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Packaging - ***1/2
Toy Biz takes a step away from their clam shell packaging to go for the
older style of card backs and bubble, though the bubble for these Hulk
figures are massive, for obvious reasons. The bubble features
a cardboard insert that resembles a radioactive "cage" where your Hulk
figure is cramped into. The package looks great but it does
make it more difficult to see exactly how the figure will look outside
of the box.
The card back is similar to Spider-Man Movie figures with a diagram
showing how the gimmick works, etc. Nothing fantastic but
nothing wrong with it either.
Sculpting - ***
It's hard to tell at this time how good the sculpting is in comparison
to the film likeness, but it's pretty easy to tell if it's a good or
bad sculpt regardless. While the sculpt isn't bad, it's quite
simply not the best it can be. The Leaping Hulk, in
particular, lacks a neck, and is quite obvious when looking at the
carded figure. When Hulk is looking upwards, it looks more
natural.
The head on top of the shoulders is done quite well, actually, showing
the typical raging expression that Hulk often has. The rest
of the body is done quite well also with attention to veins and his
"ripping muscles".
Paint - ***
Though Hulk is just a giant green figure, Toy Biz made sure that there
was more depth to the figure by adding darker shades of green in some
areas, highlighting the sculpt. The teeth are painted white
and farily clean and the eyes are nicely done as well.
Overall, a good effort in paint.
Articulation - ***1/2
The articulation in this figure
is pretty impressive. I can count about 25 points (7 in each
arm alone) though there might be more. Even though Hulk
doesn't have a neck, he still has up and down and side to side
movement, though the up and down articulation is the main focus
here.
The left hand offers one articulation on four of the fingers while the
right hand is forever in a fisted position, but there is articulation
so you can position his fist in any direction. Very nicely
done here.
Accessories - *
If you count the included gimmick handle as an accessory, then Leaping
Hulk gets one point for it. If you don't count it as an
accessory, then Hulk here gets a whopping ZERO. Yah, pretty
disappointing, but this is a leaping Hulk after all. Would be
nice to have a crushed car to leap onto though.
Action Gimmick - **
Since this is a "leaping" Hulk, exactly how does this feature work and
is it done well? Many of you who collect the Toy Biz figures
for the Spider-Man film may remember the super-poseable Spidey with the
rappelling line. I "thought" this same feature would be used
here so Hulk would be pulled up from the string. No the
case. The string does roll up inside the "engine" handle but
you have to do it manually. The string is attached to a hoop
on Hulk's back so that is quite a disappointment. To create
the "leaping" feature, you just pull the accessory up and down and lo
and behold, the Hulk leaps. Fascinating. I can make
Hulk leap farther by throwing him. Basically, you're looking
at the first Yo-Yo Hulk toy. Very disappointing and sad
gimmick. I'd say just cut the poor toy loose from his chord.
Value - ***1/2
At only $6.77 at Wal-Mart, this is a good price for an action figure of
this size. Keep in mind that this isn't as large as the
Marvel Legends Hulk, but it's still slightly larger than Spidey toys.
Overall
- ***
The action gimmick is a failure
so I'm only judging this figure on sculpt and articulation, and those
features do make up a fair amount. Opening the figure, it was
disappointing to see there was no neck, but I noticed that even before
opening. But once the head is facing up, it looks
great. A well articulated toy is hard to pass up.
Where
to Buy -
Right now they are hitting
Wal-marts around the U.S.
About the Reviewer:
I'm 24, live in Southern CA, collect toylines such
as: Muppet Show, Star Wars, Marvel Legends, Simpsons, Transformers,
G.I.Joe vs. Cobra, and others. On the web: Runs the Outhouse,
an action figure humor site hosted by www.deathstarplans.com
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