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The Lion (McFarlane's Monsters)
by McFarlane
Toys
After studying Lion extensively over the last week,
I have but one question: How long could you go while holding your intestines in
your hands? There’s no denying
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that this is one gruesome action figure but before
I get into that I should briefly cover the story included in the cardback.
In the first installment (included with the Dorothy figure), we got a brief
overview of Dorothy and her Victorian bondage fetish. In this set of chapters,
she gets carted off to Oz via mysterious happenstance still
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wearing her leather corset. After gathering her wits (and her dog Toto) she
hears voices approaching from the underbrush… and so the story continues.
Next to Toto, the Lion is the largest figure of the series – standing with
impressive bulk and a ragged mane. He has 10 points of articulation (not
including the bendy tail), all seamed except for the neck. His neck is
ball-jointed and completely hidden from view, which not only makes it
unobtrusive but provides a wide range of movement. The other articulation points
are mostly unnoticeable, especially at the waist thanks to the spilling
intestines.
Just in case you didn’t notice, the Lion is a grotesque and twisted figure (and
admittedly not for anyone under 18). Although the detail is stellar, you
definitely have to be in a certain frame of mind to appreciate it. The Lion’s
skin fits him like a relaxed pair of jeans – a ripped and bloodied pair of
jeans. His skin is split in many places granting us some insight to his muscle
and bone structure. But the real feature here is the various bladed weapons –
two small swords and one spear – that can be pinned into and through his back
(making them difficult to lose). The spear is installed through his abdominal
cavity to create a somewhat tragic pose. Couple that with the gooey-looking – so
help me, gooey – intestines that can be installed and you have a truly
battle-ravage figure (and one that meets McFarlane’s detail level).
Stability is horrible even with the rigid legs. He absolutely needs to be
installed on the section of yellow brick road to stay standing.
Playability… let us be serious. There isn’t a whole lot. Besides the swords and
removable intestine, the other accessory is probably the most evil-looking
leg-hold trap I’ve ever seen. It doesn’t really disappoint in terms of
accessories, but the overall figure is just too horrid to actually play with
unless you want to recreate the closing scene of the retelling of the Oz story
(when it’s revealed why the Lion looks the way he does). Besides, the damn spear
is sharp enough to break skin!
Fans of McFarlane’s more violent and grotesque figures shouldn’t be disappointed
with Lion. He’s more for display – display where? – and won’t even register on
the play scale.
- Omni
(October 17, 2003) |
