hot off the production-line and into my grubby arms comes Series One of dKiller Panda's new Monster Theatre-mini figures (produced by SD Toys), courtesy of Dark Horse. first thing i noticed (as compared to the small images found on DH's product reference site) was that the figures were far more impressive than the images shown. waaaaay impressive. do take a virtual walk with me thru my humble review of the figures, shall we? :)THE PACKAGING: boxed-up in a simple (but classy-ish) elongated black-box with frontal window display, with white text and graphics. the DKiller Panda's icon/logo is prominent on box sides, while the back shows the entire family of the Monster Theater-series. the packaging is stylish. (but i've always been partial to anything "black" anyways LOL)
both dKiller Panda's and SD Toy's website URLs are displayed clearly (at back), and that is something i would appreciate, rather than just "nameless" designed-figures randomly displayed LOL (a small quirk of mine, my apologies)
THE QUALITY: the 3"-er tall PVC figures have no articulation whatsoever. and regardless of some minor finishing irregularities, the black-and-white paint-work was commendable. and they could stand/balance by themselves. that to me is a big-plus :)
THE DESIGN / SCULPT: designed by dKiller Panda [interviewed here], there are 6 classic horror characters in this series, split-up between two "sets", with Set One featuring Nosfe, the Invisible and London [here] while Set Two features Franky, the Bride and Mummy (which is the set i have and am reviewing :p)
personally, i feel the designs are "killer" (sorry, i had to get that in LOL) and the sculpts are phenominal. as unarticulated as these figures are, they have a "life" of their own, just from the design. a quasi-super-deformed design-take on classic horror characters, perfect for the quasi-kitty-cute-generation, while not alienating the older folks (*ahem*), IMHO
and as "scared" as we should be from these things-that-go-bump-in-the-night, they are enduringly
wish i had Set One too tho, i kinda like Nosfe (from looking at the images) *heh*
EXTRAS: in addition to the two boxed-sets, there is also the Monster Theater Display Cases = where a singular display-box includes 2 each of the 6 characters, from Monster Theater PVC set 1 & 2 -- (Vampi, London, Invisible, Frankie, Bride, Mummy) - which means it'll be "easier" for collectors to just get whom they like, without getting the entire box.
PLUS: great sculpts and design. 'nuff said .. and with it's small size, i reckon i could/would be able to cobble-up some diorama/s for them to muck-about in, innit?
MINUS:
01. no articulation. it would have been nice if at least the arms/shoulders were able to move, where we could do the "im-coming-to-grab-you"-pose, yeh? LOL
02. packaging: mayhap folks not looking specifically for these figures might miss it, as the figures might not "pop out" enough, laid against the blackened-interiors, IMHO. altho one can argue about the "whites" popping out from the blacks ... but only if tis under a spotlight? but stacked-up with other boxes? ... other than that, how could you look away from the mysterious monstrous faces looking out back atcha? *heh*
MY TOY-WISH-LIST: wouldn't be cool if they are bigger vinyls, yeh? i would really mind a decent 6"-er, yeh? heck, throw me an 8"-er and i'll be all over it in a deadened-heartbeat! *LOL*
WRAP-UP: be it you're a classics-connoisseur or contemporary urban vinyl collector, these sets are worth every penny, becoz the "value" goes beyond the after-market price-points, and would have a place in yourr memories, if not your toy-lurving-hearts, IMHO :)
WHERE TO GET:
- Set One (nosfe / the invisible / london)
- Set Two (franky / the bride / mummy)
- Monster Theater Figure Display
- dKiller Panda's website
EXTRA LINKS:
- the dKiller Panda Interview ON TOYSREVIL-weblog
- more Monster Theater images on my multiply
[POSTED circa 13.05.07]
