Review: HBII BPRD Buddies: Red and Golden Army Soldier
I've reviewed several Mezco figures from Hellboy II, including Red himself and Liz Sherman, as well as Abe Sapien from the first film. I'd naturally assumed, with the movie a year behind us, that Mezco was through with the property. Fortunately, I was mistaken.
If you've spent any time on this site, you know that I don't just like Hasbro's two inch Super Hero Squad figures; I love them. You might think that copying a successful style and scale is in bad taste, but I'm a strong believer that in the action figure market, originality is highly overrated. If Mezco wants to produce Hellboy figures I can display beside my existing Marvel ones, I'm thrilled. Heck, I can't wait to see how DC's two inch figures come out.
Mezco has entered the two inch animated superhero business with a series of "BPRD Buddies." There are four packs available, each containing two figures. Three of the packs contain versions of Hellboy along with Abe Sapien, Johan Krauss, and the Golden Army Soldier I'll be looking at today. The last pack has Nuada and Wink.
If you've spent any time on this site, you know that I don't just like Hasbro's two inch Super Hero Squad figures; I love them. You might think that copying a successful style and scale is in bad taste, but I'm a strong believer that in the action figure market, originality is highly overrated. If Mezco wants to produce Hellboy figures I can display beside my existing Marvel ones, I'm thrilled. Heck, I can't wait to see how DC's two inch figures come out.
Mezco has entered the two inch animated superhero business with a series of "BPRD Buddies." There are four packs available, each containing two figures. Three of the packs contain versions of Hellboy along with Abe Sapien, Johan Krauss, and the Golden Army Soldier I'll be looking at today. The last pack has Nuada and Wink.
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With money tight, I can't afford them all (make no mistake: I wish I could). Unless I see them on sale, I'm skipping the Nuada/Wink and the pack with Krauss. I might end up picking up the one with Abe, though, if it looks good enough. I found this in a comic store. I'm not yet sure whether these will appear in Toys R Us and Target or not. Here's hoping, because they'd probably be a smidge cheaper. |
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Appearance: 10/10
By my count, I've done more than sixty reviews here at The Clearance Bin, and this is only the second ten I've awarded for appearance. Since the first was given in one of my first reviews (U-Repair Wall-E, if you're curious), I've never really had a chance to define what this score means.
So here goes: To deserve a 10 in this category, a toy should be so close to perfect that any possible improvements in its appearance would be trivial.
Honestly, looking back at Wall-E (who's still one of my favorite toys), I don't really think he meets that benchmark. Then again, I deducted two points because there weren't enough accessories, so the math would work out the same if I reviewed him now.
The point I'm eventually trying to come to is this: while it might be a stretch claiming Wall-E meets this standard, this time there's really no question.
While I actually have some personal objections to the design elements, these are just that - personal preferences and opinions. I'd rather if Mezco had gone with a slightly more stylized approach, but that's a reflection of opinion, not quality.
So here goes: To deserve a 10 in this category, a toy should be so close to perfect that any possible improvements in its appearance would be trivial.
Honestly, looking back at Wall-E (who's still one of my favorite toys), I don't really think he meets that benchmark. Then again, I deducted two points because there weren't enough accessories, so the math would work out the same if I reviewed him now.
The point I'm eventually trying to come to is this: while it might be a stretch claiming Wall-E meets this standard, this time there's really no question.
While I actually have some personal objections to the design elements, these are just that - personal preferences and opinions. I'd rather if Mezco had gone with a slightly more stylized approach, but that's a reflection of opinion, not quality.
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The work itself is absolutely topnotch. The sculpt and paint work are highly detailed, far more so than I'd expect in this scale. The level of texture and shading on these toys is more in line with what I've come to expect from six inch toys. Getting that on something a third the size is shocking. Of the two, I prefer Hellboy (or "Red", as the packaging calls him). His face and costume are incredible, down to the metal clasps on his right sleeve. And the quality of work on the stone fist is simply staggering. While I like Hellboy better, the Golden Army Soldier might be even more impressive. The engravings on the golden plating is simply gorgeous, and the paint work here is really eye-catching. You can see from the photos this guy is quite a bit larger than two inches. Well, he's not hollow: he's got some heft to him. |
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Sure, we can nitpick. There's a tiny - almost imperceptible - scratch on Hellboy's back. And, if you look close enough, you can see some glue holding the figures together. But these are beyond minor, the sort of thing I wouldn't even mention if there were real problems to focus on.
I'm absolutely thrilled with the quality of these figures. Publicity photos for these were online last week, which is when I learned about them. Pictures released by toy companies have a tendency to exaggerate a toy's quality: even if they're not Photoshopped, they're often custom painted by experts. Well, in this case the finished product looks absolutely professional, as good - or better - than the early pictures suggested.
Packaging and Extras: ----
After the last section, this one is going to be short and sweet. There are no accessories other than the two figures, so lets take a look at the packaging:
For what it's worth, I like the look of the packaging. It's nothing spectacular, but it's far more attractive than what Hasbro's using for their Super Hero Squad figures. I berated the seven inch Hellboy figure for being marketed as "Red", but I think it's pretty much expected with anything looking this kid friendly. A coworker pointed out something I'd missed, though: the toys themselves have "Hellboy II: The Golden Army" stamped on the bottom of their feet, so kids will be exposed to the title, after all.
Sure, I'd have liked some bases or something, but that would have been above and beyond what was needed. The assumption with figures like these is that you're getting the toy and that's it, so I'm certainly not going to hit them with any sort of deduction.
Play and Display: +1
This was right on the line. After spending an embarrassing amount of time considering whether these deserve a bonus point, I've changed my mind about three times while working on the review alone.
Here's the problem: Hellboy has several points of articulation, several of which I wasn't expecting. But he's missing some obvious joints which would have greatly enhanced his posability.
The Golden Army Soldier has articulated shoulders, which are helpful but not surprising. If there were elbows, too, I'd be singing its praises. No such luck.
Hellboy has an articulated neck, tail, and wrists. These work fine, and, between the head and tail, they provide you with a few options for posing. The articulated fist of doom is useful for fine tuning his pose, and the other wrist is only helpful if you want him to hold his gun sideways, John Woo style.
Because these work well and provide some decent posing options, I feel compelled to hand over a bonus point. After all, as I've said before, the default expectation for this scale is no articulation.
Here's why I'm not sure they deserve it. While there's some good articulation present, the joints I most wanted were absent. I'm referring, of course, to Hellboys shoulders. Since they're beneath his collar, the joints could have been easily concealed, and they'd have opened up some dramatic poses.
Here's the problem: Hellboy has several points of articulation, several of which I wasn't expecting. But he's missing some obvious joints which would have greatly enhanced his posability.
The Golden Army Soldier has articulated shoulders, which are helpful but not surprising. If there were elbows, too, I'd be singing its praises. No such luck.
Hellboy has an articulated neck, tail, and wrists. These work fine, and, between the head and tail, they provide you with a few options for posing. The articulated fist of doom is useful for fine tuning his pose, and the other wrist is only helpful if you want him to hold his gun sideways, John Woo style.
Because these work well and provide some decent posing options, I feel compelled to hand over a bonus point. After all, as I've said before, the default expectation for this scale is no articulation.
Here's why I'm not sure they deserve it. While there's some good articulation present, the joints I most wanted were absent. I'm referring, of course, to Hellboys shoulders. Since they're beneath his collar, the joints could have been easily concealed, and they'd have opened up some dramatic poses.
Price Tag and Final Analysis: 10+/10
Objectively, these figures blow Hasbro's Super Hero Squad figures out of the water. The quality here is inescapable. I paid nine bucks for this pair, and, frankly, they're worth it. I know these are small, but the value's in the work, both at the design and production level. And, before you think you're getting fleeced, let me assure you that Golden Army Soldier has some heft. Seriously, I have some six and seven inch figures who weigh less.
That said, there are a few caveats I want to add. First, while I maintain these figures are worth the money, I'm not sure about some of the others in the series. It's the mass of the Golden Army Soldier who makes that nine dollar price tag palpable; not all of them come with a large figure.
Finally, with luck you may not HAVE to pay nine bucks. For all I know, these could be shipping to mass market retailers as I write this. Frankly though, I didn't want to risk missing out on these, so I bought the first pack I came across.
It's up to you if you want to gamble or play it safe.
That said, there are a few caveats I want to add. First, while I maintain these figures are worth the money, I'm not sure about some of the others in the series. It's the mass of the Golden Army Soldier who makes that nine dollar price tag palpable; not all of them come with a large figure.
Finally, with luck you may not HAVE to pay nine bucks. For all I know, these could be shipping to mass market retailers as I write this. Frankly though, I didn't want to risk missing out on these, so I bought the first pack I came across.
It's up to you if you want to gamble or play it safe.
You can find my review of Hellboy II over at The Middle Room, my blog dedicated to the world of the geek.
