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.
Today’s
figure is Batman in the Batsuit from the beginning of Arkham
Knight.
The
Arkham Batsuits have been both the most realistic and yet the most
comic book faithful of any of the media versions. From the first game
we have seen suits that looked armored and flexible enough for a dude
to wear while running around fighting crime. Each part of the suit is
aesthetically cool to look at and yet also functional.
Look
– I love Batman and I’ve discussed that enough here and on the
Needless
Things Podcast
that I
really don’t need to belabor it any more. Instead, let’s talk
about Arkham
Knight
a little bit.
Tomorrow’s
episode of the podcast will get a lot more in-depth and present more
points of view, as I’m joined by Ryan, The Belligerent Monkey, Mike
Nelson, and Crispy from Dragon Con TV. It was an awesome discussion
and we had a lot of fun with it.
For
now I’ll say that any time I haven’t been working, walking,
eating, or doing something for the site I’ve been playing this
game. The story is the most compelling of the series so far and I
literally am having difficulty putting the controller down. I cannot
wait to get to the next big plot point or reveal. Right now I am in
the final section of the main story – very close to finding out who
the Arkham Knight is - and I stopped playing to go and see the lousy
Terminator:
Genisys
(review coming on Monday) and then work two nights. I won’t be able
to play it again until tomorrow and it’s bugging me a bit. Partly
because I just need to play, but also because I am worried about
having the Arkham Knight’s identity spoiled for me. Jay apparently
got careless with his browsing and happened upon it, and I know
that’s got to suck some of the intensity out of playing it, though
the game offers more than enough in addition to that compelling
mystery (which I am 100% positive I figured out Tuesday night, but I
won’t know until Friday).
Anyway,
the game is excellent and we’ll get into it tomorrow, so be sure to
come back and give us a listen.
FIRST
GLANCE
Mrs.
Troublemaker likes to make fun of the fact that all of the Batmans in
this line have pinheads. She’s not wrong. They all seem a bit wee.
Otherwise, though, this is an imposing Batman. This Batsuit is
sleeker than the others, but also packed with detail. And
articulation. I can’t wait to get it out of the box and test those
joints out. Here’s hoping there aren’t any QC issues like those
that are plaguing the Animated line.
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 Batman
on the back surrounded by the rest of the first series figures.
We
also have sculpting credits for Gentle Giant.
LOOKS
This
cowl is the best yet, with layered plating and a new design for the
ears that looks very cool. They sweep up from the rear sides of the
cowl and are incorporated into the design in a way that the others
haven’t been. The face is a good Caucasian color and the eyes are
painted precisely.
The
body armor has plating with gaps to allow for movement, which is
actually comes into play in the game at one point. The plates on the
shoulders are rubber to allow for movement and they have an awesome
grid design painted on them. I like that while there is an overall
design, there are parts of the armor that are clearly different
materials with different purposes.
The Bat symbol is on top of a
thicker, darker piece of armor, clearly showing the reinforcement
over Batman’s chest. Separate armor covers the shoulders, with the
cape attached. I dig the definition of the cape versus the shoulder
armor, while still maintaining the color likeness that comic book
Batman has.
The
cape itself has sculpted layers and variations in gloss and color.
The designers managed to make it a little more interesting to look at
without giving it spines or some kind of mesh or something. It’s
made out of rubber and flexes well. Additionally, it’s longer than
any of the other Arkham Bat capes, so it folds on the ground a bit.
I
wouldn’t want a whole separate figure, but I’d be more than happy
to buy a kit from DCC that would turn this into a gliding Batman
figure. That’s something they haven’t done and I’d love to see
it.
I
love the in-game concept that Batman’s gauntlets are basically like
a Predator’s. They have functions and an onboard computer. On the
figure they have a ton of intricate sculpting and a metallic paint
job. Visually this differs from any comic version quite a bit, but it
makes too much sense and looks great. The gloves have armor plating
on the back, so you can just imagine some goon getting backhanded and
not waking up for ten hours.
The
utility belt is my favorite Batman utility belt ever. The buckle in
front has a low profile and is narrow, so it doesn’t look like it
would be painful to squat while wearing. The pouches are nice and big
(I’m a pouch guy) and actually look functional. I still
have a little trouble believing that Batman is carrying the grapnel
gun, the line launcher, the remote hacking device, the electrical
pulse emitter, and whatever else back there all at the same time, but
also – who cares?
Side
Note: I might have gotten some of the gadget names wrong. I’m too
nervous about spoiling the Arkham Knight’s identity to look them
up.
The
paint on the utility belt is absolutely fantastic. Not only are there
several different colors used on the various sculpted parts, but it
looks worn and real, like a Star Wars prop.
Batman’s
greaves look like thick armor with tons of sculpted detail. Not only
do they look pretty much projectile-proof, they also look like they
would absolutely suck to get kicked with. Part of the magic of this
suit and all of the thought that went into it is that it look s just
as much like a weapon as it does armor.
ACCESSORIES
Batman
comes with a Batarang, the line launcher, and an extra hand.
The
Batarang is a larger and trimmer version of the previous Arkham
Batarangs and no – we’re not going to discuss how Batman carries
8,000 of these around with him. The sculpt is excellent and it’s
made of a very sturdy plastic. Batman can hold it just fine. There’s
even some metallic paint on the edges.
The
line launcher is beautiful. The fine detailing is immaculate and
there are three colors of paint! The extra hand is sculpted to hold
this, and it works nicely.
The
hands switch out easily and stay put.
FUN
This
is a sturdy figure loaded with articulation, which is not something I
would have been saying about a DC Direct/Collectibles figure a few
years ago. And they didn’t just load it with joints like Direct did
with some particularly appalling figures years ago, they made sure
everything was functional and worked within the context and profile
of this Batsuit. The joints are concealed as well as possible within
the sculpt. Extra parts – the cape and shoulder pieces – are
flexible so as not to interfere with posing. This Batman can’t
quite crouch, but he can definitely get a lot closer than most other
Batman action figures I own.
While
I would have been happy to have more accessories, what the figure
came with was fair. They’re sturdy and it can interact with them.
It’s
not the most spectacularly articulated figure ever, but this Batman
has been on my desk for several weeks now. I’ve been fiddling with
him during podcasts and while watching wrestling. It’s not so much
the articulation as it is the simple depth of detail. There’s so
much to look at that it makes the figure hard to put down.
OVERALL
I
haven’t liked a costume design this much since Arkham
Asylum.
I feel like Rocksteady took the best elements of a potential
real-world Batsuit and streamlined it as much as they could. I love
just looking at it. And DC Collectibles did an incredible job of
adapting it into the 3D world. Every inch of the figure stands up to
scrutiny. If you’re a fan of the Arkham games or just a Batmaniac,
this one is a must-have.
5
out of 5
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one from Amazon and help Needless Things pay the bills!:
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