Evil Ash
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It's almost October, and for the last several years
that means one thing for toy collectors - another assortment of Movie
Maniacs. This year we are treated to a set featuring some resculpts
of past characters, along with brand new movie themes.
There are two Terminator figures in this assortment -
the T-800, and T-1000. For the Freddy fans, there's a new version of
everyone's favorite nightmare stalker. On a more modern note, the
Blair Witch is here - in two versions, one with a 'tree' head, and one
with dreadlocks. Candyman gets his due this time around, and
finally, the figure I'm reviewing here, Evil Ash from the Army of
Darkness. For those of us in the Midwest, Meijers is
usually the first store to get in any McFarlane product. That was
true once again, and they are selling them for $7.99. I've also seen
them at Suncoast and Media Play, but you'll be paying a couple bucks more.
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Packaging - ***
The new cardbacks are brighter and more colorful than previous
series. McToys always does a great job with the graphics, and this
is another nice example.
The rest of the line is pictured on the
back, along with several other recently released items. In
particular, the new Jaws set looks great!
Accessories - ***1/2
We get a couple nicely detailed swords, and the usual Movie Maniacs
background with movie poster.
The swords fit nicely in both
hands, once you manage to get them IN the hands. Be careful, since
breaking the handles is possible.
The poster and holder are
pretty standard for this line, but this time they've only surrounded the
poster on three sides, rather than four. I'm not sure why, and it
doesn't lend as much support to the cardboard poster. Ripping it on
that edge is a distinct possibility.
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Sculpting - ***1/2
Once again, absolutely beautiful work. McToys does sculpting better
than anyone else in the business right now. Out
of this entire assortment, I think that Evil Ash and the dreadlocks Blair
Witch were the best looking, although I bet Candyman is pretty cool if you
get him off the card and open his coat to reveal all his nastiness. So
why did I take a half star off? Because of the pose. With so
little articulation, the choice of pose for the sculpt is crucial.
The pose of his arms is awkward, and hurts an otherwise great figure. Paint -
****
No matter how good the sculpting is, with poor paint ops it makes no
difference. Here we see what great paint ops are, from the exposed
bone and muscle on the face, to the details of the clothing.
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Articulation
- **
Neck, shoulders, waist, wrists and ankles. All of them are cut
joints, and what are here have very limited range of motion. There's
really only one pose he can take, and as I said it's an awfully awkward
looking one at that. Value -
***
At eight bucks, you great great sculpting, nice accessories, and if you're
a fan of the movie, a great character. I
have a hunch that McFarlane isn't making huge margins off these, but for
the consumer this price point is a good bargain.
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Overall - ***
With just a little more articulation, or at least articulation that gave
some poseability, these would be easy four star material. But
McFarlane Toys certainly knows sculpting and paint, and I'm going to be
picking up the Jaws deluxe set as soon as it hits.
Where to Buy -
Retail
stores like Meijers, Suncoast and Media Play already have these. I
suspect Target, Wal-mart and Toys R Us can't be far behind. On-line,
there are tons of choices as well -
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Tower
Records on-line has a case of 12 for $120 plus shipping. I'm
betting you'll get the tree head version of Blair Witch here, though it's
no guarantee.
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Entertainment
Earth has a case at only $100 plus shipping. Buying cases works
great if you have others that you can split the figures with! (MROTW
affiliate)
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Action
Figure Express has a case for a $100 plus shipping as well. Search for
Movie Maniacs. (MROTW affiliate)
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Comics
Infinity has a set for $60, plus shipping. That's a little more
than retail though, but their shipping is quick and reliable.
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Figure from the collection of Michael Crawford
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