In “The Claws of Axos,” a classic Doctor Who serial featuring Jon Pertwee’s 3rd Doctor, the Doctor and UNIT are faced with what is essentially a “Trojan Horse” scenario. A seemingly benevolent spacecraft piloted by members of an alien race called the Axons land in England in order to “refuel and repair” their ship. They strike a deal, offering a substance called Axonite in exchange for what they need. As it turns out, the Axons, their ship, and the Axonite are all part of the same parasitic organism that intends to feed on our planet. Thankfully, the Doctor and UNIT are there to thwart their plan.
I’m a sucker for classic Doctor Who packaging, so this set is hitting all the right spots. Each figure is nicely displayed against a backdrop depicting a scene from the serial. The set itself offers key characters from the show, and it’s refreshing to not have to buy version after version of the Doctor with these sets, which is probably what we would get if anyone but Character Options were producing these. Instead, we get two new versions of key allies from the 3rd Doctor’s run, along with a new version of an Axon, last seen in a 2-pack with the Master.
While I certainly appreciate the opportunity to add a gold Axon to the collection, it feels a bit frustrating because the Axon is an army builder, pretty much, but the only way to get him is to invest in this set, so it would be quite pricey to expand the ranks, unfortunately. Still, I guess one is better than none, right?
Axon (humanoid)
The Axon himself carries a dead-on likeness to his respective character on the show. The sculpt is phenomenal, particularly the head sculpt.
It’s easy to discern which particular Axon this figure is based on from the group in the above pic. The gold skin, the wavy hair, and the weird eye-coverings are captured as perfectly as one could hope for in this 5-inch figure.
The entire figure is quite handsome, and his paint apps are great all around, but his articulation leaves a little bit to be desired. These 5-inch Doctor Who figures have never been articulation powerhouses, but here it feels particularly inadequate. The pictured “vanilla” pose is pretty much all he is capable of due to a complete lack of articulation from the knee down. He can’t really hold a more dynamic pose, unfortunately. The gold Axons in the show didn’t do much more than stand around, talk, and look strange, so I guess the figure still has all those bases covered, at least.
Once again, this set includes a diorama-ish backdrop based on the interior of the Axon’s ship. It’s a fun little extra that allows you to recreate scenes from the show — to an extent.
The Axon’s “golden god” form is not his true form, of course, and here we see him along with his true form — a large, hideous monster that looks like something we’d be far less likely to trust. It’s one of the key twists in the serial — that something so peaceful and beautiful can be hiding something so hideous and scary underneath the gold facade. Aliens — never trust ’em!
Jo Grant
The charming Jo Grant gets her best plastic representation yet in this set, and she was one of the key reasons why I picked up the set. I love we’re at the point in the 5-inch collection where we have multiple versions of characters like Jo available, and I do think this is a much more effective representation of Jo than what we saw in the “Three Doctors” set.
Now, mine seems to have several clearly visible blemished on her jacket, but I didn’t notice them until I saw the above pic. They’re not noticeable at all as she stands on my classic Who shelf, so don’t let this close-up pic of her scare you off. She’s a great-looking figure.
The Brigadier
This is the third version of the Brigadier we’ve received in less than a year, but thankfully it doesn’t feel all that redundant. The body is the same as the one in The Daemons set, but the head sculpt is new, and that beret makes him look like he’s ready to get into it with some planet-eating aliens. The Brig is such a fun character and he’s one of the key reasons why I’m so fond of the 3rd Doctor’s run on the show, so I have no problem adding new versions of him to my collection.
Being able to pose the Doctor, Jo, and the Brig all together is one of those simple, silly little things that brings me so much joy. The 3rd Doctor’s run has always felt like more of an ensemble show to me more than many of the others, so having this core group together is perfect.
This version of the Brigadier comes a little light in the accessory department, which is a bit of a disappointment considering what we saw in the Daemons set, but the pistol does feel like enough somehow. It’s enough to establish the fact that UNIT isn’t much good on its own against the alien threat, so it’s a good thing they’ve got the Doctor to back them up.
This set was released a few weeks ago among a relative flood of classic Doctor Who product. This set, the Daemons set, the new talking Daleks, and the final two waves of the Doctor/Dalek 2-packs all hit around the same time, but that didn’t deter collectors as it still sold rather briskly.
It’s a fun set, but I do wish there were a better, less expensive way to get more gold Axons. I’d like at least three of them, even though this Axon is clearly representative of one Axon on the show in particular. Still, a small group of them would look great, but I am thankful for the one I have as it does complement the previously released Axon/Master set nicely.
This set is still available at some of the usual Doctor Who retailers, but I would recommend snagging it sooner than later because its eventual sell-out will make it a more pricey set to track down in the future.