[TAO's Note: My reivew is in, and the movie might be awful (by my standards), but that doesn't mean the toys based on it are! Is that the case with this GI Joe: The Rise of Cobra figure from Hasbro, or is his fate forever entertwined with that of the movie? Clark is here to tell us, so read on.]
Name: Storm Shadow (Paris Pursuit)
Line: G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra
Manufacturer: Hasbro
Released: Summer 2009
8Price: Retail $7.99-$8.99, Online: $7.94-$13.99
Accessories: Katana and wakizashi (thanks internet), sais, pistol, suction cup, big plastic weapon that fires a big plastic projectile.
Sponsor Listings: Past Generation Toys-$8.95
The uniform is a very cool design with plenty of sculpted details. The open collar is huge and disco, plus you can see his shirt and tie underneath. I particularly love the folds in his pants, details on the sleeves and gloves, and the tennis shoes. The head has a bit of a skinny nose (Michael Jackson?) and some good details in the hair. It seems to be a decent likeness to the actor, but not fantastic. The best thing about the head sculpt is that even if he doesn’t look just like the actor he is still a good version of Storm Shadow in any medium. The proportions of this Storm Shadow seemed superior to the other version (that one seemed to have a really long torso and small head to me). I really like this outfit, almost like a modern urban ninja. I also like the idea of a ninja without a mask. He seems tougher that way, that he is so dangerous he does not need to hide his appearance.
Sculpt Score: 8 / 10
Every Paris Pursuit Storm Shadow I saw had some paint issues with the head. He was either cross-eyed, looked drunk, or had a sloppy hair. The one I picked up had one of the better looking faces. The body has no paint except for the Cobra decal on the chest and the flesh colored fingers. Maybe they could have put a light wash on the body to bring out some details, but that probably would have ruined him. Nothing about it is horrible for a mass market toy, but I have to give a bit of a low score because of the number of bad looking faces I saw.
Paint Score: 6 / 10
The main issue I have here is with the neck. Although it is a ball joint, it can only be moved as a swivel. Also, his head is always going to be slightly cocked to the right (All of them at the store looked like this). The rest of the body has a good range of motion, but the right thigh seems tight and does not freely move in the proper directions. I went with this version of Storm Shadow not only for the better proportions over the masked version, but also due to the unimpeded hips.
Articulation Score: 7 / 10
I was bit underwhelmed with Storm Shadow when I first opened him, he just did not ‘Wow’ me. After about a day I really started to warm up to him, though. He has some good accessories, with two swords (one long, one short) with scabbards, two appropriately sized sais (much batter than the Deadpool figure in the same scale), a pistol which fits snug into its holster, and then some bad accessories: a big suction cup and firing projectile thing that I have not even bothered to remove from the plastic tray. I really wish Hasbro would just throw in some more guns instead of the oversized weapons, I don’t think that the missile firing action is what sells this figure to the kids (When I was a child I was never big on action features). The sword scabbards do not plug into his back very tightly and therefore can fall out easily. Despite the useless weapons and the problems with the scabbards, he still comes with some good useful weapons and he is fun to pose.
Fun Score: 7 / 10
He would be a 7/10 at $7.99, but I got Storm Shadow for $5.00 from Toys R Us. If you get him on sale count yourself lucky, the lower price just makes me happier with him all around.
Value Score: 10 / 10
8 / 10 - May not be a perfect likeness, but is a good head sculpt with great costume.
6 / 10 - Good luck finding one without some paint issues on the head.
7 / 10 - Is a fun figure, but nothing about him really blows me away.
7 / 10 - A very enjoyable figure, mostly due to his cool design not the accessories.
10 / 10 - He is still a good value, even if you pay retail for him.
76 / 100 - This is a Good Toy
Despite the great value, nothing about Storm Shadow screams ‘greatness.’ I am very happy to have a Storm Shadow without his mask, but I wouldn’t be too upset had I left him at the store. Basically I only got him because of the sale, but he would still be considered a good figure at MSRP. I say if you really like Storm Shadow as a character, then go for it, but don’t feel like you’ve missed anything if you can’t find him.
-Clark
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