What's this? Finally, a good DCIH figure?! No way! That's right, "no way", is right, hah. Are this figure's sharp curves enough to grip your attention? Does she remind you of some of Edgar Allen Poe's stories? Are you a single plastic male looking for a raven-haired beauty to share your shelf-life with? Read on if any of the above apply!
Name: Raven
Line: DC Infinite Heroes, Three Pack
4
Manufacturer: Mattel
Released: 2009
Price: Retail: $6.99-$8.99, Online; $9.99-$15.99
Scale: 3.75 in. (figure is about 3.70 in. tall)
Accessories: 2 Clear Bases
Sponsor Listings: Amazon-$11.99
Because they bothered to give Raven some hair under the hood, I'm going to be a tad more lenient here. The hood/cape is NOT meant to be removeable, it's glued in several points, but Raven has a neat hair-do. The suit looks skin-tight with only the flaring boots, gloves, and beautiful cloak showing any folds. Being so basic makes this figure look better I think, the articulation isn't glaring, making for a sleek feminine look. The waist looks way too thin, but the cape draped behind, being the same color as the body, helps hide that flaw. The belt is only painted-on and looks off compared to the sculpted red hemi-sphere on the cloak. The body has a very slight texture that helps diffuse light and create a semi-matte finish. Raven has an appropriately "gothy" face, almost vampiric, with refined features. Her pouty lips belie stoic eyes. I don't know what that means. The head is tiny like on most DCIH figures I've seen, she's also about as tall as Powergirl, having an almost identical (if not completely identical, Raven looks slimmer though) body.
Sculpt Score: 7 / 10
Predominantly dark and pale figures are still a challenge for me to photograph, the colors don't always look right. The whole figure is cast in dark dull purple, my camera didn't like how awesome it was so it decided to give Raven a shot of vibrancy. Nuts. The first 2 pictures most accurately represent the figure, the cloak seems to create it's own shading, it looks airbrushed! The belt is neat enough, the red gem is mildly sloppy. The eyes are gorgeous, being finely detailed despite how tiny they are. The head and is cast pale while the neck-area under the hood is painted, the colors are slightly off. If you're not destructive, unlike me, then you'll never even see the neck area. The face has a faint fleshy tone, so it's not completely white, very nice.
Paint Score: 7 / 10
Ack. Someone once said "it's the thought that counts", but they are wrong, horribly wrong. An action figure that can't be posed is no toy at all. The neck is a swivel but cant move much because of the hood. Everything else works like you'd expect, at least there are no gummy joints.
Articulation Score: 5 / 10
I am fully aware that I mispelled "boomerang" below, narg! Also, no idea what I did to my camera, but this is how this picture came out, slick color scheme! This with the purple cloak looks great, the actual total dull-purple of the figure is unexciting, un-fun. There are no black energy accessories so any hexing Raven does will have to be purely in your mind. The cloak restricts arm movement, also un-fun. Also, she's wearing entirely too much clothing, completely un-fun! Thankfully we have Starfire packed with her.
Fun Score: 6 / 10
Heck no, I'm not paying $15 for a 3-pack of small, mundane figures. I love Raven, but these figures are still over-priced. Luckily, ROSS sells many different DCIH 3-packs for $5! Along with Starfire and Captain Boomerang (Jr.?), $5 for this set is just right. You also get 2, yes, TWO clear bases included in the package. Uh, why not 3? Is this a factory error? Well, can't complain too much, the last 3-pack I bought didn't have any bases at all.
Value Score: 6 / 10
64/ 100 - This is an Okay Toy
Not really a toy by today's standards, more of a neat decoration.
-DrNightmare
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