Man of Steel Movie Masters General Zod (Kryptonian Armor) review

General Zod is an antagonist that I honestly was a bit unsure of before Man of Steel was released. I always preferred seeing villains that looked unique from the heroes they fight against, and as much as I love Iron Man and The Incredible Hulk, I have to admit that I sort of wish the final villains they fought against were too similar to their heroes, with the only differences being Iron Monger being bigger than Iron Man and Abomination looking more reptilian than the Hulk was. Also, Superman 2's Zod was pretty boring, and the only interesting thing was sort of taking away the context of the scene where he and his lackeys were blowing the humans away in Metropolis. Zod in Man of Steel, on the other hand, managed to be a bit closer to Darth Vader in a sense, who despite being a character that sort of fought like Luke, still felt like his own character overall. I loved his intimidating presence, I dug his appearance, and I even dug seeing him get deformed into "Doomsday" near the end of BvS as a threat that Superman defeated (while getting killed too), showing how even when the world hates him, he was willing to save it from evil.

That said, Mattel's made their own take on the General himself, with at least three variants for fans to collect back in 2013. One was a spandex suit version of the character, another was him being restrained by the brace on his wrists and neck, and the one we'll be taking a look at is the Kryptonian Armor version. I do not have the other Movie Masters made from Man of Steel beyond Zod, so I'm not sure if these were either better or worse than the more recent DC Multiverse figures made for Batman v. Superman or Justice League. I do know that for a while, the Movie Masters line had packaging based on the specific movie that was in theaters at the time; the same can be said for the ones made for The Dark Knight trilogy. Either way, let's see what Zod's all about!

Here we have General Zod himself. His armor looks positively alien for a live-action take on the Kryptonian military, especially when many not aware of Superman's mythos are used to the simplistic appearances of the old suits Terrence Howard and his gang wore. Certainly a night and day difference, and added to the suit is paintwork that makes the plastic resemble metal. I'd think this was die-cast if I didn't feel it in hand. I honestly prefer seeing Zod wear this suit as a way of showing how Vader-esque he looked compared to Superman's suit looking more traditional. The cape is nicely sculpted to look like fabric that's creased. There is even a bit of paint to make it look a bit dirty.

This version of Zod was from a time when action figures based on real actors were hit or miss. I'd say this face sculpt is closer to the appearance of Michael Shannon than, say, the Superman figures were when put next to Henry Cavill. The eyes look well-painted, the beard and hair match the actor's, and it looks like Zod before he starts to yell in rage at Kal-El in battle.

Zod's articulation is somewhat limited due to how rigid the armor is sculpted. Head is on a swivel, the arms move front and back at the shoulders as well as in and out; they have a bicep swivel, a bend at the elbow, and the hands can swivel. A waist-swivel is present, hips can move front and back, in and out, they have a thigh swivel, knee bends that look bad, and ankle hinges. Articulation is lacking already with the armor being made of a stiffer material, but there's no neck hinge, no double joints for the knees and elbows, no ab-crunch/diaphragm joint, no ankle pivots, and no hinges for the wrists. It would be acceptable for a 10 dollar figure, but all this is adding is ankle hinges, waist swivels, and outward leg movement; it's got 50 percent of the range of movement that a Marvel Legends figure has.

Zod doesn't have alternate hands or head, but he came with a helmet that was worn by him before it was damaged badly during the battle of Smallville. It's sculpted fine, but isn't 100% accurate. The helmet should look more opaque, have black chrome on it, and is shaped differently. While it did have a more transparent visor in some scenes, it'd have to show Zod's face more. Also included was a display stand that had his chest logo on it.

Here we have Zod next to the DC Multiverse Justice League Superman, which is in the BvS/JL suit and not the MoS suit, so if you want a Superman based on how he looked in MoS, get the 2013 Movie Master version of the character. Still, they decent next to each other, especially for those that don't mind the lack of articulation or weaker resemblance to Henry Cavill with the Superman figure. The capes being made from different materials do look jarring though.

While I love General Zod in Man of Steel, this figure's not really as worthwhile as one would expect if they bought from the Marvel Legends and Star Wars: The Black Series lines. I bring those lines up and not something like NECA, Figuarts, Mafex, etc because ML and SW:TBS have figures that are roughly $20 dollars for single releases, yet they have more accessories, alternate parts, and a great range of articulation. Actor likenesses weren't that great for 2013's options for either line, but they were still able to keep up with the other checks I mentioned. If Mattel added those attributes to the Movie Masters and DC Multiverse lines, I'd recommend them more, but as it stands, those lines feel more like a strange hybrid between the 10 dollar figures and what should be the 20 dollar figures.

Final ranking: ⭐⭐ and a half out of ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐