Then in 1990 Curtis and Atkinson joined forces again to unleash Mr Bean upon the planet, and the planet loved him! It was a world wide smash, and due in no small fact to the point it was virtually without dialogue, it could be syndicated around the world with almost no re-dubbing… smart!

And here’s where Enterbay may… just may be onto a winner, not only was the TV series such a smash that it spawned an animated series for kids, but also two hit movies (Bean and Mr Beans Holiday), these weren’t received that well in the UK or US, however, in much of Europe, Asia and South America it was an instant success.

But here’s where the hard sell begins… distribution. You may have a million fans in Bolivia, Zanzibar or Kathmandu… but unless they have access to your product… what’s the point. Sadly this planet is doubtless covered in warehouses full of products based on characters from franchises the manufacturer was sure would be a big hit, even the big boys get it wrong sometimes! 

So what you need is a product based on something that has a good ‘cult’ status, a good ‘under-ground’, and if possible ‘over-ground’ following, but most of all it has to have a quality that makes people think… ‘I want that’… no ‘I NEED that’, and I’m glad to report, for all my original nay saying, I think this could be a success, all be it a slow-burner.

Packaging - ***
Normally I have some idea what to expect when I get a new figure as I’ve tracked down many pics of the various aspects of the figure in preparation of the review. But when Bean arrived I was totally in the dark. I did however receive him at the same time as my Jack Bauer figure, and the basic construction of both boxes is the same. Beans box is however white in it’s over-all appearance with a large photo of the figures head on the front next to the characters name/logotype. It opens sideways like a sports shoe box and inside are two sturdy brown boxes, one holding the accessories and stand, the other houses Mr Bean completely surrounded in die-cut foam. So a very nice box in terms of construction with some pleasant graphics well suited to the character.

Sculpting - ****
I’ve already sung the praises of Mr Kim in my two Bruce Lee reviews, and you guessed it, he’s in for some more. This is a masterful little representation of Atkinson as the bumbling buffoon that is Mr Bean! 

It’s one of those rare figures that makes EVERYONE smile, my colleagues loved it when I first opened him at work, my kids love him (as they watch him on TV, it’s one of the few characters I’ve gotten that they are allowed to watch) and my wife likes him so much she wants him on permanent display… I’m thinking of having him face off with ED-209!

The head sums up the character perfectly, at first I thought it may be a little too over the top, almost a caricature, but Rowan Atkinson’s face is so extreme when he gurns, he makes Jim Carey look like an absolute beginner! This captures that gormless but crazed look just right. The hair slips off like the Bruce Lee figures, in fact it can come off a little too easily at times, and it could do with a small magnet to help hold it in place like the Fist of Fury figure, so be aware when you tip him up.
The sculpting of the hair is a good solid representation of his style, the whole piece is made from glossy black plastic like the Bruce’s and the individual strands are well defined, once it is removed you can see the eye-stalks, these work the same as the Bruce ones as well, so they can both be positioned independently of one another! He also has no less than 6 hands, two flat palmed, one relaxed left hand and three more for the right, thumbs up, pointing and gripping (for the suitcase), a nice selection. But the jaw dropper is that facial sculpt, it’s virtually perfect! 

Paint - ***3/4
Like Hot Toys, Enterbay seem to improve more and more with each release, I was impressed with the two Bruce’s sited above, but this and the Jack Bauer figure are even stronger paint jobs. Like the Bruce’s he comes with solid black hair, I guess a little paint here might have been nice (in fact, it’s the only real thing keeping the total score from perfection) but the strong sculpt does a great job of catching the light and shadow. The face itself though is immaculate, the general skin tones, lips, eyebrows, hell, even the mole on his left cheek are all executed to near perfection. The eyeballs could perhaps use a little more ‘finer detail’, as the rings around the iris are a little too dark and the brown is pretty flat, but they are still beautifully glossy and catch the light wonderfully without that accursed doll-dot!

There are a few flashes on his accessories, the bear is painted tightly where needed and the case appears to have a mechanical print for the tartan effect, but it’s directly onto the case rather than a sticker.

This really is only a whisker short of a full score in this category, and were the figure a bit cheaper, I might have cut them a little more slack and let it go. However, this is still an absolutely outstanding job that has to be experienced in hand to appreciate the fine work on the flesh tones and 5 o’clock shadow.

Articulation - ***
I got hold of Bean at the same time as Jack Bauer from the TV series 24 and one of the things I was really looking forward to, was seeing what the Enterbay base body was going to be like, they have christened it the Real Masterpiece-1 or RM-1.

It seems to occupy a realm somewhere between the BL bodies and the True-Type. So it’s not quite up there with the TT in terms of extreme poseability but it still hangs and poses very naturally on the whole. The only real issue is with a few loose joints, most noticeably the ankles, he also suffers from the same wobbly head that Jack had, but unlike Jack, Beans hair is removable for positioning the eyes, and the hair can have a tendency to fall of when the figure is tipped back. I found a quick fix for the loose neck is to pull the head off completely, you can then see that the post protruding from the neck is pretty wobbly. Just pack this out around its base with a little Blu-Tack and the problem is virtually gone, this works for Jack Bauer as well. The ankles on my Bean don’t seem quite as loose as Jacks and I could get him to stand OK in many positions, but for long term display or any ‘unusual’ poses the stand should definitely be utilised.

Outfit - ****
In every country there are eccentrics, and in the UK it often seems we have more than anywhere else. All classes and walks of life have them and Mr Bean… though extreme and seemingly childlike, is based ‘at least in looks’ on a particular archetype belonging to the ‘academic’ eccentrics! 

I bet most people in the UK can see a lot of Bean in at least one of their old school teachers, and I personally think this was a big factor in the choice of his attire!
Clothing is one of the areas Enterbay have forged ahead, Beans outfit is a straight forward two piece suit combo with a shirt and tie… but as any 1/6th aficionado will tell you, when translating ‘anything’ into 1/6th there is no such thing as straight forward as its all about scale… and making scaled fabric convincing can be quite the challenge.

Enterbay have approached this suit from a slightly different angle, rather than just producing the tailoring of a full scale suit reduced down to 1/6th they have cut the pattern so as to get the lapels to lay evenly without bunching up too much around the neck, this is achieved by making them as a separate piece and sewing a seam along the edge, this makes it lay totally flat. 

Now, obviously this means when scrutinising the details up close it’s different from the construction of a real jacket, but the pay off is that it hangs in a very convincing manner (and they even put the patches on the elbows). The trousers are also cut well, but deliberately a touch short (it’s a well known fact that all crazy people wear their trousers too short), with working pockets, belt loops and a functioning belt. There is a small stud half way up the fly, but not at the top, this means the belt sits flatter to the stomach, but it also means that when posing, the top of the trousers can often come open slightly. The colour of the trousers matches the jacket pretty much perfectly but is made from a totally different fabric, the quality of the jacket fabric is heavier and more cotton like where as the trousers are constructed of some kind of thinner polyester. I know why they have done this, at least I can guess, its so they can fall and crease at a better scale, but I have to admit, the quality of the jacket material feels so much nicer, I would personally preferred the trousers to be constructed of the same stuff. The shirt is also made well with a functioning breast pocket and tiny glued on scaled buttons. There are concealed press-studs to hold it closed, but the top of the collar, like the trousers has no fastener, instead it is the job of the elasticated tie to hold this closed, and on the whole it works well, as there is no bulky popper there to disrupt the way it lays, and arguably the kind of ‘character’, Bean is, means he’d almost certainly wear an elasticated or clip on tie in the real world! 

The shoes are a simple lace up design, but completely different from Jack Bauer’s, good to see no re-use there, and they slip over a pair of grey socks.

I like this outfit a lot, as I said, I would have preferred the suit to all be made from the same stock, but it’s all so well carried out that any thing less than top marks would be churlish!

Accessories - ***1/2
There’s not really that much you can give Mr Bean, but the few items you associate with him are here. Most notable is that ‘bear’, a few years back, here in the UK this bear was everywhere; it was the ‘gift’ du jour. 

In essence it’s just a cheap looking, home made, knitted dark brown Teddy bear Enterbay have done a good job in representing it here, the only thing missing is a little more texture. As I said the bear is knitted, however the figure, though showing some ‘weave’ is still just a little too smooth, but at this scale I’ll cut them some slack.

Next up is his small travel case a cute item carried out beautifully, this is a very well observed piece, every detail is represented fantastically, the only pity is it’s non functioning, in fact you have to be pretty darn careful getting it into his hand, as the handle is quite delicately constructed and a little shallow so it’s quite a tight fit. The hand that holds this case is amongst the four alternate versions I went over in sculpting.

He also comes with the now standard Enterbay FS-100 figure stand. This is a great stand for numerous poses, but it does have a tendency to come apart rather easily. A few small strategic spots of glue, or even Blu-Tack will easily rectify that, but it is due to be superseded by the FS-200 soon anyway.

So, to sum up, the official spec can be found here, but I’d say as far as accessories go, this is the round up-
Interchangeable 360 Eyeball System (not really an accessory, more a feature… but hey!)

6 Posing hands
Scaled Teddy Bear
Matching Suitcase
Figure Stand FS-100
Certificate of Authenticity (still not sure of the relevance of this)

So all in all, a nice selection of goodies for a character you’d struggle to find anything else for… well, unless you can get a decent 1/6 Mini with a padlock on its door!

Fun Factor - ****
Something tells me this might be more popular among people who don’t usually collect 1/6th figures. So the big challenge will be finding his audience… but not only that, an audience who are willing to spend $150 to have him on their shelf. 

That said, looking at this from the ‘fun’ angle, though not aimed at kids it is most certainly ‘in its own comedic way’ one of the funniest figures I have seen in a long, long while and the moveable eyes make his face even more expressive. 

Ever since I have had him on display he has generated more interest than just about any figure I own, earning him a place (on my kids and wife’s request) for a permanent display status!

Now if Enterbay could do me a Tommy Cooper and Morecombe and Wise set I’d be in British vintage comedy heaven. Just like that!  

Value - ***1/2
At $150 this has brought Enterbay much more in line with Medicom and Hot Toys meaning that although still at the hi-end of the hi-end price range it makes it far more affordable to people that have been put off by the previous $200+ (in some cases $300+) price tags, and that can only be a good thing.

If this price is within your realm of acceptability, I’d go so far as to say, I really can’t recommend it enough, it’s a great looking figure and had he come with a few more accessories or better still been about $15 to $20 cheaper, then he would have got a full score no problem, as it is, that fantastic sculpt, great paint apps and fine tailoring still make it a fair’ish price.