Review of Tyreese, Charred Walker - Walking Dead action figures

Introduction

The Walking Dead is an excellent drama - from writing, to acting to directing, it's hitting on all cylinders. Not every episode is perfect, but overall the show is one of the most engaging on television, packed with interesting characters.

One of those characters, taken from the comic but altered to some degree for the show, is Tyreese. He's one of my favorites right now, which probably means he won't last much longer, but that's the price you pay with this show.

I'm looking at his action figure tonight, along with the Charred Walker, two more figures shipping with Glenn and Maggie, as well as the zombified version of Merle. Expect to pay around $15 or so at most retailers, but Walgreen's has been known to carry them for closer to $12 each. Now that's a bargain!

Packaging - ***1/2
The tall, skinny packages waste very little space, and I really like the prison theme to the backers. They also show off the rest of the series, and are sort of, kind of collector friendly. The bubble wraps around the card on three sides, held in place with tape. Slit the tape and you can lift the bubble, remove the inner tray and figure, and pop it all back later if you'd like. There's still a couple twisties, but it's a minor annoyance with an otherwise nice package.

Sculpting - ****
The human likenesses have been hit or miss, but thankfully they've been more hit than miss over the last couple waves. Tyreese is clearly a home run, capturing both the likeness of the actor and the essence of the character.

They've also captured the proper proportions, making him stockier and thicker compared to Rick or Glenn. He's just a hair over 5" as well, fitting in nicely with the rest of the series.

The walker has been burned badly over his entire body, and this damage, along with the scorched clothing, looks terrific. In some places you can even see where the clothing is melting into the flesh - outstanding!

Tyreese stands great on his own, but you'll need to use the included black stand with the Walker to keep him upright.

Paint - ****
The paint work on both figures is top notch, particularly when you take scale into consideration.

There's a little slip here and there on Tyreese, but you have to look at him under the eye of the macro lens to see it. Even then, it's extremely minor, and the eyes, beard, and hat look amazing.

Even better, the sweat and dirt on the shirt are very realistic, much better than the usual "throw some paint at it and it will be fine" approach.

The walker has a couple unique features tied directly to his charred status. First, the plastic has a slightly translucent quality to it, and under the right light looks like it's glowing a bit. This reddish background is the perfect base color for the darker top layers.

As I mentioned, the sculpt on the walker is designed to make the clothing and flesh appear to become fused in some places. They carry this over to the paint work as well, highlighting where the pants have melted into the thigh.

At this price point and this scale, this is really excellent work overall.

Articulation - Tyreese ***1/2; Walker **
At first glance, it will appear that the Walker is a solid figure, but he is not. There's a cut neck, cut right thigh, and cut right shoulder. This allows you to position him on the base with an outstretched hand and a little angle on the head. It's not a lot, but it's something.

Tyreese comes with the improved articulation that we've seen with the last couple waves. His ball jointed neck doesn't tilt quite as well as I'd like, but the all shoulders, elbows and wrists work great, and you can get just about any arm pose you want.

The ball hips and knees, along with the cut ankles, allows for some decent leg poses, but you have to play around a bit, and be willing to sacrifice the perfect alignment of the sculpt. For example, there were times where I had to put the large pockets on the thighs more in front or in back than I really wanted, just to get the actual stance I was looking for. And if you turn the lower leg at certain angles, you'll get a weird pose in the foot because of the sculpt. It's all workable though because they gave you enough useful articulation.

Accessories - Tyreese ***1/2; Walker ***
Tyreese has a very nice assortment of extras, designed for killing walkers in various ways.

He has a shotgun, which he can hold in either or both hands, although the tight grips can be tough to work with. He also has a handgun with homemade silencer, which is actually the choice of weapon for Carl. Back when Carl was reviewed, I complained about the lack of his gun. I'm betting that someone involved decided that putting an action figure of a kid with a gun on the pegs at Toys R Us might incite one of the loony tunes to mount a campaign against whatever, and I can't argue with that decision. It's nice to see that they did provide the weapon with another character though, so you can now go back and make your Carl figure complete.

Because you want to kill walker quietly most of the time, Tyreese also has his deadly hammer, which slips inside a loop on his belt for easy access. The hammer fits great in his hands, much better than either gun.

The charred walker doesn't have much, but as a walker he doesn't really need much. He comes with the gas can that was involved in turning him into an undead torch, as well as a plain black plastic stand. He needs the stand - he won't stay upright without it. The gas can is made all the better with a cool paint job that makes it appear half full. It's these little details that make a series stand out.

Fun Factor - ***1/2
Solid articulation, great sculpts and paint...it doesn't get much better when it comes to action figures. These make great toys, although the kids most likely to play with them are less likely to be watching the show. These will appeal to toy collectors though, because they retain the key aspects of a great toy.

Value - Tyreese **1/2; Walker **
I'm going to assume you'll pay $15 each for these. With the lack of articulation and accessories with the Walker, he's less of a value.

But these are available at some locations for a few bucks less. If you pick these up for $12 or so, you can add another half star here.

Things to Watch Out For -
It can be tough working with the hands, and damaging the fingers is a real possibility. Take your time, especially with the shotgun.

Overall - Tyreese ****; Walker ***
Merle is still my overall favorite of the entire series, but I have to say that Tyreese is a close second. With outstanding sculpting  and paint, a nice assortment of extras, and even enough articulation for some solid posing, he's both an excellent action figure and an excellent representation of the character.

While the Charred Walker isn't quite as exciting as some of the others, like the SWAT Walker, he's still a nice addition, and one that's recognizable from the show. You can't have action figures of humans fighting a zombie apocalypse without some good zombies to pose them up against, and this Walker fits the bill nicely.

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

Where to Buy 
The best store price I know of is at Walgreens, where you can get them for around $12. Toys R Us is in the $15 range, as you'd expect. Online options include these site sponsors:

- Entertainment Earth has the wave of five figures for $70, or the singles for $15.

- or you can search ebay for a deal.

Related Links -
Other Walking Dead merchandise includes the busts from Gentle Giant, like Sophia's Stalker, Daryl, Michonne, Rick and the Well Walker.  Mcfarlane also did a cool blu-ray case, as well as the third season blu-ray case.

And if you're looking for something in the sixth scale market, check out Threezero's walkers, Michonne's Pets.

Also from McFarlane is the smaller action figures: Glenn and Maggie,  Carl and SWAT walker, the Governor and Andrea, Merle and Michonne, the RV and Well walkers, 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.

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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