Review – Flashpoint Batman
While at the comic store a few days ago (looking at JLA #1) I grabbed this DC Direct Flashpoint Batman* action figure mainly because of the look of the costume. My experience with the DC Direct action figures has been pretty spotty — the Black Lantern Superman (review here) looked neat but is a bad toy while the Killzone action figures (Helghast Assault Infantry review, Helghast Sniper review) are both great works — but the costume looked fun enough that I took a chance on the toy.
Bad move. I should have left this at the comic store.
Packaging
Adequate, but not spectacular. To be fair, the blister was attractive enough to catch my eye while I was in the store — Tribe Comics & Games in Austin, Texas — so it did its job. But now that I’ve got the toy at home the package goes straight to the trash. I think the photos, above, tell you all you need to know about the toy’s packaging.
A Painted Problem
Flashpoint Batman* has very little in the way of paint apps, with the toy cast in dark gray plastic and then detailed with black, red, and a bit of fleshy tones on the face (the head may even be cast in flesh-colored plastic; I can’t tell). Generally the paint is attractive and clean, but there are a few spots where colors go where they shouldn’t (the face has some black splashing onto the skin).
The real problem, though, isn’t even a painted detail: Look at the photo, above, and you can see white streaks across the back of the cape where there paint is just missing. What should have been an attractive design was ruined from behind by, I suspect, packaging the toy too soon. I tried rubbing off the white but that’s just not gonna happen. Fortunately it’s not at all noticeable when Batman is displayed on the shelf . . . I don’t know about you, but my toys face the room and not the wall.
The Sculpt is Off
As was pointed out in this post at Poe’s site the Flashpoint Batman* has something really odd going on with his sculpt. Reader Henry at the site wrote:
Yeah, something about this figure just looks off. The lower limbs just seem short with everything else being stretched to compensate. That could just be a perspective thing with the smaller boots/gloves on flashpoint!Batman along the big, uninterupted block of gray.
I think it’s an anatomy problem with Batman, with his lower body too short in relation to his upper body and the overall figure having a mushy look. I know “mushy” is an odd word choice for an action figure with a chest and abs like this one, but look at how thick, wide arms join the body and . . . damn. You know what? I really cannot put my finger on what’s wrong but something is just weird about this sculpt. That’s not at all fair to DC Direct or anyone reading this review, but something about this toy’s sculpt bothers me and I can’t figure out exactly what it is.
Articulation
This guy’s never going to compete with the Batman Legacy (Modern) Batman action figure (review here) when it comes to articulation, and for that matter it barely competes with other Batman toys from the nineties. What we get are a minimal number of joints for a collector’s action figure with:
- Swivel Neck
- Hinge-swivel shoulders.
- Hinge elbows and knees.
- Swivel wrists.
- T-hips.
And that’s it. It seriously limits the poseability, but I could live with the upper body articulation if the lower body had a bit more flexibility. DC Direct just isn’t known for articulation, though, so I kinda knew what to expect before I even bought the toy. Still, don’t expect to get your Flashpoint Batman* into any interesting poses.
Closing Thoughts
While he looked great in the package, this Flashpoint Batman* action figure was quite disappointing once I’d released him and started playing with him. That mistake on the cape, a little splotchy paint, and limited articulation were all survivable issues but the sculpt is just too odd for the toy to be something I can recommend to anyone.
Skip this, guys, because the toy’s not all that fun to play with and isn’t a fantastic work of art. I’ll certainly display it with the other Batman action figures in my collection, but nothing here makes me want to buy another DC Direct action figure any time soon. No, I think I need another break from their work before giving them more money.
Philip Reed still has a Gotham by Gaslight Batman he bought a few years ago. It looks cool on display and he really should take photos and review the toy one of these days.
Couldn’t agree with you more Phil. I am very upset with these companies that create and sell sub-standard product knowing that because they are the only ones doing it, the masses will buy it. Very rarely do I buy DC Direct, NECA, McFarlane, and even Hasbro; the Transformers of just a few years ago compared with today, YEESH!
I get the cost issue, but I would spend more to get more.
@Zach – I hope that DC Direct starts putting some real effort into improving their line. I love the variety of characters, but these things are just too expensive for what they are.