Toy Bender

After picking up the first two figures that I reviewed previously, I picked up two more at a Wal-Mart. I got these guys mainly because Wal-Mart’s price was 6.98, a full fifty cents less than Target. Still, seven bucks for an action figure still hurts.

Before we get on with my reviews, I’d like to point out that I missed an important detail in my last review. The sticker that you get with the “hidden relic” is meant to be used in the mail-away offer. If you collect six stickers and send them in, you get the exclusive figure. What is that figure you ask? The figure is… ***Spoiler Alert*** a crystal skeleton figure with throne. There’s no picture of the thing, but I’ll share one as soon as I find one. ***End Spoiler Alert***

Indiana Jones - Raiders of the Lost Ark

This Indiana Jones is the jacketless whip cracking Indiana seen gunning down the Cairo swordsman. The main difference between this Indiana and the other Raiders indy is mainly the Jacket, which makes me question why in the hell I really needed to purchase both. The quick answer is that I’m insane, no matter how much I try to convince myself the purchase was for this blog. The other big difference is that his whip is a string, rather than a molded piece of plastic. This adds a bit more play value if you’re a kid and a little bit of posability if you want to tie it around a Nazi neck or replicate what I think is a great Saturday night.

The one thing I didn’t really care for with this figure was his pre-posed legs. There’s a reason why they are static, they play a crucial role in this figures “whip cracking action.” You see, if you squeeze Indy’s legs together, he swivels his torso and makes a whipping motion with his arm. It’s a decent gimmick for a kid, but the one thing that holds it back is that his grip sucks and my Indiana Jones ended up tossing his whip rather than whipping anyone with it.

If you’re wondering about the facial sculpt which I dislike on the first two Indys, this one isn’t as bad, but still isn’t an entirely convincing Harrison Ford. There’s also some weird scuplting by his neck veins that make him look like he’s wearing a flesh colored undershirt.

The accessories included are a pistol and the aforementioned whip. There’s also the “hidden relic” that contained a chunk of the Grail Tablet, which was pretty cool if you’re looking to recreate some scenes from The Last Crusade.

Overall this is an okay figure, but if you’re only going to get one Indiana Jones then I’d pass this one up. Two short rounds out of five.

Indiana Jones - Kingdom of the Crystal Skull

I have to admit that I’m an idiot. For some stupid reason, I thought this was the Indy from Raiders where he threatens to blow up the Ark with a bazooka. Well I was completely wrong. This figure is from the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull where he uses a bazooka. My first clue should have been that he’s not in a Nazi uniform.

Anyway… this is an older Indiana Jones without a jacket and without a hat. The good news is that Indiana’s face looks much closer to Harrison Ford than any of the previous figures. Please Hasbro, more of this.

There’s not much to say about this guy except that his arm articulation is reduced compared to the other figures, but it works well for his included bazooka. Speaking of accessories, aside from the bazooka you don’t get much else. There’s a whip that’s molded into a coil and there’s no gun. The good news is that his pouch is much easier to remove without the jacket. With no hat and no uncoiled whip though, this Indiana Jones is one that seems to hang out on the peghooks a bit more due to the fact that he doesn’t look like the definitive Indiana Jones.

The hidden relic that came with the figure was something called the Dagger of Atreus. This is another good one for adding play value, but certainly isn’t as exciting as getting a prop from the film like the grail tablet.

This is a decent figure. If you are only getting one Indy, again this is not the one. I appreciate the better head sculpt and since I’m in Indiana Jones mania, I’ll give him three Short Rounds out of five.