Turtlenecks
died sometime in 1993 and went straight to Polyester Hell.Just don’t tell that to Auron – the guy’s liable to take
your head off.Granted,
he’s an action figure so dismemberment is unlikely, but I needed some
kind of introduction.
Auron
stands in at about 12 ½” and everything within two feet of him is
enveloped in Cool Factor.While
not quite the presence of Kimahri (with a Cool Factor bubble of about 6
feet), Auron can hold his own but falls short in at least one area.The paint job isn’t as precise as the other figures.There are a few smudges around the belt buckles on his sleeves
and waist, which is not enough to make you want to look away in disgust
but it does detract a little from the overall goodness of the figure.
(From a distance, you can’t tell.)The sculpt, however, is great.Once again, Koto and ARTFX have produced a sterling video game
figure.The whole
presentation reeks of attention to detail, right down to the sunglasses
and jug of grog.I
especially like the way the sunglasses plug into the sides of his head.It’s practically seamless and actually looks like the arms
disappear into his hair.
With
no articulation, except for his right wrist, Auron is a statue.He makes no allusions to being a full-fledged action figure –
it says “statue” right on the box.He makes for a very good display piece, especially if you work at
House of Knives.On par
with the size of Tidus’s sword, Auron’s black blade is impressive.Since his right wrist is articulated, the sword can be slightly
repositioned.Getting the sword into his hand takes a little effort, but
once it’s there it won’t go anywhere.
Playability
is above nil, but that’s due to the sword.The figure itself is fairly durable – the
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soft vinyl can take a
beating but it’s prone to picking up scuffmarks – however he’s got
several pieces that can be torn off or lost.The most obvious are the sunglasses.They pop out easily during play and they’re very small, so
losing them is easy.His
jug is easy to rip off – just trust me on this – and reattaching it
is hard. Same goes for the tassle and loop of beads.But back to the sword.It’s
so big you can play with it on its own or have sword fights with Tidus
(who is the only articulated jumbo FFX figure).Bottomline: play with the sword and not with Auron.
While
he’s definitely not a play toy, Auron is a very good effort from Koto
and ARTFX.He’s got
enough detail to satisfy fans of the game and collectors and he fits
right in with the other 12”+ figures.Worth the money for sure, if you can put up with slightly smudgy
paintjob on some parts (again, invisible from a distance).