Review – Batman Legacy (Modern) Batman

Line: DC Universe * Manufacturer: Mattel * Year: 2011

This is the third time that we’ve looked at this basic figure in the last two weeks. A slight tweak, new paint, and a few years separate this new Batman Legacy action figure from the DC SuperHeroes Batman (review here) that was released in 2006. And once you’ve seen this mold once you’ve basically seen everything there is to it. But there are some key differences that deserve a close look.

Packaging

We spotted the Batman Legacy packaging online about a week ago (mentioned here) and seeing it in-person I can say that this is an attractive design. The blue isn’t quite as bright as it looked in the online pics, but it’s also not as dark as the photos here make it look. Regardless of the exact shade, this is a far-better design than we see in the DC Universe Classics series* and I hope Mattel sticks with this design throughout the Batman Legacy run.

A “New” Head

Well, maybe not totally new. As was pointed out in the review at The Fwoosh this is the Sinestro Corps Batman head popped onto the older body and appropriately painted. This gives us an “angry” Batman for the shelf and actually works out a bit better than I had expected it to. I don’t always expect to see Batman pull a Cable and go all growly on me, but it works here and helps make this Batman different from the others in my growing collection.

Unfortunately the paint on the head kinda takes it down a notch. A bit sloppy — especially around the mouth/teeth — and Batman has what looks like globs of paint on his chin that makes it look like he should probably see a dermatologist pretty soon. Take a break from fighting crime, Batman, and get that checked by a doctor!

A “New” Belt

Again, the belt is actually a reuse from an earlier figure, but it’s different from the belt on the DC SuperHeroes Batman (review here) and the DC SuperHeroes Knight Shadow Batman (review here) so it is one more piece to make this guy look different. But I can safely say I like the other belt better; the bat symbol on the other belt just adds character and the sculpting on the pouches has a more leather-like look than on this toy. But the differences are truly minor and this belt looks just fine on the figure.

“Soft” Gauntlets

Batman’s hands and wrists (from the joint down to the knuckles, the entire piece) are made of a softer plastic on this Batman Legacy version than they were on the earlier releases of this mold. It’s mostly noticeable on the fins, but squeezing the fists and comparing the figures you can definitely spot the difference in plastic. I don’t think it’s an issue, though; the fists seem to be shaped just fine and the fins weren’t at all warped when I opened the package.

What is a little sad is that the slot for the Batarang is still in the left fist . . . but Batman didn’t come with any accessories beyond a stand. You can’t even tell when you stand the figure on a shelf, but if you buy this guy and it’s your first time seeing his hand then don’t worry about that shallow slot. It’s not a defect, it’s just an unused feature.

Paint

As with the DC Universe Classics series* you’re likely better off if you can look at dozens of the same figure and hand select one for your collection. But since that entire series has been damned tough to spot in stores around here I went ahead and ordered the entire wave from Entertainment Earth*. It cost me a little more than finding the figures in Wal-Mart or Target, but at least this way I did manage to get all three of the first figures in the line.

But that ordering online trick meant that I was stuck with what arrived, and this Batman wasn’t the most-loved toy on the assembly line. Besides the face issues I’ve already mentioned, Batman here has some rough paint on his boots and the belt has some sloppy spots. But when I think about it I can say that I actually didn’t do so bad; we’ve all seen worse paint apps on mass-market action figures (I’m thinking of you, US Agent (review here)). Yeah, I think I’ll consider myself lucky that the paint wasn’t any worse and move on with life.

Is It Worth Grabbing?

Yes, if you can answer yes to either of the following two questions:

• “I do not already have an earlier version of this sculpt.”
  
• “I collect every goddamned Batman action figure and variant I can find.”

If you answered yes to one of these two questions then I can say that this Batman Legacy (Modern) Batman* is worth grabbing. He looks a lot like the Batman we’ve been seeing over the last several years (and almost passes as the Jim Lee Batman from Batman: Hush*), and makes a great companion to other Batman action figures.

Would I Grab Another Repaint?

Maybe, but it would depend on just what color scheme they went with and whether or not they tweaked anything else about the figure. I could see where a different head, chest, utility belt, and cape would give us a pretty good eighties Aparo Batman, so that would likely hook me. For that matter, they could then take the same figure and change the head again (longer ears) and cape (lots more of it) to create a Norm Breyfogle Batman.

So yeah, depending on exactly how another repaint was designed I think I would go after it.

And that’s probably the best way to say: I like this toy.

Philip Reed will now go be lazy and read another comic. It’s too bad the entire Alan Grant/Norm Breyfogle run of Detective Comics hasn’t been collected. Even worse that Philip got rid of those comics many years ago. He’s stupid like that.