Remember when the armchair movie critics decided Suicide Squad was obligated to save the DC cinematic universe? Good times.
It’s been over a year since the movie generated content for lazy pop culture You Tube channels, but hey, I still kinda like it. So when Harley finally made it to shipping before Christmas, my interest and expectations had certainly softened, but it’s not every day you get to review a line’s first female figure.
And I do like Harley. At least, some versions of her anyway. Like the rest of fans my age, Batman The Animated Series introduced and inevitably endeared the character to us pretty quickly. Her appearances in comics and especially video games did the rest. And the movie version really wasn’t too shabby, in my opinion. I tried to read her solo book post-New 52, but DC’s totally original idea of trying to turn her into their “Deadpool” just ain’t for me.
As for that movie version, I think Mezco did a better job than I had anticipated in getting Margot Robbie’s likeness nailed in plastic. I don’t own the Figuarts one, but I would say it set the bar, and this one gets pretty close to that. And the clothing is top notch.
Included here are two alternate hands, two additional heads, shoulder rig, jacket, baseball bat, Chiappa Rhino, and display/armature. The heads obviously are the major gain here, but, again, I really like the jacket.
**A quick note on that jacket: Harley comes with two spiked bracelets on her wrists out of the box. They are removable, and I highly recommend doing so before you put the jacket on. They are damn pointy and could easily snag.
There is some give and take with the body sculpt; though better than the initial looks, but the movie costume doesn’t do it many favors. The articulation is a bit lighter than even Joker’s — with single joints on the elbow and knees. The knees do have a pretty good range, but I needed more out of those arms. The torso joints work well, although they show in some of the wrong places, and the real surprise is the ankle joints — they found a way to make one of the most complicated boot designs I’ve ever seen work. And she stands a lot easier than I expected. Her clothing fits and looks really sharp, like I keep mentioning. And there’s no way not to sound a little pervy, but the way they sculpted and painted bra show through the shirt a little is very movie-esque. It’s a nice touch.
There are some nagging issues here and there that hold her back. The visible articulation is a minor one, but it does break up otherwise good lines. Her shorts and fishnets don’t seem to agree with her butt when posing, and the floating belt wants no part of it either. Her harness pins back a little too far- even if she had that little more arm range, she’s going to have a tough time drawing from it. And it might just be me, but I felt like the Rhino was a little soft. For such a distinctive revolver, it comes off a little more generic than I was hoping.
I have to say, I really had sort of gone lukewarm on this figure before opening. I was bummed to see that the less-than-stellar movie reviews turned into cold feet on more figures from it, because the designs were really good. And, of course, Harley would be greatly complemented by a Joker or Deadshot figure.
But she came through on her own, and she did so better than I thought. Thanks to Mezco for making it happen, and for helping us review her.
