“…”
Just like many
Whovians, I am suffering from Angel fatigue.
I mean, the
whole hunky, sultry vampire with a soul thing. And what’s up with
that hair? Are you seriously telling me that a demonic creature of
the night gets up every evening and spends half an hour with a can of
mousse? The guy totally knows how to dress, though.
Haha! Just a
little cross-franchise nerd humor there!
Okay. That’s
enough.
For real – who
cares if they ever see another Weeping Angel again? Show of hands.
That’s what I
thought.
And the thing
is, I have liked every story they’ve been featured in. They’re
all good. Yes, I could have done without the redonkulous Statue of
Liberty angel, but everything else has been quite good. I think it’s
actually their rampant popularity that has me a little burned out.
These Moffat-minted villains (that I’m surprised haven’t been
retconned into the reason the Doctor originally left Gallifrey) have
been Christmas ornaments, t-shirts, action figures, stuffed animals,
hats, and toilet paper:
Okay, I made
that up. But what really put me over the edge was discovering that
rather than depicting the Second, Fifth, or Sixth Doctors on a series
of Halloween masks, they chose to make an Angel. Dammit. That was
just a step too far.
I loved the
Angels initially though. I bought the first Angel figure that came
out and was pleased enough. Then Underground released that Pandorica
set where you had to buy an Angel. And it wasn’t a great
one. Or at least, it wasn’t different enough from prior releases
that I would’ve bought it if I hadn’t needed it to build the
Pandorica. And I would have bought several Angels if they had
been produced with varying sculpts and facial expressions.
And now I’ve
had to buy another. I mean, I didn’t have to, but it was
cheaper to go ahead and order the full set of new figures than to buy
everything separately without the Angel. And the thing is, the Angel
shouldn’t even be in this set.
The first series
of figures in this new scale consists of: The Doctor in his new
purple coat, Clara, the new style Ice Warrior, the new style
Cyberman, a Davies Dalek, and this Angel. All of the other characters
are from season 7.5, but that Angel? Not.
First
Glance: This is about as boring as a Weeping Angel could
possibly be. No angry face, static pose, and even the arms are
positioned as if to say, “What do you expect? I’m a friggin’
statue.”
Articulation:
There honestly wasn’t much point in articulating this thing since
it is clearly intended to be an Angel in its neutral state of
inaction. But they did.
Head – swivel
Shoulders –
ball joint
Waist - swivel
Unlike the wings
of the larger, 5” scale Angels, the wings on this one are not
articulated.
The joints all
work just fine. Whoopee.
Sculpt:
I may not be excited about owning this figure, but I can’t
complain about the accuracy and skill of the sculpt.
The head looks
great. The hair is nicely detailed and the face – despite being
boring – is actually one of the best I’ve seen on an Angel.
The tunic drapes
nicely and has tons of fabric detail – lots of wrinkles and folds.
I like how the upper portion hangs over the lower portion at the
waist joint, suggesting a belt.
The proportions
are good on this figure. It looks right.
Coloring:
I don’t think that the stone is a paint job. I believe this
figure was molded from a plastic with all of that flecking and
everything in it. But I’m not positive. Either way, it looks great.
Very statue-y.
Flair:
The wings are separately molded but permanently attached pieces with
no articulation. The feathers might be a bit bigger than I would
like, but they look fine.
Accessories:
It wouldn’t have made any sense at all to include an
interchangeable scary head and grasping arms, would it? No, instead
let’s be sure and throw in a stand for a figure with a gigantic,
thick base that will never under any circumstances fall over.
Packaging:
A simple blister card. The packaging is exactly the same across this
line except for the insert in the bubble. It’s eye-catching and
easy to open.
Value:
I think these worked out to about twelve bucks apiece, which is
absurd. This is a seven dollar toy at best.
Overall:
This figure is actually quite well done. If you want an Angel in
repose, or maybe just need an accessory for your diorama of the
chapel in the PIT – GI Joe’s headquarters – then by all means
buy this thing. Or buy mine. I don’t want it.
4
out of 5
I really don’t
know if these will show up at brick and mortar retail or not. You can
buy them from pretty much all of the online toy stores, though.
-Phantom
This week here on Needless Things will be dedicated to Doctor
Who. I have Guest Posts, Toy Reviews, and more on the way. The site
will be jam-packed – relatively – with content. Please share
these links wherever you can and spread the word. And if you’re so
inclined, throw a few dollars at the Needless Things family. I have
to send you to the podcast homepage because Blogger doesn't want this
sort of thing. Just check out the widget on the bottom right
here.This
is all out of pocket for me, so anything I receive during this time
will got to site costs, hosting, and possibly new merchandise if I
get really ambitious.
Also,
you can buy the Limited Edition NeedlessThingsSite.com Luchador vs.
Owlbear t-shirts here.
I can’t say they’re selling fast, but once this style is gone,
they’re gone forever.
And I do intend on being famous one day, so wouldn’t it be cool to
have the first shirt I ever designed?
Remember
to check in every weekday between now and the 23rd for
new, original content.
Finally,
be sure and come out to the HUGE 50th Anniversary Party
that TimeGate, Earth Station Who, the folks behind The Forgotten
Doctor, and (others) are throwing at the Holiday Inn Select; the
same location where TimeGate is held each and every year. There will
be panels, games, Whovian carousing, and a LIVE recording of Earth
Station Who immediately after “The Day of the Doctor” airs. You
will literally never have another opportunity to attend a party like
this!
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