Mar 11 2016

Cover Girls of the DC Universe: Batwoman by DC Collectibles

While, it may seem like I don’t get back to it too often, I’ve been wholly impressed with DCC’s current run of Cover Girls statues. I surprised even myself when I realized that I only picked up and featured two of these lovely ladies in all of 2015. Needless to say I’ve got catching up to do, so let’s start by checking out Batwoman!

If you’ve seen one of DCC’s Cover Girls statue box you’ve seen them all. The art and size may change to suit the contents, but you’re still getting a fully enclosed box with a brick of styrofoam inside it. There’s a colored swipe down the front to match the character and some nice shots of the statue on the front and side panels. Everything is collector friendly and the only assembly required is pegging the statue into the base. I can’t say as I’m a huge Batwoman fan. I’ve barely read anything that she appears in. But I fell in love with Kotobukiya’s Bishoujo version of the character and the same happened here as well.

The composition of the pose here is pretty conservative. Batwoman stands with her feet apart, her grapple gun held in her right hand and across her chest and her left arm off to the side. I love the way the cape adds some energy to the pose in the way it flips up in the back and partially wraps around her right leg in the front. Overall, this is a nice mix of museum style with a hint of action and it certainly suits the character perfectly. Every facet of the costume is part of the sculpt, from the bat symbol on her chest and the panel lines on her boots right down to the subtle wrinkles and the definition of her underlying ab muscles. Her relatively straight posture puts the statue at just over 9 1/2-inches tall and right in scale with her fellow Cover Girls.

The coloring on this piece is positively striking. The black body suit features a hint of sheen and the crimson boots, gloves, belt, bat symbol and lining in the cape has a slight metallic finish to make it pop. The paint on this series has been overall serviceable, at least as far as the pieces in my collection are concerned, but Batwoman here stands out as very nearly perfect. I can’t find a single flub or stray brush stroke. The paint is simply immaculate.

The portrait features her half-mask with pupil-less eyes. The hair flows a little wild, probably caught by the same invisible wind that blows her cape. I particularly enjoy the way part of the hair falls in front of her mask’s left ear. The angular nature of the mask’s brow and nose contrasts nicely with her soft jaw line and perfectly painted lips.

While the early releases in this line offered more individual and environmental bases, DCC has since standardized them to simple ovals with a tasteful character symbol on the sides and a color that matches the character, in this case black and crimson. The bottom is slightly raised on four felt pads and the limitation is numbered on the bottom of the base.

Batwoman is another fantastic addition to my DC Cover Girls shelf. It says a lot about a statue when I can fall in love with it even without having a deep bond with the character. That was the case with Kotobukiya’s Bishoujo Batwoman and that’s the case again here. I’ll concede, if I had to choose between the two, I’d give the nod to Koto’s, but I’m not sure that’s a fair comparison. They’re very different styles, and Koto’s is PCV whereas the Cover Girls are cold cast porcelain. Thankfully, I don’t have to choose.

Feb 12 2016

DC Icons: (#03) Green Arrow by DC Collectibles

It’s another DC Friday and I’m wrapping up my look at the first wave of DC Collectibles’ delectable DC Icons line. With Batman, Mister Miracle, and Deadman all under my belt, it’s time to check out Green Arrow, one of the figures that made me buckle and dive into this line head first.

The packaged shot should hold no surprises. You get a window box with that sexy angled corner and the character’s name running up the side. The deco is designed to match the character and also points out that this version of Ollie is culled from the 1987 series “The Longbow Hunters!” Yes, once again this line is drawing from all corners of the DC Universe and this first wave character selection does a nice job illustrating that. Sadly, I don’t have the room to keep these boxes, but it’s nice to know that they’re collector friendly if I had that option.

As the source material suggests, Ollie comes in a very classic looking outfit, which features a ton of original sculpting. Details include the cuffs and laces on the tops of his boots, the belt and shoulder strap, the tunic, which hangs down below his belt, and the v-neck collar, which forms his hood.
His sleeves bellow out a bit where they meet his gauntlets and the two-tone green used for the costume looks great. The only hiccup here is a little bit of gloss paint, or maybe glue dribbled on the inside of his tunic. I haven’t decided whether it bothers me enough to pick up a replacement.

The scabbard is permanently attached to the figure and can hold all of the arrows he comes with. It’s also worth noting that the shoulder strap securing it is a separate piece so as not to interfere with the torso articulation.

The head sculpt is pretty simple and serviceable. I like the way they sculpted the beard and mustache and the domino mask looks good. It’s also worth noting that everything on the head is fully sculpted and painted so you can pull the hood back and get a good look at everything. I don’t think this comes close to Green Arrow’s DCUC portrait, but granted it is a different scale. While the hood is sculpted as part of the tunic, there’s enough room in there to still turn the head.

Articulation is very much in line with what we’ve been seeing on the previous figures. The legs feature ball joints in the hips, double hinges in the knees, and both hinges and lateral rockers in the ankles. The tops of the boots feature swivel cuts, something that has been inconsistent in the line and I’d still rather see them up in the thighs (or both!). The arms have rotating hinges at the shoulders and wrists, double hinges in the elbows, and swivels in the biceps. You get an ab crunch hinge and a ball joint in the chest and the neck is also ball jointed.

Accessories include an extra pair of hands, a bow, two sets of double arrows, and two single arrows. The figure comes with fists on the figure, but I doubt I’ll use those a lot. The extra hands include one for holding the bow and the other for knocking arrows.

The bow is just a lovely piece of kit. It’s simple, but feels sized perfectly for the figure and includes a real string with enough elasticity to allow for drawn string poses. The double arrows are also a nice addition. I’m not sure if they’re intended to just help fill out the quiver, but I think they come in hand for posing Ollie about to perform a trick shot.

Damn, I love this figure! He’s possibly my favorite in the first wave, although I’m still very partial to Mister Miracle. I think Ollie’s big selling point is the beautiful way the articulation works with the accessories to provide an in hand experience that we haven’t seen with previous Green Arrow figures. He’s so much fun to play around with and further reinforces how great these figures feel in hand. I am seriously hooked on this line. That having been said, next week I’m going to jump into some other DC-related business before returning to DC Icons and starting my look at Wave 2.

Feb 5 2016

DC Icons: (#02) Deadman by DC Collectibles

It’s DC Friday again and today I’m opening up another figure from DC Collectibles’ Icons line: Deadman is a character that I’ve really come to know and love thanks to some directed comic book reading over the last few years. A lot of the interest was sparked from picking up the DC Universe Classics figure and featuring it here way back in 2011. That was a great figure and it remains one of my favorites in the line to this day. How will DC Collectibles new version stack up? Let’s find out…

The figure comes in a window box similar to the first two Icons figures that I looked at, however, keep in mind that you do get a little variety in that each box’s deco matches the character. One thing I am enjoying about this line is that it’s running the gamut of DC lore and not just sticking to the New 52. This version of Deadman, for example, hails from Brightest Day. Not that the New 52 version is all that drastically different looking.

Deadman features his classic maroon costume with super high collar and a low-plunging v-neck on the front that partially exposes his chest. There isn’t a great deal of sculpting required for his outfit. The boots and gauntlets are painted in glossy red and there’s some nice texturing in the torso. The trademark “D” on his chest is part of the sculpt and neatly painted in white. Otherwise, the costume is pretty straight forward.

The portrait here is really nicely done. The features in the face are well defined and the expression sways between grim and serene. I hesitate to champion it too much, only because the head sculpt Mattel did on their DCUC version many years back is still so impressive to this day. In terms of what the character means to me, I think this one best suits him, but from a purely technical standpoint, that DCUC noggin is still the one to beat. I will say, however, that the white paint here fits better than the ashen gray paint on Mattel’s figure. The gray paint used for the lips and the black spray around the eyes looks very good too.

The articulation in this line has been consistent so far. Deadman’s arms feature rotating hinges in the shoulders and wrists, double hinges in the elbows, and swivels in the biceps. The legs are ball jointed in the hips, double hinged and double hinged in the knees. The ankles have hinges and lateral rockers. There’s an ab-crunch hinge and a ball joint in the torso and the neck is also ball jointed. I still wish these figures featured swivel cuts in the thighs, but that’s really my only complaint about the articulation.

Accessories! Deadman comes with clenched fists attached, but an extra pair of grabby hands. The extra hands were totally unnecessary, which makes it all the more cool that DCC included them. You also get a really creative translucent rubber mask that can be placed over other Icons figures to simulate his possession power. It actually looks unspeakably creepy when placed on another figure. Honestly, I mostly like this thing because of the originality behind it, rather than how well it works in practice.

I think it took a lot of balls for DC Collectibles to not only include Deadman as the second figure in this new line, but a version of him from before the New 52 reboot as well. Normal logic would have seen this initial wave stacked with Justice League A-listers, and yet here we are three figures in and two of them have been Mister Miracle and Deadman. I love it, mainly because it’s showing me that DCC is planning some deep universe building with this line and anyone from any era potentially could be fair game. This figure isn’t terribly flashy, but he looks fantastic and the articulation makes for lots of fun.

Jan 29 2016

DC Icons: (#01) Batman by DC Collectibles

Last Friday I kicked off my look at DC Collectibles’ DC Icons series with Mister Miracle and I was notably impressed. Today, I’m pulling another figure off the stack and it’s Batman! Yeah, I went after Mister Miracle first because of my love for the character, but let’s face it… when you’re taking a new line of DC figures out for spin, Batman really is the best place to start!

We saw the packaging last time, so I won’t dwell on it. It’s attractive and shows off the figure and the accessories well. My figure’s box is a little miffed up, but that’s OK. Just let me at the goods inside!

Out of the box and Batman is looking damn fine. Being only a casual fan of Bats, I’m not sure which one they were going for here, but I dig the somewhat classic look of the outfit. There are no panel lines, so it sure ain’t from The New 52. Yeah, he’s a lot more understated than the snazzy metallic finish of my-man Scott Free, but I love the look of this guy. You get a traditional gray body suit with blue undies on the outside and high gloss blue boots and gauntlets. There’s a black bat emblem tampo’ed on his chest and a chunky yellow utility belt.

The cape is a fairly light and pliable plastic that doesn’t throw off the balance of the figure at all. It also ends just above the ground and isn’t too cumbersome for most action shots. At the same time, it does sometimes feel restrictive in it’s inability to spread out behind him when he’s doing his intimidating Batman stuff. I do like the way it’s sculpted to plunge behind his neck and the scalloped edges look great.

The portrait features a classic blue cowl and a face sculpt that is solid enough, but nothing exceptional. It’s a little bit soft, but still OK. I dig the detail in his furled brow.

Articulation is a big deal with this line, which is a new departure for many of DC Collectibles’ figures. Let’s run down those points… The arms have rotating hinges in the shoulders and wrists, swivels in the biceps, and double hinges in the elbows. The legs are ball jointed at the hips, have double hinges in the knees, hinges in the ankles, along with lateral rockers, and swivels buried under the boots. The torso features both a ball joint and an ab crunch and the neck is ball jointed. Batman is a beautifully balanced figure and loads of fun to play with.

Accessories! Batman comes with two pairs of hands (fists and holding hands), in addition to a grappel with a hand permanently attached to it. He also comes with a pair of very cool little batarangs.

Yes, if I had to describe this figure with one word it would be FUN FUN FUN! OK, that’s one word three times, but I’m making a point. Maybe there’s nothing flashy or revolutionary about DC Icons Batman, but his lovely mix of articulation and accessories make him a hard figure to put down. He’s only the second notch on my DC Icons belt, but I can still feel my love for this line growing. At this point, the only complaint I can muster is that I really wish these figures came with action stands. I’ve been cheating with a Figma stand by putting the peg under the cape, but I’m really going to have to invest in a Tamashii Stage to unlock their true potential.

Jan 23 2016

DC Icons: (#04) Mister Miracle by DC Collectibles

When DC Collectibles revealed their new “six inch” line of highly articulated figures, I was interested in what could finally be the continuation of DC Universe Classics/Unlimited/Signature Series or whatever the hell it was called when Mattel finally put a bullet in its head and dumped it in the Gotham River. The new figures looked amazing and I could pick and choose which figures I wanted to upgrade and which DCUC versions I’d stick with. Aaaaand then we saw that when it comes to scale all “six inch” figures are not created equal. The heartbreak hit alongside the realization that they were not at all in scale with DCUC. I swore I would never pick any of these up. Nope, No way I’m going down that rabbit hole again. Scew that and screw you, DC Icons!

And then that happened, so let’s start looking at some DC Icons figures! I’m only missing one from the initial run up through #9, but I’m not going to go in order. Instead, let’s start with Mr. Miracle. Why him? I’ll refer you back to my DCUC Feature on Mr. Miracle and Big Barda to answer that.

Here’s the snazzy new packaging and I do like it quite a lot. Yes, it still clings to some of that stark white and bland style that DC Collectibles has been going with. But I like that each box is themed to match the character. I dig the angled window with the character name, like we saw with the Designer Series and the Flash TV Series figures. Speaking of The Flash, thanks to the convenient numbering system, it was easy find out that the figure I’m missing, #5, is The Flash with his Cosmic Treadmill. (Yup, he’s already been ordered). You also get a great look at the figure and the accessories.

The back does show all four figures available in the first series. Everything is collector friendly and I’m tempted to keep the packaging for this line, but I’m just kidding myself. I don’t have the space for it. There’s no blurb about the character or anything, which is fine with me, although I’ll note that this is the New 52 version, which has made appearances in Earth 2: World’s End and Justice League Beyond 2.0. I’m not currently reading either of those books, but hey… It’s still Mister Miracle!

Well, hello new and sexy costume! I really do like Scott’s new look. It’s certainly recognizable to older fans like me and just all over streamlined and new. Every single detail in the costume is part of the sculpt, so I don’t get that feeling of “let’s just paint a costume on a generic buck” as was often the case with DCUC and still is with Marvel Legends. In fact, everything about this figure feels like it’s been lovingly crafted. And while the scale being at odds with DCUC irks me on principle, I have to admit the figure feels just right in hand. Just how tall is “six inches” these days? Well, he stands a full head shorter than your average Marvel Legends or DCUC figure. If I were to make a size comparison, I’d say he’s just about Figma sized.

The cape is lightweight, made of super soft plastic, and it doesn’t drag on the ground. These are all qualities that make it ideal for action poses. I also dig the way it cinches in the middle. It has a wind-swept look that adds a dynamic air to the figure without looking too pre-posed.

The paintwork is superb. It looks like the figure is cast in a yellow plastic, which only shows through on the head and a bit on the arms. The rest is a meddly of rich metallic red and green along with some gold. The quality of the paint is fantastic with a sharp glossy sheen. Lovely.

Articulation? It’s not too shabby. Let’s run down the points. The arms feature rotating hinges in the shoulders, with nice solid ratcheting joints. The elbows are double hinged with no mushy plastic making the connection. The biceps have swivels. The wrists are pegged in (to allow for swapping) and hinged. The hips are ball jointed and designed to allow for a solid range of motion. The knees are double hinged. The ankles are hinged and feature lateral rockers. There’s a ball joint in the chest and another in the neck and you also get an ab-crunch hinge. Room for improvement? Well, I would have liked some swivel cuts in the thighs, but what’s here is still really damn good.

In addition to articulation, accessories will be a big focus in this line. For starters, Mr. Miracle includes an extra pair of graspy hands to go with his fists.

You also get his Aero Discs, which now appear to be more like energy constructs than physical discs. They’re cast in translucent yellow plastic and peg into his feet.

Finally, you get his tiny little Mother Box.

Every damn thing about this figure screams quality and fun. What’s more, comparisons to DCUC or Marvel Legends are inadequate. DC Icons feels like something new and vastly better. If Mr. Miracle is par for the course, and there’s no reason to believe otherwise, I am going to thoroughly adore this line and I’m very glad I jumped on board. The scale difference is probably for the better anyway. Even if they were the same size, the DCUC figures would have looked out of place next to these guys.

Jan 8 2016

DC Comics Designer Series (Greg Capullo): “New 52” Catwoman by DC Collectibles

It seems like a while since I did a DC Friday, so I’m getting back on point today by opening up another DC Collectibles figure. This time it’s the Designer Series Gregg Capullo Catwoman! Now, as many of you know, I’m not a regular reader of Batman comics, but I did go out of my way to read Death of the Family and rather enjoyed it. Of course, I’ve been an avid follower of Catwoman’s New 52 book. As a result, I tend to associate Guillem March’s art with New 52 Catwoman more than Capullo’s, but I still like what Capullo did in the Batman book and was happy to pick up this figure based on his art.

The packaging is quite similar to what we saw when I looked at the Flash TV Series figures and the deco is right in line with DCC’s regular New 52 window boxes. The biggest improvement is the angled window with the character’s name running up the side. The only real drawback here is how much wasted space is in that box. The tray looks very sparse and it could have used some art behind it with a little more punch to compensate. Everything is collector friendly, but with storage space ever the great enemy, I’ll be pitching this box.

Selena comes all decked out in her trademark skin-tight bodysuit. It’s a pretty simple outfit, enhanced by some wrinkles here and there and some very precise silver paint on her front zipper and the buckles on the sides of her high-heeled boots. I would have liked a little more gloss on the suit, but the matte finish that they used doesn’t look at all bad. They certainly got her curves in all the right places.

The head sculpt is damn nice, with her large, gold goggles and her cute little pursed lips. Getting in close makes the paint on her lips and nostrils seem a little weird, but it looks fine with the naked eye. Bonus points: I used the word “naked” in a feature about Catwoman. My Google hits are going up already! A second head with the goggles up would have been nice, as there was certainly plenty of room for it in the package, but I guess it was not to be.

The articulation here is decent enough for DC Collectibles’ standards, but a little lacking from what I’d like in my Catwoman figures. The arms have rotating hinges in the shoulders, hinged elbows, and swivels at the gloves. The legs feature a T-crotch at the hips, hinges in the knees, and swivels in both the thighs and at the tops of her boots. There’s no torso articulation, but there is a ball joint in the neck. Let’s face it, Catwoman is all about the acrobatics, so the posability here feels stiff and limiting. Then again, at this point anyone buying DCC figures and expecting limber articulation is really just kidding themselves. I will say that she can stand surprisingly well in those high heels, at least when she’s not doing anything. The more action orientated poses require a figure stand.

Catwoman comes with one accessory and that’s her whip. I really like this piece, as it’s made out of rubbery plastic and features a split end and a lanyard around the handle.

All in all, I’d say this is a pretty nice figure. She retailed at around $20 originally, but most of the figures in this wave have been hitting clearance around the Interwebs and I was able to pick up Selena here for around seven bucks. Not a bad deal at all, although getting her is really just driving me more to pick up DCC’s Heroes vs Villains 7-pack to get the Catwoman bundled in that box.

Dec 11 2015

Trinity War: “New 52” Superman, Wonder Woman & Batman by DC Collectibles

It’s a triple play today, folks, as I tear into a boxed 3-pack from DC Collectibles. Back when Mattel inexplicably shit-canned their amazing DC Universe Classics line, they re-branded it into “DC Unlimited” and it looked like we would continue to get the same DCUC style figures based on The New 52 continuity. Alas, it didn’t last long and while we did get five Justice League members, we never got Green Lantern or Cyborg. I spent a long time agonizing over whether to start DC universe building all over again with DC Collectibles and pick up their boxed set of the complete New 52 Justice League, but I never did. Fast forward to now, and after unintentionally amassing a sizable collection of DCC New 52 figures, I thought it was finally time to go back and start picking up some main players. Yeah, there’s a bigger boxed set out there with the entire Justice League in it, but I decided to go with this one for now because it was super cheap!

It may be a three figure set, but the box is more or less the same style that we’ve been seeing all along. It’s just expanded to hold more plastic. While the box is still kind of bland, I can’t deny it shows the figures off beautifully. The back panel also shows off the Super Heroes vs Super Villains 7-figure set, which is a good way to pick up Flash and Aquaman, but will of course make me double up on the Batmans. Anywho, I’m just going to go from left to right, so let’s start with Superman!

Superman dons his spiffy New 52 panel-lined costume, which I’ve actually been a fan of since the beginning. I don’t think it adds all that much to the comic art, but when you reproduce it as a statue or an action figure like this one, I think it looks fantastic. All the panel lines are sculpted right in, as are all the other details, like the S-Shield and the boots. To top things off, this version of Supes also features a new sumptuous, metallic paint job, which really makes this piece look like an articulated version of Kotobukiya’s gorgeous ArtFX+ Superman. I think it looks rather stunning.

The soft plastic cape is attached to the front of the shoulders and cascades nicely over the shoulders and down the back. The cape features the black S-Shield tampo’d in the middle and it looks perfect on the figure. It’s relatively light so it doesn’t make the figure back heavy.

The other big difference between the regular DCC Superman release and this figure is a new head sculpt. This one features a slight smirk on Superman’s face, which adds a little personality. I like it, but it doesn’t fit the Trinity War theme of the release, as Superman was going through some pretty serious shit during that particular arc. That having been said, it’s a great sculpt and I particularly like the detail in the hair. Next up is Wonder Woman…

Looking beautiful as always, Wonder Woman dons her one-piece red, blue, white, and silver costume. All the details are picked out in the sculpt, right down to the segmentation in the red area and the stars. The silver paint has a subtle metallic sheen to it, which is duplicated for her wrist bracers and tiara. The blue used for her “shorts” and boots is metallic, but it doesn’t pop as much as what we saw on Superman. Possibly because it’s a darker shade and there isn’t as much of it. The flesh areas are all bare plastic, which is definitely the way to go as it avoids any paint mishaps and looks great.

Wonder Woman’s golden lasso is sculpted all coiled up and attached to her right hip. Her right hand is sculpted into a fist, and her left hand is sculpted to hold her sword, which sadly this set does not include. There isn’t even a loop for it on her belt, like there was on the Mattel figure. That seems like a huge oversight, or just a devious plan by DCC to get you to buy one of the other releases. I’m still torn on whether I like Diana’s bare leg look or the blue pants. Both have their merits, but this version is accurate to her Trinity War look.

I’m pretty sure this is a completely new head sculpt over the one in the “We Can Be Heroes” 7-pack. Either way, I like it a lot. The hair looks a little straighter and the face a little more angular. It’s a very pretty portrait and the paint apps for her eyes, lips, and tiara are all sharp. And that brings us to Batman…

Of all the characters to don the New 52 panel lined armored look, I think it suits Batman the most. It just looks like some fancy new Wayne Tech armor. As with Supes, every line is part of the sculpt and all the details on his boots, gauntlets, and utility belt are as well. Even the exposed mesh between his shoulder and chest armor is conveyed through textured plastic. This is a great looking suit and it has been beautifully executed for this figure. Of the three figures, Batman also seems to have changed the least for this set. Again, I don’t have the 7-pack, so I can’t compare directly, but I don’t see a lot of differences. The belt looks like a paler gold on my figure than the yellow I see in pictures of the WCBH boxed set version, but that could just be a trick of the light.

The cape is longer and heavier than Superman’s, but that’s appropriate. It’s very light and soft to avoid pulling the figure back and even if it did, it rests on the ground behind him to add as a further support.

The head sculpt here is solid. Naturally, Batman shows the least of his face, but what’s exposed is a nice strong and well defined mouth and jaw. The cowl features some great glossy paint that matches his boots and gauntlets and offers a nice contrast to the matte grey and black used on the rest of the figure.

Articulation is where this set stumbles, but as an earlier DCC release, that’s to be expected. These figures’ articulation definitely draw a link back to the DC Direct Days. All three figures feature the same points. The arms have rotating hinges in the shoulders, swivels in the biceps, and hinged elbows. The legs feature T-crotches in the hips and hinged knees. The necks are all ball jointed, but with Wonder Woman, you get very little movement because of the hair sculpt. That’s it. Obviously posability here is limited. I will, however, add that all of the figures’ joints feel great right out of the box and I had no issues at all.

I’ve had my eye on this set ever since it first came out and it took a sale to push me over the edge. At $30 shipped, it was just too good to pass up and I’m glad I went for it. The sculpting and paint on these three are top notch and It’s going to feel good to have the Trinity on display with all the other DCC figures I’ve been picking up over the last couple of years.

Dec 6 2015

Justice League: “New 52” Stargirl by DC Collectibles

Once again, my DC Friday feature is spilling over into the weekend. This time, I had to dig out my Toy Closet from the backlog of receivings just to get to anything and there’s still a big pile of toy boxes impeding my entry. Anyway, better late then never and today I’m opening another DC Collectibles figure… Stargirl! I thought Stargirl was an odd choice for this line, as she hasn’t exactly lit up the “New 52” or at least not the books that I’ve been reading. Appearances in Justice League Dark and Trinity War kept her on the radar, but for me she just isn’t quite the same unless being shadowed by her robot buddy, STRIPE. Of course, none of this stopped me from picking up the figure, mainly because I have fond memories of her from the old DC continuity and she was really, really cheap.

Oh, bugger! I forgot to take the in-package shot before I tore it open like an animal. I threw one in anyway. You get the idea. Courtney comes in the fairly standard white window box with a blue swipe across the front. The side panels denote the figure inside for easy access if you save the boxes and store them lined up on a shelf. The back panel shows off the other three figures in this assortment. I’ve already looked at Zatanna and Constantine. I’ll get to Hawkman sooner or later.

Stargirl’s costume didn’t undergo a major change for The New 52. She still has the cut-off, mid-riff revealing blue top with a large star on her chest and smaller ones lining her sleeves. Blue mask? Check! Red gloves? Check! The biggest departure is that they gave her a full set of pants, in this case the same shade of blue as her top, and red boots. She also has a red utility belt with pouches. This was a pretty simple outfit to sculpt, but I think DCC did a beautiful job on her, mainly because of the gorgeous blue and red paint, sculpted seams, and crisp lines around the stars.

The portrait is pretty good too, especially considering the last Stargirl figure I bought was the one from DCUC, Wave 19 and gave Courtney a freaky Stepford Wives kind of smile. Here she’s wearing a fairly neutral expression and the paint on her eyes and lips is solid. Indeed, the only place the paint on this figure stumbles a bit is with some yellow transfer from her blonde hair onto her right shoulder. Thankfully, it’s not even noticeable if you keep her head facing front.

Articulation here is better than average for a DCC release. The arms have rotating hinges in the shoulders, swivels in both the biceps and wrists, and hinges in the elbows. The legs are ball jointed at the hips, have swivels at the tops of the boots, and hinges in the knees. The neck is ball jointed, but because of the long sculpted hair, there isn’t a lot of room for movement. Alas, there’s no articulation in the torso, but even still, she made out pretty well compared to some other DCC releases.

Courtney comes with her Cosmic Staff, which is sculpted in gold plastic and looks great in her hand. I do wish both of hands were able to grip it, but her left hand is sculpted into a fist.

I always enjoy it when a company takes a lower tier character and knocks that figure out of the park. That’s exactly what it feels like DC Collectibles did with Stargirl here. Yes, there are other characters who probably deserved this slot more, but I’m not going to argue when the figure turns out this good. Nice sculpt, gorgeous paint, and better than average articulation for the line. Toss in the fact that she only set me back ten bucks, and I’ve got nothing to complain about! And she looks damn good with my DCUC STRIPE figure too!

Nov 27 2015

DC Comics Super-Villains: “New 52” Black Adam by DC Collectibles

Well, I hope everyone enjoyed their Thanksgiving. Mine was fairly restful and now I’m ready to tear into a new DC Collectibles figure. Yes, I started DC Fridays to get through the embarrassing stack of these figures that currently resides in the corner. And then I got sidetracked looking at a bunch of DC Statues, but now I’m back to the original mission statement and today I’m opening up Black Adam! Yes, Black Adam… because it’s Black Friday. Yeah, that’s a bit of a stretch…

The package is the usual window box with extended back flap and J-hook. I do like that DCC is mixing up the decos with this Super-Villains line to match the characters. In this case the box is black with some gold swipes. The back shows the other figures in this wave: Joker (which I already looked at) and Captain Cold (which is still in the pile somewhere). Black Adam was largely a non-character to me until DC’s ambitious 52 series. Not only did that series get me back into reading comics pretty hardcore, but it practically introduced me to Black Adam as a character, and quite a bad-ass at that!

Out of the box, this figure immediately impresses and disappoints. Let’s start with the great stuff… the sculpt! DCC really outdid themselves with this guy, particularly in the portrait. Black Adam wears a rather vicious grimace making for a dude that I would not want to mess with. They’ve done a number of really solid head sculpts in the last year or so, but this one is without a doubt among their best, if not the absolute tops. There’s a little bit of rubbing on the flesh tone, but otherwise the paint is clean and backs up the sculpt beautifully.

The outfit also features some great work. The top of his mostly black suit features some of those sculpted panel lines that the New 52 designs love so much. There’s also a lot of detail on the black and gold boots. The lightening bolt on his chest is both sculpted and painted and there’s some wonderful “Kirby Krackle” painted into the center of it. Adam features his right hand balled into a fist and his left hand grasping in a rather wretched fashion. The paint is a simple black with some rather nice gold accents.

The cape is also wonderfully executed. It’s sculpted in layers with the bulk of the cape bellowing out to the sides and showing off the tattered edges and some holes. The hood consists of a smaller cape flap and both of which fall back behind his neck.

So far, so good! But where the figure disappoints is the articulation. I don’t expect a whole lot from DC Collectibles, but they’ve been gradually improving their figures’ articulation, but Black Adam here feels like a bunch of steps back. The arms are OK, with rotating hinges in the shoulders, hinges in the elbows, and swivels in both the biceps and wrists. The legs, however feature just a standard T-crotch in the hips and hinged knees. No swivels in the legs at all. There’s also no articulation in the torso and while the neck appears to be on a ball joint it can only swivel. The neck is doubly disappointing because it means his head is always pointing down.

And so what we have here is most definitely a mixed bag. Black Adam is an outstanding looking figure, but he really needed just a few more points of articulation to make for a well-rounded package. The head constantly pointing down is probably my biggest gripe, as it means I’ll most likely have to display him on a flight stand to really appreciate all the great work that went into his portrait. I’m very glad I got him, especially at the crazy low price of $11, but he could have been so much better.

Oct 23 2015

New Gods: “New 52” Orion by DC Collectibles

If it’s Friday, it must be DC. At least around these here parts. Today, I’m opening another figure in the massive stack of DC Collectibles releases that is currently residing in the corner of my Man Cave. Most retailers are having fire sales on these figures, probably in preparation for the upcoming Icons line. Those figures look great, but they’re also in a different scale. Am I prepared to go through all this again from scratch? Not sure yet. It was one thing buying DCC’s figures after Mattel’s DC Universe Classics packed it in because most of these are the “New 52” designs and Mattel only produced a handful of the Justice League (and a truly terrible Darkseid figure) in the new format. The Icons line looks like it’ll be more of a mix of old and new, and I’m likely going to just wind up cherry picking it. Anyway, on to today’s figure…

Here’s the packaging, and I find it odd that they went with the “New Gods” moniker at the top, rather than just “Wonder Woman” where he first appeared in the “New 52.” I should note that I’m a crazy big fan of the New Gods as it was that whole aspect of the Mister Miracle comics that got me into reading DC way back when I was a wee lad. It was that comic that introduced me to Darkseid and Big Barda and Orion and all that jazz. On the other hand, while Wonder Woman has been my favorite book in the “New 52” I am not a huge fan of how they handled Orion in it. But that’s a whole different story…

While I take issue with his characterization, I’ve got no quibbles with his current look. It certainly pays homage to his old costume, while keeping in line with the younger, fresher new direction. It’s a relatively simple costume and kind of reminds me of a futuristic motorcycle outfit, which more or less fits his mode of transportation. The red tunic has a nice texture to it along with some black piping and globular shoulder guards. The figure uses matte black for his pants and a high gloss for his boots. Again, very simple, but a pretty neat design, nonetheless.

The head sculpt includes his helmet with the visor. It’s a little more downplayed than his classic look, but again, I dig it well enough. My figure has some nicks on the visor, which I’m going to write off as scars from debris while flying through a Boom Tube.

The visor is hinged and can lift up to reveal his entire face, which is certainly a nice option to have. He’s an angry looking sod, but then they don’t call him “The Dog of War” for nothing. All in all, this portrait is a pretty good effort. I especially like the flared nostrils and the partially open mouth.

Articulation here is quite good. at least by DCC’s standards. The arms are ball jointed at the shoulders, hinged at the elbows, and have swivels at the biceps and wrists. The legs feature a T-crotch at the hips, hinges at the knees, and there are swivels at the thighs and boots. Orion can swivel at the waist and his neck is ball jointed. Unfortunately, my figure does have two stuck swivels, one in his left bicep, and one in his right thigh. I’m sure I’ll be able to work these out with a little hot water.

Speaking of Boom Tubes, Orion comes with his trusty Astro-Harness and it’s a nice piece of kit. The new design is a lot sleeker than his classic ride and DCC did a nice job rendering it in this scale. The yellow paint pops beautifully with the silver and the little dash of “Kirby Krackle” in the center is a nice touch. This super sleek and streamlined version is a big departure from the almost ancient looking design of the classic Harness, but I still dig it a lot. I was afraid it was going to be super fragile, but it holds up quite well.

Orion is secured to the Harness via pegs on the pedals and his arms can grip the handlebars. He looks damn good riding it. It does help to have some kind of flight stand to really make it work, but I’m not complaining. I mean, let’s face it, DC Collectibles doesn’t tend to offer a lot of accessories with their figures, so it’s nice to know that when they have to, they go all out.

At the original MSRP of about $20, the addition of the Astro-Harness really fills out the price point nicely, making this figure a decent value. Of course, with these figures deep discounted now, I picked him up for $11 and that feels like a steal. Sure, he comes off as a kind of bumbling over-sexed oaf in the pages of Wonder Woman, but I’ve always liked the character, and I’m glad to have his new incarnation in action figure form.

FigureFan Zero

Action Figure Reviews, Toys & Collectibles…

Tag Archives: dc collectibles

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