You might remember a post last year from me lamenting if it was time for a scale change. You might have even heard me say that I was going to double down on 6-inch, and stick it out.
So you might be wondering what the hell I’m doing here with a complete set of 7-inch scale figures. God knows I am.
Well, it’s easier to explain than you’d think. The fact of the matter is that with DCC’s Forever Evil Crime Syndicate, they’ve demonstrated that they are more than capable of taking on the vacuum left in the wake of DCUC’s meltdown.
You’ve just got to get used to slightly taller action figures, is all.
Power Ring ended up being the fourth figure I picked up, something I blame completely on Prodigy. I was content, after some mixed results from DCC’s last better articulated figures, to sit this one out. Gentle Giant has been the guiding force behind this newer, bolder DCC, and while they designed some truly excellent-looking figures for Arkham Origins, some of that got lost in the translation. Batman and Deathstroke are some impressive figures, but things like quality and articulation for the other characters came out to be pretty hit-or-miss.
But Power Ring easily demonstrates how most of those growing pains have now been stretched out. Every one of the CSA figures sports a standardized articulation scheme on par with a Marvel Legends figure. Even better, DCC came correct on the quality, using a strong, if odd smelling, ABS that allows you to really enjoy the poseability without worrying about stuff falling off. This series has been a perfect 5/5 for me so far, with only some minor “breaking-in” to release the joints; no heating or cooling required.
Power Ring might be one of the best examples of how nice this new standard is, thanks to a simple and straightforward design that could’ve easily been left a little generic-looking. He successfully dodges this by first sporting a really subtle but effective metallic paint job, with just enough fleck in the green and by giving his gloves and boots that slightly pearl tone. The sculpt seals the deal by giving him a personality-showing head sculpt (without making him look out of place with the otherwise stoic group) and some great veining details along his right arm and torso, making its way up his neck and cheek. I didn’t even notice this until he was out of the package.
If there’s one thing the other CSA figures have been lacking, though, it’s gotta be accessories. And I’m thinking that might be because Power Ring stole the budget for his lantern. The detailing is impressive on its own, but the lantern even has an articulated jaw and mandibles. Why? Why not, right?
So even though this doesn’t exactly mesh with my “unified scale theory,” sometimes you just have to buy good figures. And Power Ring and his fellow Syndicate members are delivering without a doubt the best smaller-scaled DC Universe figures done so far.