Sentinel (The Matrix) by N2 Toys

It’s not every day that I have such high hopes for an action figure. Who wouldn’t want a big mechanical octopus-looking death machine? The play possibilities would be endless! Unfortunately, Sentinel suffers from some major deficiencies.

The first is that the paint on the bendy arms comes off on your fingers – or any surface, for that matter. Sentinel is the first figure I’ve ever had mark up everything it touches. And the paint does not come off easily. (I really hope it’s non-toxic!) The bendy arms also have another problem with them – the wire inside them just isn’t pliable enough. I bent them all into different positions only to find that they had returned to their original position overnight. After working them for a while – bending back and forth – they stayed in the position I put them in. But you’re not going to be able to coil up GI Joes or anything. The tentacles can be separated and bent in such a way as to make it easy to stand on a flat surface, and that’s about it. For the best display, I suggest wiring it from the ceiling. (The tentacles are the main feature, and because those critical items mentioned above are present it hits both the Craftsmanship and Playability scores.)

Problems aside, the sculpt and likeness are pretty good. Some of the detail has been toned down on the "torso" section. The front mandibles are there but they’re totally immobile.

Obviously, playability was at the forefront of Sentinel’s design. The "torso" section is made of a hollow rubber ball, meaning it can’t be broken. Pitching Sentinel like a fastball into a brick wall does no damage. It’s incredibly tough! But because the torso is the made of hollow rubber it limits the amount of mobility in its limbs and the detail level.

Sentinel could be considered the "animal sidekick" of the series. He fits in pretty well with the other figure so if you want to, so enacting fantasy scenes is easy. ("Neo, take that damn Sentinel for a walk! He’s oiling on the floor!.)

Sentinel had potential but it ultimately disappointed me.

- Omni