Review of Man-Bat - Neal Adams
Batman Black and White Statue

Introduction

Has there been a longer running, more successful set of statues than the Batman Black and White series from DC Direct? I can't think of one. The use of the monochromatic style with the ever changing appearance of the character has produced some of the coolest DC statues of the last decade.

Not too long back, DCD decided to take it one step further and incorporate some of Batman's Rogue's Gallery in the line up. Characters like Penguin and the Joker have gotten their own two tone statues, Catwoman is on the way, and Man-Bat has just been released. This is a Neal Adams design, sculpted by Jason "Spyda" Adams, and limited to an edition size of 2500???. Expect to pay around $65 or so, depending on the retailer.

Packaging - ***
There's no Certificate of Authenticity, but the edition number is printed on the bottom of the base and box. 

The box itself has decent graphics, and the interior trays are made from high density Styrofoam. It's all collector friendly of course, but there's no window to preview the actual statue before purchase.

Sculpting - ***1/2
The design for any statue in this series is usually culled right from a cover or famous panel. I did some searching but didn't come up with this specific pose, but it's possible that I'm just not looking in the right place.

Neal Adams did Man-Bat a fair number of times, particularly in the Detective Comics series. You can see a cover here, and another here. You can see that how human or how bat-like he was varied a bit, as well as the length of his trousers.

Whether it's from an actual cover or not, I love this pose. It's very animalistic and dynamic, with terrific flow from the fierce face to outstretched wings. Rather than let the wings lay limp along the sides, they are stretched out, catching the wind and ready for flight. The hunched pose and wide 'horse' stance create an air of animosity, and his weight is clearly shifted to the front foot, making him appear ready to pounce.

The statue is permanently attached to the base this time, so you won't be able to pose him without it. It's styled in the same manner as the rest of the series for consistency.

The sculpt is a little rough, reminding me of clay, but it works pretty well with the subject matter. Where smooth really counts - like on the leathery looking wings - it's there, and the fur along the top of the head and shoulders is extremely detailed.

Scale-wise he fits in nicely with the rest of the series, which are generally in that 6 - 7" size.

Paint - ***
The paint isn't up to the same quality as the sculpt, although it's not horrendous. With a gray scale figure like this, there aren't a lot of paint ops to mess up, making it a bit more annoying when they do.

The body, pants and fur all look excellent. The varying shades of gray work well with this character, and the muted finish gives him a more organic look overall. No shiny symbols or leather costume for this guy.

The face has some slop around the teeth and mouth, beyond what you'd allow for considering his less than illustrious hygiene habits. A few of the other small details, like the belt buckle, could use cleaner edge lines as well.

Value - **1/2
At $65, you're paying a pretty average price for statues in this scale right now. It's certainly no bargain, but you won't feel ripped either.

Things to Watch Out For -
The wings are pretty sturdy, but it's still easy to chip or snap them if you hit something. Because of the angle at which the protrude, that's pretty easy to do, so when you're handling him keep it in mind.

Overall - ***1/2
With a statue like this, there's really only three key areas for me - Sculpt, Paint and Value. Those of you that have read my article on writing reviews know how Value works - a **1/2 star rating means an average, reasonable value for your money, and it doesn't hurt or help the Overall. That means that for Man-Bat, it all comes down to Sculpt and Paint.

While I'm not thrilled with the paint this time around, I have to admit that the sculpt and pose overcome those issues, at least for me. I love the overall look of this guy, and the sum of the parts ends up giving me a better feeling than some of the minute details. Obviously, your mileage - and feelings about the character - may vary.

Score Recap (out of ****):
Packaging - ***
Sculpting - ***1/2
Paint - ***
Value - **1/2
Overall - ***1/2

Where to Buy 
Online options include these site sponsors:

- Entertainment Earth has him at $75.

- or you can search ebay for a deal.

Related Links -
I've covered plenty in this series over the years:

- last up was the Quitely version of Batman.

- then there's the Bermejo, the McGuinness version, the Dave Mazzucchelli version, the Penguin, Gotham Knight 2 version, the Bruce Timm version, the Ethan Van Sciver version, the Aparo, the Neal Adams and George Perez versions, the Gotham Knight, Bob Kane, Frank Miller, Jim Lee, Matt Wagner, Mike Mignola, and Kelley Jones. *whew*

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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