Review of Iron Man 3 mini-busts

Introduction

Hot Toys has produced a number of busts for the Iron Man license over the last few years. As part of their work on Iron Man 3, they've released 7 unique sixth scale versions individually, plus an eight pack that includes an additional bust only available in the set. That full set is what I'll be checking out tonight.

Unlike their past busts, these are sixth scale, not quarter scale. They also lack any arms, more like a traditional bust. All have light up features however, and all have a consistent overall design.

The seven standard busts are the Iron Patriot, War Machine MKII, MK 42, MK  17 (Heartbreaker), MK 24 (Tank), MK 30 (Blue Steel), and MK 33 (Silver Centurion). The eighth exclusive bust is the battle damaged MK 42.

This is a big set, and comes with a big price at $380. While that might seem like a lot, remember - this is eight busts.

Packaging - ***1/2
This packaging is a little different for Hot Toys, since you can actually see what you're buying before you open it up. Of course, you can easily remove the busts without any damage to the box, and always store them back once you're done displaying them.

My box might look a little rough in the photo. Yours won't look like that, since I doubt you have a dog that likes to chew any cardboard boxes left by the front door. Shammie - that's the furball's name - managed to destroy the shipping box and start working on the package itself before I caught him. He's lucky I don't care all that much about packaging, or I'd be wearing a new pair of gloves made out of mutt hide.

Sculpting - ***1/2
Hot Toys doesn't do resin or polystone busts - these are plastic, very similar in feel and style to the material they use for the armor on their sixth scale figures.

These are sixth scale busts too, which makes them seem a bit inconsequential compared to the 1/4 scale releases. They also seem smaller because they lack arms, being done in a much more traditional bust style. I'm not big on this style, although I get that it's a true bust. 

I included a photo showing a bust with one of the sixth scale figures so you can see that it is the same size, as well as with a 'normal' sixth scale bust with arms.

The sculpt detail on these is beautiful, but if you've seen their figures, you'll expect that. These are a nice alternative to the much more expensive figures.

Each of the busts stands about 5" tall, and the bases, while plain, are consistent and clean.

Out of the eight, the best sculpt is the battle damaged MKXLII. That's because they did a fantastic job on the detailing of the damage,  Others are certainly more colorful, but that surface damage really adds some pop.

Paint - ****
The bright and unique colors on several of these busts allows Hot Toys to show off their ability with beautiful paint work.

The colors are consistent and clean, with no slop at the edges or cut lines. The finish is perfect, with no bubbles, runs, drips or dirt, and the metallic colors really pop.

While my favorite sculpt is the BD MK 42, my favorite paint job belongs to the Iron Patriot, right down to the inclusion of Rhodes name on the breast plate.

It's a minor quibble, but I think it would be nice if these had a designation on the base saying which each one was. Some are obvious, but to the average viewer it's going to be tricky to keep track.

Articulation - Iron Patriot, War Machine ***;  the rest Bupkis
Usually you don't get articulation with a bust, but two of these - Iron Patriot and War Machine - have articulated guns on the right shoulder. This allows the weapon to tilt and turn to add to the potential poses.

Since I didn't expect any articulation (these are busts after all), any score here is a big plus, and no score won't effect the other character's overall evaluation.

Light Feature - ****
All eight busts light up beautifully. The eyes and chest are brightly illuminated, and there's a single on/off switch for both on the bottom. The battery compartment is on the bottom as well, and batteries are included.

The function works great, the lights look terrific, and because they are easy to turn on and off (much easier than with the sixth scale figures) they are far more likely to be used.

Value - ***
This set of 8 busts retails for $370 from Sideshow. That sounds like an awful lot of money, but that makes each bust just $46 each. The usual price for the individual sixth scale busts is $50, so you're saving some money by going with the boxed set. It's also the only way to get the battle damaged MKVLII, so for the completist, it's the only game in town.

Things to Watch Out For -
Not a thing.

Overall - ***1/2
Taken by themselves, these are eight very beautiful, reasonably priced (when you consider the per cost), high quality Iron Man busts. The light up features work great, and I like the consistency of the design.

But that's where you might have a separate issue. While the design is consistent across these eight, they don't match up with the larger releases of the past. I'm one of those collectors that loves that clean, consistent look you can get on the shelf with a large number of similarly designed collectibles. It's why I love the Batman Black and White series, for example.

These are a bit of the odd man out right now, unless we see more in this scale released.  Of course, that's going to depend on how well collectors react to this size, style, and perhaps most importantly, price.

Score Recap (out of ****):
Packaging - ***1/2
Sculpting - ***1/2
Paint - ****
Articulation - Iron Patriot, War Machine ***; the rest Bupkis
Light Up Feature - ****
Value - ***
Overall - ***1/2

Where to Buy 
Online options include these site sponsors:

- Sideshow carries this set for $367.

- or you can search ebay for a deal.

Related Links -
Hot Toys has done several other Iron Man busts siimilar to these, including this trio for Iron Man 2, the standard Iron Man from IM2, and the MKV, but remember, those are 1/4 scale, not 1/6 scale.

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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