Action Figure #433: DC Direct Wonder Girl(Cass)

  This is wondrous, another Wonder Girl!

 Well, I wasn't quite so happy with my Wonder Girl figure. While DCUC figures are certainly dated, Cassandra's was extra clunky. From the weird proportions to... well, everything about it, so  I thought... why not get another take on the same character?

 Well, as per usual, DC Direct leaves aside articulation in order to prioritize the sculpt, and... look at the comparison! She's much smaller, as she should, her legs don't look all wonky, her expression doesn't look devoid of emotions, the symbol on her chest looks much better and the colors are more vibrant. Easily a much better figure all around.

 That said... yeah, the articulation kinda sucks. She can turn her hands, but no swivels anywhere, and her legs can only move forward and backward. She has single jointed elbows and knees, but there's not much you can get out of them, and her arms can move sideways and upwards. I mean... it's decent, but nothing special. BUT, to be fair, DCUC's figure was only slightly more articulated than this!

 Her lasso is kinda pathetic. It consists of a few strands of golden thread knit together. It will probably come undone any time now.

 That's as far as the arms can move sideways It's not too bad.

 Y'know, I dig this take on the character. Much more vibrant, in both color and sculpt, so I'll take the loss on articulation and get a better looking fig out of it.

6.0

Action Figure #432: S. H. Figuarts Eustass Kid

  After the timeskip he should be Eustass Adult.

 Figuarts' One Piece line has received a ton of criticism, and seeing video reviews of Luffy, Sanji and Zoro... yeesh! But I just couldn't resist getting my hands on Eustass Kid, I just love the guy! He can't possibly be as terrible as Jin... could he?

 He is not. For starters, you get four faceplates, four right hands, a stand and an obnoxiously heavy cape. No, really, the cape is heavier than the figure, and the figure is already larger than your average Figuarts! So good luck trying to stand him with it, might as well be an useless accessory. It's not all bad news, the figure looks incredibly, Tamashii captured his likeness perfectly, and a lot of work went into him. The design of his pants is sculpted onto the figure as are all his scars and musculature. And, to be fair, I love how the cape was sculpted, it's just that it's too heavy for the figure itself.

 While Jin was a bust, Jesus, this guy is amazing. He has swivels on his arms and legs, has inverted butterfly-joints(They go INTO his neck from the bottom to the top), has an ab crunch AND a waist swivel... and I haven't even gotten to the best part...

 His mechanical arm has INDIVIDUAL fingers that can BEND. The amount of fun stuff you can do with him is almost endless, I've had as much fun posing him as I did with Makima.

 My one caveat is that he has those ugly, slim Revoltech-like shoulder joints. It's not the nicest looking joint... but it's not too bad. He is taller than the Bucky Cap mold.

 Honestly, this one goes right next to my favorite Figuarts, heck, action figures in general. Sure, the cape is pretty much useless, but, BUT, it's not like you need the cap for him to look good, now is it?

10

Action Figure #431: S. H. Figuarts Jin Kazama

  Game over.

 Well, I was super hyped about Figuarts' Jin Kazama, I mean, I love Tekken, and Jin looks amazing, and as decent as Game Dimensions' take on him was... Figuarts is Figuarts, but....

 Well, the guy looks great. He comes with a decent assortment of alternate hands and heads, as well as a lackluster cardboard stand to use as a backdrop. The figure has a LOT of detail everywhere and the paint job is spot on. There are a few questionable engineering choices, such as having the leg straps connect via a ball-peg... which adds nothing to make it articulated and it disconnects all the time. There's also a belt buckle on his waist that comes off every now and then when twisting his torso, and there's no reason for it to be a separate piece or not to be glued onto him by default.

 But where Jin Kazama fails is in his articulation. There are no bicep swivels, although his gauntlets can rotate, regardless, this gives him a fairly lackluster range on his arm. And even though it looks like he has butterfly joints, they aren't. It looks like he has an ab crunch, but he doesn't, his waist is on a hinge that offers decent range, however. No leg swivels or boot swivels, which also affects the displayability on his legs. But the biggest issue? Look at the fragile little pegs on his arms Oh, and the ball peg on his ab-crunch is super tight, I can't twist him without him making the most awful sounds.

 LOOK AT THEM.

 Well, as careful as I was with him, his left arm broke. I played with him about 10 minutes before the arm broke. I waited until I got home to put some oil on the other arm to ease the stress on it... but it's way too fragile. I looked up online and it happened to at least one other person. Right now, his left arm is glued on to his faux-butterfly joint, making him handicapped forever. He is as tall as a Marvel Legends.

 Dude, this is a fighting game character and the articulation isn't up to snuff, and even if it was, those tiny little pegs are unacceptable. How is it that Game Dimensions' 20 usd Jin is better than this one? Figuarts, c'mon.

3.0

Action Figure #430: S.H. Figuarts Makima

 Just woof like a dog.

 A few years ago I came across Fire Punch. It was edgy, it was dumb and it was just the right kind of weird I love. Well, mr. Fujimoto wasn't content with Fire Punch, he had to create Chainsawman, and with it, Makima, the figure in question.

 Let me tell you this from the outset, with Makima you're getting your money's worth. Five faceplates, tons of hands, alternate crouching legs and a soft-goods coat with bendy wire. I don't know what is it about this figure but she has a lot of swag. I've had so much fun posing her alongside other figures, so much so that I included a few other photos I took down below. Needless to say, the sculpt and the accessories are both excellent. I usually keep either fists or grabby hands(when figures use accessories) when it comes to Figuarts, but... I decided that Makima needed her pointing finger.

 Double jointed elbows and knees, butterfly joints and a ball-jointed waist are what you get with Makima, but that's not all, she has a ball-jointed ab-crunch hidden behind her shirt, as well as a ball joint on her pony tail. The range on her legs isn't perfect, and since she has alternate legs, they do pop off a bit easily if you go too far beyond their range, but other than that? She's perfectly fine, and there's a lot you can do with her. As mentioned before, I had so much fun posing her!

 I don't know if you could tell... but Makima is easily one of my favorite figures in my collection. She looks great, she is easy to pose and she is so much fun to play with. So much so, that here down below you get bonus shots!

10

 

Action Figure #429: DC Universe Classics Zatanna Zatara

 To quote Dynasty Warriors 2: Do you belieeeeeeeeeeve in magiiiiiiiiic?!

 So, I desperately wanted a Zatanna Zatara figure, but this DCUC figure was obscenely expensive... until I found a good deal on a used figure missing the wand, so... I finally have the kind of Zatanna figure I wanted!

 Look at her. Just look at her. This just might be the most beautiful female figure out of the DCUC figure. While she has the flat behind all other female figures of the line have, they knocked it out of the park with the rest of the figure. Her outfit looks great, the expression on her face is great, the net-socks are great, and the color-scheme is lovely. I love how she looks. The top hat has a little tab on the inside so that you can lock it onto her had. I had... mixed luck getting it to stick.

 Same articulation as other DCUC figures, except that her legs don't move to the sides. I don't really mind, to be honest. She's as tall as the bucky cap mold.

 Adorably dated, I love this figure. I'm so happy I got to get her on the cheap, because the other Zatanna figures aren't as classic, or on this scale, but this? If you ask me, this is the perfect Zatanna Zatara figure.

9.0

Action Figure #428: DC Super Heroes Steel

  This is not the man of steel, but rather, the man IN steel.

 Anyone who liked comics in the 90s knew DAROS, even me who didn't even like Superman, and among the Superman pretenders I liked two in particular, Superboy and Steel. I even owned their action figures! So trust me, I love the fact that I get a new Steel figure.

 I love how this guy came out. Recently I read through DAROS, and Steel issues have him drawn with a very squared head, much like the figure himself. And for a DCUC figure... I mean, look at it, look at all the unique sculpting he received just for himself. From the shoulder pads, to the asymmetrical arms... a lot of work went into him, and it payed off.

 So, standard DCUC articulation, as per usual. That said, it might only be my figure, but he has no waist swivel. The shoulder pads are made out of a gummy material, so you can force them a bit out of the way to get more range out of his arms. He's slightly taller than the Bucky Cap mold.

 What can I say? As an action figure, I love all the unique sculpting he received. As an adaptation of the Steel character into plastic they knocked it out of the park, even remaining faithful to the artstyle with the square head. What more could you ask for? He looks cool, he is faithful to the source material and he is NOT just another head swap!

9.0

Action Figure #427: DC Universe Classics Crime Syndicate Ultraman

  Ultra is definitely better than Super. Maybe even better than Mega.

 Last, but not least, comes Ultraman, the Superman equivalent.

 Well... as you can see, this one is the biggest victim of yellowing. Sure, one of his legs broke, but I managed to salvage it. Regardless... yeah, the yellowing is impossible to ignore on this one. That said, and this is not a cope, I don't think it looks all that bad on him, and it breaks up the blue. I also love his expression, it's full of disgust, as if whoever he is facing is but a worm to him.

 Need I add anything about articulation on DCUC figures? I'll just add that the elbows are a bit wonky... it might be because it's old plastic, or maybe because of the silver plates on his elbows, but they could be better.

 So... yeah this guy is nothing special, I love the expression on his face, but I don't like the yellowing on him.

5.5