Packaging - ****
The box itself is quite tall in relation to most of Hot Toys other MMS releases, standing almost 22 inches tall and more than 7 inches deep. The design is a very sleek black and white scheme with a raised, velvety red profile of The Don, and it sports a minimalist look, eschewing the trend of movie style graphics and figure photos on the outside of the box. Pop it open, and you find 2 separate boxes; one houses the carpeted platform, the printed 3 sided backdrop & a very nice booklet detailing the production of the figure. The second box contains the figure itself and all the accessories, including the Don’s famous office chair; more on the extras later. You’ll be pleased to know this is a collector’s dream package, and not a single twist tie in sight. As you unpack this beast of a package, you realize that what you have in your hands in the finest example of packaging by Hot Toys to date, and can only be described as extremely classy.

Sculpting - **** 
I’m just going to say it…this is a work of art. Hot Toys has nailed the face sculpt right down to the finest details. The skin texture, the eyes, the mouth and jowls, the hairline, the facial hair and Brando’s famous profile, is reproduced perfectly and the likeness is downright uncanny. Every angle you view the face at just says “Godfather”. Hot Toys has hit this one out of the park, and may be their finest human facial sculpt to date. The hands are very well done, aged slightly to match the face, and sport The Don’s wedding ring. The fingers are somewhat soft to assist in posing with some of the accessories, and scale well to the rest of the body. Even The Don’s black leather shoes are sculpted down to the finest detail. Standing right about 12 inches tall, the True Type body has been embellished with a puffy undergarment to help fill out The Don’s slightly overweight build, starting at the waist and continuing down to mid thigh. The end result is possibly Hot Toys best work on a human subject yet!

Paint - ****
Hot Toys figures usually are some of the most realistic looking production pieces available on the market, and the paint application excels on The Godfather. Flesh tones are spot on; the eyes look perfect with no laziness to them and a glossy finish to give them life. There is no evidence of slop anywhere and the detail work on the skin, right down to the age spots on the face & veins on the hands, are exceptional. The hairline again is perfect, and the scalp is a perfect shade of gray. Even The Don’s rose is a spot-on shade of red with a green stem. It’s hard to believe this is a production paint job.

Articulation  - ***1/2
The Godfather uses the True-Type body, with a padded undergarment to bulk it out a bit. All of the joints are reasonably tight, and none were considered too loose at all. The figure stood well on its own, which means no issues with the hip or ankle joints (which I’ve experienced before on previous, albeit older, Hot Toys figures). The head swivels from side to side as well as up and down; combine that with the adjustable neck post and you can add that extra touch of character to your poses.  The hands swap relatively easily, just use care as the posts are rather small and you don’t want to risk breaking them by using excessive force. The only issue I had was seating The Don in his chair; I couldn’t position him so his feet touched the ground, and that may be because the chair tends to lean back a bit. The only things holding back the figure for posing is the bulk of the suit jacket and the shirt, and let’s face it: this is The Godfather, not a superhero, so you won’t be trying to get too many flying or other dynamic poses. You should be able to achieve many of the iconic poses you’ve seen in the movie, especially in the early office scenes with little to no problems.

Outfit - ****
The Don’s tuxedo is well tailored and fits him nicely, although you do get a little bunching up around the shoulders when posing the arms, but if you adjust the shoulders back a bit, that can be reduced. I had an issue with the right tuxedo collar sticking up but I’m sure a little water to dampen and weigh it down will clear that up. The jacket also features working pockets, nice seam lines and well proportioned buttons. The vest looks great, sports a leather watch strap, and has three non working front buttons, although there are two snaps on the inside to hold it closed. The white shirt is very well done as the collar holds its shape perfectly (as does the black tie); the buttons and seams are all tight and even the sleeves are adorned with cuff links. It’s also worth noting that the sleeves are long enough to hide the wrist joints in most poses, adding to the illusion of realism of the piece. The pants are creased and fit him well; the padded undergarment fills out his thighs so the trousers hang just right without looking baggy. The length is perfect and falls on his black shoes at just the right point. The shoes themselves have a nice glossy finish and are highly detailed…and yes, The Don does have black dress socks! The overall feel of the material is a nice cotton fabric and is consistent throughout the whole suit. The rose on his jacket lapel is a nice finishing touch, but use caution as there are just a couple of threads securing it so it may be easy to either have the rose drop off or bust the threads if you mess with it too much. Overall the suit conforms to the high quality of the figure; it looks great, it feels great and it fits great!

Accessories - ****
Hot Toys definitely went all out in the accessories department on this one! Included with the figure you get two pairs of swappable hands & an extra hand for holding The Don’s wine glass; the glass itself (apparently he prefers red wine), his cat, his office chair, a carpeted platform with faux gold nameplate, a printed full color backdrop of his office, a sleek booklet covering the production of the figure, and the requisite Hot Toys stand. The cat is fairly well sculpted, although it does have the look of a frozen cat to some, I find that in the right pose (especially if The Don is seated in his chair with the cat in his lap) it looks pretty good. The booklet features some great photos of the figure and provides some details, credits & insights into the production of the piece. It’s very well done in its own right and I suspect it was done to keep the packaging nice and clean. The printed backdrop is a nice touch and works well as a photo backdrop; however, those who use Ikea detlofs as display cabinets will find it to be too tall for shelf use. But the real attraction here is the addition of The Godfather’s office chair; it’s a fantastic addition to the list of accessories and makes a wonderful companion piece to the figure itself. It is highly detailed with faux brass tacks, inlays and trim, with a swivel base and faux leather cushions. It even has indentations to make it look like it’s been broken in by The Don himself over the course of several years. The 5-sided platform is covered with a felt material to make it look like carpet and fits the chair plus the figure separately with ease. Combine this with the backdrop and it not only makes for a great display, but those who love to photograph there figures will have a field day recreating their favorite iconic poses from the movie!

Fun Factor - ****
As always, Hot Toys figures aren’t meant for little Joey to play with on the kitchen floor. But big daddy Joey will have a blast displaying this with his other high end figures, in the theater room, or wherever he chooses. Older collectors who appreciate The Godfather films will no doubt want to display this prominently; while it might not fit in with your superhero or alien collectibles, it does display well on its own, thanks to the addition of the chair, platform & backdrop if you wish.

Value - ****
At prices starting around $140 and above at the usual online collectors shops, this figure isn’t cheap, however, once you consider all factors involved…the quality of The Don himself, the exquisite packaging, the accessories included, and the usual prices you pay for high end collectors figures, there is plenty of value to be had. I would recommend getting your preorder in soon (if you still can) because when it sells out and the only option is the secondary market, you can expect the cost to increase significantly. If you are a collector of high end 1/6th scale figure such as Hot Toys and are used to paying the associated costs, you’ll appreciate the slightly lower cost compared to other Hot Toys figures and recognize the value instantly.