Even with the normal issues that plague Mattel’s Divas figures, I was excited about adding Charlotte to my collection. Why? She’s one of the hottest prospects in wrestling, and she’s one of those wrestlers I’m thinking we’ll all look back on a decade from now remembering her formative years before the superstar she is at that point.

But yeah, all those pesky issues? Still here with Charlotte, but let’s break down The Nature Girl to see if she’s still worth adding to your collection.

 

Packaging: I won’t bore you. It’s the same Basic packaging we’ve been getting for a while. Nice big portrait of the wrestler with a snazzy “First Time in The Line!” on the front, larger portrait on the back, and the other figures in the line. Nothing new to see here; let’s move along.

Likeness: This was a likeness that took a second for me to fully appreciate, but it’s one of Mattel’s better Diva sculpts. There’s a lot of commendable attention to detail from the nose, the creases in her face when smiling, right down to the eye shadow, although the mole by her mouth was noticeably absent.

Hopefully signaling this is just the first of many Charlotte figures to come, Charlotte’s unique top is sculpted and not painted, so we avoid the cheap-looking fill-ins like Emma or Brie Bella.

I was hoping Mattel would give Charlotte a more defined abdomen as she’s pretty cut, but the figure’s mid-section is flat.

Scale: It’s obvious that Charlotte is one of the taller Divas on the roster. At 5’10” she should look down on every other Divas figure, including the 5’8″ Paige. But Diva scale isn’t a big priority for Mattel, so she’s just a little taller than Paige. It’s a little frustrating since Mattel does such a great job with scale with the male superstars.

Paint: This was easily the most disappointing aspect of the figure for me. Not due to some sloppy paintwork, but the uninspired dull choice to go with a black and silver color scheme when Charlotte has so many more colorful attires to use.

A Carolina blue and white, pink and green, or purple and white would have been far more dynamic options to help make the figure stand out.

This particular outfit Mattel attempted to capture has a lot more blingy, shiny components, so we’re left with a flat attire that lacks the sparkle of the actual item. The line work on the various designs is clean. Most impressively, though, is that Charlotte’s tattoo on her left side is faithfully captured so you can actually read what it says. That’s solid commitment for a non-Elite figure.

Articulation:  My usual complaint for the Divas figures applies again, and it’s with the next level talent like Charlotte and forthcoming Sasha Banks and Bayley that the articulation issues will really be a problem.

Charlotte’s breakdown is as follows:

• Neck
• Ball-jointed shoulders
• Bicep
• Elbows
• Mid-torso
• Waist
• Wrist
• Hips
• Knees
• Shin
• Ankle

The problem is the articulation isn’t deep enough to allow for the full range of motion, severely limiting the moves and holds you can do. The regular male Elite figure can do a big boot straight up to reach another figure’s face. Charlotte can only go crotch high.

I always feel a bit worried when moving the Diva figure’s shoulders as the pin connecting it to the arm feels fragile and could snap if I’m not careful. My Charlotte also head a very loose mid-torso joint and floppy hip articulation, making it a challenge to get her to pose straight.

I’ve been use to the Diva articulation restrictions, but this instance with one of my favorite new wrestlers was especially frustrating. The return of the dreaded pimp hand was also annoying.

Accessories: Every so often a Basic figure will get an accessory. That’s not the case with Charlotte. Hopefully a future Elite will have her “If you’re gonna do it, do it with flair” T-Shirt.

Worth it? Basics are a fair price at $10 apiece. The trouble, of course, with the Divas figures is finding them typically results in a lot more than $10 worth of gas. Charlotte is the standard Diva figure, but if you’re a fan of the Divas Revolution, you’ll want to get the first figure to kick it off.

Rating: 7 out of 10

Charlotte is yet another case of a pretty great-looking Diva hampered by the substandard articulation model. I’d happily pay more to get better movement and more variety with the scale. I’m not under the illusion an Elite figure will fix my main problems with the Diva articulation scheme, but until then these Divas figures are rarely going to be as good as they deserve.

Where to get it? Target and Toys R Us will eventually get this wave of Basic figures in, but Charlotte is going to be the most in-demand one thanks to short-packing. A surer bet is going through Amazon.com.