Review of Negan - Walking Dead
Sixth Scale Action Figure

Introduction

The Walking Dead has had its highs and its lows.  Some fans got bored, others remain fully engaged. Like pretty much any other long running show, some people think it's past its prime, but for others the story is still as interesting as ever to keep the seasons rolling.

ThreeZero picked up the license to do sixth scale figures a very long time ago, and it seemed like forever between their first figures, Michonne's Walkers, and their second, Rick Grimes, but the speed of the releases is picking up. It's only been three months since Michonne was shipping, and Daryl is shipping now along with the focus of tonight's review - Negan.

While some of the figures they are producing have a 'deluxe' version that actually includes extra accessories, Negan did not. You can pick this guy up at various retailers for around $165.

Packaging - ***
The tall, skinny boxes conserve space, and reduce waste, always a plus in my book. The included photos of the actual character/actor are good, and the entire thing is completely collector friendly. There aren't any instructions, but none are really required with this one.

Sculpting - ***1/2
If you're going to collect ThreeZero figures, you need to come to grips with their style. Like Mezco, they don't simply do a straight up rendition of any portrait. There's a specific style, a trademark look, and you will always recognize one of their figures immediately.

This style can get over done with some releases - see Merle for an example. But with the release of Michonne and now Negan, they've pulled back slightly, getting a more accurate look while still maintaining some of what makes them unique.

Negan's head is still a little long, part of the look across the entire series. But it's a much more accurate portrait of the actor, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, and of the 5 (technically 6) figures they've done so far, I think it's the best.

It's also quite realistic, with some very nice work on the beard and skin texture. There's plenty of detail in the hair, and the flow and pattern of the various wrinkles looks great.

I also like the expression. With a distinct squint in his eye and a tight lipped mouth, he's dangerous without being crazy, and it's very life-like.

The head and neck are one piece, which means a better match between the two but less articulation.  He's fairly tall as well, coming in at about 12 3/8". The hand sculpts work well with the various accessories, and their scale is also much better than you see from some other companies.

Paint - ***
ThreeZero still has a way to go to get super realistic paint work, but they continue to improve.

The skin tone is tanned, with some realistic inconsistencies.  The hairline is a bit sloppy, and the eyes don't have quite as much life as those from some other higher end companies, but the mustache and beard are really impressive. Gray hair is almost as hard as blonde hair to do on a painted figure. Getting the color right, the coverage just perfect, it's a real trick. While there could be a little more pepper in the salt and pepper beard, the gray really looks good.

But overall they still have some room for improvement. Like I said, the hairline could use some work, the eyes are a bit flat, and the skin tone still hasn't gotten to the super scary realistic level yet.

Articulation - ***
The underlying body used by ThreeZero has good mobility, but at times is too lanky and lean.

As I mentioned, the head and neck are one piece. That means you'll have less tilt and lean action, and I popped the head off several times trying to get a little more personality in the poses.

The shoulders, elbows and wrists have a good range of movement, and are not terribly inhibited by the leather coat. The hands and wrist pegs tend to fall off while you're posing him and working with them, but they pop back on easily enough.

The jacket did make working with the torso a little difficult, but the hips, knees and ankles have a good range of movement. The soft boots allow the ankles to do their thing with little restriction.

When they did Rick, they went overboard on the lanky look. With Negan, the torso to leg ratio is much, much more realistic.

Accessories - ***1/2
Considering the price point, Negan is extremely well outfitted with extras.

There's some extra hands of course, with three additional gloved rights and two extra bare lefts. They tend to pop off when you're posing him, but I had no worries about breakage or damage when reattaching them. There's a couple extra wrist pegs just in case.

He has his Colt 1911 with a removable magazine, and of course, Lucille. There are two versions of the bat - a sculpted plastic version, with the barbed wire included in the sculpt, and a 'woodcast' bat. Also included is a hunk of wire that you can wrap around the latter bat yourself, creating your own version of Lucille.

And just for good measure, he has his axe...and his marker!  You can kinda get the marker in one of the gripping hands, although it's not the most realistic fit.

Outfit - ****
The outfit is more complicated than it looks, and has some 'hidden' features.

The obvious pieces are the boots, pants, belts, jacket, and scarf. There's also a white long sleeve shirt, and hidden under it all is the bandage wrapped on his left wrist!

The tailoring on everything is excellent, but the jacket and boots are the real standouts here. The soft leather uppers on the boots allow for plenty of movement in the ankles and they look terrific. The jacket has properly sized lapels, zippers, and collar, and the fit is clean and tight.

The one area where they have been consistently good across this series is the outfits, but I think this one is the best of the bunch so far. It could use a little more weathering, but that's a really minor nit.

Fun Factor - ***
Plenty of posability and some good extras means you'll have no trouble coming up with lots of nifty stances for the shelf.  Once we get the upcoming Glenn figure, there's even more rather disturbing poses possible.

Value - ****
In a market where most sixth scale figures are running $220 - and some as high as $300 - the $165 price point is simply outstanding. You're getting a high quality figure, with good articulation, nice costuming, and plenty of extras, all based on a popular license. You aren't going to see a better value out there.

Things to Watch Out For -
Not a thing.

Overall - ***1/2
We've seen several recent figures where the price was not reflected in the figure. The $250 Jack Burton is one example - the $300 John Lennon is another.

This figure is as good or better than either of those in almost every way - and costs $85 - $135 less. This series has had it's rough moments (I really can't excuse Merle), but with Michonne and now Negan, they seem to be hitting their stride.

Daryl Dixon should be here any day, I'm I've got my fingers crossed that they can keep this train rolling.

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

Where to Buy 
Online options include these site sponsors:

- Entertainment Earth is at $168, but have free shipping.

- or you can search ebay for a deal.

Related Links -
Other ThreeZero Walking Dead figures include Michonne, Merle, Rick Grimes, and the two pet walkers.

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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