Paint - ****
It may be necessary to wear a mask to avoid being overcome by the fumes,
but that's fairly standard for McFarlane paint ops. Also pretty
standard these days - though it hasn't always been true - are excellent ops
and application.
The colors are bright and consistent, and the use of wash to
highlight muscle and define detail is done cleanly and in just the right
amount. I was particularly impressed with the face on Ripclaw, but all
the ops were well above average.
Articulation - Ripclaw ***, Spawn ****
Ripclaw has fairly standard articulation for a figure in this scale
(6"-7"). With neck, shoulders, waist, hips, wrists and cut
biceps, he has the ability to do quite a few upper body poses. He's a
bit limited below the waist (something no man wants someone to say), but the
sculpted pose works fine.
Spawn is a work of articulation beauty. This IS the
ultimate Spawn figure, and blows the rest out of the water. Okay,
maybe not every previous Spawn figure actually flew out of the water and
into the air, but this version is easily my favorite.
He's articulated at the neck (with a special joint to allow
for some great 'hunched' poses), shoulders (with special joints to allow his
arms to complete cross his chest), cut biceps elbows, cut forearms, wrists,
chest (with TWO joints, again to allow for poor posture), waist, ball
jointed hips, double jointed knees, cut thighs, cut calves (just above the
ankles), ankles and even mid-foot. The only joint I had much of an
issue with was the ball jointed hips - the range of motion is more limited
than you'd expect. But overall this is truly an impressive figure in
any scale.
Accessories - Ripclaw ***, Spawn ****
Both figures come with an included display base. For Ripclaw, this
is the only accessory.
His base looks good, with nice detail sculpting and good paint ops, but
it's really just a patch of forest ground. There are pegs for his
feet, although he stands fine on his own as well.
Spawn technically has only one accessory, his ornate display stand.
But since his cape is removable, I'm counting that, and since the chains are
just so damn cool, I'm counting them as well.
The cape is made from soft rubber, and fits over his shoulders
nicely. There's actually a post on the cape that fits in his back, but
I didn't use it much. It hangs the cape lower on the body than I liked
in most poses. It's not necessary to use the post though, since the
cape sits on the shoulders and stays draped over the body without it.
There's a ton of detail in the cape sculpt, and the pieces cover the more
obvious articulation points perfectly. One caveat - it's awfully
heavy. That means that standing without the base, while possible, is
unlikely to work for long. The cape's weight will tend to cause the
legs to buckle.
The chain is great - real metal, and extremely long. You'll be able
to drape it over his body, through his hands, and around the base with ease.
The real work of art here is the base. Designed to look like a
church steeple, the bottom has a detailed gargoyle along with two pegs for
Spawn's feet. The ornate cross also has two pegs above - one on the
left arm, and one on the front center - to attach his feet for more display
possibilities.
While the sculpting on the base is great, the paint work really makes it
stand out. It captures the look and texture of stone perfectly, and
you can easily imagine Spawn surveying the city below from this perch.
As great as the stand looks though, there appears to be one major
issue. I've only had him perched up there for about 24 hours, and
already the shaft of the cross is beginning to wilt. I don't think it
will be possible to keep him up on the top of the cross long term, although
that's clearly the best looking option.
Value - Ripclaw ***, Spawn ***1/2
I paid $13 each for these, and while that's not a terrible price, it's just
a tad right of perfect. Obviously Spawn is the better value, with much
greater articulation and accessories.
Still, when you consider that Stan Winston is charging $2 more for
figures with less articulation but in the same approximate scale, you have
to give McFarlane credit. Selling these only through comic shops is
what has driven the price up from $10 to $13 or so, since there numbers are
far more limited than if they were going through the large retailers.
Overall - Ripclaw ***1/2, Spawn ****
If your a fan of Image, these really are must buys. I was never a
huge fan of Ripclaw - something I'm betting most of you are saying as well -
but this figure really does look terrific. While I enjoyed playing
with Spawn, I felt Ripclaw was just more photogenic.
And you certainly can't pass up a Spawn figure this well
done and this highly articulated. This figure puts most of the rest to
shame, and proves just how good McToys can be when they really set their
mind to it. I'm sure that the fact that Spawn is Todd's baby played no
small part in the fact that of the four figures, he's clearly the stand
out. But you should give the others a serious look as well,
particularly if you were a fan of the books.
Where to Buy:
I got mine on-line from:
- Aislesniper,
where they have them in stock and ready to ship for $13 each.
Scroll down for a photo of the Spawn base!
