Review of Sulu - Star Trek the Original Series
Sixth Scale Action Figure

Introduction

If you're a fan of Star Trek the Original Series and you're a collector of sixth scale action figures, you've been in a bit of a pickle. Unlike the poor Lord of the Rings fans, who couldn't get a full Fellowship for decades until Asmus finally remedied the situation, you did have an option. Playmates gave us a full crew, including Kirk, Spock, McCoy, Uhura, Scotty, Sulu, and Chekov. But let's face it - that was 90's sixth scale, great for the time but woefully inadequate when compared to the other figures currently on your shelf.

Quantum Mechanix is doing what they can to bring the two worlds together once again. They've already produced an amazing Kirk, Spock, McCoy, and Scotty, and tonight I'm checking out their Sulu. That just leaves Uhura and Chekov...c'mon, Qmx!

Sulu is a bit of an early review, as I don't expect him to start shipping widely for a little while longer. He's available for pre-order through the Qmx site for $180, and other retailers will be pretty close to that. There's no exclusive or special versions.

Packaging - ***1/2
The slip covers are attractive, with a large photo of the figure rather than the character. It follows the new design that we first saw with the last release, Scotty. Inside, it's all collector friendly and very sturdy, and the figure will arrive safe and sound on your doorstep. There's some basic instructions, but no edition size or Certificate of Authenticity.

Sculpting - ***1/2
Sulu is a tough sculpt, no doubt about it. When I first pulled him out of the box, I had some concerns. The lower face seemed a bit too narrow, with more of a triangular shape. I recognize him immediately, but there was something not quite perfect...

But then I spent some time comparing it to photos, rather than my memory. My opinion improved, and from certain angles it is spot on. The skin texture is subtle, but it's realistic. I do think the hair could use a bit more detailing in the strands (compared to Scotty, where we some terrific detail), but it's a minor nit.

They also captured the sly smile extremely well, and gave him an appropriate overall expression. I'm still not completely sold, and I have my nits, but the final result is quite good and certainly a solid addition to the overall series.

The hands are standard stuff, slightly too large but designed to work with the accessories. The underlying body is also very appropriate in size and scale, padded just slightly to give him a character specific look.

He stands almost 11 3/4 inches tall, appropriately shorter than the others.

Paint - ***1/2
The skin tone is great, with even coverage and appropriate color. The eyes are sharp and clean, and the eyebrows and hair line look great.  There's not a bunch of variation in the hair, but it looks good nonetheless.

While the paint work on the sculpt is the most important, you shouldn't underestimate the work on the accessories here. The tricorder, phaser, and communicator have terrific minutiae, creating some of the most realistic representations in this scale you'll ever see.

Articulation - ***1/2
The underlying body - padded up slightly to give him some muscle on the slender physique - provides a ton of good, useful articulation.

While the head and neck are a single piece, the ball joint inside the torso allows for a ton of good lean and tilt.

The shoulders, elbows, and wrists can take realistic, natural poses, although I do wish the elbows had a little more bend to them. The hands swap cleanly, but it is a bit tight.

The torso and waist can turn and crunch, breaking up straight lines in most poses. The hips, knees, and ankles are also very mobile, and the soft boots don't restrict the ankle rocker movement at all.

Accessories - ***1/2
He doesn't come with a ton, and what's here are technically re-uses, but the quality is still extremely high.

There are several extra hands, as you'd expect - he comes wearing relaxed hands, and there's a couple specialized grips for the left and a phaser grip right. Swapping is a little tough, but they stay on tight when you're posing him.

The sculpts and paint work on the tricorder, phaser, and communicator look fantastic. They are nicely scaled, and they fit cleanly in the hands. The phaser and communicator have magnets, and can attach to the clothing at the waist. These magnets are much stronger than some early releases like Kirk, and they stayed in place while I was handling and posing the figure.

The tricorder opens up on top and on the front, exposing the cool interior controls. The phaser comes apart into the type 1 and type 2 versions, and they fit together tightly (again, thanks to a magnet). The communicator flips open, and the lid is actual stamped metal. These are really impressive, and while we've already seen them with earlier characters, it's still a big plus.

He rounds things out with a fairly simple black display stand with crotch support rod. You won't have to use it, but it's nice for consistency.

Outfit - ***1/2
The outfit is pretty simple - shirt, pants, boots. You've seen these before, and there's nothing different here, but the quality is still very, very high. Stitching, materials, and tailoring are all excellent.

The zippered boots are one particular example. The materials and construction are great, but there was one nit this time. The fit over the calves is very tight, which tends to push them down into the ankles, bunching them up. I am a little worried that over time, this wrinkling could cause damage, but only time will tell.

Fun Factor - ****
Not too many people will buy Sulu all by himself. He's part of a team, and that team, all together, is fantastic. We're still missing two key members, but we have enough now that the group looks terrific together on the shelf. Posing, re-posing, and posing again are going to be an on-going activity.

Value - ***1/2
At $180, he's about $10 more than Scotty. But I have to think that the production numbers here are lower, making fewer figures to spread the fixed costs across. Considering everything you're getting here and the overall quality of the materials, I think $180 is a fantastic price. I wish we'd see other companies manage to a similar price point.

Things to Watch Out For -
Not a thing!

Overall - ***1/2
We've got quite a solid gang right now, and Sulu inches us closer to the complete bridge team. He's not quite the stunner that a Scotty and Kirk were, but he's definitely Sulu, and blows away any version of the character released prior.

We've seen Uhura prototype stuff. She won't go up for pre-order til it's closer to her release, but I have a pretty good feeling we'll get there. My bigger concern is Chekov, the character that could be this fellowships Gimli. Let's hope that's not the case, and Qmx sees the demand to finish off the crew! Of course, if they'd like to throw a Gorn in there for fun, I wouldn't complain...

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

Where to Buy 
Online options include these site sponsors:

- Entertainment Earth is also at $180, but has free shipping!

- or you can search ebay for a deal.

Related Links -
Other Qmx Star Trek releases include Scotty, Kirk, Spock, McCoy, Khan, Picard, and Kirk's command chair.

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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