Predator 2 is an interesting and
brave movie. It takes a lot of the things that were so interesting
about the original film – the jungle, Arnold Schwarzenegger, and
Jesse “The Body” Ventura – and excises them completely. Instead
we have downtown LA, Danny Glover, and Gary Busey. Concrete instead
of trees, wise experience instead of young power, and… well, a
different kind of bugfuck crazy.
It was still an awesome movie and still
a great use of the concept of the Predator creature. I think it’s
worth mentioning that while the titular creatures from the Alien
franchise have been dubbed “xenomorphs” (from a line in Aliens)
the Predators have no such fancy-pants name. And it kind of bothers
me. Of course, you can also consider that fact that the Alien
and Predator franchises were never even intended to mesh and
that comparisons between the two are utterly artificial and
speculative. It just worked out that Dark Horse Comics came up with a
great idea that led to some movies that… well, they happened.
I have no idea what the deal is with these “Lost Tribe” Predators that just came out. I just know that they look cool and have some nice color variations. I think maybe they are the ones from the end of Predators 2. You know, the ones from the big dance scene.
What? What do you mean there’s no
dance scene?
Oh, really, Sassafras? Then what the
fuck is this?:
That’s right – you just got served.
By Predators. And Danny Glover.
First Glance: I’m not
going to knock McFarlane’s Predator figures because they are truly
amazing toys. But they all kind of looked the same. NECA is tackling
a lot of different versions of the creatures and some are startlingly
fresh and unique. This guy has a green coloration that makes him
stand out among his brethren, which is the main reason I bought him.
I already am somewhat predisposed to green, but it is Lil’
Troublemaker’s favorite color, so I really like it when I can bring
something home and go, “Look – it’s a green one.”
Oh, and initially this guy looks like
one of the very best Predators I’ve seen.
Articulation: There is a
lot of articulation here. Not the most of any Predator figure, but a
lot.
Head – ball joint
Shoulders – ball joint
Biceps – swivel
Elbows – swivel/pivot
Wrists – ball joint
Waist – ball joint
Hips – ball joint
Thighs – swivel
Knees – double pivot
Ankles – ball joint
There’s not a whole lot this guy
isn’t going to be able to do. All of the joints move freely and
easily. Like the Stealth Predator, this figure’s dreadlocks are a
soft and sturdy plastic that moves easily and does not interfere with
the head movement.
I’m not sure how useful the
double-jointed knees are. I’m always pleased to have a wider range
of motion on a joint, but the ankles – though ball-jointed –
don’t have a deep enough pivot for the figure to squat. He can do a
Crane Kick, though.
I think I am starting to prefer
ball-jointed waists to the waist swivel combined with the abdominal
pivot. You have almost the same mobility without the unsightly
abdomen joint. No matter how well done that cut in the abdomen is, it
still looks ugly. The best ones I’ve seen are the ones that sort of
use the ribs for the joint (like the McFarlane Predators) but even
those are a bit of an eyesore. It’s one thing to have elbow, hip,
and knee joints. Not only do those blend better with the body’s
form, they aren’t right in the center of the figure.
Sculpt: The first thing
I’m going to mention is how glad I am that the netting is sculpted
onto the body. The figure already has a ton of wonderful texturing in
the way of skin and folds and musculature, but that layer of netting
just adds so much more.
The head is outstanding. There was a
time when I would have complained about the lack of mask, but I am
actually glad NECA is choosing to do masked and unmasked heads. It
allows for so much more character with each Predator when they don’t
have to try and fit a mask over the face. That being said, it would
be awesome if each one came with two heads – one masked, one not –
but I totally understand why they don’t. I already mentioned the
pliable dreadlocks on this guy. Each one is individual and has its
own detailing. The face is the best one I’ve seen at this scale. As
good as McFarlane’s Predator figures were, their faces were a
little… action figurey. This guy looks like a monster. Every detail
of that hideous face is carved out. The eyes are full of rage, the
face fingers or mandibles or whatever are totally disturbing and the mouth
underneath is a nightmare.
This interstellar hunter does not have
the bladed gauntlet on his right hand that many of the Predators do,
but I like that. Instead he has a matching pair of tech gauntlets
that give him a bit more balance. I do like a bit of asymmetry in
things, but it is cool to have balance from time to time as well.
That seems to be a thing with this guy, as he has neither the blade
gauntlet nor the shoulder-mounted laser cannon.
He has a spread right hand and an open
fist for his left. The fingers are detailed very nicely, with
wrinkles and folds running down to the clawed tips.
One thing I like about NECA’s
Predators is that the musculature is slightly less defined than
McFarlane’s. Like the face son those, the bodies came off as very
toy-like. They were too sculpted an defined. These from NECA
look more organic and lifelike.
The calves sport pieces or armor that,
like the forearms, are balanced but not exactly the same. The feet
are large, clawed, and detailed.
Every bit of this figure is covered
with sculpted detail. There really isn’t a surface that hasn’t
been given some kind of shape or form.
Coloring: The paint
applications on this guy are no less amazing than the sculpt. I am
truly astonished at what NECA’s design team has accomplished. The
fine details and the precision involved is just mind-blowing.
The skin of the creature is perhaps the
most impressive thing. The blending of the green and the lighter
tones is just wonderful. I’ve seen less skilled work on life-sized
pieces.
The face is covered in little details;
from aforementioned blending of the skin tones to the beady, little
eyes and the mouth phalanges. Even the interior of the mouth features
some paint work. I am glad they resisted the temptation to put any
kind of wash on the dreadlocks. To me those have always been pitch
black – more like insect hairs than mammal ones.
The claws and netting are some of the
finest details. The claws are pretty easy, I guess, but the netting –
I looked this figure over for quite some time and couldn’t find a
flaw in the paint on the netting. Not even one slightly off-center
line. It’s amazing.
Flair: The Lost Predator
has a good bit in the way of sculpted extras. His chest armor is a
unique piece that is more balanced than what we are used to seeing on
these guys. It goes across the upper chest and features a number of
bits of technology that are sculpted and painted. It fits snugly and
is the sort of piece that you have to look at to realize it is
separate from the figure’s torso.
It has some detailed armor plating
on the back, as well.
He also has a belt and a loin cloth.
The loin cloth looks like a sort of leather and fits loosely but
stays in place well. It is molded to the figure’s hips so it
doesn’t look odd or hang incorrectly. The belt is just a bunch of
pieces of stuff with a loop on the left side to store the included
machete. I’m not sure how else to describe it. It, too is molded to
the figure and sits perfectly. The loop has a nice, wide sculpt and
looks better than if it were just an extra piece of the belt. Both
pieces could be mistaken for being part of the figure when seen from
a distance.
Accessories: This
Predator comes with a particularly wicked-looking machete. It is
molded from a firm plastic – no rubber here! – and looks great.
The edges are very clean and smooth and the blade is believably
sharp. The hilt fits perfectly into the figure’s hand and the blade
slides into the loop on its belt, though it takes a little effort.
The paint on this piece is detailed, featuring a few different colors
and a nice, worn look.
Packaging: NECA is still
putting its Predators in cardboard-backed blister cards, which makes
me happy. This one has a shaped cardback
Value: $17.99 for this
figure feels good, even with my typical mindset of fifteen dollars
being too much for a six inch figure. First of all, this figure tops
seven inches. Granted, that still makes him six inch scale,
but you know what I mean. But just looking at the level of detail
involved and the amount of articulation, I can’t help but feel like
it’s well worth eighteen bucks. Especially when you consider that
this is eighteen dollars:
And this is almost twenty-four:
My rational mind screams at the fact
that I subscribed to the DC Matty figures again for 2013 when items
like this are available for far less. I can’t explain myself. I am
a toy junkie.
Overall: This is a
tremendous action figure. NECA is well on their way to being my
favorite toy company of 2012. Their innovation and smart usage of
licensing is absolutely blowing me away, particularly here in the
last half of the year.
5
out of 5
I don’t know that this is THE
Predator action figure you would want if you’re only going to buy
one, but it is an excellent figure. If you collect Predators it is
well worth your while. It’s available in Toys R Us stores now, or
you can go to pretty much any online toy retailer and order just him
or the whole series he is part of.
Phantom
Troublemaker vs. 31 Days of Halloween
If you’re new here or haven’t been
keeping up, this is where I give my thoughts on SyFy’s “31 days
of Halloween” programming. Obviously I haven’t seen everything
I’ll be talking about, but that’s kind of what the internet is
all about – talking out of your ass.
Each day I will cover the schedule from
the time my post goes live (usually 11 AM) through the following 24
hours. On Fridays I will cover the whole weekend, which is a huge
pain in the ass but also kind of fun.
Enjoy!
11:30 AM – 1:30 PM – Reign of the
Gargoyles – This one stands out in my mind for being
particularly crappy. I made fun of it before they showed it last
year, then watched it and felt totally justified. It was crap.
Halloween score – 2
Quality score – 2
1:30 PM – 3:30 PM – Rise of the
Gargoyles – I cannot believe that fucking
thing got a sequel.
Halloween score – 2
Quality score – 2
3:30 PM – 5:30 PM – My Bloody
Valentine – I like this movie, and seeing it here
makes me glad that SyFy isn’t doing some kind of gargoyle theme
today. There are some good deaths in this one and who doesn’t like
Jensen Ackles? I still don’t buy that weasely kid from Dawson’s
Creek as the sheriff. That’s just ridiculous, despite his
attempted mustache.
Halloween score – 5
Quality score – 1
5:30 PM – 8:00 PM – Hannibal
– What!?! How the heck is SyFy showing this? Sir Anthony Hopkins
appearing on the same channel as WWE SmackDown and Scare
Tactics? This is the Lecter picture that really came off as
straight horror, though, and is more than appropriate for 31 Days of
Halloween. Unless, of course, this is a SyFy Original biopic about
the Carthaginian Conqueror.
Halloween score – 4
Quality score – 4
8:00 PM – 11:00 PM – Shutter Island
– I just realized I haven’t seen this movie yet. I remember
seeing the trailer in the theater and thinking I would definitely go
see it. Never did for some reason. I still want to, but I doubt I’ll
be watching it on censored cable. With commercials. Blech.
Halloween score – 3
Quality score – 4
11:00 PM – 1:00 AM – The Skeleton Key
– I have seen this movie a bunch of times and I have no idea why. I
mean, I like it, but not a ton. I probably haven’t watched The
Incredible Hulk as many times and I loved that movie. Anyway,
this stars Kate Hudson and some serious voodoo shit and I recommend
it.
Speaking of which, I might be doing a post about voodoo before
the month is over. Stay tuned.
Halloween score – 4
Quality score – 4
FRIDAY
1:00 AM – 3:00 AM – Wes Craven
Presents: They – I think this was the terrible one.
There were two very similar movies that came out around the same
time, both dealing with monsters in the shadows. I believe this was
the one that sucked. Maybe they both did. I’m not sure.
Halloween score – 5
Quality score – 1 (unless the other
one is the one that sucked)
3:00 AM – 5:00 AM – They Wait
– Jaime King – who I generally like – stars in this one about
Chinese ghosts. It might be kind of good. I can’t remember ever
hearing of it.
Halloween score – 4
Quality score – 3
5:00 AM – 6:00 AM – Ghost Whisperer
– Hello, Ms. Love-Hewitt. How are you this morning? Still sexy and
talkin’ to ghosts? That’s what I thought.
Halloween score – 5
Quality score – 3
6:00 AM – 8:00 AM – Paid Programming
– I wonder if I could get somebody to sponsor me doing a series of
posts about one of the infomercial products. Not the Pos-T-Vac, but
the total Gym or the Hoveround or something.
Halloween score – 1
Quality score – 5
8:00 AM – 8:30 AM – Twilight Zone
– “The Last Flight” is one of those episodes about somebody
being displaced. These are the ones that creep me out the most. I’d
much rather find a gremlin on the wing of my plane than end up in
some strange world where nothing is the way I think it should be.
Halloween score – 3
Quality score – 4
8:30 AM – 10:30 AM – The Seamstress
– This actually sounds kind of good, but the writer is listed as
“Anonymous”, which can’t be a good sign. The story is pretty
much A Nightmare on Elm Street, but Freddy is a female and a
seamstress rather than a male custodian. Also it doesn’t sound like
she’s a child murderer.
Halloween score – 4
Quality score – 2
10:30 AM – 12:30 PM – Timber Falls
– The story of an innocent lumberjack who was hunted down and
tortured to death by a mob of angry villagers who were convinced he’s
been stealing their sack lunches. He was killed by being cut in half
with his own saw – one of those super-long ones that takes two
people to use.
Two score years later, the lumberjack is resurrected by the magic Sasquatch shaman of the forest, who sends him on a path of vengeance
to the village; which is now a bustling town. The lumberjack lures
the townsfolk – the children of the ones that murdered him – into
the surrounding woods and then kills them by felling trees on top of
them.
The twist ending is that the Sasquatch was really the one stealing
the sack lunches.
Just kidding. I wrote that before even looking to see what Timber
Falls was. It actually sounds like an okay movie.
Halloween score – 3
Quality score – 3
Come back tomorrow when I'll be talking about Darkman!
-Phantom
The name for the Predator race is "yautja" -- it's never mentioned in the movies to my knowledge, but it's in all the Predator novels. (If I can recommend one, "Aliens vs. Predator: Prey" is a fun read.)
ReplyDeleteLoved your figure review!! (I'm a Predator fanatic, so it's nice to see all of the new stuff coming out!)
Thanks for the heads up! Always glad to have new info. And I'll check out that AVP book. For some reason I've never been in any way compelled to pick up an Aliens or Predator novel.
DeleteI just got my first predator figure and went with Warrior Predator, but it was a difficult choice for me between him and this Lost Predator. Maybe I should have gone with the more traditional looking Scout Predator, but I really like how striking Warrior and this figure are.
ReplyDeleteI really like the colors of this figure, especially the contrast between the blue/metallic armor and green skin. His unique weapon choice is cool too, in that there is no claw and no laser. Also, isn't it a rule that if I have one masked predator figure then I also need an unmasked figure too?
I have gone on a bit of Predator kick, buying Big Red sort of set me off down a bad path. Anyway, I just got Lost Predator today, and he is fantastic. I like him a lot more than Warrior Predator, and had I bought this one first, I probably would have started growing my collection before now.
ReplyDelete