Kool Kollectibles content

28 Oct 2017

Bandai Star Wars Movie Realization Ronin Boba Fett Prototype

I've collected at least one of each previous character from this awesome Bandai Star Wars Movie Realization series. When they announced that they were going to release a Prototype Boba Fett version at SDCC this year, I figured I could do without another repaint.

But they are taking so long to release figures that I ended up caving and getting this from BBTS. The price was certainly high for this exclusive, but once I had it in hand, I was glad I got it! Check out my thoughts in the video below over on the Kool Kollectibles YouTube channel. More pics and thoughts below too :)



I thought the repaint would be a pretty bland white job, but man the variations in the paint are awesome! The sculpt of course is essentially the same as the previous Boba Fett, but the use of shades of white, silver, grey, and black actually really pop.


The accessories to go on his shins were more difficult to put on this time, so definitely put the legs into some hot water to soften up the plastic before putting the little knives and gadgets on. All the other aspects of the figure, from the sword, blaster, shoulder pads, and cape are as per the previous version, obviously with a different paint app. Everything is cleanly done and to a high quality by Bandai here.



The paint app on the original Boba Fett had a green that was bordering on aqua. I would have preferred a darker shade of green, but they were probably going for the lighter Empire Strikes Back look rather than Return of the Jedi. Either way, the paint app on both are nice, and the stark difference between them on display looks great too.



In the end, this thing looks so great I'm not regretting the higher price at all. It will be interesting to see how the upcoming Jango Fett repaint compares to these two. I'm definitely looking forward to the new Darth Maul figure too, which will be the first unique figure for quite some time in this series. Hopefully they continue to make more of the characters from the concept art shown before.

18 Oct 2017

Hot Toys MMS359 BvS Wonder Woman

After getting Superman and Batman from BvS back in 2016, it took Hot Toys seemingly forever to finally release the corresponding Wonder Woman. In hindsight, I probably should've cancelled my order and just waited for the teased Justice League version. The prototype of that at recent conventions certainly appeared to have a superior head sculpt.

In the end, I probably would've been too impatient to wait another 12+ months for the next Wonder Woman figure. This one that has now been released isn't too bad, but it's far from perfect. I wouldn't count it up there with the best from Hot Toys.

Click through below to watch my full video review over on the Kool Kollectibles YouTube channel.



She doesn't come with too much in the way of accessories, but what she does have is a pretty accurate reflection of how she appeared in the movie. The base is the usual excessively large style similar to Superman and Batman before her. I hate it, and much prefer the previous small black oval stands. Simply yet classy, whereas these are just too big and you have to use the stupid pole and waist grabber.




The assortment of hands suit her lasso, sword, and shield. It's unfortunate that the sword is such a soft plastic as a metal one would've been a nice touch. It is nicely detailed, but a premium material would've added an extra high-end touch for this price range.

The shield is also plastic, and takes a bit of work getting her to hold it in a decent way against the arm. I was wary of having it rub against the skin of her arm, so just watch out when you are adjusting the arm position.

The arm band also takes a bit of effort to put on, and you have to rotate it in certain directions to minimise any rub against the skin. The paint on the skin is very easy to damage, so go slow and steady. Over time, I think the arm band will stain or leave marks on the skin, but it should all be underneath the band itself out of sight.



Getting her hair to fall naturally was tough. I ended up not really doing too much to it with water or any other product, and just tried to keep it neat behind her shoulders. Other collectors are far better futzers and posers than I, and have made her look great in some photos. I am happy enough with her in this static pose next to the other two.

On posing, the articulation is pretty limited, and every move I was terrified of damaging her skin in some way. So it's unlikely that I'll be moving her too often if at all! Any rub on the skin would leave marks that would be near impossible to remove. The instructions do describe the limits of movement, but many of my joints were very tight, such as the knees. In the end, I just didn't feel like it was worth the effort trying to move her in case I damaged something!

I also worry that the shoulder strap may leave marks over time on the shoulder, but that's her look in the movie so I'll leave it on. The strap connects via one of the crappy press studs that Hot Toys continues to use, and I've heard quite a few reports of breakages already. I broke similar studs on my 1989 Joker jacket and 1966 Batman cape, soI hate these with a passion. Hot Toys should change to using metal studs like other companies, but continues to use cheap plastic ones.



On the outfit, I also had the same problem as some others where one side of the rear blue skirt has a larger gap on one side (see video review where I show it). The skirt was simply not assembled in a perfectly symmetrical manner, resulting in that gap. But luckily it's at the rear, so I didn't bother trying to fix it since it's not seen on display.

The red and gold torso section is nicely done, but be careful of any moisture residue to paint fade. Out of the box, every time I touched the torso, there would be some sort of residue left on my figures. This has gone away with time, but just be careful not to touch the armour and then touch the skin.

Overall, I'm glad to finally complete the Trinity from Batman vs Superman, but it's definitely not one of Hot Toys' best figures. With a better head sculpt likeness coming for the future Wonder Woman figures, I'd recommend holding off and seeing how they turn out.