In late 2011, “The Court of Owls” debuted as part of Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo’s NEW 52 Batman comic. The concept at its onset was simple — a secret society that has been pulling Gotham’s strings for centuries comes out of the shadows to reclaim it from Batman. Snyder and Capullo’s story became one of the more enjoyable Batman stories in recent years and was definitely a highlight of the New 52’s entrance.
DC Collectibles has recently released the first of their DC Comics Designer Series, featuring figures based on the artwork of Greg Capullo. The series includes Batman, Talon, Nightwing, and Riddler, and we’ll be checking out the first two today.
DCC has always managed to do well when attempting artist-specific figures. Frank Miller, Darwyn Cooke, Alex Ross, and numerous others have had their style transformed into something three dimensional and playable, and they pretty much have the market cornered. The sculpt is the number one thing to sell this concept, and DCC has done a decent job with the Capullo figures. I feel that his art isn’t quite as stylized as some of the other artists DCC have tackled, so the sculpted interpretation didn’t quite jump out at me as much, but that doesn’t take away from how cool these are.
Batman’s head sculpt definitely has the Capullo vibe with the short ears, squared jawline, and thin mouth, but the rest of the figure could come from any artist. He’s in the standard New 52 costume, which I will never be a fan of, but what little detail it has is done quite well. The armor lines and bat symbol are all sculpted. Batman has one fist and one almost fist that has just enough space between his thumb and index finger to hold one of his included Batarangs. They’ve tried to sculpt the cape in Capullo’s style, but it feels a little on the small side to me.
Batman turnarounds:
Talon looks even less artist specific to my eyes, but I love the design, and it makes for one awesome-looking figure. It’s not an overly complex costume, but there are small details, such as the owl gauntlet and medallion, that really make you feel like you’re getting your money’s worth. The almost steam-punk owl mask is entirely sculpted, with the hood extending below his neck onto his torso. While it looks fantastic in a vanilla pose, the sculpt takes away all articulation in the head and neck. While Batman was a bit light in the accessory department, Talon comes loaded. He’s packed with two larger knives, removable throwing knives for his bandolier, two removable swords, and a Court of Owls mask — all sculpted to perfection.
Talon turnarounds:
The paint work on each figure is solid, although each figure has its fair share of slop. Talon is far more impressive due to the sculpt, with a combination of matte and gloss finish on his costume highlighted by the metallic accessories, such as the gauntlet, medallion, and accessories. The mask and goggles are probably the highlight of the paintwork for me. The cuts on mine are very clean and add just the right amount of pop to the figure.
There is not too much to be said about Batman, as he’s in his grey/black costume. Like Talon, they used a combination of matte and gloss finish to make it somewhat interesting. One thing that does stand out is the wash they’ve given the face and utility belt. The wash gives those pieces an almost animated look, while the rest of the figure is without it. It’s not a deal breaker by any means, but it does stand out.
It’s been a while since I’ve purchased a DCC figure, but they have seemingly come a long way with their articulation. With double-jointed knees, hinged wrists, bicep swivels, and thigh cuts, to name a few, these figures are on par with some of NECA and Marvel Select’s recent offerings. This is also probably the best head joint I have on any Batman figure. He can almost look straight up! It was already mentioned that Talon does not have any articulation in the head or neck. It does limit its posing, but the figure it so cool that it hasn’t much swayed my opinion of it. The biggest problem that I have is the ankles. Yeah, rocker ankles would have been nice, but the problem I have is how loose they became after just a few poses. I know there as some customizers out there who know how fix this problem with super glue and black magic, but for guys like me, loose joints are the death of any action figure.
It should also be noted that DCC has used those clear plastic pegs that I hear are prone to breakage, but I’ve never personally experienced any issues.
Comparisons:
Overall, I’m really happy with these two. At around $22 each, these are definitely not cheap, but well worth the price, considering the quality sculpt and level of articulation each has, not to mention the fact that they bring to life two characters from a story that I love.
That Batman/owl pic is wonderful.
The pics floored me Snowman. Awesome stuff.
The artist/company formally known as Dcd aka DCC:the Royals Royce of STAction Figures.
Good review. Glad I’m not the only fan who is Not a fan of New52 batsuit. Although it makes more sense than New52 supersuit.
Bats like his counterpart at Marvel(Stark)has always worn the right suit for a myriad of occasions from out his myriad arsenal of suits. IMHO,I just prefer the”Worlds Finest” to wear trunks!
Bats I will skip. Talon and Nightwing are a buy.
Thanks for the heads up.