Review: DC Universe Classics: Captain Cold
It is rare indeed to find any DC Universe Classics figure marked down in price: most of the time, these vanish from shelves as soon as they're out. But, every now and then, you get lucky.
And that brings us to Captain Cold. Not to be confused with Mr. Freeze, Captain Cold is one of the Flash's villains. He's one of the Rogue's Gallery, a team of supervillains who pride themselves on being able to match wits and skills against the Scarlet Speedster.
I've read a handful of stories featuring the character, but I have to admit I'm no expert. I know that, at least when written by Geoff Johns, he's pretty interesting, with a fairly complex code and philosophy towards what he does.
Of course, he dresses like an extra in a 70's Rankin-Bass Christmas special. Seriously. Do his friends call him Snow Miser?
At any rate, Captain Cold is part of wave 7. Like all DC Universe Classics, he's made by Mattel.
And that brings us to Captain Cold. Not to be confused with Mr. Freeze, Captain Cold is one of the Flash's villains. He's one of the Rogue's Gallery, a team of supervillains who pride themselves on being able to match wits and skills against the Scarlet Speedster.
I've read a handful of stories featuring the character, but I have to admit I'm no expert. I know that, at least when written by Geoff Johns, he's pretty interesting, with a fairly complex code and philosophy towards what he does.
Of course, he dresses like an extra in a 70's Rankin-Bass Christmas special. Seriously. Do his friends call him Snow Miser?
At any rate, Captain Cold is part of wave 7. Like all DC Universe Classics, he's made by Mattel.
Appearance and Construction: 8/10
Making a character like Captain Cold at all threatening isn't an easy feat. Let's face it: this guy's costume isn't likely to strike fear into the hearts of his enemies.
Fortunately, Mattel works with the best, and they've pulled off the impossible: maintaining the integrity of the design while still making him fearsome.
I don't have many issues with this figure, so lets address the little there is. First of all, his face could use some paint to make the skin less shiny. This isn't a major issue, mind you, but it's worth addressing. In addition, if you want to be picky, the outer costume piece (a shawl, perhaps?) could have used a bit of detailing on the bottom. Likewise, the belt and holster would have been improved with some paint, and that holster is somewhat over sized (though I'll be the first to admit that's by necessity).
Other than that, the only appearance "issues" are the type that are intrinsic to this kind of toy: the joints are, well, joints.
Lets move on to the good stuff. First of all, there's the head sculpt. The face is awesome, which is really what makes the figure work. The grimace is just about perfect, both in sculpt and paint. How good? Well, the pink tongue, slightly visible through the shaded teeth, is a different color than the gums. That's attention to detail.
The glasses are also right on. In fact, the costume is kind of incredible. The shawl - or whatever it is - looks fantastic. It might be a tad off model (in all the illustrations I can find it lays flat), but I wouldn't want the toy design changed at all (well, a little more paint, maybe, but we already talked about that). The lining is also phenomenal. And, if all that isn't enough, the bottoms of his boots are ridged for traction. See, that's the level of detail that tells you the folks at Mattel take pride in their work.
In terms of construction, this is a solid figure: no problems there. So, comparing him to other toys I've looked at, this looks like a eight to me. Honestly, I almost bumped him up to a nine. If only they'd gone over his face with a matte flesh tone....
Fortunately, Mattel works with the best, and they've pulled off the impossible: maintaining the integrity of the design while still making him fearsome.
I don't have many issues with this figure, so lets address the little there is. First of all, his face could use some paint to make the skin less shiny. This isn't a major issue, mind you, but it's worth addressing. In addition, if you want to be picky, the outer costume piece (a shawl, perhaps?) could have used a bit of detailing on the bottom. Likewise, the belt and holster would have been improved with some paint, and that holster is somewhat over sized (though I'll be the first to admit that's by necessity).
Other than that, the only appearance "issues" are the type that are intrinsic to this kind of toy: the joints are, well, joints.
Lets move on to the good stuff. First of all, there's the head sculpt. The face is awesome, which is really what makes the figure work. The grimace is just about perfect, both in sculpt and paint. How good? Well, the pink tongue, slightly visible through the shaded teeth, is a different color than the gums. That's attention to detail.
The glasses are also right on. In fact, the costume is kind of incredible. The shawl - or whatever it is - looks fantastic. It might be a tad off model (in all the illustrations I can find it lays flat), but I wouldn't want the toy design changed at all (well, a little more paint, maybe, but we already talked about that). The lining is also phenomenal. And, if all that isn't enough, the bottoms of his boots are ridged for traction. See, that's the level of detail that tells you the folks at Mattel take pride in their work.
In terms of construction, this is a solid figure: no problems there. So, comparing him to other toys I've looked at, this looks like a eight to me. Honestly, I almost bumped him up to a nine. If only they'd gone over his face with a matte flesh tone....
Packaging and Extras: ----
The packaging is the same we've been getting all along, which is fine. I'm getting a little tired of the design, but at least it's easy to spot.
As always, props to Mattel for giving us nice, geeky biography on the back. In terms of extras, you get a freeze gun and two pieces of Atom Smasher, the "build-a-figure" (or, Collect & Connect, if you want to get technical) of this wave.
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The gun really isn't optional: I'd be hitting this with a big penalty without it. Mattel did a good job with it: the design looks like it does in the comics, and there are even some diodes or lights or something. There's a lot of texture here, providing an interesting looking weapon. It has some issues staying in his hand, but we'll take that up in the next section. |
Other than the ray gun, you get a down payment on Atom Smasher. I like the build-a-figure trend in theory more than I like it in reality, because I don't generally buy entire lines. Still, these have some value as custom pieces (one of these days, I'm getting all these extra pieces together and I'm building SOMETHING).
My wish list is fairly standard here: I'd have liked a display stand, maybe an alternate gun, some plastic ice crystals... whatever. Between the gun and the body parts, I'm pretty satisfied they included what was required. It's getting a little iffy as they break the build-a-figures into more and more pieces, but they haven't crossed the line into deduction territory yet.
My wish list is fairly standard here: I'd have liked a display stand, maybe an alternate gun, some plastic ice crystals... whatever. Between the gun and the body parts, I'm pretty satisfied they included what was required. It's getting a little iffy as they break the build-a-figures into more and more pieces, but they haven't crossed the line into deduction territory yet.
Play and Display: +1
For the most part, all DC Universe Classics figures have the same articulation. The real question is: how well does it work? And, in this case, it works extremely well. The joints are all tight and sturdy, and the numerous available poses suite the character.
Just to give a run down, you've got ball joints on the head and shoulders, pins on the elbows, stomach, knees and feet, cuts on the upper legs, waist, biceps, and wrists, and the Mattel hips, which are basically an ingenious hybrid of a pin and ball joint. There's also an added joint on Cold's holster, allowing you to position that how you'd like.
That said, I've got a few complaints. The largest isn't with articulation but the hand, which could have used a tighter grip. The ray gun is extremely loose, and it falls out if you're not careful. I'm sure this could be corrected with hot water, but who really wants to take the time?
Next, be aware that the shoulders and head are both limited by the shawl. The head joint only provides marginally better range than a cut, and the shoulders are hard to turn upward (but not impossible).
In addition, I'm also having some problems with the holster. The flap is soft plastic, and it's clearly designed to fold over and snap shut (there's a tiny peg that lines up with a hole in the flap). Unfortunately, I can't get mine to close. I don't know if the hole's too small or the peg's too flimsy, but mine doesn't shut unless I tuck the flap in beside the gun.
There are also a few missing joints that could have been incorporated into the sculpt. The gloves and boots offer easy opportunities for cut joints, but, presumably to save the time and expense of altering the underlying body, they've left these sculpted solid. It's odd having a visible cut on the wrists less than an inch from where one could have been hidden, but it's not a huge deal.
Between excellent balance and several poses, Captain Cold comes close to deserving a bonus of two points. Sadly, the minor issues outlined above hold him back.
Just to give a run down, you've got ball joints on the head and shoulders, pins on the elbows, stomach, knees and feet, cuts on the upper legs, waist, biceps, and wrists, and the Mattel hips, which are basically an ingenious hybrid of a pin and ball joint. There's also an added joint on Cold's holster, allowing you to position that how you'd like.
That said, I've got a few complaints. The largest isn't with articulation but the hand, which could have used a tighter grip. The ray gun is extremely loose, and it falls out if you're not careful. I'm sure this could be corrected with hot water, but who really wants to take the time?
Next, be aware that the shoulders and head are both limited by the shawl. The head joint only provides marginally better range than a cut, and the shoulders are hard to turn upward (but not impossible).
In addition, I'm also having some problems with the holster. The flap is soft plastic, and it's clearly designed to fold over and snap shut (there's a tiny peg that lines up with a hole in the flap). Unfortunately, I can't get mine to close. I don't know if the hole's too small or the peg's too flimsy, but mine doesn't shut unless I tuck the flap in beside the gun.
There are also a few missing joints that could have been incorporated into the sculpt. The gloves and boots offer easy opportunities for cut joints, but, presumably to save the time and expense of altering the underlying body, they've left these sculpted solid. It's odd having a visible cut on the wrists less than an inch from where one could have been hidden, but it's not a huge deal.
Between excellent balance and several poses, Captain Cold comes close to deserving a bonus of two points. Sadly, the minor issues outlined above hold him back.
Price Tag and Final Analysis: 9/10
If you're surprised to discover that a DC Universe Classics action figure is fantastic, you haven't been paying attention. Mattel has mastered producing high-quality, interesting figures.
Their figures are so good, you almost never see one going for less than its original price. In fact, I've picked up several quite a bit above retail. But this wave was a little different: these were heavily distributed. I'd seen Captain Cold for quite a while, on the pegs beside the others. And, while I liked the figure, I wasn't about to jump at twelve or thirteen bucks. In an ideal world, you'd be able to find these closer to ten or eleven, and, from time to time, I have seen them at that price for brief periods.
There are plenty of DC Universe Classics I'd gladly buy at thirteen and up; some of which aren't as good as Captain Cold. But this isn't really a character I felt like I needed. So I held off.
Imagine my surprise when I stumbled across him at Toys R Us for $5.60. It was a good day for this toy collector, folks.
Their figures are so good, you almost never see one going for less than its original price. In fact, I've picked up several quite a bit above retail. But this wave was a little different: these were heavily distributed. I'd seen Captain Cold for quite a while, on the pegs beside the others. And, while I liked the figure, I wasn't about to jump at twelve or thirteen bucks. In an ideal world, you'd be able to find these closer to ten or eleven, and, from time to time, I have seen them at that price for brief periods.
There are plenty of DC Universe Classics I'd gladly buy at thirteen and up; some of which aren't as good as Captain Cold. But this isn't really a character I felt like I needed. So I held off.
Imagine my surprise when I stumbled across him at Toys R Us for $5.60. It was a good day for this toy collector, folks.
Don't forget, I've got a blog, too, where you'll find movie reviews, geeky articles, and pie. Oh, sorry: I just heard we're out of pie. If you hurry to The Middle Room, you'll probably still find that other stuff, though.
