Sculpting - ***1/2
The sculpt is done in a *slightly* stylized fashion, enough to make it very apparent that this is Mezco's take on the classic character, and yet not so much as to go too far from gruesome into goofy.

There's plenty of deep, sharp detailing in the scarred face and head, and the pre-posed nature of the sculpt looks great.  The articulation and sculpt also work well together, allowing you more posing possibilities than you might first assume.

The hands are sculpted to work with some of the accessories, particularly with the extra sweater.  The iconic claws are a little oversized, but it works within this style.

The figure stands great on his own, and is right about 7" tall.

If there was one sculpt issue, it would be with the amount of gaping around the removable sweater piece.  The line across the chest is very obvious, partly because of the gap, and partly because the material used for the sweater is different than the material used for the removable chunk.  I'll mention this aspect again in the next section.

Paint - ***
As I said, the material used for the removable chunk of sweater is a harder plastic than what was used for the rest of the torso.  These two materials appear to have taken the paint differently, one ending up with a flatter appearance, and one more glossy.  This paint difference ends up causing the fact that the sweater is in two pieces to be a bit too obvious.

My only other real issue with the paint is that the dirt and wash are so heavy on the sweater, that in person it's almost impossible to notice the classi stripes.

Other than that though, the paint is fairly consistent and clean.  It's glossy where it should be glossy, flat where it should be flat, with some nice detail work done on both burned and rotted heads.

Articulation - **1/2
This isn't a super articulated figure, although he does have some key joints.

He has the ball jointed neck, which works terrific as a joint AND as the swapping point for the alternate head.  You'll be able to tilt the head back far enough to still have him look forward on the shelf, although the torso is hunched over a bit.

The shoulders are really cut joints, although they aren't technically.  They do tilt slightly within the torso, although not enough that you're going to wet yourself.

There's pin elbows and a pin wrist on the left, swappable hand(s).  This left arm works well enough that you can get the hand in the perfect position to appear as if he is lifting up his sweater.

Accessories - ***1/2
The accessories include an extra head, extra left hand, hat, new shirt piece and garbage can lid.

The extra head has his torn off face, with bloody muscle and tendon showing in all its gory color.  The sculpt is very good, as is the paint, and the head swamp works smoothly and easily.

Likewise with the extra hand, which pops on quite easily.  I didn't feel like there was any risk of breaking a peg or post during the swap of either hand.  He comes packaged with the hand oozing the green slime for two fingers, and the extra hand is done in a sculpted pose specific to work with the extra sweater front.  It does this duty extremely well.

That extra sweater front pops right on, and looks just like he's lifting up his shirt to show off his ooze.  As I mentioned in the sculpt section, the top of the removable sweater piece is a bit too obvious, but other than that, it works extremely well.

There's his trademark hat, which fits on either head quite nicely.  I have to wonder if this fedora would look better on the 7" Indiana Jones from Gentle Giant than the one they used.  Hmmm.

Finally, there's the garbage can lid.  This can be held in the left hand, if you're so inclined.

Fun Factor - **1/2
Ignoring the blood thirsty and terrifying nature of the character, he's actually a reasonable good toy.  The articulation is a little limiting, but if you have someone so inclined as to 'play' with Freddy, than this figure is actually a reasonable if not stellar choice.

Value - **
I'm just barely getting accustomed to the $10 mass market/$15 specialty market price points, when these hit at a few dollars more.  If you can snag these down around $15, then add another half star here.

Things to Watch Out For - 
Not much of anything.

Overall - ***
Normally, I prefer my monsters as screen accurate as possible.  But Freddy has been done before...and done before...and done before.  We have some pretty sweet screen accurate versions, especially in the 7" scale.  I think Mezco is smart to put their own spin on these classic characters in their Cinema of Fear line to make them their own.

It also helps of course that they didn't over do it.  Yes, these figures are a bit 'stylized', but they aren't taken to an extreme.  They have a unique look while retaining some level of realistm.

I suspect they Heroes figures will follow this same pattern, and the jury is still out as to whether that will work for me or not.  But at least with the Cof line, I'm pretty happy with them.

Score Recap:
Packaging - ***
Sculpt - ***1/2
Paint - ***
Articulation - **1/2
Accessories - ***1/2
Fun Factor - **1/2
Value - **
Overall - ***

Where to Buy -
You might find him at your LCS or Hot Topic, and these seem to be selling out quite quickly.  Online options include:

- Things from Another World has him for $16.19.

- Urban Collector has him for $17.

- YouBuyNow has him at $17.

- Amazing Toyz has him at $20, but CornerStoreComics is already sold out.

- for the UK readers, Forbidden Planet has him at 13 GBP.

- or you can search ebay using the sponsor MyAuctionLinks.

- Related Links -
I've reviewed a few Freddy's over the years, too:

- There's the 12" Robert Englund version, as well as the New Nightmare version, and the Freddy vs Jason version.  Oh, and don't forget the very first Sideshow version as well.

- in the 7" scale, there's the Robert Englund version as well, and the Freddy vs Jason version.