Tag Archives: dc universe classics

Mar 13 2012

DC Universe Classics Wave 17: Indigo Lantern Atom by Mattel

We’re over the Wave 17 hump, with only two packaged figures and the C&C left. Today we’re checking out one of my favorite figures in this assortment, The Atom as he appeared after being deputized into the Indigo Tribe. Cool!

I’m all tapped out on worthwhile comments on this packaging. As always, its a nice presentation with The Atom carded in a fairly neutral stance and with his staff held out to his side. Nice.
I really dig The Atom as a character, although he wasn’t one of my favorite things about Blackest Night. As a result my love for this figure is more about the way it turned out and all the work Mattel put into it, than any great interest for the The Atom in the guise of the Indigo Lantern. But that’s always been the great thing about some of DC Universe Classics’ more obscure figures: The appeal of the figures can often exceed the appeal of the character.
There’s tons of great original tooling on this figure and some excellent paintwork. The fringe work on his boots and the collar is nicely done. He has a silver neckless with a medallion showing off the Indigo emblem and his shoulder armor includes a strap running down across his chest. And check out that belt! It has a really cool hammered metal look and the finely tampo’d Atom symbol on the buckle. His tattoos are nice and crisp with no slop or bleeding. The whole red, blue and gold pattern works great, making this a beautiful figure!
In addition to the C&C piece, The Atom comes with his trusty Indigo staff.

Yep, this is one great looking figure. Mattel poured the love into this release and that more than makes up for the repaints and resculpts of Blue Flash, White Hal, and Orange Lex. Ok, maybe it doesn’t make up for Orange Lex, but Indigo Atom is just awesome and a proud addition to my Blackest Night/Green Lantern shelf.
Tomorrow we look at the final packaged figure and also my favorite… Its Sinestro Corps Scarecrow!
Mar 12 2012

DC Universe Classics Wave 17: Blue Lantern Flash by Mattel

Pressing on to Day Three of this look at DC Universe Classics Wave 17, let’s check out Blue Lantern Flash! I should be able to knock this one out pretty quickly, in a flash one might say, as he is basically just a repaint. Lets go!

Standard DCUC packaging! Barry looks great in the package, although I’m not sure what Mattel was going for with the pose. He doesn’t look like he’s running. Actually he just looks like he’s humping the air. He’s holding up the Blue Lantern of Hope. That’s all I’ve got, let’s get him out of the package and see what we’ve got…
Yep, it’s a repaint of The Flash figure that we’ve seen before in this line. Actually, this version looks a tad taller, but the only other real difference in the sculpt is he’s missing the plug of plastic on the back where some of the figures have their cape attached. This is one of the simpler body sculpts that rely on paintwork for the costume, but he does still have the sculpted wings on his boots. The headsculpt still looks great.
I absolutely adore the paintwork on this figure. The blue and black motif on the outfit looks great and I really love the Flash’s lightning emblem over the Blue Lantern Corps emblem. I’m not quite as keen on the lightning stripes around his arms and waist, but its not bad. The paintwork is pretty solid too, without much slop or bleeding.
That’s really all I’ve got to say about Blue Lantern Flash. I’m usually pretty pissy about having to buy repaints to get C&C pieces, but in this case I just don’t mind. I love Barry Allen and I just love the way the deco of this costume looks on him. He’s a great addition to my Blackest Night shelf.

Tomorrow, we’ll get to one of my favorite figures in this assortment… Indigo Lantern Atom!
Mar 11 2012

DC Universe Classics Wave 17: Orange Lantern Lex Luthor by Mattel

I’ve made no bones about how underwhelmed I was by this assortment of figures, but there was one that stood out as particularly offensive. Yes, its Orange Lantern Lex Luthor and as much as I loved the idea of Lex Luthor taking up the Orange Lantern of Greed, I really had to plug my nose as I bought this figure soley to get at one of the Anti-Monitor’s C&C pieces. Ugh, let’s check him out. I’ll be as brief as possible.

The same old DC Universe Classics packaging and Lex stands beneath the bubble in all his orange ice pop horror. He’s posed clutching the Lantern in one arm, because remember kids, the Lantern of Greed has no handle, and waving his other fist in the air in all his orangey triumph. Ugh.
Out of the package and what have we got. Its the same Power Armor Lex Luthor that has been released before only all the armor is molded in translucent orange plastic. Everything except his head, which is the regular head stuck atop this orange icee abomination. Now, in fairness, Mattel has invested some new sculpting into this guy. His chest armor and belt are new to incorporate the Orange Lantern emblem and the configuration of his collar is a bit different. I’m pretty fond of the original sculpt, and this one is pretty impressive too. But this figure is still a piece of shit.
I know from personal acquaintances that there are collectors out there who have a fetish for translucent plastic figures. I don’t get it, but I don’t begrudge it either. If you’re one of those people than this figure will be right up your alley. I honestly a cannot stand this thing and it’ll be the first figure to get pitched into a random junk tote when I run out of space on my Green Lantern shelf. I could see releasing this as part of a niche multipack, but to make me buy it to complete an Anti-Monitor figure is just pure cruelty. I got this one for about seven bucks and even then I was considering buying the C&C part alone for the same price just out of principal. Few of the figures in this wave really stand out for me, but Orangey Lex is without a doubt the worst this wave has to offer.

Tomorrow… Blue Lantern Flash!
Mar 10 2012

DC Universe Classics Wave 17: White Lantern Hal Jordan by Mattel

[Normally I wait until Mondays to start themed weeks, but I’m just about caught up with all my new stuff and honestly I’ve been putting these figures off for ages so I might as well knock them out, eh? -FF]

With Wave 19 of DCUC knocked out a few weeks back, I’m jumping two waves back to finish up #17 before picking up the current and last assortment of the line, #20. I looked at my first figure from Wave 17 a couple of months back with Wonder Woman Star Saphire and I’m sure I probably mentioned how underwhelmed I was with this assortment and the idea that these figures would have been better left to DC Direct or perhaps as a Wave in the Green Lantern Classics branch of DCUC. Of the six figures and one variant that make up this assortment, there are really only three figures that I would have added to my collection without Mattel’s deviously clever Collect & Connect incentive, and today’s figure is not one of them. With that ringing endorsement, let’s look at White Lantern Hal Jordan.
Standard DCUC packaging, and as I mentioned above, I think these figures would have presented better on the green cardbacks of Green Lantern Classics subline. The variant figure for this wave is the Black Lantern/White Lantern Hal, which is mostly a repaint of the same figure, albeit with different head sculpts and a resculpted ring hand. Either one would have supplied me with the Anti-Monitor pieces I needed, but I opted to go for the White Lantern Hal just because DC dragged poor Hal through the dirt for a long time and I thought it would be nice to own a figure that personifies his redemption. In any event, the cardback is unique to each variant, which is a great little detail on Mattel’s part. Concealed beneath the bottom bubble insert are the Anti-Monitor’s head and groin piece.
Out of the package, White Lantern Hal offers few surprises. We’ve seen the body before on past Hals, and probably a few other Lanterns for that matter. I do really dig the clean grey and silver paintjob, particularly with the black piping along the borders, and the crisp White Lantern emblem tampo on his chest. The head sculpt is new and Hal looks like he’s seriously pissed at getting his halo tarnished by DC’s writers and now he’s back with a vengeance. It’s a good sculpt, especially considering Mattel could have just slapped an old repainted Hal head onto the body and called it a day.
Articulation? Like I said, Hal offers few surprises. You get a ball jointed neck. The arms feature ball joints in the shoulders, swivel cuts in the biceps and wrists, and hinged elbows. The legs have universal joints in the hips, swivel cuts in the thighs, and hinges in the knees and ankles. Hal swivels at the waist and has an ab crunch hinge.
So, yeah, I bought this figure to complete my Anti-Monitor, plain and simple. That’s not to say he is in any way a bad figure. In fact, he looks really sharp and I really love the color scheme, even if it is more grey than white. I just wouldn’t have had the desire to sink seventeen bucks into another Hal Jordan figure unless I needed his C&C parts. Luckily most of the other figures in Wave 17 can be had for deep discounts. And that’s a good thing because there’s one figure in this wave that I really resent having to buy for the C&C part. And we might as well get him out of the way tomorrow…