Action Figure #749: McFarlane Toys Mandarin Spawn

 Can't say no to 3 bucks.

 So... I've always wanted a Spawn in my collection, but McFarlane Toys makes their figures on the 7 inch scale, so it was out of the question... until I saw Mandarin Spawn and his monstruous figure... even if he was taller, since he wasn't a human, I could find a place for him...

 But, well... he kinda sucks. I mean, the sculpt is impressive, the figure has sculpted details up the wazoo, and nobody can deny that the sculpt is 10/10. But the paint job is all over the place. For instance, look at his head, look at his skirt, so many different paint apps, so many details, it looks quite gorgeous, at first glance. But then try looking a bit deeper. He has these Oni masks all over his body, very detailed... and completely painted in white, so most of the detail is lost. His golden chest has a very aggressive dark wash that makes it look dirty... but no other part of his golden armor has this, so it just looks weird. And then you turn him around, and you see that they painted the spikes behind his shins... but the pouch on his belt is unpainted, and most of his back has no paint at all. Now, compare him with the very first Mandarin Spawn, or the Mandarin Spawn DX, and you'll see that his back is meant to have golden paint too. His legs have a lot of unpainted details that WERE painted in the old, initial release. So, yeah... it's a great sculpt, but the uninspired paint apps do it a disservice. He should come with two weapons, but look at the photo of the box I took... Mine was missing one of his weapons!! Lame!! Ah, well, he was only 3 bucks at Big Bad Toystore so I don't care.

 And then comes the articulation... He has butterfly joints, but the added range is negligible. His elbows are single jointed via a ball joint, but at least the arms bend slightly further than 90 degrees. He has a ball jointed ab crunch and ball jointed waist, and they are decent enough. But the big issue comes with the legs... the skirt is relatively pliable, but he has that golden belt-thing over his pelvis that kills any kicking potential he could've had, so besides moving his legs to the sides, there's not much he can do with his legs. At least the knees are double jointed. And lastly, his head is on a double ended ball joint, but you can barely get him to look up or down, truly pathetic.

 The one good thing I have to say is that his shoulder pads go over his shoulders, so at least those don't limit his movement. He is about four heads taller than Bucky Cap.

 I'm absolutely underwhelmed by this figure. I know, I know, I paid only 3 bucks, but even then... he feels so cheap. In paint apps, in articulation... McFarlane was known as a pioneer of action figures, so what gives? This figure is abysmal.

3.0