Review – Outer Space Men Gamma-X

Available now at the Four Horsemen webstore, the Infinity Edition Gamma-X action figure brings one of the unproduced Outer Space Men characters to life in a fully-compatible Glyos System release that goes perfectly with all of the other Outer Space Men action figures. Glow-in-the-dark, clear plastic armor, and an incredible design make this a toy fans of both the Outer Space Men and Glyos System will want on their shelves.

A Peek Behind the Curtain

While the review here can give you some idea of how cool a toy the Gamma-X is, to really take away the historical significance of this release you must visit the Gamma-X page at Outer Space Men creator’s Mel Birnkrant’s website where he shows us sketches, early pics, and discusses the character. If one were to measure success based on bringing old concepts to life then the Outer Space Men series of today has clearly succeeded . . . if only because this old design exists today complete with the glow-in-the-dark feature.

Sculpt

If you compare the concept sketchs of Gamma-X to the final toy shown here you’ll see that the Four Horsemen adapted the design perfectly to three-dimensional playable plastic. The angular shape of the figure — including the weapons and that snap-on armor — really makes the figure look unworldly and weird, more mechanical than organic and nothing like the other members of the Outer Space Men series.

Gamma-X (at the Four Horsemen store), as the photos here show, looks great both in and out of his armor. That snap-on armor — silver back and clear front — (slightly) restricts movement and obscures some of the figure’s sculpt, yes, but the way in which it dramatically changes the look of the toy is impressive and I’m now having a tough time deciding if I display the figure in or out of his armor.

Articulation

Constructed completely from Glyos System (Onell Design) joints, the action figure breaks down into separate parts which can then be used along with any other Glyos System-compatible action figure. I count thirteen total parts — not counting weapons or armor — when I break Gamma-X (at the Four Horsemen store) down, with swivel joints at:

• Neck
  
• Waist
  
• Shoulders
  
• Elbows
  
• Hips (though the design makes these act more like t-hips)
  
• Knees
  
• Ankles

Glow-In-The-Dark!

The above photo (poorly) shows the glow-in-the-dark nature of the light plastics, giving us a peek at how Gamma-X (at the Four Horsemen store) looks when encased in his armor, the plastic glowing through the clear front facing of the torso armor piece. It’s an awesome effect and I wish I had a better way to photograph GITD toys; you’ll just have to stare at my bad pics and use your imagination I guess.

UPDATE: Matt Doughty (Onell Design) has informed me that the glow-in-the-dark effect is plastic, not paint. Okay, that’s pretty damned impressive!

Paint

The plastic does most of the work, but Gamma-X (at the Four Horsemen store) has enough painted details to keep things fun. The toy seems to be made primarily of the glow-in-the-dark light plastic color — not to mention silver and clears for the accessories — but silver paint details look great and add a lot of depth to what would have otherwise been a tough-to-spot design. I especially like the small spots of silver on the clear plastic front of the armor.

Closing Thoughts

Gamma-X (at the Four Horsemen store) is another fun addition to the Outer Space Men series and it’s fun to see this older series brought back to life as a line of independent action figures. It’s a little unfortunate that there aren’t modern Matt Mason action figures to go up against these newer toys, but maybe there will come a point in the future where Mattel dusts off their classic sixties astronaut and returns him to store shelves.

There’s something unspeakably strange about Gamma-X (at the Four Horsemen store), but even with the unusual appearance I can say that the character design looks cool and this combination of plastics and paints works together neatly to make this a striking, original action figure design that stands out even in a group.

Another great work of art from the Four Horsemen, and just one more reason why the guys bringing the Outer Space Men to today’s collectors has turned out to be a real treat. Thanks for the toy, guys!