This
two-pack is the final in a series of three that combined an oversized
figure with a repaint of re-release of an existing figure. I’m
still not sure if the Harley Quinn was different, but Penguin was and
this Batman definitely is.
The
other sets’ oversized figures were the (formerly) conjoined
Abramovici twins Sickle
and Mr. Hammer.
They had never been released before and were therefore must-haves for
me. I didn’t need a Penguin, but I did not have the Arkham
City
version of Harley Quinn. This set, on the other hand, included two
characters that I already owned. This is the third version I have
bought of each of these characters.
You guys know how I feel about a
figure that can’t be posed in a neutral stance. The second Batman I
bought was the super articulated version that came out last year (I’m
not positive it was last year and a more appropriate term would be
“reasonably more articulated”). The second Bane was actually the
Origins
Bane that I bought the same day as this set, but that does make three
Banes. I’ll be reviewing him soon.
I
could have done without this Batman, but I had no problem buying more
Banes. As I said – I was never crazy about the Arkham
Asylum
Bane and this new Origins
Bane is quite different from the others. Bane is one of my favorite
Batman villains and
experienced a tremendous character breakout in the pages of Gail
Simone’s Secret
Six. I
have no problems buying different variations of this guy. I’m even
happy to own the one from Dark
Knight Rises
that was essentially nothing more than Talia al Ghul’s little
errand boy – even though it was barely a step up from his status in
Batman & Robin.
I
could go on about how much I like Bane as a character and how much
he’s been abused in non-comics media over the years, but that might
be a whole other post.
First
Glance:
It’s kind of weird to see this old Titan Bane again. Dark
Knight Rises,
Young
Justice,
and now Arkham
Origins
have all presented very different versions of the character since his
last appearance in Arkham
City,
so it’s funny to see this huge monster. But worthwhile since this
is a new sculpt that is more in line with the current aesthetics of
these figures.
Side
Note: I read a post on the internet that suggested that Nolan’s Bat
movies had made great use of the comic book source material. That
wasn’t the only crazy assertion in the article, but it was probably
the craziest. While there are certain aspects of those movies that
are very well done and even respectful of the source material, they
do their best to avoid the more fantastical – or comic-booky, if
you will – aspects of the franchise. To me it doesn’t matter how
right you get the details if you miss the spirit entirely.
The
Batman in this set is the same as the original release, but in
different colors. It looks good and is actually more along the lines
of what I expected the first time around. I was surprised when that
one had so much blue in it. This one – all black and grey – is
closer to what I picture when I think of the Arkham
games.
Articulation:
Both figures are articulated with the usual aesthetics this line puts
forth – a smart combination of form and functionality. Bane –
being a newer design – has articulation far superior to Batman’s.
Bane
Head
– ball joint
Shoulder
– ball joint
Bicep
- swivel
Elbow
–pivot
Forearm
- swivel
Wrist
– ball joint
Waist
- swivel
Hips
– ball joint
Thighs
- swivel
Feet
– ball joint
Bane’s
neck joint is forward-facing rather than being situated on top like
most figures. This means his head rotates like clock hands rather
than like a barber pole, if I can use the strangest analogy ever. It
doesn’t have a lot of motion other than the rotation, but it is a
ball joint.
The
arms are fantastic. I usually don’t expect much out of a bulky,
hugely over-muscled figure like this, but when you put five joints on
each arm you’ve done a good thing. I was able to achieve every pose
I tried with this figure’s arms.
The
legs aren’t perfect, but they’re close. The ball joints on the
hips are slightly restricted in functionality. The combination of
thigh swivels, decent knee pivots, and ball joint ankles work well.
This guy can’t achieve the deep squat of the Asylum
Bane, but he can get close enough.
All
of the joints on my figure are tight and functional. None were stuck,
though the knees took some careful work to get moving.
Batman
Head
– ball joint
Shoulders
– ball joint
Elbows
- pivot
Forearms
– swivel
Hips
– swivel
Knees
– pivot
Boot
tops - swivel
Batman
can look up, down, left, right, and can cock his head to either side
to a certain degree. This is one of the better head joints that DCC
has produced.
The
shoulders work fairly well within the restrictions of the cape draped
over them, but the elbows don’t achieve a 90° pivot and the
forearms can only rotate so far.
The
legs work fairly well. The hips have a good range of movement and the
knees can achieve a relatively good pivot. The boot swivels are okay,
but ankle joints would be much better.
Batman’s
articulation is somewhat limited, but what’s there functions as it
is supposed to.
Sculpt:
Sculpt-wise this is the exact same Batman that was in the first wave
of Arkham
Asylum
action figures. This is my favorite non-comic Batman design, as it
incorporates the important elements of the comics with the concept of
armor and functionality.
The
head has a great shape and the longer-style ears. Ever since I was a
kid I’ve preferred longer ears on Batman. I still can’t get used
to the visible eyes on this design, though. They creep me out. All of
the detailing – including the creepy eyes – on the head is
accurate and tightly done. The Dark Knight has sort of a stern
expression that works and at least isn’t deadface like Harley Quinn
has. The only issue here is a line on each of the ears from the
molding process. It isn’t that noticeable until you start looking
closely, but it shouldn’t be there.
Batman’s
upper body is well-muscled and features the armor plating seams from
the game design (which I believe are what led to Batman’s New 52
look). The lines are good and there are even rivets in places. I’d
like it if the Bat Symbol was sculpted rather than just paint, but I
can’t say I’m sure if it had a raised surface in the game. It
would just look better.
The
gauntlets are giant to the point of almost looking like anime. Almost
being the key word. This is probably my only issue with the design of
the Arkham
Batsuit. It would be one thing if some of the gadgets were built into
these things, but they aren’t. They’re just huge for no apparent
reason. Although they do have a function in Arkham
Origins.
Still, they do look kind of cool and the straps and clasps on the
inner arm are a nice touch. The gloves appear to be weighted and
might even have some tech built in. There’s also some texture
sculpted into them. Batman’s right hand is open in an almost
claw-like position and his left is an open fist – ready to hold
something.
The
utility belt is excellent. Make fun of pouches if you will, but I’ve
never understood any of the designs that don’t incorporate them.
Batman has lots of equipment. And while I support the idea that he
actually wears a small backpack under his cape, I don’t buy that
Batarangs fit into three-inch long capsules. I like the pouch design
on this figure and that the buckle actually resembles a buckle.
The
Arkham
Batman’s trunks are less like briefs and more like shorts, which
actually looks a little weird. The boots look like motocross boots
with armor on the front. Obviously they’re not
motocross boots, because those things don’t bend at the ankle all
that well. I learned this in my one and only attempt at a homemade
costume years ago.
Anyway,
while this figure’s articulation might be a bit lacking (which was
remedied in a recent figure), this is a great sculpt that perfectly
represents what is seen in the game.
Bane
is an entirely new sculpt. While portions of this figure very closely
resemble the original, they are all new. I would be curious to see
how these figures are made. They look so incredibly accurate to the
3D models in the game I would imagine they are scanned directly from
those. That’s got to be why, despite the difference in pose, all of
the Bane parts look the same – all of the hoses and knobs and weird
stuff stuck in his body are the same size and shape.
The
head is kind of funny because this is crazy Titan Bane, yet his face
is fairly calm. If anything it looks a bit sullen. Maybe because he
wants his teddy bear. Actually, I just remembered that after you
defeat Bane in Arkham
City he
ends up locked in a cage and actually does look a bit pouty. If you
talk to him, he’s all like, “Puh-leeze
Mr. Batman – just lemme outta here. I’ll be good. I promise.”
That’s what this face looks like. I am glad that this is the
full-on luchador mask and that the trim is sculpted on rather than
just painted. I want the same thing for the Phantom Troublemaker
figure that will almost certainly happen someday.
Bane’s
musculature is huge and veiny (keep your jokes to yourself). The
harness that secures the Titan pump to his back is a sculpted part of
the torso. It has a ton of detail in the straps and buckles and the
collar has rivets and defined plating. All of the tubes running out
of Bane have connectors implanted in his skin. I realize that this
isn’t actually a more efficient delivery system for whatever Bane’s
performance enhancing drug of the day may be than what’s in the
comics, but it makes for a great visual.
Bane
has a creepy robo-spine running up his back. I like the idea that
it’s there to support his increased muscle mass. I don’t know if
that’s actually its intended purpose, but that’s what makes sense
to me. Regardless, it looks cool.
Bane’s
gauntlets look awesome. They’re a nice combination of gadgets and
armor. The straps look great. I’m not quite sure about the
functionality of the right gauntlet. The left one traditionally
houses the activator for Bane’s injection system and I can buy that
one of the buttons over there does that. But I can’t quite figure
out why those two tubes are running from the left gauntlet into the
back of Bane’s hand. I mean, other than it looking awesome and
creepy. Because it does.
Bane’s
lower body is much simpler. Well, once you get past the wacky harness
thing he’s got on. I don’t know what’s up with that. The belt
portion looks really cool, and now that I’m thinking about it –
did he hit that belt buckle to activate the injector? I can’t
remember. I feel like that thing had a function, though. Anyway,
whatever the harness is it is well done. It has straps and buckles
and junk.
The
asylum pants are all torn up at the bottom. Under that are restraint
cuffs and big ol’ Bane feet. It all looks good and is consistent
with the video game version.
Coloring:
Bane’s flesh parts are molded out of a plastic that looks very much
like human skin. I’m not sure how the effect is achieved, and the
painted washes certainly help, but it looks amazing. Another
improvement over the old Bane is that this one does not have glowing,
green veins. Granted, this isn’t out-of-his-mind Titan-crazy Bane;
but those green veins that looked cool in the game didn’t translate
well to a figure (in my opinion).
Bane’s
mask is painted precisely. The white of the trim extends back into
the holes – the flesh tone doesn’t creep up onto the mask at all.
Bane’s eyes are centered. There are darker flesh tones around his
eyes and lips to give depth and bring out the details.
All
of Bane’s implants and armor are silver with a dark wash that looks
fairly unhygienic. The applications are outstanding. There isn’t
one part where the silver bleeds out into the surrounding area.
The
lower half of the figure is spattered with grime. I’m not usually
in favor of this sort of thing, but it is part of the character’s
look in the game. The spatter is well done – it starts out faint
and light above the knees and thickens as it goes lower.
Most
of the figures in the Arkham
lines have great paint jobs, but this Bane is one of the best.
Everything is accurate and precise and this is one of the few figures
in my collection that doesn’t have even a tiny error of some sort.
Rather
than including the blues of that first Arkham
figure,
this Batman is all black and grey. Well, and gold.
All
of the blacks match, which may seem like a dumb thing to be impressed
with until you look back at the last four decades of toys and take in
all of the different shades and glosses of black that different
materials used on the same figure have produced. And I’m not
talking about the intentional use of different glosses. I’m talking
about TIE Fighter pilots with jumpsuits where the sleeves and legs
are shinier than the torso. Or members of the Sinestro Corps who have
really shiny thighs for some reason. Or a Snake-Eyes with…
actually, all of my Snake-Eyes figures look pretty great. But you get
my point. Good job on the blacks, DCC.
Batman’s
face is well done, even if his visible eyeballs creep me the eff out.
The skin doesn’t bleed out onto the cowl and the eyes… Yeesh.
The
armored bodysuit looks absolutely great. The base is a grey color,
but there are washes that give it a more lifelike look than if it
were simply grey. This also helps to highlight the detail of the
seams and rivets. The Bat Symbol is centered and precise. The edges
are sharp and there’s no blotching at all.
The
utility belt is silver and gold. It looks like a piece of
combat-ready gear. It might make more sense for it to be metallic
black, but I don’t care because it looks awesome.
Flair:
Batman’s cape is a separately sculpted piece of soft rubber. It’s
an interesting design because the cape and cowl are clearly intended
to be not only different parts but different materials. The cape has
a great shape and is a slightly different shade from the rest of the
blacks. This is intentional; on the original figure it was blue. The
sculpt of the folds and the way that the cape hangs are well done.
Also, it is long enough that it sits on the ground and serves as
another point of support for the figure.
Bane’s
Titan injection pump (or whatever) is a separate piece that is
permanently attached by the hoses that connect it to Bane’s body.
The pump itself has a tab that fits into a slot in Bane’s back. I
would prefer if the thing was just permanently attached. As it is
it’s loose in that slot and falls out easily, but it can’t come
completely off because of the hoses. Also, it doesn’t fit snugly
against the figure’s back – it’s always sticking out just a
bit. I realize I could fix these problems myself with a Dremel and
some Super Glue, but I don’t like doing that sort of thing.
The
hoses look great and are firmly secured in their connection points.
The coloring on all of this apparatus is solid. The pump matches
Bane’s other metallic portions and has some hazard stripes in
addition to the red of the Titan juice. The hoses have the red
coloring in addition to a wash that gives the hoses themselves a
texture – it makes the red look like it’s inside.
Accessories:
Not a darn thing. I would have expected this set to come with a
Batarang or maybe even the grapnel gun that came with Detective Mode
Batman. But nothing. Considering the pieces that came with the other
two sets – and just how many gadgets Batman could
have come with – this is pretty disappointing.
Packaging:
Just a window box. I do like the uniformity of the DCC window boxes,
though. They are all designed to look like the stupid new DC logo,
with the logo itself peeling down to reveal whatever the product or
franchise is.
I don't see a lot of people reenacting anything with these normally higher-priced figure.
I kept forgetting to mention that DCC has been crediting the sculptors on these sets.
Value:
Each of these three sets is the amazing low price of $29.99, which is
ridiculously good for two great figures, one of which is oversized.
GREAT value.
Overall:
This is another awesome deal and a great way to start an Arkham
figure collection if you haven’t already. Both figures are very
well done, though the Batman has been improved upon. Still, this one
looks great standing on the shelf and I would consider this Bane a
must-have. He’s truly an excellent figure.
4
out of 5
Check
with your local comic shop first. If you can’t find this pair there
you can hit up Entertainment Earth, BigBad, or probably even Amazon.
-Phantom
I'm not sure why you got him so cheap... does your Comic Book Store have a deal or something? Mine cost $59.99 for the Bane/Batman pack. The other two sets were $39.99 each. I belive the Bane pack is $49.99 on BBTS too. I'm super jealous that you got them so cheap!
ReplyDeleteI was incorrect on all three of these - the standard price was $39.99, though I got them for a good bit less with the discount I get for having a subscription service at the shop. I don;t know why the Bane set is so much more in some places, but you're right - an online search brought up ridiculous prices for this set. When they were first offered they were all the same.
ReplyDeleteHi, how tall is the Bane? I think the Batman is a 7" figure?
ReplyDeleteFrom the tips of his toes to the top of his hose, Bane is about 9.25" tall.
Delete