Michael Crawford's Review of the Week

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Wonder Woman
(DC Direct Pocket Heroes)

Two reviews, both on a Wonder Woman figure. And the two couldn't be much further apart.

Recently, DC Direct announced a new line of figures for 2002, called Pocket Heroes. Similar in some ways to the old Mego Pocket Heroes, but also very similar to Playmobil and Kubrick's... sort of.

They have quite a line up planned for 2002, including a JSA table with chairs, very similar to some of the old Mego playsets. The two packs of figures are supposed to retail for $9.99, so I'm betting some on-line shops will carry them for around $8.

The only way to get this Wonder Woman - at least through 2002 - is with the Solomon Grundy figure shipping this week from DC Direct. Grundy costs around $25 from most comic shops. The picture above shows the figure in the special baggie that was only given to comic retailers - this baggie is NOT in with the Grundy figure. The pack-in comes in a basic plastic bag. Thanks to Bob Snare for the promo picture!

Packaging - N/A
No points yet one way or the other - since this was a pack-in, she just comes in a little plastic bag.

Sculpting - ***
The face is painted on these figures, more like Legos than other figures. But the body and hair are sculpted, and they did a nice job.

The style and design are cute, reminiscent of a simpler time in action figure history.

Paint - ***1/2
The paint ops are pretty crucial if you haven't got a sculpted face. Fortunately, they do a nice job with the detail work.

Articulation - ***1/2
There is pretty nice articulation in this figure, considering the scale. She has neck, shoulders, waist and hips. Sure, they could have found a way to do elbows or maybe cut joints at the wrists, but what's here is better than most other figures on the market in the small scale.

Accessories - N/A
This probably isn't a fair category for this figure, since she was a pack-in promo. But she has no accessories. Future two packs are supposed to come with some printed backgrounds and a plastic stand.

Value - **1/2
Another category that's a little tough to call right now, but I'm doing it anyway. Ten bucks is pretty steep for two of these, but we'll have to wait and see what the stands are like and if we get any additional accessories.

Overall - ***
While I'm only giving this particular figure three stars, I am very optimistic about this line. The pictures didn't do them justice, and there is a great simplicity to them that reminds me of the late 70's. I think this design will work best with the Silver Age characters, but the others should be cute as well. This is the first line DC Direct has put out that I just might pick up every one.

Where to buy -
These figures aren't schedule to start shipping until July of next year, so this is a real teaser. But your local comic shop will be able to order them for you. I'm sure most of the on-line comic shops will have them as well, but nobody has any preorders up that I've seen.

DC Direct's web site has more info on the coming series with pictures of the various planned figures, and their message board has lots of conversation on the subject.

Figure from the collection of Michael Crawford