Superhero Times: a service of Action Online
After a number of years with no Smallville figures on the market place and the fans screaming for more, DC Direct has finally stepped back into the arena with a second series of figures, this time based on the episode titled Justice from Season 6.
The episode, which gave us our first team of heroes in the Smallville mythos, was a fan favorite and it only makes sense that DC would make the choice for these figures in particular to make up the second wave.
Included in the wave are Aquaman, Impulse, Green Arrow, Cyborg and Clark Kent. We will take a look at them individually in a moment. But for now, let’s move to the packaging.
All five come packaged in nice plastic blisters with the entire front of the packaging giving you a perfect view of the figure inside. The colors on the card behind the characters give this great feeling of action, looking almost as if an explosion has happened behind them and they are all walking away from it.
In the top left you get the Smallville Series 2 logo, on the top right is the characters name. At the bottom of the packaging sits all of the normal safety information as well as the DC Direct logo.
Turning the packaging around the card back is actually very informative. At the top is shows all five figures, and the majority of the card back has head shots of the actors from the episode, as well as a short synopsis on each character.
After cutting the package open and inhaling the glorious smell of new toy, the figures themselves are a sight to behold. But before we get to the characters, let’s stop and take a look at the articulation in this wave.
The articulation isn’t much as has been the case of DC Direct items like these. They look at articulation on a piece by piece basis it seems. All of the figures have articulation at the knees, hips, wrists, elbow, shoulders and neck. No waist, the head only moves left and right. It’s very sad but also understandable why this is done at times. DC Direct tends to want to keep their details as intact as possible, therefore extra articulation would destroy the details here. This has always been the largest gripe of most collectors when it comes to the DC Direct line. Either the figures don’t have enough articulation or they have just enough to get by. Of course, you can’t make everyone happy all of the time and there are collectors out there buying these no matter what.
With that out of the way, let’s start with Tom Welling as Clark Kent.
Clark is dressed in his Superman colors, thanks to the jacket and shirt he wears in the show. The sculpting is a perfect re-creation of actor Tom Welling. Clark comes with a display stand and that’s really about it.
The paint applications on Clark are flawless and crisp. No bleed or overspray. Even the small zipper track on his jacket is perfectly painted. The one downside to this figure and a few others in this line is the lack of articulation.
The display stand has the Smallville logo on the front of it, and a small foot peg which is actually removable. All the characters in this wave actually all come with the exact same display stand, so we will skip this for the rest of the characters from this point on.
Cyborg is next on our list. The sculpting here is yet again top notch. The likeness here is perfect in recreating actor Lee Thompson Young who portrays Victor Stone AKA Cyborg. The details in the outfit that Cyborg is dressed in is a perfect example of just how much the gang at DC Direct really pay attention to the work they are doing.
His superhero costume is made up of a silver and black jacket with no sleeves and a pair of black pants. But the paint is what really pulls what would normally be two normal pieces of clothing together in a very nice and cool looking package. The design on the jacket has been recreated here and is well sculpted.
The best part about Cyborg is the accessory he comes with. In the episode, the heroes have hoods attached to their jackets which they wear both up and down. You can actually recreate this detail here as the figures, minus Clark, all come out of the packaging wearing their hoods down which is a removable piece, and a hood up which you can place onto the figure. Both the down and up version of the hoods are made out of stretchy rubber which makes it very easy and painless to pull on and off the figures, depending on how you would like to display them.
Next is Impulse, and yet again the figure is an accurate sculpt of actor Kyle Gallner who played Bart Allen in the series. Impulse comes dressed in his superhero outfit from the episode, and comes packaged with a hood and a Smallville stand.
A real problem with the face sculpt is the eyes on the figure. They just don’t look right. Beyond the small problem with the eyes it’s still a great sculpt.
He comes dressed in his superhero outfit from the episode in Flash colors. What is cool on all of these is the detail on the outfits of the characters, minus Clark of course. Impulse has one of the more un-interesting outfits of the whole bunch. The stand out feature on the outfit is the large lightning bolt on his back.
Of course he also comes with removable hood pieces that can be shown to be worn down or up. Impulse is one of the favorite characters in the series, and beyond the problem with the strange looking eyes this is a great representation of the character that will make fans of the show happy!
Next in our lineup of heroes is Arthur Curry, better known as Aquaman. Portrayed by Alan Ritchson in the episode, the figures head sculpt looks very regal and majestic. Although this sculpt seems a bit off when compared to the actors head shots, once again it’s a small complaint with the line.
Aquaman is dressed in his outfit from the episode, and it is recreated here perfectly. Also, he is only one of two figures in the line that actually comes with an accessory beyond the display stand and the hood piece. Arthur comes with a small diving knife that can actually be placed in a sheath attached around his right shin. Only problem is the knife doesn’t seem to go in all the way. And much like the other heroes in the line, you can display Aquaman’s hood either up or down.
And last but not least we take a look the man who put the group together, Oliver Queen better known to fans as Green Arrow. Played in the series by Justin Hartley the Green Arrow is one of the best guest characters that have surfaced on the series over the years.
Green Arrows head sculpt here is probably the best one in the line. It’s is dead on accurate and is without a doubt the best work by sculptors Paul Harding and Karen Palinko have done for this wave. His superhero outfit is also the only one in this wave of characters that actually looks like something from the pages of a comic. While the other characters are dressed in what almost appears to be motorcycle racing jackets Green Arrow’s appears to be more.
Overall, the best details on the figure are the small arrows attached to his gauntlets and his gloves, which have the thumb and pinky finger cut out of them. His belt is emblemized with a large ‘G’, and the colors of this one really stand out from the others simply because of the muted greens and the black on his outfit which make him perfectly dressed to hide in the shadows.
He comes with the two hood pieces as well, the display stand and he is the only other figure in the bunch that comes with another accessory, his bow which can be held in either of his hands. This is where the original complaint about articulation really comes into play. Had this figure had a bit more articulation one could pose him in some really dramatic poses!
Overall, this wave is worth picking up for fans of the show or anyone who is collecting DC Direct. But for anyone else these may be something you will want to pass over this time around, great wave for fans, but not so much for collectors. They retail for $12.99 a piece at most comic and specialty shops. Or you can purchase the entire set from BigBadToyStore.com for $59.99 HERE
Review by: Jason Devall
Review Samples Supplied By: BigBadToyStore.com