The next figure being reviewed in my chain of upcoming Batman: the Brave and the Bold figures from Mattel is in fact Aquaman! Mattel seems to have a thing for Aquaman lately, and this figure being pulled from the new Cartoon Network show doesn't change that. While he's one of my favorite figures in the line so far, he still isn't a stellar action figure and in fact has some pretty large deficits.
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Aquaman's sculpt follows the look of the TV show he's derived from quite well, which is to say that he's very blocky and angular, composed of simple geometric shapes. This might turn some people off, but I think it's a a nice style and gives him a cool profile. He appears to share the same body as other basic male figures in the line except he has fins sculpted onto his calves and forearms. This figure isn't loaded with details, but his belt is a nice touch, it's just attached slightly crooked. The face sculpt is great; he has a nice smile with a square chin, boxy nose, and deep set eyes. His beard and hair are very animated and look good. His trident is a little on the simple side, but he can hold it or clip it into his arm. This brings up the same problem that plagues other figures in the line, the giant holes all over his body. This sculpt would really be quite top notch if not for these big hexagonal holes in various places that are meant to hold accessories. They mess the look up from any angle you try, even the front, because of the odd shapes they give his forearms and shoulders.
Sculpt Score: 6 / 10 - Body sculpt to match the show, really strong face, belt is a little crooked, giant holes everywhere!
Aquaman doesn't have a lot of actual paint, he's mostly just molded in plastic colors, but what paint there is, isn't too bad. The colors here are very simple and manage to match up with the show and look good in person too. It's just a simple orange, green, yellow, and skin tone and they all mesh well, nothing too distracting or ignorable. The yellow of his belt is a little too light, losing some of its vibrancy and there are application issues around his gloves with sloppy lines. A color matching issue in the plastic of his chest compared to the plastic in his arms, gives him different colored body parts, which can be annoying. The real highlight of this guy's paint is his face. The details are all very crisp. Aquaman has very clean blue eyes, tight and straight eyebrows, and a very well trimpped beard and hairline. It's welcome to see face paint this good in a cheaper mass-market figure.
Paint Score: 7 / 10 - Beautiful face work, colors work well together, belt is too light, color matching problems across plastics, some poor linework.
This figure's articulation is quite limited and doesn't represent the fun, active style of the show. It's going be hard to get this toy to do the things you see him do on TV. He only has swivel or hinge joints, missing much needed leg articulation to up the ante. DCUC style hips at his own hips and shoulders would work great here without compromising the squared style they were trying to achieve. Posing him is pretty much impossible, and playing with him isn't going to be a revelatory experience. Thankfully what articulation there is all worked smoothly and everything's tight enough to hold positions. Since there's so little, it doesn't obscure the sculpt in any way, the giant holes do that well enough on their own.
Articulation Score: 4 / 10 - A few points, just not enough to pose or play, worked smoothly, doesn't ruin sculpt appearance.
Aquaman might be considered a lame character, but in reality I think a lot of people love him, particularly younger individuals. That's just fine with this line and Aquaman has a very recognizable look and ability list that ties into the popular new cartoon. These two things are going to make him fun to some people despite the quality of the figure. He's much more problematic when considering his limited articulation, making him a bummer to pose or play with. His accessory is a little more exciting but it's just hard to make Aquaman use it convincingly. It's especially weird trying to fit it into one of the many holes on his body, it looks silly and impractical. Some sort of action feature like the slightly more expensive figures would've been helpful here, because relying on his familiar design and popularity just isn't enough.
Fun Score: 4 / 10 - He's got a classic look and feel that people know and love, comes with a big, sort of dangerous looking accessory, no articulation or action features to up the fun.
At around $8 you're going to get a 5" action figure that's well made, durable, and a big name character. This isn't a bad price these days and it feels like you're getting a decent deal. I think shaving a dollar off might be more reasonable, but solid attention is being paid to his paint and sculpt so I'm okay with it. It's also obvious they tried pretty hard with the hexagon gimmick whether it worked or not. Aquaman also includes a decent sized accessory that ups the value perception. I wish the cardback was a little more informative, not even showing other figures in the wave, without any description or biography either. Improving the packaging into something you want to keep would also help here. If you're a fan of the show or love aquaman, he's probably going to be worth it, but otherwise tread carefully, because I just don't think there will be much fun in this figure day in and day out.
Value Score: 6 / 10 - Good sized figure that feels tough, includes an accessory, fair price these days, poor cardback information, not much fun over the long haul.
Summary
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Overall Score: 54 / 100 - This is a Fair Toy
With surprisingly good paint, a show accurate sculpt, and a fair price, Aquaman is saved from his poor articulation model and weak potential for fun.
P.S. This could be the figure I'm giving away this month, just leave a comment for a chance to win (if he's the one).
-The Articulated One
