Review of Sergeant Barnes - Platoon sixth scale figure

Introduction

Sergeants are always the tough but lovable characters in Hollywood's version of the military.  From Sgt. Bilko to Sgt. Foley (remember him?), they were often soft under that hard exterior, always wise, and had much to teach young privates.

There's one very notable exception to that rule. Sergeant Barnes from Platoon was none of those things, although perhaps he had something to teach. Some people are examples of how to live our lives - others are examples of how not. Much can be learned from both.

Tom Berenger played the psychotic Barnes, and it is perhaps the best performance of his career. When Hot Toys announced they were doing Platoon figures, Barnes was a must, and will begin hitting shelves any day.

This is the second in the Platoon series from Hot Toys, after the previously released Chris Taylor. He runs around $150 or so, depending on the retailer, which has become the defacto standard for Hot Toys pricing these days.

Now all we need is Elias, and we can be content. Sure, I'd love a King or a Lerner, but as long as we get Elias, I can die happy.

Packaging - ****
The Barnes packaging matches the Taylor, as you'd expect. I love the camo-style textured outer box, and the multiple inner trays keep all the accessories, large and small, safe and sound.  It's all collector friendly of course, and you can pop everything out and back again without any real damage.

Sculpting - ***1/2
It's Hot Toys - you know the sculpt is going to be above average.

Berenger as Barnes had a very distinctive look, with the heavy scarring on his face. They used this extreme facial feature to it's fullest in creating this sculpt, and the damage looks just like the film makeup.

But they went further than that, capturing the look of the actor as well. The eyes, lips and shape of the head are what really bring out Berenger in this portrait, and the hardened, deadly expression works perfectly for this character.

I'm not quite as sold on the nose, and the hair that's on the forehead looks a bit odd. The do-rag is cloth, but is not removable, and the head sculpt should mesh with it cleanly. On the sides, it works great, but the short strands on the forehead don't look quite as realistic.

This figure is on the same body as the Taylor, so they'll be the same size. Berenger was a bit bigger than Sheen, but it's a minor nit.

Paint - ****
While Hot Toys sculpting is second to none, it's nothing compared to their paint work. The skin tone is perfect, and the lips are just the right shade.

The eyes have that glossy, wet appearance, and they placed the iris' high on the eye, giving him a evil glare. The paint reflects light to produce actual catch lights, making them much more life-like than what we normally see from other companies.

Articulation - ****
This is the standard TrueType body, and it's an excellent reminder of just how well designed and executed this body is.

All the joints, including the ball jointed neck, work extremely well. They all have an excellent range of movement, all are very tight and solid, and the high dense plastic means breakage is unlikely. They thrown in a few wrists pegs just in case though, but I had no trouble when I was swapping the hands.

The beauty of these bodies isn't just that they can take extreme poses and maintain them, but that they can take NATURAL poses with ease. The body flows with realistic lines and perfect balance - I love this body.

Accessories - ***1/2
Barns is well equipped, although some of the items are re-used, as you'd expect.

He has a pair of relaxed hands that he comes wearing, and there are three additional gripping hands for the guns and other weapons. These are scaled a little big, like the usual Hot Toys mitts, but it's not too bad. They swap easily, and I had no issues with the wrist pegs. There's some extras as well, just in case.

He has his rifle as well, with movable stock and an extra clip. There's his pistol too, but it's slightly unusual for a Hot Toys handgun - the slide doesn't move, and the clip is not removable. It's a nice sculpt and looks good in his hand, but it's a bit of a less complex weapon than usual.

There's two bladed weapons too - his bayonet, which looks very much like a Kabar, and his 'safe keeper', the small double edged dagger he wore on his upper chest. Both of these come with their respective sheaths, and they fit nicely inside.

He has his dog tags on a chain, along with a small can opener. There's a couple hand grenades as well, which you can slip on the belt or harness just about any place you'd like.

Like Taylor, he comes with his 'e-tool' (entrenching tool, or for the non-military types, his fancy shovel) which fits inside a canvas carry. This can attach to the large backpack. The snap on this bag doesn't like to close, and I had issues with it similar to what I saw with the small snap on Bruce Lee's belt.

The backpack looks great, and sits perfectly on his back. It's padded to appear full, but doesn't pull him over backwards or throw him off balance in any way.

There are also three pouches and two canteens, and most of these can attach to the belt with the new, nifty metal connectors. These are the same ones that Taylor had, and after you figure out how the small metal pin pops in and out, you'll be able to put them on the belt quite easily.

I do recommend removing the belt and harness before putting anything on it, however. Just unbuckle it up front, and it will be much easier to work with.

For one wrist, he has a detailed watch, while there's a metal bracelet for the other. These pop on easily when you pop the hands off. Just remember that they are there when you're swapping hands.

There's a small, folded green piece of paper as well, which he can hold in his hand or can be put inside his shirt pocket or pouch.

The bandoleer fits around his shoulder and chest, and the soft stuffed pouches hang against his body tightly.

Let's not forget that Barnes was a smoker - as was just about everyone fighting in Vietnam - and Hot Toys has included a single cigarette that he can hold in his relaxed hands.

To top it all off there's the usual display base, complete with his name plate. If you use them, it's nice to have for consistency sake.

I suspect I'm forgetting something - that's just how many accessories there are. Some stuff I've put into the next section, although you might consider them more Accessory than Costume.

Outfit - ****
The costume starts out with his olive green undershirt, outer shirt, and pants. These have pockets and realistic stitching, and are very high quality. They are well tailored, and fit snugly.

The boots look great, with a wonderful design and realistic materials. The laces are mighty long, but that's probably a good thing, since shorter laces would be pretty much impossible to tie with stubby fingers. You can always cut them short if they bother you.

He has a helmet of course, and it fits better than Taylor's did. I'm still not a big fan though, as it rides pretty high on his melon, and takes away some of his appeal, at least for me. I prefer Barnes in the do-rag, which is actual cloth but a permanent part of the head sculpt.

Fun Factor - **1/2
The figure is sturdy and well made, and I had very little trouble getting the uniform put together. This isn't a toy for kids, but it does hearken back to a time when action figures were big and well equipped. Too bad those days are well behind us.

Value - **1/2
Barnes is at what amounts to an average price for a Hot Toys action figure these days. If you can snag him for $135 or so, you'll be much happier, but he's still a fairly average value at $150. Pay more than that, and you can knock another half star off this score.

Things to Watch Out For -
I had less issue with the outfit and accessories than with Taylor, but you still want to be careful and take your time. It's easy to break some of the smaller pieces, and you'll lose the ciggie if you're not careful.

Overall - ***1/2
This is an excellent replacement for the older Sideshow version of Barnes, and if you already have the Taylor figure from Hot Toys, then Barnes is pretty much a must have. They go together like peanut butter and jelly, if peanut butter and jelly were trying to kill each other.

There's a few minor issues here and there with the outfit and the accessories, but overall this figure is well above average, even for Hot Toys. Now we just need Elias!

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

Where to Buy 
Online options include these site sponsors:

- or you can search ebay for a deal.

Related Links -
I covered Taylor from Hot Toys earlier, and this is not the first time Platoon has been treated to the sixth scale treatment. Sideshow did Chris along with Barnes and Elias, and I reviewed them back then.

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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