Welcome
to Arkham Week on Needless Things!
Every
day this week I’ll be reviewing one of the new Arkham
Knight
figures from DC Collectibles, and on Friday we’ll be posting a
special episode of the Needless Things Podcast where we take a look
at the Arkham
video game franchise.
Side
Note: The Arkham Knight figure has been delayed, so I’ve only got
four reviews. Word I’m getting is that it was pushed back due to
the figure itself containing spoilers for the game. I think it’s
somewhat prosaic that the antagonist from the oft-delayed game is,
itself delayed.
Today’s
figure is the newest iteration of Harley Quinn, which appears to be
an amalgamation of her appearances in the prior games – Arkham
Asylum
and Arkham
City.
I
think Harley’s Asylum
get-up was the first radical departure from her traditional spandex
harlequin costume. As far as I can recall there was very little
outcry over the fact that she was suddenly wearing a sexy nurse
outfit with fishnet thigh-highs and a corset. That was six years ago
and it’s astonishing how much the climate has changed since then.
Nowadays such a change would be met with boycotts and online
petitions. David Ayers should be thankful that Rocksteady introduced
such a drastically different Harley back then, because going from
this:
To
this:
Would
likely have broken the internet. Ms. Robbie’s appearance almost
did, anyway.
The
Asylum
outfit made sense, though, because in the context of the game Harley
was playing nurse. It was funny and a little sick and it worked. It
also created an iconic new look for Harley that set this video game
version apart as a slightly more deranged kind of crazy.
In
Arkham
City
Harley sort of a real-world variation on her classic costume. It
still had the fetish-y elements of the Asylum
costume, but was overall a more practical outfit. This looked like a
Harley that was ready for action and, quite frankly, could be taken a
little more seriously. She looked like a villain in her own right
rather than an accessory to the Joker.
I’m
honestly not sure how I feel about this Arkham
Knight
costume. In the world of video games everything must evolve, so a new
look for Harley was inevitable. Even Batman’s iconic suit has been
drastically different with each game (and has changed within the
games, for that matter), so there was no doubt Harley would receive a
makeover. To be clear – I don’t dislike
this look, but I don’t love it, either.
The
tutu is what’s throwing me off. I appreciate that it’s silly and
makes sense within the context of the character, but aesthetically it
is kind of an eyesore. That might just be on the figure, though. In
the game it might not be quite so poofy and distracting. I’ve
watched a couple of the trailers, but I haven’t really delved too
far into the new game. I like surprises.
Otherwise
this is a good look and a reasonable evolution of Harley’s video
game appearances. One thing I would like to see this time around are
some different looks within the game, especially since she’s going
to be a playable character.
FIRST
GLANCE
That
tutu. Ugh. Otherwise the figure looks great. This is the most
articulated Harley yet, which is exciting. Her features and the
detailing also seem more realistic and less exaggerated. I think
that’s part of why the tutu is bothering me – the rest of the
figure seems very real world and that thing is just sticking out
looking all crazy.
PACKAGING
This
new DCC package is great. The five-sided window box design looks very
cool, and each franchise has its own graphical designs. Here we have
some industrial, Gotham-looking stuff and a cool wireframe of Harley
on the back surrounded by the rest of the first series figures.
We
also have sculpting credits for Gentle Giant. I apologize for the
blurriness. I was tired or possibly inebriated.
LOOKS
You
guys probably can’t tell from the pictures thanks to the white
washing out so much, but to me this face sculpt looks exactly
like Emily Bett Rickards. To the point where I really wondered if
DCC just used the head sculpt from the forthcoming Felicity Smoak
figure. I think the chances that they did that are incredibly small,
but to me this really
looks like her.
As
far as the quality of the sculpt, it’s fantastic. Part of the
quality comes from the fact that the higher definition graphics allow
for a more realistic looking character, so these character models
don’t have the same exaggerated features of previous versions (I
cannot wait to replace that weird-looking Arkham
City
Catwoman). Harley’s features are very realistic and human. Her hair
has a ton of detail and looks very natural. The colored ends of her
ponytails are a little more faded than I’d like, but I’m sure
that reflects her look in the game. Otherwise the paint on Harley’s
head is top notch. The placement is perfect and the fine detail and
vibrancy of the colors is striking. Those eyes and lips are some of
the best I’ve ever seen on an action figure. The different glosses
used add such a subtle bit of realism.
Harley
is wearing a fairly complex corset with all kinds of highly detailed
straps and studs and O-rings. It looks great and also HOLY CRAP,
CLEAVAGE. This is more of Harley than we’re used to seeing. I’m
never comfortable discussing action figure boobs, but sometimes you
just have to. They’re sculpted well and manage to not look
ridiculous despite being in something of a ridiculous situation. I’m
a little confused by Harley’s shirt configuration, as she has a
collar (nicely reminiscent of her more traditional harlequin
costume), sleeves, and a back. I can only assume she cut the front
out to distract potential enemies.
Side
Note: Or allies, as the case may be. If you’re a fan of the Arkham
games and plan on playing Arkham
Knight,
you should definitely check out Peter J. Tomasi’s prequel comic. In
it, Harley cajoles Penguin into an alliance, making obvious use of
her assets to throw him off balance. The narrative bridges the gap
between Arkham
City
and Arkham
Knight
and has been very good so far.
Harley’s
sleeves have a lot of detail and straps with O-rings at the bottom to
compliment her gear. The bracers look good, as well. I do wish she
had some fingernail polish, though. I know that sounds weird, but
with the amount of paint on this figure her hands actually seem oddly
plain.
The
tutu is what it is. It’s wide and bulky and, to me, messes up the
figure’s profile. Fortunately it’s molded from a very soft
plastic and doesn’t interfere with articulation. It is sculpted
well and looks as good as such a thing could.
Harley’s
tights look great. The trademark harlequin diamond pattern is painted
on, but there are also sculpted studs. Her combat boots are nicely
detailed, but I have to make one more nitpicky observation and say it
would have been nice if the boots were glossy with the laces painted
flat. A little more distinction between the two would have looked
great.
There’s
only one flaw on my figure and it’s that there’s a scrape in the
paint on its left thigh. It’s a lot more noticeable in the pictures
than it is in person.
ACCESSORIES
Harley
comes with a baseball bat, a pistol, an extra set of hands, a
jack-in-the-box, and what looks like a detonator.
The
jack-in-the-box is fantastic. The sculpt and painted detail are
outstanding. The spring is springy, but also quite sturdy – I don’t
think it’s going to sag or bend over time. The handle has a little
give to it, so it won’t snap right off if you drop this thing.
The
bat has a wonderful wood grain paint job with glossy red striping on
top. It is solid and fits perfectly into Harley’s grasping hands.
The
hands look great, switch out easily, and stay put. The tiny pegs are
sturdier than they appear, but I’d still be careful with them.
The
pistol and detonator(?) are both packed with details. Harley can hold
them just fine. They’re both molded from sturdy plastic rather than
rubber. As you all know, I hate rubber accessories. I mean, unless
they’re supposed
to be rubbery. But a rubber sword or blaster is not acceptable.
FUN
DC
Collectibles has hit a new standard in the sturdiness of their
figures. I say this because my Harley has already survived a seven
foot drop. One of my Banes tipped over and took all of my Harleys and
a few other figures out and they fortunately all survived the plunge.
This
figure is loaded with articulation, which seems to be the new
standard for DCC products. I’m blown away at the difference in this
Harley and the original. Just for fun, I’ll run down the joints:
Head
– ball joint
Shoulders
– ball joints
Elbows
– swivel/hinge
Wrists
– swivel/hinge
Waist
– swivel
Hips
– ball joint
Knees
– double hinge
Ankles
– hinge/swivel
I’m
going to try to remember to check before I post this because I can’t
recall if she has swivels at the tops of her boots.
The
only thing I’d change would be a ball joint at the waist like
NECA’s Predators have. But even that isn’t really necessary.
All
of the joints work well and have satisfying ranges. This Harley can
do pretty much anything you might want and interacts with all of her
accessories nicely. I had a lot of fun playing with this one and she
and all of the other first series Arkham
Knight
figures hung out on my desk for a while.
OVERALL
This
is a great
Harley Quinn figure.
Yes,
even with the tutu. Because everything else about it is so well done
and such an improvement over every other Arkham
Harley. This is what action figure design should be – constant
improvement and innovation. If it weren’t for a certain other
Harley Quinn that came out just a couple of weeks after this one, the
Arkham
Knight
version would be my favorite figure of the character.
I’ll
be reviewing that one soon.
Obviously
the paint scrape on the thigh is a problem, but from a “how it was
designed” standpoint, this figure gets a perfect
5
out of 5
Buy
one from Amazon and help Needless Things pay the bills!:
I love this Harley! I've been playing through Arkham Knight and just encountered Harley for the first time last night (other than in the DLC mission). Wow! That's all I'm saying!
ReplyDeleteDCC has stepped their game up so, so much for this series and i hope that they keep bringing out more characters in the line.
I think I like Arkham City Harley the most, but this is a better figure than any of the City Harleys they've made.
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