Review of Xenomorph Crusher action figure
Aliens Colonial Marines

Introduction

I'll admit it - I've never played the video game Aliens: Colonial Marines. But I have heard about it, and the general consensus was pretty clear. It sucked.

But that doesn't mean the marines and aliens that populated the game were bad designs. In fact, they leaned heavily on the Aliens film style to create the new characters, adding some very interesting creatures to the mythos.

One of those is the Xenomorph Crusher. His most distinctive element is the large, bulletproof head plate that protects it from attack, and allows it to crush anything in its path. Not much is known about the crusher, but it is believed to be a mutation, perhaps of a queen because of its immense size.

Hiya Toys added the Crusher in to their new wave of 1/18 scale action figures based on the game. He's shipping soon, and will run you around $40 depending on the retailer.

Packaging - ***
This is a xeno that likes to walk on all four feet, doggie style, and he is packaged in that pose. The large box is collector friendly, and the window shows off the figure and accessories nicely.

Sculpting - ***
There's a ton of great detail work on the skin and texture of this beast, and beast he is, dwarfing the marines and other aliens in the line. While he doesn't love to stand upright, you can pose him that way, and he'll come in around 7" tall.

The ribs, musculature, and overall xenomorph anatomy is well defined and sharply sculpted. Most of the figure is a very hard plastic, but I did find that the back legs were a softer material, which was a bit odd. I am a little worried about those legs wilting over time.

Paint - ***
There's not a ton of detailed paint work with this type of creature, but the overall quality is solid.

The base color is consistent and clean, with some very realistic variations and washes. These bring out the sculpt details, and give some visual pop to an otherwise monotonous color palette. There's a semi-gloss finish as well, which gives the beast a wet, slimy look, appropriate to the character.

Articulation - ***
He's nicely articulated, although some of the joints are a bit restricted by the design.

For example, the ball jointed neck isn't going to get a lot of movement thanks to the huge plated head. But you can get some decent poses, both on four feet and two.

The rotating hinge shoulders and elbows are pretty tight, especially the shoulders. The wrists are simple ball joints, and the 'paws' swap pretty easily.

The torso has a rolling waist joint, and there are ball hips, rotating hinge ankles, ball feet, and double pin knees. The legs seem to be a softer plastic than most of the rest of the body though, and the hips have very little side to side movement.

The long tail is bendy and quite stiff. It comes in very handy when trying to do certain stances to provide additional support.

And let's not forget the jaw and second set of extending teeth!  The jaw moves up and down of course, and the interior jaw can be manually extended.

Oddly enough, even though he's more of a stand on four feet kinda guy, he is able to take better two foot poses. That's because the feet, hips, and neck don't work together as well in the four foot stance, and the tail becomes a big help with two footed poses.

Accessories - **1/2
He doesn't come with much, but there's a couple extras.

There are four additional feet. Two are hooked into grasping poses, while the other two look identical to one of the set of feet he is already wearing. I'm not sure what the purpose is of this set of paws. They swap easily enough, and stay in place while posing.

There's also four of the square grid bases, with connectors to create one large square.

Fun Factor - ***1/2
While the figure has a few nits, he's a ton of fun when paired with a few of the Colonial Marines. As a beast, he can also go up against Star Wars or even superheroes, depending on your kid's imagination!

Value - **
The regular figures are on the high side, coming in at $20 at most retailers. I'm not surprised this guy is double that, considering he's far bigger than twice their size (in terms of volume). It's still a tough pill to swallow though, considering the scale.

Things to Watch Out For -
Not a thing.

Overall - ***
This is another solid figure in the line, providing a very large, very ominous opponent for the Marines. The sculpt and paint work are solid, and while I have a few nits with the articulation, the final result is positive.

I have one of the smaller aliens as well, whom I'll cover in the next week or two.

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

Where to Buy 
Online options include these site sponsors:

- Entertainment Earth has him for just $35.

- or you can search ebay for a deal.

Related Links -
Hiya has released other figures in both the Aliens and Predator licenses, including Colonial Marines from the game, some of their other Colonial Marines, as well as their small Predator figures.

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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