Packaging - **1/2
The packaging remains pretty much as unspectacular as before, but this
isn't going to count much, since they going for the lower range for their
suggested retail. If you have to cut corners someplace, better to do
it with the package than the figure.
Sculpting - ***
The sculpts are a real improvement over series 1, especially in the face and
head work. The detail is much cleaner, and these don't have that soft
dollar store look any longer. The material seems to be a better
plastic as well, much harder, and with more heft.
Scale might still bug you, but it's not surprising that these are the
same size as the first set, and slightly out of scale with SOTA's Street
Fighter stuff.
The body work is also well done, especially in the folds and wrinkles of
the clothes. Scale between the characters is pretty consistent, and
the hand sculpts are designed to come together for a proper bow, with one
fisted and one in a knife pose.
Paint - ***
Again, there's real improvement here. The masking is done much
better, especially around the eyes and hair, but also with the colors of the
uniforms.
The small detail work is quite clean, and the more expansive colors are
smooth and consistent. A little variation in the finish on some of the
colors would make them a little less toy-like, but isn't a major issue at
this lower price point.
Articulation - **1/2
The articulation is similar to the first series, but some of the QA issues
seem to have been addressed.
They don't have ball jointed necks, which really would have been nice in
a fighting figure, but they do have good ball jointed shoulders.
Actually, the neck joint is probably a ball up under there, but the range of
movement is almost non-existent in any direction but right and left.
They also have waist, pin elbows, wrist, cut ankles, and ball jointed
hips. Kang has double jointed knees, while Liu has more basic pin
knees.
The double jointed knees on Kang don't have as much outward bend as the
first series, and work much better. Both sets of hips are 'clicky',
with positions rather than free movement. That means they stay tighter
and can hold single leg poses better, but some folks prefer the smooth
moving joints.
The range of movement on the hips is also slightly restricted, but
Jazwares tells me they are already looking to correct that for the final
production run, and that would boost this score another half point to three
stars. The articulation is sturdy, and these would work great for
kids.
You'll also notice that they dumped the double jointed elbows for single
pins. While those joints on the first series allowed for a slightly
greater range of movement, they were downright ugly, and more prone to
break. I think it was a smart move dumping them, and these look far
better while working almost as well.
Accessories - Kang **; Liu Bupkis
Unfortunately, this is where this series takes a hit over the previous
series.
Neither figure comes with a display base, unlike the first series.
That's too bad, since that means fewer funky poses. They stand great
on their own, but a stand would have made more of those gravity defying
poses possible.
Liu hasn't got anything with him, but Kang does have his trademark
hat. He can wear it back on his head, or right on top, or tilted in
just about any fashion. It also has the rubber string for his chin,
but I opted to leave it in back out of the way, rather than risk breaking
it.
The lack of accessories is probably due to this being a special incentive
pack, and I'm assuming these figures will have something with them come
general release time.
Fun Factor - ***1/2
These are closer to the kind of fun you'd expect out of this line. The
joints are better and more sturdy, the sculpts and paint ops in line with a
mass market release, and kids will enjoy them quite a bit.
Value - **1/2
Okay, now this is actually a bit hard to judge, since I'm not positive
what final retail on these will be. I didn't find them at any online
stores for pre-order, so I'm guessing they'll come in around $10 - $12 tops
for the two packs. I'm going to assume that you'll be able to get the
second series of figures in the $6 - $8 each range, which is decent, but not
great. Get these at $6 or lower, and now you're talking.
Things to watch out for -
Make sure you get the best paint possible - other than that, I found very
few issues.
Overall - ***
This series appears to be a real improvement over the first series,
especially in paint and sculpt quality. The better plastic makes
everything work out nicer, even the articulation, and the price point is now
about right for the quality and design of the figures.
Jazwares is listening and paying attention, and then implementing the
changes they can while maintaining a reasonable price. That's unusual
in the current market, and they should be commended for it. These
figures aren't perfect (and are really borderline between **1/2 and ***), but they are a big step up.
SCORE RECAP:
Packaging - **1/2
Sculpt - ***
Paint - ***
Articulation - **1/2
Accessories - Kang **; Liu Bupkis
Fun Factor - ***1/2
Value - **1/2
Overall - ***
Where to Buy -
These may show up at some brick and mortar retailers (Big Lots actually has
some of the first series), and you have some online options as
well:
- Killer Toys has series one
figures for $8 each, or $30 for the set of four, but don't have these listed
yet.
- CornerStoreComics has
Raiden and Scorpion still in stock for $8 each, but don't have these listed
yet.
- omgcnfo.com has the first four for
$7 each, but doesn't have these listed either.
- Amazing Toyz has some of the
limited edition variants still in stock.
Related Links -
I beat up Sub-Zero and Baraka, while Sean
Teeter hit Raiden and Scorpion pretty
hard. Thankfully, this new series looks quite a bit better all around.
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