Review of Gellert Grindelwald - Fantastic Beasts
Action Figure

Introduction

The second film in the Fantastic Beasts series, The Crimes of Grindelwald, featured the Johnny Depp villain of course. Hot Toys had produced figures for both Newt and Grindelwald in sixth scale, and Star Ace had done their own Newt in sixth scale, which holds his own against them.  But Star Ace made a switch to the 1/8 scale with most of their Harry Potter releases, and the latest in this smaller scale has started to ship.

I covered Newt awhile back, and tonight we'll check out Grindelwald. This is his look from the second movie, theoretically, but it's not that much different than the brief appearance in the first film. As I said, this figure is in 1/8 scale, just slightly over 9" tall, and will run you around $140 - $150, depending on the retailer.

Packaging - ***
While the package isn't particularly exciting, it is very, very sturdy, a big deal for those looking to store him or keep him safe in the package long term. It's also all collector friendly, and does include some basic instructions. There is some of the sticky plastic being used with the trays to hold down the smaller accessories, but it's a minor nit.

Sculpting - ***1/2
They didn't advertise it when they put this guy up for pre-order, but there are two portraits included. There's not much difference though, and you'll have to look pretty closely to see it.

The detail work on the hair is quite good. Remember, this guy is much smaller than a sixth scale figure, coming in barely over 9". That makes the detail you're seeing in the macro photos all the more impressive. The skin texture is very realistic, and the hair of the eyebrows and mustache subtle yet evident. Johnny looks a little young here, but putting in too many wrinkles at this scale may have taken it over the top.

But is it Johnny? In hand, where the smaller portraits loose some detail to the naked eye, it's quite good. In macro photos, it does loose a bit of its accuracy, particularly around the nose. Still, if you pop the head off and hand it to an impartial observer, they'll know who it is immediately.

The two heads might look identical in hand, but they aren't. Part of this is due to paint, part to sculpt. The mouth is slightly wider on the second head, the eyes more open. The jawline seems a smidge wider as well. As I said, these details might be subtle, but I guarantee you'll like one more than the other. Personally, I'll be using the one he comes wearing, which is on the left in the photo below.

Paint - ***
Again, remember the smaller scale here. The production paint is very clean, very consistent, and quite realistic. If I were grading this off quality alone, I'd go another half star. The skin tone is very realistic, the eyes are super clean, and there's no slop anywhere, including the accessories.

In the marketing photos, they went with a very white color for the hair. In the final version, it's slightly blonde, not quite completely bleached, and they added a sparkly gloss. I prefer the whiter version, which I think better matches his look in the movie. This is an aesthetic thing though, so you may have less of an issue with it than I.

Articulation - ***
The underlying body works quite well, and has all the articulation of the larger sixth scale cousin. However, there's a costume issue that pulls down the score.

The neck works great, and swapping the heads was easy. You'll get plenty of tilt and lean out of it, and can add lots of cocky personality to any pose.

Likewise, the torso can lean, tilt, turn, and crunch, which is critical in breaking up those unnatural straight lines.  The elbows, wrists, and shoulders can create nice arm poses with the wand and other accessories, and the hands swapped easily.

The hips and knees work well too, even in the tightly tailored pants. But he has one piece sculpted boots, very stiff, and they completely remove any ankle articulation. That's a bummer, since it hurts the natural look of a medium to wide stance.

Accessories - ***1/2
The second portrait boosts this score a bit, both because it's there, and because it was a surprise.

There's also three additional hands to go with the open hands he comes wearing. One is a wide gesture left, one a gripping left, and one a gripping/pointing right. These swap easily, and are in proper scale.

He has his wand of course, which is a pretty recognizable wand in the Harry Potter world. He also has the tiny blood pact vial, on a real metal chain.  I wish the chain were a little longer, so it would hang down further on Grindelwald, but it's still a nice addition.

He also has the hookah and pipe made from a human skull. The skull is a little large to be in scale here, but it's not a particularly obvious defect if you aren't looking for it.

In another change from the original marketing plan, they did NOT include an Augurey, but rather a Chupacabra. The sculpt is great, as is the paint work, and he's a fairly unique beast.

Finally, there's a basic display stand with waist grabber and a posable metal support rod.

Outfit - ***1/2
The outfit has multiple layers, but is extremely well tailored and very high quality. Considering the smaller scale, they did an excellent job overall.

There appears to be a thin black t-shirt, although this might be some sort of dickey. Over this he wears his white shirt, black vest, and black coat, with black pants completing the look.

Everything is nicely tailored, especially considering the much smaller scale. Nothing is baggy, nothing is too thick, and it all hangs naturally. You can either keep the shirt collar down inside the vest, or you can pop it out and flip it up, which I preferred. The collars on all three - shirt, vest, coat - are in a correct scale, something that other companies have trouble with even in sixth scale.

I docked them only for the hard, sculpted one piece boots. They look great, but at this price point, a two piece style that allowed for ankle mobility would have made sense.

Fun Factor - ***1/2
Combine this guy with Newt, and you'll have a great display. I wish we'd get a young Dumbledore in this scale - or any scale for that matter - but having Newt and Gellert is better than nothing.

Value - **
This guy is in the $140 range, depending on the retailer. That's about $20 more than I love, but he's still a much better value than the larger sixth scale Hot Toys versions. The quality of accessories and costuming is about right, and collectors on a bit more of a budget both with dollars and space will appreciate the line.

Things to Watch Out For -
Not a thing - it's all sturdy and easy to work with. Of course, the velvety material of the outer coat is going to pick up dust, but you'll just have to brush it on occasion.

Overall - ***1/2
The worst thing about this figure is how much it makes me wish Star Ace had done a sixth scale Grindelwald.  They really did a nice job with this smaller version, especially on the costume. Fans of the movies and character should be extremely pleased, and the smaller scale and price will be less likely to break their bank or take up all of the shelf.

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

Where to Buy 
Online options include these site sponsors:

- Entertainment Earth has him for $155 with free shipping.

- or you can search ebay for a deal.

Related Links -
Star Ace also did Newt Scamander in this scale, and a number of the other Harry Potter characters. If you want something slightly bigger, Star Ace did a sixth scale Newt as well, but sadly never did a sixth scale Grindelwald. For that you have to turn to Hot Toys, who did both Newt and Grindelwald.

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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