Tag Archives: McFarlane Toys

#0453: Carol Peletier

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

CAROL PELETIER

THE WALKING DEAD

The Walking Dead television show has grown into something of its own beast. While it’s still following the comic in a few respects here and there, for the most part it’s taken a path all its own. The show has made a lot of its changes through characters who weren’t around in the comics, but occasionally they make changes to comic characters that are for the better. Case in point: Carol. In the comics, her character never really amounted to much of anything. In the show? She’s easily become one of the most important characters. And for good reason; she’s pretty darn awesome! McFarlane Toys has seen fit to add Carol to their line of figures based on the show (and there was much rejoicing!)  I’ll be taking a look at that figure today.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Carol was released as part of Series Six of McFarlane’s TV-based The Walking Dead line. The figure is just shy of 5 inches tall and she sports 25 points of articulation. Most noteworthy, she has the new style of hip joint, first used on Daryl, which is a serious improvement over the Series 4 figures. Like many of the characters on the show, Carol’s look has gradually evolved. This figure is based on her look around the end of season 4/ beginning of season 5. It depicts her after she’s grown a bit more comfortable in the post-apocalyptic world. Gone is the really close cropped hair; in come the combat boots! It’s a pretty great look. In order to facilitate this look, McFarlane has given Carol an all-new sculpt. I have to say, I’ve warmed up to this sculpt a fair bit since first getting the figure. That aside, the sculpt isn’t quite as good as some of the others in the line. Overall, the proportions aren’t too bad, though she still has the skeletal looking wrists that plague most of the line. Most of the issues are with the head. It’s not terrible, though it seems to lack some of the more attractive features of Melissa McBride’s face. I can’t really point to anything specific, but something seems off. I don’t know. Another reason that diagnosing troubles with the sculpt is difficult is the paint work. The face really seems to get the worst of it. The eyebrows seem a bit misplaced and the eyes are too small and too close together. Also, her hair has too much black in it, which just further throws off her look. The weirdest bit of the paint is the black dots on her nostrils; I’m not sure what the idea was here, but it just ends up looking strange. All that said there are areas where the paint is magnificent; some of the detail on the clothes is really great. Carol is packed with a revolver (which is also sculpted tucked into the front of her belt), he signature knife, and a gas can, which has actual, readable instructions on how to use it! That’s quite impressive.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Carol was purchased from Cosmic Comix, my comicbook store of choice. I’ve been anxiously awaiting the release of the Carol figure pretty much since she was announced, so I picked her up as soon as I saw her. While I have a fair share of complaints about the final figure, as a whole I think she turned out okay. She looks nice with the rest of the group and the figure’s really started to grow on me since getting it.

Guest Review #0005: Ranger Elite

Posted by Tim Marron in Guest Reviews and tagged with , , , ,

RANGER ELITE (SANGHEILI)

HALO REACH

IMG_0645

Today’s review is written by Tim Marron.  Check out more from Tim over at Tim’s Blarg and Timsical Thoughts.  Take it away Tim!

When it comes to video games, two of the traits I tend to look for are the presence of shootbangs, and a high level of polish. I don’t mean that in the sense of the game being thoroughly tested and fine-tuned, although that is also desirable. No, I mean it’s got lots of shiny things. As many of you probably know, the Halo franchise meets both of these criteria consistently across titles and it is from this series that today’s figure comes. I’ll be taking a look at the Ranger Elite from Halo Reach, the origin story of the Halo universe.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

For those of you not familiar with the Halo games or lore, Elites, or Sangheili if you really want to show off, are a species of alien that are part of a military coalition known as the Covenant. This specific figure is part of McFarlane Toys’ fifth series of Halo Reach action figures and depicts an Elite in the Ranger armor. He features 25 points of articulation and stands about 6″ tall, when you can get him to stand, that is. The sculpt is pretty accurate to the look from the game and is mostly original apart from the feet, hands, and lower torso which are reused from all previous Halo Reach Elites. There are some seam lines and kibble, but anyone handy with an X-acto knife should be able to remedy these easily enough. I do appreciate how the Elite’s face can be partially seen underneath the transparent visor of his helmet instead of, say, having the visor be painted on opaque… and the wrong color. I’m looking at you, DC Direct (see my review of their Tali’Zorah figure). The sculpting does start to be an issue when it runs into certain areas of articulation on the figure. Places like the knees and elbows are sculpted to match as closely as possible to the shape of the character model in the game. However, the simple hinge joint they used on the figure aren’t entirely compatible which results in the knee caps and elbows peeling away from the rest of the arm or leg when you bend the joint. This forms weird little spikes that aren’t meant to be there and can be a little pinchy if you aren’t paying attention. The paint is decent although hardcore collectors will notice some serious areas of slop and bleed over. That being said, the average casual collector such as myself will be totally fine with the paint which has a nice variety of textures like metallic and even pearlescent in some areas. The Ranger Elite comes with a Focus Rifle, Plasma Grenade, and back plate that can be removed to attach a jetpack from one of the other figures in this line. I would have liked a stand of some kind because he is a touch on the wobbly side, but it’s not that big of a deal given that this is probably the most toy-ish action figure I have. This guy isn’t meant to be stood up on a shelf, he’s meant to be played with, and I kinda like that.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

This figure was maybe one of my most impulsive impulse buys. I got him from Toys-R-Us, where I had gone initially to browse the Nerf aisle (ask me about my Nerf collection, I dare you) in search of an early release. I only saw it as I was wandering back through the store. The combination of my favorite Halo armor design along with one of my favorite weapon designs both in one box caused an involuntary reflex in which I took the figure to the checkout, purchased it, and walked back to the car. Ok, maybe it wasn’t involuntary but I am glad to have the figure. It does have its issues as a figure, but as a toy, I give it a resounding BLARG of triumph.

#0198: T-1000

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

T-1000

MOVIE MANIACS

Terminator 2 is a very good movie. In fact, it’s probably one of my top 5 favorite movies. A lot of that is because of the film’s primary villain, the T-1000. That guy was just super cool!

Back in the early days of “collectible action figures” McFarlane Toys put out a line called the Movie Maniacs, which was a compilation of figures from lots of famous horror, suspense, and slasher movies. The figures featured detailed sculpts, which was new at the time, but were rather infamous for their lack of useful articulation. Amongst their figures they released were both the T-800 and the T-1000 from T2.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

The T-1000 was released as part of the fourth series of Movie Maniacs. He has a few possible looks, but overall, he’s based on the character’s appearance from the last act of the film. The figure is about 7 inches tall and has 8 points of articulation. As with the rest of MM, he has very little articulation, and what he does have only really allows for one real pose. It kind of sucks compared to recent stuff, but it wasn’t too bad for the line. At least the T-1000 had an okay default pose, which is more than can be said for a lot of the MM releases. The sculpt is pretty good, especially for the time. It has more than a passing resemblance to Robert Patrick. The body is better work, with lots of nice textures, folds, and such. The paint work is okay, though there is some serious slop in some areas, and some of the flesh toned areas almost look like they’ve been dunked in mud. The figure does feature a nice selection of accessories, including a whole extra torso, head and arms for his exploded look, a hand gun, swap out hook hands, and a display stand.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I actually hadn’t yet seen T2 at the time of this figure’s release, so I didn’t get it new. I ended up picking this figure up from my local comic book store (Cosmic Comix & Toys, for those of you in the area), got in a large collection of loose action figures. I fished out the T-1000 and all his pieces, which quite excited me! To top it all off, the store owner sold it for $3. It’s not a perfect figure, but it’s a pretty good one, and for that price, it was more than worth it.

#0179: Daryl Dixon & Chopper

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

DARYL DIXON & CHOPPER

THE WALKING DEAD

It had a rocky start, but McFarlane’s The Walking Dead line is really becoming one of the better toylines around.  I recently looked at a few of the figures from series 5, and was quite impressed overall.  Today’s character is fan-favorite Daryl Dixon, who was actually one of the very first characters released in the line, way back in series 1.  However, that figure had more in common with Kevin Federline than it did the esteemed Mr. Dixon, so he was definitely one of the most requested re-dos.  McFarlane seems to be pulling out all the stops for Daryl, and went ahead and released him along with his distinctive chopper.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Daryl and the Chopper were released as a boxed set, which is loosely serving as a supplement to series 5 of the main line.  Daryl stands about 5 inches tall and has 27 points of articulation (the box says 25, but it’s 27.  Perhaps McFarlane needs to work on their counting skills?).  Daryl has a brand new style of hip articulation for the line, and it’s definitely an improvement over the other figures.  Hopefully, McFarlane will be making this a standard feature.  The accuracy of Daryl’s headsculpt seems to be a matter of opinion, with some claiming it’s spot on and others claiming it’s totally off.  I fall somewhere in between;  it’s not a perfect likeness, but it’s obviously Norman Reedus.  The rest of the figure’s sculpt is tremendous.  All of the clothing has the appropriate textures and such, and it really looks like a real person.  The paintwork is pretty good.  There’s no real slop, and there’s some dry-brushing and washes that help bring out the sculpted textures.  Daryl includes a knife that can be sheathed and his trusty crossbow, which has three removable arrows.  There are slots for four arrows, so I may have been shorted one.

THE VEHICLE ITSELF

The Chopper is more an accessory to Daryl than its own item, but the work put into it is still top notch.  The bike is about 4 inches tall and 6 inches long, and it has movement in four places.  The sculpt is nothing short of amazing.  All the parts line up correctly, and it’s perfectly scaled to Daryl.  The tires are even real rubber, which is a cool touch.  The paintwork is exceptional, which plenty of texturing and weathering, as well as the appropriate logos and such.  The license plate even has realistic wear, so it really looks like it’s been through an apocalypse.  The Chopper includes two bags that can be set on the back, as well as a small stand to allow it to be displayed on the shelf without the kickstand down.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I picked this set up from Amazon, back when it was up for pre-order.  I honestly only picked it up for Daryl, but the Chopper is amazing piece of work, and shouldn’t be overlooked.  Overall, this continues the upturn in quality from McFarlane, which is definitely cool to see.  I can’t wait for the next series!

#0159: Maggie Greene

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

MAGGIE GREENE

THE WALKING DEAD

I contemplated pushing today’s review back to next Sunday, just to keep the theme running with my Walking Dead reviews, but I decided that Maggie and Glenn are kind of a set, so I’m going forward with the review today.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Maggie is part of the 5th wave of McFarlane’s The Walking Dead TV Series line.  She’s based on Maggie’s look in general, but seems to be drawn from the first few episodes of Season 3 specifically.  Maggie stands just shy of 5 inches tall and has 22 points of articulation.  Maggie’s articulation is okay, but not the greatest.  Her hair sculpt means that her neck doesn’t have much movement, and she lacks the ankle joints that the other two figures have, which makes the figure really hard to stand up.  Seriously, I just barely got her to stand long enough for the pictures.  There are several pictures of the figure mid-fall!  Aside from those issues, the rest of the articulation works pretty well, and allows for some decent poses.  Maggie’s sculpt is well done, with lots of great little details here and there.  I like that the jeans have an actual denim texture, and the folds in her shirt look pretty great.  The likeness isn’t quite as good as Glenn’s in my opinion, but that may be more to do with the paint than the sculpt.  She still has more than a passing resemblance to Lauren Cohan, who plays Maggie on the show, so it’s not a terrible sculpt.  The paint is passable, but the face can look weird from certain angles, particularly the eyes.  Maggie’s got some blood splatter going on, which doesn’t look too bad, but I kinda wish they hadn’t made her quite so scene specific.  Maggie includes a handgun, a rifle, and a knife.  She has a bit of difficulty holding the rifle, and the knife doesn’t seem to want to go in the sheath on my figure, but that may not be a widespread issue.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I came across Maggie twice at my local TRU, but I wanted to purchase her and Glenn together, so I held off until I found both.  I finally broke down and got them both from Amazon.  Maggie’s not quite as good as Glenn, in my opinion, but she’s still a pretty well done figure of an important character on the show.

#0158: Glenn Rhee

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

GLENN RHEE

THE WALKING DEAD

Hey, would you look at that?  It’s Sunday again!  Which means it’s time for another The Walking Dead review.  I’d love to say that this was carefully planned, but it was totally a coincidence.  So, yeah…

I looked at the Tyreese figure from this line three weeks ago and really liked him.  I mentioned that I hadn’t gotten anyone else in the line, but I had been pulled in.  Well, now it’s official; I’ve been pulled in.  This time around, I’ll be looking at Glenn, my favorite character from the comics, and one of my favorites on the show.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Glenn was released as part of the 5th series of McFarlane’s The Walking Dead TV Series line.  He looks to be based on Glenn’s appearance in the 3rd season of the show, but could easily work for a 4th season version as well.  He’s about 5 inches tall and features 24 points of articulation.  The shoulder articulation is a bit better here than it was on Tyreese.  He can lift his arms as far as a real person could, so that’s nice.  He still has the same mostly useless hip articulation, but it’s not the worst thing in the world.  The sculpt on this figure is really great.  The head looks pretty spot on to actor Stephen Yuen, who portrays Glenn on the show.  I really like that they’ve captured Glenn’s worrisome but determined look that is such a signature trait of his character.  The rest of the figure is well proportioned and has some great detail work on the clothed areas.  The paint is also a bit better here than it was on Tyreese, especially the eyes, which don’t seem to have any spacing issues.  The five-o-clock shadow on mine turned out alright, but it looks like it varies from figure to figure, so if you have a chance, you might want to examine the figure before you buy it.  Glenn is very well accessorized, including a section of pipe, a rifle, a handgun, a knife, a swat vest, and an alternate beaten-up head.  The vest and extra head are really what make this 3rd season Glenn, since he got the vest at the prison, and the head looks to be based on what poor Glenn looked like after he was taken prisoner by the Governor and Merle.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

After looking at a few local TRUs with no luck, I finally broke down and bought Glenn and Maggie from Amazon.  I’m glad I picked this figure up, as he improves upon a few of my issues with Tyreese, and is just a really great figure in general.

#0137: Tyreese

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

TYREESE

THE WALKLING DEAD

So, you know what’s on tonight?  That’s right, The Walking Dead is on tonight.  Unless you’re reading this after the initial posting.  In which case, it isn’t.  Unless you have it Tivo-ed….

Sorry, I’m attempting to be relevant.  I don’t get to be very often.  So, yeah, The Walking Dead is a pretty popular show which I enjoy.  And it also has action figures.  I hadn’t really gotten into the line.  I looked at a few of them, but nobody really grabbed me.  I had seen series 5 online, and I was somewhat interested in Glen and Maggie, but there was one figure I didn’t think I needed: Tyreese.  I never cared for the character in the comic, and he hadn’t really done much for me on the show.  And then the second episode of season 4.5 aired, and 30 seconds into his first scene, Tyrese performed an action that instantly made him my favorite character on the show.  And wouldn’t you know it, it was just in time for his action figure to be released.  That was pretty convenient timing!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Tyreese was released as part of the 5th series of McFarlane’s The Walking Dead TV Series line.  Obviously, he’s based on Tyreese’s appearance on the show.  He stands about 5 inches tall and features 24 points of articulation.  I don’t usually discuss the articulation, but I do have a few points to make.  First off, the shoulders are done in such a way as to prevent them from getting a full range of motion on the hinge joint.  They can’t quite make it to 90 degrees, which is a bummer.  Secondly, the leg articulation is practically useless due to the limited range of the ball jointed hips.  Neither of these things ruins the figure, but it does knock him down a bit.  Anyway, on to the sculpt.  The sculpting looks pretty good, and the proportions look really nice.  At first glance, his head seemed a little big, but then I realized that it’s probably just me being used to the skewed proportions on superhero figures.   The likeness of actor Chad L. Coleman is quite good.  The paintwork is good overall, but not perfect.  One thing that bugs me in particular is the work on the eyes, which are just a little bit off, making Tyreese look like he has a lazy eye.  The sweat stains on the front of his shirt could also stand to be a little subtler, but they aren’t bad as is.  The rest of the work is fairly clean, though there is some minor bleed in a few places.  Tyreese is armed with a hammer, a rifle, and a handgun.  The rifle and handgun are a bit awkward, since Tyreese doesn’t really have hands sculpted to hold them, but the hammer is absolutely perfect.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I picked up Tyreese at my local Toys R Us.  He and Maggie were the only two sitting on the shelf, and I decided to hold off getting Maggie until I can track down a Glenn.  But given my newfound fandom of Tyreese, I felt compelled to buy the figure.  It has its flaws, but it’s a really cool figure, and I definitely have been pulled into this line!