Review of Ray Stantz
Ghostbusters Sixth Scale Action Figure

Introduction

If you collect sixth scale action figures and you've been anywhere near any sort of social media this week, you know all too well that the Blitzway Ghostbusters have widely shipped. Everyone is buzzing about them, there are a ton of great photos, and people are getting super creative and nerdy with their displays.

I'm covering each of them individually, spread over a couple weeks. On Sunday night I hit up Venkman, the one I think has gotten some undeserved flak, and tonight I'm going to look at what is potentially the best of the set - Ray Stantz.

These figures were available individually for around $225, with a couple multi-pack assortments available. I bought all four at once, which cost about $850 depending on the retailer, and included some bonus accessories. Unfortunately, finding these anywhere but ebay now is going to be a tough prospect.

Packaging - ****
The package is the same general design of course, but there is personalization.  Again, it's attractive and completely collector friendly, although these non-interlocking plastic trays (they end up taping them together to ensure they don't come loose in transit) aren't my favorite.  Everything is collector friendly though, and the slip and interior box art looks great.

The big selling point here is the full scale, 1:1 prop replica patch that is Velcro'd to the front. Yep, that's the real deal!  This is a really creative, unique idea, and I have to give Blitzway a lot of credit for coming up with it.

Sculpting - ****
I haven't spent a lot of time looking at Winston or Egon yet, but I have given them the once over. I can say with pretty high confidence that Ray is going to be my favorite overall portrait of the set, based on early observations.

This sculpt captures the character the best, highlighting what I like to call the emotive aspect. The cocked eyebrow, the slightly open mouth, the wrinkles and squint - all of them provide an overall quizzical, questioning expression that works perfectly for Ray.

It's also one of the more accurate portraits, although I think Egon is up there in this area as well. While I think the Venkman is better than people give it credit, I do think the accuracy to Ackroyd is better. They even have that tiny dimple in the tip of his nose!

And of course, it's very realistic. Blitzway has done another outstanding job on the hair, with plenty of fine detail, and the skin texture and sculpting of the lips and eyebrows is right up there with the best.

He's about the same height as Venkman, coming in between 12 1/4 and 12 1/2 inches tall. The hands come in a variety of sculpted poses that work pretty well with the accessories, and the internal proportions and scale are very good.

Paint - ***1/2
The work here is a bit better than on Venkman as well. There's a little more variation in the skin tone, a bit more of a natural 'tan' with freckling and inconsistency. He's less washed out, less 'flat' looking, and the skin has more depth.

The eyes seem to have a little less bleed as well, and they are straight, clean, and sparkly. The lip tone is good, and the hair line has a subtle transition to the skin.

The work on the accessories is even better, with lots of realistic detail and wear. Blitzway is doing accessories - both sculpt and paint - as good as anyone in the industry, and they are catching up quickly on the production paint with their faces as well.

My one complaint would be with the hands. I've mentioned the nice sculpt on the hands, with decent scale and some awfully realistic fingernails. But the paint is a bit dark on the bare versions, especially the wide grip left.

Articulation - ***1/2
Here's a category where I think I might be too generous, both with Venkman and with Ray. It's those damn ankles, or more accurately, the stiff boots.

The rest of the body works great. The neck is a one piece design, but I think that works well for the specific jawlines on these guys and losing the joint at the jaw was necessary for the best appearance. The ball joint at the torso provides plenty of lean and tilt.

The rest of the joints are fairly unencumbered, and the shoulders, elbows, wrists, hips, knees, waist and chest all have a good range of movement. The hands swap easily, but they stay in place while posing, and the joints are generally tight and sturdy. He can hold the large proton beam aloft without too much trouble, and the arms and sculpted hands can create perfect wand-holding poses.

But those boots restrict the ankles quite a bit. You can't keep the feet flat on the ground in medium to deep stances, and let's face it - these are characters that take deep stances when busting ghosts. Ray generally had his pants tucked in his boots, unlike the sloppier Venkman, and this makes the boots (and the lack of flat feet) all the more obvious. I waffled around a bit here, and almost dropped him another half star...but I was still able to get stable poses, and the rest of the articulation was great. If you have any good suggestions for boot replacements, please let me know.

Accessories - ****
Here's the place these figures really shine. With a ton of great accessories, you'll have hours of fun posing and reposing him in new ways.

I've included some photos of his unique items of course, but also some of the items that didn't get as much attention in the Venkman review. Let's start with the hands - no, they are not all identical to the other figures. He does have the gloved gripping hands for the wand, and the gloved gripping right specifically designed for the radio. He also has the gloved relaxed hands they all come wearing.

He adds in a new gloved set of hands with a tight grip, perfect for holding the handle on the ghost trap. There's also the bare pointing right and bare cigarette holding left. These all swap easily, and they stay in place while posing.

Just like Venkman, he has his radio in a holster on his belt, the gizmo bag and daughter board (also on his belt), and two cigarettes, one burned down a bit. I've seen some folks get these to rest loosely in their lips, but I can't manage it. I suspect they are using a little poster tack or something similar.

Let's mention what he doesn't have for a second. He doesn't have Venkman's folded gloves, nor does he have the bare hands designed to rest on his hips. But he does have a couple very cool, very important items that Venkman does not - a ghost trap and his ecto-goggles.

The trap is terrific, with lots of great sculpt and paint detail. The top pops open when you push down on the handle, and the entire interior box of the trap is removable. Like many of the other hoses, the connecting hose here is really more like a Slinky, a metal spring that can handle abuse much better than other material choices.

The goggles are also a great sculpt and fit over the top of his head. There are elastic straps to hold it in place, and they can rest over his eyes or tilted back on his head.

Like Venkman, Stantz has the same paper goods, including a large GHOSTBUSTERS sticker, another small 'no ghost' sticker, and three magazine covers and three newspaper front pages, all relating to the team (and seen in the film).

Another re-use is the cool watch on his left arm. It's hidden under the gloved hand, so it can get overlooked. I've included a macro photo of it this time as well. The sculpt is a little rough, but man, this thing is tiny, and they did get all the right features in the right spots as you can see from this article on the original Seiko.

The proton pack is the big extra, complete with tons of wires and doo-dads. I've heard some folks say there were fragile pieces, but I haven't had any trouble with breakage or damage with normal handling. Just remember when squeezing it to do so while holding the unadorned areas.

Ray's is identical to Pete's, and they are terrific. The wand on this one stays in place on the side a bit better than it did on Venkman's - not sure why. This pack really makes the figure, even if it is behind him the entire time on the shelf.

Ray also has the proton beam, which attaches tightly to the end of the wand. Pay attention to the instructions - it only goes on one way. While it's quite large, he can hold it aloft without too much trouble. The built in light feature isn't bright enough to illuminate it, but the translucent red and blue plastic can catch the light from a properly place cabinet spot quite nicely.

The last goodie is the same adjustable stand that we saw with Venkman. While I don't use them, I appreciate their inclusion for those that do and like the consistency.

Check out the Venkman review for additional photos of the paper goods, proton beam, and display stand.

Light Feature - ***
The proton pack features the same light up action, with a running blue light on the left side, the circling red/orange lights on the bottom, and the red tip on the wand.  Pop the frame off the back of the pack to get to the battery compartment, unscrew the small cover, pop in two CR2032 batteries (not included), and seal it all back up. Then when you push a small button on the bottom of the pack, everything lights up and stays on until you push the button again.

The feature is easy to use and very bright. It worked great on the Venkman, and my only concern that stopped it from being a four star rating with him was the way the frame and pack attach. There are two plastic posts that snap in and out, and while you only have to do this when changing batteries (which shouldn't be very often) I was concerned that it could break or wear out over time.

However, poor Ray took another hit. My lights work erratically, and I haven't figured out quite why yet.  I'm not sure if it's a loose wire, or if it's merely a battery compartment that isn't closing tightly enough.  I can get them to work, and I can get them to stay on, but it takes a little futzing and they tend to get wonky again when you handle the figure. Hopefully I can figure it out, and hopefully neither Egon or Winston will have the issue.

Outfit - ***1/2
I'm counting the t-shirt, flight suit, white belt, and boots as the costume. It's not super complex, but they've done a fantastic job matching their look from the film and creating a highly realistic costume.

The t-shirt is a black t-shirt - not much you can do wrong there. The flight suit looks great, with a properly scaled zipper in front and tons of pockets. The tailoring and build quality are excellent, and they have padded up the underlying body just a bit to give him Ackroyd's slightly pudgier girth. The belt rides a little high on the hips, but the attached goodies, like the radio holster, look good. The belt also has two metal (real metal) clips hanging from it.

And of course, there's the pee hose. While it's never actually mentioned in the movie, this was definitely the catheter tube for flight suits. It runs to the back where it simply loops under the belt.

I'm not loving the tucked in look on the pant legs - Venkman's loose look works better for me - but that's more of a personal taste sort of thing.

Fun Factor - ***1/2
Plenty of posing and re-posing here, and lots of potential for some great display set ups with all four figures. Add in the proton beams, and find a few extra sixth scale ghosts, and you'll have a fantastic set up. Add in the Ecto-1, and you'll make your friends weep with envy. You can't put a price on that much fun...

Value - ***1/2
These guys aren't cheap at around $225 or so, depending on how you bundled them or which single character you bought.  But that's an average market price right now, and these have much more than average extras. I wasn't quite as giving in this category with Venkman - the sculpt and paint could have been a smidge more representative of the character - but with the improved quality and two critical accessories (the trap and the goggles) on Stantz, he deserves the extra half star here.

Things to Watch Out For -
A couple things to remember - the small watch on the left wrist can fall off when swapping hands, and take your time attaching the beam to the wand to avoid forcing anything. I've heard people have issues with wires coming loose or small parts breaking, but I got to be honest - this figure is as sturdy or sturdier than most others these days. I'm impressed with the materials they used, and I have had (knock on wood) very few issues with these first two.

Overall - ***1/2
I'm betting - although I can't be sure yet - that Ray is going to be the one I think is the best overall when all is said and done. He has an excellent sculpt and better paint job, and while they all have the amazing proton pack and wand, he has the ghost trap and goggles to boost him.

In fact, had his light up feature worked properly for me, he'd likely end up a four star figure overall, I like him that much. I haven't pre-ordered the Ecto-1 yet (Xmas has all the cash tied up right now), but I suspect that I will come January. As the Borg like to say, resistance is futile.

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

Where to Buy 
Online options include these site sponsors:

- Entertainment Earth had the set for $896, and the singles for around $220, but like everyone else, they appear sold out.

- or you can search ebay for a deal.

Related Links -
I already covered Venkman, with the other two coming soon.

Other recent Ghostbusters merchandise includes the smaller 7" scale series from Diamond Select, including Terror Dog, Library Ghost, and Taxi Ghost; Walter Peck, Gozer, and a Slimed Peter; Quittin' Time Ray, Slimer, and Janine; Ray, Louis, and Winston and Dana, Egon, and Peter.

Recently, Playmobil released their Ghostbusters sets, and I reviewed the Ecto-1.

If you're looking for sixth scale Busters at a cheaper price, check out the Mattel 12" Zeddemore, and the 12" Ray and Venkman. In the six inch scale, Mattel 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.

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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