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Introduction
Science fiction always seems to make the leap to animation eventually, and Stargate SG-1 is no exception. The Stargate license has gone cartoon before, with the short
lived Stargate Infinity, but the show was set 30 years beyond the live action shows, leaving behind the beloved characters as well.
As far as I know, there's no plans to produce another Stargate cartoon, but not having an actual cartoon has never stopped other companies from producing animated style
collectibles of popular characters, or the fans of those characters from buying.
Quantum Mechanix has had great success with their animated line of Firefly statues, and now they
set their sites on Stargate SG-1. The first character to be released in this 'larger than life' line is the Jaffa warrior Teal'c. Limited to just 1000 pieces, the
statue started shipping this month. Suggested retail is $90, but you can find it below $80 with a little careful shopping. I have some suggested retailers at the end of
the review, as always.
Packaging - **1/2
The statue comes packed in a box, and the good news is that it does job one - keeping the contents safe and sound - just fine.
Sculpting - ***1/2
As fans know, Teal'c is the heroic Jaffa Warrior, and he is portrayed here in his armor and carrying his staff. He's standing on a mini version of the gate, but does
not require this base to stand. The pegs are part of the base, not his feet, giving you a bit of flexibility in how you display him.
When it comes to an animated style, you either hate it or love it. That's particularly true with something like this, where there's no other reference material - this is the original design itself. I think they've translated the look of the actual Teal'c to a cartoon style extremely well, maintaining enough of the appearance of the character to be recognizable, yet adopting the traditional aspects of animation, like sharp lines, smooth surfaces, and slightly caricaturized proportions.
There is an appropriate amount of detail, and some areas that didn't require sculpting have been, like the eyebrows, the pattern on the armor, and even the symbol on his forehead. They could have gone the cheaper route and simply painted in these details, but instead added extra depth to the statue by sculpting them.
As I mentioned earlier, the statue is separate from the Stargate base, but the pegs are on the base and not the feet. That allows Teal'c to stand independently of the base, which is a nice feature. He stands about 7" tall, and would fit in scale-wise with other 7" figures of a similar style.
Paint - ***
The paint is fairly clean and neat, and the best work is in the most important place - his face. The eyes and eyebrows are very clean and sharp, and the skin tone
is consistent and smooth.
The armor is fairly consistent too, but I did have a few of the pattern lines that were lighter or darker than the others, and some lines that seemed to be missing a little paint completely.
The deeper blue of the gate looks terrific, but the gray edging doesn't quite have the realism that you'd expect. Overall the paint work is solid, but not exceptional.
Design - ***1/2
As I said earlier, you either love an animated style, or you don't, and I'm digging this one. Teal'c is looking up and to his right, and whenever you attempt such a
specific expression, you can easily miss the mark. Here, it works, and is much more visually interesting than a simple straight forward stare.
There's also something sort of 'Disney' about his look here, almost like he'd been a star of one of their more traditional 2-D animated films, especially their 90's library, like Mulan or Aladdin. Then again, maybe it was just being at Disney earlier in the week that poisoned my brain.
Value - ***
With some mini-busts running as much as $70, I was nicely surprised to see this medium sized statue selling for about that same price. Quite often a 'limited edition'
is not so limited, but at just 1000 this one really is, adding to the value a bit.
Things to Watch Out For -
With statures and busts, you always want to take extra care putting weapons or other items in their hands. Breakage is always possible, and even with the fairly sturdy
two piece staff, the potential is still there with Teal'c.
Overall - ***1/2
It's always tough to tell how fans of a much beloved sci-fi show are going to react to caricaturized versions of their favorite characters, but I think the response
will be quite positive to this style. They started with a strong character, and they did him up right, getting him out at a price point that fans could afford. The big
question will be how far the line runs, because no one really wants only one or two statues on the shelf, they want the full cadre. I think the small edition size will
allow this one to sell through, boding well for more releases. Sideshow has also begun distributing for QMX, which should help them quite a bit.
The statue was produced by Gensen Figures for QMX, and I've reviewed their Rappellz statue as well. They've done a nice job for QMX here, and I'll be watching for more
of their work in the future.
Score Recap (out of ****):
Packaging - **1/2
Sculpting - ***1/2
Paint - ***
Design/Quality - ***1/2
Value - ***
Overall - ***1/2
Where to Buy
Online options include these site sponsors:
- Entertainment Earth has him at $90.
- or you can search ebay for a deal.
Related Links -
This isn't the first time we've seen Teal'C in collectible form, as he's been in series 2 and
series 4 of the action figures from Diamond Select Toys.
Other QMX reviews include the Rappellz statue.
You should also hit the Search Reviews page, in case any other applicable reviews were done after this one was published.
Discussion:
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This product was provided for the review by the manufacturer. Photos and text by Michael Crawford.
