Packaging - ***1/2
I like this style of packaging, and while it isn't collector friendly, no carded packaging
really is. At least here you are getting a very sturdy bubble and card, with good graphics (I
really like the use of the unique insets showing the characters), and basic text. The embossed
look of the Batman logo is a highlight.
Sculpting -***
The sculpts aren't bad, but I'm bothered a bit by something about the Two Face sculpt.
Batman is the same sculpt we've seen in all the other two packs with a different paint job. Mattel
is doing their best to catch up to Hasbro as quickly as possible.
Two Face is a nice, new sculpt, based on the New Batman Adventures. In some ways he's an
improvement, and I prefer the slightly more svelte, smaller scale than the previous Hasbro versions. But this
poor guy is definitely suffering from pin head disease.
His head is quite tiny on his shoulders, even with the reduced size of his body. It stands out when
placed next to the other figures, and the rooster hair he has on top of his head is even more
prominent when resting on this peanut. It's a great sculpt, I just wish it was a tad bigger.
Paint - ***
The paint application on the Tech Suit Batman is solid, with little bleed
and lots of good detail work on the 'tech' part. This particular
repaint may not be your cup of tea, but he is painted well.
The paint work on Two Face isn't quite as
clean in my set. There's some bleed and poor definition between
several of the suit colors, and the face isn't quite as well done. I
do like the color choices though, and the striping on the left half of the
suit is excellent.
Articulation - **1/2
Just like Hasbro, Mattel is giving us five points - neck, shoulders and
hips. I'm not thrilled, but it could certainly be worse.
It works better for Batman than it does for
the villains, since the 'maquette' style pose they've given him gives an
impression of power and attitude. Fortunately, the poses given to the villains
so far all allow them to stand fine on their own.
Accessories - Bupkis
This continues to be a big negative for this line. Again, neither
figure comes with any accessories, although you could stretch it and say
Batman's cloth cape (very well done and well tailored too) is an
accessory. I wouldn't, but you could.
Two Face does have a coin sculpted into his
left hand, and considering how small the coin has to be in this scale,
that's fine. But a gun would have been nice, or at least an open right
hand sculpt to allow him to hold a gun.
Value - **1/2
At ten to twelve bucks a set, you're paying five to six bucks each for these
figures. With no accessories of any kind, no display stand, just a
figure, that's a couple bucks more than they are really worth. The ten
buck mark isn't terrible though, so do what you can to find these at Target.
Overall - **1/2
Don't get me wrong - I'm happy to have some new animated Batman figures on
the shelf. Of course, I'd prefer if a) they had some accessories and
b) they were really new, and not just more versions of the figures we
already have. So far Catwoman has fit the bill the best, but I have
hopes that if these sell well we'll see some TNBA versions of other villains
that we haven't gotten before.
Where to Buy -
Target is your best bet, although I've seen them at Media Play and Toys R Us
already as well.
KEEP SCROLLING DOWN FOR A TWO FACE
COMPARISON PHOTO
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