Video Review of the DC Collectibles Arkham Origins Series 2 Deathstroke figure!

Review of Marvel Legends Infinite Series Stealth Captain America and Winter Soldier

Today we'll be having a look at the Marvel Legends Infinite Series Captain America: The Winter Soldier, movie Captain America and Winter Soldier! Cap is 6" and Winter Soldier stands 6 1/2" tall, both retail from $19.99 - $26.99, and online range from $15.00 - $60.00. First up is good ol' Steve Rogers!


Character Bio:
Steve Rogers was just a scrawny kid from Brooklyn determined to serve his country, until an experimental formula transformed him into the world's first super-soldier, Captain America!











Sculpt and Paint:
I'm going to be honest, this is the guy I was least excited about getting from the 3 movie figures, Winter Soldier being my most anticipated as I love the character, and Black Widow second because it's a 6" ScarJo Black Widow and please get your minds out of the gutters. This guy just seemed kind of bland to me. Having him in hand, he has grown on me quite a bit. He is a blast to pose, and comes with some great accessories but more on that later. He has a pretty good sculpt. The new S.H.I.E.L.D. uniform is pretty sleek and dark this time around and definitely takes from his "Commander Rogers" look in the comics.

 

The head sculpts are good, the helmeted one is the better of the two for me as the unhelmeted head doesn't look like Chris Evans to me at all.  The suit has some really cool paint added on to the shoulders, the left shoulder having a silver American flag with "Rogers" under it, and the right shoulder has the S.H.I.E.L.D. logo on it.  The harness on his shoulders is sculpted on, and his belt is a separate, non-removable piece. The paint is all applied really well, the "A" on his helmet is a bit off center but not too noticeable. On the unmasked head however there's a huge streak of the paint used on his hair going from his hairline to his left eyebrow. The color is very close to the skin tone so it isn't noticeable, but it shouldn't be there. Other than that the paint is crisp and clean. 

Accessories and Articulation:
Cap's articulation includes a ball-jointed head on a hinge, swivel-hinge shoulders, swivel biceps, double-hinge elbows, swivel-hinge wrists, an ab-crunch, a waist swivel, ball jointed hips, swivel thighs, double-hinge knees, swivel boots, hinge-pivot ankles. That's a damn nice articulation set.  For accessories Cap comes with his unhelmeted head, two sets of hands, one set of fists, and one set that has a saluting hand and pointing hand. Lastly he comes with his trusty shield, done in only blue and silver this time around.

 Instead of the usual clip/peg system we've been seeing they used the pre-molded straps similar to the First Avenger shield. To put it on you have to remove a hand, slide the arm in, and put the hand back on. It does hinder the arms movement and once it's on, it is a pain in the buttocks to remove. It is a damn nice looking shield though.

In case anyone was wondering, it is possible to get the First Avenger Cap shield on, although you may need to sand down the straps on it, making it loose on your First Avenger cap figure, In the picture below I have it on as far as I could get it without sanding it, the second strap isn't on his arm and his hand cant be plugged in.

Onto the Winter Soldier!

Character Bio:
A mysterious shadow from Steve Rogers' past returns to haunt his present. Only time will tell if the Winter Soldier is friend or foe.















Sculpt and Paint:
As I said above this was my most anticipated figure of the three and he doesn't disappoint...mostly, but we'll get to that in accessories. The Winter Soldier has some killer sculpt work. His bionic arm looks absolutely incredible, with a really intricate sculpt brought to life by the great paint detail. The detail on his right arm and torso are really well done. They are meant to be a leathery vest type thing and the details are all there. The paint shading on them brings out all the stitches and buttons. On the right arm you can also see some sculpted on extra bullets stored on his forearm!

 

 

His chest harness and his belt are both separate pieces, but the belt cannot be removed, the harness can. One downside with the belt is it has two knives, but they're both sculpted on. *Sigh*. You'll see why this really disappoints me later. His lower body is also really well done with some insane texturing in the pants and really well done knee pads and boots. The two head sculpts are also really well done. His masked head looks intimidating, and his unmasked head is pretty good. It's meant to reflect the poster where you see him without his mask and he has the eye shadow (like Oliver in Arrow). The main issue I have with it is, like Cap, it doesn't look like the actor, Sebastian Stan. I maintain for this head it would have been better to have it the way it is but add a removable lower mask, to recreate the scene in the trailer where he catches Cap's shield. Although I do have plan to fix this and give a better black wash to his torso, so if that works out, I'll post the outcome here on the blog.

 

Accessories and Articulation:
For articulation Winter Soldier has a ball-jointed head on a hinge, swivel-hinge shoulders, swivel biceps, double-hinge elbows, swivel-hinge wrists, an ab-crunch, a waist swivel, ball jointed hips, swivel thighs, double-hinge knees, and hinge-pivot ankles. Now here is where he falls. Accessories. He comes with an alternate head and one gun.

                                    

One really crappy (for him) brightly painted anti-stealthy sniper rifle...I guess... I don't really know what it is. It doesn't even fit properly into his hands, hell it stretches them out a bit.

 So because of that I wish those knives that they sculpted on could be removed, but sadly no. So if you're like me and don't like that "gun", then you're Winter Soldier is weaponless. So I dug through my fodder bin and came up with two guns, as well as a knife.

 If you want to use the same, the rifle is from the Marvel Legends Movie Punisher, the pistol is from NECA's Splinter Cell Same Fisher, and the knife which you will see in later pictures is from Marvel Legends Bucky Cap. So it can be saved, but I just feel with a collector oriented line, you shouldn't have to have this problem, but I can't complain too much because I'm assuming that gun which is a repaint of the Hydra Soldier gun was used to save money on accessories to spend it on sculpt. If so, I take it all back...you know.....mostly.

Build-A-Figure Pieces:
The BAF from this line is the Mandroid. Cap comes with his right leg and Winter Soldier with his left....or is it the other way around...wait....regardless you get a leg with each of these guys!
I don't have the BAF pieces on hand as I don't plan to complete it and therefore they are buried in my fodder bin somewhere.


OVERALL:
These figures to me compliment each other really well. If you get one, you'll probably want to get the other. Both have great articulation. Cap ends up scoring higher in the accessories area, but both are so much fun to mess with.

Captain America: 9 OUT OF 10!!!

Winter Soldier: 9 OUT OF 10!!!

Time for some group shots!

 

"If you truly don't remember me Bucky, go ahead and pull the trigger."
"...Who the hell is Bucky?"

Review of The Walking Dead Series 5 Daryl Dixon and Chopper Deluxe Box Set

Character Bio:
An expert tracker and hunter, Daryl's skills honed during a contentious and largely self-sufficient childhood in the mountains of Georgia are especially valuable after the undead outbreak. Daryl and his older brother Merle eventually join up with a group of survivors headed by Shane and Lori, though they're commitment to anybody other than themselves is suspect from the start. It is eventually revealed that the brothers came from an abusive home. While Merle turned largely to anti-social behavior and even crime, Daryl has long retreated into a survivalist mentality in which he relies only on himself and refuses to get close to anyone other than his brother, who holds an undeniable and unhealthy influence over him.
As the months progress, Daryl becomes a more and more integral part of the group, forming a particularly strong bond with Carol putting himself in harms way over and over again in order to protect his fellow survivors. He is trusted and, more notably, begins to trust others. This trust isn't always consistent, but never wavering is Daryl's proficiency in coolly dispatching walkers, especially with his trusty crossbow and knife. Daryl is a perfect example of why the survivors cant judge books by their covers. The seemingly reckless redneck is actually a force to be reckoned with and an effective, if reluctant leader.

The Basics:
Scale: 5"
Price: retail: $34.99, online: $26.99 and up

Sculpt and Paint:
      So I never got into The Walking Dead figures when they were initially released. The first two waves had figures that were all "pre-posed" meaning they did have articulation, but it didn't do much as it only accommodated one or two particular poses, and the facial sculpts were good but could have been better...especially that Shane... Those days, however are far gone, but I still wasn't sold on the line. I received The Governor as a gift, and really enjoyed it. A few weeks later images of this figure hit the web and I knew I had to have it. So for the past few weeks I was beyond vigilant. Sure enough, he hit Toys R Us' website and stores early, so I jumped on it, and just in time as he soon sold out. Now with all that said, this figure is remarkable, and has completely sold me on this line (as I type this my wallet is weeping in the corner).
     For all of the newer figures, McFarlane Toys does a 3-D Scan on the actors in order to get in every detail. In this case, Norman Reedus, who plays Daryl, is captured perfectly in plastic form.  The hair is actually a separate rubber piece glued onto the head for more realism, and the vest is also a rubber piece, so you don't have to worry about it breaking or limiting posability. Every single detail from the stitched on wings on the vest, the rag in his back pocket, his patched knee, and shoes. It's all here. Take a look.

     Now a good sculpt is nothing without fantastic paint  and this guy has amazing paint apps. The skin tone is consistent throughout save for the  new wrists, but the plastic it was molded in is close enough that it isn't noticeable unless it's right in your face. The clothing looks weathered and has that "lived in" look crucial to an apocalypse survivor. It's truly incredible.

Articulation and Accessories:
     One of the main appeals of this figure was his upgraded articulation. Daryl has a ball-jointed head with an insane range of movement, swivel-hinge shoulders, swivel-hinge elbows, a swivels at the forearms,  swivel-hinge wrists, a ball-jointed upper torso, waist swivel, h-joint hips (I think that's the proper term, they're DCUC style basically), swivel-hinge knees, and swivel-hinge ankles. That is so awesome and a huge upgrade compared to the other Walking Dead figures in terms of torso, wrist, and hip movement!
    In terms of accessories, Daryl comes with a hunting knife that fits into a sheath on his right side, and his signature crossbow that can be slung on his shoulder.
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

    Daryl is also packed with the first ever vehicle in The Walking Dead figure line. Daryl's chopper, which the packaging says he "inherited" from his brother Merle, is done in amazing detail. All of the decals from the shows chopper are there, save for one they had to leave out to avoid controversy (or so I'm told). It has a joint at the front for steering as all choppers do. The kickstand can be flipped down and up, it has removable saddle bags, features two  clips on the front to store his crossbow, and has a really cool feature.

 

There is a little stand that can be pegged into the back tire to keep it standing up without the kick stand as though he were riding it. One thing worth noting is that the handle bars are on the big side, so if his hands stay on them too long they may stretch them out, loosening his grip on the crossbow, and the already loosely-held knife.

 

 

OVERALL:
This is by far the best Daryl figure of the 2 that they released (4 if you count the repack of the original and the 10" statue-esque one). He is super-poseable, incredibly detailed, comes with all of his main accessories from the show, and is just one hell of a display piece. Now this is a McFarlane Toys figure making it a higher end piece, so I would be careful while posing the figure, because if this guy is like his predecessor, he is going to be fetching hundreds of dollars in the near future. This Daryl Dixon is a true masterpiece and I hope this new articulation model is here to stay.

 

10 OUT OF 10!!