Action figure expert and brother-to-Nerdage Chris Price takes a look at the just-released DC Universe Classics Wave 3!
Of all the waves of DC Universe Classics that have been announced so far, this is the one I was most looking forward to. I am a huge Hal Jordan fan and seeing the prototype and preview photos so far, I fully expected the Green Lantern to become my new favorite figure of all time. Did it happen? We’ll see, here’s a quick rundown..
Packaging: Most everything has stayed the same from the first two waves. One thing that I believe is different that is a welcome addition is the incorporation of a photo of the Collect and Connect piece that comes with your figure on the side of the packaging. Just a little something extra that helps if you happen to be thumbing through pegs at your local store.
Green Lantern: Might as well start out with the big one! Hal does not disappoint. My favorite GL of all time no doubt and probably now my new favorite figure. Why probably? Because after searching through 2 boxes of figures (that’s four Hals), I didn’t find a single one with quality paint on his head. All of the masks were missing in some way. Either blotchy or missing paint. No excuse for it. Hopefully I’ll find another which will solidify Hal’s place at the top of my list.
Nightwing: Solidly the best Nightwing figure ever. The DCD version is close and might have a slightly better face sculpt, but the articulation and functionality of Mattel’s Nightwing is far superior. Love the holsters on his back. Others have complained about his size, but I think he works perfectly.
Robin: Another great figure. Both the figures I saw had great paint apps. He is definitely small, but I think it works well. He comes with his bowstaff and two battarangs which he holds well. Vast improvement over previous offerings and another example of the finest figure of this character yet made.
Sinestro: Inspected two cases and both contained the Sinestro Corps version. Both had nice paint apps. Pictures I had seen before do not do this figures face sculpt justice. He is menacing (even if he is only a little guy). Speaking of that, it hasn’t really bothered me yet. I’ll have to thumb back through my GL archives to see how Kane really depicted Sinestro to see how much I will take up a charge on scale issues with him.
Deathstroke: Really not my favorite character, but man is he awesome. Loaded with weapons that he can hold perfectly. Great detail all over the sculpts on this one. One flaw I noticed is people might have to watch out for paint quality on his face sculpt much like Hal. The paint on the center of the mask was a bit faded/blurred on both the ones I saw. No doubt the best Deathstroke ever though!
Grundy: He is huge. All the detail from the prototypes seem to have made it here and they nailed the paint on him as well. There is a problem with the neck peg as others have mentioned making his head fall to a downward lean too easily. A combination of a small peg and the sculpt of the coat I think.
There you have it! Great lineup and great wave of figures. I’ve heard some complaints about the quality of the plastic on these compared to other waves, and I’m just not noticing it. The paint issues still need sorted out though. If this is the new factory that Mattel switched to, I hope they get better along the way. The lack of attention to Hal’s face mask is definitely not excusable. Still, I think this is my favorite of the waves they have releases so far. Look forward to others getting theirs and reporting their opinions as well!
– Chris Price
