Review of Captain Jack Sparrow - Pirates of the Caribbean
Premium Format Statue

Introduction

Some folks were less than thrilled with the third installment in the Pirates of the Caribbean series, and I have to say that it wasn't the best 3rd film in a series I've ever seen (that honor remains with Toy Story 3), But I love Jack Sparrow, and I think that Depp has created one of the coolest characters of the last 20 years in this slightly effete, tremendously lucky, yet shrewd and brilliant pirate.

I have the full Hot Toys series of figures, and they are a highlight of my collection. Still, I've pined for a definitive large scale statue, something to put in my bar that represents this exceptional character appropriately. You can imagine my giddy school girl thrill at the announcement from Sideshow that they'd be doing a Premium Format statue!

No surprise to regular Sideshow collectors, but there is an exclusive version only available through them with a limited edition size of 650 (that's the one I'm reviewing here), and a regular release available at other retailers that's an edition size of 1500. The only differences between the two are the edition size, an additional swap out hand, and the price - the regular is $5 cheaper from Sideshow direct. The exclusive is $325 and the regular is $320, but you can find the regular quite a bit lower ($30 - $40) at other retailers, and I have some suggestions in the Where to Buy section.

Packaging - ***
There's a big box with pretty pictures and some basic text - no real surprises here. The interior foam trays are the solid, sturdy kind, and the various extras are individually wrapped.

There's no Certificate of Authenticity though, which is probably something a lot of collectors miss. The edition size is printed on the bottom of the box as well as the bottom of the statue base.

Sculpting - ***1/2
We've seen a number of Johnny Depp as Jack Sparrow sculpts over the years, and the character is well documented in photos.

The work here is solid, but it's a little difficult to fully tell due to the paint work. I don't think it's a terrible Jack Sparrow, but it's not *quite* Johnny Depp. I do have to admit though that the longer I've had it and looked at it, the happier I've become. After doing some side by side comparisons with various online photos, I think most of the fault lies with the paint. The nose does seem a smidge off as well, and it doesn't help that the facial hair is sculpted (and painted) much thicker than Sparrow ever had, negating some of his trademark scraggly look.

While the hair on the head looks great, I think the tied ends of the bandanna are a tad too thick, and too obvious placed over his left shoulder. They are swinging way out, almost as if he was caught mid-movement, and yet the rest of the pose appears to be at rest. This mix of dynamic/relaxed is a bit disconcerting and makes the sculpted bandanna ends look slightly out of place.

The rest of the sculpt is excellent. The hair is finely detailed, and the beads and trinkets weaved within look great, at least from a sculpt perspective.

The selected pose works for me, giving him a slightly arrogant but laid back attitude. The pose also works well with any of the three hands, which is not an easy design feat to pull off.

The base really adds to the overall look, and thankfully doesn't have his name emblazoned anywhere on it. The stones, keg and box are extremely realistic, and the little details, like the gold coins, add a great touch. He fits on perfectly, with his feet touching the stones and his hand firmly on the barrel.

Paint - **1/2
Unfortunately, this is one of those cases where the final production paint job does not let the potential awesomeness of the underlying sculpt shine through.

The work on the face varies. The facial hair is all fairly dark and thick, with a sloppy transition to the skin. In some spots the brown hair color is on the face, in others the tan is up on the hair.

The eyes are good, and the natural shine gives them actual catch lights. The iris' seem a little light in color to me, and there's some brown bleed into the whites, but the basic quality is about average here.

I'm not digging on the shiny skin tone on the face, as it gives him a plasticy look.

The work on the hands is also fairly weak. Check out the photo of the hand holding down the map to see what I mean - the edges of the rings runs onto the finger itself, the brown nails look like they were painted by a drunken sailor, and even the bands on both his wrists exhibit sloppy edges.

I mentioned that I liked the sculpting of the beads and doodads weaved into his hair, but much of the detail and clean lines are lost to sloppy paint. Considering the price point, I expect quality that's quite a bit higher end in this category.

It's not all bad, as the boots look great, with just the right amount of wash, and the hair and bandanna are fairly clean as well. All the work on the base is great too, especially the realistic wear and dirt on the box and barrel. But easily the one overall disappointment here is with the basic quality of the paint operations.

Accessories - ***1/2
A statue with accessories might be a novel idea, but Sideshow has begun including more and more extras with their recent releases.

Jack has several items that are designed to accent his base. There are two jugs, one short and squat and the second a bit more fluted. Both have soft fuzzy bottoms (the kind Jack likes!) to ensure they won't scratch the large base.

There's also a lantern, which doesn't just look great - it's functional! There is a small light that is turned on by pressing a button on top, and it glows yellow...and flickers! It looks just like a candle, and while getting the light to flicker might not be that complicated, it's still shows the kind of attention to detail that a statue like this deserves. Of course, the batteries are included.

The map you see sitting on top of the barrel is also a separate piece, made from a fine cloth material. You don't have to use the map - Jack can merely be resting his hand on top of the barrel if you prefer. The map is printed with an aged appearance, and looks terrific.

The regular edition comes with two swappable hands, while the exclusive comes with three. The open left hand and left hand holding the coin are standard, and the exclusive adds in the left hand holding the flintlock pistol.

All the hands swap easily enough, and all look appropriate to the overall pose. The open hand is intended to hold the compass (in a couple different ways), but you can also get it to hold the longer necked bottle. I'd be very careful though, as the bottle is not particularly stable and can easily fall out.

Speaking of the compass, I received two, and they are identical. I assume that's so you can tie one to his belt, but then put one in his hand (and hide the one on his belt behind the sash) without the need to remove the other. Or maybe they just screwed up and packed two in the box...

The compass doesn't open, but does look great in his hand. After playing with all three hands and various alternatives (like holding the lantern), I decided that I'll be displaying him holding the compass with his finger tips. Having this kind of flexibility in the look of a statue is really something unique that Sideshow should be commended for.

There is also a flintlock pistol that you can slip inside his belt. You could remove it if you go with the gun toting hand, or you could just assume he's carrying two.

You'll see he is wearing his sword, but it is not removable from the sheath, and therefore not an accessory.

Outfit - ****
The outfit looks great, both the sculpted pieces (like the boots) as well as the cloth pieces. The quality of all the materials is top notch, just what you'd expect at this price point.

They've used the mixed media concept here to it's fullest extent, including leather, cloth and sculpted resin. Everything is in scale, including the thin sashes and thicker leather belts, and you'll have very little futzing to do to get him looking just right.

I did adjust the big sash around his waist, setting it off to his left a bit more than it was right out of the package. I also moved the leather belt that holds the sword around on his shoulder to get it just where I wanted it, but I was quite happy with the final look.

The tailoring is quite impressive, and the puffy shirt and vest fit perfectly and hang realistically on his body. The pants are attached inside the boots, giving them a tight, clean fit.

Value - **1/2
Sideshow's Premium Format statues are staying north of $300 more and more these days, but at least Jack is a licensed - and well loved - character. With all the extra add-ins and the complex base, he's a better value than some of their other recent releases in this price range.

Things to Watch Out For -
As I mentioned earlier, you can manage to get the one bottle to stay in his open left hand, but I don't recommend it.

Overall - ***
I really want to love this PF. Sparrow is one of my favorite movie characters, Depp is one of my favorite actors, and I love PF's in general. Here, the sculpting is good, the extras and outfit are excellent, and there's some nice extra touches like the flickering lantern. The Premium Format style should be a perfect marriage with a character like Sparrow.

But the paint work is simply not up to the quality that I expect at this price point. It holds him back from a higher overall score, and keeps him from contending for the best PF of the year, at least for me. He'll have a place of honor in my display, but he's not going to usurp the top releases for 2010.

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

Where to Buy 
Online options include these site sponsors:

- Sideshow is the place to get the exclusive, where it's in stock and $325. The regular is also available at $320.

- or you can search ebay for a deal.

Related Links -
Other POTC or Jack reviews include these:

- Hot Toys has produced some amazing 12" figures, including Cannibal Jack and Davy Jones, regular Jack and Sao Feng, as well as Will Turner.

- NECA did a fair share of smaller figures, including Sao Feng, a full series 2 figures, Clanker, the new cursed boxed set of Jack and Barbossa, second cursed Pirate, Pintel,  Regatti, the full first series, and a terrific 18" version of Sparrow.

- then there's the 12" Sao Feng and Jack Sparrow from Zizzle, and had a guest review of the Will Turner.

- Zizzle's line of 3 3/4" has gotten a review of some of the figures, along with a guest review of the Isla Cruces set, and the Pirate Fleet vehicles.

- Disney released some figures based on the actual park attraction, and not the film.

- Disney also has their own set of POTC figures out now at their stores, including Jack and Davy of course.

- Mezco recently released some very cool Pirate Mez-itz, not based on any license, but cool nonetheless.

- and if you like your pirates a little more 'real', there's always the 12" Blackbeard from Sideshow, or their large scale Premium Format of Blackbeard.

You should also hit the Search Reviews page, in case any other applicable reviews were done after this one was published.

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