Review of Discovery Astronauts - 2001: A Space Odyssey
DeFo-Real Figures

Introduction

"I'm sorry Dave. I'm afraid I can't do that." 2001: A Space Odyssey remains a classic, endlessly discussed and dissected by cinephiles young and old. As a sci-fi nerd and a huge fan of Clarke's book, I'm going to commit sacrilege by saying it's not really a favorite of mine.

But while the overall film left me wanting, there are bits and pieces that are pure gold, particularly for the time in cinematic history. We've never gotten a lot of collectibles based on the movie, or its sequel, but Star Ace has just released four new figures in their Defo-Real deformed vinyl line up covering four of the space suits.

There are the red, yellow, and blue suits, and while you can't see their faces, any 2001 buff knows who is who. The odd man out is the silver suit, whose design is quite different, and will make for some additional discussion further into the review. You can pick these up as singles for around $55, or you can find the two packs - red with yellow, silver with blue - for $115 or so. This is a bit of an early review, but they should be shipping to retailers any day.

Packaging - ***
Nothing particularly exciting about the boxes, but they are collector friendly, and they do afford you a nice view of the actual figures inside.

Sculpting - ****
Three of the four are identical, but the silver suit is drastically different in detailing.

There is an amazing amount of detail on the packs, both front and back, with real metal wiring and tubes. The surface work is impressive, and while they are clearly a deformed style, the realism in the suits themselves is amazing.

To set them apart, each is sculpted with a slightly different arm pose. They stand great on their own, and the ankles are articulated to allow you to make sure the feet are in just the right spot to maintain a perfect center of gravity.

These guys stand about 6 inches tall.

Paint - ****
The paint work on the details of the suit is great, with small dials and knobs carefully done. The belts, buckles, and doodads are all very clean, and the cut lines between colors are sharp and neat.

The best aspect of the 'paint' job is the reflected view on each face plate. The visors would be polarized of course, and what they are looking at would be reflected back. Each has a different scene, and while some folks will like the huge H.A.L. eye on the blue suit's visor, my personal favorite is the other astronauts on the silver suit's visor.

They printed these to take into account the warping effect of the visor's shape, and the silver goes one step further. He has his right hand extended in front of his face, and this hand is reflected back in the visor decoration as well! It's some pretty impressive attention to detail, and it sets them apart from the average.

Articulation - *
I mentioned this earlier, but the ankles are articulated so you can turn the feet. This way you can be assured of keeping them standing long term.

And while a one star score might seem bad, it's not. In fact, because a vinyl figure like this generally has no articulation, any score here brings up my Overall.

Fun Factor - ***
These aren't designed for fun in the same way as a highly articulated figure is, but you'll enjoy using them as cubicle decorations, and starting fights with your co-workers over the meaning of the monolith.

Value - **1/2
At $55, these seem about right to me. No, they aren't your Mom's Pop vinyl figures, but the quality of the work and materials makes them an average value at this cost.

And as we've seen with the few other collectibles we've gotten from the film, 2001 items are never cheap.

Things to Watch Out For -
Not a thing!

Overall - ****
The spacesuits are one of the most iconic items in the film, and getting them in this format at this price allows you to set up the whole team. The quality of materials and manufacturing are top notch, and I'm really impressed overall with the Defo-Real line so far. If you're a fan of the movie, they are well worth checking out.

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

Where to Buy 
Online options include these site sponsors:

- Entertainment Earth has these two packs for $115 and free shipping, or the singles for $60 each.

- or you can search ebay for a deal.

Related Links -
Other Defo Real figures include the Lord of the Rings Nazgul, Jason, the special Pennywise with light up feature, and the regular release Pennywise.

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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