Tag Archives: Super Awesome Wife

#0726: Captain Rex

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

CAPTAIN REX

STAR WARS: THE BLACK SERIES

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If there’s one upside to the Star Wars prequels, it’s the fact that they allowed for the creation of both of the Clone Wars animated series.  They managed to do impossible things like not suck and be something other than the absolute worst, which the prequels never really got down. The second of the two shows had a heavy focus on the Clone Troopers themselves, and changed them from a faceless legion to a collection of actual characters. One of the central clones in the show was Clone Captain Rex, who ended up becoming one of the show’s most popular characters. He got several figures during the actual Clone Wars toylines, and just before the shift to the Force Awakens stuff, he even made his way into the smaller scale The Black Series line.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

CapRex2Captain Rex was figure #09 in the 2014 series of the 3 ¾ inch Star Wars: The Black Series figures. He was part of the second assortment of figures released that year (the same assortment that gave us Commander Doom, for those interested). The figure is a little over 3 ¾ inches in height and has 24 points of articulation. Rex is based on his design from towards the end of the show, after several improvements had been made to his armor. Unlike other Clone Troopers from the show, Rex never got a full Phase II style helmet, instead opting to stick with a slightly modified Phase I helmet. It’s kind of one of his more unique features, and it’s showcased here. Like Doom, Rex’s figure takes his design from the show and realizes it a bit, so that it can fit in with the other figures from this line. His sculpt does this translation pretty well, retaining most of his defining traits from his show design, while also brining him in line with the “real-life” Clone Troopers. The figure uses the same basic body as the one we saw on Doom. It’s less articulated than I’d like, but it’s a decent sculpt, so I can’t complain too much. He gets a unique helmet, shoulder piece, and “skirt” piece with holsters. The new parts are nice, sharp sculpts, and the helmet in particular has some fantastic fine detail work. Hasbro’s weak link is and always shall be its paint apps. It’s not to say they aren’t trying, mind you. Rex has some phenomenal work. The weird blue eyebrow things on his helmet are really sharp and the 163 (yes, I counted them all) tally marks placed all around his armor are a really cool touch. So, what’s the problem? It’s the base color work again. The areas around the holsters are definitely the worst offenders, with tons of overspray and slop, but all of the base work is pretty darn sloppy, which kind of ruins all the effort that was put into the finer detail work. Rex is packed with a pair of blaster pistols. They’re a bit hard to get into his holsters, but he holds them well enough. Like Doom, the accessories feel a bit light for a figure in the higher-priced line. It couldn’t be that hard to throw in a large blaster or something.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Rex here was the second of the two pre-Force Awakens figures I found during my Force Friday travels. I couldn’t pass on Doom, but I didn’t need Rex. Of course, I was with Super Awesome Girlfriend at the time, and she absolutely refuses to let me put a figure back, no matter how many times I say I don’t need it. So, she bought him for me. I can’t say Rex was a figure I was desperately searching for or anything, but I did like the character on the show, and I thought this figure looked pretty cool. I’m glad to have him, because, paint issues aside, he’s actually a pretty great little figure.

#0711: Lord Zedd

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

LORD ZEDD

MIGHTY MORPHIN’ POWER RANGERS 20TH ANNIVERSARY

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Remember yesterday’s discussion of US-exclusive looks from the Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers? Well, prepare to meet the king of the no-Japanese-counterpart brigade, Lord Zedd. Yes, one of Power Rangers’ coolest bad guys was not in the original source material. That seems almost criminal. Fortunately for Zedd, he hasn’t been as absent from toys as the movie-style Rangers, but it’s still kind of a big deal when he gets a figure with the same level of care devoted to him as the Rangers.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

LordZedd2Lord Zedd was part of Bandai’s Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers 20th Anniversary line, which, like the movie line, was released exclusively at Toys R Us. Zedd was the line’s one non-Ranger. The figure is a little over 5 inches tall and has 17 points of articulation. Like yesterday’s White Ranger, his range of movement is hindered by his lack of some key joints, but this is a little less of an issue for Zedd, who did a lot of standing there looking menacing. Zedd’s sculpt was all-new to him, and it’s a decent enough sculpt. He’s a little devoid of texture, and he’s definitely got a bit of a pin-head thing going on, and his articulation is even more obtrusive than the White Ranger’s, but the overall sculpt is alright. What really ends up holding him back is the paint, which does the sculpt no favors. The lack of any sculpted texturing or fine detailing is only made more obvious by the straight, shiny colors. Rather than being a truly frightening, skinless monster, he’s just kind of this….red mess. It causes him to lose pretty much all of his menace, which really sucks, cuz that’s most of what Zedd’s got going for him. In addition, the silver paint is all over the place, with tons of bleed over, so it’s not even well applied! Zedd includes his signature Z-topped staff. It’s okay, but not great. It definitely feels too short, and it’s got this random bit in the middle where it’s just wider, for no real reason.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I picked up Zedd at the same time as yesterday’s White Ranger. He too was purchased by my far too supportive Super Awesome Girlfriend. I’d actually looked at this Zedd figure a few times before. Since he’s not in the Super Sentai stuff, it’s highly unlikely he’ll find his way into the SH Figuarts line, meaning this is likely the best we’re going to get. All-in-all, he’s not a bad figure, just kind of a mediocre one.

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#0676: Captain Jack Harkness

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

CAPTAIN JACK HARKNESS

DOCTOR WHO

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So, interestingly enough, before I got into Doctor Who, I actually gave the Who-niverse a try-out with the spin-off series, Torchwood. I liked the show well enough at first, but I decided it wasn’t for me when I got to the finale of the third series, Children of Earth. Just like the comic version of The Walking Dead, I found there are some storytelling techniques I just can’t move past. When I finally got around to watching Doctor Who proper, I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed Torchwood’s lead, Captain Jack Harkness, when he was given the chance to be a little more light-hearted than Torchwood had allowed.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

CapJack2Captain Jack was a special single release in the Doctor Who line. He was actually a re-issuing of the line’s first Captain Jack figure, which had become a little bit difficult to get a hold of in the years since its release. The figure depicts Jack in his gear from his second tenure on the show, during the Tennant run. It also happens to be the look he has for most of Torchwood. It’s a look with a lot of appearances, so it’s definitely a good representation of the character. The figure stands a little over 5 inches tall and has 16 points of articulation. Compared to some of the more recent figures from this line, he’s a bit lacking in movement; you aren’t going to get much more than a basic standing pose out of him. A fair bit of that comes from the somewhat restricting nature of his long coat, but even without that, the figure would still be a little stiff. Jack features a unique sculpt. It’s decent enough, over all. The proportions are mostly pretty good, aside from his somewhat alien looking fingers. Some of the areas, particularly the coat, are a little bit lacking in texturing, but that’s about the same, stylistically, as the other figures from this era, so he fits in pretty well. The likeness on the head sculpt seems like it’s pretty good, under the paint, but it’s hard to tell. As it is, it feels a little bit off. It’s still recognizably him, but not quite 100%. Also, the expression seems a little bland for Jack. I think a grin of some sort would be far more in character. So, what about that paint I was just touching on? Well, it’s best described as “adequate.” Not bad or anything; in fact, it’s remarkably clean. That being said, it just feels too smooth for a figure based on a real person. Also, it’s a bit thick in application, so things like the likeness on the face can be rather hard to make out. Jack includes a revolver, which is more than a lot of Doctor Who figures get, so that’s good.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Jack here was one of a handful of things bought for me by my Super Awesome Girlfriend while we were at Yesterday’s Fun. After purchasing a rather sizeable selection of figures myself, she came out of the store and presented me with another bag full of things, Jack amongst them. Jack was the one major Tennant companion I was missing, so I’m glad to finally have one, even if he isn’t a perfect figure.

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#0669: Vision

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

VISION

MARVEL POP! ICONS

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Well, the summer is almost done, and we’ve more or less moved away from the movies that kicked off the summer movie season. It hit early, but Avengers: Age of Ultron remained one of my favorites throughout the summer. It may not have been perfect, but it was enough fun that I really didn’t care. One of my favorite parts of the movie was the live action debut of the Vision, who was a excessively cool. Unfortunately, he was absent from a lot of the early merchandise for a the movie, so there was a bit of a wait for toys. Funko was at the head of the charge, though, offering Vision in the first selection of their Pop! Figures from the movie.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

VisionPop2Vision is figure #71 in Funko’s Marvel Pop! Heroes line, which puts him in the same number sequence as the other Age of Ultron figures. Obviously, he’s based on Vision’s film appearance. This is the first time that Vision’s been done in the Pop! style, but here’s hoping a comic version’s not too far behind. The figure stands about 3 ½ inches tall. As a Marvel Pop!, he is legally a bobble head, not an action figure, so he has no actual articulation. You can reposition his head a bit if you really want to, but that’s really it. As far as the sculpt goes, Vision is pretty standard Pop! faire. Squared head, creepy round eyes, pointy nose, and no mouth. It’s a well-established formula, so it’s not surprising to see the figure stick to it. He also keeps the rather standard squatting pose, which is a tad disappointing after getting several Pop! figures that changed the pose up a bit. Of course, it’s far from the worst pose they could have chosen, so it doesn’t hold him back or anything. Moving past the basic Pop! stuff, it’s worth noting that the figure has some very nice texturing and fine detail work, especially on the body suit. He’s definitely one of the more detailed Pop! figures. The paint on Vision is a little off. The colors were clearly based on early designs of the character, as they’re far more washed out than those of the final design. The Hasbro 2 ½ inch figure had a similar issue, so it would seem that Marvel changed Vision’s colors after distributing materials to the licensees. Oh well. It’s not horribly off, just a little. On the plus side, the paint is all pretty cleanly applied, without a lot of the usual bleed over issues of the typical Funko product.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Vision was another figure added to my collection by the insanely awesome Super Awesome Girlfriend. After seeing the movie, I had made mention of really wanting a Vision figure of some sort and lamented the fact that there really weren’t any available to buy. So, the next time she came to visit, she gave me this guy. The Marvel Pop! figures can sometimes be a slight letdown, due to the whole bobble-head thing, but Vision is actually pretty nifty. I’m happy to have him!

#0661: Eleventh Doctor

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

ELEVENTH DOCTOR

DOCTOR WHO

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So, my favorite Doctor is definitely David Tennant’s Tenth Doctor. That said, I have a pretty great appreciation for his successor Matt Smith, who definitely made the role his own. Unlike a lot of other Whovians, I actually didn’t mind Smith’s last few episodes and I was pretty happy with his send off in “Time of the Doctor.” Though I like Smith quite a bit, my only Eleventh Doctor figure in my collection was a non-standard Christmas episode version. Fortunately, that changed.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

EleventhToD2The Eleventh Doctor is part of Underground Toys’ 5-inch Doctor Who line. He was released in early 2015 as part of a special collector’s “set,” released to commemorate Matt Smith’s last episode, “Time of the Doctor.” The figure stands 5 inches tall and has 20 points of articulation. The figure is, obviously, based on Eleven’s appearance in “Time of the Doctor.” While his look in the last half of the series changed from episode to episode, the long purple coat is a nice summation of his later appearances. The figure uses the hands and legs of a few of the previous versions of Eleven, but the rest of the sculpt appears to be all-new to this figure. The likeness on the head still isn’t 100% Matt Smith, but I think it’s probably the best version we’ve gotten so far. Regardless of likeness, it’s a top-notch sculpt, with lots of great fine detail work. The coat has some fantastic texturing, which really showcases its distinctive pattern pretty well. The EleventhToD3body as a whole is also just a lot better proportioned than prior Who figures. Great to see them finally getting these things down right as they move away from the scale, right? Eleven exhibits some of the best paintwork I’ve seen on a Doctor Who figure, which is great to see. Everything is nice and clean, the colors are well matched, and there’s plenty of small detail. The face is a little too clean, and the eyes feel a little lifeless, but he’s pretty good overall. The Doctor is quite well accessorized, including his sonic screwdriver, Handles (the beheaded Cyberman who serves as his companion for a good portion of the episode), an aged Eleven head, a cane, a shirt/vest piece sans bowtie, and a Twelfth Doctor head. Handles is definitely my favorite extra; he’s very nicely detailed both in paint and in sculpt and represents one of my favorite parts of the episode. The extra heads both swap out relatively easily, as does the extra vest. The Old Eleven head has a pretty decent Smith likeness, but I’m not seeing much of Capaldi in the Twelve head. Still, they’re both great from a technical standpoint and they make for some really fun additions.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

It’s a Doctor Who figure. You get no points for guessing where this guy came from. Yep, this guy was a birthday present from my Super Awesome Girlfriend, who continues to live up to her name. This figure is really well done. In fact, I think he may well be the best Doctor Who item that I’ve gotten. He’s that good.

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#0649: Ninja Talon

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

NINJA TALON

BATMAN VS. ROBIN (DCC)

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When DC Comics did their New 52 changeover in the comics, they also decided to do a similar restructuring with their line of animated movies. I’ve seen several of the new continuity movies, and, while I like them more than the comics they’re based on, they still leave me cold. Their most recent animated Batman film was Batman vs. Robin, which was (loosely) based on the New 52 storyline The Court of Owls. It’s hardly my favorite animated Batman movie, but it was at the very least an improvement on its predecessor Son of Batman, so that’s good. DC Collectibles is still handling the toys for these movies, and they released one of the film’s faceless baddies, Ninja Talon.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Talon2Ninja Talon was released as part of DC Collectibles’ Batman vs. Robin line. Actually, he’s the entirety of the line. Seriously, he’s the only figure they released from the movie. He doesn’t even get his own packaging! The back of the card is just the Justice League: Throne of Atlantis backing! He’s not even pictured! Poor guy’s so lonely. So, it’s worth noting that there are a few Talons in the movie. There’s a main guy named Talon and then an army of voiceless, personality void Talons. This is one of the latter. The figure stands roughly 6 ½ inches tall and has 15 points of articulation. The figure is built on the basic smaller animated male body, like we saw on Green Lantern, along with a new head and forearms, and add-ons for the belt/knives. The basic body does a pretty decent job of translating the animated style into three dimensions, and it helps to keep all of the figures consistent. The head and hands are very nicely sculpted parts. They fit seamlessly onto the rest of the body and do a great job of replicating the design from the movie. Ninja Talon’s paintwork isn’t perfect, but it’s pretty good. The switches between gold and grey are somewhat prone to bleed over, but nothing too terrible. I really like the shade of gold used, and the two-toned grey looks very sharp. The figure’s paint looks much better as a whole than Green Lantern and Wonder Woman. It’s nice to see DCC improving on that front. Ninja Talon includes no accessories.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

So, I wasn’t really sure I was going to get this figure. The movie was just alright and I don’t exactly have a lot of attachment to Talon as a character. But, then I saw at a comic store in Bethany Beach and he actually looked pretty cool. I had just bought a bunch of stuff earlier that day, so I figured I’d hold off, and I put him back on the rack. And then he was placed back in my hand. So, I put him back again. And he was placed in my hand again. Seems Super Awesome Girlfriend didn’t want me to put him back, nor did Tim and Jill. So, now I have him. Truth be told, I’m glad they didn’t let me put him back. He’s a pretty fun figure.

#0642: Beetle -Deadliest Foes

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

BEETLE – DEADLIEST FOES

MARVEL LEGENDS INFINITE SERIES

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There are very few lines of which I would consider myself a “completist.” Off the top of my head, I believe the only two I’ve really stuck with are NECA’s Aliens and SMC’s Weaponeers of Monkaa. There was a time, back during ToyBiz’s run on Marvel Legends that I gave owning every figure in the line some thought, but I ultimately decided against it, due mostly to the unevenness of figure quality. When Hasbro took over, I backed down even more, and almost quit the line entirely. When they re-launched under the Infinite Series handle, I went back to cherry-picking, but the quality of the figures has been rapidly increasing, leading to me getting figures I normally wouldn’t. Take, for instance, Beetle, the subject of today’s review. Now, I generally like Beetle as a character, so it’s odd for me to say that he wasn’t a figure I’d normally buy. I’ll get to the why of that in a bit.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Beetle2Beetle was part of the first series of Amazing Spider-Man 2 Marvel Legends Infinite Series. Officially, he’s not actually called Beetle, he’s called Deadliest Foes, a name he shares with Boomerang, who was his swap figure in this line. While they are swap figures, they don’t actually share anything but the Build-A-Figure piece. Beetle is roughly 6 ½ inches tall and has 30 points of articulation. Beetle’s had a few looks over the years, of varying styles. This figure is based on his Ultimate universe design, which is my least favorite of all the Beetle designs. It’s the one used in the Ultimate Spider-Man cartoon show, so I guess it makes a little sense, but it definitely turned me off the figure. Beetle features a sculpt that is unique to him (though a fair bit of it will be re-used for a comic-style Ultron later this year). It’s a well detailed sculpt, and it does a nice job of replicating Mark Bagley’s design of the character from the comic. While there are lots of details and bits, the sculpt still maintains certain sleekness, which is definitely cool. The wings and backpack are a separate piece, which clips into place and stays there nicely. The paintwork on the figure is okay, but, for me, it’s flawed from the start. See, the Ultimate Beetle is silver and red, in contrast to the green and purple scheme of EVERY OTHER BEETLE DESIGN EVER. So, yeah, I don’t really care for the color scheme. Aside from that, the paint is decent enough. There’s a bit of slop here and there, but it’s generally pretty clean. Beetle’s only accessory is the leg to the series Build-A-Figure Ultimate Green Goblin. So, now I’ve got two of those. Cool?

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Beetle was yet another contribution to my collection courtesy of my Super Awesome Girlfriend. Apparently, she was walking through Walgreens and saw this guy and thought I’d like him. Amazingly enough, I hadn’t actually broken down and gotten him yet! While I’m not the biggest fan of the design he’s based on, the figure is actually a lot of fun. I’m really glad I got him!

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Guest Review #0032: Liara

Posted by hodgeppodge42 in Guest Reviews and tagged with , , ,

LIARA

MASS EFFECT MINIMATES

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The following is a guest review from my Super Awesome Girlfriend Jessica.  Take it away Jess!

Heyo! Today’s guest review will be the next installment of the Mass Effect Minimates. Honestly, I should have done this sooner, but oh well! Last time I reviewed Wrex and now I will talk to you guys about the last alien companion in this series.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Liana2Liara is part of the first series of Mass Effect Minimates, exclusively released at GameStop. The series features an assortment of the main characters from the Mass Effect franchise, including some of the alien companions that Shepard picks up along the way.

Liara T’Soni is a pureblood Asari researcher who has dedicated her life to studying the mysterious, and long gone, Prothean race. Commander Shepard first finds Liara on the planet Therum, where the young Asari had been researching the Protheans before the Geth arrived. After being saved by Shepard, she is the last to join the Normandy’s crew and she is the third character with biotic abilities, after Kaiden and Wrex. In the first game, she is used to find her mother, Matriarch Benezia, and she utilizes her abilities to aid Shepard in deciphering the Prothean “vison” that s/he received earlier in the game. Her character is very innocent in the beginning, but by the time you run into her again in the second game she has lost her innocent shell. In Mass Effect 2, she is still your ally but no longer a part of your team. Instead, she gives you information relevant to the mission. By the third installment of the series she is once again fighting by your side to save the universe from the Collectors and the Reapers. By this point, her innocent researcher demeanor has been replaced by a hardened badass biotic fighter.

For the figure itself, the Minimate is about 2 ½ inches tall with 14 points of articulation. The figure has a standard body with a skirt-like add-on. Liara’s head, however, isn’t very standard because of the sculpted hair tentacles, and yes that is a thing. I actually rather enjoy the detailing on her head, it’s well done and they even gave her really tiny freckles! For accessories, she was given a tiny heavy pistol and a clear blue plastic hand piece that is supposed to represent her biotic power. The costume that they used for the figure is one of the options for Liara in Mass Effect 3, and personally my favorite of her costumes. The detailing on her chest and leg pieces are pretty awesome, except for some places were the paint didn’t quite make it in between the lines. Her skirt has some of the same issues, where the paint isn’t quite perfect but as long as you aren’t holding the figure right up to your eye, you don’t really notice. The figure is still pretty cool and well done, especially with the costume design and hair tentacles.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

This figure was a present to me from my amazing boyfriend, Ethan, this past Christmas. As a character, I find Liara’s transformation pretty interesting. She starts out as a little naive scientist/researcher who needs saving from the game’s early villains, after tackling the galaxy over and over, she hardens into resourceful battle-ready companion that has done a lot behind the scenes to help Shepard and the galaxy. Honestly, she kind of freaked me out at first because she is a possible lover for both Shepards, and some of her actions made a younger me very nervous. After a while though, she grew on me and by the time I started playing the third game she had become one of my favorite characters. I loved that she broke out of the typical female scientist mold and became a strong, independent woman who didn’t always need help getting out of a sticky situation. Her Mass Effect 3 character design is very much her ‘butterfly’ form, or finale stage of development, and I’m happy to have her on board!

#0599: TIE Fighter Pilot

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

TIE FIGHTER PILOT

STAR WARS: THE BLACK SERIES

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Star Wars: The Black Series started out pretty strong, but it sort of got a little bit lost for a while, with weird case packouts and a few questionable character version choices. However, it seems like things have picked up a little bit in more recent assortments.  I’ve been starting to find new figures at a more steady pace, which is always a good thing! Let’s have a look at one of the line’s more recent additions, the TIE Fighter Pilot!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

TIEPilot2The TIE Fighter Pilot is part of …ummm….Series 5(?) of Star Wars: The Black Series. I think that’s just means it was the fifth series of the 2014-2015 segment of the line. Hasbro likes to confuse people that way. He’s marked #005 on the package; I think that places him in the second round of numbering, though it would seem he’s been released out of sequence. The figure is just over 6 inches tall and features 28 points of articulation. The TIE Pilot is based on his appearance from A New Hope. The sculpt is mostly new, which actually surprised me a bit. At first glance, I assumed that the TIE Pilot was making use of Pilot Luke’s body. However, upon closer examination, the only pieces they share are the left hand, and the hips. Some of the other parts are similar, but the TIE Pilot is taller than Luke, and the proportions have been tweaked to match. The star piece here is definitely the head sculpt. It’s got a lot in common with the Stormtrooper, but it’s all new. The details are nice and crisp, and everything is properly symmetrical. It looks pretty much like a miniaturized version of the real thing. Paint on the TIE Pilot is on the light side, but what’s there is quite well handled. He’s got the proper Imperial emblems on his shoulders and helmet, which are nice and clean. Also, the figure may be all black, but he’s got matte and shiny finishes on various parts of the uniform, which adds a nice level of realism. The TIE Pilot is also a bit light on accessories, including only a basic Stormtrooper rifle. However, given that the Pilot’s spend most of their time in the TIE Fighters, there aren’t really a lot of accessory options, so I guess it’s forgivable.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

The TIE Pilot is another addition to my collection courtesy of Super Awesome Girlfriend. We needed to pick up a few things from Wegman’s, and, as I’m prone to do, I wandered over to their small toy aisle, where I found this guy. Since she felt bad for dragging me along on a run to the grocery store, Super Awesome Girlfriend decided to buy the figure for me. Because, as I’ve noted many, many times before, she’s waaaaaaaaaay too supportive of this whole collecting thing. The TIE Fighter is a fun addition to the Black Series line-up, and I’m happy to have one.

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#0576: Granite Gladiator Palidar

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

GRANITE GLADIATOR PALIDAR

WEAPONEERS OF MONKAA

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Sometimes in the action figure world, in light of all the fantastic high-end, high-price, low-durability, licensed product, it’s easy to forget that these are toys, and they are meant to be played with. Fortunately, in the last few years, a few lines have shown up with a mission statement of making fun toys first. One such line is Spy Monkey Creations’ Weaponeers of Monkaa. SMC just put out another set of figures not long ago, and I, as a completist of the line, picked them up. Let’s kick things off with Granite Gladiator Palidar!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

GraniteGladiator2GG Palidar is part of the sixth main assortment of the Weaponeers of Monkaa line. He’s the second version of Palidar to grace the line. For those of you not familiar with WoM-lore (which I assume is most of you), Palidar is the right-hand-man of Empyreus, the leader of the heroic Gearo faction. Palidar hasn’t seen a release since the first series of the line, and he’s the last of the named characters to get a second figure. Going by what I’ve read online, it seems that this is supposed to be Palidar’s original appearance, before he joined the Gearo faction. As the name suggests, he was working as a gladiator, which is a pretty cool backstory. In its default set-up, the figure is roughly 4 inches in height and he has 19 points of articulation. Now, the gimmick of the line is that the figures are totally modular, so given how you decide to configure him, his height and articulation could be totally different. In fact, you can reconfigure him so he’s not even Palidar at all. Keeping this in mind, it should also be noted that Palidar uses the same assortment of parts that we’ve seen with every figure in the line. I’ve talked about them a few times before, but I’m still impressed by how sleek they are and how well the fit together in numerous configurations. His default head is, obviously, the Palidar head, but the figure also includes the other four basic heads, so that you can construct a few different Granite Gladiators, should you so choose. The main difference between WoM figures is color scheme. With a name like “Granite Gladiator,” it’s no surprise that the figure is molded in a brownish-grey plastic. It has a nice earthy tone to it, and granite is an appropriate descriptor. Each assortment of figures has one “DX” figure who gets some slightly bumped up paint apps. Palidar is the DX figure for the sixth assortment. He’s got a fair bit of black accent work, which goes really nicely with the grey. He also got a tiny bit of blue for the eyes on the Palidar head, and red on the other heads. Guess those other Granite Gladiators aren’t quite as heroic as Palidar. Everything is applied evenly and cleanly, resulting in quite a sharp looking figure. Palidar is armed with the basic straight blade and sickle, though, in my mind, he prefers to just use his fists.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Like just about every other WoM release, I was on Spy Monkey’s store the day this set was placed up for order. Of course, I happened to be down visiting Super Awesome Girlfriend the day these went up, so I ended up having to place the order on her phone. She’s far too accepting of all this. I wasn’t sure what I was going to think of the Granite series. They’re a little more drab than previous releases, so I thought they might be a little boring. On the contrary, the little touches like Palidar’s eyes give this figure a nice bit of personality, and he’s just as much fun as the line’s other figures!

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