CANARY - DC Collectibles CW Arrow figure overview

DC Collectibles released Canary, based on the live action television show Arrow, this past week to comic stores. I don't watch the show and I had zero intentions of buying this figure until I saw it in-hand. The figure, package and presentation won me over, though, and I picked her up. She'll be staying in-package, so this is just a quick overview of in-package impressions.

Canary is done in a 7" scale and comes in an attractive window-box that shows off the figure and accessories very well. There's a photo of the actress along one side, and the 4 figures in the line on the back (she was presently released with Oliver Queen  with Totem, while Deathstroke and Arrow (season 2 versions) will be released at a later time). Accessories include an extended staff and a round shriek emitter.

The figure itself looks really great. Credit for sculpting is given to Gentle Giant Studios on the back of the package, and even though the sculpt might not be "spot-on", it's 1) close enough and 2) very attractive. The skin-colored plastic used is especially nice, and there's loads of sculpted clasps, laces and wrinkles all over. The hair has a heavy-handed wash to it, and the strands are pretty thick, but it still looks good. I had to go through three figures on the shelf to find one with the best paint around the mask and eyes - there's some bleed around the edges of the mask, and the eyes can be misaligned pretty easily, but I managed to find one that I can be satisfied with. Incidentally, there's some texturing on the mask, itself, which is great!

Articulation looks pretty good, without opening the package. She looks like she's got double jointed knees and hips that will swing out to the sides. There's an upper torso joint below the chest, but I don't see anything at the belt-line. There's more, but I'm wary of speculating about kinds and range of motion without taking her out. In sum, Canary is an excellent looking action figure representation of a live-action actress. The proportions are reasonable, the likeness is strong, there's plenty of attention to detail both in sculpt and paint, and there are a couple of character-specific accessories included. She retails for about $25.

GODZILLA 1985 - NECA Godzilla figure review

NECA's newest Godzilla figure has been shipping over the past couple of weeks: Godzilla 1985 is here, and...I've got to say I'm largely disappointed. Now, I love NECA, and I really enjoy my Godzilla figures. I've enjoyed their 2014 and 1994 versions, and I'm really looking forward to the 1995 and 1954 prototypes they've shown off. But, honestly, this 1985 Godzilla is a hot mess. Even with the re-tooled head his proportions are off, and he probably the ugliest Godzilla I've seen outside of some American Bandai vinyls.

The movie this figure is based on is one of the few Godzilla movies I have never seen, so keep in mind that I have no idea about on-screen accuracy here - I'm going on what's in front of me. His head, though vastly improved from the earlier prototype, is too big. His chest is too narrow, his arms are too thin, his pot-belly is too potted, his legs are bowed and his feet are too small. He reminds me more of an awkward chicken than the King of the Monsters. If this is what he actually looked like in the film, I think I'm better off ignoring it.

The articulation is pretty good. The head has a terrific range of motion - he can look up and tilt way better than either of the previous NECA Godzillas could. The jaw is hinged, and I like that the neck articulation doesn't include that weird outer case. There's no bicep swivel on this guy, like 1994 had, and the hands seem more like swivels than balls. Everything else is pretty much the same. I can barely get any bend out of the right leg (and I've got 2 opened), the knees rotate well, but the hips really give me trouble. They are hard to get aligned so that the feet can lay flat while keeping them looking ok from the side.

The tail is short, but keeps the articulated segments at the base, while having a bendy end that needs attaching. The spines are a bit sloppy in the paint department, and are made of a softer rubber.

The paint is otherwise very good. The eyes are especially sharp and clearly done, as is the tongue, mouth and the teeth are really excellent.

The toenails have a darker brown at the base, which is neat, though mine has a touch of slop on one foot.

The skin textures are sharp and well-sculpted. There's some variation between the pebbly chest and stomach vs the striated arms. The detailing even makes it onto the underside of the tail.

I really wanted to love this guy - after all, he's an articulated 6" Godzilla! But, unfortunately, I've got to say that NECA kind of let me down with this one. Standing alone, he's kind of passable. But it really becomes apparent that something's just not right about 1985 when he's posed alongside other NECA or S.H. MonsterArts figures. He's just...off: he doesn't look like a representation of the same character for some reason. At a price-tag of just under $20, he's ok, and for a genuine 1985 purist, he may be the greatest representation one could ever hope for. But for me, when placed among my 13 other 6" scale Godzilla figures, this one is easily the worst...