This
thing was fucking elusive (an elusive exclusive). For a while there I
was pretty sure I wasn’t going to find this set.
I
finally found one on my way to a great Platinum Championship
Wrestling show, but before I get to them I want to talk about
Predator.
Ha!
Just kidding! I did that yesterday.
Well, I talked about the first one anyway. And I’ll be covering the
rest of the Predator-related movies and probably the comics a bit as
well over the rest of the week. So now I have no intro.
Except
that I can talk a bit about the history of Predator figures.
(from FigureRealm.com)
Kenner
released a decent variety of Predators. They were a little hard to
find at first, so the first one I bought was the first one I found,
even though it wasn’t the closest to a movie design. Actually, I
think many (if not all) of the figures were taken from Dark Horse’s
comic books. But the first one I got was Scavage, who came with a
gigantic net-shooting gun. These were toys aimed at kids, so coming
with a big, gimmicky weapon was going to happen. I also had Cracked
Tusk and one that came in a 2-pack with an Alien. The one from the
2-pack was closest to being just a regular Predator like the ones
from the movies.
The
pride and joy of my Aliens/Predators collection was the mail-away
Stealth Predator – a clear plastic variant that came with vac-metal
accessories. It arrived in a clear plastic baggie with no backboard
and included a mask and a bladed weapon that clipped onto the
figure’s hand. It’s one of my favorite toys that I’ve ever
owned and I wish I still had it. I do, however, have this:
That
Kenner line lasted a few years and even became one of the classic
Kaybee Toys Clearance lines. Overall it was a great line with decent
sculpting and apps and great play value. Ideal for kids despite the
nature of the source material. The Predators and Aliens were all
colorful and had dynamic designs that were fun to look at. These
figures were also sturdy. Sporting an average of five points of
articulation, no fall off of the shelf was going to hurt them. Now
that I think about it, I wish I had all of the figures I owned from
this line, not just the mail-away.
The
next contender to enter the Predator toy market was the legendary
company that changed the toy industry forever – McFarlane Toys.
The
entire sixth series of McFarlane’s Movie Maniacs line consisted of
Aliens and Predators. It was the first time a whole wave had been
dedicated to a single franchise, with previous waves featuring
characters from several different movies. This was also the first
time a toy company had put out Alien and Predator toys since Kenner.
Hasbro briefly held the Alien license when Alien:
Resurrection
was released and made some very nice figures, but the figures
McFarlane released were at a whole different level.
Each
figure featured numerous points of articulation – almost comparable
to Marvel Legends and much more aesthetically pleasing. I bought
everything. Not only did they look fantastic; unlike most other
McFarlane products they didn’t fall apart. Between their durability
and just general awesomeness, this set of figures is one of the few
that I’ve never packed away when I was moving or rotating through
my collection. Even the massive Movie Maniacs series spent some time
boxed up when I was in the last apartment I lived in.
Which
brings me up to the current NECA line.
I believe NECA got the license back when Predators came out. I didn’t buy any of them because I was in a weird place with NECA at the time. I loved the things they were putting out, but I had too many figures from them that pissed me off. I have a whole wall of horror toys.
I believe NECA got the license back when Predators came out. I didn’t buy any of them because I was in a weird place with NECA at the time. I loved the things they were putting out, but I had too many figures from them that pissed me off. I have a whole wall of horror toys.
I
mix NECA and McFarlane and it works fairly well except for the fact
that the following figures are either leaning or I have had to figure
out some method of support to prop them up:
Professor
Loomis
Angus
Scrimm
Elvis
Presley
The
mummy from Bubba Ho-Tep
Four
figures may not seem like a big deal out of that whole wall, but the
latter are three of my favorite figures. And the problem is that NECA
decided to make the feet on those figures out of rubber. To this day
I can’t figure out why they did that. And it bothered me so much I
wouldn’t buy their stuff for a while.
And
then Halloween came around one year and I was running short on posts.
I bought a figure of Jason
Voorhees from the Friday
the 13th
remake
to review. Say what you will about the remake (I liked it), but the
figure is great. I decided I would give NECA another chance, which
was a good thing because that’s around the same time they announced
their Evil
Dead 2
line and really started cranking out fantastic Predators. I missed
out on the ones from Predators
– though I stopped and looked at them plenty of times – but I
finally caved and bought one when they offered a version I simply
couldn’t refuse – the SDCC Exclusive Stealth Predator. A
veritable remake of the Kenner figure I had all those years ago.
Granted, this one didn’t have vac-metal accessories, but it was
pretty awesome.
Since
then I’ve been buying NECA’s Predator releases pretty regularly.
Not everything, but the ones that I like. I picked up a couple of
members of the Lost Tribe from Predator
2 – a green one and... another green one
– and couldn’t resist Big Red from the Dead
End fan
film.
But
I’ll get to him on Thursday. Today I’m going to review the most
recent Toys R Us Exclusive 2-pack – battle damaged versions of the
Predators from Predator
and Predator
2.
First
Glance:
These guys are obviously loaded with detail and articulation. I
immediately liked the blood spatter on the City Hunter.
I immediately did not like the fact that the seam on his removable forearm was so noticeable. Also I can’t help but think of the Prometheus Penis any time I see that silver “Toys R Us Exclusive” sticker now.
I immediately did not like the fact that the seam on his removable forearm was so noticeable. Also I can’t help but think of the Prometheus Penis any time I see that silver “Toys R Us Exclusive” sticker now.
Articulation:
Both figures feature the same articulation, and tons of it. Since it
is the same for both figures, I’ll just do one list:
Head
– Ball joint
Shoulders
– Ball joint
Elbows
– Swivel/pivot
Wrists
– Okay, these and the feet are stuck onto pegs with balls on the
end, so they have a bit of rotary movement, but not as much as a
proper ball joint. I don’t know what to call this.
Waist
– Swivel (Jungle Hunter) Rocker joint (City Hunter)
Hips
– Ball joint
Thigh
– Swivel
Knees
– Double pivot
Feet
– Same as wrists
Due
to the shoulder armor, neither Predator’s left arm moves a whole
lot. The City Hunter is a good bit more restricted than the Jungle
guy.
The
double-jointed knees are nice, but the ankles don’t move enough to
make them as useful as they could be. We still don’t have a
Predator capable of actually squatting down. But we’re getting
close.
Amazingly,
none of the armor and stuff hanging around the figures’ hips
interfere with posing. You do have to play with things a bit to get
certain poses, but it all moves easily and is sturdy enough to
withstand some pushing around.
As
with the other Predators I have reviewed, the dreadlocks hardly
interfere with head movement at all. They do make it a little tricky
to move the shoulder cannons, but I’ll get to that.
The
hands and feet do pop off easily during posing, but they go right
back on. And they do stay on if you’re just moving the figure or
handling it normally.
Honestly,
the only thing I can think of to improve on these guys is a better
ankle joint. Which I think we’ll probably see someday.
Sculpt:
These two may have almost the same articulation; they do not,
however, share much at all in the way of sculpt.
The
Jungle Hunter is a new unmasked head. It’s taken from the scene
where it shows Arnold Schwarzenegger its War Face and it looks
amazing. The mouth claws (or whatever you call them) are tiny and
detailed, and made from a firmer plastic than you might expect. They
still have enough flexibility that you don’t have to worry about
them breaking off. The rest of the face is squinty and menacing.
The
dreadlocks are separate but attached pieces of very soft but
well-sculpted plastic. There are actually a couple of layers of these
things. Once you get up close its an impressive sight to see how NECA
designed them.
Most
of the rest of the body is covered in that netting that is so weird
but that gives the Predators such a distinctive look. Not only is the
netting sculpted rather than painted, there is also sculpted texture
on the skin underneath.
The
armor plating is all accurate to the movie, right down to the wiring
on the left arm. The wires are soft plastic and do restrict movement
a bit, but the only alternative would have been to make them
ridiculously long. They feel sturdy enough, but I wouldn’t tug on
them too much.
The
wrist armor/tech pieces are nice and chunky without interfering with
the movement of the hands or elbows.
The right wrist features a pair of extendable blades. I am terrified of these breaking off, but they have already survived a drop to the floor, so they’re apparently pretty sturdy. They also have a bit of wiggle room in the housing, so they can move around a bit. The left arm sports the computer thing. The panel doesn’t open unfortunately, but it does look good. The hands are awesome. There are glove-like coverings on the backs and the fingers are each distinctive and detailed.
The right wrist features a pair of extendable blades. I am terrified of these breaking off, but they have already survived a drop to the floor, so they’re apparently pretty sturdy. They also have a bit of wiggle room in the housing, so they can move around a bit. The left arm sports the computer thing. The panel doesn’t open unfortunately, but it does look good. The hands are awesome. There are glove-like coverings on the backs and the fingers are each distinctive and detailed.
All
of the business in the crotch area looks good. The belt is cool and
the skirt is a soft plastic. The thigh plates are actually separate
pieces from the legs that are raised slightly at the top. This allows
the skirt to go underneath so that it doesn’t interfere with
posing. The knee pads are similar, in that they are attached but
separately sculpted pieces. The lower leg armor looks good and does a
good job of hiding joints.
The
feet are kind of funny, but they appear to be modeled exactly after
the movie costume rather than being streamlined at all. I approve of
this. They’re all clunky and boot-looking. The City Hunter has
better looking feet, but I’ll get to that. I am definitely okay
with NECA sticking to the design rather than massing with it and
giving this guy fancier feet.
The
City Hunter Predator – who looks nothing
like a little white car – also has a new head. This one features
the respirator mask it uses after Danny Glover takes its regular mask
off. The detail on the mask is great. The top of this Predator’s
head is a good bit different from the other one. Its spikier and has
scalloped edges. The dreadlocks are very similar and are layered in
the same way.
The
City Hunter’s upper body armor is quite a bit different from the
Jungle Hunter’s. This has plates going down its upper arms and a
lot more gimmickry on the shoulders and back. This one also has a
built-in shoulder cannon rather than the big clip-on piece. What I
like about the design here is that this looks like different gear
rather than more advanced gear. The only thing on the two different
Predators that is significantly noticeable as an improvement in the
technology of the Predator costume is the feet. Everything else just
looks like different stuff. I hate it when costume/creature designers
get carried away with advancements when they handle sequels within
the same franchise and the monsters or whatever are visibly different
in that way. It’s jarring and takes you out of the narrative. The
best example of this is Yoda. And I understand that a puppet Yoda
simply could not have done the things that the character did in
Attack
of the Clones,
but even children are bothered by the difference in puppetry and CGI.
Granted,
that’s a rather extreme example as it deals with different mediums
of effects rather than actual practical design, but I think you get
what I’m saying.
City
Hunter’s body features similar detailing to Jungle Hunter’s. The
netting has a slightly different look and so does the skin texture. I
didn’t mention this above, but it is outstanding that the net
continues into the joints. Even when the knees are bent on these guys
the netting is there.
This
guy’s wrists sport the same devices as Jungle Hunter, they just
look a bit different. The right one has a retractable dual claw and
the left has the little computer gizmo, again without an opening
panel. This time it’s more acceptable since that arm pops off to
simulate the damage the character sustained in the movie. This
gimmick doesn’t work as well as I’d like. The seam is very
visible on the arm, even when it is aligned properly. You can even
see a bit of the green blood. But the big problem is the way they
designed the peg. Rather than putting the peg on the hand – which
falls away into an alley and is never seen again – they put it on
the arm so you have it just sitting there sticking out in an utterly
unnatural way:
I can’t fathom why it was designed this way. Time and again NECA’s designers have come up with ingenious ways of doing things and this arm feature flies in the face of that. I would have totally displayed this guy sans hand, but I don’t want to look at that peg. It’s even more of a shame because there is actually sculpted gore and gristle around the peg. It would look so awesome otherwise. Yeah, I could cut the peg off, but I don’t want to mutilate my toy and I would like to retain the option of using the hand or not.
I can’t fathom why it was designed this way. Time and again NECA’s designers have come up with ingenious ways of doing things and this arm feature flies in the face of that. I would have totally displayed this guy sans hand, but I don’t want to look at that peg. It’s even more of a shame because there is actually sculpted gore and gristle around the peg. It would look so awesome otherwise. Yeah, I could cut the peg off, but I don’t want to mutilate my toy and I would like to retain the option of using the hand or not.
City
Hunter has a bit more business in the waist/crotch area, but it also
has a significant problem – the crotch and hip joints are not
detailed or painted. They’re just a very dark brown that looks
fairly terrible head-on. You can pull the figure’s loin armor or
codpiece or whatever down to cover it a little bit, but it’s still
there. Otherwise the area looks good. The belt is cool and has
plating on it as well as a couple of pouches, one of which is
connected via tube to the respirator.
City
Hunter has the same style of thigh pieces as the other figure - so
that the plating on the belt can slide underneath – but the right
thigh sports the holster for the Death Frisbee rather than an armor
plate.
The
knee and leg armor are very different on the City Hunter. I think I
like this version more. The left leg has the medical kit attached to
it. It has slots on the top and bottom that look like they could hold
something, but I’m not sure what. There might be another version of
this character with some sort of feature there.
The
feet are the most significant difference between the Jungle and City
Hunters. The City Hunter feet are much more detailed and have
distinctive big toes(?) and dew claws(?). They look great.
Coloring:
It’s nice to finally have a Predator from the second movie in the
right colors. I’ve always preferred figures of the original, but
only because McFarlane never got it right on their figures. Now we
have a proper City Hunter and it looks great.
There’s
almost too much detail to really talk about. I’ve mentioned this
before, but sometimes I just don’t know how to talk about a really
excellent paint job. The head has those great patterns on it that all
blend in together. The skin has similar excellent blending. It’s
really amazing to look at the netting and realize that none of the
black on it bleeds onto the skin at all. The blood is nice and bright
and placed in the correct spots to reflect the damage the creature
suffered in the movie. This figure's skin almost seems to have a sort
of translucence to it. It's a cool effect.
The
armor and technology looks worn but not rusty. There is some great
paint blending going on there, as well.
Again,
the only real problem is that crotch. The dark brown just sticks out
so badly.
The
Jungle Hunter is lighter and stands out a bit more,
despite the larger amount of day-glo blood on the City Hunter. A lot
of that has to do with the difference in armor. While City's is a
metallic brown, Jungle's is silver. Jungle also has much earthier
skin tones. The face, netting, and claws are all fully detailed. I
love the way the wear on the armor was done.
Jungle
has some blood deco on its right leg, where it got shot in the movie.
It looks good and is placed well. The only problem with this guy is
the pins in his knee joints. They're matched with the lightest color
of its skin and they stand out pretty badly. I think black might have
looked better.
These
guys both have excellent paint jobs. An amazing amount of detail and
no errors that I could see. Just a couple of decisions I don't agree
with.
Flair:
The Jungle Hunter has three bone necklace things. They're on black
thread that works for this purpose. The sculpting on the bones and
skulls is very good. They're sick-looking little ornaments. The spine
one bothers me the most.
The
City Hunter has a pouch and a sort of loincloth thing. The pouch is
on black thread and is what it is. It's a pouch. The loincloth is on
elastic thread, so it can be moved down a bit to cover up the ugly
crotch. It also has a moveable shoulder cannon.
It is supposed to be able to move down a slot onto the Predator's back, but mine isn't fitted quite right. I could probably mess with it and get it aligned properly, but I don't feel like it.
It is supposed to be able to move down a slot onto the Predator's back, but mine isn't fitted quite right. I could probably mess with it and get it aligned properly, but I don't feel like it.
The
skulls are from alien (not Alien) species that I can't identify. They
look cool. The sculpts are intricate and the paint detailing is nice.
They'd look great on the forthcoming trophy
wall if I was willing to spend the money to get it.
Jungle
Hunter's shoulder cannon is a nice piece that snaps onto the figure's
back armor. The points of connection are almost undetectable, yet
work very well. The figure looks great with or without the cannon on.
Those things would all be perfectly fine except for one thing:
Packaging: It's a blister card. But at least it's a nice blister card. There are brief bios, and most importantly NECA actually credits its creative team:
Holy shit.
Overall:
Despite the minor flaws, I love these guys. They were worth the time
and effort I put into finding them. If you see them, buy them. They
only lose the point because of those deco decisions I didn't care
for. I know I should take something off for the missing Smart Disc, but I kind of don't care.
4
out of 5
You
might not be able to just walk into a Toys R Us and buy the set, but
you can still order it from their website.
I recommend you do so.
Have you tried finding that mail-away Predator on eBay? I'm sure you could. That's how I recently bought the mail-away Earthworm Jim action figure (Earthworm Jim in a black and green costume which made him look like a member of the Green Lantern Corps) for really cheap (in fact, cheaper than getting a normal Earthworm Jim still in package by a wide margin.)
ReplyDeleteI used to have all of the Playmates EWJ figures. That was a fantastic line - a step above their Turtles, even. I haven't been on eBay in a while. It's too dangerous with the toy nostalgia I've been experiencing lately. Bad enough we're going to a toy con this Sunday.
DeleteGreat review of a great set. Apparently you can email Neca with a proof of purchase and they will mail you a smart disc. I am not sure how well it works, I've sent them two messages (one to twitter@necaonline.com, the other by messaging them through their website) with no response. However, I did email them about missing throwing knives a few years ago for their Ninja Gaiden figure and never got a response, but the knives just showed up in the mail one day.
ReplyDeleteI highly suggest doing a quick mod on your city hunter's plasma cannon. Heat it up with you preferred method, and barely start to pull it off of its balljoint, just enough to stretch the hole a little. Let it cool and then push it back on. This just loosens it up making it easy to pose. I've had to superglue the post back twice on one of mine because it twisted off while trying to position, so I did this to all of the other figures that share that cannon and it works great. You can also easily reshape the cannon's track in the armor, allowing it to slide up and down smoothly.
I'll try contacting them. I'm curious to know if the Disc might have some blood on it.
Delete