Much like the line itself, the DC Universe Classics 2-packs started off strong before sputtering to an inglorious end. Fans were given a second chance to get figures that had been previously released in the hard-to-find DC Super Heroes line, as well as new characters that wouldn’t have performed all that well at retail. The fact that we have the Crime Syndicate, B’wanna Beast, and Alexander Luthor to stand alongside our A-list heroes and villains is a testament to Mattel’s commitment to “go deep” and give the fans what they want. Sadly, for every Romat-Ru and Kara-Sil, we have unnecessary repaints like Batman and Azrael.
Issued at the end of DCUC’s run, the final two-packs never made it to major retail outlets, instead appearing at online retailers and brick-and-mortar discounters like TJ Maxx and Marshall’s. While this was an inconvenience for completionists, it was a boon to the casual collector, as the set was offered well below the manufacturer’s suggested retail price. I scored this set on Amazon.com for less than the cost of a single figure at retail. Let’s take a look at what $16 gets you.
We’ll start with the lesser of the two offerings. Batman first appeared in DCUC series one. Aside from some minor changes to the deco, this is the exact same figure. Bats is molded in a slightly darker plastic than the original, but it’s only noticeable when comparing the two side-by-side. More apparent is the absence of black paint on the cowl, bringing the figure closer to its spiritual predecessor, Kenner’s Super Powers Collection Batman. Confounding collectors who had been asking for this version, Mattel decided to add some pointless “battle damage” to the chest. And while a figure with some sculpted rips, tears and other additional new details may have earned him a place among the legion of look-alike Batmen Mattel cranked out, the fact that the company chose to differentiate him with a mere paint app kills any variant value he may have had.
Even with the passage of time to soften the blow, it’s hard to look at this figure as anything but phoned in. While not as bad as the “colon catastrophe” Bats that came with Clayface, he’s right up there. The collector community speculated that this was done so that Mattel could release the same figure yet again alongside the long-demanded light-blue Superman, yellow-accented Wonder Woman, and other Super Powers variations and lo, it has come to pass. Weak sauce, Matty.
On the articulation front, Batman offers no surprises. He sports a ball-jointed neck, pin-hinged shoulders, single hinged elbows and torso, and swivels at the biceps, wrists, and waist. From the trunks down he has hinged hips, single-jointed knees and ankles. Unlike the first release of this figure, this Batman came empty-handed. No batarang, no bat-grapple — he didn’t even get a base. I guess even Matty knew this one was bound for the fodder-box.
Azrael first appeared in the DC Super Heroes line, but collectors didn’t receive the character in his Bat-gear until series 16 of DCUC. At the time there was some Internet grousing that the figure was the wrong color, but this was incorrect. Azrael’s fully-armored suit only ended up turning red as the result of exposure to fire during his final confrontation with Batman; it was originally blue, as seen in this panel from Batman #510.
Subsequently, both versions of the figure are correct, but Mattel offered the figure in red for the two-pack. Correct or not, the original has the newer version beat in the paint application department. The series 16 figure featured some nice metallic red and blue highlights to simulate the armored sections of the suit, whereas the newer release is just molded red plastic.
Not only does the flat red look dull, it’s the same shade on both the helmet and visor, adding to the figure’s “toy-like” quality. Also, the two-pack version is a damn sight sloppier than the original. Maybe I just got a bad one, but overall it’s a real step down.
Everything else about the figure remains the same. At the time, Mattel was experimenting with new forms of articulation, and while some of it was less than successful (I’m looking at you, wave 16 Robin’s ankles), other adaptions were more beneficial. AzBat’s has Hasbro-hinge style swivels in his elbows and wrists, allowing him a more natural range of movement. He also has double-jointed knees, which means the figure can hit poses the included Batman can’t. Heresy!
Azrael has a ball-jointed neck, pin-hinged shoulders, as well as the aforementioned hinge-swivel elbows and wrists. The figure has the standard hinged torso and hips, a swivel waist, double knees, and hinged ankles. Everything moves nicely. In spite of the pointed section of armor at his abdomen, his torso joint is unrestricted. Even his head has a full range of motion. The only areas that are tricky are the shoulders, but the plastic overlay is soft enough to wiggle them upwards if you’re patient.
Azbats is also unencumbered by accessories, but he never really used anything external. His version of the bat-rope and throwing stars were built into his gauntlets, so nothing extra was needed. A display stand would have been nice, as the figure is quite top-heavy, but with a little bit of care he can stand just fine. From a sculpt standpoint, Azbats is identical to the original figure — check out Veebee’s look at series 16 AzBats here.
As far as two-packs go, this one comes in close to the bottom. It gave us another Batman we had no use for, and an AzBats that didn’t actually need to be repainted in the first place, but for less than the cost of a new figure at retail, it’s a decent enough value. Now I’m off to find some acetone and fix that rassa-frassin Bat-symbol!
Purchase this set on Amazon.
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