The great comic author Frank Miller finds the Spartans and their history fascinating. This is revealed in his adaptation of one of the greatest battles - the Battle of Thermopylae – into a terrific comic book. Critics deem it a fascinating read while it is not entirely historically accurate. It has been selected and produced into a movie (just like Frank Miller’s Sin City film adaptation) which has been released recently in the UK. We at QO, are looking forward to watching this movie in the very near future.
The first four figures have been released by NECA who have the rights to produce them based on the film. The figures released so far are King Leonidas, Queen Gorgo, Immortal and Ephialtes. We have these figures in stock – you should try and grab the collection while you can. NECA has been doing a great job so far producing these figures but they seem to be on the verge of breaking out of the pack becoming the industry leader this year. Some of their major licensing deals include Pirates of the Caribbean, Grindhouse, Harry Potter and 300.
Picture in your mind the figures made by NECA to date – Gorgo is the most beautiful female form NECA has ever made. The high cheekbones extenuate that perfect Mediterranean face, a regal expression with perfectly sculptured hair flowing over the back and shoulders. The body sculpt consisting of long white robes fold and layer well, is very impressive. It is sculptured in a manner that brings out the true beauty of the character.
Leonidas is sculptured based on a warrior pose where the figure stands on the ball of its right foot making it awkward to stand without its base. The body of the figure is well proportioned and looks very realistic with the King’s muscled body. Both heads, helmeted and the one without the helmet, blends in well with the rest of the body further proving NECA’s impressive production of the figure series. The robe appears very realistic with its cloth like textured surface. The figure is sculptured with the hands designed to hold accessories but care must be exercised when handling, as the hands are hard moulded plastic.
It is important that the paintwork on the figures be consistent in almost every level. The Gorgo figure has well balanced paintwork – the folds in the robes are well painted as well as the body with a perfect skin tone. The curvaceous body of the figure has been painted well bringing out the true beauty of the female form. King Leonidas’s figure seems to have a minor inconsistency in the skin tone on his chest and the head without the helmet appears shiny. Apart from this the figure is painted well with the robes painted to depict a dirty worn out look with the right blend of red shades on the robe.
The figures are not super articulated although there are some joints allowing a degree of articulation. The heads can be tilted to a certain extent because of the ball joints at the neck but care must be taken in fixing accessories in to King Leo’s hands due to the hard mould. King Leo has ball-jointed shoulders so the arms can be stretched away from the body and over the head. However the Gorgo figure does not have any ball joints in her shoulders. Leonidas has a waist joint while Gorgo does not although it appears she does. Both figures have cut joints on the legs and ankles although Leonidas cannot stand upright without the stand. The Gorgo figure does not have any accessories while the Leonidas figure comes with the extra head without the helmet, the sword, battle-damaged shield and a spear. One has to be careful with Gorgo’s earrings, as they seem to come off easily.
All four figures come in NECA’s standard clamshell packaging with single sheet inserts. The front graphics on the insert show unlucky Persians toppling off the cliff. On the back there is more character personalization. We think NECA has produced their best line of figures so far and some of the figures may even be chosen as the best in 2007.
