Bucky! It’s Captain Bucky O’Hare! Mutants, and Aliens, and Toads BEWARE!
Yes, we are hopelessly behind in bringing this feature, but the Toad Wars continue thanks to our friends at Boss Fight Studio. When it was announced last year that BFS had the license for Bucky, I was instantly excited, even though I had not thought about the battlin’ green bunny for a very long time. I was a big time fan of the toys when I was a kid, though admittedly, my knowledge of the mythos and the overall story of the property itself was limited to the toys, the packaging, and the occasional episode of the cartoon. However, Bucky is most certainly a cool and interesting property, and good toys are good toys. So, seeing how Boss Fight was taking the reins, I knew these would be good toys.
And guess what? I was right! Not that it should be any kind of surprise if you are familiar in the least with BFS product, but still – these ARE good toys. Actually, they are GREAT toys, and while this is just the first series, I already have my wish list together to go beyond the Dead-Eye Duck and Toad Trooper they have already previewed. I MUST have my Dogstar and A.F.C Blinky! I must! But let’s not get ahead of ourselves here, it is time to focus on the present, and presently, I am really enjoying Bucky and Jenny. I got my set from Big Bad Toy Store, and they are still available for order, so go getcha some while supplies last. In the meantime, let’s take a look at series 1.
Bucky O’Hare
The rabbit, the master tactician, the commander of the Righteous Indignation, and the star of the property, you knew he was going to be a part of the first series, and man, has BFS done right by him. I have a strong affection for the old Hasbro figure, but like so many other properties that have nostalgic ties for me, I am proven once again to still be a great fan of modern action figures, and this new offering retains all of the charm of the original, but adds a much more refined sculpt and articulation scheme to make for one of the best figures I have gotten in a long time. There is no shortage of good figures based on Larry Hama creations (and the team at BFS have been responsible for a good deal of them), but Bucky is instantly my favorite, and for a lot reasons.
As I said, there was never any doubt that Boss Fight would make some amazing Bucky figures, but that qualifier extends from doing the property justice, all the way through to final production, and even today, that is no small feat. I generally have some nit to pick when it comes to design or engineering, or overall quality of execution, but here, I just don’t. That is not a cop-out either, I looked for something, but other than wishing the faces swapped a little easier (that is totally not a complaint), I pretty much got this figure out of the pack and pointed to it with a, “Yeah, that is a pretty perfect action figure.”
Just looking at the pictures, I am sure you can see that the sculpting here is pretty immaculate, and that is carried further by the fact that figure has multiple hands and face plates to help Bucky adapt to variety of situations. There is just enough variation of the eyes and mouth of the face plates to add a lot of expressiveness to Bucky, and I really like that the eyes have been tampo printed because they are very detailed and very clean. You have to have trigger fingers for the two pistols (and when you don’t his weapons hang nicely at his belt), but the fists and pointed hands show off Bucky’s intensity and leadership qualities. The proportions of this figure are also nicely updated over the classic version as they feel more accurate to the comic run. Plus, the new form helps facilitate all of that great articulation.
Speaking of which, this figure is most certainly what I would call “super-articulated.” Like the Vitruvian H.A.C.K.S. line, you can almost completely disassemble Bucky at about every single point of articulation, and that give some standardization to the joints and pegs, but also allows for a good deal of tolerance to promote a high range of movement. Bucky is built for action and the essential points, like neck, shoulders, hips, knees, and ankles have great range, and I have not really found a reasonable pose that I have not been able to achieve with this figure. BFS has a great formula for articulation going, and Bucky really benefits from it.
First Mate Jenny
Talk about a long time coming. Jenny has been an essential and original character in the S.P.A.C.E. mythos since its inception, but this is the first time we have ever gotten an action figure of her. We missed her by *that* much back in the original line, and her figure was pushed from the first series to the second, and then the line was promptly canceled. It was a bummer to be sure, but time and kick ass action figures can heal all wounds, and it is time to live in the now, because Jenny has finally gotten her due. Honestly, Jenny is just about every bit as good as Bucky when it comes to being an action figure, but that sense of “first time ever” sure makes this a fun release, so good on them for not waiting on getting her done.
Again, I really don’t have anything but praise when it comes to the sculpting and production quality. This is a sharp and iconic version of Jenny, and while all of the essentials are there, her design is inherently more complicated when it comes to bringing her into plastic. Like Bucky, Jenny has a variety of face plates (the wink is my favorite) to illustrate her personality, and several swappable hands with many showcasing her psionic powers, as a member of the feline group of Artificer of Witches of Aldeberan. The latter touches are really cool with the translucent pink plastic and additional snap on effects to completely sell the powers. Oh, and silver and black of her costume really does pop on the shelf, she certainly does look like she belongs in outer space.
However, Jenny is a lot lither than Bucky, and when that is coupled with her much larger (proportionally) head, that can cause some challenges when it comes to balance and posing. However, thanks to the articulation design, and the fact that she has a tail, I have found that much of those challenges have been mitigated successfully, and Jenny really does pose well on her own, and without any assistance from stands or otherwise. She might not be able to get quite as dynamic as the Captain, but she still does a great job, and she is such a good example of character design married with practical solutions to make for a successful figure.
Guys, these figures are LEGIT, so if you have not gotten in the ground floor with them, Big Bad Toy Store has got you covered. Plus, they have their pre-orders open for the next series, which includes the aforementioned Dead-Eye Duck. I know Bucky O’Hare is closer to being a cult property than mainstream, but it is a lot of fun, and Boss Fight is handling the property with such love and respect, that I am going to support this all the way through. I REALLY hope we can get the main cast of characters at least, and the fact that these scale well with my primary 1:12 scale, that just makes them even better. Do NOT miss out on these, you WILL regret it because they are awesome.
