McFarlane Digital Doctor Fate & Two-Face review

Just because I am someone who would defend McFarlane's DC Multiverse line from the usual complaints people still bitch about, doesn't mean they're flawless overall. From Todd not making Wonder Woman in her classic form for a good to the Jokerized variants overstaying their welcome, these are some of the more genuine reasons to be critical of the line without being an NPC and saying "Todd bad. Too much Batman". The Digital line is another criticism worth bringing up for how it was executed; that digital showroom crap is about as needless and complicated as trying to live off of VRchat and Metawhatever. If it was a case where the CAD files for the figures were made to encourage 3D modeling for beginners, then the whole gimmick would have been better received. Penny-pinching is also a concern I'd have with the line at times, especially if you remember my review on Silver Age Superman lacking accessories beyond the splayed-open hands. As you can probably gather at this point, this will go about as well as one would expect if there is nothing beyond the figure, stand, and cards.

Here we have Doctor Fate in-hand. This is my first figure based on a character mostly associated with the Justice Society rather than the League. This figure appears to be a reuse of the basic body used on Green Lantern and Blue Beetle, among others. It casts the right balance for musculature without being at the same build as Superman or Batman. The colors are very accurate to the way they appeared in the comics, to a fault in my opinion. The baby blue and canary yellow on the costume are usually darker on most figures of this character than what we have here, but it's surprising to see how saturated he comes off as. I would have expected the figure to be somewhat metallic like the back of the cape, but nope. This is as slavish as McFarlane's been with colors. Even the belt is painted on this figure to match the artwork, which looks basic though it does match the comic art unlike the way it was done on The Atom.

His helmet is sculpted in a simple yet recognizable appearance with a line down the middle, a slightly visible mohawk, and ears exposed to simulate the ancient warrior armor motif. I kind of wish that it, along with the Amulet of Anubis and the Cloak of Destiny, were a darker shade of yellow to sort of make them look a bit less plasticky. I find it interesting how the eyes are recessed within the helmet's eyeholes instead of making them prominent, but don't expect there to be a proper face underneath. His articulation is the same as with other figures in the line, and he has a wired cloth goods cape. I find it annoying how he has a sort of trigger finger in the left hand instead of a splayed-open left hand to match the card art. Then again, he should really come with alternate hands and some character-specific accessories. The Platinum version looks better with the gold (apart from the cape), though the blue looks almost black. A better balance could be found between both versions. 

Here we have Two-Face, who is a repaint of the Batman Forever version of the character portrayed by Tommy Lee Jones. I kind of want to get that version of the character, but this should be a pseudo appetizer for what the figure is like. This is the Platinum version, so he's in the more modern white and black color combo that I find better matches him. The Silver Age colors were all over the place, so to see this deco stay the same works very well for me. The whole "black/white/grey moral" trope can be seen as overdone, but it makes perfect sense for Two-Face, especially with the persona generally based on his BTAS iteration. The suited figures generally look about what I'd expect, but the paintwork is done very well on my copy.

His head sculpt is easily the best part of the figure. The exposed flesh combined with the crazy white hair makes for a great contrast to whatever remains of Harvey's good side. A wash would be nice, though. The articulation is slightly better since Harvey can at least crunch forward at the torso than most DC figures. And that's it with accessories. He comes with a coin molded on his left hand, and we get no alternate hands nor weapons. Wtf, McFarlane?! We couldn't even get a hand with the coin in motion?!?! Oh and the regular version looks more plain without the suit details that were on the card art.

Overall, if the Atom/Arrow wave was seen as mostly good but could be better, this wave, apart from Superman, could be described as lazy when it comes to the accessories. A display stand and two cards are not enough to justify the lack of value in these two. In Fate's defense, he has some new tooling for the amulet and helmet, and some could say he has a wired cape, but so do many other figures.

Final ranking: ⭐⭐⭐ out of ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ (Doctor Fate

⭐⭐ and a half out of ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ (Two-Face)

Transformers Studio Series Bumblebee (VW 2.0) review

Can you believe it's been more than half a decade since the 2018 version of Volkswagen Bumblebeetle was made?! That figure held up as well as it did, mostly due to the size and engineering clashing with each other. With HasTak knowing how to make movie figures better as the years went along for the Studio Series line, it does leave me wondering how soon redos of figures made very early in the line's run would be a thing, and I don't mean the retooling applied to the first Voyager a Prime after we got the 2018 version. That being said, I'm surprised it took Hasbro so long in releasing this figure since it was meant for an early 2025 release! It couldn't have been due to them relabeling it as an A-Level figure since we have TFOne B-127, though an argument could be made that we got Devastation Prime next to the AOE Leader. With the figure now in the house, it's time to see if another stab at the VW Beetle redeemed the mid mold tied to an equally mid movie.

Here we have Bumblebee in his Volkswagen Beetle mode. The altmode is generally the same as before, so we'll save the comparisons for when we bring out the old figure. The Beetle mode is generally good, from the shade of yellow fitting the altmode to the use of paint apps for the windshield wipers and blinkers. I like that we have a mirror on the driver side only, and the silver paint for the rims is nice, even if I wish that the wheels didn't have the holes on the front as well as there being a desperate amount of paint needed for the bumpers. The figure still has some issues regarding keeping things flush, but it's slightly better than the old version. The rear windows being opaque not only adds some unnecessary inconsistency, but wouldn't it hurt to make them either all opaque or have the clear plastic cast in a darker tint? It's not as bad as Universe Ironhide and Ratchet, but it could have been better handled.

Weapon storage is almost similar to the MPM version, where the gun and blade peg into the rear bumper. No battle mask is included, though we'll get to that later for the robot mode. 

For a comparison with his prior counterpart, I'm using the Rusty version which isn't 100% fair but bear with me. Major differences include the rims being dark gray on the original, a richer yellow commonly used on Movie Bumblebee toys is found in the 2018 figure, and darker gray plastics are used for the bumpers. The more faded shade of yellow on the new version is meant to match the way he appeared in the movie, though the Premium Finish version has an even closer deco based on the scene in the beach (it's mostly due to the color grading in the Bumblebee movie being worse than in prior movies and Rise of the Beasts). 

Transformation is mostly the same as the original figure, thought while the upper body has a few changes with the doors and the wheels now stuck on the back of the shoulders instead of a separate assembly, the hands are no longer separate pieces, there is no longer a waist swivel used, and the smaller door wings are removed. The lower half is almost entirely new, with a less involved leg transformation that results in his larger feet and chunkier lower legs than what the final model has. Now his rear wheels are under the feet instead of near the knees! The robot mode better resembles the character model used in the final movie, though the lanky proportions are still there, and the door wings are now more prominent thanks to the rotation that makes them angle like with the CG models of the Camaro iterations of Bumblebee. You can move them around to hide them, but I'm #TeemDoorWings any day. A big issue I have with the mold has to the mismatched yellows in the shoulders, hips, and shins; if a second coat was added to those parts, it would have looked a bit better. In general, the retooled parts make the bot mode mostly better than before, though the door wings and legs make him look like he stole G1 Jazz's toy transformation. 

His head sculpt is either a new sculpt meant for this version of the character or is a reuse of the one that came with the ROTB version. Could be the latter since the head was the same for both movies, only with a little extra yellow and better expressiveness than the constant sad eyes that Bayverse haters suddenly gooned over for the solo movie after hating his look in the past 5 movies. Anyways, his articulation consists of ball joints at the neck, shoulders, hips, and lower areas of the ankles, swivels for rotation at the elbows and thighs, and hinges for the elbows proper as well as the knees. The removal of a waist swivel is the worst part of this figure; in what world is removing a point of articulation like that considered an improvement?! At least the cannon and arm blade are more accurate.

For a comparison with his 2018 counterpart, you can see how different the proportions and engineering are between releases. It's amusing seeing that the future is taller and has longer arms than the old version, though I think some rust deco could have helped make the figure pop better. As far as I can tell, the doors and the headlight pecs are the same from the old toy. The head being larger on the new version means that doing a swap with the 2018 version for that battle mask look is likely impossible. 

The gun on the new version is bulked up closer to the CG model than the old version, though I once again have to mention the inconsistency between shades of yellow.

The same goes for the forearm blade, which thankfully had some paint applied to it unlike the ROTB version. It also has some different tabs and weapon storage slots than the aforementioned counterpart.

The worst part about the retooling is that they left the clips for the mini wing hinges intact, making them a reminder of the cost-cutting that parts of this figure went through. Would it hurt Hasbro to do an ROTBee window tooling approach to make the doors opaque plastic? Despite that issue, the new Bumblebee is better than the original in terms of looks department. The mask gimmick could have been replaced with a full head swap like on the Buzzworthy Bumblebee Creatures Collide set, and the doors should have been replaced with better versions, but the fact that this feels like a new toy altogether makes it worth replacing the 2018 version. Even still, this isn't the best version of the character based on his look in the movie. It's better than the Cybertronian version but nowhere near as good as the Offroad version. The figure is still fiddly and the clear plastic may be fragile, plus the lack of a waist swivel is inexcusable. As it stands, it is still mid overall in terms of Studio Series offerings...much like the movie it's associated with.

Final ranking: ⭐⭐⭐ out of ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

McFarlane Toys Shrek/Wallace & Gromit 4-in-1 review

Shrek and Donkey. Wallace and Gromit. They don't have much in common beyond "anthropomorphic main character and best friend who is an animal" and their brief co-existence in Dreamworks history, but they're two of the best duos in pop culture history. The Shrek series is already a hood classic thanks to the way it satirized fairy tales in the POV of our favorite ogre, and while some would say that it sort of went against its anti-Disney tropes after the first movie, the spirit of the series was still there. Whether or not the fifth movie will continue that remains to be seen beyond the art style change. As for Wallace and Gromit, it's easily the best thing that the British ever contributed to society, from having some of the best claymation in the world to a wholesome charm that makes their adventures much more interesting than what we'd normally see in other UK media. As a fan of both franchises, it makes me happy to take you all back to the past from a time when McFarlane Toys had yet to own the DC license and review some of their legendary figures from the first Shrek movie, as well as the theatrical Curse of the Were-Rabbit. That's right, the Toddfather got to these franchises long ago, and I think they're great!

Here we have Shrek in hand. Right off the bat, I'm impressed at how much detail the character's outfit has, from the wash on the tunic to make it appear dirty to the vest's alligator skin appearing life-like and not so plasticky. It really does feel like McFarlane scanned the model from Dreamworks' computers or sculptures when designing this figure (especially since Shrek was from a time when modeling characters physically was done before they were rendered in their software). The physique is there, the head sculpt captures the raised eyebrow and smug expression that spawned in future Dreamworks media (and some other pieces of media that will either work on some characters or not), though I think Buzz Lightyear beat Shrek to that front. In Shrek's favor is the Mike Myers influence added to this figure, which I always think solidifies the personality of Shrek, given how the final version of the character was molded by the actor; it was something evident when they had the original Chris Farley version before his untimely death. All around, McFarlane went above and beyond in making this figure so detailed that it puts a lot of future Shrek toys (and even some modern offerings from Todd's toys and other companies) to shame!

The articulation may not be much, but he has a swivel at the neck, shoulder rotation (the left arm can't do a full 360), wrist rotation, and slight rotation at the legs and feet. Not the most poseable figure in the world, but it's forgivable with a design like this, given the year it came out and the standards of poseability barely getting started. After all, only Power Rangers and Transformers managed to have more articulation than other companies before the ToyBiz Spider-Man Classics and Marvel Legends lines. Shrek does come with a piece of an onion, which is as layered as an ogre if you ask Shrek. Don't tell him that they stink, they make people cry, and they have ugly white hairs.

As for Donkey, this figure isn't as poseable as Shrek and might be seen as slightly inaccurate, but it still fits the character perfectly fine. The wash applied to the fur on Donkey's back, as well as the white fade for the front of the body, helps accentuate a figure like this. He might look a little darker than normal, but then again, this, as well as the pigment on Shrek's skin, could be from the lighting that was available at the time for the Shrek movies, which changed with subsequent movies as the technology got better. He doesn't stand that well on his own, but you can peg him on a base with some nice texturing and paint that makes the ground look as organic as possible. The only issue is that the plants that stand next to his butt don't peg in that well. While he only has neck articulation, the pose of Donkey fits the personality of the character, as does the face. It's slightly different than the movie model, but it fits the iconic voice of Eddie Murphy more than the Shrek 5 redesign. I'm not saying that because I don't hate the redesign, but it just needs a little more of the actor's DNA. It's like if we got Transformers 6 proper, but Optimus Prime has that face from TF One instead of his AOE/TLK face.

The figure has a gimmick where his jaw opens if you press a button cleverly hidden in his mane, and I need to continue praising the details on the figure. The gums look natural and a bit rough as they should be, and his teeth look so uneven and rich in unhealthy detail that it's marvelous! We wouldn't get anything this dedicated unless it was a high-end statue.

The Shrek line may not be the most poseable of figures, but it doesn't matter when McFarlane's stab at the hit animated film of 2001 deserves as much attention as the first Toy Story line. They're both pioneers in bringing 3D animated films to the mainstream, and while they may not be 100% accurate, they're still high-quality and set the bar high for many others to follow. I'd argue that Shrek and Donkey manage to be more accurate, given they didn't have to deal with the rushed period that the Woody dolls and Buzz action figures dealt with from the surge of their movie's popularity. In fact, some could say that being made by McFarlane Toys meant that the Shrek line was something meant for general audiences. Kids could love them for being action figures of their favorite characters, and adults could love them for the rich details and higher quality than what other movies would hand out (on top of Shrek being a film that adults could appreciate for its tone, writing quality, and references).

Now let's transition from the American fairy tale twister to the British claymation adventure series. Wallace dons his Anti-Pesto uniform instead of his iconic outfit, which mostly makes sense given he and Gromit were capturing rabbits without being lethal, a huge contrast to Victor Quartermaine using his shotgun and never getting any hits. The clay sculptwork is recreated marvelously on this figure, even down to recreating the wrinkles on the elbows and hips to simulate actual clothing. Wallace's proportions are different than normal with how long the arms are and how stumpy the legs are. It's likely due to the bendy arm gimmick and the need to put this in a single set, but he ends up looking a bit unusual with how he's designed. I should mention that the bendy arm thing may be inaccurate since I can't get them to bend; it's probably due to the age of the materials. He does have neck, shoulder, and wrist rotation, at least.

Gromit has been pre-posed holding his measuring tape for his prized marrow, so don't expect anything beyond the neck. At the very least, the simplicity of Gromit's design means that he's pretty accurate to the claymation model. Looking at him from the back reveals he's sadly been a victim of a drive-by shooting. Those holes are likely a design thing, but I can't confirm nor deny that.

They both come with richly detailed display bases, with Wallace having a gnome with glowing red eyes (not to be confused with Norbot because he doesn't exist until nearly 2 decades later), a marrow, and some pumpkins. The carrots are not removable. Gromit has a backdrop meant for the tomatoes, a watering can, a base meant to replicate the pavement in the backyard, and the marrow he sadly lost near the end of the movie when he tried to distract the Were-Rabbit.

I love seeing them standing on top of these since it makes them feel even more complete on top of being a standard that is sadly missing with today's toys. It also makes up for the lack of articulation with them both. I think making them extra poseable is possible, but it'll require also not disrupting the sculpts.

While we're at it, let's talk about the Kroger mini figure set, which may have also been sold in Food4Less stores. Joining our ogre and ass are Princess Fiona (in her human form) and Lord Farquaad. They're so small yet full of rich detail and paintwork. It's astounding to see these be comparable to a miniature display you'd find that's handcrafted. Shrek has no leg articulation but his left arm has a swivel at the bicep. Donkey's hind legs are articulated, and both Fiona and Farquaad have articulation at the necks and arms. Shrek comes with a burnt rat on a stick, Fiona comes with her handkerchief that Shrek wiped his sweat off with, and Farquaad comes with both a glass of milk AND a tiny Gingy. All of which have some paintwork that is astonishing to see on inhalable accessories. While the trio of food guys can stand normally, Farquaad is left pre-posed angrily interrogating the poor cookie man, so having him face forward means he's broken his neck.

For a size comparison, Shrek is half the size of a Blokee like Optimus Prime yet is the same size as a Loyal Subject figure like Hank Hill. The scale may not be 1:1.

And of course, you can always pretend they're needed mini me's of the cast just to show a display of Shrek and Donkey's in various heights. Alternatively, they can just be action figures that are meant to be action figures for your action figures.

And here we have the Toddfather posed with Shrek and Wallace for a general height. Scale may not be accurate. 

Overall, the Shrek and Wallace & Gromit lines are a great time to look back at a time when McFarlane Toys were younger and still smaller than the other competitors. Not to the point they were hard to come by, just that they were mostly meant for displays and weren't in the same tier as Legends when it comes to articulation. While most animated movie tie-ins that had merchandise vary in quality nowadays unless it's something like Toy Story, the Shrek line deserves a lot of attention for how dedicated the toy designers were in matching the look of computer animation and claymation while also making them have the right value for money back in the day. Nowadays, we're mostly either stuck with imports at smaller scales or Five Below fodder.

As for the other products out there, we have so many other 6 inch scale figures in addition to the micro line, a larger Dragon, playsets for either scale, larger scale Shrek and Donkey figures with the actual voice actors, and plushies still made by McFarlane! The Wallace and Gromit line also included Wallace in a sweater, Gromit holding a rabbit in a bag, Hutch, PC Mackintosh (who returned in Vengeance Most Fowl), Victor Quartermaine, and Lady Tottington. We got a larger scale Were-Rabbit and some smaller figures (not pictured). I'll get them someday.

I'll let Shrek close out this review.

Final ranking: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ out of ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ (for all 4 figures)