|
Leapin'
Hulk
|
|
Lots of folks have been anticipating these
figures - here's Coheteboy with a guest review!
HULK the Motion Picture: Super-Poseable
Leaping Hulk with Real Leaping Bungie Cord!
by Toy Biz
Toy Biz and Marvel have been creating wonderful product for a while now, and
with the growing anticipation of Ang Lee's Hulk coming to theaters in the
Summer of 2003, fans can get a glimpse of what this CG Hulk will look like
in the movie.
Toy Biz has created three basic Hulk figures that are arriving in most
Wal-Mart stores in California and should be hitting the rest of the nation
very soon. The three different gimmick-filled Hulk figures are as
follows: Super-Poseable Leaping Hulk (which will be reviewed below),
Punching Hulk, and Smash & Crush Hulk.
As far as I know these are all shipped in equal numbers so there shouldn't
be a figure that is rare or hard to find. Question is: which Hulk will
be the most popular with toy collectors?
|
|
|
|
Packaging - ***1/2
Toy Biz takes a step away from their clam shell packaging to go for the
older style of card backs and bubble, though the bubble for these Hulk
figures are massive, for obvious reasons. The bubble features a
cardboard insert that resembles a radioactive "cage" where your
Hulk figure is cramped into. The package looks great but it does make
it more difficult to see exactly how the figure will look outside of the
box.
The card back is similar to Spider-Man Movie figures with a diagram showing
how the gimmick works, etc. Nothing fantastic but nothing wrong with
it either.
Sculpting - ***
It's hard to tell at this time how good the sculpting is in comparison to
the film likeness, but it's pretty easy to tell if it's a good or bad sculpt
regardless. While the sculpt isn't bad, it's quite simply not the best
it can be. The Leaping Hulk, in particular, lacks a neck, and is quite
obvious when looking at the carded figure. When Hulk is looking
upwards, it looks more natural.
The head on top of the shoulders is done quite well, actually, showing the
typical raging expression that Hulk often has. The rest of the body is
done quite well also with attention to veins and his "ripping
muscles".
Paint - ***
Though Hulk is just a giant green figure, Toy Biz made sure that there was
more depth to the figure by adding darker shades of green in some areas,
highlighting the sculpt. The teeth are painted white and farily clean
and the eyes are nicely done as well. Overall, a good effort in paint.
Articulation - ***1/2
The articulation in this figure is pretty impressive. I can
count about 25 points (7 in each arm alone) though there might be more.
Even though Hulk doesn't have a neck, he still has up and down and side to
side movement, though the up and down articulation is the main focus here.
The left hand offers one articulation on four of the fingers while the right
hand is forever in a fisted position, but there is articulation so you can
position his fist in any direction. Very nicely done here.
Accessories - *
If you count the included gimmick handle as an accessory, then Leaping Hulk
gets one point for it. If you don't count it as an accessory, then
Hulk here gets a whopping ZERO. Yah, pretty disappointing, but this is
a leaping Hulk after all. Would be nice to have a crushed car to leap
onto though.
Action Gimmick - **
Since this is a "leaping" Hulk, exactly how does this feature work
and is it done well? Many of you who collect the Toy Biz figures for
the Spider-Man film may remember the super-poseable Spidey with the rappelling
line. I "thought" this same feature would be used here so
Hulk would be pulled up from the string. No the case. The string
does roll up inside the "engine" handle but you have to do it
manually. The string is attached to a hoop on Hulk's back so that is
quite a disappointment. To create the "leaping" feature, you
just pull the accessory up and down and lo and behold, the Hulk leaps.
Fascinating. I can make Hulk leap farther by throwing him.
Basically, you're looking at the first Yo-Yo Hulk toy. Very
disappointing and sad gimmick. I'd say just cut the poor toy loose
from his chord.
Value - ***1/2
At only $6.77 at Wal-Mart, this is a good price for an action figure of this
size. Keep in mind that this isn't as large as the Marvel Legends
Hulk, but it's still slightly larger than Spidey toys.
Overall - ***
The action gimmick is a failure so I'm only judging this figure on
sculpt and articulation, and those features do make up a fair amount.
Opening the figure, it was disappointing to see there was no neck, but I
noticed that even before opening. But once the head is facing up, it
looks great. A well articulated toy is hard to pass up.
Where to Buy -
Right now they are hitting Wal-marts around the U.S.
About the Reviewer:
I'm 24, live in Southern CA, collect
toylines such as: Muppet Show, Star Wars, Marvel Legends, Simpsons,
Transformers, G.I.Joe vs. Cobra, and others. On the web: Runs the
Outhouse, an action figure humor site hosted by www.deathstarplans.com
|
Figure from the collection of
Coheteboy. |
