Review: DC Direct 13 Inch Batman (Modern)
Since I bought my thirteen-inch Joker figure, I've felt like there's a hole in my toy collection. I mean, sure, I'd love to have the Trinity or the entire Justice League, but... Batman's a special case. I'd be surprised if there were many toy collectors out there who couldn't relate.
So, about a year ago I resolved to do something about it. I decided I'd bide my time, check out my options, then buy a good twelve or thirteen inch Batman figure for my collection.
Then, five or six months ago, DC Direct announced they were making a Justice Batman figure. Justice was a mini-series a few years back that updated and re-imagined the silver-age DC Universe. The art was done by Alex Ross (well, he had some help from Doug Braithwaite, but the designs and concepts were classic Ross).
I really liked Justice, though I felt the resolution was a tad weak. But, overall, it was a solid book with some beautifully realized, iconic versions of the League.
The promotional pictures for the Justice Batman were phenomenal. I figured my quest was finally over. However, I wasn't about to drop a hundred bucks on a doll (yeah, you heard me: a doll. I mean, come on, who are we kidding?) without seeing it first. So I waited. And waited. And waited.
Finally, this past week, I saw them show up in stores. I looked in the box and... was sorely unimpressed. Sure, it was a complex sculpt, but it was just a little TOO complex. His face was too detailed, his lips were too glossy, and his eyes, following Ross's designs, were displayed realistically instead of hidden beneath white lenses. When Ross does it on the page, it looks great, but in person... no. It was a fine figure, but I wasn't about to spend that kind of money on something that flawed.
But I still wanted a Batman in this scale, so I bought this instead. This is the DC Direct "Modern" Batman which came out a while back. A small toy store in Manhattan had one going for a fairly reasonable price, so I picked him up as a birthday present to myself.
So, about a year ago I resolved to do something about it. I decided I'd bide my time, check out my options, then buy a good twelve or thirteen inch Batman figure for my collection.
Then, five or six months ago, DC Direct announced they were making a Justice Batman figure. Justice was a mini-series a few years back that updated and re-imagined the silver-age DC Universe. The art was done by Alex Ross (well, he had some help from Doug Braithwaite, but the designs and concepts were classic Ross).
I really liked Justice, though I felt the resolution was a tad weak. But, overall, it was a solid book with some beautifully realized, iconic versions of the League.
The promotional pictures for the Justice Batman were phenomenal. I figured my quest was finally over. However, I wasn't about to drop a hundred bucks on a doll (yeah, you heard me: a doll. I mean, come on, who are we kidding?) without seeing it first. So I waited. And waited. And waited.
Finally, this past week, I saw them show up in stores. I looked in the box and... was sorely unimpressed. Sure, it was a complex sculpt, but it was just a little TOO complex. His face was too detailed, his lips were too glossy, and his eyes, following Ross's designs, were displayed realistically instead of hidden beneath white lenses. When Ross does it on the page, it looks great, but in person... no. It was a fine figure, but I wasn't about to spend that kind of money on something that flawed.
But I still wanted a Batman in this scale, so I bought this instead. This is the DC Direct "Modern" Batman which came out a while back. A small toy store in Manhattan had one going for a fairly reasonable price, so I picked him up as a birthday present to myself.
Appearance and Construction: 8/10
This is a nice figure; he almost deserves an nine. If it weren't for one detail, I'd have given it to him.
Even though the packaging doesn't mention it by name, this is clearly meant to be reminiscent of Batman from Frank Miller's Batman: Year One. The outfit is more or less identical, down to the canvas utility belt (which is how I prefer it, incidentally). In addition, the face is certainly that of a younger Bruce Wayne.
The aforementioned weak point of this figure is the cape. It's too short, too heavy, and too toy-like for this scale and this quality. It's not awful, and there are positives here (the front, where it joins around his neck, looks right), but it's definitely the worst aspect of the figure.
Everything else is, at the very least, good. A lot is great.
The head is... good. Personally, I'd have preferred the ears a bit longer, but I can't penalize them for maintaining to look from the era they're capturing. DC Direct wasn't exactly generous with the paint, opting for black plastic for the mask. It looks fine, but it would have held him back from a ten if everything else had been perfect (though, as it is, it didn't really end up impacting his score).
The best part of the figure is actually his costume (minus the cape, of course). DC Direct captured the look perfectly: I couldn't be happier with the grey bodysuit or the black symbol. Likewise, the boots and sculpted gloves look great (well, the sculpted FISTS look great - I'm not crazy about the alternate hands, which I'll get to in a minute). I expected to hate the vinyl scallops on the gloves, but I wound up liking the effect quite a bit.
Once again, this is good work. Obviously, it falls well below what Hot Toys is putting out, but that's to be expected.
Even though the packaging doesn't mention it by name, this is clearly meant to be reminiscent of Batman from Frank Miller's Batman: Year One. The outfit is more or less identical, down to the canvas utility belt (which is how I prefer it, incidentally). In addition, the face is certainly that of a younger Bruce Wayne.
The aforementioned weak point of this figure is the cape. It's too short, too heavy, and too toy-like for this scale and this quality. It's not awful, and there are positives here (the front, where it joins around his neck, looks right), but it's definitely the worst aspect of the figure.
Everything else is, at the very least, good. A lot is great.
The head is... good. Personally, I'd have preferred the ears a bit longer, but I can't penalize them for maintaining to look from the era they're capturing. DC Direct wasn't exactly generous with the paint, opting for black plastic for the mask. It looks fine, but it would have held him back from a ten if everything else had been perfect (though, as it is, it didn't really end up impacting his score).
The best part of the figure is actually his costume (minus the cape, of course). DC Direct captured the look perfectly: I couldn't be happier with the grey bodysuit or the black symbol. Likewise, the boots and sculpted gloves look great (well, the sculpted FISTS look great - I'm not crazy about the alternate hands, which I'll get to in a minute). I expected to hate the vinyl scallops on the gloves, but I wound up liking the effect quite a bit.
Once again, this is good work. Obviously, it falls well below what Hot Toys is putting out, but that's to be expected.
Packaging and Extras: -1
The packaging is, for all intents and purposes, the same as what came with the other figures I bought in this line. There are some good photos on the front and back, and there's a door that opens to show the figure (frankly, this is pretty much required if they expect me to lay down this kind of money).
I was pleased to find that the shown poses were attainable (sometimes, companies will use glue, tape, or worse to get figures into the best possible pose, but that wasn't the case here).
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In terms of quantity, there's a decent number of accessories. You get a stand, as well as an extra set of hands, one folding bat-a-rang, and three other things which may be bat-a-rangs, grapple guns, computers, or something else - I'm not entirely sure, to tell the truth.
That's... not a good thing. The bat-a-rang is pretty good, though it's a little larger than I'd like (though it's hard to get too angry over a boomerang-sized boomerang). But the others are just odd. The main problem is more a play issue, though I'm going to cover it here: Batman can't really hold them. Sure, you can squeeze any of them between his fingers on the alternate hands, which is fine for the bat-a-rang, but the others look ridiculous. The extra hands have bendable fingers, which is better in theory than practice. Ultimately, that's only a big deal if you want to display Batman holding his tools. I suspect most people will do what I'm doing and just leave the fists. |
The stand is nothing special, though I do like the bat-symbol on the base. It seems fine, except that it's one of the older ones, which means the top doesn't tilt, limiting its use for dynamic poses. Also, I think every base I've ever gotten in this line has come out of the package scratched. It's not a huge deal, but I find myself wondering why.
My expectations are high when it comes to high-end toys. I like to see inventive, interesting extras: alternate heads, more and better hands, maybe even another costume. Honestly, I almost deducted two points this time. In the end, though, I decided the overall value wasn't dragged down too far, so I went with just one.
My expectations are high when it comes to high-end toys. I like to see inventive, interesting extras: alternate heads, more and better hands, maybe even another costume. Honestly, I almost deducted two points this time. In the end, though, I decided the overall value wasn't dragged down too far, so I went with just one.
Play and Display: ----
Beneath his costume, this is the same body DC Direct used on their Green Lantern Corps and Bizarro figures. If you want a rundown of joints, head over and read those.
There are a few notes specific to Batman, but they won't take long. First up, be aware that Batman's head articulation is limited by his cape. In practice, it's a little more than a cut joint. I don't want to complain too much, though, since I like the look of the front of the cape.
Speaking of the cape, I'm a little disappointed there's no wire along the edges. That would have gone a long way towards forgiving its mediocre appearance.
Next, be aware that Batman's hands pop off with little more than a touch. It complicates posing, though at least it doesn't seem like the pegs are likely to snap.
Other than that, the figure has pretty good articulation and balance. I mentioned before that I'd have preferred a more dynamic base. The one it comes with is still useful, though: it holds Bruce up, and you can get some solid poses out of it.
There's nowhere near enough one way or another to warrant a bonus or penalty this time.
There are a few notes specific to Batman, but they won't take long. First up, be aware that Batman's head articulation is limited by his cape. In practice, it's a little more than a cut joint. I don't want to complain too much, though, since I like the look of the front of the cape.
Speaking of the cape, I'm a little disappointed there's no wire along the edges. That would have gone a long way towards forgiving its mediocre appearance.
Next, be aware that Batman's hands pop off with little more than a touch. It complicates posing, though at least it doesn't seem like the pegs are likely to snap.
Other than that, the figure has pretty good articulation and balance. I mentioned before that I'd have preferred a more dynamic base. The one it comes with is still useful, though: it holds Bruce up, and you can get some solid poses out of it.
There's nowhere near enough one way or another to warrant a bonus or penalty this time.
Price Tag and Final Analysis: 7/10
While this isn't an exceptional figure, it's precisely what I wanted: a really nice Batman in this scale to face off against my Joker.
I'm pleased to report that there weren't any major disappointments I wasn't anticipating when I bought it (I could see the accessories fine in the package, and it was pretty obvious the cape wasn't going to be anything spectacular).
Ironically, the accessories look quite a bit better in new the Justice version; even the cape might be better (though I'm not sure about that last part). However, in my opinion, those were the only improvements, while I far prefer the head and belt on this one.
As for the cape, I've started hinting to my wife that a custom replacement would be highly appreciated down the road, should she ever have the time and inclination to sew one.
I'm not certain what price this started at - I'm guessing between $70 and $85 - but these days the price varies heavily. Online, they seem to start around $90. I got lucky and found one at Toy Tokyo for $65, which is a fair price given the quality of the figure.
I'm pleased to report that there weren't any major disappointments I wasn't anticipating when I bought it (I could see the accessories fine in the package, and it was pretty obvious the cape wasn't going to be anything spectacular).
Ironically, the accessories look quite a bit better in new the Justice version; even the cape might be better (though I'm not sure about that last part). However, in my opinion, those were the only improvements, while I far prefer the head and belt on this one.
As for the cape, I've started hinting to my wife that a custom replacement would be highly appreciated down the road, should she ever have the time and inclination to sew one.
I'm not certain what price this started at - I'm guessing between $70 and $85 - but these days the price varies heavily. Online, they seem to start around $90. I got lucky and found one at Toy Tokyo for $65, which is a fair price given the quality of the figure.
More pictures below. Many, many more pictures, in fact....
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