SEARCH      FEATURES    NEWSLETTER    EMAIL     HOME
Captain Toy/Michael's Review of the Week

Review of Wonder Woman
One:12 Collective action figure

Mezco Toyz
Date Published: 2018-08-15
Written By: Michael Crawford
Overall Average Rating: 3.5 out of 4

Please share with your friends!

Wonder Woman One:12 Collective action figure by Mezco

Dividing Bar

Dividing Bar

Introduction

DC and Warner Brothers have sputtered and floundered with the majority of their big screen attempts in the last few years. While their shows on the small screen have been relatively successful (and I'm really looking forward to Batwoman), they can't seem to crack the nut of major motion pictures.

But there is one bright spot - Wonder Woman. That's right, the character they dissed and ignored for decades has become their strongest theatrical property. When they announce a new movie for Batman, Superman, or just about any other DC property these days, I'm nervous. But a new Wonder Woman flick? I'm all in on day one.

Mezco's One:12 series of action figures has not suffered the same fate. They've been hitting on all cylinders since their inception, and they continue to produce some of the very finest figures in the 1/12 scale on the market.  Their latest is the aforementioned Wonder Woman, based on her look in her own feature film. She'll run you around $80 at most retailers, and has just started shipping.

Wonder Woman One:12 Collective action figure by Mezco

Dividing Bar

Packaging - ***1/2
Nothing surprising if you've purchased these before. The outer box is very sturdy, and the inner plastic trays hold the accessories safe and sound. It's all collector friendly too, with no need to damage anything when removing the figure and her extras. The graphics are relatively basic, but this simplicity has a certain elegance.

Wonder Woman One:12 Collective action figure by Mezco

Dividing Bar

Sculpting - ***1/2
As with most One:12 figures, Diana comes with two portraits. The first has the hair laying over her shoulders, with a calm, strong expression, while the second has the hair flowing behind her shoulders and an angrier, meaner look on her face.

Both are extremely accurate, even considering the tiny scale. Remember, this is 1/12, and she comes in at about 6 3/8" tall. Not only does it look like Gal Gadot, but there's a realism to the soft skin texture, and even the tiniest details, like the edging of the head band, is defined and cut cleanly.

The two expressions are decent, but neither knocks my socks off. The calm expression is a little blank, while the angry look is a little constipated. But this isn't a big issue, and in reality they both look fantastic in hand with the majority of poses.

The sculpting on the costume itself is terrific as well, with lots of texture and detail. Even the hair has more detail than many figures twice this scale, and that's awfully impressive.

Wonder Woman One:12 Collective action figure by Mezco

Dividing Bar

Paint - ****
Mezco is doing with paint in this scale what Hot Toys does with it in sixth scale.

There's a softness to the skin and lips that I really love. There's no plasticky gloss to the finish, and there's even a slight translucence to it that implies depth and realism. The eyebrows are super straight, and the lips are cleanly defined. Even the head band, with its silver and bronze colors, is sharp.

The eyes are slightly glossy, which allows them to capture natural catch lights. The skin tone matches pretty well from the face to the less translucent body, and the more colorful work on the costume is consistent, with most edges sharply cut between colors. There's a little bleed here and there, but it's very, very hard to notice.

I do have a minor nit with the eyes on the calm portrait. They seem just slightly - slightly - cross eyed. It's hard to see in person though, and requires some pretty serious inspection to notice.

Wonder Woman One:12 Collective action figure by Mezco

Dividing Bar

Articulation - ***1/2
The basic Mezco body works great, and this is only the second female they've produced using it.

The proportions are good, and the joints are engineered to work well with the overall character design.  The hair restricts the ball jointed neck of course, but not as much as I had anticipated, and the rotating hinge shoulders, elbows, and wrists will allow you to get just about any arm pose.

The legs include the rotating hinge hips, cut thighs, pin knees, and pin/rocker ankles, all with a good range of movement. The ankles are particularly important, since keeping the feet flat on the ground in deeper stances gives her greater long term stability and a more realistic appearance.

The waist and torso are more restricted this time though, due to the plastic corset of the costume. It's to be expected, and there wasn't much they could do about it that wouldn't severely impact the visual quality of the figure.

Wonder Woman One:12 Collective action figure by Mezco

Dividing Bar

Accessories - ***1/2
I mentioned the two portraits, which has become a staple of the One:12 series. Both look great, and they swap easily.  For this line to continue to be a major success at this price point, they'll need to keep giving fans multiple portraits.

There's multiple hands too of course. She comes wearing a pair of fists, and there's a set of relaxed hands as well as a set of gripping hands. They are a little soft, and the sword tends to fall out of her grip when you're posing her, but she should be able to maintain her hold once she's set up on the shelf.

There are two versions of her lasso of truth. One is sculpted in a tight coil, and can fit in a loop on the side of her harness. The second is actually a wire with the proper ends attached, which you can use for dynamic poses. The color on the wire is off - more yellow than bronze - but since you won't have both versions displayed at the same time, it is less of an issue.

She also has her sword, with an excellent sculpt and paint.  It sort of, kinda fits in the holster on her left side, although I wasn't quite sure if I had it in there right. You'll see what I mean when you get her.

Another great sculpt is the shield. There's a ton of texture and detail, and the paint work (with a wash) really brings it out. On the back are two straps to hold it, and it is pretty easy to get it on her arm. I found that putting the unattached gripping hand in place holding the smaller strap, and then attaching the hand and shield to the wrist in one move was the easier route.

Finally, she has the usual display stand with clear plastic support rod that can hold her in jumping and leaping poses as well. You can also just use a simple (included) foot peg with the base, if you'd rather not have the obvious support rod in view.

Wonder Woman One:12 Collective action figure by Mezco

Dividing Bar

Dividing Bar

Outfit - ***
Most of the One:12 figures have cloth outfits - that's part of the appeal, and a big part of the realism. However, there's not a lot of cloth to the modern Wonder Woman costume, so there's not a lot with the figure, either.

There is the skirt, made from very thin strips of leather-like material. It's a little short to my eye, but does lay properly around her hips.

I suppose you could also consider her harness part of the 'outfit', even though it is plastic. It looks good, with a nice sculpted leathery texture, and can hold the lasso and sword.

Wonder Woman One:12 Collective action figure by Mezco

Dividing Bar

Fun Factor - ****
All the One:12 figures are a ton of fun, thanks to the great articulation and accessories. You'll have no trouble finding a superb display pose for Diana, and I'm betting you return to the figure over and over, setting up new looks on a regular basis.

Wonder Woman One:12 Collective action figure by Mezco

Dividing Bar

Value - **1/2
The regular releases have slowly creeped up to $80, and I'm hopeful they stay that way for quite some time. Considering the overall quality of every aspect - paint, sculpt, clothing, accessories, articulation - I'm fine with that cost, and can give a figure like Wonder Woman an average value. Regular readers know a **1/2 here means this category won't affect my overall either up or down.

Wonder Woman One:12 Collective action figure by Mezco

Dividing Bar

Things to Watch Out For -
Not a thing.

Overall - ***1/2
Another great release in the overall One:12 series, and an excellent figure to put alongside a movie Superman or movie Batman. I personally think she's a step up from the competition, better than both the Mafex or Figuarts versions, although I do like the skirt a smidge better on the Figuart.

We're in one of those periods where Mezco ships a whole bunch of figures, and I have both the Special Ops Punisher and Batman Beyond sitting here waiting their turn. I should have those reviews up in the next week or two tops!

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

Wonder Woman One:12 Collective action figure by Mezco

Dividing Bar

Where to Buy 
Online options include these site sponsors:

- still has her available for $80.

- Entertainment Earth is also at $80.

- or you can search ebay for a deal.

Related Links -
Other recent One:12 releases include the black suit Spider-Man, the deluxe Joker, Ascending Knight Batman, and Deathstroke. I've reviewed just about all the One:12 figures, so searching the library would be fruitful.

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!

Dividing Bar

Dividing Bar

Please share with your friends!

Wonder Woman One:12 Collective action figure by Mezco

Back to Main Page
This product was purchased for the review by the reviewer. Photos and text by Michael Crawford.

This page copyright 2000 - 2018, Michael Crawford. All rights reserved.