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Captain Toy/Michael's Review of the Week

Review of Cyclops - X-Men
One:12 Collective Action Figure

Mezco Toyz
Date Published: 2019-09-13
Written By: Michael Crawford
Overall Average Rating: 3.5 out of 4

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Cyclops X-Men One:12 Collective action figure by Mezco

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Introduction

I'm not a huge X-Men fan. Oh sure, I've read my share of the comics and watched all the films, from bad to great. But I've always been more into the non-team Marvel characters, or at least those that weren't identified primarily through their membership.

But I'm also a One:12 Collective completist, or as much of one as I can be. That means I pick up all the characters, even those X-men that I might not love. Why the preamble? Because Cyclops falls into that category. He's a cool enough dude, but the whole eye blasts thing never did much for me, and the various soap opera romances did even less. But there was no way I was letting either of his One:12 releases past me.

I say either because there are two so far, both shipping about the same time. Out now and reviewed tonight is his modern comic look with the Mezco twist, while a more classic appearance is being released very soon as a Previews exclusive. Both of these feature light up eyes, and both are $100 at most retailers.

Cyclops X-Men One:12 Collective action figure by Mezco

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Packaging - ***
I like the simple designs with the One:12 boxes, and this one is quite sturdy and well made. The interior plastic trays keep everything safe, and it's all quite collector friendly. There are also instructions for inserting the batteries and operating the light up eyes, and I recommend you pay attention to them.

Cyclops X-Men One:12 Collective action figure by Mezco

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Sculpting - ***1/2
There are two portraits with this figure (you'll get three with the PX exclusive!), and both are wearing the visor.

One is stoic, determined, set. The other is wild, screaming, and pretty much going nuts. Both have excellent detail work - remember, these figures are considered a 1/12 scale, and he's just over 6 1/2" tall. The tiny heads still sport great detail work in the hair, a lifelike skin texture, and nice work on the exposed teeth and tongue.

The heads are separate from the neck this time, where the batteries are contained. The nice detail work extends to the belts and straps as well, and I'm quite happy with the work overall.

Cyclops X-Men One:12 Collective action figure by Mezco

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Paint - ***
The paint work is generally clean, as is the custom for One:12, but there's one issue that bugs me.

The skin tone looks great, and the hair line and work around the interior of the mouth - teeth, tongue, gums - is very good for the scale. The small lines on the various straps and belts are a little wavy, but not in the extreme, and the bright colors are consistent.

But I'm not a fan of the lips. Both heads have rather dark lips, which look more like lipstick than actual flesh color. It's a pet peeve of mine when the lip color isn't natural, and always results in a ding.

Cyclops X-Men One:12 Collective action figure by Mezco

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Articulation - ***1/2
All the usual articulation of a One:12 figure is present, as you'd expect.

The double jointed neck isn't as useful here as usual, however.  That's because the solid battery compartment runs up through the neck and into the head, making it less able to tilt and lean.

The shoulders, elbows, and wrists all work as expected, and the single joint elbows remain an annoyance. You can get decent arm poses though, particularly since he's not a gun toting dude.

The harness doesn't effect the lean and tilt in the torso too much, and the hips and knees aren't encumbered by the tight fitting but stretchy outfit. The ankles have a ton of rocker movement, and allow for deep stances.

Most important, you can use the very heavy eye blast and easily find a good center of gravity to keep him upright long term.

Cyclops X-Men One:12 Collective action figure by Mezco

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Accessories - ****
I already mentioned the two portraits, but it's worth mentioning again here, since the inclusion of the second head does increase this score considerably.

There's also four extra hands to go with the fists he comes wearing. These are pairs, and swap easily.

Cyclops X-Men One:12 Collective action figure by Mezco

The two heads come with a standard eye visor. There's a third standard one included in the package as a backup, and two 'smoking' versions, with a trail of flame oozing up and out. There's two additional blasting visors, one with a short narrow beam, and one with a huge fire blast.  All of them fit tightly on the faces, and swapping was fairly easy. They work in concert with the Light Up Feature, but more on that in the next section.

In the lower tray, there's a small leather jacket as well. This jacket fits great, and the material stretches over the harness and belt. But the zipper - or more specifically the pull - is too large, a problem we've seen occasionally in the past.

Finally, there's the display stand. It can be used either with a simple foot peg, or the large, clear plastic support rod. The latter is great for leaping and jumping poses.

Cyclops X-Men One:12 Collective action figure by Mezco

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Light Feature - **1/2
This was a great idea in theory. There's a small red light behind the visor, in a cylinder inserted in the neck. Two small batteries (included) also fit inside this cylinder. To figure out how to remove it, please read the instructions.

However, red is a terrible color for light up features. We know this from lightsabers to energy blasts - red just doesn't carry very well through plastic. Blue? Great. Red? Not so much.

This small light doesn't stand a chance with the plastic blasts. It does show up reasonably well in a darkened room with the regular visors, but the blasts themselves are too thick for much light to make it through. I can't help but wonder how using a bright white LED and letting the red plastic add the color would have worked out.

Cyclops X-Men One:12 Collective action figure by Mezco

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Outfit - ****
I might not be a huge Cyclops fan, but I really, really like this outfit. From the boots to the belts to the blue body suit, they've created a great looking costume.

They've really mastered layering on small sections of vinyl material over cloth, and this figure really highlights their skill. It creates an interesting pattern, and makes an otherwise two tone outfit really pop.

The harness and belt also fit extremely well, with no riding up and no sitting above the shoulders. This makes it look much more realistic, and is another improvement in this small scale for Mezco.

The straps on the thighs look great as well and stay nicely in place, and the two piece boot design is rocking. The jacket isn't a look I'll go with, but I could - it's very well tailored, and while the zipper is large, with the jacket open it's not a huge issue. Overall, this is a terrific looking costume, and really makes this character shine.

Cyclops X-Men One:12 Collective action figure by Mezco

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Fun Factor - ***1/2
With decent articulation and a bunch of different visors, you should have no trouble coming up with lots of poses for this guy. The jacket is a nice touch too, and something you can swap in and out without a lot of trouble.

Value - **
At $100, this guy is about $20 more than the average One:12 figure. The extra bucks is for the light up feature, of course, and had it worked a bit better I wouldn't have an issue with it. As it is though, you'll be paying $20 for something you'll probably never use.

Cyclops X-Men One:12 Collective action figure by Mezco

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Things to Watch Out For -
Read the instructions on removing and replacing the battery compartment. Otherwise, you should be good to go.

Overall - ***1/2
I really like this costume and the overall character design. While the 'classic' version coming out does have some advantages - as well as a third portrait - I think this is going to be my go to Cyclops for the display.

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

Cyclops X-Men One:12 Collective action figure by Mezco

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Where to Buy 
Online options include these site sponsors:

- has him for $100.

- Entertainment Earth is at $100 as well.

- or you can search ebay for a deal.

Related Links -
Other recent One:12 Marvel comic book figures include Moon Knight, Blade, and Ronin Wolverine.

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

Discussion:
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Cyclops X-Men One:12 Collective action figure by Mezco

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This product was purchased for the review by the reviewer. Photos and text by Michael Crawford.

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