Review of Batman Sovereign Knight - Onyx Edition
One:12 Collective action figure

Introduction

Mezco has produced a number of Batman figures as part of their terrific One:12 Collective series of high end 1/12 scale action figures. They started a special project about a year ago, creating a trilogy of figures with designs spanning his career. The first was called Ascending Knight, and took elements from the Year One design with their own personal flavor to create a terrific Batman. The second design in the trilogy is called Sovereign Knight, and is a Batman of current times in his prime.

Like the Ascending Knight, the Sovereign Knight is getting multiple variations. The first to ship is the Mezco store exclusive, called the Onyx Edition. This one is an all black version, while a regular release black and gray as well as a Previews exclusive blue and gray are shipping soon.

This version was originally $80 through Mezco, but ebay is your only hope now.

Packaging - ***1/2
The package is very sturdy, made from thick cardboard, and the interior plastic trays hold everything quite safe and sound. It's all collector friendly too, with no need to damage anything in the process of removing the figure and accessories. The graphic design is simple but effective, and fits with previous releases. This one has the exclusive sticker on the front as well.

Sculpting - ****
There are four heads in total, with some variation in ears and expressions.

The standard head has a stoic expression, with fairly long ears. One alternate portrait has the same ears, but sports some serious battle damage across one side. It looks like Batman got a little too close to Killer Croc...the slashed cowl exposes his eye underneath, and the detail is terrific considering the scale. Remember, this guy is about 1/12, and he's 6 1/2" tall without the ears.

The third head has gritted teeth and squinted eyes, a mid-battle expression, and shorter ears. I'm more of a long ear guy, and I'm also not a huge fan of the frowning grin, so this one will be my personal least favorite. However, your mileage may vary, and getting multiple looks is one of the real strengths of this line.

The final portrait is Bruce Wayne with no cowl. This isn't a new portrait - we got the same one with the Ascending Knight. But the detail work and realism is very impressive in this tiny size, and with at least three versions of this figure, at least one should be sans cowl on your shelf.

The suit might look like sculpted plastic, but it's not. It's all material, except for the detailed belt and tightly applied bat symbol. And of course, the gauntlets and boots. The outfit looks fantastic, giving me a modern Batman vibe that covers everything from Keaton Batman to Nolan Batman nicely without looking like any one too specifically.

Paint - ****
This guy is mostly black, but the use of gloss and matte materials on the costume still gives it depth and definition.

Of course, the work on the four portraits is stellar. The edges are sharp, the eyes crisp, and the teeth on two of them are really quite impressive. The slashed cowl shows off the detailed eye underneath, with some damage to the flesh highlighted by the amazing paintwork.

Even the re-used Bruce head has improvements, hard as that is to believe. When comparing the two, I noticed two strands of hair at the front of his hair line, sculpted in a swoop to the right side of his forehead. On the Ascending Knight release, these ended at the clean hair line. But this time they've added tiny painted ends, coming down slightly onto the forehead. Now that is some amazing attention to detail!

To give him that Keaton Batman feel, they went with the black and yellow bat symbol. It stands out great on the all black costume, and really pops when he's with other versions on the shelf.

Articulation - ***1/2
The suit is restrictive, but not as much as you might expect. The critical areas around the joints are stretchy, and the material pops back into place pretty well.

The heads swap easily, and there's plenty of lean, tilt, and turn in every one. The shoulders, elbows, and wrists are a bit restricted, particularly the shoulders, but not any more than you'd expect in real life. The torso is probably my biggest complaint, and you can get a *smidge* of rotation, but pretty much zero lean or crunch.

Like the arms, the hips, knees, and ankles can get deeper poses than you might expect, but they are still somewhat restricted by the suit. My only real complaint here is with the ankles, which have less rocker movement than many One:12 releases.

However, overall you should have no trouble getting some great action poses, and he can hold a very natural, flowing stance long term.

Accessories - ****
Most One:12 figures come with a ton of extras, but these unique designs usually go one further.

We already discussed the three additional heads to go with the one he comes wearing. They swap easily, all look terrific, and provide a ton of variety in your display. Getting multiple releases also means you can use different versions on different releases of the same figure.

He also has a nice assortment of hands. There are nine more to go with the pair of fists he comes wearing, including a set of batarang grips, gun grips, general grips, and posed hands. He has one extra fist for the right which is wearing Kryptonite knuckles, perfect for battling his buddy Superman. These also swap easily, but remain in place while you're posing the figure.

I'm not sure what to do with it, but the figure also has a 'bat drone'. The wings are articulated, and I'm sure there's someway to pose it with the display stand...but I haven't quite figured out a great way yet.

Batman always has batarangs, and this guy has ten small versions and one large one. The sculpted hands work pretty well with these, particularly the smaller ones.

Batman also always has a grappling gun. This one has two tips - a folded grapple, and a grapple with a long string attached. This one is a rather unique design, and the black and gold paint scheme looks great.

That paint scheme carries over to the sonic disruptor as well. He might not shoot you, but he'll mess up your hearing in a heartbeat. The dish on the end of this weapon is also removable, so be careful when handling it. You don't want it to pop off and get lost.

Finally there's the usual display stand. It comes with the simple foot peg, as well as the large, translucent support rod system. There are extensions to hold the cape in various ways as well, and you should be able to get some great leaping and jumping poses with a little effort.

Outfit - ****
I love this outfit, much like I loved the Ascending Knight version. Both have a tactical, high tech look, and the combination of materials really works well. The quality is high too, and the stitching and construction are extremely good.

The cape is a highlight as well. It's a soft material, and it hangs quite naturally over the shoulders and down the back. There's no wiring for posing, but you won't need it thanks to the smooth, natural flow.

The sculpted bits - boots, gloves, belt, symbol - all flow nicely into the cloth costume. The symbol fits the curve of the chest tightly with no gapping, and it's evenly applied.

I can't ignore the color of the costume either. While I'm sure the blue and gray and black and gray versions will be great, I doubt either will come close to being my favorite. This all black color scheme works perfectly for me.

Fun Factor - ****
While the articulation is a little restricted, this is still a really fun figure. You can get plenty of excellent fighting poses, and swapping out the heads provides all kinds of different looks.

Value - ***
This exclusive was originally $80 at Mezco's store, which is a good price for one of their exclusives. In comparison, the Previews exclusive of this character is $85, and generally the exclusives cost $5 - $10 more than the regular releases. And yes, the regular release is also $80, the current standard pricing for a One:12 figure. You're getting a ton of stuff here, in an exclusive color scheme that hearkens to the movie versions of the modern character. I'd say that's a solid value.

However, you had to jump on this figure when it went up for pre-order to get that pricing. Mezco exclusives tend to sell out quickly, particularly those through their own store.

Things to Watch Out For -
Not much. As I mentioned, the dish on the front of the sonic distruptor is removable, and if you don't realize that, it could pop off unnoticed and get lost. Otherwise, everything was well built and sturdy, with little to worry about.

Overall - ****
Another terrific Batman design in Mezco's unique trilogy.  I'm sure I'll like the other two color combos, but let's face it - nothing is going to come close to the cool badassery that is this black version. The yellow symbol adds quite a bit too, giving him just enough of the Burton element. Sorry to say, but if you passed this one up, you're going to regret it.

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

Where to Buy 
Online options include these site sponsors:

- Entertainment Earth also has the regular for $80 and the exclusive for $85, but include free shipping.

- or you can search ebay for a deal on this Onyx exclusive.

Related Links -
I've covered lots of One:12 reviews, but of course you want to check out the Toy Fair Ascending Knight, previews exclusive Ascending Knight, Mezco Store exclusive Ascending Knight, and the regular release Ascending Knight.

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!

Enjoyed this review? Be sure to head back to the main page to find thousands more just like it!