Review of Michonne's Pet Walkers - Walking Dead action figures

Introduction

When The Walking Dead was first announced as a potential new television series, you couldn't find a licensor to pick it up. Risk avoidance has become the norm when picking licenses, and no one was banking on an unknown zombie property.

It's amazing what a couple successful seasons can do for a brand. There's multiple companies doing product now, and while some of them started out rocky - both McFarlane and Gentle Giant had some trouble out of the gate - things have greatly improved.

Still, one market has been out of luck - sixth scale collectors. Not to fear, Threezero picked up the license and has plans for a full line. The first two to be released is an odd choice...but shows off their ability to do zombies. It's Michonne's Pets, one called the red version and one called the green version. The colors are based on their plaid boxer shorts. Forgive me if I swap between the terms Walker and Zombie during the review - while they might be zombies to us, that's not a word used on the show.

This is an early review, so now is the time to pre-order. Expect to pay around $120 each, but you might be able to shave a few bucks off of that with a little shopping around. But don't make the mistake of waiting til they release Michonne - these guys will be long gone by then. From what we've seen teased by Threezero, we'll be getting Merle and Daryl next, then the lovely bad ass Michonne.

Packaging - N/A
This is an early review, and the figures arrived without the final packaging. I'm sure they'll do a nice job - both ThreeA and Threezero always do - but until then, we can only imagine.

Sculpting - ****
At first glance, these two figures might seem quite alike. That's not surprising, since in both the comic and the show, they were very similar. These are show based of course, and have their jaws, teeth and arms removed, in essence neutering them.

The damage to the face is different, with more flesh present on one than the other, and a slightly different hair line. Even the overall shape of the head is slightly different, making them quite unique when you pay close attention.

The torsos are more similar, however. There is some difference in the damage and wounds, but the basic sculpt is quite close.

These are right at that 12" mark, a critical point, since that means they fit right in with the Sideshow, Hot Toys, and Enterbay figures. I don't know about you, but I like my sixth scale display to have consistency.

Paint - ***1/2
The paint work on the face is fairly good, with a nice, realistic look to the blood and gore.

They've given them foggy white eyes, just what you'd expect with a dead body after this much time has passed. The effect works, although it's not quite perfect.

The body damage looks good too, but there's an air brush quality to the darker lines of the musculature.

Articulation - ***
There's a very highly articulated body underneath there, but the upper torso, head and neck are all covered in rubber. It doesn't allow for a lot of upper body movement, especially in the neck. You can feel the joints under there, but the rubber tends to force the figure back into the original pose.

The lower body poses great, however, with all the natural flow you'd expect. You should have no trouble getting two different poses out of these, and make them quite distinct.

Accessories - ***
These guys don't come with a ton of extras, but considering that they have no arms or hands, that's probably not a surprise.

They do come with a thin metal collar, which you can bend enough to get around his neck, then bend back in place. On the collar is the chain, which you can attach at whatever length you think most appropriate.

Both of these are metal of course, and serve the purpose. They could be a little more screen accurate, but it's a minor nit.

Both figures also come with their backpacks. Remember, part of the reason Michonne keeps these guys around is as pack mules, (the other reason being camouflage) which is pretty damn smart if you ask me. I don't remember them actually wearing the packs on the show...but you know they did. Each one has a removable backpack, done in a very realistic style with proper buckles, belts and high quality materials. They are also very dirty and worn, as you'd expect.

I didn't have any trouble getting them on the figures, and they stay just fine as well. You can adjust the straps in various ways to get your own particular look.

Outfit - ****
There's not a lot to the outfit, but what's here is extremely well done.

They are both wearing jeans and work boots, along with plaid boxers. The slightly different color in boxers is what gives them their naming distinction.

The boot sculpt is terrific, and the realistic nature of the damaged jeans is right up there with the best in sixth scale manufacturers.

Fun Factor - ***
For fans of the show, these are too long coming but much appreciated now that they are here. These are well built, with little chance for breakage or damage, and you should have a great time posing and displaying them. That's what we call 'adult play'.

Value - ***1/2
Worst case, you'll pay $120 for each of these on pre-order. Some places are even a few bucks cheaper than that. When was the last time we saw any high quality sixth scale figure for that price? Sure, there's not a ton of accessories here, but if they can keep the rest of the series in line with this level of quality, and the prices sub $200, a lot of collectors will be very happy.

Things to Watch Out For -
Not a thing.

Overall - ***1/2
While I have a few nits, I'm very happy overall with this initial release. It's a little unusual for a company to start out a license with characters this far down the pecking order, but it did give them a chance to show off their zombie chops, and gave them extra time to work on the critical human likenesses. Getting a perfect Daryl and Merle is going to be critical to their success.

I'm also hoping that they can maintain prices that come in below some of the other current top sixth scale manufacturers, allowing collectors to fit them into their budget. The price on these first two is good - now let's keep it rolling.

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

Where to Buy 
Online options include these site sponsors:

- Entertainment Earth has them at $120 too.

- or you can search ebay for a deal.

Related Links -
Manufacturers shied away from the license in the beginning, but now there's no shortage of Walking Dead product. McFarlane's figures have improved quite a bit - check out the Carl and SWAT Zombie, the Governor and Andrea, Merle and Michonne, the RV and Well Zombies, Shane and the Bicycle Girl, Walking Dead figures series 1, the two humans in series 2, as well as the first series of comic based figures.

And don't forget that Gentle Giant is doing busts, including Michonne, Rick and the Well Walker so far.  Mcfarlane also did a cool blu-ray case using his head, as well as the third season blu-ray case.

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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