Review of Wolverine - Days of Future Past
Sixth Scale Action Figure

Introduction

The X-Men movie franchise has been a real smorgasbord of quality. Unlike their Marvel Studios counterparts, the films vary greatly from one to the next, going from almost unwatchable to extremely entertaining.

On the 'extremely entertaining' end of the spectrum was the last release, X-Men: Days of Future Past. Easily my favorite in the overall X-Men universe so far, the flick did a nice job using Wolverine without over using him. Hot Toys has released their version of his future character in his battle suit.

This guy started shipping a few weeks ago, and will run you around $250. There was no exclusive or special edition this time around.

Packaging - ***1/2
It's collector friendly of course, but the interior card art is a bit bland again. I do really like the cover art though, which mirrors the movie posters, and allows you to marvel at their head sculpt by comparing it to the photo.

Sculpting - ****
This is the BEST Hot Toys Wolverine portrait to date. As such, there was no way I could go lower than four stars.  Saying that, it's still not my favorite.  I think the Modern Life head sculpt is still superior, at least in terms of sculpting.  It's the nose and chin - the slightly thinner look on the Visage version seems more accurate to me.  Still, this release is well worth the full score.

They get perfect marks for realism and life-like attributes.  The hair is outstanding, including the one loose curl. This sort of detail in the hair sculpts keeps Hot Toys slightly ahead of most of the newer competition.

The skin texture, eyes, and fine detailing on the lips and eyebrows also set this particular head sculpt apart. They've captured the softer mustache and chin hair, while adding the slightly thicker mutton chops, creating an almost perfect match to the character.

As I mentioned, my only quibbles are with the accuracy - it's still not an exact Jackman.  The nose isn't quite right, sill looking a bit too generic. However, this is the closest Hot Toys has gotten, and the overall effect is excellent. Pop this head off the body and hand it to your SO  - they'll know it's Wolverine and Jackman immediately. They'll also express their amazement, which is just what you expect.

The expression gives the figure life, with the slightly upward looking eyes and stern mouth. By including wrinkles above the nose, it's clear he's pissed and ready to battle. This is much better than giving him a dull, dazed look, or going overboard with a silly scream or grimace.

Paint - ****
Hot Toys and paint go together like peanut butter and bananas.  I'm in an Elvis kind of mood.

The skin tone is a big part of that, with the slightly translucent effect that gives it depth. The aged look works well with a character like this, with slight variations in color and tone.  These variations aren't accidental, and they mirror reality extremely well.

The eyes are looking slightly upward, always a good choice for a determined, stoic, battle ready gaze. The soft color added for the thin mustache and chin is offset by the darker color of the extended side burns, making the entire beard much more realistic.  It's those soft transitions that sell a great head sculpt, and Hot Toys remain the master.

Articulation - ***1/2
This is the usual TrueType base body, with all the fantastic articulation we've come to expect.  Check out this older look at several of the TT bodies to get some idea of what you're dealing with here. This is only an example, since Hot Toys continues to work on the basic bodies, improving the design of the articulation with each update.

The suit is much less restrictive than I imagined. The normal cloth used for the pants allows the legs a lot of mobility, which is further improved by the two piece boot design.  This means the ankles have their full range of movement, and can be posed flat on the ground in even deep stances.

The upper body is a bit more restricted, particularly at the chest. The waist can still turn easily enough, and the arms, wrists and neck work great.

The only thing holding this guy back from the full four stars here were the aforementioned ankles. The feet pop off way too easily, making posing more frustrating than it needed to be. Still, it's a small nit considering how well the rest of the design works, and how easy it is to correct.

Accessories - **
Sadly, this is where the figure takes a massive hit.  You expect not just an amazing head sculpt, paint job, and outfit with any Hot Toys figure - you also expect amazing accessories. Poor Wolvie gets very little in that department.

He does have two additional sets of hands. He comes wearing fists, but also has a set in a relaxed pose, as well as fists that include his extended claws. These claws are solid metal, and not that cheap soft pewter based stuff - these babies are strong.  They are also very sharp, at least at the tips.  Be careful handling them, and keep this in mind before you hand this figure to someone else.

The blades are removable, although there's really no reason to remove them. They look fantastic, and really make the figure.

There's also a basic display stand...and a couple extra wrist pegs, just in case. And that's it.

Outfit - ***1/2
I really, really like this outfit - the materials look fantastic, and it's a cool design from film to figure. The harder plastic has a ribbed texture that matches with the texture on the cloth covering the outside of the arms, and the armored plates look terrific. The knee pads and upper boots shift to align with the legs in most poses, and the only joint effected in any real way by the armor is the ab-crunch.

Still, I had one major issue that hopefully you won't.  The threads on the inside seam of one forearm started to come apart, splitting the seam open.  The suit covers the wrist pegs, with just the very tiny post sticking out. That's great for keeping the suit tight on the arms - not so great for swapping hands.  When I removed the left hand, it pulled the wrist peg free from the forearm (no way to avoid it), putting a lot of pressure on the suit. I was able to reset the wrist peg of course, but I think this is what started the seam to unravel. The wrist pegs are buried up inside the gloved hands, so there's no way to hold them in place manually when swapping, making it difficult not to pull them free. I'd say be careful, but I'm not sure what you can do.

Fun Factor - ****
Lots of excellent posing potential here, and plenty of ways you can get this guy to look sharp on the shelf.  The suit should be able to maintain any pose too, without any real fear of damage over time.

Value - *1/2
Holy crap - this figure is $250. I understand that the outfit, at least from the waist up, is fairly complex and involves some new materials. But $250? The metal claws are great, but $250? One portrait, three sets of hands, no other accessories...for $250. This is the best Wolverine that Hot Toys has produced, but it's coming at a price.

Things to Watch Out For -
When removing one of the claw hands, I almost embedded it deep in my palm.  When it pops free, be careful where those blades are pointed.

Of course, there's also the issue with the wrist pegs and the suit.  Pulling straight out is likely to cause a problem, since the whole ball joint may pull through.  You can try rocking the hand side to side, but that's how you snap a post.  My suggestion? Get the claws on and leave it that way.

Overall - ***1/2
I really wanted to give this guy a full score - the head sculpt is the best Jackman/Wolverine they've done, the paint is excellent, and the costume is really, really well done...but $250? There's simply not enough complexity or extras here to warrant that price point.

The best way to solve that would have been a second portrait, perhaps something with more of a snarl or growl. But with only a couple extra hands, there's no way to avoid low scores in both Accessories and Value. Had the price been more in line with others - around $220 - he would have made full stars in my Overall.

I'm hopeful that this figure was part of the period where Hot Toys was experimenting with their price to see what the market would bear, and that experiment is now done.  Things got up to around $250 for some pretty average figures, but you'll notice that with a number of recent pre-orders, things have dropped again to $200 - $220 for many of them. With pressure from other companies like Star Ace and ThreeZero on price, and with the simple fact that the market can only bear so much, they may have realized that the sweet spot is in that range.

If that's the case, then this Wolverine may be the last regular figure we see at this price, at least for some time.  I certainly have my fingers crossed. You may also find a decent value on this figure soon, as I noticed a few on ebay at BIN prices in the $200 - $220 range, and both earlier Wolverine releases are still available from many retailers, most at below original retail.

All that said, even with this crappy value and only a few accessories I still only pulled a half star overall. This is the best of the Wolverine figures they've produced, and if you've been holding out for a better head sculpt, this might be the time to pull the trigger.

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

Where to Buy 
Online options include these site sponsors:

- Sideshow has him stock for $250.

- or you can search ebay for a deal.

Related Links -
Other sixth scale Wolverines include this Hot Toys version based on The Wolverine, as well as the long ago Medicom Last Stand version. Modern Life did their own version of the portrait in their Visage series.

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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