Paint - ***1/2
The paint ops are fairly slim here, with the majority involving the head
and face.
There were no serious problems any where, and all the
important facial aspects were good - straight eyes, consistent skin tone,
clean hair line, etc.
There are some minor paint ops on the rifle and sword, and
these are well executed as well. But the majority of color and beauty
on this figure come from the exceptional...
Outfit - ****
Wow! I thought the Drastic stuff was nice - this uniform is truly exceptional! That
seems to be getting to be the norm in the sixth scale market.
The outfit consists of his bearskin hat, top coat, vest, pants, shirt, and boots.
Every piece is made with the highest quality materials, and the level of detail and
quality of manufacturer is really hard to believe. Snaps and metal
clasps are used everywhere, with no sign of velcro.
The top coat is an excellent example. The attention to detail includes the carefully
embroidered patches, epaulets and designs down the back of the jacket tails. The material
is thick, and it includes an inner lining in some areas.
Another important aspect of this uniform is the tailoring. Each piece of clothing fits
tightly, but not too tightly to appear disproportionate. The difference between a figure
like this and a $20 Hasbro figure is like the difference between buying your suit off the
rack, or having it sewn to fit your specific measurements. Sure, it costs more, but you
can't help but notice the exceptional difference.
The boots are well sculpted, with a realistic appearance and feel. The fit over the pants
tightly, but are made of a soft enough material to make taking them on and off fairly easy.
The hat is the literal capper. The hat has a soft interior, like a real hat, rather than
the hard plastic we so often see. It fits the head easily, and the external details, like the
feather, tassels and emblems are the same high quality that you see across the rest of the
uniform.
I'm really impressed with the level of quality and detail on this uniform, and find it hard
to believe this is their first offering.
Articulation - ***
There's lots of competition in the sixth scale body world these days.
You can't make a new figure without having the style and articulation
compared to the heavy hitters.
This figure has plenty of joints - ball jointed neck, ball
jointed shoulders, cut biceps (high, near the shoulders), double jointed
elbows, simple wrist joints, chest, waist, ball jointed hips (similar to
Famous Covers style hips), double jointed knees, cut thighs, and simple
ankles.
That's more than enough to do almost any pose. The
only reason they aren't scoring higher is that the bodies I've been giving
***1/2 or **** stars to have additional articulation, like the bendy hands,
super cool Sideshow wrist joints, or slightly better designs around the hip
joints.
The only joint I really would like to see them improve here
is the wrist. I know that Sideshow has spoiled me with their excellent
wrist joints, but this very basic cut joint doesn't do you a whole lot of
good for posing with the weapons. It's too bad to see something like
that cause limitations when the rest of the body, especially the arms,
don't.
Accessories - ****
Another wow! Ignite has gone out of their way in putting together
some exceptional quality accessories.
The Guard comes with his sword (bright die cast metal blade) and
scabbard, bayonet (gray die cast metal) and scabbard (also called 'frog' I
believe), ammo pouch, belts for both the scabbards and pouch, 'fur' covered
backpack, and rifle with gray die cast metal parts. Oh, and let's not
forget the short pike or lance he also has with the gray die cast metal
blade.
The details on every accessory are excellent, and I'm very impressed with
the quality. For example, the white belts for the pouch, scabbards and
backpack are all very thick and extremely well stitched. There's very
little likelihood that you'll damage them or tear them taking them on or
off.
Keep the weapons away from kids though, particularly the bayonet.
It comes to a very sharp point, and putting an eye out with it could very
well be a real possibility!
There was one odd thing - the top of the back pack has white straps
intended for a bed roll. The figure on the front of the package (an
artist rendition) has a bed roll clearly visible. Yet the figure
didn't come with one.
Value - ***
This is a sixty dollar figure, about the top end of a price point for any
sixth scale offering. The new Drastic FDR was at this price point, and
scored slightly lower in the value category even with the wheel chair.
I gave this figure a slight edge though due to all the well thought out
use of metal. Adding the metal accessories where it made sense was a
big boost in the overall value, and I'm sure cost.
Overall - ***1/2
This figure is just a smidgen shy of a four star figure. Had the
price point been just slightly lower, or the head sculpt just slightly more
impressive, or the body just slightly better articulated, he would have
gotten four stars hands down.
I'm really impressed by these first offerings, not just
because of the excellent uniforms and accessories, but because they are
going with far more colorful and unique characters than the standard
military stuff we've gotten so used to.
Where to Buy -
That's a bit more of a sticky wicket - they aren't being too widely
carried at this point. Do a little web searching and you should be
able to find them at a couple places, but bug your favorite retailer to
look into carrying them.