Review of Scorpion Life Size Bust - Mortal Kombat Exclusive

Introduction

One of the small companies making big waves these days is
Pop Culture Shock Toys. With full scale busts, 1/4 scale statues, and even some 1/6th scale figures in the works, they have quite a line up planned for the next year.

They did a 1:1 scale bust for the classic Mortal Kombat character Sub-Zero, and are now following it up with this terrific life size Scorpion bust.

I'm looking at the PCS exclusive version tonight, which includes removable shoulder armor and light up eyes.  This version is limited to just 100 pieces, and the regular release is limited to just 200. That makes the price point ($600 for the PCS version, $560 for the regular) a lot easier to take.

Packaging - ***
This guy is huge - and the head and torso are all one piece, making the box huge as well. But he's stored very safely inside the eggshell foam trays, with spots for the main body and the two shoulder pads. The face plate is removable, but comes attached in the box.

There's also a nice Certificate of Authenticity, as well as some short instructions on how to use the light up feature.

Sculpting - ****
This is a very realistic sculpt, with lots of textures and faux looking materials. 

He's 1:1 scale, standing a whopping 22 inches tall. The mask is very nicely done, and is held in place by strong magnets. You can lift up the mask from the chin, and inside is where you place the two AA batteries (not included) and where the switch is located for the light up feature. More on that in a minute.

The shoulder armor comes as two additional pieces, and can be attached - or not - as you'd like. Again, strong magnets are used along with a rectangular post and hole. The hole is in back, well hidden even if you don't attach the pads.

Paint - ****
Overall, the paint work is excellent. There's no slop or poor edges, no bleed or weak cut lines. Everything is clean, and everything is crisp.

The work on the skin and eyebrows helps add realism to the man under the mask, but it's the work on the metallic sections of the mask, including the grills, that really sets this apart.

The bronze look of the mask is also a nice offset with the darker colors of the uniform. It gives him that right amount of visual pop, adding contrast to the pallet.

Light Feature - ***1/2
As I said, the light up feature works by removing the mask. On the inside, under the eyes, is the battery compartment and switch. It's easy to pop in the AA batteries (although I'd be a smidge happier if some had been included), and flip the switch.

The eyes are bright, but there is a dirty effect on the inside that bugs me. The back of the eyes and lights are covered by some electrical tape, and I think I'm going to peel it back and see if I can't clean up the inside of the eyes a bit with a Q-tip and some alcohol. I'll let you know how it goes.

Value - ***
This is a life size bust, and those are never cheap.  You can assume you'll pay $500 or more for a basic version, and the $600 price tag certainly seems justified.

But that would be in comparison to a normal release, and this one is anything but. Along with the light up eyes and removable armor, you're getting a production run of just 100 busts. Way too often the term 'limited edition' gets thrown around. This is one of those rare occasions when it really does apply.

Things to Watch Out For -
When putting the shoulder armor in place, take care. It snaps in pretty quick when you get it in the right spot, and could chip or nick the edges.

Overall - ****
I'm loving this guy, particularly as a bookend piece to their earlier Sub-Zero. You have to have a lot of room to display these guys, but if you have the room, they will make the centerpiece of your Mortal Kombat collection. 

PCS is doing some terrific stuff in both the full scale line of busts and their 1/4 scale statues. I'm also looking forward to their sixth scale line of Sons of Anarchy figures, a new area for them but one I think they have the talent to excel within.

Score Recap (out of ****):
Packaging - ***
Sculpting - ****
Paint - ****
Light Feature - ***1/2
Value - ***
Overall - ****

Where to Buy 
You're best bet originally was to order this directly through Pop Culture Shock, but it appears they have sold out.

- or you can search ebay for a deal.

Related Links -
I've covered a number of other Pop Culture Shock items, including the Sub-Zero bust, the Shao Kahn 1/4 scale statue, and the Judge Death, and Judge Dredd statues.

Other Mortal Kombat reviews include the smaller action figures of King Lau and Liu Kang, Sub-Zero and Baraka, and a guest review of Raiden and Scorpion.

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