Ever
since I took in all of Jon Pertwee’s run as the Doctor I have been
eagerly anticipating figures of Jo Grant and Brigadier Alistair
Lethbridge-Stewart. Of course, there was no guarantee we were
actually going to get
those figures, but as long as the Doctor Who Classics line continued
they seemed like a safe bet.
- Jo and the Brig are packed together
- Jo is in my favorite costume of hers done in the best possible way
- The Brigadier is also in my favorite version of his uniform
- Rather than throwing a variant of the Doctor in this set, they gave us a monster
- The monster is cool
- This set compliments an already-released figure (Omega)
The
only negative here is that I don’t have figures of Troughton and
Hartnell loose to complete the Three Doctors theme. Gonna have to fix
that.
As
for the story itself, The
Three Doctors
is one of the few Pertwee adventures that I had already seen. My
local PBS station played a few Pertwee stories after they stopped
showing Davison’s (I can’t remember if they showed Davison’s
entire run or if they just stopped – I’m inclined to believe the
latter since there are many Davison stories I haven’t seen and I
didn’t stop watching until after Colin Baker took over). I enjoyed
it when I was younger and I still liked it after re-watching it.
Omega is an exciting and interesting villain (despite the fact that
he doesn’t actually, you know, do
anything) and Jo and the Brigadier are among my favorite companions.
Plus, any multi-Doctor story is fun. Watching Hartnell interact with
Troughton and Pertwee – even in a limited capacity – is
thoroughly engaging.
First
Glance:
I think it speaks volumes about Doctor
Who,
its writers, and the actors that played the companions that even with
a universe so full of monsters we fans are excited to be getting a
figures of a couple of plain ol’ humans.
I
love these window boxes and the way Underground Toys arranges the
contents. The figures all look nice and I can’t wait to check them
out.
Articulation:
Underground has continued to improve the articulation on this line.
Aside from pieces of costuming interfering with movement these
figures are about as poseable as you need at this scale.
Brigadier
Head
– Swivel
Shoulders
– Swivel/pivot
Elbows
– Pivot
Wrists
– Swivel
Waist
– Swivel
Hips
– Swivel/pivot
Thigh
– Swivel
Knees
– Pivot
The
bottom of the Brig’s jacket prevents a large range of movement, but
it is wide enough that you can get a little bit.
The
arms have a great range of motion and I love the way the shoulder
joints are done. They blend well with the sculpt but move nicely.
Jo
Grant
Head
– Swivel
Shoulders
– Swivel/pivot
Elbows
– Pivot
Wrists
– Swivel
Waist
– Swivel
Hips
– Swivel/pivot
Thigh
– Swivel
Knees
– Pivot
Jo’s
dress inhibits leg movement at the hips.
Both
sets of arms have elbow joints, but the ones with the coat sleeves
don’t move as much due to the overhanging sleeves.
Jo’s
long hair does not interfere with her head movement as much as you
might think.
Gel Guard
Shoulder
– Swivel/pivot
Heh.
This guy has a moving arm. It moves up. It moves down. And it does so
slightly more successfully than the monster upon which it is based.
Sculpt:
Jo is an entirely new sculpt. Well, her lower abdomen and thighs may
not be, but the rest of her certainly is.
The
head – obviously the most important part – looks great. Her
hairstyle reflects what is in the episode. Unlike her predecessor Liz
Shaw, Jo had mostly the same hairstyle so I’m sure we’ll see this
head again. The facial features are a bit soft, but that seems common
in this line. As long as the likenesses continue to be this good I’ll
take it. There’s no doubt this is Katy Manning.
The
arms are the sleeves of the dress and have a nice texturing. The
shapes of the sleeves at the end look good and the striping is raised
rather than just painted. The hands are slim and feature Jo’s
signature plethora of rings(would you say I have a plethora of rings,
Pepe?). The hands are in flat, neutral poses. This is fine because
there’s nothing for them to hold (which is also fine). I hate it
when hands are sculpted as open fists for no good reason.
From
the thighs down Jo is definitely new, as she is wearing over-the-knee
boots. They look great and do a good job of blending the knee joints.
Before I had the figure in hand I wasn’t even positive it had
knee joints. The platforms at the bottoms of the boots look great and
the figure has no trouble standing despite them.
The
Guardian is a gross, bubbly mess and I love it. This is a classic
example of an old-school Doctor Who monster. A simple design that
manages to be creepy without being able to move very well at all. The
eye is made somehow grosser by the presence of the lid around it. And
the lobster claw (what the fuck are robster craws?) sticking out of
its right side is just plain wrong. I love how the bubbling texture
of the body is irregular and uneven. It has a very organic look.
The
claw looks a bit more like it has a hard carapace on it. This is
truly disconcerting coming out of that gelatinous form. This thing
creeps me out. Let’s move on.
The
Brigadier looks absolutely sharp and commanding. He is an entirely
new sculpt (but maybe not the pants).
The
head is among the best sculpts in the line. Not only is it an
excellent likeness of Nicholas Courtney, it captures his dignified
yet slightly incredulous expression perfectly. His cap is properly
proportioned – something that does not always happen with action
figures’ headgear – and nicely detailed. The insignia on the
front looks great and the band is sculpted rather than painted.
The
arms sport crisp jacket sleeves with cuffs that are open at the end
rather than just stuck to the hands. The hands are sculpted gloves,
not hands painted brown. They are both sculpted in an open position
to hold something, but more natural and relaxed than open fists.
The
legs may or may not be new. Creased trousers have been used before,
but I think these are different and the shoes definitely are.
Coloring:
The Guardian is molded out of a translucent plastic that looks pretty
gross. There’s a hole in the bottom where you can stick a small
flashlight in and make the thing sort of glow. It looks neat enough
to do once. Aside from some washes on the body the only real coloring
is the eye and the lid. Both are solid and stay within their
boundaries.
The
Brigadier is a bunch of olive drab and brown, much like an old GI Joe
figure. The detailing on his hat is tight and his facial features are
all distinct and well-placed. The olive drab portions are all uniform
(see what I did there?) despite being molded out of different
plastics. The shoes are a nice, deep brown with dark soles.
Jo
has blonde hair with a wash. I feel like it’s a bit darker than it
should be, but it looks good nonetheless. The blue on her sleeves
matches her dress and the raised white stripes are accurately done
without any blotching or misplaced spots. The rings on her hands are
individually painted and amazingly the silver manages to stay on the
sculpted ring portions. The figure’s legs are darker so that they
look like hose and the boots have a wash on them.
Flair:
The Brigadier’s jacket is a separately sculpted piece over his
torso and waist. I prefer this to a solid sculpted torso with a soft
plastic piece separated at the waist. The detailing on this jacket is
fantastic. The pockets, buttons, belts, service bars, and brocade
might represent the most detail I’ve seen on a human Doctor Who
figure. The sculpt is great and the paint detailing is accurately
placed. I still haven’t decided how I feel about the attached
holster. Obviously it looks better than a functional holster would
have, but when the Brig is holding the included pistol it seems a bit
weird. And I’ve probably given that more thought than it deserves.
Jo’s
dress obviously isn’t quite as detailed as the Brig’s jacket, but
it still looks good. The turtleneck has a nice shape and texture. The
dress itself has a nice form and is a soft plastic that allows for a
little give when posing the legs. The raised ridges at the bottom
match the sleeves.
Accessories:
This set comes with a pistol, Jo’s jacket, and an extra set of arms
for Jo with jacket sleeves on them.
Jo’s
jacket looks awesome and as far as I am concerned is pure bonus. The
sculpt is great, it fits perfectly on the figure and the fact that
Underground put this all in one package rather than releasing it as a
variant down the line is great. Jo’s arms are easily
interchangeable and stay in place well thanks to pliable pegs in the
shoulders. The arm holes in the jacket piece are tight and don’t
leave ugly gaps where they meet the arms.
The
pistol looks good and fits in the Brigadier’s hand. Um… that’s
it.
Packaging:
These Doctor Who Classics window boxes look so nice. I suppose
they’re more than some of these sets really call for, but I love
the little dioramas they build inside. It always makes me a little
sad to throw the packaging away when I’m done.
The
box features brief bios for each character as well as a synopsis of
the story.
Value:
And once again I have to address the fact that these figures cost way
too much. Forty bucks is obviously more than I would like to have
paid for this set, but considering they are import figures, they are
very well done, and none of them are repaints; I have to say I feel
it was worth it.
Overall:
Underground Toys went above and beyond for this set. I can’t think
of a way it could have been better executed. It’s easily one of the
most satisfying sets from the Doctor Who Classics line.
5
out of 5
There
are a few different options for buying The Three Doctors set, with a
bit of variance in pricing – BigBad,
JRs,
and Entertainment Earth
may or may not have it in stock right now. You could also try your
local comic shop or toy show. If you’re a fan of classic Who, this
is an absolute must-have.
-Phantom
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