Review of Rampaging Hulk - ArtFX+ Statue
Avengers Age of Ultron - Entertainment Earth Exclusive

Introduction

Everyone loves the Hulk, and he was a stand out once again in Avengers: Age of Ultron. He's a dangerous guy on a good day, and when Scarlet Witch messes with his mind, it's not a good day.

Kotobukiya was already doing a AoU Hulk statue, designed to battle with their Hulkbuster statue.  Entertainment Earth took the concept one step further, and picked up a paint variation on the standard Hulk that's exclusive to their store. Called the 'rampaging' Hulk, he's the perfect companion for the Hulkbuster on your shelf.

This guy is currently shipping from Entertainment Earth for $80, or you can pick up the standard release Hulk for $70.

Packaging - ***
The box has some very attractive graphics, including a shot of the Hulk and Hulkbuster statues together. There's an EE Exclusive sticker, and the five pieces of the statue are held safely in a large plastic tray inside.  Instructions are included, although the build is about as straight forward as you can get.

Sculpting - ***
The ArtFX+ statue line is done in 1/10th scale. That means a six foot man should be just under 7 1/4" tall. Obviously, the Hulk is larger than 6 feet, and this guy comes in at 7 1/2" tall (without the base). Considering how deep his stance is, this feels about right, although just how big the Hulk is in both the comics and movies tends to vary pretty wildly.

He comes in five pieces - the base, the head and torso, the pelvis and legs, and each arm. Pushing the pieces together is straight forward, although it does take real effort.  I never did get the gaps at the shoulders to completely seal up, although you can try using a little heat (soften the shoulder) or cold (shrink the posts) to allow you to force things together a bit tighter.

The pose selected is specifically designed to work with the Hulkbuster statues, sold separately. Together you have a battle scene, and the bases are designed to snuggle up next to each other. The pose works by itself as well, and it's actually a pretty common stance for the Hulk.

This version is the 'rampaging' variant, done specifically for Entertainment Earth. However, the variation is all about the paint job from what I can tell, and the sculpt itself is the same as the standard release.

Overall, the sculpt is clean and sharp.  I like the veining and wrinkling of the skin, and the face has an appropriately dynamic grimace, caught mid-battle. Smaller details, like the teeth and eyes, are well done, but the gapping at the joints is distracting.  The waist is tight enough, but the shoulders are too obvious.  That's fixable though, since you can either reduce the amount of plastic on the pegs or use a cold water bath on them to shrink them up a bit and create a smoother fit. The bigger issue is with the obvious joint at the neck and along the hair line, where the pre-assembled pieces are clearly demarced. It's not a huge problem, but does highlight the difference between a $70 statue and a $180 statue.

Paint - ***
The big difference here between the regular release Hulk and this guy is the paint job. The green skin is a slightly different shade, with a dustier overall appearance.  The eyes have the reddish coloration, which was a visual indication of the Scarlet Witch's involvement. Even the pants are a slightly different shade, intended to match the screen look.

The work is all very clean, and the quality is at the normal Kotobukiya level. There's little to no slop, even on smaller details like the teeth. The eyebrows and lips have a subtle transition, and while they've used a highlighting color on much of the body and face, they didn't get it clogged up in weird places like the inner ears.

While the quality is solid, I'm not necessarily digging the final look. It's a matter of aesthetics, but for me, the dusty look is too inconsistent, to oddly out of place. Some places it's quite heavy, like around the neck, while other areas, like the arms, are too clean. I'm also not sold on the red eyes. While I completely get the purpose here, and that purpose is a good idea, anyone that sees this without the context will think he's gone goth. This is more of a matter of taste, and as such, your mileage may vary quite a bit.

Articulation - Bupkis
This is informational only, and has no bearing on the final Overall score.  We sometimes see 'almost statues' where there's an articulated spot or two, but that's not the case here.

Value - **1/2
This variant will cost you $80 with free shipping from Entertainment Earth, while the standard versions are $65 - $70 at various retailers. Don't forget that the free shipping will save you another $10 easy. That's an average value when compared against other statues in this scale, including those from DC Collectibles.

Things to Watch Out For -
Not a thing.

Overall - ***
Fifteen years ago, you were lucky to find a Kotobukiya statue for less than $100.  While this scale is smaller than the traditional ArtFX, it still sports the same overall high quality. The sculpting is nice, and putting this guy with the upcoming Hulkbuster will make for a terrific battle scene on the shelf.

I'm not completely sold on the paint job, but it's hard for companies to find good variant ideas. I see what they were going for here, but whether you like this variant or the standard coloration better will depend quite a bit on personal taste.

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

Where to Buy 
Online options include these site sponsors:

- Entertainment Earth has the regular for $70, and they are the only game in town to get this unique variant for $80. They also have the Hulkbuster to go along with this guy.

Related Links -
While they are a lot more expensive, you should also check out the AoU statues from Dragon, done in a similar material but slightly larger. If you're looking for something a bit more poseable, you can go after the Hot Toys AoU Hulk, and if you're more budget conscious, there's always the latest Marvel Legends Hulk.

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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