Action Figure #449: Star Wars Black Series The Mandalorian(Glavis Ringworld)

  This might be the way.

 I've had this figure for over a week and I knew nothing about The Mandalorian. But the fig looked cool, so I got the fig, and a couple of days later I convinced my girlfriend to start watching The Mandalorian with me, we are two episodes in and we love it!

 Well... he does look cool. I've seen posts and videos claiming he is 'almost import quality'. It's pure bull. It's just another series black figure. It has a soft-rubber armor plate, which I don't like, and the belts, the one across his chest and the one on his waist, are a separate rubber piece, which is alright, but it can be a bit hard to handle. He comes with a knife he can't hold, a saber he can barely hold, a blaster ha can actually hold and a jetpack. There's a similar figure, the Mines of Mandalore version, but it lacks the jetpack and the cape is made out of rubber instead of soft goods, like this one. Mando not being able to hold his knife is ridiculous. I used superglue to glue left hand shut so that he'd get a better hold on the dark saber. It's not perfect, but it's much better than how he came out. I saw posts writing about Series Black needing more alternate hands... bro, he can't even hold the Dark Saber, it's not that it should have more hands, it's that at least he should be able to hold AT LEAST two of the three accessories without issues.

 And the articulation, well... usual Series Black subpar fare. All the joints are single, so his arms and legs don't have as much range as Marvel Legends. He has swivels on his gauntlets, so you can rotate them, as well as swivels on his legs. The pauldrons are made out of soft rubber, so they don't hamper movement on his arms. There's no waist swivel, but he has a ball joint on his ab crunch, one which you can't get much use out of due to the soft-rubber belts and armor, preventing him from getting much use out of it. He is just a bit shorter than the Bucky Cap. 

 As seen here, the knife just falls off from either hand. You have to put it on his boot. This is kinda misleading, since promo photos have him holding the knife, which is impossible.

 Mando is not a horrible figure, but... c'mon, to call this almost import quality? At the bare minimum he should be able to hold all his accessories without issues. The articulation is also so limited when compared to Hasbro's other lines... Mind you, I've had fun playing with him, I did, but... Hasbro has done much better.

7.0

Action Figure #448: Power Rangers Lightning Collection Mighty Morphin White Ranger(Metallic)

  Oooooh, shiny!

 If you grew up in the 90's you were there for the Power Rangers craze, and if you were one of the cool, and let's be honest, basic, kids then you liked the Green Ranger most of all... until he became the even cooler White Ranger. Here we have Tommy in all his metallic glory!

 So, the metallic version wasn't my first choice, but he is an old figure, so he is a bit expensive... thankfully, I saw some comparison vids, and I think I might this one better. The metallic effect isn't too bad, being a slightly translucent plastic with a lot of glitter, but the gold parts are actually shiny gold, as opposed to the basic release slightly duller brownish gold. Maybe that one is more show accurate, but this is how I remembered him looking, so I'll take it! He comes with a set of alternate hands(A chop and a fist), an alternate unmasked head and a... Zeo Crystal thingie. I didn't know what it was, I thought the seller just included some piece of excess plastic... but it turns out it's an accessory. An ugly accesory you can't even pose him with, but whatever!

 The figure is incredibly articulated. He has butterfly joints, ball jointed abs, shoulders and legs, as well as a hinged waist, swivels on his biceps, legs and boots... overall, he has a lot of poseability. Making his chest armor a soft-rubbery piece wouldn't have been my first choice, but I guess they didn't want to sculpt an entirely new torso for him. Regardless, he is fun to pose and play with. He is a bit shorter than the Bucky Cap mold.

 I was a bit disappointed I had to resort to the metallic version... but I'm quite happy with this figure, he looks really nice and is fun to play around with. Definitely a must have for Mighty Morphin' fans.

9.0

Action Figure #447: Marvel Legends Ikaris(Gilgamesh Wave)

 Marvel Legend's most disliked wave.

 Well, here´s Marvel Legends most disliked line. For what it´s worth, while I didn´t watch the movie, I thought that this Ikaris figure looked super cool.

 So I heard that the Eternal figures were kinda good, despite the movie being so bad... and it's true. Ikaris looks fantastic. The gold highlights over the metallic blue paint makes the figure pop so nicely. He comes with an alternate head that has energy coming out of his eyes, the one I decided I'm gonna be using, that I think looks really cool on him.It's also from an era when Hasbro was using proper plastic with their figures, so he feels solid to play around with.

 On the articulation front, he covers all the Marvel Legends basics, with the ab crunch being set on a ball joint. He has no waist swivel. He has great range on all his limbs, and his skirt is made out of soft rubber, so you can get him to kick up high. He's just slightly taller than Bucky Cap.

 As for the bad... the gold paint highlights are kinda sloppy. You can tell that some of the pain on the lower parts of his pecs are not symmetrical.

 And then there's the back... Hasbro decided to cheap out and not paint a single highlight on his back. Lame! Cheap!

 He looks nothing like his comic counterpart, which I don't mind since I think he looks kinda lame, but this one looks kinda cool. That said, while Hasbro skimped out on the paint apps, I think he is a very good action figure.

8.0

Action Figure #446: DC Direct Jericho

  Damn, those mutton chops ran outta style years ago!

 I don't remember if I mentioned it on this blog, but I've been reading the New Teen Titans... and through this little comic I met good ol' Jericho, Deathstroke's son! Being, what I feel, is a core part of the new Teen Titans, I needed his action figure!

 As with other DC Direct figures... they prioritized sculpt over articulation... and as far as sculpt goes, they knocked it out of the park. The yellows were painted gold, and the purples look metallic, which makes him stand out. He has his green-on-black eyes, which he had whenever he used his powers, which is a neat detail. His 'fro seems to have an orange wash. all in all, he is a good looking figure.

 But the articulation is a but limited. Legs go only back and forward, and while he has swivels on his feet, the feet are pre-posed, so it might be a bit hard to get him to stand and look badass. No waist swivel, and all his joints are single jointed. Y'know, par for the course. He is slightly shorter than Bucky Cap.

 He is a good looking figure of a rather obscure character. I honestly love how he came out, and he helps me complete my New Teen Titans team.... now I only need Donna...

7.5

Action Figure #445: DC Universe Classics Black Manta

  Oh, right... remember when Black characters had to had Black on their names?

 While Black Manta's villain name might've not aged the best, I feel like his design has! I've always loved Aquaman, and he's had one of the nastiest villains around.... I mean, Black Manta actually murdered his child! 

 So... I bought the guy used, so no accessories for me! But that won't detract from how good he looks. Sure, he is a basic black figure, but he was given a matte finish that makes him stand out from other DCUC figures, and the mask looks great on him.

 Same articulation as with other DCUC figures. Sadly, the head is NOT on a ball joint, so he can only look to the sides. The helmet makes him stand slightly over the Bucky Cap mold.

 A bit basic, but this is as much as you can get out of Black Manta's design. I like how he came out.

8.0

Action Figure #444: DC Universe Heroes Azrael Batman

  Just pure 90's Edge. I love it.

 If you grew up in the 90's you met energy Blue and Red Superman... as well as Azrael Batman. He was almost a clunky parody of the type of characters McFarlane and Liefeld used to draw! Be that as a it may, Azrael Batman is an interesting part of Batman mythos, so I love having this figure!

 Well, it probably wasn't easy, but they brought Jean Paul Valley's Batman into plastic life. He is not overly detailed, but a lot of interesting sculpting was done on the upper part of his body, mainly on the gauntlets and cybernetics. The upper part of his cape is made of a soft-rubber material BUT the wing-parts are made out of a hard plastic. I love the metallic colors on the upper part of his body. It's hard to explain, but as clunky as he looks... it's also kinda endearing.

 Articulation is about what you'd expect, but for whatever reason he has double-jointed knees. I don't know why they did him like this, but it helps pose him.... and you need the extra mobility, because the hard-plastic wings will get in the way. He is slightly taller than the Bucky Cap mold.

 This is as far as he can raise his arms due to the cowl. Pretty decent, if you ask me.

 I owned a few of Knightfall's and Azrael Batman's comics, so I like the guy out of nostalgia alone. That aside, I've been needing a 90's Batman to stand alongside my 90's energy Superman. I might've done the gold parts a bit less dull, but he is a good representation of Jean Paul's Batman.

8.0

Action Figure #443: DC Universe Classics Dove

  Sadly, no Hawk... for now.

 Well... I do know about Dove, but the male version. I had to learn about Hawk and Dove since Hawk made an appearance in the New Teen Titans! Anyways, I thought this heroine looked kinda nice, and she does appear in Death and Return of Superman.

 The bad news? It's the same ol' DCUC female buck. The arms are extremely thin and she looks kinda plain.... but, BUT, the sky-blue and white color scheme is very pleasing to the eye, and the red-lipstick breaks it up, without clashing with the rest of the ensemble, in a pleasing way. It's a figure I like to look at, at least.

 Same articulation as other DCUC female figures. Her white cowl does hamper arm movement a bit, but it's not too bad. She is a bit shorter than Buck-Cap.

 This is as far as she can kick forward. A bit... limited, but not awful.

 She is a bit of a plain figure, but she is pleasing on the yes. Now, I only need to get Hawk...

7.0

Action Figure #442: DC Universe Classics Man-Bat

  Move aside Owlman, Joker, this is Batman's true nemesis!

 Well, Man-Bat is a toy I was looking forward to a lot, since Man-Bat's animated Series' action figure was one of my favorites growing up. And this one is the proper upgrade for my adult self! 

 The sculpt on this guy is AMAZING, he looks fantastic. There's a lot of detail on his furry hide, and his wings are both veiny and translucent. The head-sculpt is particularly creepy, and this guy would look great on non-super hero displays.

 Alright, so the articulation is a bit different on this guy than on other DCUC figures. From the waist up it's exactly like you'd expect. The shoulders are a bit tighter than I would've liked, but other than that, you get both hand and bicep swivels as well as a hinged ab-crunch and a swivel waist. The legs is where it's a bit different. They don't move out to the sides, but rather, only forward and backwards. There are no swivels on the legs, BUT, there are two hinges on them. He can bit a bit hard to get to stand, but it's not impossible. He is much taller than Bucky Cap.

 He is not a perfect figure, but I love him a lot. He looks really nice outside a super-hero display, which is something I appreciate a lot, and he is an upgrade from a figure I had as a child, so bonus points for that!

8.5

Action Figure #441: DC Universe Classics Firestorm

 Seems like he is a bit of a hothead.

 Well... yeah, Firestorm is another DC character I know very little about. He probably tows the line between obscure and popular, being the most obscure among the popular characters, I'd say. Whichever the case, I needed him among my DC heroes.

 A Hero clad in yellow and red, related to fire, of course I love how this guy looks. Besides his amazing translucent firey head, he had a fair amount of work done on his chest, puffy arms and gloves. Some of the red pieces, like the neck, are in a much lighter shade than his limbs, but I think he looks nice enough. He comes with two effect pieces... but I bought him used, so I didn't get them, bummer, they look kinda cool.

 Articulation-wise it's exactly what you'd expect of the line. He is slightly taller than the Bucky-Cap mold.

 His forward-kick movement could've had a bit more range, but other than that, he is pretty dope.

 While I know little about the guy, I'd say he is a pretty solid action figure. He'll look really nice next to Ghost Rider!

8.0

Action Figure #440: Masters of the Universe Classics He-Ro

  Not a He-man, but a He-ro! Wait, a ro?!

 I've been meaning to get into the Master of the Universe Classics for a while now, and among all the characters that piqued my interest, He-Ro was the one I wanted the most. 

 This guy is one massive, thick boy. He feels very hefty and solid, which I really liked. He's bulkier than most of my other figures, which I'm OK with. As for the figure itself, I love the futuristic-meets-medieval look of the figure, heck, I specifically picked him to start this line with because I loved how his golden armor looked. And yeah, I'm not disappointed in the slightest.

 Articulation is very similar to DC Universe Classics, the only difference being the legs that rely on balljoints. Overall, you get a pretty decent, bulky action figure with enough possability. He is quite a bit taller than the Bucky Cap mold.

 His ab crunch is on a hinge, but between his armor and the solid-rubber cape, you'll barely get any range out of it.

 The hard-rubber loin-cloth also gets in the way of his kicking, so him not skipping leg day does nothing for him!

 Overall I love the guy. I love how he looks, I love how massive he is, and the articulation is as good as it needs to be. I'll be investing more into this line for sure.

9.0

Action Figure #439: DC Super Heroes Azrael

  Time for more glorious 90's edge.

 The 90's, for Comic Books, was an edgy, edgy time. Look, New 52 was edgy, but it had nothing on 90's comic books. And for Batman, nothing was edgier than Azrael. I remember visiting kiosks or whatever store carried comic books, and walking around this Batman and Azrael issues that featured the characters, and he looks so cool in his red an gold alongside his flaming blades... the guy was badass. And finally, I get to own him.

 In what's sort of a unique situation for a DCUC figure, Azrael comes in a weird pre-posed position that has his legs and torso slanted a bit to the right. His head is also perpetually hunched downward. This makes him look a bit odd when standing straight. Leaving that aside, I think the sculpt on this figure is amazing, he has this amazingly detailed gauntlets, as well as his robes and armor... he looks as badass as I had hoped. On the other hand, I always imagined his colors to be a bit brighter than this, with richer reds and golds. The figure looks great, it does, but I think the color scheme should've been more colorful. That aside, he also comes with his flaming wrist blades, and they look amazing, the color the picked for the fire looks amazing, and thanks to the duller reds and yellows on the figure... they stand out a lot.

 Articulation is par for the course with DCUC figures, but instead of having a hinge for the ab crunch, he has a ball-jointed ab-crunch. Doesn't give him as much range, but it's good enough. The gauntlets have swivels, so you can have fun with his wrist-blades. Due to the preposed neck, he is a bit shorter than the Bucky Cap mold, although the pointy end of his hood makes him look as tall.

 The figure could've been a bit better with a neutral stance, but you can get him into all manners of badass poses. The color scheme could've been richer too, but I'm content with the end result... so, while a few tweaks here and there could've made him a top-notch figure, what's here is still pretty good.

8.0