Darth Maul - Star Wars The Black Collection 6" scale pictures

Just some fun with the new Darth Maul figure...

A Tale of Two Vaders

Hasbro's new The Black Collection of 6" Star Wars figures seems to be my gateway drug back into Star Wars figure collecting. The 90's Power of the Force line is what roped me into the obsessive hobby in the first place, but I gave up on Star Wars years ago, with hyper-detailed 1/12 scale figures by companies like NECA taking in the brunt of my collecting dollars. Of course, now that looks like it's all about to change: Star Wars has returned with a vengeance. And it's not just The Black Collection, it seems. A ton of really neat new Star Wars figure merchandise has hit recently, and I couldn't resist two really different versions of my favorite baddy: Lord Darth Vader himself. First up is the Giant Size 31" behemoth I stumbled across at Wal-mart.

Ok, this guy really does top out at exactly 31" tall. I've seen the Man of Steel and Dark Knight giants, but was never really taken enough to bite. Vader here is totally different. He looks awesome! The sculpt is brilliant. The mask has lots of sharp angles and edges and the outfit itself combines plastic sculpt (wrinkles- check out the torso) along with soft goods cloth cape and skirt parts. It all fits together really well for a striking look. Vader even sports a chain clasp at the neck!

I was most surprised to see who made this big guy: JAKKS Pacific, makers of some of the most disappointing figures I've ever come across! Well, JAKKS knocked this one out of the park! My only real issue is with the proportions. Vader's head seems a little too small when compared to the body, and his right fist also seems a bit small, as does his lightsaber hilt. These are small issues. The "big one", is his crotch piece- it's enormous. That doesn't really sound like it should: theres an armor piece that runs from the belt clasp downwards that just dominates the entire lower half of the torso. It doesn't impede anything, and isn't too noticeable most of the time because of the skirt pieces, but it does tend to jut out if the legs are pulled back significantly.

Giant Vader has a terrific, clean paint job. The chest and shoulder pieces are especially great. Articulation isn't much to write home about: cut neck, shoulders, wrists and hips (7 points). You won't get anything dynamic, but this is one big plastic statue, so even raising his grasping left arm/hand and turning his head a little changes the look a bit. I think an elbow joint and an interchangeable hand/fist would have done wonders, but Giant Vader does what he is supposed to especially well: look imposing and really really big!

The other Darth Vader that I picked up is the much smaller Playskool Jedi Force Star Wars Heroes Vader with saber-slashing action. There are 3 new figures in this line: Darth Vader, Prequels Obi-Wan and Captain Rex. Each features a play action where squeezing their legs together with swing their right arm up and down at the shoulder. This means no leg articulation.

The sculpt on Playskool Vader's mask is very different from Giant Vader's. It's much more flattened and wide, plus the eyes are painted red. He also sports a cloth cape and skirt, along with minimal articulation: cut neck, wrists and shoulders, along with hinged elbows (7 points). No dynamic poses here, but kids will have a ton of fun swinging that saber hand by squeezing the legs (I know because my 7 year old never seems to tire of it!). Playskool Vader is fun and different enough to be worth getting. He's more kid-friendly but retains his inherent Vader evil coolness. And at $8 he didn't cause too much damage to the wallet.

Both of these Darth Vaders are neat figures in their own right, while being unique enough to be worth adding to the collection. I wish Giant Vader came with an ignited lightsaber that he could hold, while also wishing that Playskool Vader's lightsaber could be removed- that sounds weird, I know, but it would give each some additional looks. But all in all, they are both great interpretations of an iconic film baddy...

The Dark Knight - Medicom MAFEX Batman Figure Review

At this point, there have been a LOT of Dark Knight versions of Christopher Nolan's Batman released in various scales and price points. The Movie Masters 6" line is what originally brought me back into toy-collecting after a long hiatus, and for a long time those were the best I thought Batman could get. That line has grown, with plenty of groans and glitches, but in the mean-time we've added Hot Toys and Play Arts Kai to the roster. Now, along comes Medicom with a new take on the Dark Knight. How did it turn out? It may well be time to sell off those Movie Masters figures!

I honestly didn't know what to expect with this figure. I pre-ordered him 6 or 7 months ago, sight unseen, from a site that advertised him as highly articulated, and that's about it. I'm a sucker for the Dark Knight, so I went ahead and pre-ordered. Flash forward 6 months, and I get an email that my figure is about to ship. I actually considered cancelling - I had just gotten the Play Arts version (and wasn't all that impressed, but that's a different story), and was pretty doubtful that another version could offer anything new.

Medicom's Dark Knight comes packaged in a window box with some nice artwork of Batman in several action poses on the back. You can see everything nicely, but this isn't a figure you want to keep in-package. The figure and accessories are sandwiched between plastic trays inside, and there's even a small clear plastic baggie-type thing under his head. You get Batman, his grapple gun, the EMP launcher and 3 extra hands. All told, he has 2 fists, 2 splayed hands and 1 gripping (right) hand.

You also get a nifty, clear plastic Robot Spirits style display stand. It's really useful for action poses- not one of those stupid discs with a foot post in it. That said, there's a couple of things that are missing. I personally would have included another hand with splayed fingers and a batarang sculpted between a couple of them, for throwing poses, and one with those little bombs sculpted in the palm. I also might have included a second, vinyl cape that could be switched out for the cloth one for those who don't like cloth, or even added some wire to the edge of this one to allow the cape to be posed a bit more dynamically. Finally, a second head either unmasked or with the infrared goggles would have made this guy complete, and made any other version completely unnecessary.

As advertised, Medicom's Dark Knight has outstanding articulation. There's a ton of joints allowing for great posing options, and it's actually the articulation that really won me over with this guy. The head's balljointed, and is on a balljointed neck. The two work together very well to allow him to look up, which is terrific if you own the Movie Masters Batpod. He's perfect on that. He doesn't have as good a range of motion looking down, though, which is disappointing for those scowling, glaring poses from on up-high. The shoulders are ball-jointed with a swivel embedded inside. They're really loose, though, and fall out very easily. They pop back in pretty easily, as well, but it can be frustrating. Double jointed elbows and knees, ball wrists allowing for easy swapping of the hands, and really tight rocker ankles are all good. The articulated toes don't allow the foot to lie flat, though; they are always pointed upwards (moreso on the right foot than the left). There's a ball waist with lots of tilt and another under the rubberized chest piece, so he can crunch and lean to your heart's content.

The weapons fit well in Batman's hand, but I can't get the EMP posed two-handed like the back of the package advertises. I tend to be horrendous at posing, so I think it can be done, but only with the butt of the rifle propped over Batman's shoulder, not resting against it. One of those in-out shoulder swivels like NECA included with their Gears figures might have accomplished the job, or I need to sit down with a bit more patience to get it to work. The loose shoulders really get annoying, but everything else about the articulation blows the Movie Masters version out of the water. Oh, almost forgot! The hips have a nifty addition: the post actually moves up and down, so you can slide the hip joint up higher, or down lower, depending on the pose you are looking for. This allows for those side kick poses, while reducing the gap in regular standing poses. It took me a bit to notice it, and another little while to get used to it, but it works pretty well once you do so.

The sculpt on Medicom's MAFEX Dark Knight is nothing short of terrific. The details from head to toe are integrated well, and work with a simple paint job and complex tampos to (again) make this guy nearly perfect! I say nearly, because of one thing: there's something "off" to me about his head sculpt. It's too round, and too big for my tastes. The prototype pictures on the package show a grimmer mouth (that can tilt down appropriately), while in-hand this guy's rounded noggin just looks too "soft" to me. Otherwise, he's brilliant, even down to the tiny mesh-tampographing done on his armor to make it look like that "carbon weave whatever" that Lucius Fox mentioned.

I tried to replicate all of the promo pictures from the package back, with varying degrees of success. I could come close with most of them (except the EMP pic), as shown here.

I was initially very disappointed in this guy. The face/head sculpt threw me, and he carries a pretty hefty price-tag, at about $40. That, and the fact that his arm fell off right away didn't get us off on the right foot. But once I started messing around with him, I really began to enjoy myself. I tend to not have enough fun with my toys: they get posed in one way, then find themselves on a shelf forevermore, only occasionally to be noticed again, it seems. Not so with MAFEX Dark Knight. He's tons of fun to pose and mess around with. Yes, the joints are loose, but I think that's intentional, to allow for posing. And the stand really helps. He looks good with the other Movie Masters lineup, and he's probably the last 6" scale Dark Knight Batman I'll ever need. I actually like the cloth cape, as it doesn't weigh him down and it's done well-enough to allow for lots of posing (and it won't get in the way on the Batpod). It's attached pretty tightly, so I don't think I'd try to switch it out with a Movie Masters plastic one, but I suppose it could be done.

Medicom's MAFEX Dark Knight is a really cool figure. You won't find him at Target or Wal-mart. He's a great little import-piece, and has so much to offer, that he's definitely worth a look. If you can get over the price tag (hey, you may be able to sell-off those Movie Masters versions, if Mattel's plastic hasn't deteriorated, leaving a ghostly white film over portions like mine have, to make up some of the costs for this guy), you probably won't regret getting him. I know I don't...

Miss Tessmacher - JAKKS Pacific TNA Deluxe Impact Wrestling

Miss Tessmacher joins the ranks of JAKKS Pacific TNA Knockouts in Series 10. She's built on the same body as Series 9 Gail Kim, with notable paint differences, the addition of kneepads and (of course) a new head.


Tessmacher is one of my favorite Knockouts, and I was really looking forward to this figure of her. Unfortunately, the best I can say is that it's "ok".

HITS:

• The articulation is good, standard fare for a female wrestling figure.
• The card back shot of Miss Tessmacher is great.
• The paint is mostly clean and sharp...mostly

MISSES:

• Her head seems too big for her body- there's a bit of a candy-apple thing going on here
• The face sculpt doesn't come close to doing this Knockout justice
• Her teeth are way too white- even more so in person
• There's a weird dark spot on mine's forehead. I don't think this would be a common QC issue, but you may not want to buy sight-unseen
• I don't like the hair sculpt- too thick and pronounced

Miss Tessmacher is a passable figure that could have been lots better. The big head and face paint issues really hampered my impressions of her. It's really disappointing. I only hope that Taryn Tyrell fares better when her turn comes around...

ORCS!

I happened to wander down an aisle at Toys R Us this week that I usually don't bother with. It's between NECA aisle and the TMNT aisle, and it's made up of all this random stuff (mostly military) that I don't care much about, so I never bother. Well, I happened to glance over and saw a box of Orcs, called simply "Orcs", so I went and checked it out. Turns out, it's a fairly awesome set, so I thought I'd spread the word...

Orcs is from a True Legends line and seems to be made by Toys R Us. The True Legends line includes a variety of topics from Ninjas to Military, Wild West and Pirates, amongst others. The Legends title seems to be the Fantasy theme catch-all.

The Orcs come packaged in a window box that features come pretty cool artwork and a simple backdrop that uses bright colors against a dark base to set the figures off. They are all clearly visible, as are their accessories. The part under the artwork is empty, wasted space, but the picture is so cool that I don't care.

The box back gives a quick little generic narrative about warring Elves and Orcs, along with pictures of 2 other sets: Elves and Orc Raiding Party (which comes with 2 2-headed Wargs...I mean dogs..., 2 Orcs and a stone arch). It looks pretty awesome, as well. The elf set is kind of blah, but I'm thinking they might be necessary if only for to have someone for these guys to fight!

The package is remarkably attractive, efficient and well-designed. I only bring up that point because (and keep this in mind from here-on-in) this set sells for $9.99. Yep, it's cheap. And usually, you get what you pay for (and at Toys R Us, especially, you usually get less than what you pay for, since you're paying 20% more for the same item than you would anywhere else).

The set includes 4 Orcs. Each is uniquely designed, from sculpt to articulation, paint and accessories. There are 2 "big guys"(a "Chief", with the fanged helmet, and a pale "Brute", who reminds me a bit of Gothmog from "The Return of the King"), a wiry "Lizard Guy", who actually has a lizard wrapped around his arm, and comes with a detachable lizard to wear around his neck, and finally the "Ponytail Guy". The sculpts are dynamite, with tons of intricate detail, from the armband of tiny skulls on Brute, to the dinged armor shoulder pads on Ponytail. With a little more paint, these would REALLY pop!

The paint itself is a mixed bag. There some slop around teeth, but the eyes are mostly pretty good, and there's even a bit of drybrushing on the armor that works well. That said, these would all benefit from someone with a steady hand and a fine brush.

Personally, I think the work on the Chief is my favorite, despite some poor coverage on one of the helmet tusks.

In terms of articulation, these guys are all pretty simple. Just keep in mind that they run $2.50 apiece!

You'll find cut shoulders and a cut waist and neck on all of them, and Lizard guy has T-hips. That's it. The other guys don't move at the legs, but they're sculpted with knees bent and one foot slightly in front of the other, so it works. No problems with falling over, or loose joints. Nor with breakage, and they seem to be made of a very durable, rubbery-type plastic.

Speaking of rubbery plastic, they come with a decent assortment of weapons/ accessories that are very rubbery (so expect bent handles, etc.- again, forgivable at this price point). You'll get a small hammer, Orc sword, battle axe, rocks tied together with a rope, a lizard, and another small-handled axe. One of the figures even has a notch in his back armor where a weapon can be plugged in for storage!

In case you can't tell, I really like this set. These Orcs are fun little figures (they are done in a 4" scale, by the way). They feature terrific, detailed sculpts, decent enough paint, some cool accessories, and they are pretty sturdy for play. They look great together, and (best of all) they are priced right! I'll definitely be picking up the beast sets (there's a second beast set  that comes with a couple of Elves and a pair of Griffins) and maybe even the giant Castle Tower playset, which comes complete with a battering ram, catapult, 2 Orcs, 2 Elves, and a Dragon! They might even be fun for the kids to play with...

MILLENNIUM GODZILLA - Bandai Vinyl Classic Godzilla

Millennium Godzilla is part of the current 3-figure release of Bandai vinyl Classic Godzilla figures available at Toys R Us. Other releases in the series include Rainbow Mothra and Burning Godzilla. Each can be found for about $13 retail.

Bandai vinyl Godzilla figures come in an open package, meaning that the figure is strapped to a cardboard backing/base with 3 plastic ties. On the upside, this means you can see very clearly exactly what you're getting. On the downside, the packaging does nothing to protect the contents.

These vinyl figures are fairly simple in design- I'm not sure I'd call them action figures, so much as slightly poseable statues. Millennium Godzilla measures between 6 and 7" in height, and a little over 10" long from snout to curled tail-tip. He features a nicely detailed sculpt and a fairly sloppy paint job. The face (eyes and teeth) has some incomplete coverage, and there's a bit of overage around the claws both on the feet and hands. The enormous spines along his back are highlighted with a thick edging of day-glo purple paint. Air bubble holes are visible, and there's a good amount of run-off where the spines meet the body. His arms are molded in a glossy vinyl while the rest of the body is matte.

Millennium Godzilla is a fierce version, complete with a nasty snarl and enormously oversized spines. He sculpted hunched forward in a pre-posed crouch. His limited 4 points of articulation (swivels at the shoulders allow in/out rotation, and the cut hips allow for some slight adjustment of the legs) and the sculpt of his feet (with the right one bent mid-step) really make this a one-pose guy.

My figure's right leg is considerably shorter than the left, so he needed a hot-water bath to prevent a serious lean.

Godzilla does a fine job of "being what it is". He's solid for kids to play with, is relatively cheap to buy, and looks pretty good. I'd imagine he could perform well in any knock-down, drag-out battle, much more so than the expensive S.H. MonsterArts series would, and he's priced to allow for a decent-sized collection without breaking the bank. This is a kid's toy, and for that it's good enough. As a collector's display piece, it's pretty lacking, but then again, you get what you pay for. I'm glad to have a Millennium version Godzilla, but if I want a Burning Godzilla, I'll probably spring for the MonsterArts version. My son, on the other hand, would probably be happy enough to give the vinyl line a go...

Play Arts Kai CATWOMAN - Batman Arkham City Wave 1

Background

Play Arts Kai figures are highly detailed and articulated Japanese imports done in an approximate 9" scale. They typically focus on video game characters, though the line is beginning to branch out into movie figures (Dark Knight Trilogy figures are currently available for pre-order). The first wave of Arkham City Batman figures have just shipped, with Figure 1 being Batman and Figure 2 Catwoman.

First Impressions

Unfortunately, I'm usually disappointed when I first get my hands on a Play Arts Kai figure, and Catwoman is no exception to that pattern. However, once I unpack the figures they tend to grow on me- the articulation really makes these figures. Let's see how Catwoman fared...

Grins:

The packaging on this line has evolved. Earlier Arkham Asylum releases were done in an attractive window box. This first Arkham City wave adds in a front panel which velcros shut over the window. There's some nice narration about Catwoman, the game and Robin (the Batman figure contains text about Dark Knight Returns Batman- these are the next figures scheduled to be released). The flap is sturdy, but keeps MIB collectors from displaying in a way that allows the figure to be easily seen. The inner trays form a sandwich around the product parts and keep them from rattling around. The trays pop together at the corners and do a fine job.

There are a nice assortment of accessories included with Catwoman. She gets 3 pairs of hands, a whip and (best of all) an alternate "goggles-down" head. I think the goggles-down head is quite well-done, with her lips painted fuller on my figure than on the "goggles-up" head.

Catwoman's outfit is very highly detailed and extremely well-painted. There are so many fine lines, zippers and folds, and they are all painted with a minimum of bleed. The textured sections provide a nice contrast to the smoother leather sections, and there's a nice blue airbrushing of highlights in places.

The articulation is terrific, and Play Arts seems to be getting better and better at hiding the joints, while keeping them functional. There's even an added mid-foot swivel that's new to this figure! The head has a tremendous range of motion for adding plenty of tilt and personality to most any pose.

Grimaces:

Let's begin with the head-sculpt. Despite the great overall sculpt, Catwoman's head strikes me as a bit small for her body. It's more evident in the "vanilla" pose than in action poses, but compared to Mattel's Arkham City Catwoman, the difference is striking. This may be a result of the Kai style that combines twig-like arms, long legs with thick thighs, a miniscule waist and a ballooning chest. The whole thing just seems "off" to my eyes. Harley's skirt set the waistline out a little more, but Catwoman's skintight suit doesn't do the same.

Worst of all, my Catwoman's "goggles-up" face is a painting mess- I think this is where my initial disappointment stemmed from. Keep in mind that I'm being VERY picky here, but at $60 a pop I feel I should be. Every Play Arts Kai female figure I've ever gotten (Sheva Alomar, Cammy White, Chun-Li, Harley Quinn) has had a stray paint mark on the face. Catwoman is even worse. The hairline is so sloppy that it looks like someone took a pencil and colored in her forehead between the bangs. There's also a stray paint streak down through the inside of her eye on the right side. Her eyes, though painted in a lovely color, are also a little mis-aligned (something I've seen mentioned in other reviews). The "goggles-down" head shouldn't have this problem, and it doesn't, so I actually like it a little more, except that the black paint connecting the lenses isn't painted in completely, so (again) I'm going to have to perform some touch-up work to get it right. Should I be needing to do this for an expensive import piece? I'm paying $60-plus for figures which are consistently blemished in their most important part? You may not want to buy "blind" online, but wait til you can see a figure in-hand before purchasing.

The other "grimace" is around Catwoman's head, as well . Right out of package it sat very high on the ball, with a big gap where the head meets the neck (you can see this in all of the "goggles-up" pictures I took). I could actually slide her head off her neck while keeping it facing forward and completely attached. Add that to a really long sculpted neck and she looked a bit like a lollipop. I discovered the problem when I went to switch out heads and couldn't get the goggles-down one on. At all. I soaked it it hot water and it popped into place much lower than the other one had. It looks MUCH better, and I'm guessing that the ball inside the head is just a little bigger than the holes they drilled out at the factory.

Parting Thoughts
Catwoman has a lot going for her- scads of articulation, a highly detailed sculpt and a few neat accessories. It's blemished by a shoddy paint job on the face, which is unfortunate. Would I recommend her? Not wholeheartedly. If you love the game or the character, I think you'll be quite happy. But for a casual collector her high price tag probably just doesn't make her worth it. As it stands, this figure costs double what it's worth, in my book.

I've gotten into a pattern with these Play Arts Kai figures: I pre-order them based on the preliminary photos, and when they arrive my initial reaction is one of indifference, which then grows into disappointment once I've got the figure opened. I really want to love them, I do, but it just ain't happening so far. Needless to say, I'm more than a little apprehensive about the Dark Knight Trilogy figures I have on pre-order, and I'll be passing on Poison Ivy and the City Harley Quinn...