Review of the Dread Pirate Roberts (Westley)
Princess Bride sixth scale figure

Introduction

We all have our favorite films, movies that speak to us on multiple levels, entertain us every time we watch them, and never grow old even when we do. As sixth scale action figure collectors, we tend to also want these characters recreated in our favorite toy medium. Sometimes it seems the dream will never be a reality.

For me, The Princess Bride is one of those movies. It hits on every note, combining humor with action with romance, all in a perfect melody. As a collector, it's been a barren wasteland. My favorite prop replicas in my entire collection are the swords of Inigo and Roberts done by Factory Entertainment, but these are the shining star in an otherwise dark night.

Quantum Mechanix picked up the license a couple years ago to do sixth scale figures, and I was elated. They've already crushed another of my all time favorite licenses with Star Trek, and I've been happy with the majority of their other releases.  Westley was scheduled first of course, done up in his Dread Pirate Roberts garb.  They've also shown an Inigo at the last couple shows.

Westley is ready to ship - this is a slightly early review, but you should see him hitting mailboxes later this month. He runs about $200, depending on the retailer, but you tend to get him the quickest if you order direct from Qmx. Inigo is next, but they won't put him up for pre-order until they are very close to completing production.

Packaging - ***1/2
The box itself is the standard fifth panel design, with the lid held in place with velcro. However, it's designed to look like a large book, aged and weathered. It's a cool idea, and works well if you plan on keeping the package around.

It's also all collector friendly, with no need to damage anything removing the figure and accessories, and there's a brief set of instructions.

Sculpting - ***1/2
Carey Elwes is a pretty person, and pretty people are hard to sculpt. They lack any extreme features, any disproportion, any asymmetrical structure. The very thing that makes them pretty - their perfection - makes it hard to capture their likeness in such a way as to set it apart distinctly from other pretty people.

There are two portraits here, always a big plus. One is the Dread Pirate Roberts, with the mask and bandana. The mask is plastic, a separate sculpted piece that's permanently attached to the face. The bandana is cloth, wrapped around his head and tied tight in back, and also permanently attached to the head.

The other is the unmasked version - Westley. This version starts off by nailing the hair perfectly. There's a ton of detail in the stranding, including the pony tail in back, and the waves and layers look perfect. It goes a long way to making the head sculpt instantly recognizable.

But the accuracy also extends to the eyes, nose, and lips. He has slightly larger than normal lips that give him a pouty look, and the thin nose isn't just 'standard white guy'. The blue eyes are the right size, shape, and distance apart, and from most angles, it's a very accurate portrait overall.

Not every angle though. I'm not quite sure what's off, but there is something just slightly off. Maybe it's the shape of the chin...but I can't quite put my finger on it. From a few angles, it's not quite as accurate. It's minor though, and in hand I'm betting fans are going to be very, very pleased with the final result.

The Pirate portrait is even better. The combination of the sculpted mask and cloth bandana looks great, and there is no doubt who this is. The finely sculpted thin mustache looks great, and the soft texture to the skin gives both portraits a ton of realism.

He stands about 12 1/4", with additional sculpted hands to work with the various accessories.

Paint - ***1/2
The paint work on both portraits is excellent - considering the price point, I'm good with the level of quality and realism we're getting here.  The eyebrows and mustache are soft and subtle, and the skin tone looks very realistic and life-like. They added a wash to the hair to bring out the detail, and managed to capture the look of blonde hair pretty well - always very hard to do with paint.

In fact, there's only one reason this isn't a four star paint job. The skin tone on both faces is slightly darker than the neck, with a slightly different finish. The faces, particularly the unmasked portrait, stand out against the neck a bit too much due to these differences.

Articulation - ***1/2
The underlying body has all the articulation you'd expect, and you should have no trouble getting great poses on the shelf.

The neck is a little different. The heads don't snap onto a ball, but rather slip down on a sleeve that's already attached to the ball. The lean and tilt are good, and it's even easier to swap heads.

The shoulders, elbows, and wrists have a good enough range of movement to master most sword poses. The gloved hands have a slit in the cuff that allows the hands a bit more movement, but it's still a little restricted. I do wish they'd provided a sword holding hand that was sculpted to point the sword in a straighter direction, but you can still get some good looks with these.

The torso bends and turns well, with the puffy shirt offering no resistance.  The hips and knees can take some good stances - and the figure can sit, even in the tight pants - but the ankles are completely restricted. The boots look fantastic, but they are sculpted thick plastic, so there's no ankle movement. This last bit is what costs them the half star here.

Accessories - ***1/2
I've already mentioned the second portrait, which goes a long, long way to boosting this score. It looks great, and because both portraits work with the same costume, it gives you a ton of options.

He has an assortment of hands as well. There are seven gloved hands in total: a relaxed set, a set of fists, a set of gripping hands, and an wider grip left.  He also has one set of gripping bare hands. These all swap pretty easily, but remain in place while posing.

Perhaps most important, he has his scabbard and sword. The sword is not metal, but a very strong, very sturdy, very thin plastic. The sculpt looks terrific, and the scale is excellent. The sword slips neatly in the scabbard, and the scabbard fits perfectly in a loop on his belt.

He also has his wine goblet, from his mental battle with Vizzini. It has some liquid sculpted inside, and is properly scaled to his hand.

Finally, he has the basic display stand with support, emblazoned with the Princess Bride logo. It's not a ton of stuff (now I have to find a ROUS), but the critical pieces are here, and the second portrait goes a long way.

Outfit - ***1/2
He wears a basic swashbuckler's garb - black puffy shirt, black pants, black sash, black belt for scabbard, and black boots.

The material is all top quality stuff, with excellent stitching and tailoring. The shirt looks great, and has tiny details, like the buttons on the sleeves, to accent it. The sash and belt fit nicely, and the entire ensemble looks fantastic.

The boot sculpt looks great, but there is the issue of immobility. They could have used a softer material, or gone with something more realistic, but the sculpted route certainly looks excellent, even if it isn't the most flexible.

Fun Factor - ****
You'll have plenty of fun with this guy, coming up with various poses.  Once we have Inigo, the possibilities go through the roof, and you'll be posing and re-posing to your heart's content.

Value - ***
The smaller brand manufacturers have been pushing the price limit, trying to get $220 or $240 for their figures when they haven't yet reached that level of quality overall.  This figure is at $200, and is perfect for the price point. I bumped the value score up a half star, thanks to the inclusion of both portraits.

Things to Watch Out For -
Not a thing. The instructions warn you about being careful putting the sword in his gripping hands, but I didn't have any issue opening up the fingers and sliding it in.

Overall - ***1/2
While this isn't *quite* a four star figure, it's damn close. As a huge fan of the movie, I'm really, really pleased with the outcome, and can't wait to add Inigo.  The sculpt is great, the paint work is solid, and the outfit and accessories look terrific. This is one of those figures that people might pass up early to their disappointment later when the only way to get it is on the secondary market.

I wonder if the Hagrid body would make a good Fezzik?  And if so, could Qmx convince Star Ace to let them buy some bodies to produce one?  Hmmm...

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

Where to Buy 
You can always order direct through Qmx, where he's $200. Other online options include these site sponsors:

- Entertainment Earth follows suit at $200, but they include free shipping!

- or you can search ebay for a deal.

Related Links -
The only other Westley I own is the 7" version from NECA. 

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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