Wednesday, June 22, 2016

DC Universe 75 Years of Super Powers Infinite Heroes Two-Face

DCU 75 anniv. IH Two Face









From the 75 Years of Super Powers series, Two-Face re-appears in his original colors, featuring the brown half suit, and the pin striped top and black pants with purple face on the "Evil" side. I think he'll help me introduce the few Infinite Hero figures that are a part of Batman's Rogues' Gallery!



A figure sporting this exact outfit was made in the late 80's by Toy Biz, so this is definitely not the first "Original Two-Face" figure ever made. It is, however, a welcome addition to Infinite Heroes as Two-Face is one of Batman's main villains. he's got ball jointed shoulders and...not much else. Also, this figure is devoid of accessories. Couldn't Mattel give him a gun or an oversized coin? He did include a pin button though. I do not own this button sadly as I bought him loose. Oh well. I've equipped him with a gun made for 3.75 inch figures from the well armed Chap Mei lines of military and police figures. If you gotta arm your bad guys, Chap Mei toys always have plenty of realistic guns for them.



Turns out all I had to do was reach into my pocket and pull a Quarter Dollar out so he can carry out his choices on whether to do a misdeed or to follow the law. This is not the only Two Face figure available in this scale. There was a Pocket Heroes Two Face I believe, one for the recent Mattel Multiverse Arkham line and a Dark Knight one. I think this is the best one in my opinion, as it brings a classic character back to his original glory! It is not rare by any means, and I highly recommend it.

DC Universe Infinite Heroes Crisis Robin

DCU IH Robin











Robin is the smallest Infinite Hero figure! Well I think The Brain is the smallest IH figure, but he doesn't count since he's just...a brain on a pedestal. Anyways, this figure was available in a Teen Titans 6 pack, the 3 pack with Batwoman and Nightwing, as well as the 3 pack with Rose Wilson and Dr. Light. We will review Rose Wilson later on. Still, he is easier to find than say...the other figures mentioned, though not at a cheap price. I myself have one for sale on ebay.



Featuring his post 2007 outfit, heavily influenced by Batman & Robin and The New Batman Adventures, this is a really cool version of Tim Drake: Boy Wonder. The smartest Teen Titan of all second to Cyborg...who cheats, Robin here can pull off many poses. For such a tiny figure, Tim is very versatile and colorful!



As usual, Infinite Hero figures rarely come with any weapons, and Robin could have used his bo staff or something.



The new Dynamic Duo!



Brothers in Robinhood! Someone is...missing from this picture though. And it's not Batgirl...because they didn't make Batgirl for this line. We'll take a look at that kid later.

DC Universe Infinite Heroes Crisis Brown and Red Nightwing

DCU IH Brown and Red Nightwing.









This version of Nightwing reminds me of the New 52 Nightwing when he switched to the Red and Black outfit. I don't ever remember seeing this outfit in the pre-52 continuity...Maybe I haven't been reading all the right books. This figure was only available in two different packs; a 3 pack with Robin and Batwoman and I think he was also in a 6 pack, but I'm not sure. This is a very hard to find figure!



I apologize for the picture quality, too. For some reason they came out blurrier than usual. The camera tended to focus on the background instead of the figure for some reason. Anyways, the elbows are ball jointed, as are the knees and ankles. It's annoying because the hips aren't ball jointed or on a double swivel t-crotch, so the extra articulation is actually kind of useless. At least the proportions are correct and he doesn't have the huge hands and feet. The costume features the weird neck mask that cuts off on the hair. I think that's a horrid design. Then again those Robins have always had perfect hair forever...



Wow. This picture came along horrible. Moving on...





While the proportions are better, I still prefer the black and blue Nightwing. I don't know why this figure was not made with ball jointed hips like Batman. It really would have made a difference. The only novelty it carries is that it's rare.



The Dynamic Duo! The brown and red does make Nightwing look like an actual Robin, so that's pretty cool.

Tuesday, June 21, 2016

DC Universe Infinite Heroes Crisis Series 1 Figure 21 Nightwing

DCU IH Nightwing



Ah I finally got my first MISB Infinite Hero figure! Man I really like the plastic blister! It says "an army of heroes within your grasp!" and the blister is molded after a hand! That, of course, alludes to the fact that these figures fit in anyone's palm. Most figures were posed awkwardly during the first series. They were straightened out in later lines, but it gives them a dynamic look. It is a very eye-catching package. Too bad I never saw a single one in the wild. These came out when there was a sort of "Bat-Embargo" going on at Walmart. My hometown has a Walmart and a Shopko, but that's it. I would have to go to a comic book shop to find these.





The back shows a comic style rendering of the character and specs on every one of them. The specs were presumably written by the "monitors" which are explained on the top to see every event that happens on the multiverse. That sort of makes us, the audience, the monitors since we control the destinies of these toys...And y'all just broke the 4th wall with me *mic drop*.









Whew, I'm glad they didn't do the Disco outfit. This is the outfit Nightwing is most famous for, with the blue symbol and black outfit.



Nightwing features the same proportion as most figures in the first series; big fists and big feet. He can stand up on his own, unlike our favorite caped crusader. I wish he came with his sticks, but he comes with no accessories.





Nightwing can pull off a lot of cool poses, and I really like his bright blue Nightwing symbol. Other figures from the same epoch use less bright, darker yet shiny colors. Nightwing has had sooo many costume changes, I'm kind of glad they went with the whole blue arm stripe scheme.



The first Robin is ready for action just like the old times.



Back to back! Nightwing was available by himself, but I think he was also available in one of the many multi-packs released along the line's duration. This is a really cool Nightwing for this scale though. I bought is mint for $27 shipped, and I was lucky. I had been hunting for it for some time, so good luck! This is, however, NOT the only Nightwing in this line...

Monday, June 20, 2016

Barbie Collector Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice Batman Doll

BvS Barbie Collector Batman

Today we have a guest review by Rob_Charb! He brings us an in-depth look at this AWESOME Batman figure by Mattel! Take it away Charb!

Alongside the usual slew of kiddie and “adult collector” lines put out by Mattel for the Batman v Superman tie-in line, they also released three more unique figures; a Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman in their Barbie line of figures. These were released under their Black Label series and are definitely not your typical Barbie. Today we’ll be looking at the Batman figure.



The figures features a full cloth outfit with soft rubber for the gauntlets, boots and cowl. The cowl is removable and underneath is a passable Ben Affleck likeness. I’m not too sure the mask will hold up to being removed multiple times though and can be a pain to align properly when putting it back on. The suit itself is surprisingly good looking. It fits the body underneath very snugly, but does not restrict most movement. There is wonderful shading all over the suit and the sculpted muscles underneath show up nicely. The gauntlets have a tendency to ride up on the arms, but slide right back down again.



There is wonderful detailing throughout the figure, including sculpted scratches on the bat-emblem and the pattern on the suit. The cowl is a bit poofy due to the removable nature of it, but looks better in person.



The utility belt also features wonderful details, including knicks and scratches and a pitted look to the surface. The gold paint used is very nice, not too shiny and not too dull and is also used on the scallops on the gloves and the toes of the boots.



The cape is absolutely huge and features different textures on the outside and inside. The outside looks almost leathery while the inside a more cloth-like material. It hangs beautifully on the figure and be draped either over the shoulders and covering the front of the figure or folded back behind the shoulders. It’s comes down past his feet to pool around them and instead of the usual even scalloping has a more ragged and torn look to the bottom.



The back of the figure looks just as great, aside from the splits in the boots.



He comes with only one accessory, a batarang, and it looks really nice. It’s made of a soft rubbery material but holds its shape well and fits nicely in the right hand.



For a figure released under the Barbie line, Batman is surprisingly well articulated. He has just about every joint you’d find on a Marvel Legends figure, including swivel-hinge writs and ankle tilt. The only areas where the articulation is limited are the ankles due to the boots and the hips. The hips have wonderful forward motion and decent backwards motion, but are limited in the lateral movement. They feel like they pop off the joint, but will pop right back on by themselves if you move the leg back down. Aside from those two limitations, the poseability is fantastic. He puts the 6” Movie Masters to shame.



Somewhat soft head sculpt and puffy mask aside, he even looks good next to the ultimate in 1/6 th scale figures, and is nowhere near as fragile or worrisome to pose. For a roughly $45 dollar figure, you can’t go wrong adding this truly amazing Batman to your collection.

Thanks again to Rob_Charb for this review! I want to get this figure sooo baaad! But I don't collect anything over 7 inches tall...At least not usually. Still it looks like a really great figure!

DC Universe 75 Years of Super Powers Infinite Heroes Batman

DCU 75 Years of Super Powers IH Batman



The definite Infinite Heroes super articulated Batman! What an amazing figure! I bought mine loose and it is missing the pin button, which depicts Batman's first appearance. I'm sad about it but this 3.5 inch tall figure is so awesome it just doesn't matter! This is my favorite 3.5 inch tall Batman figure ever, even after playing with more recent Multiverse figures, and even after playing with the mega super articulated Microman Batmen! This figure rocks!







While the figure has the same cape mold as the other Batman figures, his center of gravity is better, so he can stand up without too much problem. The headsculpt is also the same except that it's on a ball joint. It's not very good, but it does its job.



One of the best things about this figure is that it is well proportioned. The hands aren't oversized, his feet aren't ginormous. His body also feels slightly rubberized, which is kind of cool. It's a very faint feeling, but it's there.



I wish he had an ab crunch, but this is as good s it gets. For a DC figure it was pretty nicely articulated especially given the time it was released. Of course, the world got to see the most articulated figure at the time in Europe only in 2004...I need to acquire that figure at some point even though it's nearly impossible at this time. Y'all know which one I'm talking about.



BAM! This is a very dynamic figure, and if you see it, I think you should buy it.



The best Infinite Heroes version Batman. Compared to the other two it is vastly superior. Stay tuned for more IH reviews coming quickly this week.