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Captain Toy/Michael's Review of the Week

Review of Tactical Suit Batman - Justice League
One:12 Collective action figure

Mezco Toyz
Date Published: 2019-01-30
Written By: Michael Crawford
Overall Average Rating: 3.5 out of 4

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Tactical Suit Batman Justice League One:12 action figure by Mezco

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Introduction

Last week I checked out the terrific sixth scale Tactical Suit Batman from Hot Toys, a great figure and excellent Batman design from an otherwise so-so DC movie.

Tonight I'm following it up with a look at another Tactical Suit Batman, this time from Mezco. Unlike the earlier version, this one is only 1/12 scale, coming in around 6 1/2" tall, about half the size of the Hot Toys figure.  And the price is a lot smaller too, running around $80 at most retailers.

Tactical Suit Batman Justice League One:12 action figure by Mezco

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Packaging - ***1/2
The box is made from a thick, sturdy cardboard, and inside the double trays keep everything safe and sound. It's all packed in a collector friendly manner, with no need to damage anything when removing or replacing the figure and accessories. The exterior matches the earlier Justice League releases in graphical design, keeping it simple yet attractive.

Tactical Suit Batman Justice League One:12 action figure by Mezco

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Sculpting - ***1/2
As with most One:12 figures, there are two portraits. In this instance, both are masked but one has a determined frown, while the other has a dynamic expression with open mouth and gritted teeth.

The expressions are good, perfect for a whole bunch of poses. There's a ton of realism in the skin textures and mask surface too, unusual for this small scale. I'm not getting quite as much of an Affleck vibe off these lower faces though, hurting them slightly when it comes to accuracy.

The head and neck are separate pieces with this figure, making swapping heads easy. It also improves the neck articulation, and the seam under the jawline is well hidden.

The plastic parts of the costume look terrific, and again it's the varying textures that set it apart.  The plastic armor blends in seamlessly with the cloth body suit too, and the final result is really impressive.

Tactical Suit Batman Justice League One:12 action figure by Mezco

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Paint - ***1/2
The paint work is solid, although there's a little more slop this time around. Not a ton, but Mezco has set the bar awfully high in this category with past releases.

Both faces have a nice five o'clock shadow, and the skin tone variation is very realistic. The eyes are straight, but not quite as clean as I'd like. You'll only notice it in macro photos though, and the bleed of black is still minor. The teeth look good on the open mouth, but the lips on both face plates are a little too washed out.

The suit colors are realistic and clean, and the silver - always a tough color to get good coverage with - is consistent and matches between the plastic and fabric. There's not a ton of small details on the suit itself (mostly buckles), but what's here is clean and neat.

Tactical Suit Batman Justice League One:12 action figure by Mezco

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Articulation - ***1/2
Here's a surprise - the 1/12 version of this character is more posable than the 1/6 version.

This increased mobility is due to two factors. First, there's the two piece neck/cowl. On the sixth scale release this was all one piece, making it tough to tilt, lean, or even turn the head. Because the head and lower piece of the cowl that covers the neck and shoulders are separate, you can get a ton of good movement out of the head, adding lots of realism and personality to every pose.

The second factor is the cloth/mesh body suit. The stretchy but leathery suit used by Hot Toys restricted quite a few of the joints, but this material is more forgiving. Shoulders, elbows, and wrists can take plenty of good arm poses, and the hips, knees, and ankles can go from shallow to deep stances, with enough rocker movement in the ankles to keep the feet flat on the ground.

The torso is still a bit tied up by the chest armor, but even here I was able to get more turn, crunch, and tilt. Of course, the goggles also move up and down, something that was not true with the larger figure.

Tactical Suit Batman Justice League One:12 action figure by Mezco

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Accessories - ****
Most One:12 figures are well outfitted with extra goodies, and this Batman is no exception.

He comes wearing fists, but also has a set of wide grip hands, tighter grip hands (better for the grappling gun and smaller accessories), and a set with batarangs permanently attached. They swap easily, and I had no fear of breakage.

There's a couple extra batarangs as well - three actually. There's three bat grenades too, and three different tips for the aforementioned grappling gun. One of these tips is closed, one is sprung open, and one is sprung open with a long string already attached.

Tactical Suit Batman Justice League One:12 action figure by Mezco

Which brings us to the grappling gun. It looks terrific, with an excellent sculpt and paint work to support it. You can also attach this gun to the back of his belt, under the cape.

Batman also has the alien Parademon rifle. None of his hands are particularly well suited to work with it, but you can make do with a little patience and effort.

I mentioned his goggles earlier. He has two sets, with a very slight difference in the sculpts.  One set is designed to be worn up, while the other is designed to be worn down. However, since they attach to the side of the head with small, round posts, you can lift and lower either one. One does look slightly better in one position than the other.  I used both in both ways in the photos to show you what I mean, but I remained consistent with which pair was on which head. The set designed to be lowered over his eyes is on the frowning face, while the set designed to be worn up is on the open mouth face.

Tactical Suit Batman Justice League One:12 action figure by Mezco

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Outfit - ****
This is another outstanding outfit in the One:12 line. Combining cloth and plastic, they reproduce the bat suit extremely well, creating a realistic yet posable figure.

While the body suit and armor are great - and I've discussed their merits earlier - it's the cape that really tops it all off. It's thin enough to be properly in scale, but it's heavy enough to hang naturally. It folds over the shoulders or across the chest in multiple ways, and looks fantastic doing it.

Tactical Suit Batman Justice League One:12 action figure by Mezco

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Fun Factor - ***1/2
With good articulation and posability, a nice variety of accessories, and two different portraits to choose from, you should have no trouble coming up with lots of different poses, and revisiting his look over and over again.

Value - **1/2
The average rate for a standard One:12 figure these days is $80, which is where this guy falls. He has plenty of extras, and the complex costume and mixed media nature of the design support the price point.

Tactical Suit Batman Justice League One:12 action figure by Mezco

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Things to Watch Out For -
Not a thing. As I mentioned, there is a set of goggles better suited for the down position (tighter at the temples), and a set better suited for the up (wider at the temples), but you really can't go wrong either way.

Overall - ***1/2
Another excellent design and amazing execution from Mezco. The People's Picks voting started tonight, and I'll be making the series my Best Overall Line - High End, no doubt about it.

Score Recap (out of ****):
Packaging - ***1/2
Sculpting - ***1/2
Paint - ***1/2
Articulation - ***1/2
Accessories - ****
Outfit - ****
Fun Factor - ***1/2
Value - **1/2
Overall - ***1/2

Tactical Suit Batman Justice League One:12 action figure by Mezco

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Where to Buy 
Mezco originally had him at their store for $80, but have since sold out. Other online options include these site sponsors:

- has him for $80.

- Entertainment Earth has him at $80 as well.

- or you can search ebay for a deal.

Related Links -
As I mentioned, I covered the larger 1/6 Hot Toys version of this figure last week. Other recent DC One:12 figures include Aquaman, Darkseid, Wonder Woman, Batman, Armored Batman, Knightmare Batman, and Superman from the recent films.

You should also hit the Search Reviews page, in case any other applicable reviews were done after this one was published.

Discussion:
Want to chat about this review?  Try out one of these terrific forums where I'll be discussing it!

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Tactical Suit Batman Justice League One:12 action figure by Mezco

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This product was purchased for the review by the reviewer. Photos and text by Michael Crawford.

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