By Dave
You know a great way to celebrate the Halloween season?
Spooky rock n’ roll music.
I started listening to CALABRESE about eight years ago when they first appeared at Dragon Con. They’re one of those bands that’s so good you wonder how they aren’t even bigger and better-known than they are. Their horror rock is top notch and they’ve only been evolving and growing over time. You pretty much have to add them to your Halloween playlist.
You should also listen to their
episode of the Needless Things Podcast.
You know another great way to celebrate the Halloween
season?
Spooky toys.
I’ve been reviewing creepy and horror-themed toys here on
Needless Things for even longer than I’ve been listening to CALABRESE. As a
matter of fact, my
first toy review went up on my MySpace blog ten years ago.
Now, spooky horror rock and spooky horror toys combine in
the form of a very limited edition statue/figurine/staction figure/whatever you
want to call it of Dayglo Necros, a character from CALABRESE’s fourth album of
the same name.
In my opinion this band has mastered the art of merch and
has always offered cool and compelling stuff. They’re as creative with art and
design as they are with their music and I’ve picked up more than my fair share
of CALABRESE stuff. When the guys came on the Needless Things Podcast they
talked about possible toy ideas, which eventually led to this guy.
I still want my 3.75” CALABRESE tour bus so they can
drive around and solve mysteries.
FIRST
GLANCE
More than anything else, Dayglo Necros looks like a
figure
from Playmates’ late 80s Ninja Turtles line, only much nicer. And not covered
in bugs and garbage.
The colors are bright and the level of sculpted detail is
tremendous. It looks much better in
hand than it does in online photos, and it looks pretty darn good in those.
PACKAGING
Dayglo comes packaged in a Styrofoam container – the kind
that statues come in that splits into two halves. It’s very nice and, more
importantly, very secure. There’s no exterior box with artwork or a blister
card or any of your standard action figure packaging, but considering the price
tag on this guy I’m okay with any cost-cutting the guys could do.
Besides, you know me – he was coming out of the box
anyway.
Inside of the Styrofoam blocks the figure is sealed in a
protective polybag. I didn’t have any issues removing it and the design of the
package is such that it would be very difficult to inflict any damage on the
figure inside.
There was a zipper pouch attached to the exterior of the
casing with a sticker displaying the number of the run of 200 that you
received. More on the contents of the pouch later.
LOOKS
This figure is based on the album art from the album of
the same name:
The head sculpt is a great 3D interpretation of the
character. What started off as exaggerated features become even more bold in
what I’m thinking of as the “TMNT Homage Style”. It’s effective because what
was simply artwork now feels like a character. The detailing on the face is
excellent, with wrinkles and deep-set eyes and fangs all distinct and precise.
Dayglo is a little bit Elvis, a little bit Dracula, and a
little bit Toxic Crusader. The torn clothing is straight out of that late
80s/early 90s Playmates Toys aesthetic – TMNT, Toxic Crusaders, Dick Tracy –
and it’s used with great effect. This guy looks like he’s seen some action.
The high-collar cape is total Draculelvis, and if
“Draculelvis” isn’t already a character somewhere, he should be. The clasp has
a sculpted pentagram (of course) and there’s a winged bat-skull guy on the back
with the letters “D” and “N” underneath. This is the only wonky part of the
figure. The bat and the letters aren’t quite
at the level of the rest of the figure, but I think that’s because they’re
basically 2D pictures rather than 3D sculpting. They’re still neat and
charming. And very Elvis. There are also rivets running down either side of the
cape that look great.
Dayglo has a big ol’ belt that continues the Elvis
imagery, but also feels like a wrestling championship.
Finally, Dayglo is grasping a non-removable stake. It has
a great, unique shape and a nice crimson stain.
ACCESSORIES
Dayglo Necros’ box has an
attached zipper pouch full of goodies. While they aren’t things that interact
with the figure, they are included with the purchase and honestly add a good
bit of perceived value.
CALABRESE have a history
with postcards in the style of trading cards, and they’ve all featured cool
artwork. This release includes a set with Bobby, Jimmy, Davey, and - I believe
for the first time - Dad Calabrese! Each card is signed, something the band
does with most of its printed merch and I think that makes each piece cooler.
There’s also a Mystery Card, but I won’t spoil it here!
The exclusive “Dayglo Gang”
button is only available in this set and features close-up artwork of Necros’
hideous face! It’s a button. They’re great because they’re art and you can put
‘em on your leather jacket.
The Dayglo Necros poster
features the live action version of Dayglo from the music video – he doesn’t
look familiar at all… and is signed by the fiend himself. Another neat premium
to enhance the value of this set.
FUN
As cool as this release is, there’s not a lot of fun
here. No articulation means this guy is just going to stand next to your
Draculas and swamp monsters and look awesome. Which is fine.
While I wouldn’t toss it around or want to see what
happens if it falls off of the shelf, this figure seems pretty sturdy. It’s
molded out of a high quality poly resin and does not feel fragile. On top of
that, it stands up well. Sometimes static figures – especially independent
releases – can have problems with the grading on the feet of the final product
and they don’t stand as level as they’re supposed to. Dayglo Necros has big,
flat feet and stands very solidly on the shelf.
OVERALL
I can’t give Dayglo a perfect score, but I will say that
he’s an essential part of any horror collection. Not only is this a cool,
original character, but only 200 people in the history of planet Earth will
ever own one of these. I am happy to be one of them.
You guys know that I typically balk at designer toys or
higher-dollar indie items. In general I’d rather have a few new NECA figures.
But Dayglo Necros is something special and I know I would’ve ended up kicking
myself one day when I realized they were sold out and I didn’t have one.
4
out of 5
You can buy your very own Dayglo Necros here!
If you enjoy Halloween, horror rock, or Needless Things,
you might enjoy SupportPhantom.com.
Huge
thanks to our killer Patrons Zack, Gary, Lucas, and Beau!
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