Sculpting - Bob
***1/2; MWC ***1/2
(Bob) ToyBiz is using the RealScan process on these, to generally good
results. They also chose to go with rooted hair, which works well on
Gandalf and Arwen, but looks ludicrous on Frodo. And, as with past ToyBiz
creations, it's not fully rooted, so the figures have bald spots if you
move the hair at all. Arwen is the best, with Gandalf and Frodo following
respectively. Also, Frodo has sculpted hairy feet. Mine were unevenly
painted with a wash - the right looks considerably better than the left.
(MWC)
While our scores are similar, our opinions on the individual figures are a
little different. The rooted hair does look excellent on Arwen, and
she as some small braids down through her long flowing hair that look
terrific.
I
think Frodo looks fine as well - at least I think his hair looks like the
photos. I haven't been particularly fond of the little afro that
they've given the character in the movie, but I think the figure
approximates it fairly well.
For
me, the Gandalf figure was the one that didn't work well with the rooted
hair. I don't think it's the fault of the rooted hair, but the over
abundance of it, particularly in his beard. Those with customizing
skills will probably want to give him a trim around his mouth. And
if you're looking to do an Osama Bin Ladin or Moses custom...
The head sculpt on Arwen is
also the best, with Frodo next and Gandalf last. The real scan
didn't work as well with him, and I've heard that the process doesn't work
well with people who have a lot of facial hair.
The hand sculpts aren't bad,
but only one of Gandalf's hand can actually hold anything. Actually,
that's true of all three of them, but it's most annoying with Gandalf. Paint
- MWC ***
(MWC) Bob didn't mention the paint ops, but on mine they were
spotty. Frodo and Gandalf weren't bad, but the lips and eyes on the
Arwen figure were a bit sloppy. Try to be picky when you buy yours.
Articulation -
Bob ***1/2; MWC ***1/2
(Bob) Frodo is on the standard Famous Covers body, although the joints
seem tighter. Decent articulation, although in today's market people
expect more.
Gandalf is on a new
12" body, with double jointed elbows and knees, cut biceps, thighs,
and wrists, double ball jointed waist-chest (ala Dragon). His shoulders
are a bizarro style reminiscent of Medicom's 12" figures, although it
doesn't work as well. While allowing for extra articulation at the
shoulder joint, it's counterintuitive, as to move the arm forward you
first have to move it out a bit, and sort of rotate it around on two axes.
I predict a lot of broken shoulder joints on these figures by impatient
kids thinking the joint is merely stuck.
Arwen is on a new 12"
body, similar to Gandalf but with more traditional shoulder joints.
Decent, but with the usual loose hip joints.
(MWC)
I've included nekkid pictures of all three, so you can see what we are
talking about.
I
really like the Gandalf figure - I didn't have as much trouble with the
shoulders, but it helped stripping him down so I could see how they were
supposed to work before I tried using them too much.
Frodo
is a FC body, but it the hands are made of harder plastic and he has those
big honkin' feet.
Arwen
looks great dressed, but she has one heck of a set of legs
undressed. She's one of the best articulated female bodies out
there, but the extremely long legs make using her for other things
tough. If I didn't know better, I would have said that Moore
designed her...
These
bodies are far better articulated than I had anticipated from Toybiz.
Unlike Hasbro, they seem to be learning and responding quickly to what the
market expects.
Outfits - Bob
***; MWC ***1/2
Frodo is the worst of the bunch. While it's a bit better than Playmates
standard "make everything one piece that velcros up the back"
it's not by much. And the lack of tailoring and inappropriate fabric
selections make things worse. His shirt and pants are one piece which
velcro up the back. The shirt has a collar about 20 sizes too big, making
it look ridiculous. Coupled with a velcro up the back vest (why can't the
vest open in the front) made out of a heavy fabric, it looks pretty dumb.
On top of that put a heavy corduroy jacket with an incomplete lining
(which tends to hang out, in spite of some token stitching to keep it in
place) and he just looks bulky. Maybe I'm spoiled by Dragon, who takes the
time to get things like this right, but Frodo has a rumpled, unkempt look
which just isn't in keeping with the character. His cloak is laughably
bad, made of a heavy canvas fabric I wouldn't make a *real* cloak out of,
let alone one for a 1/6 scale character. ToyBiz had to engage in some
serious tomfoolery to make this look even halfway decent.
I ended up cobbling
together a virtually identical outfit with the shirt and vest from the
western "Hannah" figure and the overalls from a 6" Street
Fighter I got on clearance (which, put on backwards, look like
suspenders), and the coat Frodo came with. He looks *much* better, even
though he's a bit inaccurate from the movie. Still, it's not like what he
came in looked right!
Gandalf fares better,
with an under bodysuit (complete with longjohns) that attach to his fabric
moccasin-like boots. On top of that he has his gray tunic, which is less a
robe as it is a baggy jumpsuit, complete with legs (the better to ride a
horse). On top of that he has his cape, with cut outs for the arms. Good
fabric selection here is offset by a lack of attention to detail for the
sake of cost cutting. The seams aren't finished, so they tend to hang out.
The whole thing just feels half-assed. Still, it does look impressive on
display. He also has a really nice braided "leather" belt that
ties through a metal loop medieval style. Very nice! Although he doesn't
wear a belt like this in the movie.
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