Custom: Green Lantern Corps Batman

So, my job moved from Midtown to Downtown, shifting me away from Toys R Us. That's probably for the best, since my apartment ran out of room about a year ago.

At any rate, it turns out that Downtown New York isn't entirely without toys. I quickly stumbled across "Lot-Less Closeouts", a chain of discount stores within walking distance from where I work.

Surprisingly, they seem to have a good number of DC Universe Classics. I managed to snag the entire "Darkseid wave" for eight bucks a piece there (maybe I'll get around to reviewing them one of these days; we'll see).

I also found some two-packs I was missing: the Clayface Vs. Batman pictured to the left, as well as an Abin Sur/Hal Jordan pack. I grabbed those for $15 each: less than half what they're charging at Toys R Us these days.

But here's the thing. The Batman who's packed with Clayface... not the best. Actually, he's pretty universally recognized as the WORST Batman Mattel's put out through their DC Universe Classics line. Why? Well, Mattel tried repainting Batman so he's covered in mud. But, even standing beside a supervillain made out of the stuff, it's hard to look at that and see mud. Think I'm crazy? Do a Google search for "Batman Mattel Poop," and this is the first page you find.
 

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On top of that, I already own a Hal Jordan. He's a good figure: I reviewed him favorably back here, if you recall.But, good or not, who really needs a second identical Jordan? One’s plenty for me. I mean, he’s not even my favorite Green Lantern (among humans, I prefer John Stewart, and if you remove species from that equation, I don’t think Hal makes my top twenty).

In fact, the more I thought about it, I became less and less convinced he should have been given that ring to begin with. Sure, he seems to have some impressive willpower and all, but does he really have more willpower than anyone else on the planet? Isn't there someone who's far more proficient at overcoming fear? Isn't there someone who's smarter, who could control and use the ring's power more efficiently?

I mean, with all due respect, for years Hal Jordan left his ring behind when flying planes, since he couldn't feel the thrill unless there was a chance he might get shot down over enemy airspace and spend six months in a foreign prison (funny story: after getting shot down and spending several months as a prisoner of war, he's started bringing the ring along with him).

I understand that, as a test pilot, Hal Jordan already has experience flying that could be useful in his training to become a Green Lantern. But, even by this metric, Batman's almost certainly spent more hours flying his various Batwings, Bat-copters, Bat-gliders, and jet-Bat-packs than Jordan's been able to log.
 

Frankly, I think that Mogo was sleeping on the job when he directed that ring to Jordan, and, as a result, sector 2814 has suffered. So, I got to thinking, I've got a perfectly good Batman head and cape, along with an extra Green Lantern body I didn't really need.

It was time to right a wrong.

This was a really simple custom (good thing, too, since I'm pretty new to the scene - I generally leave this kind of thing up to my astonishingly talented wife). The figure's got Batman's head, cape, forearms, and left hand. Everything else is Green Lantern. The only major issue I ran into was attaching the right hand: because the pegs are different sizes, it took some surgery to resolve (along with an assist from my aforementioned amazing wife).

The Green Lantern hand needed to be painted black, as did the neck and the grey sections of Batman's arms. I also painted over the... er... "mud" from Batman's gloves.

The end result is a hybrid Green Lantern/Batman. Personally, I think it's better looking the similar attempt made by DC Direct.
 

Of course, you can't stop there. What's a figure without accessories? I ransacked the parts drawer and came up with a handful of translucent green bits that came with a five-inch Superman Returns movie figure from a few years back. The "boots" snapped on (not a perfect fit, but they worked in a pinch), and the armor is attached with a twist-tie. I was ready to call it a day when the buzzer rang. It was the post office with a package containing a Kyle Rayner figure I'd ordered months ago. He came with a great sword, and, well....

Finally, I decided to "improve" the lantern the Hal/Abin set came with. Nothing fancy: I just slapped on a little branding:

I've got a few more custom projects on the way, so if you're sick of arts and crafts, you probably won't like those, either. On the other hand, if this kind of thing amuses you, I've done a couple others already.

Also, if you haven't already done so, visit the front page and take a look at the novels I've written.

More pictures below!