Review of 1966 Batman Adam West statue

Introduction

As a massive fan of all things Batman, and a collector that fondly remembers watching the caped crusader on television (although those memories are of re-runs in the late 60's and early 70's, since while I was technically alive when the show first aired, I was too young to really remember it), I've been searching for years for the perfect collectible based on this license.

At one point, it looked like we'd never get anything. Then, we got a bunch.  Sadly, most of the bunch weren't what I'd call 'perfect', but they were certainly...something. It looked like I might get my fantasy fulfilled when Hot Toys announced they'd be doing the license in sixth scale, but after releasing Batman and Robin, the line pretty much died out.  Don't get me started on them doing another Batman with not even a Joker to show.

But then a terrific company called Tweeterhead came to the rescue. They do high end statues, busts, replicas and other collectibles, many of them based on television licenses from days gone by. They picked up the license to produce statues from the classic Batman show, and started off with a Julie Newmar Catwoman. They are following that up with Batman (reviewed tonight), Robin, and Batgirl, with several more key players coming in 2016.

These are limited editions, although I'm not sure on the production numbers for the regular release. With each one so far, they've done a super limited signed edition, and the Adam West Batman with his signature on the COA was capped at 160 pieces.  The signed version was $300 straight from Tweeterhead, while the unsigned regular release is usually around $250 - $260 depending on the retailer.

Batman includes half of a Batcave style diorama. To see the completed diorama, check out the marketing photos of Robin, who comes with the second piece.

Packaging - ***1/2
Nothing fancy here, but it keeps the statue safe and sound. The statue comes in 5 pieces: Batman himself, his heavy base, one large half of the computer, the shelf that will run across the front of both halves of the computer, and the small 'batcomputer' sign.  As I mentioned earlier, you'll need to pick up Robin to complete the overall computer diorama.

There's also a Certificate of Authenticity, and if you purchased one of the signed exclusives, that will be where you find Adam West's John Hancock.

Sculpting - ***1/2
Trevor Grove, a sculptor well known to collectors of both statues and action figures, is doing the work on this series for Tweeterhead.  The dynamic pose he went with, with Batman springing into action, was not an uncommon one on the show or in marketing stills. There are plenty of good stills of West as Batman in black and white and color to choose from, and fans have a clear idea of what this character should look like. That makes this a particularly difficult portrait to do, since any mistake is easy to see.

Overall, this is one of the nicest representations of the Adam West character we've gotten. The thinner body actually matches up with the look in his early days on the show, and the detail work on the cape and belt is excellent.

I do think the face is slightly off, particularly around the width of the lower face. The face narrows a bit too much at the jaw, although the chin, nose and mouth are very accurate. It's clearly Adam West, just a slightly more svelte Adam West than most people are accustomed to.

The texture on the face is a little rough as well. I'm not talking about a realistic texture, but rather a rough sculpted look that needs to be cleaned up slightly. It's not a major issue, and wasn't a factor on the cape, cowl or costume, but it's worth noting on the lower face.

While these tend to be advertised as sixth scale, they are slightly larger than what would be considered sixth scale in the action figure world.  The statue itself stands about 14 1/4" tall, and the figure, even hunched, is about 12 1/2".  I included a photo at the end of this statue next to the Hot Toys release to give an appropriate comparison of size.  While these are slightly bigger, with the addition of Batman and Robin to the line up, it's a moot point.

Paint - ***
I worked with mixed lighting sources, which can create issues with color and white balance. I'm also color blind as Hell, making it a bit tricky at times to get the exact color just right in photos.  This is one of those occasions.

The photos show a statue with a decent skin tone, but a slightly weird suit color.  It looks a little too pinkish to me in the photos. However, in person the suit looks much more accurate, while the skin tone is actually more of what I'd call "Trump Orange". The result is that you'll look at the photos and think there's some issues, I'll look at the statue in hand and think there's some issues, but they may not be the same issues.

The quality of the paint application is solid, however, with only a minor slip here and there. I did notice some dirt embedded in the paint in a couple spots on the suit, and the lip color needed to be toned down a smidge, but overall I'm pleased.

It's also worth noting that they did paint the interior of the slot where the shelf slips into the computer. That means if you don't pick up the Robin statue, you can leave the shelf off and the computer will still look alright.

Accessories - ***
I love dioramas and diorama pieces, so you know I'm going to love the idea of adding the Batcomputer to the overall statue.  It's done as a separate piece from the base of Batman, but the two are designed to snuggle right up next to each other. The 'correct' way is what you have when the computer is behind Batman, because once you get Robin, the other half will line up properly behind him, placing the two characters next to each other. But until Robin shows up, you can put it any place your little heart desires.

This set comes with the Batcomputer name plate, and I just placed it up on top of the computer itself for now. Once you have the second half, it will go across the front of both, held in place with magnets.  There's a magnet on the top of the computer as well, put there to hold the LightBright part of the Burroughs equipment in place.  For more details, check out the photos of Robin, which show the completed computer behind him.

While the Robin comes with the top section that spans both halves, Batman comes with the silver shelf.  I have it in place in the photos so you know it's there even though it looks a bit odd without the second half.

Any time you sculpt a huge item like this, particularly one that is a piece of machinery or equipment, the edges and details are going to end up a bit softer than if it were actual metal.  That's the nature of the material in use, and we've seen this before with something like Sideshow's Lab Environment (which might make a very nice addition to the Batcave...) or their refrigerator that came with Indiana Jones. Of course, you could make it from a harder plastic, but then it would feel cheap and statue fans would not be happy. As it stands, the edges are slightly soft, and some of the detailing could be crisper.

There are lots of nice details however, and they've done an admirable job considering the material they are working with. Buttons, switches, gauges, toggles...they all look good and match with the look of the Burroughs equipment used on screen. It's tough to see in this photo, but this is what they are going for overall, and the piece that comes with Batman is obviously the left half. You can see it slightly better here.

Value - **
At $260, this is a slightly above average price for a statue in this scale, with this level of quality. It's not over the top, just at the high end of the range.  If you can snag this guy closer to $235 - and I have a sponsor below in that range - then you can easily add another half star here.

The autographed version isn't cheap, but I suspect that getting the autograph with the statue will pay off in the long run.

Things to Watch Out For -
You'll always want to be careful when inserting a metal post (like the one on the bottom of his foot) into a softer polystone or polyresin base. It's also important to watch out with the sharp corners on the two bases, since banging them against each other when moving things around could chip them.

Overall - ***
Statues are never gong to be as life-like and realistic as modern sixth scale action figures - it just isn't going to happen.  The materials in question don't absorb paint the same way, they don't afford the same type of surface translucence, they can't maintain the sort of surface texture and detail in production, and they simply can't match the qualities of modern figure portraits.

That being understood, this is an excellent version of the classic caped crusader. I'm not loving him quite as much as the Catwoman, but he's close.  Add in the uber cool diorama, and you have a winner on the shelf. Had the paint on the skin and lips just been a bit better this would have picked up another half star overall easily.

And let's be honest - part of my love for this statue comes from my desire to see this line thrive, and produce the characters they've talked about, including Alfred, Penguin, Riddler, Egghead, and several more. Batman and Robin will look great together, but add in a mob of villains around them, and you'll have an outstanding display.

Let's go back to that first paragraph for a minute, and talk about what could happen with statues to get a more realistic look.  We know that some companies have had great success with mixed media statues, where materials like cloth, leather, plastic and metal are used to make the costumes and weapons more realistic.  What if they decided to move away from polyresins for the body, arms, and head sculpt, going with a material more like what we see with current sixth scale figure portraits?  Hmmm...I wonder if statue collectors and fans would be receptive to the improved look of the likeness, or would think they were too much like 'toys'...

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

Where to Buy 
Online options include these site sponsors:

- Entertainment Earth is at $260.

- or you can search ebay for a deal.

Related Links -
I covered the 1966 Julie Newmar Catwoman release from Tweeterhead as well as Herman Munster and Elvira.

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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