Tag Archives: DC

#0583: Nightwing

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

NIGHTWING

DC COMICS DESIGNER SERIES (DC COLLECTIBLES)

NightwingCapullo1

Ah, yes the New 52. I didn’t really care for it. But, that’s okay, because it’s gone now! And it’s been replaced by something….more or less identical. Well, fair enough. One of the things that will not be carrying forward into the Non-52, however, is Nightwing. Of course, that’s actually not changing any of the continuity, since Dick Grayson ditched the identity following his unmasking in Forever Evil. So, the figure I’m reviewing today is essentially irrelevant. Oh well. Hardly the first time I’ve looked at such a figure here!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

NightwingCapullo2Nightwing was released as part of the first series of the DC Comics Designer Series. Like Tuesday’s Zero Year Batman, this figure is based on the work of Greg Capullo, who has been the primary artist on the main Batman series since the New 52 began. The figure is roughly 6 ½ inches tall and has 31 points of articulation. The figure features an all-new sculpt, though, as far as the body construction goes, he’s rather similar to Batman. The musculature is similar, as is the overall articulation scheme (Nightwing does manage to get some additional movement in the wrist area). The detailing on the body is simpler than Batman, which is befitting of Nightwing. Also, his uniform features more folds and wrinkles, effectively conveying that it is a spandex leotard, and not a carefully tailored suit of body armor. The head sculpt is a little on the mixed side. From some angles, it looks great. From others, not so much. The technical details of the piece are all very nice. He’s got some great texture work on his hair, and his facial features are cleanly defined. But, he’s also got these huge ears, which can look rather out of place, and they aren’t helped by the fact that the hair slopes inward as it goes down, emphasizing the issue. Nightwing’s paintwork is quite well-handled. The colors are nice and bold and everything is where it should be. I’m not the biggest fan of the red, but it’s true to the design, so I can’t really fault the figure there. The black of the body and of the armored parts are broken up through use of matte and glossy finishes, which look really great. Nightwing is not amazingly accessorized, but he does include his signature escrima sticks, which fit nicely in his hands.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Nightwing was the other half of the Amazon purchase that got me Zero Year Batman. I saw this figure several times in a few different stores and passed on him every time. So, what changed? Two things: I had a gift card and the figure got marked down about $10. That was enough for me to finally get the figure. Is he the greatest version of the character ever? That’s hard to say. It really depends on what you think of the New 52 Nightwing costume. Like I said in the paint section, I don’t care for the red accents and would much prefer blue. Still, even with that I do think the figure is a pretty decent take on the character.

#0581: Batman – Zero Year

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

BATMAN – ZERO YEAR

DC COMICS DESIGNER SERIES (DC COLLECTIBLES)

BatmanZero1

When DC’s The New 52 began, I gave it a try. I picked up quite a few titles in that first month. I stuck with a very small handful of them, but after a few cancellations and creative team changes, I quickly found myself reading absolutely no DC Comics for quite a stretch of time. Whenever a discussion of the New 52’s quality begins, people will inevitably bring up the fact that the Batman titles have stayed pretty good. I gotta be honest, I like Batman, but I’ve never been a faithful reader of the comics. That being said, I love me some cool toys, and Batman sure does have a knack of having some wonderful toys. So, let’s look at this Batman figure, shall we?

THE FIGURE ITSELF

BatmanZero2Batman is from the 3rd Series of the DC Comics Designer Series, which is the second series of the line to be based on the work of DC artist Greg Capullo. The figure is based on Batman’s design from Zero Year, which was the New 52 retelling of Batman’s early career. This a more modernized take on Batman’s first appearance costume from the original Detective Comics #27. It’s close to the original design, but the original’s black shorts have been ditched (cuz DC thinks they’re lame), and some textured bits of black padding have been added to the arms and legs. The figure stands roughly 6 ½ inches tall and has 29 points of articulation. The figure has what appears to be a completely unique sculpt. With a Batman variant, you sort of assume that some parts might be re-used, but he doesn’t look to have any pieces in common with the regular Capullo Batman. It’s a pretty strong sculpt. The proportions are all pretty great, the articulation is worked in pretty smoothly, and the details are all well-defined. The head is a little flat when viewed from the side, but nothing too bad, and it looks pretty fantastic head-on or in three-quarter view. The only real issues seem to be mostly related to the “add-on” parts. The belt seems like it’s meant to be fragmented, as permanent part of the costume, but it stands out from the figure. When double-checking whether it was supposed to look like that, I discovered that the shape of it is actually quite off. The two yellow pouches should be closer to the center and the buckle should be bigger. It seems odd that these were changed, but they were. The holster could also stand to be a little closer to the body, though that’s minor, and the cape, well, I’m not sure about the cape. It’s not terrible, but it flares out in weird ways, and it’s split in the middle for some reason I’m not sure of. Batman’s paintwork is pretty decent all-around. It’s nothing super exciting or anything, but the colors are all good and there isn’t any bleed over or slop to speak of. The figure includes a gun (I’m gonna assume it’s a grappling gun of some sort), an alternate hand for said gun, and two teeny, tiny, little batarangs, which look kind of silly in his hands.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I avoided DCC at first after they did their whole re-branding thing, mostly due to the fact that I’d moved away from DCD not long before that, and the New 52 designs certainly weren’t going to draw me back in. When this figure was solicited, I thought he looked kind of cool, but I ultimately didn’t pick him up. Then, I broke into DCC’s New 52 stuff with Orion, who I quite liked. That made me take another look at some of the other DCC stuff.  I had an Amazon Gift Card from my parents, so I decided to use it on this guy and the Capullo Nightwing. While I certainly don’t see this being my default Batman, it’s a really fun version of the character, and it’s probably one of the best that DCD/DCC has produced!

BatmanZero3

#0575: Man-Bat

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

MAN-BAT

BATMAN: THE ANIMATED SERIES (DC COLLECTIBLES)

ManBat1

While I love pretty much every episode of Batman: The Animated Series, there are two episodes I love above all the others.  The first is “Heart of Ice,” the episode that re-invented the character of Mr. Freeze and made him into one of Batman’s most memorable Rogues.  The other is “On Leather Wings,” which is the very first episode of the series, and is responsible for kicking things off with a serious bang.  The episode steered away from the more established Bat-Rogues in order to focus on the lesser-known Man-Bat.  Man-Bat serves as the logical counterpoint to Batman, and allows for a unique way of introducing the audience to the main character.  The episode perfectly established the tone for the rest of the series, and has some of the best writing and animation of the entire show.  It was an important moment for the series, and Man-Bat is a key part of it, so it’s no surprise that Man-Bat showed up in the latest round of BTAS figures from DC Collectibles.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

ManBat2Man-Bat is figure 07 in the Batman: The Animated Series/The New Batman Adventures line from DC Collectibles.  He is the third and final figure in Series 2 (Poison Ivy was supposed to be the fourth, but she got pushed back due to production issues).  The figure is just shy of 7 ½ inches tall, has a wing span of 15 inches, and has 15 points of articulation.  The design of the character means that he’s a little less articulated than some of the others in this series.  That said, he’s actually the first figure in the line to get any torso articulation, and most of the articulation has a pretty great range of movement.  The only point that’s really limited is his head, which really would benefit from the ability to look upward.  As with the Kenner figure, this version of Man-Bat is based on the Kirk Langstrom Man-Bat from “On Leather Wings” as opposed to the Francine Langstrom (wo)Man-Bat from “Terror in the Sky.”  The figure’s sculpt is, generally, a pretty great translation of the show’s design for the character.  The only real mis-step, as far as I can tell, is the figure’s head.  It’s not terribly far off from the show design, but it seems like it’s a little flatter, depth-wise, than it should be.  In particular, the jaw line seems too shallow.  That being said, it’s closer than Kenner’s attempt, and the differences can be chalked up to the show design not translating quite as well to three dimensions.  Man-Bat is a much larger figure than the others in the line, but that doesn’t mean he gets left out of the accessories game.  The most ManBat3important extra pieces are definitely the extra arms, which are sculpted in a more relaxed position. The default arms are sculpted in an outstretched fashion, which can take up a lot of shelf space and limits the possible poses, so it’s good to have the extra pieces.  Now, it’s too bad that DCC couldn’t find a way to work in elbow and wrist movement, but I can certainly appreciate their desire to not hinder the quality of the sculpt.  These make for a decent enough compromise.  In addition to the arms, the figure includes three medicine bottles, a tape recorder, and a display stand.  The bottles and the recorder are episode specific, and pretty nifty to have, even if Man-Bat can’t really use them.  The stand is pretty much an essential piece of the figure, however, due to his inability to stand very well on his own.  But, at least it’s there, right?

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

If you’ve read the last two days’ reviews, it should be no surprise that I got Man-Bat from Amazon.  It doesn’t make for a terribly exciting story, but it’s relatively stress-free on my end.  Man-Bat was a figure I was really looking forward to, mostly due to how much I love the character’s first appearance on the show.  It’s too bad that DCC couldn’t come up with a way to articulate the arms, but the swappable parts do make up for it a bit, resulting in a pretty fun figure, and probably one of the best Man-Bat figures to date.

ManBat4

#0574: Robin

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

ROBIN

BATMAN: THE ANIMATED SERIES (DC COLLECTIBLES)

RobinTAS1

When discussing the definitive actors for certain characters, Batman: The Animated Series comes up a lot. Usually, it’s in regards to Kevin Conroy’s portrayal of the title character, or possibly Mark Hamill’s Joker. There’s no denying that those two defined the characters for a vast majority of the fanbase, and their performances are rightfully praised. However, for me, there’s one more actor who’s just as definitive in his role, and that is Loren Lester as Robin. When I think of Robin, his voice is the one I hear, and as such his version of Robin is the one I’m most interested in owning a figure of. Fortunately for me, DC Collectibles has just released a figure of that very version of the character!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

RobinTAS2Robin is figure 06 in DC Collectibles’ Batman: The Animated Series/The New Batman Adventures line, and he’s the second of the three figures in Series 2. Robin is 5 ½ inches tall and features 28 points of articulation. The articulation here is better than what we saw on Joker, but the height seems a little off. To be fair, Robin was usually depicted as being a little shorter than most of the other adult male characters. However, this version of the character is meant to be college aged, and at more than a half an inch shorter than Batman, he seems too small. Anyway, this figure is based on the Dick Grayson version of Robin from BTAS. Aside from the issues with scale, the sculpt does a pretty fantastic job of capturing the show design. The proportions are all well-balanced, and everything is rather sharp and clean. They’ve even managed to actually capture Robin’s wacky hair, which always threw off the Kenner figures. Here, it’s got the right shape from most angles (although they had to cheat it in a few areas) and it brings some neat dimension to the sculpt. Paint is the area where these figures continue to fall just shy of expectation. Robin’s paint isn’t all bad; they RobinTAS4managed to match the colors pretty well to show, which is definitely a plus. However, the red and yellow areas of the tunic have quite a bit of bleed over between them, and there are a couple of instances of slop. He’s also got a chip of paint missing on his right glove, which is annoying, and oddest of all, he’s got a strange circle of glossy finish on his left cheek. It’s only noticeable from certain angles, but it’s just weird looking. Robin also suffers from the same painted wrist joint issue that the Joker had, so there’s a bit of green wrist confetti to go with the purple. Yay? Robin is pretty well accessorized. Similar to Batman, he includes two capes; one is completely swept back, while the RobinTAS3other is draped over his right shoulder. Both capes sit well and they can be swapped out by popping off the figure’s head, which is pretty easy. Robin also includes a grappling gun, bola whip, a display stand featuring his character design sheet, and 7 hands: a pair of fists, a pair of loose grip, a pair of tight grip, and a left hand holding the grappling gun. I’m still a little a little unsure of why we need both a loose grappling gun and a hand with the gun sculpted in place, but whatever. Also, the bola whip is too thick, which means it kind of ends up looking more like a sort of wobbly staff than a whip. But, all the other accessories are cool, so no issues there.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Robin’s another Amazon purchase. Nothing super exciting, but it was an easy, pain-free way of getting a figure I wanted. Robin’s probably the figure I was looking forward to the most from this series, and, while he isn’t without issues, I’m pretty happy with the final figure. Now, would it be too much to ask for the TNBA version of this costume from “Old Wounds?”

RobinTAS5

#0573: The Joker

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

THE JOKER

BATMAN: THE ANIMATED SERIES (DC COLLECTIBLES)

JokerTAS1

It’s pretty much universally agreed that Batman: The Animated Series is not only possibly the greatest thing to come out of the 90s, it’s also one of the best versions of the Batman mythos in just about any medium. One of the series’ biggest strengths was its phenomenal voice cast. In particular, the series is responsible for introducing us to the definitive Joker actor, Mark Hamill. DC Collectibles just released a new figure of this particular Joker. Why don’t we take a look at it?

THE FIGURE ITSELF

JokerTAS2Joker is figure 05 in DC Collectibles’ Batman: The Animated Series/New Batman Adventures line. He’s part of the line’s second series of figures. He stands 6 ¼ inches tall and has 22 points of articulation. Right off the bat (heh!) the articulation has a few issues. He has a fair amount, and what’s there has a nice bit of movement. The issue is what isn’t there. His only ankle articulation is a set of cut joints, and he would really benefit from some movement in his thighs. So, the line is alternating between BTAS and TNBA for designs; the first series was heavier on the TNBA designs, but Series 2 is entirely made up of BTAS designs. This works out in Joker’s favor, as his BTAS design is by far the superior of the two. Joker definitely has one of those sculpts that needs to actually be viewed in three dimensions in order to be fully appreciated. The head in particular looked rather off when I examined the figure in the packaging. Once I took the figure out, however, the sculpt looks much better. It’s not quite spot on (I think the eyes and brow that are throwing it off a bit) but it’s still a pretty strong sculpt. It’s certainly closer than the old Kenner figure. The rest of the body sculpt is pretty much an exact match for the show’s design. One cool touch that’s minor and easy to miss is the bottom of the shirt. Instead of the usual scalloped end, it’s just as straight line. This might seem like a mistake at first glance, seeing as all the promo illustrations have the more involved design. However, if you actually look at his design within the show, he’s always depicted with just the straight line. So kudos to DCC there! The paintwork on Joker is okay, but it does have a few issues. The colors are all very nicely chosen and most of the paint stays where it’s supposed to. There are two main issues. The first is that the left arm has a JokerTAS5scratch of paint missing. It’s not horribly noticeable, and it’s definitely an isolated issue, but it’s definitely annoying. The other issue is that, for some reason, they’ve painted the inside of the wrist joints. Obviously, the joints come in contact with the paint, which means Joker had a stream of fairly steady purple confetti falling from his sleeves for the first few days he was out of the package. Joker is armed with, well, let’s just call it an “interesting” assortment of accessories. The figure is technically based on the episode “The Last Laugh” for reasons that pretty much no one can figure out. So, the figure includes an ice pick, pearl necklace, comb, spyglass, and helmet that are all specific to the episode, and ultimately a bit pointless in the long run. They’re all decent enough, apart from the helmet, which has a very poorly placed assembly seam. The figure also includes a display stand and an assortment of hands. The hands are all pretty nice, but two of them are clearly sculpted to hold a playing card that was ultimately cut from the figure, and none of them are sculpted to hold the included spyglass, which makes them a bit odd.

JokerTAS3 JokerTAS4

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Joker was acquired via Amazon. Not really much of a story there. I paid for it and it arrived. Fun times. I was looking forward to this figure initially, but early packaged shots made me uncertain. I’m happy to say the figure is much better in hand than I expected. Still not perfect, but still good.

JokerTAS6

#0561: The Flash

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

THE FLASH

THE FLASH (DC COLLECTIBLES)

FlashTV1

Live action and DC Comics have something of an iffy history. While they pretty much invented the modern Super Hero movie with Richard Donner’s Superman, most of their film work has been acceptable at best and horrifyingly bad at worst. On the small screen, they faired a little better, with popular runs of Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman, but they kinda started to run out of steam. Smallville lasted for an insane 10 seasons, but I wouldn’t really call any of them particularly noteworthy. When they launched Arrow, I watched for about a half a season, but gradually lost interest. I figured that DC TV just wasn’t for me anymore. Enter The Flash. It’s fun, light-hearted, and it doesn’t seem to be shying away from the bolder aspects of the characters. And now it’s getting action figures.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

FlashTV2Flash here was just released last month as part of DC Collectibles’ The Flash line, based on the show. It’s sort of a spin-off of the Arrow line, and Flash is a single release figure (though he’ll soon be joined by Captain Cold). Flash is marked as figure 01, so clearly DCC is planning on there being at least a few of these. The figure stands about 6 ½ inches tall and features 30 points of articulation. In case you hadn’t already pieced it together, Flash is based on the character’s appearance on the TV series of the same name. The show design is, of course, based on the comics design, with a fair bit more texturing and the like added. The figure features an all-new sculpt. After dipping my toes into the DCC waters with several of their animated figures, the Flash is a little bit of a letdown. The sculpt certainly isn’t bad. There is plenty of texturing on the suit, and most of its finer details are nice and sharp. The problems with the sculpt are mostly related to its resemblance of actor Grant Gustin. Gustin is a pretty skinny guy, but he’s definitely not as lanky as this figure would have you believe. In addition, while the head features a passable likeness, the details are a little on the soft side. The figure’s paintwork is generally pretty decent. The colors seem to be a close match to those on the show, and most of the details stay within their designated areas. The only real weak point is the head, where the paint ends up being a little softer at the edges, although that’s at least in part due to the sculpt. The Flash is packed with three sets of hands, in fist, grip, and open poses. They’re perfectly fine additions, but the figure would have majorly benefited from the inclusion of some sort of stand to facilitate some deeper running stances.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Flash was something of an impulse buy (which is fitting, I suppose). I don’t do that very often anymore, but my comicbook store had him sitting on the shelf, and I have been enjoying the show. The figure isn’t the most impressive figure ever made, and he hasn’t really swayed me on buying anymore of DCC’s TV-based figures. That said, he’s really not a bad figure, and I don’t regret the purchase. I’ll definitely be keeping an eye on the rest of the line, and I’ll probably end up picking up a few others, depending on the character selection.

#0519: Toyman

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

TOYMAN

DC UNIVERSE CLASSICS

ToymanDCUC1

And here we have another DC Universe Classics review. Watch as the reviewer sets in on the figure. He first starts with the photograph, taking care not to frighten it away. Then, he sets out to write the review, making sure to avoid the dreaded “Mattel sucks” rant, for fear of scaring of the one or two viewers till reading after this, admittedly, very strange introduction. What does this have to do with toys? Not a thing! Okay, so for today’s review, let’s have a look at Toyman, a Superman foe who, ironically, hasn’t had many figures. How about that?

THE FIGURE ITSELF

ToymanDCUC2Toyman was released in the 18th Series of DC Universe Classics, a series commonly referred to as the “Super Friends” series. The line-up of the series featured four of the Super Friends-original “ethnic heroes,” as well as two unrelated figures, and Toyman here, who is based on the character’s rather unique appearance from the show. The figure stands about 6 ½ inches tall, and he sports 25 points of articulation. Toyman makes use of the tall skinny buck that Mattel implemented in the last five series of the line (after failing to do so several times before). It’s mostly the same body used on Creeper (reviewed here) though it’s a better fit for Toyman, who should be tall and thin, than it was for Creeper. The body is overall a pretty decent sculpt, but the arms and legs are a bit on the long side. The pelvic area is also really boxy, which looks odd in comparison to the rest of the sculpt. Also, the articulation is kind of a mixed bag. He’s one of the few figures to get double joints, but they’re only on his arms, not his legs, which feels odd. Adding to that the stiffness of the torso and the legs, and the arms just seem strange. In addition to the base body, Toyman has a brand-new head and an add-on for his shoulder piece. Both of these are pretty decent sculpts. I have to commend them on making the mask work in three dimensions, as I’m sure that wasn’t super easy. The face is really well done too; he looks pretty much exactly like the character did on the show, but done in such a way that he still fits very well with the rest of the line. Toyman’s paintwork is about par for the line. Everything is pretty much clean; there’s not really any slop to speak of. The line work is all pretty sharp, and the colors are all pretty bold. Best of all, the yellow doesn’t suck, which is always a good thing. Toyman included a spinning top, a yo-yo, and a piece of the Apache Chief Collect-N-Connect.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I kinda passed on Series 18 when it was initially in stores. Not intentionally, or anything. It just kind of happened. I ended up finding Toyman, along with a fair number of other later series DCUCs, at Baltimore Comic Con. The dealer was offering a bulk deal, so my brother and I picked up 5 figures between us. Toyman was one of mine, and he was the one I wanted the most. I actually really like the goofy Super Friends design, and it’s the one I most associate with the character. I was bummed when DCD’s Super Friends line didn’t get to him, so I’m happy that he showed up here. The base body isn’t without it’s issues.

#0512: Green Arrow

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

GREEN ARROW

DC UNIVERSE CLASSICS

GreenArrowDCUC1

In a lot of ways, Mattel’s DC Universe Classics was really the true successor to ToyBiz’s run on Marvel Legends. Now, before you grab the pitchforks and the torches, hear me out. Both lines were the hottest action figure line around at the time of release, both offered a surprisingly expansive look at their respective universes, and both were renowned for their representations of obscure characters. They’ve also both begun to show their age, and they were both a pain in the butt to collect. And of course, they both have their fanbases, who don’t tend to like being compared to each other. If I go missing, you know where to look. In the moment, I think I enjoyed collecting DCUC a bit more, just because I gained more of a mastery of tracking stuff down online, which made getting the figures I wanted a whole lot easier. So, why not have a look at one of my favorite figures from that line, Green Arrow.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

GreenArrowDCUC2Green Arrow saw release in the 9th Series of DC Universe Classics. He served as the “anchor figure” of the series. With shows such as Arrow on the air, Green Arrow being an anchor figure nowadays wouldn’t be a huge shock, but at the time, it was actually a pretty bold move. However, given the presence of another 11 series of the line after this one, it’s safe to say it paid off okay. The figure is about 6 ½ inches tall and he has 27 points of articulation. He gets an extra two points of articulation compared to others in the line thanks to some hinge joints at the wrist, in addition to the usual swivel joints. It’s a nice addition, although it would have been nice if they’d made it standard to the line. Green Arrow is based on Oliver Queen’s Bronze Age (read: 70s-80s) appearance. It’s easily the character’s most distinctive look, and it’s one he’s returned to many times over the years. Also of note, it’s the look he had in the DC Super Powers line in the 80s, which was what Mattel was working to recreate.  DCUC generally operated on the buck system, but characters such as Green Arrow tend to need more unique pieces than others, resulting in him being more new than re-use. The waist, upper legs, and shoulders are re-used from the medium sized buck, but I believe everything else on the figure is new. Ollie ended up with one of the best sculpts DCUC had to offer in that regard. All of the little details of the costume are sculpted, and they are done with the necessary precision. They are also spot on to design from the comics, right down to those weird draw string things on the front of his costume. The pointed shoulders of his costume also help to mask the slightly large shoulders that were an issue with the line, and the rest of the pieces being new meant that Ollie ended up with a build that was appropriate to him. The figure’s hands are both sculpted to work well with the accessories, and they really turned out great. The head sculpt really makes this figure, perfectly capturing the Neal Adams Green Arrow of the 70s. He’s got just the right “charming rogue” look, which sells the character really well. In addition, they’ve managed to render his hat in three dimensions without it looking the slightest bit silly, which is really great. Where the figure ends up falling down just a bit is the paintwork. The paint certainly isn’t bad. In fact, the colors are well chosen, and it’s overall pretty clean. However, there’s a little bit of slop and bleed over. The worst thing on my figure is the airbrushing, particularly on the face. What was clearly meant to be a little bit of color on his cheeks ended up looking rather ridiculous, almost to a clownish level. The figure included his signature bow, a few different arrows, and a clear blue display stand. The bow ends up being another point of contention. There’s an arrow molded to it, meaning not only can the other arrows included not be used at all, but he also can’t draw the bow back any further, and he looks silly when just holding the bow one handed. Why Mattel decided to handle it this way (and to continue to handle it so on all the archers that followed) is baffling.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Amazingly enough, Green Arrow is one of the DCUC figures I ended up finding at retail with no real issues. I stumbled across him (as well as Black Canary) at my local Target and happily purchased him. Issues with the bow aside, this was one of the best figures that DCUC had to offer, and he still holds up, even while the rest of the line begins to look dated. It’s a shame that Mattel couldn’t keep up the effort they put into this figure.

#0507: Orion

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

ORION

DC COMICS – THE NEW 52 (DC COLLECTIBLES)

Orion52a

What’s this? A New 52 review? On The Figure in Question? Is that right? Can we think of any more questions? We can? Should we stop? Yes. Yes we should.

Shocking as it may be, I have bought, and am now reviewing, a DC New 52 action figure. Of my own volition. Nobody’s pointing a gun at me or holding my family hostage or anything. Of course, it’s still me. Did I buy a Batman or a Superman or something? Of course not, that would be dumb. I bought Orion. If you don’t know who the heck Orion is, then that’s probably about right. But I know who he is, and that’s what really counts here. (If you really want to know: Orion is one of the New Gods, a group of characters created in the 70s by comics great Jack Kirby, after he left Marvel to work at DC. Orion is the son of the generally more known Darkseid.) So, let’s see how this guy turned out!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Orion52bOrion is part of DC Collectibles’ expansive (and apparently soon to end) DC Comics – The New 52 line. He was released in August of 2014. According to the back of the box, his fellow figures are Super Girl and Batgirl, but I think Orion was sort of meant to be a solo release. The figure is just shy of 7 inches tall and he has 20 points of articulation (plus a flip up visor!). Articulation hasn’t been one of DCC’s strong suits in the past, but it’s actually pretty good here. The only key joints I’d say are missing would be some sort of hinge joint at the hips (a la DCUC) and some ankle joints, but the figure is serviceable without them. Orion is, as one would expect, based upon his appearance in DC’s New 52 line of comics. More specifically, he’s based on Cliff Chiang’s work with the character in Wonder Woman, which is where the majority of his New 52 appearances have occurred. His design has been changed a fair bit from his classic look. Admittedly, aside from the helmet, Orion’s classic look was a teeny bit on the bland side, so a re-design isn’t a terrible thing. The more conventional spandex and underwear on the outside look has been replaced with a look that has bit of a pulpy space biker look to it. It’s, and I can’t believe I’m saying this about a New 52 design, a pretty solid look. It isn’t needlessly detailed; there aren’t any odd bits and bobs sticking off of him; he doesn’t have lots of random etchings everywhere; it just looks good. The figure’s sculpt does a very nice job of translating this design into three dimensions. The proportions are all pretty good, and the whole sculpt is incredibly detailed. The rough texturing of the jacket and boots up against the smoother texture on the pants adds a great bit of dimension and realism to the figure, and they’ve managed to actually make the helmet look pretty good, which has always been a n issue with Orion figures in the past. The flip up visor is a little on the bulky side, but not too bad. I definitely like him more with the visor down, but the underlying face is a well done interpretation of Orion’s angry visage. Orion’s paint work is pretty good, but not great. It’s certainly not bad, but a few of the lines on his coat are out of place, and there’s a strip of up-painted plastic along the top of the left side of his collar. Also, the figure’s skin is really pale, especially when compared to the prototype pictures. On the plus side, the differing sheens on the various parts of the costume are a really cool touch, and do show that DCC is putting some thought into the figures. Orion includes his trusty Astro-Harness. It’s a bit awkwardly designed, and he kind of has to ride it like a Segway, which is a bit goofy looking. In addition, it can be a bit difficult to get the handles in and out of the hands. I actually broke one if the handles off the harness trying to remove it, so be careful. It’s a key piece for the character, so I’m glad it’s included.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

So, why did I get this New 52 figure months after it was released? It’s my comicbook store’s fault. I had a coupon for 40% off of one item in the store, and I used it on this guy. I’ve actually been contemplating getting this figure since before it was released. I’ve always liked Orion, and even though I haven’t read his recent appearances, I thought this was a pretty cool design. 40% off was enough to get me to cave. I’m glad I got him. He’s a very nice figure. And now he’s making me reconsider some of the other New 52 figures. Crap…

Orion52c

#0459: Robin

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

ROBIN

BATMAN ’66 (HOT TOYS)

Alright, here we are with the second part of our little break into “Ethan reviews someone else’s toys.” Yesterday, I took a look at the Hot Toys version of Adam West’s take on Batman from the popular 60s TV series. It’s only fitting that I follow it up by taking a look at Batman’s partner in (fighting) crime, the only bird more dangerous than a sparrow with a machine gun, Robin the Boy Wonder!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Like Batman, Robin is part of Hot Toys’ Movie Masterpiece Series. He’s figure MMS 219, which places him directly after Batman in the numbering of the line. Robin is about 11 ½ inches tall, which makes him just a slight bit shorter than Batman, and (going by the Sideshow website) he has 30 points of articulation. He’s based on Burt Ward’s portrayal of the character in the 1960s TV show and Movie, though according to the solicitations, he’s specifically movie based.
One of HT’s claims to fame is their incredible likenesses. In all honesty, Robin isn’t one of their more spot on ones. While Batman was very clearly Adam West, the likeness is a bit more debatable on Robin. From certain angles, it definitely looks like Burt Ward, but from others it’s not quite as clear. However, the sculpted mask does a lot to fill in the blanks, so I don’t think anyone will be lost on who this is supposed to be. Overlooking the minute issues with the likeness, the sculpt features all the fantastic detailing we’ve come to expect from Hot Toys. In a similar fashion to Batman, the mask has been done as a separate piece, which gives the head sculpt the right amount of depth and layering. The paintwork on the head is nothing short of amazing. There’s absolutely no slop or bleed over, and the detailing is superb.  It looks like a real person.

Robin’s costume is made up of nine parts in total. He has his signature shirt (with different colored sleeves), a cape, a pair of shorts, and a pair of flesh tone tights, as well as a sculpted belt, boots, and gloves.  Overall, everything is pretty well tailored, though there are a few minor issues. While Ward’s costume was a little off in the movie, the shirt and shorts overemphasize this. The shirt is too short, and the shorts are too long. However, with some futzing, this could be mostly fixed. The cape also seems just a bit too short, which is even more noticeable, given the thickness of the material. The sculpted pieces are all excellent, and they match up pretty much exactly with the pieces from the show. Robin’s body is a better fit for him than the body on Batman was for that figure. Perhaps it’s due to Ward having had a more basic body type, but it seems the standard slim TrueType worked out well.

Robin is armed with a nice assortment of accessories, though not quite as many as Batman (in all fairness, Robin retailed for $15 less.) He features:

  • 8 interchangeable hands
  • Batarang
  • Bat-cuffs
  • Bat-Radio
  • Bat Rope
  • Display Stand

The figure’s hands include the following poses: a pair of fists, a pair for gripping, a pair with a two finger gesture, one looser grip, and one for receiving a fist (to replicate one of Ward’s signature poses.) Unlike Batman, these hands are more meant for posing than for accessories. Each of the hands is well sculpted, and they all swap out pretty easily.

At first, it seems like the Batarang is a piece of re-use, however closer examination shows that it’s actually a different, smaller Batarang than the one included with Batman. It’s well sculpted, and has the same hole for the Bat Rope that the other Batarang has.

The Bat-Cuffs represent another fairly standard Bat-accessory. It’s nice to see that HT thought to give Robin something not included with Batman. The cuffs are nicely done; they open and close like real cuffs, and even have a metal chain between them.

The Bat-Radio and Rope are the same as the ones included with Batman. The Bat-Radio is still a cool little piece and the Rope is still just a piece of string.

Finally, Robin includes a standard display stand. It’s been decorated with his name and the Batman ’66 logo.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

So, this is another figure belonging to my friend Lance, which he’s very kindly allowing me to review. Overall, the figure has its issues, but it’s pretty good. At first, I was a little let down by Robin, especially after the really fantastic Batman. However, placing the two figures side by side, every problem fades away. These two really make for a killer display. For once, I’m rather envious of someone else’s action figure collection.