I
can’t even begin to describe how excited I am to own an action
figure of one of my heroes, Weird Al Yankovic.
Okay,
well – a figurine.
But
I am excited nonetheless! Because this is one of my favorite
musicians of all time and definitely one of the fathers of my own
dorkiness!
Even
if it is a Simpsons figure and I haven’t really dug The
Simpsons
in around a decade.
But
this is Weird Al! I had to have it!
Much
to my surprise, I got an e-mail a few days ago saying that my order
was fulfilled. To my even greater surprise, the figure actually
arrived a few days later. The cardback was smashed because the
ignoramuses at the Toys R Us distribution center used a box that was
too small, but at least the figure is okay.
The
yellow-skinned Simpsons figure.
Obviously
this is not the ideal Weird Al Yankovic figure. While I’ll buy any
Al that comes out, I would love
to see Funko or Figures Toy Company sign a deal for Al and for UHF.
Just imagine a whole line of ReAction or Mego-style retro figures.
The cast from UHF
and maybe a selection of Weird Al figures from his biggest videos.
Heck,
NECA must have had to work out some kind of deal to do this one, so
maybe they could produce one of their rock star figures or even do
one in their retro cloth line.
That’s
my dream, anyway.
First
Glance
It’s
amazing how well this simplistic, cartoony style can capture a
likeness. It’s not just the hair, the glasses, the mustache, and
the Hawaiian shirt. It’s that look on his face, too.
Packaging
This
diminutive Weird Al is lovingly ensconced in the simplest of devices
– the tried and true, easy-to-open, just as easy to throw away
blister card.
The
cardback features a celebratory Homer Simpson in a tuxedo, seemingly
applauding the figure in the blister and also generating sparkling
stars with his hand claps. It’s a very appealing image that has
probably sold figures simply on the basis of its undeniable
Homerousness.
The
back is designed with a fairly classic layout – scenes featuring
the character, pictures of the rest of the wave, and – my favorite
part of any cardback – a biography. Since I haven’t actually seen
the episode that Weird Al appeared on, I appreciated this. It
actually sounds like a good one, so I might have to check it out.
Looks
There’s
no denying that this figure is Weird Al Yankovic, and it looks
exactly like the art from the episode.
I’m
curious about the design process for the character. Obviously Al’s
trademark Hawaiian shirt needed to be simplified somewhat, and his
checkered slip-on shoes would have been a headache to animate. I’m
more curious about the color scheme. Lots of green and orange going
on here, which is not the most appealing color combination in the
world. Why not blue jeans and white shoes? Or black ones? Something
other than this eyesore of a palette.
But
none of that is relevant to rating an action figure because that’s
all on The
Simpsons
people. The question here is if NECA captured the character and they
did.
The
figure is a semi-solid plastic – not brittle at all. It’s fairly
heavy for what it is.
The
hair is great. Al’s mass of brown, curly locks have been translated
quite well from real life to animation to plastic. They have a weight
and a depth that looks just right in 3D. The glasses are also great.
Rather than going the traditional route of painting eyes on opaque
lenses, NECA sculpted eyes onto the face and used clear plastic with
painted frames. They look great and the plastic they used is very
clear and clean – not the muddy plastic that is so often used for
eyewear on toys.
The
likeness is great. It’s Weird Al. Even under the bangs you can see
those eyebrows positioned in that “See what I did there?” way
that Al has. His little mustache is funny. It’s odd that it’s
black, but it also looks right.
Al’s
shirt looks good. It’s nice, smooth lines and a flat shape that
looks right for a button-up shirt. All of the buttons and details are
sculpted cleanly and clearly. The painted flowers are precise and
placed well. His pants are green and, uh, that’s it. I am impressed
with the fact that his socks and the soles of his shoes are painted.
That’s a nice detail that a lesser tot company might have skipped.
Accessories
Al
comes with an accordion. It’s made from the same sort of plastic as
the figure. There’s plenty of detail for something that’s based
on animation and I’m impressed with the paint app, too. All of the
black on the keyboard side feels like a whimsical extravagance
compared to some other action figure lines. Obviously my standards
are pretty low.
The
one issue is that there’s an orange smudge on one of the keys that
I can’t do anything about.
There
aren’t any straps on the accordion, so you have to just sort of jam
it into the figure’s hands. This actually works better than you
might think.
Fun
What
does not work is getting the figure to stand up.
You
might have noticed the memory card under Al’s foot in all of the
pictures. That’s there because the figure does not stand up when it
is not holding the accordion. I assumed that they had to design it a
certain way so that it could
stand when it was
holding the accordion. After all, if Al can’t stand there holding
an accordion, what’s the point? I wasn’t too worried about it
because I wouldn’t be displaying him without it anyway.
Of
course, the figure doesn’t stand up with
the accordion, either. It does not stand up at
all.
This is fairly ridiculous given that it is essentially a statue with
four points of articulation. Also, there are no holes in the feet, so
you can’t even put it on a stand.
The
four joints are the neck, shoulders, and waist. They’re pretty
pointless because the figure is sculpted in a very specific pose.
Plus the fact that there is no combination of joint positions that
allow this figure to stand.
Typically
I won’t consider a figure much fun if all it does is stand there,
but this one doesn’t even do that. But it does get points just for
the fun inherent in the fact that it’s Weird Al.
Overall
I’m
thrilled to own a Weird Al figure. That is definitely giving this a
point more than it should get. It looks perfect and hits all the
right design points, but it’s an action figure that is basically
meant to be static that can’t even stand up. That’s pretty bad,
Phantomaniacs.
I
will say this – it is possible that the one I got is warped in some
way that others might not be. It’s also possible that I could use a
hairdryer or some hot water to get the feet into a better position.
But you guys know how I feel about that – a figure should require
no additional help from me when I open it. It should be ready to
display or play with or whatever.
3
out of 5
If
you’re a fan of Weird Al, you have to buy this. Maybe yours will
stand.
If
you do buy it, I’d appreciate you buying it here to help out with
the costs of running Needless Things. I promise I’m not spending
the little bit of money I get from this and from our PayPal donation
program on Twinkie Weiner Sandwiches:
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