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Captain Toy/Michael's Review of the Week

Review of Janine, Slimer, Quittin' Time Ray
Ghostbusters action figures

Diamond Select Toys
Date Published: 2016-10-05
Written By: Michael Crawford
Overall Average Rating: 3 out of 4

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Ghostbusters Janine, Slimer, Ray action figures by Diamond Select Toys?

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Introduction

Diamond Select Toys has just shipped the third wave in their huge Ghostbusters series, which includes Janine Melnitz, Slimer, and a variant of Ray, called "Quittin' Time" Ray.  These will be at your local comic shop or Toys R Us for around $20 - $25 each.  I'm looking at the deluxe versions tonight, which include the additional pieces to build the large roof top diorama. Trust me, this is the only way to go.

Slimer is a character that everyone loves, and this is the second time we've gotten him in this scale.  NECA did their own version a few years ago, and I'll be mentioning him again later in the review. This is the first time we've gotten Janine of course, and this variant of Ray is necessary to pick up if you're going after the full diorama.  He's wearing his dirty clothes, open at the chest to show his t-shirt, tired and exhausted after a long day of bustin' ghosts.

Remember, this is a 7" series, slightly larger than the previous Mattel releases.

Click on the image below for a Life Size version
Ghostbusters Quittin' Time Ray action figures by Diamond Select Toys?

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Packaging - ***
Nothing too surprising here. DST uses their 'bookshelf' package for the deluxe versions, and it shows off the figures well with little wasted space this time around, thanks to the huge diorama pieces.  It's not collector friendly - you'll have to utterly destroy it to remove the figure and accessories, and there's a fair share of annoying twisties - but it's pretty standard for the market.

Ghostbusters Slimer action figures by Diamond Select Toys?

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Sculpting - Slimer **1/2; Janine, Ray ***
Of the three, Ray is my favorite.  Just like the earlier release in wave 1, I think they've done a nice job capturing the young Akroyd, and the detailing on the costume is solid.  The work on the pack and wand is particularly good, especially when you consider the scale.  There's plenty of small detail work, although some of it is lost without paint ops to highlight it. One of my favorite aspects is the yellow tube - it's a sturdy wire, which allows you to pose in in all kinds of dynamic or natural ways. While there's a fair amount of body part re-use with the other main characters, this torso is brand new.

Janine is in between.  I suspect there's a better sculpt hiding underneath the mediocre paint, but it's not as obvious to me as it was with Dana. A big part of the problem is the thick frames on the glasses, a recurring issue for figures in this scale and price range.  I don't actually remember her ever wearing white either, although that might just be my memory. This is how I remember her best, and I think this sculpt could have been greatly improved simply by positioning the permanently attached glasses further down her nose, with her looking over them. It was such a signature look for her that it would have been instantly recognizable.

Slimer is my least favorite of this set, although he's not awful.  He suffers from two big issues: the weird, long arms; and coming out after the exceptional version from NECA.

Ghostbusters Slimer action figures by Diamond Select Toys?

I can guarantee you that the first thing people will ask when they see this figure on the shelf is "what's up with those arms?" I'm not sure why they are so long and large, but they certainly look out of place, and tend to throw off the overall impression even out of the package. You can get some poses with them that reduce their obviousness, but even then, there's the second issue. The simple fact is that the sculpt detail and quality is better on the old NECA version, and anyone who has or has seen the previous release is going to be disappointed.

Slimer does come with three swappable faces though, including one with his mouth packed tight with hot dogs. All three head sculpts look decent, but there are mold lines in the area of the teeth that are definitely distracting.

As I mentioned earlier, these are a 7" scale, and Ray is almost 7 1/4 inches tall thanks to his hair, Janine is 6 3/4 inches, and without his stand Slimer is 2 1/2 inches tall.

Ghostbusters Janine action figure by Diamond Select Toys?

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Paint - Slimer **1/2; Ray, Janine ***
The paint quality has improved slightly over the previous waves, particularly with Ray and Janine. Slimer still has some issues.

Ray's old paint job was a bit more cartoony. This time it's cleaner and more realistic, and the eyebrows are in about the right spot on the sculpted forehead.  They also dumped the heavy lip color, and the added dirt and grime on both the face and clothing looks good. Small details are generally well done, particularly on the pack, but there's still enough slop to rule out a higher score.

Ghostbusters Quittin' Time Ray action figures by Diamond Select Toys?

Janine is also reasonable, but not exceptional. The eyes, somewhat hidden behind the thick glasses, are straight and clean.  The white frames are a little gloppy, but it's not too bad considering the scale.  The clothing has a rough edge here and there, but overall the quality is decent for the price point.

Slimer is a lot rougher looking than the other two. There's a nice texture to the paint job, but there's also a fair amount of dirt and other chunks in the paint itself.  There's a large number of black spots and rub marks, and the teeth look less grimy and more sloppy.

Ghostbusters Slimer action figures by Diamond Select Toys?

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Articulation - Janine **1/2; Slimer, Ray ***
If you've picked up the previous figures, there's no surprises here with Ray. Ball jointed neck, rotating hinges at the shoulders, elbows, and wrists, double hinge hips, double pin knees, cut thighs, and pin/rocker ankles. He loses the rocker abdomen though due to the design, but he does get a cut waist.

It's not the amount of articulation or even it's range of movement that's a problem.  But as with several of the main characters in this line, I can't get him to stay standing to save my life.  The bottom of the boots seem to be just slightly rounded, and finding a perfect spot with just the right center of gravity is extremely frustrating.

Slimer has rotating hinge shoulders, elbows, and wrists as well.  There's not much more you could give him, and the arms are quite poseable. He also has a highly articulated display stand, but I'll discuss that in greater depth in the Accessories section.

Janine has very similar articulation to the boys, although there's no rocker movement in the ankles.  Her hips and knees are also pretty much worthless due to the restrictive skirt. Even her elbows are more restricted, thanks to the sculpt on the sleeves.

Ghostbusters Janine action figures by Diamond Select Toys?

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Accessories - ****
Here's where these figures really shine, although a lot of that has to do with the diorama pieces. If you don't go deluxe, you won't be as happy.

Let's start with those diorama pieces. In the wave 2 review I gave you a photo of the full width of the diorama at that point, along with some jpg's of instructions for assembly.  I didn't do a wide shot this time, because the additional pieces don't change the overall look quite that much. They are big pieces though, well worth the money.  There are two sections that create the tall support post on the left of the altar, and the top half of the support post on the right. You'll see the completed tall support on the left in most of the photos. And yes, you have to buy this Ray if you want to complete the diorama because his piece is unique.

Speaking of Ray, he has a ton of extras in addition to the rooftop piece.  There's eight extra hands, four gloved and four bare. Like the previous release, the gloved hands are really just regular hands panted black with a rubber cuff added, but it's still nice to have the second look. Swapping hands was pretty easy, and they work well with the various other accessories.

He gets his own walkie-talkie, which fits properly in the holder on his belt.  He has his ecto goggles as well, and these can be worn easily on his head either down over his eyes, or up on his forehead.  The proton pack is removable, and it and the wand look great.  There's an proton discharge beam, and unlike the first wave of figures, this one has the small clear plastic attachment that allows you to connect it to the end of the wand.

Janine has several additional items as well. She has one extra set of sculpted hands, and swapping is easy. There's an open and closed container of Chinese take out, complete with sculpted chopsticks. There's a desktop phone, which has a nice sculpt but a rather gloppy, thick paint job.  And there's the buzzer, which can be placed on properly scaled a desk.  I'm thinking that one of the Mi-World sets might have a desk that can work...

Slimer doesn't quite have the quantity that the other two do, but he does get two extra face plates that can be swapped onto the blubbery body.  Swapping is easy, and the three are distinct enough to give you some real display options.  To support him in the air, they provided a multi-jointed clear rod and round base. You should be able to get him in flying poses with this arrangement, although you might need to tighten the screws at each joint a bit.  My biggest problem was at the posts along the rod, where each piece attaches to the next. These joints tend to turn and fall apart under the weight of the figure, and using a little - just a little - poster tack or plumber's tape will make the fit tighter.

Ghostbusters Janine action figures by Diamond Select Toys?

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Fun Factor - ***
While these figures have their issues, they are still great toys. All three are very sturdy, and swapping parts and pieces is relatively painless. My only issue is around posing them and keeping them upright, a frustrating situation for kids and adults alike.

And yes, the wand is docked upside down in the photo below. I was constantly putting it back in place, and somewhere along the line it ended up upside down for the photos.  You can see it docked correctly in the previous review.

Ghostbusters Quittin' Time Ray action figures by Diamond Select Toys?

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Value - ***1/2
These will run you around $22-$25, and considering the quantity of accessories, that's a very, very good deal.  Let's be honest - most of us are buying these just for the diorama.  But the figures are decent enough as well, and getting new characters like Janine makes it all the better.

Ghostbusters Slimer action figures by Diamond Select Toys?

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Things to Watch Out For -
Not a thing.  While you should always take some reasonable care when swapping hands, these are very sturdy and well made.

Ghostbusters Slimer action figures by Diamond Select Toys?

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Overall - Slimer **1/2; Ray, Janine ***
For those simply looking to build their 7" scale Ghostbusters collection, Janine is a no brainer, deluxe edition or not. She has a few warts, but overall fits in well with the rest of the line.

Ray is a must pick up either way as well. While you clearly need the diorama piece, even without it this release is slightly better in the paint department, and might replace your wave 1 version...depending on how you feel about the costume.

Slimer is the only real problem. If you want the diorama pieces - as I most certainly do - you have to pick him up.  If you don't care about the diorama but also don't want to spend $100 on the NECA version on the secondary market, you'll still need to buy this guy, since everyone must have a Slimer.  For those lucky enough to already have the older Slimer AND who don't want the diorama, this one is a potential skip.

Score Recap (out of ****):
Packaging - ***
Sculpting - Slimer **; Janine **1/2; Ray ***
Paint - Slimer **1/2; Ray, Janine ***
Articulation - Janine **1/2; Ray, Slimer ***
Accessories - ****
Fun Factor - ***
Value - ***1/2
Overall - Slimer **1/2; Ray, Janine ***

Ghostbusters Janine, Slimer, Ray action figures by Diamond Select Toys?

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Where to Buy 
Online options include these site sponsors:

- has the set of three for $66.

- Entertainment Earth has the set for $75.

- or you can search ebay for a deal.

Related Links -
In the DST series, I have checked out both wave 1 (with Ray, Louis, and Winston) and wave 2 (with Dana, Egon, and Peter).

Other Ghostbusters figures include the Mattel 12" Zeddemore, and the 12" Ray and Venkman. In the six inch scale, they also released the SDCC exclusive Egon, Ray, Venkman, and Winston. Mattel's classic line was also re-released recently, and they did a wave based on the new film with Rowan and Jillian and Patty, Abby, and Erin.

And I have reviews of some related merchandise, like the Neutrino Wand prop replica, the Trap, and the PKE Meter.

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!

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

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