Tag Archives: Super Awesome Wife

Guest Review #0026: Wrex

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

WREX

MASS EFFECT MINIMATES

WrexJ1

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

“Anyone who fights us is either stupid or on Saren’s payroll. Killing the latter is business. Killing the former is a favor to the universe.” – Urdnot Wrex

Heyyyo! Today on this episode of Ethan’s Super Awesome Girlfriend Reviews Mass Effect Minimates, we will be looking at a member of the Krogan, an alien race full of mercenaries so badass even their women eat nails for breakfast and crap grenades!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

WrexJ2This figure is part of the first series of the Mass Effect Minimates, exclusively released at GameStop. The series includes some of the main characters from the Mass Effect franchise, including a few of Shepard’s alien teammates.

Urdnot Wrex is a Krogan mercenary and the third alien companion that you can pick up at the Citadel in the first Mass Effect. He is the classic hardened warrior, whose view of life has been warped by the battles that he’s been through. In some ways, he can be compared to Canderous Ordo, a playable character from the Knights of the Old Republic game (also made by BioWare). Both characters are jaded warriors working as mercenaries with a darker view on life, but both can be redeemed in some way if you make the right choices. Unfortunately for Wrex, your actions affect him more in the first game than the other. Depending on the actions you make or don’t will decide whether Wrex survives the first game and make an appearance in the others. If he lives, he becomes the leader of the Krogans and helps you in the next two installments of the series, but never as a playable character. That’s right, he’s a part of your squad for only one game, unless you buy the Citadel DLC, but that doesn’t make him any less interesting! In fact, after the first game there are other places where you may have to kill him, depending on how much influence you have over him and how much of a paragon you are.

The figure stands at about 2 ½ inches and has 11 points of articulation. Wrex has a regular Minimate body with a unique head and lower legs, like most of the other aliens in this series, as well as a pair of thigh cover add-ons. The Minimate is based on the character design from the first game, which makes sense since he doesn’t always appear in the later installments. The paint detailing is fair for the outfit, though there’s not much to comment on since the armor is almost completely red. The face, however, is pretty impressive because they were able to capture his scary, angry look that makes his enemies piss in their armor mesh. The figure’s mold is also pretty nice, with great detailing in the armor, such as the ridges and the mesh, and his legs are also extremely detailed as well. The figure also comes with a clear plastic stand and a shot gun. Wrex’s shotgun has the standard shape and design and the molding of it is well detailed.

THE ME PART OF THE EQUATION

Even though Wrex can be a bit of a handful at times, I really enjoyed him as a companion, especially with his darker humor. I am sad to say that I couldn’t save him the first time I played the game, and I was extremely heart broken when I watched the scene unfold, and I’ve tried to save him ever since. But now I have him in my collection, and it makes me so happy because I would feel terrible without him! I got this figure from Ethan as a Christmas gift, but not at the same time as all the others in this series. As you may have heard already, Ethan got a bunch of Talis when he was trying to complete the set, but he didn’t get a Wrex, at all. It wasn’t until after we got back from the beach that he was able to trade a Tali for Wrex with the awesome JediJohnson, one of his fellow Minimate Multiverse members. Now my set is complete and I shall take over the world! Mwhahahahaha! Nah, just kidding! …Or am I? >:D

Guest Review #0024: Tali

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

TALI (as labeled on the packet)

MASS EFFECT MINIMATES

TaliJ1

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

Heyo! Welcome to the next episode of Ethan’s Super Awesome Girlfriend Reviews of Mass Effect Minimates (long title right?). Last time I reviewed Shepard’s first alien companion, Garrus. Now, I’ll be reviewing Shepard’s next companion, Tali’Zorah vas Normandy.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

TaliJ2This figure is part of the first series of Mass Effect Minimates, exclusively released at GameStop. The series includes some of the main characters from the Mass Effect franchise, including several of Shepard’s alien teammates.

When you first meet Tali’Zorah nar Rayya, or Tali, she is a young quarian going on a pilgrimage as a rite of passage. After you help her on the Citadel she can join your team, deciding that helping you save the galaxy is a good enough pilgrimage to aid her people. By the second game, Tali finished her pilgrimage with the information that you gave her in the first game, becoming a mature adult quarian and a respectable member amongst her people, receiving the title of Tali’Zorah vas Neema. Later in Mass Effect 2 Tali joins your crew once again to stop the Collectors and to save the human colonies. During her Loyalty Mission she gains the title Tali’Zorah vas Normandy, which is Commander Shepard’s ship, and decides to keep it after the mission is complete. In Mass Effect 3, Tali helps her people to defeat the Geth, the creatures that the quarians had originally created, and to retake their homeworld. She once again joins Shepard’s team when the Normandy decides to aid them in their fight with the Geth.

So for the actual figure itself…Tali is about 2 ½ inches tall with 12 points of articulation. She has a standard body with new shins, and a skirt-like add-on. Her head is made of clear purple plastic, and is covered with a removable helmet/hood. The figure also comes with a clear plastic stand, a standard pistol, and a clear orange plastic omni-tool that’s not removable[it’s supposed to be!–Ethan]. The Minimate is modeled after the costume design that first appeared in Mass Effect 2, which is personally my favorite. It even includes a knife that’s strapped to her lower leg (which isn’t even used until a possible cut-scene in Mass Effect 3). The paint job on the figure is really nice, especially the chest piece, which has a lot of really small detailing. They also painted her ‘eyes’ on the clear head, which I though was great because it gives the same effect that you saw in the game. She includes a pistol and a clear display stand. The Minimate is a well done representation of the game design, and I think it’s great that they even tried to make her calves extend further away from her body than humans. My only complaint is that she didn’t come with a shotgun. Yes, she does use pistols in the game, but in Mass Effect 2 and 3 she is proficient in shotguns as well, and actually uses them more. I mean really, why can’t a girl have a shotgun? They’re great for killing zombies or, in this case, Husks!

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

So as you may guess, I got this figure for Christmas from my amazing boyfriend, Ethan. I later found out that she was one of six other Tali figures that he got when he tried collecting all the Mass Effect Minimates for me. Isn’t that just proof of how awesome she is? I think so anyways…

If you haven’t guessed already, I’m a really big fan of Tali. She has a wonderful and classic story that allows you to see her transform from a ‘teenager’ to a respectable adult. She has a strong personality that is full of determination, but unlike classic ‘strong’ women in gaming she isn’t a bitch. As a character, she is one of my favorite female companions (after Shepard) because I think she can be a wonderful role model for anyone. And I absolutely love her and Garrus as a couple, which can happen in Mass Effect 3, so I am thrilled to have them both as Minimates! 😀

#0448: Carol Peletier

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

CAROL PELETIER

FUNKO POP!

For Day Eleven of the Christmas Reviews, let’s have a look at something a little (but not totally) different. The Doctor Who reviews have wrapped up and the Alien reviews will be finishing up tomorrow. So, today, I’ll be taking a look at another Funko Pop! figure, this time based on the widely popular comicbook turned TV show The Walking Dead. It’s a figure of one of the show’s rising stars Carol Peletier (whose last name I did not know until I owned this figure. So there.)

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Carol is figure #156 in the Funko Pop! Television line. This version is the Hot Topic exclusive blood splattered version. The figure is about 3 ½ inches tall and she has the requisite one point of articulation. It may not be much, but at least it’s consistent. Carol is based on her season 4/season 5 appearance. It’s a good choice because that’s when she truly becomes awesome. The design has been adjusted to fit into the Pop! style. It’s not a style that works for every character, but it works rather well for Carol. The sculpt is surprisingly well detailed for this style of figure. Her clothes are loaded with lots of wrinkles, to give them the appropriate worn look. She’s also got very nicely detailed boots, with all the proper straps and such. She’s even got her knife sheathed on her belt! Like many Funko offerings, this figure’s weakest point is its paint. Granted, Carol’s paint is a fair bit better than most other Pop! figures I’ve seen. Overall, the paint is alright, but there are a few areas with bleed over and fuzzy lines. Fortunately, this figure’s blood splattered look helps to hide some of the rougher spots of paint. Speaking of the blood splatter, it really adds to the figure. It’s very nicely done, and it gives her that messy look that one expects from a survivor of a zombie apocalypse.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Carol is yet another gift from my Super Awesome Girlfriend Jessica. This one marks a change of pace from the Doctor Who theme present in all of her other gifts, but variety’s never a bad thing. Carol is one of my favorite characters on The Walking Dead (and Mellissa McBride is a pretty awesome person outside of the show), so I’m pretty thrilled to have her in figure form!

Guest Review #0020: Garrus Vakarian

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

GARRUS VAKARIAN

MASS EFFECT MINIMATES

GarrusJ1

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

Heeeyo! This is the third installment of the Mass Effect Minimates reviews done by yours truly. Today, I’ll be talking about the first alien to join Shepard’s team in Mass Effect, Garrus Vakarian.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

GarrusJ2This figure is part of the first Series of the Mass Effect Minimates, exclusively released at GameStop. The series includes some of the main characters from the Mass Effect franchise, including several of Shepard’s alien teammates.

Garrus Vakarian is a Turian that was originally part of C-Sec, the law enforcement of the Citadel. He is one of Shepard’s first alien companions in the fight against Saren in the first game and he is a constant companion through the series. He is also one of the ‘poster’ characters who shows up in the series’ promotional stuff. When you first meet him, he’s fresh out of the box, with his own ideas of justice, grating against C-Sec. In Mass Effect 2, Garrus becomes a sharp-shooting vigilante named Archangel, using his own justice to punish criminals kinda like Batman. By the third game, he is willing to die for Shepard in the fight against the Reapers. He’s one of the few characters in the series to stick with Shepard through the entire ordeal, never giving up or losing faith in Shepard’s ability to lead.

The figure is 2 ½ inches and has 13 points of articulation. He has a standard Minimate body with an additional chest plate, and unique head and leg pieces. The figure is modeled after the Mass Effect 3 costume design for Garrus. The paint job is nice, though not as well done as the Shepard’s; his face is really detailed and I like how they also included the scar that he got in Mass Effect 2. Overall, the design transferred well from game pixels to figure. Finally, the figure comes with a standard stand and a well sculpted sniper rifle.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Garrus was another part of the Mass Effect gift that Ethan gave me for Christmas this year. This is a really nice figure. I especially enjoy the detailing to the face and the addition of a movable targeting visor. In the games, I really enjoyed having Garrus on my team because I liked talking to him and watching him grow as a character. He goes from being a green cop to a hardened, loyal soldier and companion. I’m glad to have one of my favorite ME companions in my collection.

#0446: The Doctor & Clara “Oswin” Oswald

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

THE DOCTOR & CLARA “OSWIN” OSWALD

DOCTOR WHO

It’s Day Nine of the Christmas Reviews, and we’re back with that funky British Sci-Fi show Doctor Who. If you’ve been closely following the reviews up to this point, you’ll probably notice that, while I have a fair assortment of Eleventh Doctor-related characters, I don’t actually have an Eleventh Doctor. That changes today! Also of note, I’ll be rounding out the main companions of the Eleventh Doctor (well, sort of). So, let’s have a look at The Doctor and Clara “Oswin” Oswald.

THE FIGURES THEMSELVES

These two figures were released in a two pack dubbed “The Impossible Set,” which is a clever name for a couple of reasons. From a show perspective, Clara, who makes up half of this is set, was dubbed “The Impossible Girl.” But, in addition to that, what’s also somewhat impossible about this set is the scale! See, right before Clara joined the cast of the show, Character Options, who make the Who toys, decided to change the scale of the line from 5-inch to 3 ¾-inch. This meant that the first Clara figure was not compatible with all the other Who companions, which was definitely a bummer. Fortunately, it didn’t last too long, and now we have a Clara in 5-inch scale (well, sort of… I’ll get to that.)

THE DOCTOR

First up, it’s the Doctor, who’s sort of the requisite figure in this set, what with it being his show and all. The figure is about 5 ½ inches tall (counting the hat) and he has 20 points of articulation. The Eleventh Doctor was no stranger to toys, and he ended up with a fair number of them, covering many of his looks. This particular figure is not one of the Doctor’s standard looks. Instead, it’s a specific look from the Series 7 Christmas episode “The Snowmen.” That episode was the first episode following the departure of longtime companions the Ponds, so the Doctor is in a somewhat distraught state, leading to the darker colors and the lack of his signature bow-tie. The episode is set in Victorian-era London, and the Doctor’s dressed to fit in, resulting in a rather unique look for Eleven. The figure is a mostly new sculpt, though he does re-use the hands and legs of the basic version of Eleven. Generally speaking, the sculpt is quite nice. It seems a bit gangly at first, but some re-watching of Smith’s episodes shows that this is pretty accurate. I really like the amount of texture present on the figure. This is something that’s frequently absent from Who figures, but that’s not the case here. I particularly love the hat, which has the perfect well-worn look to it. The figure’s face is a decent approximation of Matt Smith, though I think they’ve made him just a bit too conventionally good looking to be a spot on rendition of Smith. While the sculpt is quite good, and certainly up to par with other Who releases, the paint seems to have taken a slight down turn. It’s not bad, mind you; just not as good as previous Who figures. Overall, the general application and the color scheme are fine. However, there are a few issues with some bleed over, and the paint just seems to be thicker than usual. I’m also not a fan of how the eyebrows look, as if they’ve been drawn on with a pencil. The Doctor’s lone accessory is his Sonic Screwdriver, which seems to be well represented here.

CLARA “OSWIN” OSWALD

So, how is this figure only “sort of” a Clara Oswald figure? Well, it’s like this: this figure is based on Jenna Coleman’s character Oswin the Soufflé Girl, who appeared in Series 7’s “Asylum of the Daleks.” The episode was written, filmed, and shown following Coleman’s casting as the next Companion, but she wasn’t playing the character she would go on to play. However, through a convoluted series of events, the end of Series 7 revealed that Oswin had been a fragment of Clara the whole time, effectively making them the same person. So, this is essentially a Clara figure, more or less. Fortunately, Oswin and Clara had similar styles of dress, so it’s pretty easy to pass this off as either of them. The figure is a little under 5 inches tall, and she has 21 points of articulation (though, I’m not really sure why they even bothered with the neck joint, as the hair renders it useless.) The figure features a unique sculpt. It’s a pretty good one, too, with nice proportions and a good likeness of Jenna Coleman. The majority of the dress is a rubber slip-over piece, allowing for it to go seamlessly across the figure’s waist, while still maintaining a fair bit of the articulation. I’m not sure how well it’ll hold up over time, but it’s good in theory. The figure’s paint is pretty good overall. Everything is evenly applied, and it’s nice and clean. There’s no real issue with slop or bleed over. I’m not sure what’s going on with the eyes, though. They were definitely trying to capture Coleman’s wide-eyed look, but her pupils are a bit low, resulting in an almost frightened look, which, when coupled with the slight smile, looks a bit frightening. Like the Doctor, Oswin includes a single accessory: her soufflé. It’s a fun enough accessory, though she can’t hold it very well.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

The Doctor and Clara/Oswin, like all my Doctor Who figures, were a gift from my Super Awesome Girlfriend Jessica. I’m really happy to have an Eleventh Doctor for my shelf, and I really like this particular look. I’m also happy to have another Companion. While I’m not the biggest fan of Clara, I actually really liked Oswin during her short appearance on the show, so this figure’s even more of a win for me!

#0444: Rory Williams

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

RORY WILLIAMS

DOCTOR WHO

Today marks Day Seven of my Christmas Reviews. We are officially at the mid-point of these reviews, so hang in there.

My gifts this year had a definite split between Aliens stuff and Doctor Who stuff. The last two days were Aliens-related, so it’s only fitting that I jump back to Doctor Who for the day. The last set of Who figures added to my Eleventh Doctor collection; today’s figure does the same. In an effort to make poor Amy even less lonely, today I’ll be looking at her husband Rory, second companion of the Eleventh Doctor.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Rory was released as part of Character Option’s 5-inch scale Doctor Who line. He was a later addition to the line, coming after it had stopped doing regular series releases. As such, Rory was released on his own, although there were three different color variations available. This one is the red/blue combo, which is the most readily available of the three. Rory is roughly 5 inches tall and he has 18 points of articulation. While I don’t know specifically what episode he’s based on, he’s definitely a Rory from his first season on the show. The figure features a unique sculpt, though it was shared by all three Rorys. Generally speaking, it’s really not bad. Let’s talk about the sculpt from the neck down first. It’s a nice, sharp sculpt, with lots of nice detail. It’s a bit light on texture, but that’s less of an issue here than it was on, say, the Roman Auton. The figure is generally well proportioned, if perhaps a bit stocky for Rory (though that’s not new for this line).  The head sculpt is, overall, pretty good. It certainly bears more than a passing resemblance to Arthur Darvill, but he seems too full in the face, and the hair is a bit too short for Rory. That said, I’ve seen far worse likenesses. Rory’s paint work is pretty good, if a tad basic. For the body, that’s not too bad. The colors are nice and clean, and everything stays in the appropriate spaces. There’s also some very nice texturing on the figure’s pants, and some decent work on the shoes. The issues begin to arise with the head. It’s clean enough (aside from a spot on his nose), but the eyebrows are a little too clean. There’s also some bleed over along his hairline. None of it’s bad, but it could be a little better. Rory included no accessories.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Rory was yet another gift from my Super Awesome Girlfriend Jessica. Rory was one of my favorite characters on the show, and I’m thrilled to have him in figure form. What’s more, the figure is actually a really good figure. For a normal guy in normal clothes, he’s actually a pretty fun figure!

Guest Review #0019: Commander Jane Shepard

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

COMMANDER JANE SHEPARD

MASS EFFECT MINIMATES

FemShepJ1

Heyo! This is the second episode of the Super Awesome Girlfriend reviews Mass Effect Minimates! Last time I talked to you about the Male Shep Minimate, so I found it fitting to follow up with Jane Shepard, or Fem Shep.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

FemShepJ2This figure is one of the first Series of Mass Effect Minimates, exclusively released at GameStop. As I said in my last review, this series contains the characters from the Mass Effect game series.

Commander Jane Shepard is the female version of John Shepard, created for female gamers like me, or for those guys that like to play as badass women. I won’t waste your time restating the things I said about the character, so if you want more information just look at the Commander John Sheppard article.  It would also apply to Jane.

Fem Shep Minimate is about 2 ½ inches tall with 14 points of articulation. Ethan says that she has a standard Minimate body with additional shoulder pads and a hair piece. The figure has the same paint job as Male Shep, except this figure doesn’t have painted pecks but breasts and a woman’s figure. The paint job on this figure is well done, with great detailing in the armor, and the womanly figure is pretty realistic as well. This Minimate comes with two hair pieces, the generic hair style from the first Mass Effect, and the second one is modeled after the hair style of Mass Effect 3. Personally, I like the style from the third game, as it makes Fem Shep more badass. And finally, this figure comes with a detailed standard assault rifle, a clear orange plastic omni-blade that only appeared in the third installment of the game series, and a standard stand.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

This was another figure that I got on Christmas day from Ethan. I really enjoy this figure because I mostly played as Jane Shepard in the games; it was only recently that I played as John. I actually really like Fem Shep in the games because she wasn’t designed to be really busty and seductive, she was a soldier and she truly looked like one too.  She was also a poor dancer, too bad they didn’t give the figure two left feet!

Guest Review #0018: Commander John Shepard

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

COMMANDER JOHN SHEPARD

MASS EFFECT MINIMATES

JohnShep1

Heeeeyoo! It’s me again, the Super Awesome Girlfriend, Jess.

This addition of The Figure in Question is the first in a long line of Mass Effect Minimates reviews done by yours truly. Since last time I haven’t really learned much about action figures, especially Minimates, so some of the information about the figures will be supplied by Ethan, but my opinions and gaming knowledge is my own. So sit back and enjoy the reading!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

JohnShep2This figure is part of the first Series of Mass Effect Minimates released exclusively by GameStop. As the name suggests, this series is comprised of characters from the Mass Effect franchise, created by BioWare. Today, I’ll begin with the main hero Commander John Shepard, also known as Male Shep.

Male Shep is the main playable character from Mass Effect, a role playing game set in space. The Commander is the first human to become a Spectre, an agent appointed by the Citadel Council to work inside and outside of the law to get the job done. The decisions that you make as the Commander will affect how the game unfolds to some degree, more so in the last installment.

The Minimate is about 2 ½ inches tall with 14 points of articulation. According to Ethan, the figure has the standard Minimate body with additional shoulder pads. The figure also has the generic face designed by BioWare. The body is painted like the N7 armor from Mass Effect 3, with amazing detail work, especially on the back of the chest piece. Along with the Minimate is a well replicated standard assault rifle from the game, an omni-blade made of clear orange plastic, and a standard stand.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

This was one of several Mass Effect Minimates that I got from Ethan for Christmas. I remember him showing me pictures of the prototypes from one of the conventions. Of course, I geeked out when I saw the detailing in the pictures and told Ethan he should get them for himself. I geeked out even more when I saw them in person and found them in a present for me; I never thought that he would get them for me and I would be reviewing them. Male Shep was well done and looks amazing in Minimate form. Even when he’s 2 ½ inches he still looks rugged and badass.

#0441: Doctor Who Pandorica Set

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


UNDERHENGE DALEK, ROMAN AUTON, AMY POND, SONTARAN GENERAL, UNDERHENGE ROMAN AUTON, & DALEK DRONE

DOCTOR WHO

Christmas Reviews continue to merrily chug along today, with entry #4. This one is another venture into the world of Doctor Who, which I am still relatively new to, especially when it comes to toys. Prior to this Christmas, the vast majority of my Who collection has been related to David Tennant’s Tenth Doctor. The one lone exception was Amy Pond, first companion to the Eleventh Doctor. Well, now Amy should be just a tad bit less lonely. Today’s review covers a few of the villains to show up during Matt Smith’s inaugural season of the show.

THE FIGURES THEMSELVES

These six figures were released as a special “Pandorica Set,” based on the final two episodes of the Eleventh Doctor’s first season. Of the six included, only the Underhenge Dalek is actually new to the set. However, this is the first time I’ve seen most of these figures, so I’ll review them as if they were new.

UNDERHENGE DALEK

The Daleks are one of the Doctor’s most recurring foes, and they undergo just as many “regenerations” as he does, if not more. The Dalek figure is a little over 5 inches in height and it features 4 points of articulation, as well as three functioning wheels at the bottom. Both of the Daleks in this set are based on the slightly changed design that first appeared in “Victory of the Daleks.” It’s not my favorite of the Dalek designs; it just seems a bit clunky. This particular Dalek is based on the “Underhenge” look, where one of the Daleks is turned to stone by the Pandorica. It’s the same sculpt as the regular Dalek in this set. The sculpt is certainly accurate to the design from the show, and it features some very nice, very clean work. All of the parts look properly machined, which is good. The figure has been molded in a very dark blue plastic, and a rocky finish has been applied. The paint has purposefully been done so as to leave clumps and such to make the figure appear as if it really has been turned to stone. It’s a solid effect, and it certainly makes the figure unique. The Underhenge Dalek includes no accessories.

ROMAN AUTON

The Roman Autons are probably the most storyline specific of the characters included in this set. They are created by the Pandorica (with a little help from Amy), and they aren’t seen again after the story wraps up. Mostly, they served as an interesting way to bring back Rory. The figure is about 5 inches in height and it has 18 points of articulation. Sadly, it predates the line’s move to better shoulder articulation, greatly limiting the figure’s posing potential. He doesn’t appear to be based on any specific Auton; instead he seems to amalgamate a few of them. It might have been nice if they had given him a Rory head to make this particular release a bit more unique, but it’s okay as is. The sculpt is a pretty nice piece of work. There are a lot of layers to it, and it sums up to look of the characters pretty well. However, it could definitely benefit from a bit more texturing to help spice it up a bit. The cape is a cool touch, and I guess it’s consistent with the rest of the sculpt. The head looks a tad too much like a portly English actor dressed up like a Roman, which makes it a bit difficult to take it seriously. The paint job is one of the shining points of the figure. There are a few spots of slop and bleed over, but nothing too major or distracting. What’s more, the figure feature some wonderful texture work on the armor pieces, which really makes them look like more than just chunks of plastic. The Auton includes a sword and dagger, both of which can be put away in the provided sheaths.

AMY POND

Amy is the one figure in this set that isn’t new to me. This figure is pretty much identical to the single release, which I reviewed a few months back. The one difference that I noted is that the skin tone on this one seems better than the last, which does a fair bit to improve an already good figure.

SONTARAN GENERAL

The Sontarans are another recurring foe of the Doctor, though they’re nowhere near as prominent as the Daleks, or even the Cybermen. Probably the most memorable thing about them as of late is Strax, the Sontaran who began making recurring appearances as one of the Doctor’s companions about halfway through Eleven’s tenure. While this figure is meant to just be a generic Sontaran, the fact that they’re all clones and therefore should look approximately the same means that this figure will be Strax, as far as my shelf is concerned. The Sontaran figure is about 4 ¾ inches tall and has 22 points of articulation. Most of it’s pretty straight forward, aside from the weird ball joint thing they’ve used for his waist. I’m not sure why they didn’t just use the standard cut joint; the end result both looks and moves very oddly. Aside from that, the figure’s sculpt is really quite nice. The head has a wonderful amount of texture and really looks like one of the Sontarans from the show. The body, while not quite as impressive as the head, features some pretty solid work and has its fair share of little details that stand out. The paintwork is about on par with the sculpt; the best work is on the head, but the body isn’t bad either. The Sontaran includes his blaster-staff-thingy and a helmet. Sadly, neither of them is quite as good as they could be. He has trouble holding the staff, and the helmet simply does not fit within his collar.

UNDERHENGE ROMAN AUTON

Like the Dalek, one of the Roman Autons also found himself turned to stone by the Pandorica. Which, of course, translates to another action figure! Like the regular Roman Auton, this figure is about 5 inches tall and he sports 18 points of articulation. Structurally, he’s the same as the regular Auton, except this figure is missing the cape. It actually looks a bit better that way, if I’m honest. Like the Dalek, the Underhenge Roman Auton is molded in a dark blue plastic and has been painted with a rough tan paint. In the Auton’s case, this serves as an improvement to the figure on a few fronts. Most notably, it alleviates the issues of texture with the sculpt. It also helps to mask the somewhat goofy headsculpt and just works to give the figure a lot more character in general. The Underhenge Auton is packed with the same sword and dagger included with the regular version, with the handles done to match the rest of the figure.

DALEK DRONE

So, after looking at the Underhenge version, let’s wrap things up with a look at the standard Dalek from the set. Like the ‘Henge version, this figure is just over 5 inches tall, has 4 points of articulation, and sports three working wheels on the bottom. The Dalek Drone has the same sculpt as the ‘Henge one, but now we’re free to see it more clearly. It really is a very well handled recreation of the Daleks from the show, and all of the parts look just about right. There are a few issues with mold lines being more obvious on this version, but so not bad that it ruins the figure. That paint on this Dalek is certainly more involved than the ‘Henge Dalek, but it’s not quite as well done. The head and “neck” are both extremely well-handled, but from there down, issues start crop up. The worst problem is with the spheres on the lower half. The paint on them is very sloppily applied, and there is more than a little bleed over. Viewed from a distance, it isn’t terrible, but it’s pretty bad at a normal view. The Dalek Drone includes no accessories.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

The Padorica set was a Christmas gift from my Super Awesome Girlfriend, Jessica (okay, technically from her parents, but she was the one who suggested it, and she’s the one who’s insanely supportive of my hobby, so I’m gonna give her a lot of the credit). I really like this set. The Amy included is a slight improvement on the last, Strax is really cool, and I can’t help but love the Underhenge figures. Seriously, I’d buy an entire line of Who figures done like those two!

#0437: The Other Doctor

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

THE OTHER DOCTOR

DOCTOR WHO

And let the gift reviews begin! Today’s review is the first of my “Christmas Reviews” so to speak, but it’s not exactly a Christmas gift, for reasons I’ll get into at the end. So, let’s consider this Christmas Review #0.

A year ago, I owned no Doctor Who action figures. In fact, just a few months before that, I’d never seen an episode of Doctor Who. Two things changed that: a) My girlfriend got into it and encouraged me to start watching it, and b) virtually everyone was talking about how cool the 50th anniversary special was. One of the things that intrigued me the most was John Hurt in the role of the “War Doctor;” I’m a fan of John Hurt, largely due to Alien. So, I caught up to the show, and I am now a very definite Whovian. So, in honor of the thing that pulled me into the show, and by extension the toyline, let’s have a look at the War Doctor in toy form!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

The War Doctor, or the “Other Doctor” as he is referred to on the package, was an individual release in the Doctor Who line, meant to capitalize on the 50th Anniversary special. He is notable in that, while he was released after the line’s move to the smaller 3 ¾ inch scale, he was done in the previous 5 inch scale, so he could fit in with the older figures. As such, he is a little under 5 inches tall (Hurt’s not a particularly tall guy), and he features 20 points of articulation. Near as I can tell, the sculpt is all new to this particular figure. It’s really a great sculpt. His jacket is perhaps a little too bulky, but not overly so, and the rest of his body is well-proportioned and has some nice detail work in the folds and textures. The head is pretty much a spitting image of Hurt, which is great. Hurt is notoriously strict about his face being used on merchandise, so this is, I believe, the only official Hurt sculpt to date. They did well on this one. War Doctor’s paint work has its goods and it’s bads. The overall paint work is pretty good,; everything is pretty much clean, and there’s no slop or bleed over to speak of. There some truly tremendous work on the pants and boots, and some exceptional work on the funky pattern on his ascot. It seriously looks like they shrank the real thing down. However, the figure has some seriously goofy looking eyes. They aren’t too bad from a little distance, but up close they look weird. The jacket’s paint is definitely a case of good in theory, but less so in practice. They’ve tried to give it a weathered, broken in look, but the lighter brown is inconsistently applied. It’s really thick some places, but totally absent elsewhere. It’s not terrible, but it’s obviously not the effect they were trying to get. The War Doctor includes his version of the Sonic Screwdriver, the “Moment” accessory from the 50th Anniversary special, and an extra Paul McGann Eighth Doctor head, depicting him from the “Night of the Doctor” short done to lead into “Day of the Doctor.” The head’s a neat enough idea, though Eight never actually wore this getup (though War Doctor did grab the bandolier right after his regeneration).  It’s still a cool idea, though.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

The War Doctor was a gift from Super Awesome Girlfriend, given to me as an anniversary gift (yep, I got the Anniversary Doctor for our anniversary. She’s a clever one.) “But, wait, Ethan, didn’t you say this was sort of a Christmas Review?” Yes, I did random imaginary reader! See, we’re the crazy sort of people who started dating on Christmas Eve, so, extra present I guess. The War Doctor has a small fault or two, but, overall, he’s a phenomenal figure. They really hit it out of the park with this one.