Showing posts with label The Dark Knight Rises. Show all posts
Showing posts with label The Dark Knight Rises. Show all posts

Tuesday, April 22, 2014

TUESDAY TOY REVIEW: Hot Toys' "The Dark Knight Rises" Bane



Easily one of the most realistic action figures to date that Hot Toys has done, Bane makes an incredible eye piece. And in my opinion, is a landmark figure. I mean, there's people who didn't even like the movie or the character of Bane and yet they bought this figure. That tells ya a little something about the quality produced on this piece. It's one of the few action figures that to the naked eye, looks like a real person. If you have a proper background or setting that doesn't showcase that it's a collectible, and not a real person, it's hard to tell the difference.

Tell me that this doesn't look completely life-like.


He's a very simple and basic figure. He comes on a muscle body, to beef him up compared to other figures. While the overall build and frame of the figure looks nice, the muscle bodies limit articulation/movement. So while he may look fantastic, there's certain key poses (like his boss pose) that just aren't gonna happen. But, there's plenty of other things that you can do for a pose that would set this figure off right. He also comes with five sets of interchangeable hands, a broken Batman cowl, a really sweet base/stand, and a movie accurate coat.

So you see, it's not an action figure that comes with a surplus of accessories. It's nothing fancy, but it looks incredible! The Tom Hardy likeness is ever present in the eyes and what you see of the face. But, it's the small details that make this figure pop. Such as the scaring on the sides of his head and the intricate detail in the mask. There's even some scarring on the eyebrow if you look close enough. Right out of the box this bad mofo is good to go. It's the rare case of that perfect figure that just sets some people in disbelief.



I've said this before about some of Hot Toys' other products, but I think that he's so well made due to the lack of accessories. When you have a $200 price tag on something that doesn't come with a lot of extras, they gotta make the money worth it. So the realism and overall quality of this piece beats tons of figures that I can think of that came with an abundance of accessories.

There's also scaring down his back, but most of all, what I like best is how his body is painted along with his head. Most companies stick a head on a default body and that's that. Well Hot Toys painted the entire body and head with the same skin coloring and texture to make the overall appearance seem seamless, and it's a wonderful job. One of my complaints about the figure are that I wish he came with the microphone headset from the football scene. Posing him talking into that would have been an amazing idea. I've seen some people make custom headsets, but it doesn't fit my level of quality, so I'll stick to no headset than a crappy forged one.

Aside from that, the figure looks best with the coat on because without it you can see joints and that prevents it from looking as realistic as possible. So I don't think I'll be taking his coat off again outside of taking these pics. Without the coat, the figure doesn't look as good.



Everything from the vest down to his military pants looks amazing. He even has two wrist cuffs, so all five sets of hands that he comes with are compatible to fit the cuffs. One's meant for a closed fist and the other wrist band is for open hands, allowing you to make any pose you want to work and not look forced.

"The Dark Knight Rises" may just be my favorite installment in the franchise, but even if you hate the movie, you just simply can't deny the quality Hot Toys brings when they're on their game. I'm a proud owner of this figure. It's one of the ones I'll never part with.



He's been long sold out, but if you can find one for a lucky price I suggest you grab it. This is one for the ages. I got mine off of Sideshow Collectibles, like I usually do. As far as I've heard he was a limited edition figure with a limited production run. I can easily see this action figure going for a fortune in years to come.



4 stars out of 5



Tuesday, April 8, 2014

TUESDAY TOY REVIEW: Hot Toys' THE DARK KNIGHT RISES Catwoman/Selena Kyle



The Dark Knight trilogy is the greatest comic book based films of all-time, no question. They're the films that broke the mold into what comic book films could be. These three films changed the face of how we'll forever see comic book movies. I've actually got quite an obssession going for these flicks, and regardless of what anyone says, myself and many others agree that they aren't just the best comic films, but they're some of the greatest films ever made, period.


Luckily, Hot Toys was on their game and released figures from all three pictures. And, they're not done! This October, one of their greatest creations ever, in their 14 years of existence is going to be released: Batman's armory with Bruce Wayne and Alfred action figures included. Though the price is steep at $624.99 a piece, there's no denying that it's worth every damn penny!And needless to say, I've got mine ordered. For more info about the armory, click here.


Hot Toys has this mentality to disappoint the really eager and up-tight fans of collecting whenever they release a pre-order item. However, all of the moaning and groaning by annoying collectors is almost always put at ease once the figure is released. Both because A) Hot Toys listens to their fans and B) collectors are to quick to discredit Hot Toys. I guess the more popular you are, the more haters you'll have...


Take their Catwoman/Selena Kyle figure from the third film in the franchise, "The Dark Knight Rises" for example. Everyone complained about all sorts of ridiculous things, but in the end, it ended up being an amazing figure and stunned collectors across the globe. Now I hardly come across a bad word about it!


While a basic figure with not a lot of accessories, the look of the overall figure's quality is stunning and looks completely realistic. The suit, the likeness of Anne Hathaway, and the paintjob all knock the ball out of the park! She's so sleek looking, and it really works for the overall realness and look.


Her eye mask is totally functional, you can make the goggle lenses flipped up on her head, or flip them down and have her using them, just like in the film. Crazy.


Then, take into account that she has 28 points of articulation, seven sets of different hands, and a pistol, and a really nice base, and it's easy to see why this collectible is on par with the quality we've come to expect from Hot Toys. I bought the limited exclusive edition, so mine came with an empty Batman cowl.


Although the suit makes it hard to pose her in a lot of ways due to it's tightness and material, there's still a ton of great poses you can get out of this one. Honestly, when I recieved mine last summer, I just posed her in a basic position and was totally happy with her. But I'm glad that I'm doing these reviews because I get to take a chance and play around posing them for pictures, and in doing so with her, I found a really good final pose. Articulation is a very important quality, because the better the pose, the better the figure looks. The trick is not only in finding the right pose that suits you, but finding one that explains the character just by looking at it with one look.


For example: for Catwoman, the idea is to go with a fiesty/sexy pose that also allows her to look dangerous. I found that posing her with her gun helps add the danger element, so all you really gotta do is come up with a creative pose.


This is only the second female action figure I have (the first being Pamela Voorhees), and despite any worries I had of this coming out looking like a Barbie, it really doesn't. And I think that's what impresses me most. Despite having real hair and a thin female frame, you can stand her side by side with other figures and she looks natural, totally un-doll like.


Ultimately, those who have this figure intend to keep it. And those who missed out on it, tend to regret not buying it and remain hopeful of finding one in the future at a reasonable price. Needless to say, most of The Dark Knight trilogy figures sell out almost instantly.


I'm very satisfied with the end result, and plan on never off-loading it to anyone else. When I buy collectibles I intend to keep it for the duration of my life. And this will be one people will always notice and mention when they see my stuff. I guarantee it.



4 out of 5 stars



Next Tuesday's toy review

Friday, January 4, 2013

HOT TOYS RELEASES THEIR FINAL PRODUCT IMAGES OF BANE

THIS, LIKE ALL OTHER OF HOT TOYS' PRODUCTS ARE NOTHING SHORT OF MASTERPIECES. I RECENTLY GOT THE BATMAN FIGURE AND IT'S AMAZING. NOW COMES THEIR EPIC BANE FIGURE DUE OUT IN MARCH. I'VE HAD MINE ON ORDER FOR MONTHS.

HOT TOYS IS A QUALITY ACTION FIGURE COMPANY BASED IN HONG KONG WHO SPECIALIZE IN HIGH-END QUALITY FIGURES. THIS BAD BOY IS GOING FOR $200.00


"I'M GOTHAM'S RECKONING. HERE TO END THE BORROWED TIME YOU'VE ALL BEEN LIVING ON."



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