Review Dr.Doom Maquette

I know that a lot of comic book fans have an allegiance to their specific brand, whether it is DC, Marvel or an independent label. Personally, I’m not that really into the comic book scene and would rather wait until they make a film about the title. As often happens though, the movies don’t really live up to the comic book or the hype.

The big comic book to film adaptation for 2005 should be the Fantastic 4. It’s pretty amazing that this popular title has not been made into a feature length film, considering some of the lesser-known super heroes (Blade, Hellboy, Elektra) who have found their way to the silver screen. I’m pretty sure that huge fans of the Fantastic 4 let out a huge sigh when they heard that the main characters would be played by a bunch of television veterans such as Michael Chiklis, aka The Commish, in the role of The Thing and Jessica Alba as The Invisible Woman.

As everyone (well maybe not everyone) knows, the enemy of the Fantastic 4 is Dr. Doom. Julian McMahon (Charmed, Nip/Tuck) will play the role of Doom in the upcoming film. Possibly to get a jump on the barrage of film inspired swag, Diamond Select Toys has released the second in their new artist inspired line of maquettes.

Each of the new Marvel maquettes has been limited to 5,000 units. The Dr. Doom figure has been sculpted by Derek Miller and includes a full colored, individually numbered certificate of authenticity. The statue stands at 8 inches high and is considerably weighty. Like most heavy statues, Dr. Doom is packaged heavy duty Styrofoam and a somewhat ordinary box.

The standout aspect of this piece would obviously be the figures’ cape. Flowing, as if in the wind, Doom’s cape made me a little weary about whether or not he was going to balance correctly. Make sure that you’re displaying this maquette’s base is on a completely flat surface, or, as my wall now knows, Dr. Doom might just tip over. Speaking of the base, it displays the characters name in a nice metallic/steel look and the Marvel logo.

The sculpting work looks great, highlighted by the flowing cape. The mask is also extremely detailed, considering that it is partly hidden by Dr. Doom’s hood. The paint application is also very well done. Even though the maquette is matte painted in mostly dark greens and silvers, there are some spots that call for intricate painting. The eyes are outlined in black and set deep within the mask and hood. There are some minor faults in the paintwork, especially around the ankle joints.

Overall, Diamond Select Toys has created a great looking new line in their artist reference statues. I guess they are to be used by aspiring artists to draw some of their favorite comic book characters, but in my opinion, they’d look great sitting in anyone’s collection.

Grade: 91%

Positives: The sculpting work, Dr. Doom’s cape, paint applications on the face
Negatives: Slight balance issues, some minor paint issues

Thanks to Brian from ToyToons.com for the review and pictures, visit our Review Photo Gallery to see more pictures