Timed with the recent release of the Dawn of the Planet of the Apes DVD, NECA’s series two of the successful sequel is just now hitting stores. Series two contains the opened-mouth versions of both Caesar and Koba, as well as the highly anticipated gorilla — Luca. Today we’ll be checking out Koba and Luca. Has NECA kept their simian winning streak going? Let’s find out!
Packaging
The packaging is the standard NECA clamshell so there are no real surprises. Some character bios would have been nice, but I can’t complain as the package does what it’s supposed to.
Sculpt
What can I say about NECA’s sculpting that hasn’t been said a million times over? At this price point, they’re one of the most dominating companies on the toy aisle.
Luca
A gorilla loyal to Caesar and in charge of protecting the ape’s home, Luca does not get a ton of screen time or character development in the film. Why NECA chose to make him, however, is plainly obvious. He’s a huge awesome-looking gorilla! And I absolutely love this figure. Fully standing, he clocks in at about 6.5 inches, and every square inch is fully sculpted. I’m hard-pressed to find a single flaw. One of the great achievements of the film is the subtle facial expressions that really bring the CGI characters to life. Luca comes with two head sculpts (screaming and calm), and they both perfectly capture two very different emotions of the character.
Koba
The main antagonist of the film, Koba, endured years of torture and abuse by the humans all under the name of science. This is an ape that has been through the ringer, and the sculpt of the figure reflects that. Koba was released in wave one with his war paint, but, sadly, I don’t own him and can’t offer any comparisons. Like Luca, Koba is fully sculpted from head to toe. The fur and body are done exceptionally well, but the resemblance to the on-screen character isn’t as strong as I’d like it to be. Part of that has to do with the paint apps, but it’s mostly due to the open-mouth sculpt. The lower jaw is not articulated, but it appears to be a separate piece. This means that there are significant gaps on the side where the jaw meets the fur — which makes it appear like Koba is rocking some Lemmy-style mutton chops. It’s just a bit distracting, considering how great the rest of the figure looks.
Koba is accessorized with an additional set of hands and a machine gun. The hands are hard plastic, so I had a little difficulty getting him to hold his weapon. The sculpt, of course, is fantastic.
Paint
Luca
Like the sculpt, the paint work on Luca is outstanding. While mostly black, there are shades of reddish brown on the top of the head and silver/grey along his back. It’s subtle, but it adds a good bit of realism to the figure and definitely enhances the detailed sculpted fur. Where this figure really shines in the paint department is with the alternate screaming head. NECA used a glossy paint for the teeth, gums, and mouth. That wet look is something we don’t usually get with toys of this scale, and it brings the level of realism to another level. This, along with the fact both head sculpts have virtually no sloppy cuts, makes it one of the better painted toys of recent memory.
Koba
Koba doesn’t fare quite as well as his former ally. The intricate details of his face (bad eye, teeth, gums, etc.) are all cleanly done, but the entire figure seems a bit off in terms of color. On screen, Koba has more of a greyish tone, while the figure is rich with deep browns. It may seem like a minor nitpick, but the unhealthy color of the fur just added to the character. The biggest complaint that I have are the paint apps around the thinning spots of fur. I know it must be difficult to achieve at this scale, but rather than subtle differences, we get thick blobs of flesh-colored paint splattered around his fur. It just seems a bit off.
Articulation
The Apes all have pretty standard NECA articulation. Head, shoulders, swivel elbows and knees, ab joint, and pinned hands and feet that allow for some side-to-side motion. Luca has a soft overlay to give him that big belly, so his hip joints aren’t limited. All of the joints are nice and tight. The ab joints on both operate mostly as a swivel and any crunching motion is limited. The neck joint on Koba is slightly hindered by the sculpt of the fur, but you can still can seem decent motion.
Luca is the clear winner of the two, but these are both fantastic toys and make welcome additions to NECA’s Planet of the Apes lineup. At just $18 retail, these are more than a fair value. I’m not sure how long the line will last, but I, for one, will buy every ape they release. Given Luca’s potential for army-building and customizing, I wouldn’t expect to see him linger to long on the shelves, so be sure to grab yours today!
Thanks for reading!
