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Series: Soul Calibur II Craftsmanship: 8.7 / 10 - Small but great looking collectibles - Very limited articulation - Good display bases, with and without backdrops Playability: 3.5 / 10 - Anemic articulation doesn’t make for much fun - Once installed on the base, they’re good for dioramas - Get the imagination churning
Related Links: Action Figure: Metal Gear Solid 2 - Sons of Liberty Action Figure: Yagyu Jubei (Onimusha 2) Action Figure: Blanka (Street Fighter 2)
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Soul Calibur II Figures
Once I got over my initial disappointment of the Soul Calibur II figures, I found there’s much to recommend them to Soul Calibur II fans. My initial disappointment had to do with their size. At about 4 ½” inches each, they didn’t match my 8” to 9” imaginings (which is practically a McFarlane standard). But that can probably only be blamed on my “skimming” of the product description – I think I read as far as “Soul Calibur II.” That was all I needed to get my interest. The disappointment waned and I could appreciate the collection as a whole. But first, you have to get these guys out of the package. Each figure comes boxed with a pentagonal display base (with a built-in rotate feature) and card backdrop. And McFarlane has done a great job making each figure so attached to the box, it’s like performing root canal work to remove the figures. I like to think I’m fairly deft at removing action figures from their packages but these babies took a long time to remove – even just using brute force.
Ivy is sure to grab a lot of attention from male gamers for a couple of reasons: her whip sword and regular short sword. Of all the figures in the set, she is the only one with a couple of weapons, which helps a bit changing things up for display. Her sculpted stance accommodates both weapons, but I tend to favor the whip sword. She has five points of articulation and actually manages to be the most poseable of the five, but they’re all seamed. The paint job is accurate to the game renderings; however, her upper body flesh sports a matte finish while her thighs are glossy. (At least, on the review figure.)
Nightmare is probably my favorite of the bunch for his weird gothic/organic combination. He also has the biggest sword. But again, he doesn’t possess much poseability (4 points); however, the sword is so big that even a minor change can make the figure look very different. Nightmare is very detailed, getting the rivets and sinew right on. A point of interest – impossible to see from a distance – are the eyes. It’s amazing to me that the eyes were included at all because the slit on either side of helmet are so small that they could have been skipped. The blood red “ponytail” makes a for a great color mix – the blue steel, the silver highlights and the brown bone capture his game likeness.
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Voldo – everyone’s favorite blindfolded blade expert – may be the most McFarlane-esque figure. You can’t help but draw some similarities between some of the Tortured Souls figures or Dorothy from the upcoming McFarlane’s Monsters (featuring the Wizard of Oz). Bondage and blades, and all that. At least Voldo keeps his intestines on the inside and skin firmly secured to his body. Regardless, he still has a strong “creepy” factor. I like the color scheme and the detail of the armor is very good, especially on the scabbard that plugs into his back. His articulation is low – the best chance for different poses is his left arm (simply due to Voldo’s sculpt). |
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Astaroth is your typical big brute, armed with a huge battleaxe. Of all the characters, Astaroth is the least poseable, but probably the most menacing. He’s in the middle of a double-fisted swing and only his waist can be moved when installed on the base. The axe is removable but why would you want to? The way he’s sculpted, you can't even move his arms much. Just leave it – that’s the way it was meant to be. Like the other figures in the set, Astaroth is packed with detail and a stellar paint job – the regal purple is put to good use – but the helmet "horns" seem to be a bit of overkill and strays from the videogame version.
Necrid rounds out the set and marks McFarlane’s character contribution to the Soul Calibur universe. GMR (September 2003) describes Necrid as “taken straight from the pages of Bad American Comic Book Design 101.” Are those fighting words? Whether you buy that line or not, Necrid manages to fit in with the set, even though he’s not one of the original characters from Soul Calibur. Typical of a McFarlane creation, Necrid, as his name might suggest, is a bit demonic and dead-looking. Once again, because of the straightforward seam joints there’s not much in the way of poseability. Like the other figures, a ball-joint here and there, would have created many more opportunities for display. The color is good but they’re so earthy he doesn’t stand out as well as the other figures when the backdrop is installed. Playability for the set is practically zero. These figures cross the line from action figure to strictly collectibles. That’s not necessarily a bad thing because the display properties are very good, particularly when you have all five arranged with their bases in a line or a geometric shape creating a “Hall of Heroes” effect. Bigger figures with better articulation would have been my choice, but even so, the Soul Calibur II figures should satisfy fans of the game. - Omni (August 25, 2003) |
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