Kanjar Ro is a little known Justice League villain that may be getting some much needed exposure as a main villain in the new Batman: Brave and the Bold cartoon show that this figure is based on. While not an amazing toy, this is one of the better figures in the line and does a great job of representing the style of the show.
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Kanjar's sculpt is a lot more detailed than that of the heroes in the line, and much like Black Manta, he doesn't suffer as badly from the accessory holes which look really bad on some figures. Kanjar Ro's costume has a lot of tight details that bring out the look of his costume without sacrificing the style of the show. These include things like lines carved into his boots, gloves, and chestpiece as well as lips around the seems of his gloves and boots. His belt is sculpted with an emblem and hanging piece of cloth which even has a little fold-that's a nice touch. The small spikes on his shoulders add a menacing look to his generally attractive profile. He looks evil without being scary for the little ones. The head sculpt is convincingly crisp and his facial expression looks strained, as if he's planning Batman's destruction somehow. I really like this figure's hands which have knuckles and claws sculpted in; they could've taken the lazy route of basic hands but they went all out and it paid off. Kanjar Ro looks like he belongs in a cartoon with smooth curves framed on a basically geometric body shape. I can't ignore the huge holes in his arms and legs which do break up the attractive appearance from the side, though much less distracting from the front or back. His accessory works well in the holes and looks okay too. It's nothing special, but you know it's some kind of deadly laser.
Sculpt Score: 8 / 10 - A lot of nice touches with details, stays within the confines of the show's style, good face, accessory is okay, holes are ugly and useless.
Kanjar Ro's paint is about what you would expect from this line, nothing spectacular but nothing terrible. His color choices are great and based off the show with a dark black undergarment highlighted by an almost brownish-gray that makes him look warrior-like. His skin is light pink and he has an off-blue stripe down his middle. These colors work pretty well together although I think they gray of his armor could be a shade or two brighter. I haven't noticed any color matching issues like on some figures in this line, so that's a relief. Applications are just okay with Kanjar, because he suffers from a little bit of line wonkiness. Most of the paint lines on this figure are wobbly, particulary on his forearm bracers which have some sloppy color applications from gray to black. The one exception is the blue stripe which looks perfect. There is also a little bit of slop with spots of color where they don't belong. Details on his face are handled very well though with crisp eyes and clean mouth. His accessory could really use some attention with a paint brush, it's just molded in the color with absolutely no details.
Paint Score: 7 / 10 - Colors match the show and work well together, applications are poor in some areas while great in others, good face details, some slop, weak acessory paint.
With a very limited number of articulation points, this toy is going to be tough to have a lot of fun posing or playing with. Kanjar Ro only has a swivels at his neck, waist, shoulders, and hips with hinges at each elbow. This really limits your posing options as well as the way sin which he can fight in huge carpet wars. Each point works well with a full range of movement, but again, it's not like you're going to get a lot out of the movement there is. I think the articulation looks pretty good with the sculpt, the hips and eblows seemless enough, while the shoulders look great with the seem fitting into the scheme of the lines on his shoulderpads. In the end, this is just a poor attempt at capturing the energy and action present in the cartoon.
Articulation Score: 4 / 10 - Not a lot of joints to work with, joints do work well, looks okay with sculpt, nothing like the cartoon.
Kanjar Ro probably isn't at the top of anyone's list of characters to have in cartoony action figure form, if for no other reason than his lack of coolness. He's an okay villain that's been consistent through the years, but he doesn't have any super cool powers or a menacingly big look, he's just a bad alien pirate guy. This figure is potentially the coolest Kanjar Ro I've seen and that's not saying a whole lot, so he's not going to be inherently fun for many people. On the other hand he does have shoulder spikes, and heaven knows spikes work miracles for enjoyment. Being tied into the show and having a unique animated style help here, but his lack of articulation really hurts. You can't pose him or play very easily with him so what's the point. His accessory is a little strange, though a big laser type gun, so that's useful. More articulation or an action feature would really help here. For a toy that caters to kids, he's just not very playful.
Fun Score: 4 / 10 - No action feature, a questionable accessory (see comic), limited articulation possibilities, not a loved character.
Kanjar Ro is a hefty 5 inch figure that includes a pretty big accessory. At under $8 that sounds like a pretty reasonable deal, especially considering his good sculpt and above average paint applications. And on the surface, it's a very good deal. It's when you start to look at the super lazy packaging with no bio information or even a listing of other figures combined with the fact that he just isn't a whole lot of fun, the value starts to take a nosedive. You're getting a lot out of your money in a physical sense, but the real question is, is he going to be enjoyable for a considerable amount of time.
Value Score: 6 / 10 - Well made figure that's reasonably priced for his size, includes an accessory, poor cardback info, not that much fun over time.
Summary
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Overall Score: 58 / 100 - This is a Fair Toy
Kanjar Ro does everything right in a technical aspect with a great sculpt and good paint, but in a practical manner he's just not that much fun with his limited articulation.
P.S. This could be the figure I'm giving away this month, just leave a comment for a chance to win (if it's the one).
-The Articulated One
