|
|
12" Wolfman
Mezco Toyz
"The
following is a guest review. The review
and photos do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Michael Crawford
or Michael's Review of the Week, and are the opinion and work of the
guest author."
|
The new Wolfman movie is just a
week away, and Shaun Hilmar checks
in tonight with a look at the 12" version of the character from Mezco.
Take it away, Shaun!
Good evening every one and a big thanks to Michael for letting me
do the review of Mezco’s effort on the famous lycanthrope from the
upcoming film “The Wolfman”. I’ll be doing this review of the
12”
inch deluxe version with cloth shirt and vest.
As Michael
pointed out in his review of the 7” figure, it’s tough to make the call
on exactly just how screen accurate this guy truly is, as the film has
another few weeks until its release. We’ll have to work with
the
small amount of screen shots we’ve gotten and the trailers.
So, will this beastie has collectors and kids (even big ones) alike
howling at the moon? Lets see…
|
 |
|
|
Packaging
-
***
Let
me just start off by saying the box this guy comes in is far larger
than any of the other Mezco 12” figures we’ve gotten over time (I’m
thinking the Cinema of Fear Freddy and Jason). It’s a window
box
style that shows off the figure well, and includes pictures from the
film as well as the other Mezco offerings tied into the
movie. I
gave the three stars because the box has an almost diorama like aspect
to it…there are graphics depicting trees and the moon on the sides and
behind the figure, and he’ll look great on the shelf in the box (should
you chose to leave him there). If not, you’ll deal with the
standard Mezco packaging (reminded me of their King Kong) wherein
you’ll slide out a sleeve with formed plastic and deal with six
twisties (oh and a surprise seventh around his neck).
Sculpting
-
***1/2
As
stated before, we don’t know EXACTLY what the wolfman looks
like….yet. But I’m willing to give Mezco some room
here. It
appears a good up scaling of the smaller version. The hair is
well done and reasonably textured and thick looking. For me,
it’s
the face and hands that make him stand out. From the great
looking teeth to the crinkling skin, to the claws, this guy is
definitely not somebody you wanna run into while on your next
hike. The lower half (pants and er….paws) are also very
nicely
done, having all the appropriate and expected detail.
Paint
-
***1/2
I am very
happy to report that Mezco didn’t merely just go with a largely brown
color over the figure. Instead, they did a very good job of
using
various colors and shades to give the hair…ooops…I mean, fur, a very
realistic appearance throughout. I know that bad paint can
kill a
great sculpt, however good paint applications can make it better and I
believe that’s the case here. Everything on my figure was
clean
and well applied, the bloody mouth, the eyes, the blood was on the
hands and chest, all look great and definitely add a lot. The
pants have the appropriate amount of dirt on them, although some may
feel it’s a bit overdone. Personally for me, it’s just right.
Articulation
- **1/2
I count 13 points of articulation on this guy. Ball jointed
neck
(amen), ball joints at the shoulder, cut elbows and wrists, cut calves
and thighs. And two surprises (at least for me). A
ball jointed waist
and torso! Those ones I wasn’t expecting and I really feel
they work
well, particularly with the ball jointed neck, as you can pose him in a
crouched “stalking” pose or stand him straight up. By the
way, I want
to note that this guy is scaled to 12”, and unsurprisingly, at full
height he stands over 13”. Back to the joints….what’s here
allowed for
a good variety of poses….mostly upper body, but certainly enough to
keep most entertained for awhile. The joints all moved well
and were
appropriately tight.
Accessories
- *1/2
No
medallion? How about that cool wolfs head cane?
No?
Alas, no. There are none. Unless of course you
count the
cloth shirt and vest (which I actually liked so much, they are under
outfit). I really felt that we could have used something
here,
and this is the biggest disappointment in the figure. Oh,
it’s no
deal breaker….but c’mon guys!
Outfit
- ***1/2
I had to
break this out, I really was that impressed with it. The
style
and pattern of the shirt are excellent and the vest has actually two
types of material, a shinier one for the front and a flat black on the
back portion. Also , I like the adjustment strap in the lower
back and the pre-done cuts and tears as poor Lawrence
transforms.
Overall the fit of both of these items is excellent and really add more
to the figure then I expected. And even better, they
accomplish
this without being restrictive to the articulation.
Value - ***
I paid $31 dollars for him online and that’s a fair value for a figure
of this kind. Being that he is specialty market and will
doubtless see a smaller production run, I’d expect to pay about that
much. I see some online retailers offering him closer to the
$40
mark….if that’s the case you could knock off half a star.
But who am I kidding, I’d have picked him up anyway.
Fun
Factor - ***1/2
Man,
when I was ten…..Wolfman! Where were you!? Oh well,
better
late than never. Kids and adults alike will have a blast with
this guy….no doubt. He’s detailed and realistic and could
hold up
to play with little trouble. My six year old is eyeing him
already…..
Things
to Watch Out For -
Be
careful with the shirt and particularly the vest. It has the
pre-ripped portions that could continue to tear if some care isn’t
used. Other than that, nothing. Like some of
Mezco’s
other figures, this guy is rotocast, largely and built solid.
Overall
- ***1/2
He’s
not perfect, and his lack of any kind of accessory hurt, but overall,
he really is a fantastic figure. The sculpt, paint apps and
that
great shirt/vest combo really make this guy something special in my
opinion. I have no doubt he’ll look great on the shelf, and
if
you are a monster fan, particularly the old Universal monsters this guy
really is a no brainer. Let’s all just hope the film does him
justice.
|
|
|
|
This product was purchased for the review by the reviewer.
Photos and text by Shaun Hilmar.
|
