I’ll be honest — this is something I’ve wanted since the release of Clive Barker’s original Hellraiser in 1987. I mean, it has always seemed like such an obvious product to sell to fans of the Hellraiser franchise, and I cannot believe it has taken this long for someone to finally release this into the world, but thankfully Mezco has made a 30-year wish a reality with the release of their Lament Configuration Puzzle Cube. Was it worth the wait? Let’s take a look!I ordered this off Mezco’s site without ever having actually seen it in person (which is standard protocol, right?). Per usual, Mezco’s marketing materials are seductive as hell (no pun intended), so when I saw this listed on the site, I put in an order with the quickness. Seriously, what fan of the Hellraiser franchise can possibly resist this?:
It just looks so awesome, and I couldn’t wait to get it in my mitts.
When it was finally delivered, I tore the packaging open to get to it, and at first I was a little put off by the size of the cube. It seemed small because I had been expecting a cube that was true in size to what was in the movies, and that bothered me. But it turns out it’s consistent with the size of a Rubik’s Cube, which this was partially based on anyway. So no big deal, really.
Now, aside from the size, the other aspect that I wasn’t quite expecting was the colors. In the promo images, the gold looks very metallic, as though it’s a black cube with metallic gold paint apps. In reality it’s just the opposite: it’s a gold-colored plastic cube with black paints apps that make up the details, and swirls in the gold plastic can be seen. So there’s no metallic sheen to it at all, but there is a sort of shine to the gold plastic. So instead of a Hellraiser cube that functions like a Rubik’s Cube, what this actually is is a Rubik’s Cube that sort of looks like the Hellraiser Cube. I imagine the design scheme they went with was due to the possibility of the black paint standing up to handling/play better than a metallic gold paint, so this was probably the better way to go, but I can’t help but wish the gold had a true metallic shine.
Aside from the colors not being quite what I was expecting, the cube is a lot of fun to play with and it turns smoothly on each axis, though I do have to admit I’m terrible with Rubik’s Cubes and so far I am terrified of mixing the panels all up and not being able to get it back to its original configuration. When all is said and done, I’m still happy I got it even though it didn’t quite match up with what I had built it up to be in my mind. I’ll probably take it to work and keep it at my desk as a stress toy or something — summon Pinhead when things get too hectic and all that.
You can get your own Lament Configuration Puzzle Cube direct from Mezco.
