Mattel's focus on DC Comics' New Gods characters has led them to create some awesome action figures, and while this most recent New Gods release, Mantis, may not be awesome, but he's certainly unusual. Is Mantis a little more normal when trying to fit into the consistently well done DC Universe Classics Wave 9, or is he really just the odd god out? Read on to see for yourself!

Name: Mantis (Classic)
Line: DC Universe Classics, Wave 9, Figure 5
Manufacturer: Mattel
Released: Summer 2009
Price: Retail: $12.50-$14.99, Online: $13.00-$19.99
Scale: 6.00 in. (figure in 7.00 in. tall to the top of his horns)
Accessories: None
Collect & Connect Piece: Chemo's left arm
Sponsor Listings:  Amazon-$22.99

     If there's one thing about Mantis to watch out for, it's that hideous melon resting on his shoulders. It's seriously the ugliest headsculpt to come out fo the DCUC line yet, and maybe the ugliest thing the Four Horsemen have ever put out, even topping some of their McFarlane stuff. Now, with that said, it's a wonderful head sculpt because it's so hideous. In all technical regards, it's splendid, with lots of expression, small details, crisp features, and defined costume elements. They wanted this comic villain to be exaggeratedly ugly, and they totally succeeded; I love it. Sadly not all of Mantis is so unique, as his body is just the DCUC standard buck, flat crotch and all, and while it's really a great basic body, it's still noticeably simplistic and repetitive.
     Thankfully Mantis does have a few examples of new tooling, particularly his forearms, calves, and feet. They showcase layered plating that looks great and adds some depth to his costume as well as making him stand out just that much more in a crowd of similarly sculpted figures. Plus, without them, he really wouldn't look like Mantis, and although it seems like common sense to add these important costume pices, Mattel could very easily have ignored them. His new pieces actually serve a dual purpose, connecting to his "cape" in five spots, on the back of each calf and forearm, and on the peg hole in his back. The fact that the cape is composed of a really flexible material is a great relief, allowing it to sit nicely on his body is most positions, and as I'll discuss later on, limit his aritculation as little as possible. The cape's edges could stand to be more smoothly cut, though I think they're certainly acceptable as is, especially with a specific item like this that can be difficult to get right on the first try. There is a small hole in my cape, and I can't determine whether it was there originally, or if it came about from stretching the thing too far, so just be careful with this thinner plastic, as it can tear. The hole isn't a huge aesthetic issue, but it is there and can be seen clearly.

Sculpt Score: 9 / 10

 

     Mantis' paint quality is actually a little backwards from my usual DCUC figures, in that his applications are entirely clean and crisp across almost the whole figure, but other silly, messy mistakes pull him down. For instance, the New Gods' style patterning on his chest and thighs is perfectly clean, centered, and straight, as are the cut lines at the top of his boots and gloves. Those are areas that Mattel typically ruins, but they look just fine on Mantis. The problems, on the other hand, are the globs of paint and weird filiming all over the figure. His right shoulder is just a mess of goopy paint/glue and plastic discoloration. It's visible in most of my photos, as is the film across his chest. A big black streak of paint decorates one foot, while a big chunk of the wrong color green adorns his left ankle. On top of that, his arms are a different shade of green than his chest. It may not be evident in my photos, but the arms are a more "forest" green, instead of a "lime" green, if those goofy color descriptions help at all. 
     His feet feature a blue wash underneath each plated layer, which I think is a great idea to highlight that portion of the sculpt, but unfortunately, that's application is not carried onto his boots or gloves, so it just looks tacked on instead of looking like a well thought out improvement. He has airbrushing across his body like most DCUC figures nowadays, and while it doesn't detract from his appearance, not much is enhanced by it either. His head is again the crowning achievement here. The colors work well together, there's no slop, and all the details are painted clearly. His teeth are gross (as they should be), and I even love the slight orange airbrushing on the tips of his horns. The cape has a number of "loose" dark green stripes going vertically, and while I appreciate breaking up the visuals to make it look more dynamic, I can't help but feel like they could have done a better job there.     

Paint Score: 6 / 10

 

    The big question on everyone's mind was whether or not Mantis' cape would restrict his articulation. The answer is: sort of. It definitely does keep his arms from going straight up into the air, and he can't exactly do the splits either, but all things considered, I think he retains a pretty fair range of motion. I'd say almost every pose you'd want to put him in is going to be possible. Of course, most people want what they can't have, so if you get a sudden urge to pose Mantis with both hands in the air, proclaiming victory at some sort of mock graduation ceremony, don't blame me! I'll put it this way, I don't feel like the cape has restricted my intended posing much at all. It's felxible enough that posing him isn't a hassle at all, and he doesn't feel all that different than a standard DCUC figure. All of his joints work well without an ounce of looseness or brokenness to be found, and even his head has a decent 360 degree range. It's not quite the range that a full ball joint should offer, but it's much better than many of the reduced swivels other figures in this wave have been getting. All things considered, it's still quite fun to pose Mantis, and despite some uglier joints around his core, this is still a strong articulation model.

Articulation Score: 8 / 10

     I know there are people out there who love Mantis, and they're going to leave me nasty comments, eloquently defending his position as the most entertaining of all DC Comics characters, and to you people, I'm glad you have a character you love. To the rest of us, Mantis is lame. It doesn't take a lot when you see this character to just shrug your shoulders or scoff in disbelief. He's ugly, with a boring costume, and an uninteresting origin. No one knows who the character is and he definitely isn't earning the bonus points here that Batman or Superman might just by being inherently enjoyable characters. So, knowing that Mantis already has to climb out of this fun-hole (I don't even want to hear what's going through DrNightmare's head with that phrase), what does Mantis bring to the table for entertainment? His articulation model is decent, and there are a sufficient number of points to make play enjoyable, and he's relatively easy to pose amongst other DCUC figures on the shelf. He doesn't look particuarly exhilerating, and the cape is a neat idea, but I'm not sure how much fun it really is. There aren't any acessories included to spice up the action, which would be a huge help. All he comes with is a Collect & Connect piece of the giant Chemo figure, and that is actually a nice boost to his score, because assembling Chemo is in fact a real joy. Mantis' packaging is just the normal DCUC stuff, but at least that does include a biography and statistics of sorts, along with nice images and cross-sells. Mantis is without any doubt a terribly boring character, but he's just a moderately boring action figure thanks mainly to the C&C piece and his strong articulation.

Fun Score: 6 / 10

 

     Mantis has some definite benefits in this category, mainly the various examples of new tooling he features. With a good number of new pieces like his cape, head, and new costume elements, it's apparent that Mattel did have to spend a little money here. And then again, the other 60% of this figure is composed of parts we've seen a thousand times before, so some of that effect is lost. They didn't skimp on his cape, and made it of what is probably the best possible style of plastic, because it's flexible enough to maintain his articulation without compromising his appearance. That's exactly the kind of attention to detail I appreciate most when spending money on a figure. There aren't a lot of paint applications to add to costs, and not a single accessory for the figure itself is included, so those are a couple negatives, but they're outweighed by the inclusion of an enormous C&C piece that makes the total amount of plastic number a pretty high one. It might be necessary to watch out for tearing in his cape, because mine has a very small hole, and if it becomes susceptible to damage, that will definitely alter his score negatively. Everything else about Mantis is well made and problem free. For $12-$13 at retail, Mantis is a relatively reasonable deal compared to current market prices. As DCUC stretches upwards in price and NECA continues to put out amazing $14 figures, that extra dollar or two really starts to make DCUC look like a weak line in comparison, but for right now, it's still a fair price, just not a steal.

Value Score: 7 / 10

9 / 10 - A figure that captures the look of the character and looks good doing it with only a few small problems. 

6 / 10 - Some messy issues hinder a good design. 

8 / 10 - He is limited by the cape, but less than he could have been, and posing him is still quite easy.

6 / 10 - As a lame character without any accessories, Mantis isn't lots of fun. 

7 / 10 - Well constructed figure at a reasonable price point when including a C&C piece, but lack of accessories and potential durability problems hurt him here.

73 / 100 - This is a Good Toy

Mantis isn't an amazing toy by my standards, but he's solid enough that I don't regret making the purchase. I do wish he could have been more cleanly painted and that he was a bit more fun, but even against those weaknesses, he's still a good toy.

-The Articulated One

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