Review of Data - Star Trek Next Generation
Sixth Scale Action Figure

Introduction

EXO-6 finished off the year strong, getting shipments rolling on two final figures for 2023 - Admiral Picard and TNG Data. I'm checking out Data tonight, but Picard will feature in one of the photos as well.

They actually started out this whole, wild, insanely amazing journey with Picard and Data, but both figures were movie versions, from First Contact. While they've done an amazing job with Voyager, we've only gotten two actual TNG figures so far...Locutus and Q.

There are two versions of Data. EXO-6 does this occasionally, adding in more extras for those that want them at a higher price point. You can get the 'essential' version at just $190, and excellent price to have a complete (eventually) TNG bridge crew. Or you can be like me, and want all the bells and whistles of the 'standard' version at $230. It's all about extra accessories, and I'll detail that when we get there.

Packaging - ***1/2
This is the same packaging we've seen with other normal releases from EXO-6. The box is very sturdy, and the interior plastic trays are doubled up for thickness, making it hard for the box to get crushed. While the box can still get damaged - they did included protective plastic corners inside the outer shipping box too, but shit happens - it would require an extreme amount of force to collapse the trays and actually damage the figure or accessories. That's job one of any box, and this one does it better than most.

Sculpting - ****
The First Contact version was a slightly older Brent Spiner. This is young Spiner, with a little tighter face, and bit more youth in the overall look. And they crushed it.

There's a bit more detail in the hair this time, and the skin texture is excellent. The eye focus is set off in the distance, and the expression is blank, but not dead. It fits the character perfectly, and matches his on screen look extremely well.

So it has all three aspects I look for in a great sculpt - accuracy, realism, and expressiveness. Or in this case, appropriate expressiveness to a humanoid character. I believe this is one of those sculpts where photos of it will be mistaken for the actual actor in costume at first glance.

The hands are sculpted in poses that work with the accessories, and it's worth nothing here the great work on Spot the cat. There's two versions - more on that in the Accessory section - and both have nicely detailed fur and realistic proportions.

If I had one nit, and it's only one, and it's small, it's with the obvious line around the removable section of the head on the second portrait. If you're getting the Essentials version, you don't have to worry, since this second head isn't included. The idea is you can pop off a hunk of hair and see his inner workings. I'm not docking them for the seam though, because it's a) unavoidable (the hair sculpt is not going to match the edge of the piece, so there's no way to hide it) and b) they really did do their best getting the seam as tight as possible. I'll have a couple photos later in the review.

Paint - ***1/2
The paint work is excellent, particularly on Data's skin and eyes. The human-yet-not-really appearance comes through nicely, but the colors aren't overbearing or too obvious.

The skin tone is particularly nice, and they got the slightly waxy, pale color just about perfect. Edges, like around the eyes, eyebrows, lips, and hairline, are clean and neat.

I focused on Spot in the photo below, because getting animals right is still a work in progress for all sixth scale companies. Since they are accessories, the same time and effort is generally not spent on them, but I think EXO-6 did a solid job working on the glossy eyes of Spot, as well as the variations in the fur colors.

Articulation - ***1/2
This is the standard EXO-6 body, with all the articulation you expect. While the costume can be a little restrictive, particularly in the shoulders, it's not anything worse than an actual costume like this on an actual person.

To get the seamless appearance between the head and neck, they did them as one piece. This can create a better visual, but does make the ball joint at the torso the only way to get lean, tilt, and rotation in the head.

The shoulders, elbows, and wrists work well together, and you can easily create natural arm poses with the various accessories. It helps that a couple of the hands are specifically designed to work with the various extras.

While the costume, especially the tunic, is a little restrictive, you can still get some twist, turn and crunch out of the torso, and the hips, knees, and ankles can manage shallow to deep stances, including sitting poses, while remaining natural and fluid.

Swapping heads and hands was fairly easy, but you might want to have a hair dryer handy for a couple of the hands.

If you'd like to see a nekkid version of the basic EXO-6 body, check out the FC Picard review.

Accessories - ****
Here's where the Standard and Essential versions diverge.

Both versions comes with several extra hands. There's a set of relaxed hands, a phaser firing left (Data was left handed) and a tricorder holding right. The Standard version adds in a set of fists, and a multipurpose right that can hold the PADD, or Spot. They swap pretty easily, but a couple were a little tighter.

Both versions also have the standard phaser with holster and tricorder with holster. As always, we get magnets holding these to the uniform, perfect sculpts, and excellent paint jobs. I also believe this is the first time we've gotten the TNG style TR-580 tricorder from them, but we'll be seeing it again.

Of course, both versions also have the octagonal base with two different transporter pad options and crotch support, as well as the nifty 'autograph' card with clips to attach it to the base and  multiple bases together.

That's it for the Essential version, hence the 'essential' name. But that's not it for the Standard! Oh no! Along with those extra hands, you get a PADD, which he can easily hold.

There's also the extra head I mentioned before. The sculpt and paint work are *almost* identical, but this one has the small removable section on the right side. I've included a photo with and without the cover later in the review. This second portrait does have a slightly different expression, but it's not extreme or obvious, and the key difference is really the removable plate.

On top of that, he gets not one but TWO versions of Spot, his cat. One version is sitting on his hide legs, looking up, while the second is in a laying pose, perfect for Data to cradle on his arm. Both of these look great, and one will end up in my display, as well as my Top Ten Cat Action Figures, when I get to that at the Institute.

Outfit - ****
One of the areas where EXO-6 truly excels is the costuming. They have spent hours painstakingly recreating the outfits from the shows and movies in excruciating detail, and this TNG release is no exception. It matches the on screen counterpart as accurately as humanly possible in this scale, and no detail was ignored.

It's also extremely high quality, with excellent stitching and tailoring. External bits like the pips and communicator are secured tightly to the material, and they are straight, even, and accurate.

The patterns and colors are screen accurate, and the magnets they've sewn into the pants are strong enough to easily hold the holsters in place. This is all topped off - or bottomed off, depending on your point of view - with the soft plastic boots, another excellent sculpt.

In the photo below, you'll see that second portrait with the seam around the removable piece.

Fun Factor - ****
As the EXO-6 Star Trek display gets bigger and bigger, it gets more and more fun to collect. You can mix and match characters across shows, or combine them with their old colleagues. This is only going to get better for TNG fans during 2024, as we get more releases based on the show.

Below is a photo with the piece removed...

Value - **1/2
Remember, I'm grading the Standard at $230. The Essential release is at $190, and would get another half star out of me, since you're getting everything you really need for the display at under $200, a rarity these days.

But the Standard is another forty bucks, getting into the range of the higher cost figures. Sure, Hot Toys has lost their mind and started charging close to $300 for an average release, but most other companies are still in that $250 range. Thankfully, EXO-6 is making it worth your while with both Spot and the extra head sculpt.

Things to Watch Out For -
Not a thing. I had no worries working with the figure or accessories, and nothing was fragile or easily damaged.

Overall - ****
I was extremely impressed with the FC Data way back in June of 2021. It's been 30 months and 24 figures (plus a chair!) later, and they continue to produce some of the finest sixth scale figures on the market for a license that is perhaps the greatest of all time. We will never see another sixth scale Star Trek endeavor like this.

While Data is great, I know that a lot of folks are really, really looking forward to the Wrath of Khan releases, and I have to admit I'm in that camp as well. This new year should be an amazing one for EXO-6, and for the collectors of great Star Trek product as well.

Score Recap (out of ****):
Packaging - ***1/2
Sculpting - ****
Paint - ***1/2
Articulation - ***1/2
Accessories - ****
Outfit - ****
Fun Factor - ****
Value - **1/2
Overall - ****

Where to Buy 
Remember, there are two versions of this figure. When EXO-6 does an 'Essential Version', that's the bare bones release. Their 'Standard Version', which is the one reviewed here, has more accessories. The Essential version was originally $190 at their website, while the Standard Version was $230. Sadly, they are no longer there for pre-order, but the company often does immediate sales with overstock and cancelled items on their site shortly after they've started shipping, so you can keep an eye out for that. Online options include these site sponsors:

- Entertainment Earth is also at $190 and $230, but they have free shipping, and if you wait til it's in stock and use my link and get an additional 10% off, plus free shipping!

- or you can search ebay for a deal.

Related Links -
As I said, the only other true TNG figure is Q, but they've also done the movie versions of Data and Picard, as well as Locutus.

You should also hit the Search Reviews page, in case any other applicable reviews were done after this one was published.

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