Review of Amazing Spider-Man 2 exclusive action figure

Introduction

I'm in the minority, but I didn't think the second film in the latest Spider-man franchise was all that bad. It had some serious competition in 2014 from films like X:Men: Days of Future Past, Captain America 2: Winter Soldier, and Guardians of the Galaxy, all of which were superior to Amazing Spider-Man 2. But as Spidey flicks go, it was a lot of fun, and I really like Garfield in the title role.

There wasn't a ton of great product though, even at mass market retailers. Hot Toys picked up the license, but it's taken them awhile to get the friendly neighborhood spider out to us, at least in this new costume.  Spidey started shipping just a few weeks ago, and most U.S. retailers are just getting them in.

The normal version sold for around $230. This exclusive version - which includes an extra accessory - was available through Sideshow for $230 as well.

Packaging - ****
I love the box art, even if you never will get this figure in quite that pose. I also love the angled cut of the box top, and of course, everything is completely collector friendly.

There's multiple layers to the plastic trays, each one holding a variety of accessories. Everything is safe and sound, and can be easily packed back up for storage if necessary.

As you might expect, there are bags covering the hands inside the tray. That's pretty common with any Hot Toys figure. However, since the lower half of each hand is now permanently attached to the costume (more on that later), you'll want to be very careful removing those bags.  Don't merely pull them off, since that can damage the costume. Loosen them up first, so you don't put unnecessary strain on the wrists.

Sculpting - ****
Some of these categories will be a little weird, since this style of character isn't quite the norm. There's no real head sculpt, hence the Sculpt and Paint categories aren't quite as obvious.

I'm going to consider the work on the aesthetic nature of the suit - the ribbing, the eyes, the boots, the symbol - as the 'sculpt' for our purposes here.

And all those areas are outstanding - this is easily the coolest sixth scale Spider-Man we've gotten to date.

It helps that the movie costume was also an improvement, particularly over the Amazing Spider-Man 1 version. This more classic comic design lends itself to a better overall look.

They've been doing the suit ribbing for awhile now, but it seems like they've really gotten it down with this release. I didn't see any areas where it appeared it might pull loose, and it is very subtle and smooth.

The symbol on the chest looks great, but the real selling point for me is the large, plastic eyes. It sets him apart from other releases, and adds that special something that makes him pop on the shelf.

While there isn't a true portrait, it was still important to have the head in scale with the body. They've done an excellent job, and also didn't overdue any of the underlying features - nose, chin, cheeks, hair - that might have caused the mask to look too extended or out of shape. It's clear they didn't just go with any old sculpted head, instead opting to create one with the subtle features necessary to make the masked look work.

I do have some other quality issues with the suit itself, but I'll cover those as part of my discussion of the Outfit.

Paint - ****
Another weird category, when you don't have a head sculpt to critique.

However, there's still plenty of paint, particularly on the accessories, eyes, and hands. Everything is clean and sharp, adding to the overall realism. I didn't find one real issue, but be warned - I have heard of people with some staining on the costume right out of the package. Be sure to give your figure a thorough exam, and deal with any return issues right away.

Articulation - ***
The underlying TrueType body has all the outstanding articulation and engineering that we've come to expect. These bodies can take natural, flowing poses, and the range of movement is unparalleled.

The suit is stretchy, but even so, some of the joints are a bit restricted. The ankles are probably the worst, and even there I suspect that over time the suit will stretch out a bit and allow for deeper stances.

I have one issue, and I put it in this category because it seemed to fit best. Hot Toys went with a slightly different design on the hands this time, making them two piece. The lower half, that includes the wrist post, is attached to the costume itself, and is not intended for removal. The upper half of the hand, including the fingers and thumb, is a separate piece, held in place with two posts and two magnets.

They went with this design to hide the wrists. While that is certainly a worthwhile cause, the execution isn't quite perfect. The hands themselves don't fit together quite as well as they should, often leaving a gap mid-hand, which is no more attractive than an exposed wrist joint.

I commend them for what they are trying to do with the hands, but now they need to improve on the execution.

Accessories - ****
This guy is well outfitted, making it a bit easier to accept the price point.

He comes with a whopping 12 different hands - 6 complete sets. I mentioned in the Articulation section that I'm not digging the way the hands swap at the mid-point, but I can't fault them for the variety or sculpts.

There are four web 'trails' to use, two that are short and have the bulb-like ends, intended for shooting poses, and two that are longer and simply straight. These latter pieces can be used as swinging webs.

I'm also not happy with how these web pieces attach to the shooters, but I'll ding him in the Outfit section for that miss-cue. As accessories, the four chunks of web they provided look great and are fairly sturdy.

Spidey also comes with a second outfit, as seen in the movie. There's a nit hat, down vest, scarf, and nylon backpack. The quality on all of these is fantastic, with nice tailoring and stitching. The materials are top quality too, and this isn't a bad look for him, although it probably won't be one you see on a lot of shelves. The basic Spider-Man looks  too damn good to end up covered in other clothing, but it's a nice touch for the psycho-completists who pick up a second figure, or to use as kitbash material for other characters.

The regular release also has a large mega-phone, perfect for calming crowds or taking smack to enormous villains.

The final regular release extra is the large, flying pose display stand. This is the newer model with the bendable metal post and wide base, perfect for supporting him in any leaping or swinging pose.

The base itself has a cardboard logo cover, and the exclusive actually includes a second cover, done up in different artwork.

That second cover wouldn't be enough to call it an exclusive, however, and Hot Toys also added in the plutonium canister. This is a pretty cool extra, since it plays an important role in the film, and if you can get it at the same price as the regular release, it's well worth it. However, I wouldn't spend a huge amount over retail to get it, since it's not a critical display item.

Outfit - **1/2
This is going to seem a little weird, since I just gave this figure such high marks - and praise - in both Sculpt and Paint, and let's face it, it's all about the suit.

But I reserved my comments in those sections for the look of the suit itself, including the great work on the webbing and eyes, as well as the overall proportions. Here I'll be taking about the execution of the suit, which covers areas where I had some real issues - the stitching and the web shooters.

That's not to say it's all bad, however. The stretchy material does allow for better posability than I'd expected, and yet it looks terrific. The tailoring itself, including the fit, is very nice, at least for the most part.

The wrists are one area of concern. They've decided to cover the wrists by attaching the material to the lower section of each hand, as I discussed in the Articulation section. However, this material can pull free pretty easily, and you'll want to be extremely carefully posing the hands.

This situation is only exacerbated by the design of the web shooters. These are stitched to the suit on the underside of the forearm, well back from the wrist itself. You are supposed to insert the small end of the webbing in between the shooter and the material. While this sorta works, it's also very prone to damage, and is likely to cause problems over time.

It doesn't help that the tight suit doesn't allow for much adjustment in the placement of the shooter either. Again, take real care in trying to move the suit around the arm for various poses, since you can pull the material free on the hand.

Finally, there are some issues with the stitching in various areas.  I'm not thrilled with the look of the stitch on the very top of the head, as it's fairly wide and crooked, and in the most obvious spot it can be.

Most of the rest of the stitches are decent enough, with the exception of the left arm. I suspect that the rest of the stitching is done by a machine, but the left arm and side are left open to insert the body. Then this left side is stitched by hand, making it more prone to variation and poor quality.

Even with the issues, this is the best looking Spider-Man costume we've ever gotten in this scale.

Fun Factor - ***1/2
You will have a lot of fun posing and displaying this guy, if you can get over your fear of damaging the suit with the more dynamic poses.

Value - **1/2
I hate to say it, but $220 - $240 seems to be the norm right now for high end sixth scale. Fortunately, you're getting a really good assortment of accessories here, which helps keep the value at an average score for me.

Things to Watch Out For -
I've heard a lot of people say they had staining on the suit, and I noticed that he comes packed with protectors in several spots. If you restore him in the box, I'd be sure to put these back in place.

You'll also want to take special care with the hands, since the magnets can come loose and fall out. The photo that shows how the hands work also shows how one magnet can pull the other free, making it easy to drop. The magnets aren't really necessary, but you don't want to lose them either.

Finally, I suspect that if you put this guy in a dynamic pose and leave him that way for an extended period of time, the suit will wrinkle and bag. It may eventually return to normal, but forewarned is forearmed, as they say.

Overall - ***1/2
While Spider-Man ended up scoring high, I don't want to under emphasize my two main issues - they need to do some work with improving the half-hand concept, and I'm really not a fan of how they handled the web shooters.  These two issues were almost enough for me to drop the overall score another half star, even though I'm very happy with the final product.

Even with those issues, he is the best sixth scale Spider-Man we've gotten, and that's saying a lot. I wouldn't recommend messing around with the hands and the shooters any more than necessary, but once you find a pose you want to keep him in, he'll be a crowd pleaser on the shelf.

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

Where to Buy 
Online options include these site sponsors:

- Sideshow was the place to pick up the exclusive, but they only list the regular as available at this point. Either were $230.

- or you can search ebay for a deal.

Related Links -
You can check out Hot Toys attempt at the Raimi Spider-Man with this release based on the third movie.

They've also done a nice Green Goblin, also from the third Raimi movie.

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