Like the other figures in this line, the Wolf Man’s articulation is limited more than I’d like. His neck is a ball joint with limited movement. His shoulders are swivel/hinges with hinged elbows. While his wrists and waist are swivels. It’s really amazing how much more personality a waist joint and ball jointed neck can add to well articulated arms, but I get so many more interesting poses out of the Wolf Man than the Creature.
The Wolf Man only comes with a base for an accessory. It’s a nicely detailed lot of tangled grass, mud, and rocks with a tree branch sticking up to add further texture. In all, the base is nice, but I wish there was something more. Usually Wolf Man figures come with the silver headed cane as an accessory. So I was a little disappointed this one didn’t, especially since the Minimates even had one. I would have also loved an extra character in the form of Gwen Conliffe or even Bela in his wolf form. They would have made for interesting additions to his base.
In all, I’m really happy with this figure. He’s my favorite character, and I think they’ve done him justice. Even though he can’t move his legs, he’s still able to stand and there’s enough articulation in his upper body to give a little life to the figure. I would have preferred an accessory or even a more detailed base, but I don’t feel they put any less work into this figure than the other Toys R Us exclusives.
There are two versions of this figure that I know of. The regular version is a Toys R Us exclusive and will run you about $14. There’s also a black and white version available exclusively at Entertainment Earth for $19.99. I’m not really sure how I feel about this version though. I like the idea of black and white figures but he’s the only one they’ve made from the first wave that I know of. It would be a shame to not get all the characters in that style.
Something else to consider before starting this line is that the second wave won’t be out until next October. Like the Minimates, Diamond is only releasing them around Halloween. I know I’m in it for the long haul, but waiting that long for figures is a turn off for some.
Do you know Vault when Diamond Select Frankenstein is coming out?
Last I heard, Diamond was only going to release their Universal figures and Minimates around Halloween. So it will probably be next year. It’s cool to get monster toys around Halloween, but I don’t know if waiting an entire year for a second wave is a good business plan.
On the positive side, from the stuff they’ve been showing and talking about I think we’ll see Frankenstein, his Bride, and Dracula.
Nice review! I’m a tremendous classic monster fanatic myself, so these were definitely on my radar. I was as surprised as you to see the Wolf Man at TRU the other day, due to the lack of solicitation for him. The Toy Island Wolf Man is my current favorite, but I think this will displace that version when I’m able to get him. I think the likeness looks more like the Bud Westmore version of the Wolf Man (as seen in Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein) than the Jack Pierce version, though.
Also– and I bring this up not to nitpick, but just in case you weren’t aware– Larry was actually freed from his curse in House of Dracula. (Their explanation of his affliction and its cure were pretty ridiculous, though; it’s easier to just believe in werewolves!) Coincidentally, I did a writeup about it on my site a couple of weeks ago, which can be found here: http://midnight-rant.blogspot.com/2010/10/31-days-of-halloween-two-fer-house-of.html if you want to check it out.
The inclusion of the wolf that bit Larry would been awesome, particularly since Chaney’s dog Moose was used as the wolf in that scene. A Wolf Man figure with Chaney’s dog as a pack-in would have been a beautiful thing indeed!
These figures aren’t everything I wish for– I’d kill for an expansive classic horror-themed line using the DCUC model, with BAFs and all– but it’s still nice that Diamond is making quality figures of the Universal monsters. It’s a real bummer about the year-long wait, though. I can’t wait for Dracula, as I still don’t have a satisfactory Lugosi Dracula in my collection.