Let's get this out of the way right here: Mr. Freeze is outrageously overpriced. On taking him out of the box, you are almost guaranteed to feel disappointed, fleeced, bamboozled...whatever the right term is. Which is all very unfair to this figure- he's starting the game a leg down, so to speak. So, let's consider him on his merits, and go into the purchase knowing exactly what you are getting: a regular-sized figure in a deluxe box. Of course, keeping him MIB could soften the blow, because you'll never know how much you paid for empty space, but to each their own.
Mr. Freeze comes in a box that matches Killer Croc's in almost every way. It isn't particularly attractive, and doesn't show the figure off well (though Freeze isn't as tucked away as Croc), but it does an effective job of protecting the contents, as well as hiding most of the empty space. Like I said earlier, this is one figure that's better left in its package. Freeze comes with his freeze gun, a standard black disc display stand and the front shield of his helmet. The face plate has a slight blue tint to it, which looks good until its removed from the box. Close inspection will show that the tint isn't uniform, and lays thicker in some places, and is absent in others. Once it's clipped firmly into place, however, you can't tell (the dark background of the helmet interior effectively hides the inconsistencies). Packaging Freeze without the shield in place was a pretty good call- it really allows you to appreciate the head sculpt, which is brilliant.
The sculpt, from head to toe, is top-notch, and it's the one reason to bite the bullet and pick up this figure. The detailing is gorgeous- the pictures really can't do it justice. There's a subtle texturing beneath the hexagonal patterning of the pants, a faint ribbing beneath the torso hoses, and smooth metallic angles to the chest piece. You really get a sense that the suit is made of many different elements, kind of like NECA's Dead Space Isaac Clarke figure. The shield magnifies Freeze's face a bit, and makes him really difficult to get into focus for photographs, but the look is a super one. The paint is strong, for the most part, as well. The silver highlights and metallic drybrushing work very well, and the blue is a great shade (actually, it's in a couple of shades), but its coverage isn't uniform, and even looks sloppy in two notable places on my figure's legs.
Mr. Freeze is a super looking figure, with two exceptions: I feel like his left fist is really tiny (minor quibble), and the sculpt around his knee joints is very odd. They are VERY thin where the back of the thigh meets the top of the calf, and the whole thing doesn't really line up very well. He's either knock-kneed or they are just sculpted off-angle on my figure. In fact, the magnification of his head under the faceplate combines with the thin arms and legs to make him more bobble-headed-looking than he actually is.
I feel like I'm coming across as harsher than I intend: Mr. Freeze is an awesome looking figure with a top-quality sculpt and paint job. Once we move away from the sculpt, we get to some weaknesses. Mr. Freeze is not very well-articulated. His head has a nice ball-joint that's tough to get to because the face shield needs to be removed to do so. He sports ball-jointed shoulders, single pin elbows and knees, cut ankles and thighs, and standard T-hips. You can get a decent look or two from the arms, but the legs are going to be pretty vanilla in terms of poses.
Freeze's gun has some nifty detailing, and fits his grip well, but the front nozzle (gold part) is warped from the package. The black disc base does fine holding Freeze up (he doesn't really need it), but it's too small so one of his feet is hanging off the edge.
Mr. Freeze is a nice addition to the Arkham video game line. He looks great with the other characters, and I'm pretty sure he looks really close to the in-game design (like most of the Arkham figures do). He doesn't move well, he doesn't come with much, and he costs twice as much as he should, but if you're a die-hard fan of the game, you'll be able to overlook the small complaints and the bloated price to enjoy an amazing Mr. Freeze.
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