)

BatmanCooke1

Earlier this year, we lost Darwyn Cooke, one of my favorite artists in comics. As fate would have it, this was also the year that DC Collectibles decided to devote a sub-set of their Designer Series to Cooke’s work, with the figures arriving just over a month after his passing. The figures are nothing if not a very nice tribute to all the awesome things Darwyn did during his career. Today, I’ll be looking at Batman, a character Cooke illustrated quite frequently. DC Direct did a Cooke Batman back when they did their New Frontier line, but that one was one of the line’s weaker figures, and it was also based on Batman’s ‘50s design, so this figure, based on a more timeless design is far overdue.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

BatmanCooke2Batman is figure 1 in the Darwyn Cooke sub-set of DCC’s DC Comics Designer Series, released alongside Supergirl and Harley Quinn. The figure stands about 6 ½ inches tall and he has 14 points of articulation. The articulation count isn’t super high, but very similar to what the New Frontier figures had (with some of the range increased a bit), which helps this guy to still fit in with those figures. For the most part, he’s just going to be doing basic standing poses, but he can get a nice variety of nuanced changes, and you can even get some slightly more dynamic poses if you work at it. This Batman is based on the character’s look from the early-to-mid-40s, after his appearance had settled a bit, but before he had become his more jovial self. It’s Batman as he appears in a lot of Cooke’s work, such as Batman: Ego and the first half of New Frontier, so it’s definitely a good choice. The sculpt is very much in line with what I looked at with Doctor Fate. It’s probably one of the best sculpts I’ve gotten from DCC. They’ve done a very good job of capturing Cooke’s Batman, down to all the little creases in his costume. And, unlike the last Cooke Batman, this one doesn’t have an odd, unworkable sculpted pose, so he doesn’t look super awkward. That’s a definite plus in my book. Batman’s paintwork is all very sharp and clean. He’s certainly got a striking color scheme, and I especially like the use of glossy paint for his gloves, boots, and logo. The only slightly odd part of the paint is his mouth, or more specifically, his lower lip. It’s oddly defined and makes him look a bit pouty. Batman included no accessories, which is a bit of a bummer given the price, but certainly not the worst thing.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Cosmic Comix got this set of figures in dribs and drabs. My dad picked up Supergirl at the end of June, but she was the only figure in stock. About a month later, they got this guy, and I picked him up as soon as I saw him. This is a figure I’ve been waiting for since the second series of New Frontier figures all those years ago, which makes me very happy. Now, if I could just figure out what the heck happened to that Adam Strange figure…

#1029: Green Arrow

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

GREEN ARROW

DC ICONS (DCC)

GreenArrowLBH1

Green Arrow can be a tricky character to handle. He sort of walks that fine line between being an intriguing modern day take on Robin Hood and just being Batman with a bow and arrows. If I’m honest, I think he works best when he’s sort of a mix of the two, as odd as that may seem. He’s a character that I used to really like, but as of late his characterization has kind of stuck with grim and depressed, which doesn’t tend to be my thing. But, I can still enjoy older interpretations of the character, which translates to more than a few action figures in my collection.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

GreenArrowLBH2Green Arrow was released in the first series of DC Icons, as figure 03. Like all of the early figures in the line, Ollie was designed by Ivan Reis, based on Mike Grell’s illustrations of Green Arrow from The Longbow Hunters. It’s a good choice because, while it isn’t a straight classic Green Arrow, it’s from a rather definitive point in the character’s history, and it also has the hood, for those more familiar with more modern takes on the character. The figure is a little over 6 inches tall (making him thus far the tallest figure I’ve looked at) and he has 29 points of articulation. Green Arrow has a sculpt that is technically unique to him, but is aesthetically very similar to the likes of Green Lantern, Flash, and Mister Miracle. Arrow’s is more unique than most in the line, though, since he’s wearing a lot of looser fit clothing. The general quality of the sculpt is quite good, though there are a few issues that hold him back a bit. His limbs definitely feel a bit on the skinny side, especially the arms, which are doubly small, since he’s supposed to be wearing something with flowing sleeves. Also, like the other figures I’ve looked at from the line, his facial expression feels a bit bland. In general, his face feels a bit smooth, which is especially out of place given that Grell’s Ollie from Longbow Hunters is supposed to be a good ways into his career. Still, the overall look is pretty good, and he definitely feels like a Green Arrow figure. The paintwork on Ollie is nice and clean. In fact, despite it’s somewhat subdued qualities, I think it might be my favorite of the Icons figures I have. The paint on the hair/beard is particularly good, with a slight metallic sheen to it, which helps make it look like actual hair.  Ollie is packed with a bow, hands in both fist and gripping poses, two single arrows, and two pairs of arrows to fill the quiver.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I kept meaning to pick up Green Arrow. I really did. He was actually the figure I wanted the most from the first series. Of course, when the first series arrived at my comic book store, this guy was the first to sell out, so I didn’t get him and I just never got around to ordering him. I ended up getting this guy from my parents as a birthday present this year. He’s not perfect (a common issue with the Icons figures), but he’s certainly fun, and I’m happy to have him.

#0980: Arkham Origins Boxed Set

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

BATMAN, JOKER, DEATHSTROKE, & BLACK MASK

ARKHAM ORIGINS (DC COLLECTIBLES)

ArkhamOrigin1

Video game adaptations of comic book characters have a somewhat rocky history. For every — there’s a Superman 64; for every Spider-Man 2, there’s an Aquaman: Battle for Atlantis. The Batman: Arkham series is probably one of the best adaptations out there, though even it hasn’t been totally immune from criticism. Perhaps the most criticized game in the series is Arkham Origins, a prequel game that wasn’t even developed by the same group as the others. Today, I’ll be looking at several figures based on that game.

THE FIGURES THEMSELVES

Batman, Joker, Deathstroke, and Black Mask were all released as a big boxed set as part of DC Collectible’s Batman: Arkham Origins line. They were all also available individually, with Batman, Joker and Black Mask being in Series 1 and Deathstroke being in Series 2. The figures are pretty much identical in both releases.

BATMAN

ArkhamOrigin3Batman manages to get a slight tweak to his design for each Arkham game. Oddly, the Arkham Origins design was even more advanced than the Asylum and City designs, despite this design supposedly predating those looks. Maybe looks are deceiving? The figure is about 7 inches tall and he has 31 points of articulation, which is quite impressive for a DC Direct/Collectibles figure. The sculpt on this figure is pretty solid. It does a pretty great job of capturing Batman’s Origins look. One of my issues with a lot of the Arkham-based Batman figures is that they all seem to be stuck with pinheads, which this figure manages to mostly avoid. I mean, his head is still smaller than his biceps, but it’s fairly true to the game and, it’s also not as drastic as some of the others.  The rest of the sculpt is quite beefy (seriously, this is a beefy, beefy Batman. He has all the beef), but he has very sharp detail work, and just all-around pretty cool looking. I especially appreciate the choice of a straight hanging cape, since Batmen have a tendency to go for absurdly flowy capes. The paintwork on this figure is rather subdued, and very well carried out. Everything is nice and clean, and he’s got some really great accent work, especially on the stubble and the shadows on the grey parts. Batman included a weird gun thing that I feel certain someone more familiar with the game than me could ID. His elbows hinder him from really holding the thingy in any truly believable way, but hey, he’s a cool Batman. Who cares if he can hold some weird gizmo the right way?

JOKER

ArkhamOrigin2Joker serves as a primary antagonist in (most of) the Arkham games. Seeing as he’s Batman’s greatest foe, I guess that’s not too strange a concept. While other Arkham Jokers stuck more closely to the classic Joker design, this one goes for a more subdued “real world” look. Well, for the clothes, anyway. The face is pretty standard, and clearly made to look like a slightly younger version of the guy from the prior games. The figure is about the same height as Batman and has 16 points of articulation. He’s got about half the articulation of Batman, but he’s got even more restricted movement than you’d expect. He’s not going to be doing much more than just stand there. That wouldn’t be terrible, but he’s also got some weird issues, like his arms sticking out at weird angles. Also, while the sculpt looks okay on its own, it doesn’t do a particularly good job of capturing the in-game design. Like, his whole face is just kind of the wrong shape. And his body just feels kind of soft and lumpy, especially when compared to the much sharper Batman sculpt. The paint doesn’t really help matters. The basic work isn’t terribly, but there’s a lot of bleed over. Also, they tried to vary the look of his skin with some grey accents, but it ends up just making him look splotchy and unwell. Joker includes no accessories, making him the only figure in the set not to have any extras.

DEATHSTROKE

ArkhamOrigin4Do you guys remember when Deathstroke wasn’t over-exposed and annoyingly shoved into tons of stories where he didn’t belong? Because I do. I actually kind of used to like him, even. Somewhere along the way to being overexposed, he also seems to have become inexplicably linked to Batman, which is a little odd, but I guess it isn’t a horrible fit. Deathstroke made his debut Arkham-verse appearance in Arkham Origins, sporting a look that was a pretty decent tactically-based update of his original comics appearance. This figure stands the same height as the other two figures and has 27 points of articulation. His overall movement is comparable to that of Batman, though he does get a different articulation scheme on the hips, which seem a little flimsy by comparison. I think Deathstroke’s sculpt is probably my favorite in the set. Not only is he a great recreation of the in-game look, but the sculpt is also loaded with lots of really cool texture work, which makes him truly look like a battle-worn gun-for-hire. My only real complaint is that the articulation could have probably been worked into the sculpt in a smoother way. The paint on this figure is also pretty solidly handled. He’s by far the most colorful and exciting figure in the lot, and the metallic used for his armored pieces is really sleek. Deathstroke has the most accessories of all the figures in the set, with a katana, a pistol, and a staff.

BLACK MASK

ArkhamOrigin5Oh great. Black Mask. He’s my faaaaaaaaaavrite. Okay, actually I don’t always hate Black Mask, as long as he gets a good story. He just doesn’t tend to get good stories, like, ever. Ah well. So, here’s Black Mask! The figure is 7 inches tall and he has an oh-so-exciting 7 points of articulation. He can like, turn his head and move his elbows less than 45 degrees, and move his legs at the hips, but not at the knees! Awesome, right? Okay, maybe not. This figure’s even worse than Joker on this front, which is just really weak. But his sculpt can still save him, right? Yeah, not so much. The head sculpt is admittedly not bad. I like that he looks like he’s actually wearing a mask, and I like the details of said mask. The rest of the figure is really just lame. The sculpt is incredibly soft and his pinstripes on is suit are so deep that he ends up looking like he’s wearing corduroy or something. Plus, his arms are stuck at a slight enough angle to make the fact that they don’t go back any further incredibly annoying. Black Mask’s paint is mostly off-black and off-white, which could be kind of striking if done right, but…it’s not quite there. I mean, it’s not bad, but it’s also not super interesting. It’s just there. Black Mask includes a pair of pistols, which are oddly chunky. Maybe they’ve been juicing.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I’ve never played any of the Arkham games. I’ve gotten a couple of the figures before, but mostly because I liked the characters the figures represented, which isn’t really the true here. That being case, why would I buy this set? Because its box was damaged and Cosmic Comix was selling it for $20. Deathstroke is definitely the best that the set has to offer, and Batman’s no slouch either. Of course, on the flipside, both Joker and Black Mask are very, very weak figures, with little in the way of redeeming qualities. So, half the set’s great, and half the set’s pretty bad. At full price (which is $60-$70), this set is a pretty terrible value. At $20? Sure, Joker and Black Mask may be a waste of plastic, but Batman and Deathstroke are easily worth $10 each.

#0863: Batman & Phantasm

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

BATMAN & PHANTASM

BATMAN: ANIMATED (DCC)

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Batman definitely holds the record for number of theatrical films based on a single superhero. It’s not a huge surprise, given the character’s mass appeal. There have been a whole lot of tries at doing the character justice on the big screen, and exactly which one is the “best” is very much up for debate. I must admit, I cheat a bit when asked what my favorite theatrical Batman movie is, my answer is always Batman: Mask of the Phantasm. A lot of people forget about this one (due to lots of people writing it off based solely on its animated nature), but for me it’s the best Batman movie by far. Seriously, if you haven’t seen it, you really should. Like right now. Go watch it. No seriously, Imma spoil stuff and I don’t wanna ruin it for you. I’ll wait. Anyway, as an extension of Batman: The Animated Series, the film’s been privy to a few figures here and there, including getting a two-pack courtesy of DC Collectibles’ current line.

THE FIGURES THEMSELVES

Batman and the Phantasm were released as part of the Batman: Animated line in mid-December of last year. Both figures are exclusive to this particular set.

BATMAN

Batman&Phantasm2Faithful readers will no doubt find this figure somewhat familiar. Yep, I’ve taken a look at most of this figure before, back when I looked at the single-packed Batman from Series 4 of the main line. Since Batman’s design from the movie is identical to that of the show, it’s a sensible re-use, though it’s a bit frustrating to people who picked up the earlier figure and still want the Phantasm (like me). From the neck down, this figure is 100% the same as that figure. The proportions are still more or less spot-on, but he’s greatly hindered by the lack of swivel joints at the tops of his boots. The main difference between the two figures is the head. This version is a bit more expressive, with gritted teeth and eyes opened wider. It’s also a much better attempt at the design. The head’s a little wider, the eyes are bigger, and the jaw’s squarer, which all results in a generally better looking end-product. The paint is more or less the same. I did find the general application to be a bit cleaner this time around, but your mileage may vary. Another change between the two figures is the accessory complement. This figure only gets the batarang, a pair of hands for holding the batarang, a pair of fists, and a display stand. The stand is mostly the same as the prior one, but trades the B:TAS logo for a Mask of the Phantasm one.

PHANTASM

Batman&Phantasm3Now we get to the real draw of the set. The Phantasm was actually not a wholly original creation of the film, but was instead a retooled version of the villain Reaper from the “Batman: Year Two” storyline from the comics. The less said about the original story the better. The figure stands just over 6 ½ inches tall and has 23 points of articulation. This marks only the second time the Phantasm has appeared in plastic form. The first time, the figure was given a removable hood and scythe, allowing for (20 YEAR OLD SPOILER!!!!!!) her to double as an Andrea Beaumont figure. Since the two designs in the film are purposefully dissimilar, this meant compromising the appearance of the Phantasm in order to have a decent Andrea. This figure foregoes any sort of Andrea connection, and instead opts to present the Phantasm in as screen accurate a manner as possible. Well, in theory, anyway. The end result is pretty good but a bit shy of perfect. Let’s talk about what works first. The underlying head is great, are both hands/gloves. The body is generally decent. It’s not a perfect match, but Phantasm’s proportions changed a bit in the movie, so it’s forgivable. Even the base of the cape isn’t too bad. What hold’s this figure back is the hood. In the film, it has a very distinct, very sharp look about it. Here, it’s a soft rubber piece, attached to the rest of the cape. It ends up being kind of shapeless and too soft. I think it would have looked much better had it been separate from the cape and attached to the head, ala the smaller scale Kylo Rens that Hasbro’s released. As it stands, this doesn’t look atrocious (especially if viewed from a slight angle) but it could have been a lot better. Also, the quality of the rubber used for the cape/hood is a bit questionable, and it feels like it’s already starting to deteriorate, which isn’t super comforting. The paint on the Phantasm is pretty simple, but not bad. The various details are all pretty clean, and she’s appropriately mono-chromatic, so that’s good. The figure includes two hands, one in a fist and one in an open gesture, as well as a display stand. That seems a little light, and I certainly wouldn’t have minded some sort of piece to show off her ghostly gas cloud thingy.

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THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I picked this set up from my local comic book store, Cosmic Comix, in early January. I had actually seen it at another store in December, but passed on it for a number of reasons. While I don’t feel the set is as strong as it could have been, I’m glad I have it. Batman’s a definite improvement over the single-release, and the Phantasm is a sound addition to the line. Now, how about a follow up set with an unmasked Phantasm and a battle-damaged Joker?

#0858: Green Lantern

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

GREEN LANTERN

DC ICONS (DCC)

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After the success of Barry Allen as the second iteration of the Flash, DC got to work on re-imagining as many of their old superheroes as they could. In the years since super hero comics had faded away, the magic and mysticism had fallen out of favor. When the heroes returned, science fiction was all the rage, so, when the new Green Lantern, Hal Jordan, debuted in 1959, his origin was tailored to fit that new sci-fi mold. It was a pretty successful idea, so successful, in fact, that years later, the original Green Lantern’s powers were re-tooled to be more in line with his successor’s. Anyway, I’m a pretty big fan of the second incarnation of GL, and I was happy to see him added to DC Collectibles’ new DC Icons line.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

GLIcon2Green Lantern is a deluxe figure in the DC Icons line, released to coincide with the release of Series 2. He’s #09 in the line, placing him just after Series 2 chronologically. He was designed by Ivan Reis and sculpted by Sam Greenwell and Erick Sosa. GL’s based on his appearance during the “Dark Days” storyline, which is a fancy way of saying he’s a New 52 figure. The figure stands just over 6 inches tall and has 31 points of articulation. Like Barry, he’s a bit taller than Mr. Miracle, but I find he doesn’t scale as well with other lines (such as ML) due to his head being slightly smaller than Barry’s. Also like Barry, he has lateral movement on his shins, which is much appreciated. He’s also got cut joints at the tops of his gloves, which are a bit redundant, but serve a purpose I’ll get to in a sec. Structurally, Hal is fairly similar to Barry (and by extension, the rest of the line). Despite being a New 52 design, this sculpt doesn’t feel over burdened with unnecessary details. The extra lines that are there feel well placed, and make the figure as a whole very appealing to look at. The head is a pretty sharp piece of work too, though perhaps not as sharp as the rest of the sculpt. Like the Flash, I feel the face is lacking a bit in expression, but it’s not quite as bad here. Hal’s paint is very nicely done; the greens are all a nice metallic shade, and the whites of the gloves have a nice white finish. The application is a little thick on the face, but not terribly so, and there’s a bit of chipping at the wrist joints. Aside from those issues, it’s pretty solid, though. Now, so far I haven’t outlined anything that’s all that different from a normal release. Why’s this guy a deluxe figure? Accessories, that’s why. He comes with hands in fists and gripping positions, a power batter, a giant green construct fist, and a full set of construct armor, made up of a helmet/wingpack, shoulder pads, two big gun hands, thigh armor, and big stompy boots. This is how you adequately showcase Green Lantern’s powers! The extra joints on the figure’s forearms are there to allow for them to be swapped for the construct gun-hands, which is a pretty good way of handling things. However, the giant fist is still a slip over piece, which is a bit of an issue, since Hal’s right forearm has some trouble staying in place. Had the fist been handled the same way as the gun-hands this wouldn’t have been a problem.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

While I’ve gotten away from it in recent years (in no small part due to DC doing a whole lot of sucking), at my core, I’m a huge Green Lantern geek. So, I was pretty thrilled to hear he’d be in this line. I was a little less thrilled when I found out he was a New 52 figure, but, I gotta be honest, in hand, I don’t care all that much. This is a really awesome Green Lantern, regardless of which incarnation he is. Undoubtedly the coolest figure I’ve picked up from this line. I am content to have this as my default GL. Of course, if they wanted to do a Neal Adams version of Hal later on, I certainly wouldn’t say no…

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