“Oh, you should always waste time when you don’t have any. Time is not the boss of you. Rule 408.” –The Doctor
“Let’s Kill Hitler” from season 6 of the new Doctor Who series will most likely go down as one of the more fondly remembered Matt Smith/Eleventh Doctor episodes. This was the season where any doubts I could have had about Matt Smith’s effectiveness as the Doctor were laid to rest and I devoured each episode. Sadly, Matt Smith and the Eleventh Doctor have said their goodbyes to the legions of Doctor Who fans worldwide and Peter Capaldi’s Twelfth Doctor has taken the reins, so getting this figure now is a bit bittersweet. This look is not among the Eleventh Doctor’s most iconic, but it’s a great look from a great episode, and one I’m pleased to see in figure form.
That said, let’s take a closer look at this new Eleventh Doctor from Underground Toys and see what we’re getting.
Video:
Text and pics:
The Doctor’s packaging is consistent with the other figures we’ve seen from the wave, but what’s interesting is that, unlike all the other figures, there is no image of the Eleventh Doctor on the back of the card. I’m not sure if there’s any significance to this, like, I’m not sure if this means this figure is a variant or a chase or anything like that, but it did catch my attention. I know people have found this figure at Walgreens along with the other figures in the wave, so it’s possible he’s as evenly packed as the others. Time will tell, I guess (no pun intended).
Now, I believe the Doctor’s outfit in the above image is what this figure is based on. The likeness is close. I don’t own the Doctor figure from the first wave(s), but from what I can tell from a cursory Google search, this new figure does appear to be a repaint of that first version that sports the purple coat. The Doctor’s purple coat is a very different style from this much heavier green coat, so your mileage may vary in terms of whether or not this passes for the green coat. There are some added paint details that help, and the color itself looks really good to me, so if absolute screen accuracy isn’t a priority for you (it isn’t for me), then what you’re getting here is a pretty sharp-looking Doctor figure. I really dig the green even if this is a simple repaint.
There is a lesson for me to be learned here. This sculpt was not one of my favorites from the first wave, and that’s pretty much why I never purchased the first release myself. Well, that and the import prices at my local shops felt a bit steep. But having him in hand and out of the package, I’m finding him difficult to put down because he’s just plain fun to pose and play with. I now understand why people were happy with the wave 1 figure, and I’m kinda regretting not getting one when it was an easy thing to do.
As we’ve seen recently with toy lines like the Star Wars Black Series, sometimes a good paint job will make all the difference in a figure’s appeal. To be clear here — from the neck down I am a fan of this figure. I think the body looks great. My problem with the initial offering of this figure lies with just the head. The paint here looks as though it captures Matt Smith’s likeness much more effectively this time around, but it still isn’t “perfect.” However, I would say it’s on par with most other 3.75-inch figure lines. It’s not as good a likeness as the fantastic David Tennant Tenth Doctor figure, but it’s definitely a step in the right direction.
First of all, let me point out that the paint blemishes that we see in the above close-up pic are not visible at all when I’m just holding the figure in my hands or looking at him on my shelf. The close-up is definitely amplifying these imperfections, but they’re really not an issue — and I’m someone who goes insane over paint apps; they’ve got to be clean or we’re going to have problems. So despite what we see in this pic, the figure actually looks sharp and clean on my shelf.
While not the spitting image of Matt Smith (the Tenth Doctor figure may have set a difficult standard to live up to), I can tell it’s him, and the likeness is stronger than what we’re seeing in many other similarly scaled lines. It does the job, and this is based on what is definitely one of my favorite versions of Smith (I find I like him better as the seasons roll on), so I do dig this figure.
For accessories, he comes with his sonic screwdriver and a stand. I love that, for both the Tenth and Eleventh Doctors, they’ve managed to sculpt tiny sonics that do a good job of looking like each Doctor’s respective sonic. Each is probably a quarter inch in size, so this is some nice, detailed work.
The stand, of course, allows the Doctor to make full use of his articulation. It can keep him standing in just about any pose, which is awesome. The Eleventh Doctor was a very physical Doctor, so being able to pose him on my shelf with some dynamic flair is a treat. I am definitely a fan of these stands.
As far as articulation goes, he’s the mirror image of the Tenth Doctor with the exception of some added ankle swivels. Once again, bicep swivels would have been nice, but for this scale that isn’t really a deal breaker. Many of the 5-inch figures also lacked this point of articulation, so I wasn’t shocked to not see it or anything.
Speaking of the 5-inch figures, above we see him posed with two versions of the 5-inch Eleventh Doctors. While the head sculpts of the larger figures may be better (an, honestly, to be expected), this figure can hold its own in comparison. I’ve really come to like it quite a bit when I initially thought it would be something of a throwaway figure. He looks great when displayed with the 3.75-inch Tenth Doctor as well, and seeing these two together has really whet my appetite for more Doctors in this scale.
The green coat just looks plain smart to me. I honestly think I prefer it to the purple, and this may become my “default” Eleventh Doctor in this scale as a result. I still plan to hunt down a purple-coated Eleventh Doctor to accompany this one, so hopefully I’ll have some luck.
Like the others in this wave, this figure can be found at Walgreens and possibly Toys R Us. At Walgreens’ price of $9.99 (and on sale this week, even!), these figures feel like a steal.
Special thanks to Underground Toys for providing this sample. Be on the lookout for more Doctor Who reviews coming your way very soon!
Did they seriously just paint lines on the figure to represent the pockets? That looks cheap as hell.
“Silence will fall when the question is asked..”
3.75″ is my prefered scale,but idk about this figure. I’m on the fence. I agree the 10th Doctor is light years better. Exactly what Id been waiting on. Maybe there will be a better Matt figure down the road?