Packaging - **1/2
I'm not a fan of the old style cardback and bubbles, and even less of one
when they're either a) dull or b) silly. This one is more silly than
dull.
You see, these are the EXP line of figures, for Extreme Power. Yea,
like any kid thinks that sounds cool. Amazingly, marketing people get
paid large salaries to come up with drivel like this, and then a packaging
designer was paid a decent salary (although not as large as those marketing
bastards) to put some text on the back of the card explaining the whole EXP
thing, but nothing about Clayface himself.
Sculpt - ***1/2;
The best feature of this figure is his sculpt. It does look a lot like
the new cartoon version, and has a good spooky, creepy appearance in the
pose and expression.
The most unique aspect of this figure is the combination of hard plastic
with a softer rubber material. This softer material is used for the
whipping right arm, the lower jaw and piece of clay attaching the lower and
upper jaw, and the lower part of the feet including the spiky 'toes'.
The use of this softer material works pretty well, although some people
may find the very rubbery right arm a little freaky. Now you know what
your arm would feel like if the bone suddenly disappeared, ala Harry Potter.
Paint - ***
This is one of the figures with the fewest paint ops ever. There's his
eyes...and that's really it. The rest of the figure is cast in a
clay-like color, which works well. It's also pretty consistent from
one piece to another, even the floppy right arm.
It's not perfect though, since while the color of the right arm is close,
the finish is not. The right arm has a glossy look, while the rest of
the harder plastic does not. It didn't have to be that way, since the
feet are also made of a softer material, yet match the hard leg finish
perfectly.
Articulation - **
There's not much here - just the basics for standing and arm movement.
The neck is a cut joint, and has a little greater range of movement than
you might expect from first appearances. The lower jaw looks like it
would restrict it, but it's made from a pliable rubber, so that it closes up
a bit when you twist the head far enough to the left or right.
He also has what appears to be a ball jointed left shoulder, and a
jointed right shoulder intended for the action feature. I say 'appears to
be', because in actuality it operates just like a cut joint, with only
forward and backward movement. There's V-cut hips, and that's about
it. Like I said, you can get him to stand easily, move the arms around
a little, and that's about it.
Accessories - Bupkis
I'm a little confused by this, but there's zippo with him. I
realize he doesn't use a lot of stuff - he's his own best accessory, and all
the ladies love him - but that doesn't mean they couldn't have gotten a
little creative. If I'm forking over the same money as an articulated
Batman, with more paint ops and accessories, I'm going to feel ripped.
Action Feature - ***
Some folks figure the only good action feature is the one that doesn't
exist, but kids do enjoy them. However, that doesn't mean kids like
LAME action features.
Fortunately, Clayface's spinning arm actually works pretty well.
Bring it back behind him once, or spin it around again for a little more
oompf, and let it go. It swings up, around and down, smashing forward
anything in it's path. The soft floppy right arm works well, and it
will take out your average opponent. Oh sure, the Were-Rabbit would
just laugh, but Clayface can certainly slap the bejesus out of Batman.
Fun Factor - **1/2
His scale fits in well with the rest of the line, and the action figure
works pretty well. It also makes sense in the general play structure
of a character like this, so he gets a boost from that.
Value - **
Expect to pay around $7, the usual going rate these days for your
average mass market action figure. However, you don't get any
additional accessories with this guy, and considering the low number of
paint apps and little articulation, he's a below average value.
Things to watch out for -
Nothing really. How much can go wrong with a figure like this?
Nothing to lose, nothing to assembly, and much too sturdy to break.
It might be wise to keep that soft rubbery right arm away from your other
toys though - this is the type of material that in days gone by would melt
when placed against other types of plastics for long periods. No way
to know if that won't still occur, so better safe than sorry.
Overall - **1/2
This guy will actually look pretty good on the shelf for collectors of
the line, and fits in nicely with the other characters. I like the
sculpt and pose a lot better than the Riddler, and if I had to choose
between the two, I'd take this guy in a heartbeat.
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