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Series: Spawn
24, The Classic Comic Covers
Craftsmanship: 9.0 / 10
- Great
big huge figure
- High
detail and stability
- Very
statuesque
-
Changeable heads
- True
to the comic cover but it would have been nice to have some more color
Playability: 8.0 / 10
- Horse
has way, way more playability than the Black Knight
- Spawn
can’t hold the sword
- Small
pieces to lose
-
Horse’s tail and mask can be lost
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Spawn – The Dark Ages i.23
(Spawn 24) by
McFarlane Toys
Deluxe figures – the big ones – always tend to grab
my attention. When I think of my favorite action figures, they’re always bigger
than the average size (about 6”). Kimahri from Final Fantasy X, the hulking
MechWarrior figures from Joyride Studios, Overtkill III from Spawn XX,
practically anything from Sideshow Toy, the
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list goes on, but they all have one thing in
common: size.
With the Black Knight and Battle Horse from Spawn the Dark Ages (issue 23) –
called BK Spawn just to simplify things – you get a big detailed figure, which
oozes sufficient cool to keep him firmly on display for a long time.
On paper, BK Spawn
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doesn’t have much going for him: his poseability is low, he features three
colors, is packaged with a sword he can’t hold, and his playability is only as
high as it is because of the Battle Horse. But ripped out of the heavily
twist-tied package and you’re left with the feeling that it was money well
spent. Why? Because he’s cool! There’s also a hint of nostalgia as BK Spawn
looks particularly like an updated Skeletor (with the skull head installed).
Besides the high detail and faithfulness to the comic book cover, the best
feature of BK Spawn is the two heads that come packed with him. One is the
aforementioned skull head, which looks up at the raised battle-axe. The other
head features a horned helmet with facemask, which looks slightly down. Swapping
heads turns out to be no problem. This is clearly a good thing as it’s
practically the only way for BK Spawn to achieve a “different” pose. He does
have some articulation, but the joints are all seamed and in locations that
don’t exactly allow poseability: right shoulder, left shoulder, neck and waist.
His legs are one-piece and completely immobile. Obviously this was done so he
would ride well in the saddle. The Battle Horse features much more articulation.
BK Spawn’s axe comes in two pieces that are pegged together through his clenched
right hand. He also has a sword (that fits neatly in the scabbard) but he can’t
hold it.
Maybe it’s just a pet peeve, but BK Spawn could have used more color. It does
capture the comic book source material and it is a pretty cool figure to look
at, but I’d like to see a repaint because with some color BK Spawn would be
absolutely outstanding.
If you’re concerned about playability, you’ll get more from the horse. (Insert
your own joke here – this is a family website.) A lot of figures with
ball-jointed hips can be installed in the saddle and because the horse features
lots of articulation – including the tail – you can put your imagination to good
use. Of course, the horse also has pieces to lose. The tail can be pulled off
(but it’s easy to pop back in), the facemask can be lost, the ropes and bridle
can be snapped, and the mane pulled off. It’s not entirely durable, but with a
bit of care it holds up just fine.
BK Spawn is a recommended purchase for fans of Deluxe/Boxed figures. The horse
is pretty cool on it’s own, especially for playability, but with BK Spawn in the
saddle you get a very good display piece that will fit in with the other Dark
Ages figures from years gone by.
- Omni
(February 21, 2004) |
