Tag Archives: Hasbro

#0044: Boba Fett

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

BOBA FETT

STAR WARS: THE BLACK SERIES

Today, I’m looking at another figure from one of my new favorite lines:  Star Wars: The Black Series.  This time it’s fan favorite Boba Fett!  He needs no introduction because there’s really no backstory to introduce…

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Boba is part of the second series of Star Wars: The Black Series figures.  He’s obviously based on his look from the movies, specifically his look from The Empire Strikes Back.  The differences between his designs in Empire and Jedi are fairly miniscule, but the easiest tells are the gauntlets and jet pack, which are green on the Empire version.   Following Leia’s lead, Boba is numbered as #006. The figure stands almost 6 inches exact and features 23 points of articulation.  Boba’s sculpt is technically a reuse from the summer’s SDCC exclusive Boba, but since a) it was a limited release that goes for well over $100 and b) I don’t own that one,  I’ll be treating it like a new sculpt.  All the details are sharp, and it looks accurate to the source material.  Boba’s sculpt is topped off with a great paint job.  All the lines are clean, with no slop or bleed over.  The various insignias are done expertly, as well as the weathering on the armor and jump suit.  Boba also features a cloth cape.  This cloth is a heavier weight than the material used for the skirt on the Princess Leia figure, so it should hold up better over time.  Boba is accessorized with a removable jetpack, a blaster rifle, and a blaster pistol.  These pieces are just as well sculpted as the rest of the figure, and really pull the whole look together.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Okay, confession time:  Much as I like the figure, and the design it’s based on, I don’t really get the overwhelming love for this character.  He looks cool and all, but as a character, he’s kinda void of…character.   But, this is a really, really cool figure.  Damn you Fett and your ability to leave me with confusing emotions!

#0043: Princess Leia

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

PRINCESS LEIA – SLAVE OUTFIT

STAR WARS: THE BLACK SERIES

Happy Thanksgiving to my American readers!  Today, I’ll be doing my first review from what is quickly becoming my favorite toy line on the market:  Star Wars: The Black Series.  I’m going to assume that everyone reading knows what Star Wars is.  However, here’s a little backstory on “The Black Series.”   For 35 years, Star Wars toys have been made in the very successful 3 ¾ inch scale.  I don’t mind the scale, and Star Wars made it a standard for quite a while.  However, the figures being as small as they are leads to limitations on the level of detail and articulation each figure gets.  Since the introduction of lines like DC Universe Classics and Marvel Legends, which helped popularize the 6-inch scale, Star Wars fans have been requesting a similar line for the Star Wars characters.  And this year, Hasbro obliged with Star Wars: The Black Series.  The figures are 6 inch scale, feature lots of articulation, and generally feature better paint and a few extra accessories.  I just got the second series of the line, so I’ll be taking a look at those in the next couple of days.  I’ll start with Princess Leia.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Like I mentioned above, Leia is from the second series of Star Wars: The Black Series.  Hasbro’s decided to give each figure a number, and Leia is #005.  Leia is based on her look from early in Return of the Jedi, when she’s is taken captive by Jabba the Hutt.  It’s not her most definitive look, but I suppose it has a fairly sizeable fan base, for what would seem to be obvious reasons.  The figure stands a little over 5 inches tall and features 18 points of articulation.  At first glance she seems a bit too small, especially next to the other figures in the line, but Carrie Fisher’s listed height is 5’1”(a full FOOT shorter than costar Harrison Ford), so she’s in proper scale for a 1:12 scale figure.   Leia’s a totally new sculpt, and it’s fairly good, apart from one glaring issue:  The articulation.  The joints on the figure are incredibly obvious.  Now, I’m not saying that I dislike visible articulation, but I don’t like when it gets to glaring, because that hurts the aesthetic of the figure.  Anyway, aside from the articulation issue, the sculpt is well done.  The likeness on the head is really good, and may very well be the best likeness in the line so far.  Unfortunately, the sculpt is hidden under some pretty sloppy paint.  Mine isn’t as bad as some others I’ve seen, but the paint has a tendency to be places it shouldn’t on the head.  The rest of the body is painted perfectly fine, and they even matched the painted flesh tone on the head with the molded flesh tone on the body, which can be tricky.  In addition to sculpted pieces, Leia features a cloth skirt.  I don’t hate it in theory, but I’m not a fan in practice.  It’s a piece of cheap, un-hemmed fabric, so it’s going to fray like crazy.  In fact, it was already fraying in the package.  I really wish they’d gone with something with a bit more durability.  Leia is rounded out with an axe thing, and a pole thing (technical terms!) that she uses in the film.  They’re sculpted well, and fit into Leia’s hands with ease.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I like this figure, but I have my issues with it.  Chief among them is the fact that the fact that the first version of Princess Leia, a central character, released in this line is a fairly non-essential version of her.  Coupled with the fact that it’s probably the one look of hers that really doesn’t translate well to figure form, the figure’s a bit of a mixed bag.  I really hope that this one was just a practice round for one of her more definitive looks.

#0038: The Penguin

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

PENGUIN

BATMAN: THE ANIMATED SERIES (KENNER)

Today, we’re jumping back to the 90s for a bit!  This is a piece from Kenner’s tie-in line for the immensely popular Batman: The Animated Series.  If you’re not familiar with B:TAS, go find some clips online.  You’ll thank me.  Anyway, Kenner produced a line of action figures based on the title character and his many nemeses (Incidentally, Jonathan Coulton’s “Nemeses” is playing on my iPod right now, which is pretty sweet!).  I’ll be taking a look at one of those foes:  The Penguin!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Penguin was released as part of the first series of B:TAS figures, though in all honestly, my version might be a rerelease from later on.  He is, of course, based on the Penguin’s appearance from B:TAS, though I feel I should specify that it’s based on his appearance from before the series was brought back and all the characters got redesigns.  The figure stands about 4 inches tall, which puts him in proper scale with the 5 inch scale of the line (Toy Biz should’ve taken note!).  He has 5 points of articulation, the Kenner standard at the time.  He was a totally new sculpt.  It’s well done, and captures the stylized look of the show’s animation fairly well.  He’s not spot on, but it’s not too bad.  Looking at some images, I feel his head in particular is a bit off.  Perhaps if it were just a touch larger.  For the most part, the figure is molded in the necessary colors, so there’s not a whole lot of paint, but what’s there is applied evenly and consistently.  There’s very little actual detail work to speak of, but it works for the style.  The images I’ve been able to find online of the figure show him including a coat and umbrella, but I honestly don’t remember mine having those, furthering my belief that he was a rerelease.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

This figure was a gift from my Nana, given to me one year for Christmas along with a few other Batman figures.  I recall kind of wanting it, though I don’t really know why, as I’m not a very big fan of the Penguin.  Regardless, he spent many hours fighting the caped crusader and associates.

#0034: Uncanny X-Men Team Pack

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

ROGUE, WOLVERINE, LONGSHOT & CYCLOPS

MARVEL UNIVERSE (HASBRO)

Today’s review looks at yet another mighty Marvel toy line, Hasbro’s Marvel Universe.  The Marvel Universe line is pretty much Hasbro doing Marvel characters in the scale that they know best: 4 inch(well, technically 3 ¾ inch, but let’s not split hairs).  The line’s been running for a few years, and Hasbro likes to mix things up occasionally and release figures in multipacks.  I’ll be looking at their 80s/90s X-Men Boxed set today.  The set features X-Men mainstays Rogue and Wolverine, as well as prominent 80s member Longshot and a kiddified version of X-Men leader Cyclops.

THE FIGURES THEMSELVES

These figures were released in the 2013 series of “Team Packs”

ROGUE

First up, it’s everyone’s favorite angsty mutant who can’t touch anybody!  Rogue is depicted here in her Jim Lee designed 90s costume.  It’s a good choice, as this is the costume that most people are familiar with.  Rogue stands just shy of 4 inches and has roughly 20 points of articulation.    She’s built on Hasbro’s second basic female body, with a new head and arms, and add –on pieces for the jacket, belt, and boots.  The body sculpt is well done, and the generic body works fine for her underlying spandex costume.  The newly sculpted pieces are passable, if not the greatest.  The jacket’s sculpt is well done, and the boots do their job, though they do kinda stick out as add-on pieces.  The head is far from the worst in the line, or even the worst Rogue figure we’ve seen, but it’s not the best offering.  The hair looks fine, but the face is far too gaunt, and they’ve left her with her mouth permanently open.  The paint is passable, but could be better some places, particularly at the cut joint’s on her thigh, where it’s virtually impossible to get the lines of the yellow parts to line up.

WOLVERINE

Next, it’s the most famous X-Man by far!  Wolverine is depicted in his brown and yellow costume from the mid-to-late 80s, which, like Wolverine himself, is no stranger to the action figure world.  Wolverine stands closer to the 3 ¾ inch mark, making him noticeably shorter than Rogue, and he has 18 points of articulation.  The figure is actually just a repaint of the same version of the character from the Wolverine: Origins tie-in line, but since I never got that one, it’s new to me.  The sculpt is decent, especially the body, which conveys Wolverine’s short and stocky nature pretty well.  The claws are a solid piece on each hand, which is okay by me, since they have a tendency to warp at this scale. Like with Rogue, the head leaves something to be desired.  It’s a bit too squat, and the details are a bit on the soft side.  Paint on the figure is okay, though he does have very fuzzy lines on some of the brown sections, particularly the shoulders.

LONGSHOT

Next, it’s everyone’s favorite, uhhh… no, hang on, it’s just Longshot.  And Longshot’s nobody’s favorite.  Longshot is depicted in his debut costume from the 80s.  Longshot stands about 4 inches tall and features 22 points of articulation.  Hasbro wisely reused the body previously used for Ghost Rider and the AIM soldier.  It’s a nice body, with a whole lot of folds and wrinkles which work great to hide folds and wrinkles.  The reused body is masked with the addition of a new head and hands, as well as add-ons to represent his cuffs, pouches, and belt.  These are all well sculpted end fit well.  The head is obviously a focus point, and it’s a decent piece.  It has a pretty nice determined look, and actually manages to make his mullet look okay.  The paint is nice and clean, with no noticeable bleed over or slop.

CYCLOPS

Lastly, it’s the fourth figure in the three-pack.  So, yeah…that’s a thing.  He’s actually more of an accessory than a separate figure.  In the 80s, the X-Men had a few run-ins with the villain Mojo.  Mojo was a TV exec from another dimension, always looking for the new fad.  After a few fights with the X-Men, Mojo decided that what his viewers really wanted to see was the X-Babies, child versions of everyone’s favorite mutants.  This Cyclops is based on the X-Babies version of the character.  Cyclops stands just shy of 2 inches tall, and has no articulation.  Given the small scale and since he’s technically an accessory, the articulation’s not an issue.  He’s an all new sculpt, and it’s a good sculpt!  It’s nice and simplistic, but in a good way that reflects the source material.  The paint could be a bit better, as there is some noticeable slop, but it’s not terrible.  Cyclops may actually be my favorite figure in the set!

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Nothing much to report in this section.  I mostly got this set because I wanted the other sets in the series and buying the whole series was the most practical way of handling it.  I’m certainly not disappointed by this set, but it’s not really one of my favorites.