I was hoping to have this review sooner, but the most annoying thing about DC Collectibles cropped up: availability. I know it should be super easy – just order it from your LCS and go! But, truth is, I never want to pre-order the damn things because the shops tend to expect you to buy it regardless of quality control.
So, that turns DCC into… well, just like everything else. You go to the shop, see if it’s there and hope you get lucky. It shouldn’t be as annoying as it is, but between knowing the date it will show up and not knowing if it will or if someone will beat ya, it still is. I got lucky with Batman. Catwoman, not so much. So I bit the bullet, picked up a Catwoman online, and here we go…
I talked in my Batman review about how this line really feels like two lines squashed together. A BTAS line and a TNBA line. And if I were only going to get one, it would probably be BTAS. I love a few TNBA designs, but the original has a tighter grip on my heart. And yet, I didn’t feel the same glee over Catwoman that I did when I picked up Batman two weeks ago. I’ll try to pinpoint why as we go, but I think it’s just a lot of little things.
The sculpt is a pretty faithful recreation of the original design, at least below the neck. It’s not as good overall as Batman – the legs seems a little thin and the neck a little too long, but the costume details are there (it’s real tough!) and I like the overall figure’s silhouette. It’s good. The head though? I like it, but it just doesn’t quite seem right. It could be a little too round. It could be that it looks a little too manga instead of animated. Or, heck, it could just be that she’s not smiling. I always think of this version of Catwoman with a smile. The mouth is slightly open – it’s hard to tell – and I’ like that, but there’s still just something not quite right. She’s just not quite as good as Batman.
The articulation is a similar story. There is a lot of good articulation here. There are ball-joints at the neck, shoulders, elbows, and wrists; the h-hinges at the hips, hinged knees, boot swivels, and a couple funky joints at the ankles that work like a ball-joint too. Most of these articulation points are good (they feel fragile, but I haven’t had any breaks on either figure). The upper arms feel limited – the elbows don’t have as much range as Batman’s and that makes me really want a bicep swivel for some added movement. I also found myself missing some waist articulation when I was trying to get a good whip pose.
The paintwork on my Catwoman was fairly nice. The paint on the face was clean and most of the few paint lines are sharp. The belt was really the only area on my figure that was fuzzy. Continue to Page 2…
Great review! Thanks for the New Adventures Batman review, as well.
I have both figures on their way, set to arrive this week. I would’ve liked to pick them out in person, but I have no comic shop in my area. I’m really hoping for some decent paint apps… and no breakage.
Either way, I plan on being all-in with this line. I currently have all 12 figures on pre-order. And I’m really looking forward to series 4. It’s supposed to have Riddler, Penguin and Batman from B:TAS, and New Adventures Batgirl.
Thanks! Good luck with your figures! I’m excited to see Wv4 too!
Great review, pics, and comics, as always!
When this line was announced, I was SO looking forward to it BTAS is one of my favourite series ever, and the thought of being able to get some Art Deco-styled figures appealed immensely. Then, I just lost interest in collecting. Oh, well. More money that can be used elsewhere.
I came a across a Black series Boba Fett on Friday and bought it but I have just lost so much interest in collecting I couldn’t bring myself to open it so I took it back on Sunday.
Get out while you can! lol
Well as said only saw Bats at my local store. I think waiting on Joker review. Still on the want list as if does well I can hopefully pray a Superman line happens, and.then dare I say JLU.
A fun review and yes seen some paint issues at another review with this Cat. Mainly the mask area around her face.
As much as I like BTAS I would love a JLU line in this style.
I’m so excited for that barrel chested Supes!
I can’t let myself get into this line. I can’t.
But man does she look good. Batman for me completely missed the mark, but Catwoman looks great. The only thing, I think, is that the eyes are a bit off. But that probably varies figure to figure.
Can’t get sucked in, can’t get sucked in…
It’s probably in those comments, but what didn’t you like on Batman?
There are several things, but it just seems…off.
The proportions, particularly of the New Adventures designs, just look odd in real life. Then there’s the huge line across his chest. The face….I admit it’s been a while since I’ve watched any TNBA episodes so I may be mistaken here, but the face seems way off. The miniscule mouth shoved way up right against the bottom of his nose, with a flat chin stretching on for miles below….it just looks completely off. And I do not like sculpted capes on Batman, at all.
If (when) they do BTAS Batman, I’ll likely be tempted. But that one was an easy pass. Frankly, the only ones of these I’ve seen so far that I like are Catwoman, Harley, and Joker’s head (I kind of hate everything from the neck down, but man that head is fantastic).
My wallet breathes a big sigh of relief at this.
I really want to get these but I am extra broke right now I have to wait until February or March before I can pull the trigger on these. My goal is to get them all because they look so freaking good.
The visuals are probably the best thing about them.
I think what might be throwing you off is the eyes. I feel like they’re just a smidge too far apart, and it’s making her look like she’s got lazy eyes.
I finally broke down and pre-ordered Two-Face and Man-Bat, though if I like them (I want to see how they look on my shelf) I’ll probably go back and get Catwoman and a few other figures as well. That said, I’m very hesitant to get Batman or Joker just yet… my preference has always been the JLU designs for them over either TAS or TNBA, so I’d rather avoid them for now.
Great point on the eyes. It could be that. Funny thing is, my close up pictures usually school me and this is one such case. In the close-up with Isis, the face shape looks great and it does bring me to focus more on the eyes being off.
I just assume I’ll end up with all of them. I’m weak. lol
I probably will end up getting most of them, it’s just a display issue for me… I have my Batman shelf organized by height (DCC Arkham figures in the back, DCUC, Animated, and finally the 4″ movie figures) so I was worried the new Animated ones would be too close to the DCUC figures. Thankfully, they seem to be a hair shorter (TNBA Batman seems to be just shy of ML height) so I don’t think there will be a conflict.
Until I’m sure though, I’m sticking to just Two Face and Man-bat (worst case, Man-Bat can be out of scale with the Hasbro/Kenner line, and I’ll have an extra Two Face figure laying around)
The critiques on these BTAS/TNBA are valid, but let’s look at price/value. If you’re thrifty, you can find these for about $22 a pop, which is what a Marvel Legends costs at TRU. Comparing the two, this blows any ML out of the water. More accessories, articulation, unique buck, a stand and probably better paint application. Comparatively, a MOTUC is topping $30 and we already the Rio Blast review. I think the Catwoman Noisy is looking for is a $50-60 Figma/figuarts type of figure with alt. head, increased articulation, ect..
You bring up a great point on price. I rarely factor the cost in – I don’t like paying $25 – but if it came down to it. I just wouldn’t buy it, it wouldn’t get shown here (which is why you rarely see me complain). But your comparisons do make me think!
Looks like you need to get out a black Sharpie to fix batman’s logo and Isis’ eyes. Not sure If I’m in the game for these figures yet. If there was word of a JLU figures, I might bite.
Despite the obvious differences in style, I’ve been waiting for this figure to fit in with my DCUC collection, because frankly I don’t like any of the DCUC Catwomen that we got, with their little T-Rex arms and anorexic bodies. Also, I’ve always been partial to the animated Catwoman design aesthetics.
Unfortunately I saw this figure in the store this past weekend, and realized she is absolutely tiny, like almost a full head shorter than her DCUC counterparts. So close!
Hey Noisy, are you gonna be doing reviews for the New Adventures Two-Face and Mr. Freeze figures? I hope so!
And my Batman and Catwoman figures arrived in great condition! I was a little worried about paint issues and possible broken ankles, but they’re pretty darn near perfect, imo. Freeze and Two-Face are on the way, too.