Kotobukiya ArtFX+ Justice League Series Batman Statue

Using a chunk of points on my Amazon card, I chipped about 1/3 off the price of this Kotobukiya Justice League Series Batman statue. This may very well be my first real statue, and while I like even minimal articulation, this 7 1/2" Kotobukiya Batman doesn't take up much room, and is perhaps the most beautiful representation of Batman I've ever seen...  Check out the video:

Batman's metallic gloss armor pops against the flat black cowl and cape, which drapes exquisitely down the verso of the figure. I'd prefered it flatten out all the way down to the base, mainly for aesthetic reasons, but the magnets in his feet provide enough stability and it's not too distracting. There is a less noticeable anime look about this Batman than the other Kotobukiya ArtFX+ Justice League Series statues, but just enough to make him interesting while acknowledging Jim Lee's original character design. I'm not sure if or when I'd buy another statue, but this will make a splendid addition to my growing collection of Batman figures. Wow!

The Kotobukiya and 6" Mattel Unlimited Series Batman side by side...

MORE LATER- MAKE IT FUN!

DC Collectibles Justice League Cyborg

Time finally caught up with me and I found a smokin' deal on the DC Collectibles Justice League Cyborg, which is about as handsome an action figure that any boy could ask for. His articulation is more limited than recent DC Collectibles in this 7" scale, but he's so beautiful it doesn't matter. Check out the video:

Cyborg has an interchangeable left arm- a clawed blaster extension that amplifies his robotic aesthetic. In typical DC Collectibles fashion, the elbow was cranky, requiring a hairdryer to loosen, and the end plug now has difficulty fastening into the regular fisted arm. Still, I prefer the clawed arm, and the secondary market price I got was pretty good as these were $25.00 when released into retail last year. Pictured below are DC Collectibles Cyborg with the DC Universe Cyborg- quite an evolution! Also in the video above are comparison shots of Cyborg with other DC Collectibles figures:
*DC Direct New Krypton Series Brainiac
*DC Collectibles Darkseid
*DC Collectibles Justice League Series Martian Manhunter
*DC Collectibles Justice League 2-Pack Katana

MORE LATER- MAKE IT FUN!

Imaginext Justice League Figures

I stopped buying these Imaginext DC figures some time ago mainly because Fisher-Price stopped releasing new characters. These chunky, little cuties are made for smaller children, and limited in their articulation- swivel wrists, heads in most cases, hinge swivel shoulders, and a single horseshoe-hinge for the legs are what you get here. Like the Playskool Marvel Super Heroes in their construction, their bright colors and sturdy construction will appeal to and survive a preschool play session. See a bunch more photos of these little guys along with more from my collection of Imaginext DC figures in a the video I just made:

 It seems like I heard about a New 52 Superman coming out a year ago, but packaged with a Wonder Woman- I did see this 2-pack on the pegs, but could not pass on this amazing little Darkseid figure! He's almost a little too well sculpted, the detailing far beyond other characters in the line. His hood and shoulder overlay are molded in a softer, more flexible fabric, allowing Darkseid to turn his head, a point of articulation Superman disappointingly lacks. I like his bright colors however, and he wears a tiny cloth cape. There was a Superman slightly darker packaged with the conventional Wonder Woman, while a New 52 deco of the Amazon is packed with her invisible jet, a vehicle I covet but can't commit to.

Aquaman and Roboshark were released a while ago, under the "DC Super Friends" banner, before the recent Justice League wave Supes and Darkseid  were part of, but I finally decided to photograph him after finding new Imaginext on the pegs. Aquaman's head turns, but he's not so steady on his feet, the flat bottoms not flush to the ground, making the King of the Seas really wobbly- some boiling water may help me realign his feet. Some didn't prefer Arthur's variant yellow boots, but I did- you can get him with fully green legs now if you prefer, but he's packed with a New 52 Flash, not this killer Roboshark... !

By pressing Roboshark's dorsal fin, his articulated jaw action feature is activated! He's cast in a metallic grey, sculpted with rivets and mechanical details, his eyes painted red and gill vents black. He's rad! Aquaman's other accessory is his yellow trident, that also has some simple, but thoughtful sculpt details. This was a great set I saw only once on the pegs until recently, and a lot of fun to play around with out of packaging

I wasn't surprised to see an Imaginext Cyborg figure as I was to see the Red Tornado in this 2-pack I found while picking up Superman & Darkseid. DC has really been pushing Cyborg for awhile, in both the most recent Teen Titans animated shows, with the Flashpoint series, and finally with the New 52 Justice League title. Red Tornado showed up recently in issue #15 of Earth 2, apparently feminine in this alternate dimension/reality- looking forward to the next issue! These were far too cool to pass on, my only gripes being Tornado's head doesn't turn, nor does Cyborg's gun barrel arm. Their detailed decos are unique and beautifully done, particularly Cyborg's. Super cute!

The new Green Arrow trough me off at first, evoking suspicions of reused parts from some medieval Imaginext toys, which he may be, but I rarely pass on a new Green Arrow figure- especially one with a projectile accessory!  The projectile takes a firm push of the light green buttons at the rear of the barrel, and fires with  a good amount of force- keep it pointed away from your face. The crossbows fire and swivel vertically independent of one another, and move horizontally together on the quad-legged base. It's fun!

The rigged/armored look of the sculpt , highlighted piping in the chest, and hooded head are reminiscent of the DC New 52 G..A. He's a great little figure with a lot of detail., down to his painted buckles on the sculpted shoulder straps to the impossibly tiny arrowhead etched into his belt buckle. Snappy!

See a bunch more photos of these little guys along with more from my collection of Imaginext DC figures in the video I just made!

More Later- Make It FUN!

New 52 Martian Manhunter

I've been impressed with DC Collectibles Justice League series- their action figures haven't improved insofar as their articulation, but the sculpts and colors continue to dazzle the eye. For a character that most of the general public doesn't know, Martian Manhunter has been immortalized in plastic a surprising number of times. I think this is like my eighteenth, but I don't have them all. I wasn't really familiar with J'onn in my youth, but when I returned to comics and started this blog I grew very interested in the underrated character. Described as the most powerful being on Earth by Superman himself, J'onn J'onnz has most all of the Man of Steel's powers, with the added telepathy, shape-shifting, and phasing intangibility to make the Martian nearly invincible. The thoughtful nature of this lone survivor of the Red Planet is what appeals to me- his compassion for the Earthlings who would instinctively fear him when not disguised as Detective John Jones.  

For whatever reason, I haven't read a lot of the New 52 adventures of Martian Manhunter, and need to catch up on the Brightest Day books (2010) dealing with his resurrection after being murdered by Libra in Final Crisis (2008). I did however thoroughly enjoy several of those Ostrander/Mandrake issues from the late '90s, the American Secrets series (1992), the Martian Manhunter: The Others Among Us  TPB from volume 3 (2007), and loved his treatment in DC: The New Frontier (2005). 

J'onn gets the regal treatment in his majestic purple, DC continuing to give the longtime bare-legged character pants, adding an almost ceremonial red loincloth and closely collared shoulder overlay.  There's some great texture in the pants and boots- pulls in the seams that give them a realistic feel. Conversely, the folds in the cape are somewhat loosely rendered, and could have used a sharper sculpt. I've seen worse capes on some of DC Direct's past figures however, so it's not a deal-breaker.

Up close there are some really loose paint apps on the figure, most noticeably in the piping on J'onn's shoulder overlay. To be fair, that's some really small detailing in the sculpt that would be difficult for the most skilled, and he looks great under normal viewing conditions. I like the layer of gloss over the lips, which greatly contributes to the realism of this excellent head sculpt. Wonderful! J'onn shows more alien features here, finned forearms and enlarged, ribbed cranium. DC Direct aren't known for their amazing articulation, but we do get swivels at the boot tops. Other than that, there's no waist/abdominal or wrist joints, but he does have an expressive ball-jointed neck and some backward range in his hips like the other Justice League series figures. His ball-jointed shoulder/bicep swivel combo is nice, but nothing new. My J'onn has satisfyingly firm joint tension and a sturdy feel. I paid $24.95 + tax for him at a local comic shop.

I still haven't opened the Justice League Green Arrow I picked up back in March- an impressive offering of accessories and great costume on this one! Like Mattel, DC Collectibles seems to have quit including a base/stand, though we have a peg hole in the heel. Annoying. Still, these are nice action figures that are more artfully rendered than most of Mattel's of similarly scaled 6" figures...

Also still MOC is my DC Direct Brightest Day Martian Manhunter- J'onn had this costume very briefly after his resurrection at the end of Blackest Night and through the following Brightest Day arc, before DC Comics' controversial and successful New 52 relaunch. While I'm generally a fan of variant renderings of a character, I was a little sorry to see J'onn's Brightest Day dress disappear so quickly. The black pants were cool...

7" Justice League Martian Manhunter with DC Direct New Frontier and JLA Classified Manhunters. One thing I like about DC Direct figures is their wildly different styling from series to series, often emulating the style of a particular comic artist, in the latter two artists Darwyn Cooke and Ed Guinness. Two favorites! See more of my Martian Manhunter collection in my May 27th post!

Martian Manhunter with Justice League Wonder Woman and Superman...

J'onn should help even the odds against the likes of  Darkseid with Diana and Kal...

More Later- Make It FUN!

Justice League Superman & Batman

In continuation of my last post on the new 5" Justice League figures, I present the New 52 Superman & Batman. I hadn't originally intended to pick up yet another Batman in the Brave & The Bold style, but liked his classic color scheme so much that I went ahead and grabbed him while getting the other three characters. I was certain, however, that I'd be picking up this fun little New 52 Superman...

Again, these don't have any articulation beyond what we saw in the Brave & The Bold figures- swivel head, waist, arms and legs, the latter restricted by the posterior sculpt, and hinged elbows. They don't need it because little kids don't pose their action figures- they play with them. The colors are bright and cheerful on this Man of Steel, styled after Jim Lee's New 52 Superman- a design I like. While I somewhat miss the hexagonal accessory slots prominent in the original B&TB line, caped figures benefit from their omission- no hole punched in the cape. Superman can now have the family shield emblazoned across the back of his cape!

This is a great looking Superman- the New 52 S shield is tamped neatly on his chest, which has armor lines running throughout like Jim Lee's redesign of the iconic suit. Mattel also squared off the boot tops, pointed his cuffs, and stamped a shield on top the belt buckle to update the character. And like the Green Lantern from this line, Superman has a collared neck, only visible when his head is turned. Mine has a slight chip in the chin, but it's not too visible in person. While this is a only a redeco of the previous B&TB Supermen, he may be my favorite.

BubbaShelby confirmed that the Flash from this series came with a re-purposed Justice League Unlimited accessory that Red Tornado also had, as did the Green Lantern share the same construct as the JLU Parasite. I'm certain this strange device came from a JLU Superman, but I can't seem to find confirmation of this on the internet. I've said in the last post that while I can appreciate the cleaner appearance without the heaxagonal Snap & Attack accessory feature that defined the Brave & The Bold Line, I feel some of the play value has been removed, so why bother giving me this chunk of gray plastic that has no mutual context with this New 52 Superman. It's only a reminder of Mattel's recent refusal to give us much in the way of accessories. I should mail it to them. But I digress- I love this little Superman as much as my other two.

Justice League Superman with Brave & The Bold Total Armor series Steel Power Superman and Kryptonite Collision Superman. I love having a few variants of any character, within a single series or across multiple toy lines and manufacturers...

Batman is the same figure as all the basic variants in the Brave & The Bold line, of which I have many, but he's so cool I had to have another. I didn't have a black & grey B&TB figure, nor a New 52 styled Batman, so I picked him up with Superman & the others. He has the best accessory of these new Justice League figures, a simple batarang with a handle to slip over his hand. I love the B&TB styling of this Batman- I loved the show, and the toy line is perhaps my favorite. The guest characters and their subsequent action figures like Blue Beetle, the Atom, Green Arrow and Plastic Man were really great, and Aquaman was hilarious!

Justice League Batman with Brave & The Bold Total Armor series Batman from the Kryptonite Collision battle pack and Stealth Strike series Gear Up Batman...   

This new Batman has no hole in the back of his cape like the previous line, the hexagonal accessory plugs removed from his body, which I found handy for plugging in Gear Up Batman's saber. As I've said before, once I got past their aesthetic as a kid's toy, I didn't really mind the socket holes in the B&TB figures- they were what the were, made for play.  Still, it's kinda nice to have a n example without to appreciate. I have some really fun B&TB Batmen I should open and post on, and in fact just found two more I liked!   :D

I have fourteen Batmen from the Brave & The Bold line, and will soon be adding two more, but am always on the lookout for more! Take a look at the last photo on my post from Nov.11th, 2011 to see a few from my collection.

And finally, Green Lantern and Flash with Superman and Batman, all the latest single carded 5" Justice League members available at Target. The card backer does show a Lex Luthor I'd be interested in, but he was nowhere in sight. Since getting these last weekend, I've seen the boxed set which also includes Cyborg, Wonder Woman, and Aquaman, but I have a Brave & the Bold Aquaman I love already, Batman didn't come with a Batarang, and it was a little more than I wanted to spend on these right now. These were the four are the one's I cared most about and are a lot of fun!

More Later- Make It FUN!

Justice League Flash & Green Lantern

I was surprised to see these 5" Justice League figures appear suddenly, obviously styled after the Batman Brave & The Bold figures that seemed to be on their way out. If you've read this blog for awhile, you know I'm a big fan of that line of Mattel toys and have a nice collection, several of which I've yet to open & photograph. Needless to say, I was thrilled to see a Flash and Green Lantern in this style!

The first thing you will notice is the lack of hexagonal accessory slots prominent in the Brave & The Bold figures. I am certain this is welcomed by most everyone, but I have mixed feelings about it. I actually liked that play feature, and can imagine this Flash figure with some cool lighting bolt accessories that could have been a lot of fun. I can't argue that without the slots these figures have a cleaner appearance, but some of the fun factor is lost in my humble opinion.

These don't have any additional articulation- swivel head, waist, arms and legs, the latter restricted by the posterior sculpt, and hinged elbows. What he lacks in articulation Flash makes up for in his dynamic paint deco, lightning bolts running over the torso and head like the New 52 Flash. The eyes are very well detailed, giving his tiny face a lot of personality- a trait only seen in a handful of the previous Brave & The Bold line. The ears are of a softer rubber so the won't poke or chip, and he's of generally sturdy construction like the Brave & the Bold toys.

Flash comes with a funnel accessory- it doesn't fit over his hands, but he can hold it well enough. It works. Seems like I've seen this included with some other Mattel toy line though, but can't put my finger on where I've seen it. I say this because one of my Justice League Unlimited figures has the same accessory Mattel gave the Green Lantern from this series! This is a fun Flash I'm glad to see produced in the Brave & The Bold style, even if he's missing missing the unique accessory capability the previous line was known for.

I enjoy the contrast between Flash and Green Lantern's costumes- rattles my cones and rods, dazzles the eye. I appreciate the characters a lot more after I read Blackest Night a couple years ago, and later Flashpoint last year, and I feel they've come closer to the forefront in the last few years, alongside the Trinity of Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman. 

This is actually my second Justice League GL, the first one having a faulty arm peg the promptly broke off upon unpacking, the first to be opened! I was bummed, but returned him for a replacement. Like Flash, Hal has a spectacular head sculpt, a little less doughy than the Brave & The Bold figures. His angular face and mask create great depth and shadow! 

Like I said, Hal has a re-purposed accessory, the same that came with my JLU Parasite, which makes no more sense as a Green Lantern construct. In fact, the pocket knife blade looks even more lame on the larger 5" Justice League figure. Again, I miss the kind of accessories we would have got with a Brave & The Bold figure- just look at the Skyshot Batman if you want to know what kind of Green Lantern accessories we used to get. Why not just a lantern? Whaddya gonna do with that thing Hal, cut the cheese? LOL!

Hal has a simple paint deco that works well- the green torso has a slightly opalescent quality, which looks to be in the plastic itself, slightly different from the semi-gloss green in the shoulders and boots. The lantern symbol is neatly tamped on the chest, but we get a green dot for his ring. There are some New 52 inspired armor lines in his shoulders, but thet are a little too faint, and I feel they could have run them down the back and chest for better effect. He has a couple nicks but looks really good overall.

BIGTOYlittletoy! Mattel DCUC Flash, Action League Flash, and Justice League Flash:

Mattel DCUC Hal Jordan, Action League Hal, and Justice League Hal:

Justice League Green Lantern and Flash with Brave & The Bold  Sea Spear Aquaman, Trap Hand Plastic Man, and Rocket Blast Firestorm:

 More Later- Make It FUN!