Review of Sam the Eagle and Rizzo the Rat
Muppets Action Figures

Introduction

Let's be honest - no one will ever do a line of Muppets action figures to rival the work by Palisades. It was a stroke of genius, a combination of the right people at the right time producing a one of a kind creation.

But that doesn't mean others can't do a great job, and do it with their own flavor. Six years ago, Diamond Select Toys took over the license and started their series of action figures based on the beloved characters. They shrunk the scale down a bit, and they have not been prolific. But they have managed to create a terrific series that looks great together on the shelf.

The latest release is a two pack of Sam the Eagle and Rizzo the Rat. I've been looking forward to Rizzo in particular, one of my favorite Muppets. This set will run you around $25 - $30 depending on the retailer, and is currently shipping.

Packaging - ***1/2
The package shows off the figures nicely, and it is actually quite collector friendly. You can easily open it up and remove the figure and accessories with no damage. It's also attractive, and not too wasteful.

However, on the downside, these boxes are somewhat thin, and crushing them or damaging them is a real possibility.

Sculpting - Sam ***1/2; Rizzo ***
As I mentioned, the scale on these figures is slightly smaller than the Palisades line. Sam comes in at about 5", while Rizzo is about 3".

Sam has a very detailed texture for his feathers, and the joints are nicely hidden by the design. The expression fits the character, as it looks like he's pontificating on whatever current issue has him pissed off. The pointing left wing is a nice touch as well, and he stands great thanks to the big feet and decent articulation. The 5" height works pretty well with the other characters released so far as well.

Rizzo isn't quite as nice, at least for me. The surface detail is good, and I like the goofy expression. But there are two issues that detract from the overall appearance for me.

First, he's clearly too big. In fact, he's almost as big as the Palisades Rizzo's, although the scale on those figures was larger. It makes him look out of place with the rest of the DST line. I've included a photo at the end of the review of the Palisades Sam and Rizzo with this new DST Sam and Rizzo for comparison.

And while he's almost as big as the Palisades version, his hair and whiskers are not as nice. They look like tiny tree branches rather than whiskers.

Beyond these two issues though, he's a solid release, with plenty of detail. He stands great on his own, and the sculpt and articulation work pretty well together.

Paint - Sam ***1/2; Rizzo ***
As with the sculpt, the paint is slightly better on Sam.

His blue color has a slight wash to bring out the feather detail, and the darker bits - the mouth, the eyebrows, the pupils - are clean and sharp. There's no bleed with the eyes, and overall the various edges are sharp for this scale.

Rizzo has a bit more slop, particularly around the edges of his jacket and his eyes. He does have the more complex paint job though, and the tampo on his back - for the Ratty Duke Show - looks great.

Articulation - ***
While it's tough to get a lot of articulation into the Muppet body design, DST has done a very good job overall.

Rizzo surprised me with a ball jointed neck. You can tilt and lean his head in just about any direction, and add some personality to the otherwise basic poses. The shoulders and hips are simple cut joints, and there's a ball joint for the tail.

Sam has a simple cut neck, as well as cut shoulders and hips. He also has a cut ankle and pin feet, with a pin joint at the elbow. His tail is also articulated so it can be raised or lowered.  You won't be able to do much with the elbows - the feathers are pretty restrictive - but you should be able to get some expressive stances.

Accessories - Sam **; Rizzo Bupkis
Poor Rizzo gets the big zero here, having nothing extra.

Sam does get one item, his lectern. The symbol on the front is fairly clean, and while it's a *little* short, there's also a shelf on the inside, a detail that was a surprise.

Fun Factor - ***1/2
There aren't a lot of accessories, and these aren't super articulated. And yet I'm giving them a very big 'fun' score. That's because you can get some great poses out of them, and they are the sort of figures you'll return to and re-pose with the other characters in different ways as time goes by.

Value - ***
You can pick these up for around $25, and that's a pretty good price with specialty market figures right now. While other companies are charging $30 and up, you're getting two - albeit smaller - figures for less than average.

The next photo is a comparison shot with other DST releases for scale.

Things to Watch Out For -
Not a thing!

Overall - ***
Of the two, Sam is the better release. That pains me to say, because I love Rizzo. But his larger size and thick whiskers drag him down a bit for me.

Still, I'm really happy we get these two to add to the shelf. The DST line hasn't given us a plethora of characters, but we've gotten most of the key ones. I'm hoping we see them continue with the line, we haven't seen anything new up for pre-order in quite some time. However, you can pick up many of the past releases still at some online retailers.

In the photo below is the Palisades Sam and Rizzo on the left, with the smaller DST figures on the right.

Score Recap (out of ****):
Packaging - ***
Sculpting - Sam ***1/2, Rizzo ***
Paint - Sam ***1/2, Rizzo ***
Articulation - ***
Accessories - Sam **; Rizzo Bupkis
Fun Factor - ***1/2
Value - ***
Overall - ***

Where to Buy 
Online options include these site sponsors:

- Entertainment Earth has them for $25.

- or you can search ebay for a deal.

Related Links -
This series has been a slow burn, with years in between. Here's a review of the Swedish Chef, along with wave 1, wave 2, and wave 3.

If you're a fan of Rizzo and Sam, or just love great Muppets action figures, check out their releases in the Palisades series.

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

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