This Batman asks a tough question: Which is better, a solid design or a solid figure?
DC Collectibles has been cranking up their game something crazy the last year or so, and now the quality of design is being matched by the quality of the plastic itself, and while it took waaaaaay too long to get here for my tastes, let’s give the devils their due — they are cranking out some good stuff.
Batman is one of the first three or four-ish(?) figures to come from the Arkham Knight onslaught that we’re just starting into. Now, there’s really only three of the four available currently, with Arkham Knight himself coming later — my guess is he has something mildly spoiler-ish — but Red Hood is available from GameStop, so there are four figures. Kinda.
Batman is seriously one of the best figures I’ve ever got from DCC. He’s not perfect, but the faults I lay more at the feet of the source material. The articulation is boss, with double joints, ball joints, ankle swivels, and on and on… the only gripe might be the hips? They could benefit from doing the soft plastic for the pelvic area like NECA, it would get them a little more lateral range. But they ain’t bad. They all feel sturdy and the plastic is good stuff.
So… it’s the design I’m not sold on. The Arkham saga has been consistently solid, even the chunkier Origins one, and this one is just lacking in the charm of the others. The moving plates, the carbon fiber, even the color blocking just doesn’t gel to me. Add to that a strangely small head in proportion to the rest of him, and I’m just not in love with it. I’m sure it won’t hurt the game a damn bit, and I do like what they’re doing with Red Hood and Scarecrow, but Bats and Harley aren’t doing it for me.
Now, some of this can be fixed with a quick headswap. I tried the Origins one and I’m much happier with it.
Accessories are pretty solid as well. The line launcher is excellent, just be careful when you take it out of the package, and the extra hand to hold it properly is some good thinking. The batarang is just fine, though I kinda wish it folded like the original. Of course, mine broke, so maybe that’s why they gave that up.
Size wise… he’s a bit lanky. Not bad, but he’s definitely more 7-inch scale than even some of the other Batmen. And here again, I think that’s reflected in the cinematics we’ve seen too…
So back to the initial question. Structurally, articulation-layout and design, even paint work-wise, these are all hits in my book. The pinheaded-ness, the lanky build, and the busy costume — those are, I think, the result of trying to stay on-model. So if you like the design, you’re all winner up in this beeyotch. But if not, it’s hard to argue this is a very solid Batman figure.
