Review: Kingdom Come Aquaman
For some reason, people find Aquaman funny. I'm not entirely sure what aspect of telepathically controlling a large portion of the biomass on the planet seems humorous, but even most geeks tend to look down at this guy. Well, laugh all you want, but when aliens come to Earth in the DC Universe and say they want to speak with the planet's ruler, they're not asking to go to the UN. They want Arthur Curry, king of Atlantis and ruler over two-thirds of the Earth's surface.
The rest is just made up of anarchistic states controlled by local warlords, squabbling militaries, and the masses.
Debatably, the version of Aquaman best conveying this idea was presented, albeit briefly, by Mark Waid and Alex Ross in Kingdom Come, one of my all-time favorite superhero stories. He appeared for only a few pages, in which Superman and Wonder Woman paid him a visit. Wonder Woman wanted to build a meta-human prison under the ocean, an idea Arthur shot down as quickly as their invitation to return to the Justice League.
While he didn't have much of a role, his appearance was memorable. Aquaman has always been something of a "King Arthur" archetype, between being a king and being named "Arthur." Also, there's that whole prince raised outside his kingdom, thing. And a few hundred other parallels I won't go into here. Anyway, for Kingdom Come, they based him on the elderly version of the Arthur myths, in some ways echoing aspects of the grail legend.
I've got a good sized collection of Kingdom Come action figures, the vast majority of which were bought cheap. So, when I had the opportunity to add Arthur, also at discount, I jumped.
This is made by DC Direct, of course. If you're looking for Aquaman - or any of the Kingdom Come figures - I'd start at your local comic book store then turn to the internet if necessary.
The rest is just made up of anarchistic states controlled by local warlords, squabbling militaries, and the masses.
Debatably, the version of Aquaman best conveying this idea was presented, albeit briefly, by Mark Waid and Alex Ross in Kingdom Come, one of my all-time favorite superhero stories. He appeared for only a few pages, in which Superman and Wonder Woman paid him a visit. Wonder Woman wanted to build a meta-human prison under the ocean, an idea Arthur shot down as quickly as their invitation to return to the Justice League.
While he didn't have much of a role, his appearance was memorable. Aquaman has always been something of a "King Arthur" archetype, between being a king and being named "Arthur." Also, there's that whole prince raised outside his kingdom, thing. And a few hundred other parallels I won't go into here. Anyway, for Kingdom Come, they based him on the elderly version of the Arthur myths, in some ways echoing aspects of the grail legend.
I've got a good sized collection of Kingdom Come action figures, the vast majority of which were bought cheap. So, when I had the opportunity to add Arthur, also at discount, I jumped.
This is made by DC Direct, of course. If you're looking for Aquaman - or any of the Kingdom Come figures - I'd start at your local comic book store then turn to the internet if necessary.
Appearance and Construction: 10/10
The question I've been wrestling with has been simple: a nine or a ten? Obviously, I settled on a ten, but it wasn't an easy call. I don't think there's any denying that this is a fantastic looking figure. But it's not perfect. When I reviewed the BPRD Buddies: Red and Golden Army Soldier, I laid down the following criteria for earning a ten:
"To deserve a 10 in this category, a toy should be so close to perfect that any possible improvements in its appearance [and construction] would be trivial."
So, does Aquaman meet those criteria? Well, I'm kind of torn. His scale armor and surcoat sure do, but everything else is a little less clear. Before I go on, I want to stress that the following critiques are intended as minor quibbles at most. Really, I'm exploring the line between perfection and imperfection more than I'm complaining.
By my count, there are two flawed areas: first, there's the cape, which has a somewhat toyish color and texture. In particular, the clasp is very simplistic. There's also a sloppy paint spot on the spot beneath the clasp. Fortunately, it's covered up, though it is visible from certain angles.
Next, there are the gauntlets, which are lacking any paint. Close inspection of the source material also shows that the fingers should be made of several jointed pieces, a detail which wasn't duplicated. Normally, this is the kind of thing I don't notice or mention, because it's ridiculously minor.
Other than that, there's at least one detail that's notably off model: the color of the leather sheath, belt, and sash are way off. In the comic, they're a light tan; here, they're dark brown.
"To deserve a 10 in this category, a toy should be so close to perfect that any possible improvements in its appearance [and construction] would be trivial."
So, does Aquaman meet those criteria? Well, I'm kind of torn. His scale armor and surcoat sure do, but everything else is a little less clear. Before I go on, I want to stress that the following critiques are intended as minor quibbles at most. Really, I'm exploring the line between perfection and imperfection more than I'm complaining.
By my count, there are two flawed areas: first, there's the cape, which has a somewhat toyish color and texture. In particular, the clasp is very simplistic. There's also a sloppy paint spot on the spot beneath the clasp. Fortunately, it's covered up, though it is visible from certain angles.
Next, there are the gauntlets, which are lacking any paint. Close inspection of the source material also shows that the fingers should be made of several jointed pieces, a detail which wasn't duplicated. Normally, this is the kind of thing I don't notice or mention, because it's ridiculously minor.
Other than that, there's at least one detail that's notably off model: the color of the leather sheath, belt, and sash are way off. In the comic, they're a light tan; here, they're dark brown.
I was going to deduct a point for the dull paint ops on the head and hair, until I compared it to the comic. Turns out, that's how it was painted. While I might have preferred something a bit more vibrant in the toy, I'm certainly not going to deduct for being accurate.
The real difference between Aquaman and Abe Sapien, the last figure in this scale who ALMOST got a ten, are the joints. Namely, Abe had them, and Aquaman doesn't. This means there are no ball jointed hips or shoulders and no pins in the elbows and knees to drag this down. Of course, we'll have to address that later in Play and Display, but that's another topic. Here, the lack of articulation just means that the appearance remains intact. The cut joints are barely noticable. The only one that's a little problematic is the neck joint, which is only apparent from the sides. The construction, an issue with some of the carded DC Direct figures I've picked up over the years, is as good as you could hope for. This guy is solid, sturdy, and tough, so I'm certainly not deducting anything here. |
Here's what I was left with: there was just enough right and wrong that I think I could have justified either a nine or ten. So I looked over the figure and asked myself a simple question: Do I think I'll see a figure in this scale that looks better overall? I compared him to some of the best figures in my collection, and the answer was no. For the time being, this is at the top of the pile, along with some of the best NECA figures, a few exceptional McFarland figures, and some of my other Kingdom Come toys (hey, I do collect these for a reason).
Packaging and Extras: ----
Ah, the boxed DC Direct figure. When you get one of these, you pretty much know the arms and legs WON'T fall off. Other than that, who cares?
Aquaman comes with two accessories, his trident and his sword. Of these, the trident was absolutely required, while the sword was optional (it needed to be attached, but I'd have accepted a sculpted plastic hilt and sheath.
The sword is absolutely gorgeous, and it actually saves Aquaman from a penalty for the trident. While the trident is actually very good, it isn't great. Normally, that's not an issue. But here, merely "good" doesn't cut it. Why? Because the trident pulls down the overall impression of the figure. If I had included it as part of the appearance, that would have been a nine rather than a ten.
Had there been some shading on the trident, this category would have been a +1 for the sword, which is actually quite impressive. Personally, I love that Alex Ross gave Aquaman what amounts to Excalibur, and they've done it justice here. An included base would have pushed the bonus even higher, which would have pushed this figure into uncharted waters.
The sword is absolutely gorgeous, and it actually saves Aquaman from a penalty for the trident. While the trident is actually very good, it isn't great. Normally, that's not an issue. But here, merely "good" doesn't cut it. Why? Because the trident pulls down the overall impression of the figure. If I had included it as part of the appearance, that would have been a nine rather than a ten.
Had there been some shading on the trident, this category would have been a +1 for the sword, which is actually quite impressive. Personally, I love that Alex Ross gave Aquaman what amounts to Excalibur, and they've done it justice here. An included base would have pushed the bonus even higher, which would have pushed this figure into uncharted waters.
Play and Display: ----
When I was pulling Aquaman out of his pack, I was sure I'd be deducting a point here. But, once I'd played with him for a few minutes, I knew better.
Lets start with what's missing. First of all, there are no elbow or knee joints on Aquaman. This is the price you pay for that ten in appearance, unfortunately. If you've been collecting Kingdom Come figures, this won't be much of a surprise: it's standard for the line. On Aquaman, the lack of elbows is particularly frustrating because of his left arm, which is bent more than ninety degrees. It looks good holding the trident, but I wasn't expecting to get much more use out of it.
Turns out, I was wrong. While they didn't give us elbows, they did slip in a few simple joints that open up your posing and display options. First, there are shoulder joints. While ball joints would have been better, these do the job, allowing you to raise or lower his arms (this also makes the "flowing cape effect" to the right possible).
Of course, these wouldn't have been much good without cut wrists, a joint DC Direct has a tendency of omitting. Well, they used them here, allowing Aquaman to hold his trident or sword in numerous positions. There are two joints that saved Aquaman from a penalty: this is one of them.
The other is the waist. There's a cut directly above Aquaman's belt, allowing him to turn. This permits some interesting stances.
The cut neck joint is less useful. His hair prevents it from moving more than a centimeter or so. A ball joint would have worked better (and actually been less obtrusive), but I suppose this is better than nothing. You also get "V" hips, which aren't particularly useful for anything other than balancing Aquaman. Still, they work for that, and, as a result, the character is very stable... more than I can say for a lot of this line.
So, while he's not going to get any awards here, the articulation does give you some options.
Lets start with what's missing. First of all, there are no elbow or knee joints on Aquaman. This is the price you pay for that ten in appearance, unfortunately. If you've been collecting Kingdom Come figures, this won't be much of a surprise: it's standard for the line. On Aquaman, the lack of elbows is particularly frustrating because of his left arm, which is bent more than ninety degrees. It looks good holding the trident, but I wasn't expecting to get much more use out of it.
Turns out, I was wrong. While they didn't give us elbows, they did slip in a few simple joints that open up your posing and display options. First, there are shoulder joints. While ball joints would have been better, these do the job, allowing you to raise or lower his arms (this also makes the "flowing cape effect" to the right possible).
Of course, these wouldn't have been much good without cut wrists, a joint DC Direct has a tendency of omitting. Well, they used them here, allowing Aquaman to hold his trident or sword in numerous positions. There are two joints that saved Aquaman from a penalty: this is one of them.
The other is the waist. There's a cut directly above Aquaman's belt, allowing him to turn. This permits some interesting stances.
The cut neck joint is less useful. His hair prevents it from moving more than a centimeter or so. A ball joint would have worked better (and actually been less obtrusive), but I suppose this is better than nothing. You also get "V" hips, which aren't particularly useful for anything other than balancing Aquaman. Still, they work for that, and, as a result, the character is very stable... more than I can say for a lot of this line.
So, while he's not going to get any awards here, the articulation does give you some options.
Price Tag and Final Analysis: 10/10
These figures started out between sixteen and eighteen bucks, which is a lot of money. And yet... he might be worth it if you're a fan of the character or comic. This is an absolutely gorgeous figure which looks more like a statue than a toy.
The thing is, of the twelve Kingdom Come figures I have, I only paid full price for two, not counting Batman who I got as a gift. The other nine - Aquaman included - I picked up on sale or clearance. Actually, of those nine, I paid the most for Aquaman: $9 at a comic store. That said, he was actually supposed to be $11 (he'd been mislabeled), which still would have been a good deal.
Keep in mind that several of the figures I picked up for five or six bucks were found at KB Toy Works, which has since died out. Still, given their quality, I'm always kind of surprised how many of these wind up in clearance. I wonder if DC Direct would have more luck marketing to collectors directly, like Mattel's doing with Matty Collector. Until they figure that out, you can bet I'll keep hitting the clearance section.
The thing is, of the twelve Kingdom Come figures I have, I only paid full price for two, not counting Batman who I got as a gift. The other nine - Aquaman included - I picked up on sale or clearance. Actually, of those nine, I paid the most for Aquaman: $9 at a comic store. That said, he was actually supposed to be $11 (he'd been mislabeled), which still would have been a good deal.
Keep in mind that several of the figures I picked up for five or six bucks were found at KB Toy Works, which has since died out. Still, given their quality, I'm always kind of surprised how many of these wind up in clearance. I wonder if DC Direct would have more luck marketing to collectors directly, like Mattel's doing with Matty Collector. Until they figure that out, you can bet I'll keep hitting the clearance section.
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