Review: Hellboy II: Nuala
It took about a year, but the toys that weren't selling from Hellboy II have started to seriously drop in price. While Toys R Us let most of theirs go for ten dollars about six months ago, the comic and hobby stores held out longer. Of course, now that they've given up, they've set some surprisingly low prices.
Which brings us to Nuala, princess of the elves and love interest for Abe Sapien. She wasn't my favorite new character from the movie, but I thought she was pretty cool.
While I wasn't about to pay eighteen - or even ten - bucks, when I came across her on clearance for five I couldn't refuse. Mezco has the license for HBII, and this is far from the first of these I've looked at. In fact, I've been greatly impressed with what Mezco's done with this line so far.
You can find a review of Hellboy here, one of Liz here, and a review of Abe from the first movie here. And, of course, there's always the BPRD Buddies, reviewed here and here. In addition, I should have a review of The Goblin up soon.
And if you haven't seen the movie itself, I recommend tracking it down as soon as possible. It was great film which got overlooked in last year's crowded schedule.
Which brings us to Nuala, princess of the elves and love interest for Abe Sapien. She wasn't my favorite new character from the movie, but I thought she was pretty cool.
While I wasn't about to pay eighteen - or even ten - bucks, when I came across her on clearance for five I couldn't refuse. Mezco has the license for HBII, and this is far from the first of these I've looked at. In fact, I've been greatly impressed with what Mezco's done with this line so far.
You can find a review of Hellboy here, one of Liz here, and a review of Abe from the first movie here. And, of course, there's always the BPRD Buddies, reviewed here and here. In addition, I should have a review of The Goblin up soon.
And if you haven't seen the movie itself, I recommend tracking it down as soon as possible. It was great film which got overlooked in last year's crowded schedule.
Appearance: 8 out of 10
Aspects of this look great, while others are a disappointment. After waffling back and forth, I went with an eight rather than a seven - but it was a close call.
The face looks good, but it doesn't really look right. First of all, there's something off in the nose which deviates from the film. More importantly, the figure's expression feels wrong and out of character. Nuala had a childlike innocence mirroring Abe's, but it doesn't come across in the toy.
The hair is also something of a problem. They tried to match the white fading to gold, but it just didn't work, partly because they didn't use enough gold and partly because the sculpt work just wasn't up to the task. Nuala's hair was incredibly fine, almost thread-like, and the heavy plastic just doesn't convey the same look.
Fortunately, her costume is stronger overall. The metallic beads and crest look incredibly lifelike, and the folds looks are excellent... except on the bottom. At the point where the dress hits the floor, it looks more like it's melting than folding.
The character's hands are quite a bit nicer, though there are problems handling accessories I'll talk about later.
Finally, I want to mention that the bottom is hollow. I can't imagine needing to display the figure flying or anything, but be aware she doesn't have legs.
Like I said, I oscillated between a seven and an eight. The deciding factor was really the dress, which effectively negates any issues with hip joints, the primary bane of humanoid action figures. Of course, this just goes to further reduce the number of joints on the figure - an issue we'll be returning to in time.
The face looks good, but it doesn't really look right. First of all, there's something off in the nose which deviates from the film. More importantly, the figure's expression feels wrong and out of character. Nuala had a childlike innocence mirroring Abe's, but it doesn't come across in the toy.
The hair is also something of a problem. They tried to match the white fading to gold, but it just didn't work, partly because they didn't use enough gold and partly because the sculpt work just wasn't up to the task. Nuala's hair was incredibly fine, almost thread-like, and the heavy plastic just doesn't convey the same look.
Fortunately, her costume is stronger overall. The metallic beads and crest look incredibly lifelike, and the folds looks are excellent... except on the bottom. At the point where the dress hits the floor, it looks more like it's melting than folding.
The character's hands are quite a bit nicer, though there are problems handling accessories I'll talk about later.
Finally, I want to mention that the bottom is hollow. I can't imagine needing to display the figure flying or anything, but be aware she doesn't have legs.
Like I said, I oscillated between a seven and an eight. The deciding factor was really the dress, which effectively negates any issues with hip joints, the primary bane of humanoid action figures. Of course, this just goes to further reduce the number of joints on the figure - an issue we'll be returning to in time.
Packaging and Extras: -1
This is the same basic packaging we've been seeing with other figures in the line. I've got no complaints:
There are three accessories which come with Nuala, and they're all decent. Lets start by taking a look at them one by one, then I'll let you know why I think they're not good enough.
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My favorite of the three is the book where Nuala hid her piece of crown. This has a nice, weathered appearance that works well.
The crown is also nice, though you'll only be able to identify it from a few inches away. Finally, there's a sealed scroll, which I'm sure was very important in the movie, though I have no idea when or where. It's been a year since I've seen it, after all. I don't really have a problem with the accessories themselves. My problem's with Nuala. |
See, with the bottom half of the figure hollow, there's a higher expectation for accessories. If she'd have come with spare hands or arms which could hold the above items, I think I could have called it even. Throw in an alternate head, and we could be talking bonus territory. But, considering this figure was mostly likely made for next to nothing and started out in the sixteen dollar range, these tiny items aren't enough.
Play and Display: -1
There are a couple of issues here I want to highlight. But first of all: the good news. Rest assured that Nuala can, in fact, stand upright. In fact, since the bottom of her dress is flat, she isn't easy to tip over.
Nuala has five points of articulation: ball jointed shoulders and head and cut wrists. All of these work pretty well, I suppose, though the shoulders are a bit restrictive and her head is limited by her hair.
So much for the pleasantries.
Okay, first of all Nuala isn't really made to hold her accessories. Oh, you can balance them in her hands for a while, but don't expect to leave her like that. Considering her hands are sculpted in grasping poses, this makes less than no sense. I assume these are reused from another character, which is fine... but only if the accessories line up. Of course, including alternate hands would have fixed this, but we covered that above.
Next - and this is the big one - five points of articulation? Really? All right, I understand making the figure without legs: that's just logical. But how can Mezco justify skipping the elbow joints and the waist?
As a rule of thumb, I generally don't deduct from figures which can stand on their own. I'm waiving that courtesy this time, though, because she can't hold her accessories and - at the very least - there should be elbow joints.
Nuala has five points of articulation: ball jointed shoulders and head and cut wrists. All of these work pretty well, I suppose, though the shoulders are a bit restrictive and her head is limited by her hair.
So much for the pleasantries.
Okay, first of all Nuala isn't really made to hold her accessories. Oh, you can balance them in her hands for a while, but don't expect to leave her like that. Considering her hands are sculpted in grasping poses, this makes less than no sense. I assume these are reused from another character, which is fine... but only if the accessories line up. Of course, including alternate hands would have fixed this, but we covered that above.
Next - and this is the big one - five points of articulation? Really? All right, I understand making the figure without legs: that's just logical. But how can Mezco justify skipping the elbow joints and the waist?
As a rule of thumb, I generally don't deduct from figures which can stand on their own. I'm waiving that courtesy this time, though, because she can't hold her accessories and - at the very least - there should be elbow joints.
Price Tag and Final Analysis: 6/10
Nuala is an attractive figure who's score gets dragged down by the method of production. While I'm willing to accept rotocast figures, I do expect some sort of trade-off. In this case, I feel like the collector is getting shafted.
Of all the Hellboy figures I've collected, Nuala has the least impressive selection of accessories and - by far - the least interesting poseability. At five or even ten bucks, that's not a big issue. But Nuala started at sixteen to eighteen, and I expect more at that point. Unless you love the character (in which case you probably already own this), I can't recommend her at full retail price. But if you can get her eight or under, you're still getting a great looking toy for a good deal.
Of all the Hellboy figures I've collected, Nuala has the least impressive selection of accessories and - by far - the least interesting poseability. At five or even ten bucks, that's not a big issue. But Nuala started at sixteen to eighteen, and I expect more at that point. Unless you love the character (in which case you probably already own this), I can't recommend her at full retail price. But if you can get her eight or under, you're still getting a great looking toy for a good deal.
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