NECA is certainly no stranger to the RoboCop license, as they’ve been producing figures based on the movies and comics and video games for well over a decade now. Of course, the overwhelming majority of those releases have been different versions of RoboCop himself, with the odd foray into ED-209, and that leaves a lot of ground uncovered for potential figures. I’ve gone on record before about RoboCop being on my list of what I consider to be perfect movies, so naturally I’ll take whatever merchandise I can get. Personally, I always wanted them to do a series of figures based on the failed RoboCop experiments, but more realistically, I just wanted Officers Murphy and Lewis. And now we finally have a pre-cyborg version of Alex!

Murphy is part of the NECA’s Ultimate line, which just means it is fully articulated and has a bunch of extras. I seem to recall the Ultimate moniker came about to distinguish these from the more static releases of their Cult Classic days. The figure comes in the usual window box with a front flap secured by velcro, but instead of using artwork or photos for the front they just plastered a giant OCP and RoboCop logo as well as Murphy’s badge number. I dig this, as it’s almost like a memorial plaque. Besides, there are plenty of photos of the figure on the inside flap and back and side panels to help sell the goods. There are a few ways to display this figure, so let’s start with how he comes out of the box, and then things are going to get gruesome, so if plastic gore triggers you, you may want to dip out before the end.

Officer Murphy comes out of the box wearing his tactical vest and helmet. While this is an excellent representation of the uniform and gear he wore in the film, it doesn’t necessarily allow for a lot of wow factor when it comes to sculpt and paint. The only insignia and color present on the otherwise completely blue and black fatigues are his OCP shoulder patches. Still, there is plenty of detail in the rumples and wrinkles of the uniform. He also has sculpted knee pads and pockets and some especially nice flourishes in the utility belt, which includes some magazine pouches, a handcuff pouch and what looks like a tube of mace. He also has a functional holster on his right hip with a flap that tabs into place. The removable vest is actually worn by the figure, and it looks great without being too bulky. If you’ve handled NECA’s Ultimate figures before, the articulation here holds no surprises. There are a lot of rotating hinges and his elbows are even doubled up!

The stock head features a permanently attached helmet, with chin straps that are part of the head sculpt. There’s a clear shield that can be raised and lowered, which is a pretty cool touch. I think the likeness to Peter Weller is really good, but the expression makes him look puzzled. I think it’s the raised eyebrows that’s doing it. I guess it could work well enough for some scenes, but I would have liked something a little more neutral. I do really love how they did the printing on his eyes and the texturing in the skin is excellent.

A second portrait gives you the option to go with no helmet, which is pretty much the same facial sculpt but with the chin straps removed and his fully realized coif of hair. Again, I think it’s a great likeness, but I still get that sense of a puzzled expression. There’s a third head too, but we’ll save that for later.

Murphy comes with five hands total. You get a set of relaxed hands, a set of trigger finger hands, and a right hand that’s designed to pose him twirling his gun just like TJ Lazer does on the TV! You even get two versions of his gun, one with the trigger guard slightly elongated to work better with the twirling hand and one designed for the trigger finger hand.

The second display option for Officer Murphy is to remove his tactical vest It’s not as exciting, but you do get to see all the extra detail they put into his uniform shirt. The vest is easily removed by unpegging the right side under his arm. You can then pop off both arms and just slide it up and off. And here’s where we get into the gory stuff…

“Well, give the man a hand!” Murphy’s execution scene is so horrific and hard to watch that it still makes me flinch after seeing it dozens of times. But it’s not the gore, it’s the abject cruelty in which it’s done, as Clarence Boddicker and his gang so flippantly torture Murphy to death with gunfire. And oh boy does Peter Weller sell it with his performance! It’s also a scene that drives home not only what a terrible place future Detroit is, but how totally evil the villains of the movie are. So, for starters you get the exploded hand piece that pegs into the right wrist, and the screaming head. The hand gore is pretty gross, but it’s the masterfully expressive sculpt on this screaming head that really sells it and the other pieces that recreate that scene.

Next, you get a bloody stump to replace his right arm. The sculpt includes the shredded remains of the uniform sleeve and some gross texturing where the arm was blown away.

And finally, a second vest riddled with bullet wounds, where Murphy’s torso just gets obliterated by the gang’s gunfire. The damage to the vest is convincingly done and the holes are filled in with glossy red paint. This is most definitely not the way I’ll be displaying the figure, but it’s cool to have the option.

NECA really went all out on this figure, but it’s what I’ve come to expect from their Ultimate releases. The wide range of display options makes for a great value and tempting for me to pick up a second. I also gotta say it took guts (no pun intended) to release the options to recreate the execution scene. Sure, NECA produces a lot of slasher figures and monsters, but to me seeing this kind of human suffering in action figure form trumps all the Freddys and Leatherfaces and Jasons in terms of shock horror. It’s not a criticism, mind you. I applaud it. But I also don’t think this figure should find it’s way onto Target or Walmart shelves where little kids can get at it. Now it would be great if NECA could get likeness rights to Nancy Allen so we can get an Officer Lewis figure too.