{"id":31291,"date":"2015-06-24T00:10:11","date_gmt":"2015-06-24T05:10:11","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.itsalltrue.net\/?p=31291"},"modified":"2015-06-24T00:10:11","modified_gmt":"2015-06-24T05:10:11","slug":"funko-legacy-the-rocketeer-review","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.itsalltrue.net\/?p=31291","title":{"rendered":"Funko Legacy
The Rocketeer Review"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a> “I think we’re gonna need a helmet.”<\/em><\/strong> \u2013 Cliff Secord, The Rocketeer. <\/p>\n

We live in strange times. It used to be that if you didn\u2019t get a toy from a particular movie just before the movie came out, tough luck. And if the toys were bad, tough luck. There was no going back to the well; full speed ahead. Well\u2026 things have changed. <\/p>\n

Now, there is something to be said about our recent obsession with going back to the well in the toy world. There\u2019s a lengthy & friendly debate we could have over new properties vs old, our own open-mindedness to new things, etc. Luckily, we\u2019re not going to have that today. We\u2019re just going to go with nostalgic glee. Growing up, some of my favorite movies were set in the years leading up to World War II \u2013 Indiana Jones, The Shadow, The Phantom, Dick Tracy, & The Rocketeer. <\/p>\n

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And I had toys for very few of them. I was too young for Indy toys and I somehow missed Phantom toys. I did have some awesome Shadow toys \u2013 Ambush Shadow is still a personal favorite. And I did have all the Dick Tracy toys except the Blank, but I don\u2019t want to talk about it. The Rocketeer? Much like, Back to the Future & Ghostbusters (movie!), it got basically nothing. I think there\u2019s a bendy figure. Boy, isn\u2019t that great for bendy enthusiasts? <\/p>\n

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Part of it is probably because the Rocketeer just didn\u2019t set a ton of folks on fire back in that balmy summer of \u201991. I love the movie, but to be fair, it doesn\u2019t help that the last thirty minutes are batshit ridiculous. Everything is engaging, going fine, and then they suddenly remembered there were supposed to be Nazis in the movie and they threw in a gazillion of them to make up for it. They even tossed in a rare, post-Hindenburg, WW2 Zeppelin! And did I mention the movie takes place in Los Angeles? That\u2019s stealthy. <\/p>\n

But the beginning? The beginning is awesome. Billy Campbell was great in the Indiana Jones archetype. Locke from Lost does a fun, more spirited take on Howard Hughes. Jennifer Connelly was on top of her game. And Timothy Dalton as an evil movie star James Bond? That part was all fantastic. Joe Johnston nailed the 1940s feel (which he would do again later in Captain America: The First Avenger). That part is all amazing, but virtually undone by the ending. When I was a kid, I didn\u2019t care much. I just loved it. It\u2019s the adult viewings that get ya though. Sometimes you just can\u2019t go back. <\/p>\n

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I can\u2019t credit the movie for the Rocketeer visual though. That springs directly from the comics; created by Dave Stevens in 1982. I haven\u2019t read a lot of those \u2013 the early 80s Indie comics weren\u2019t as organized as they are today and Rocketeer\u2019s adventures appeared in various places. To its credit, and to Dave Stevens, it made its way from those humble beginnings to the big screen. I really need to grab some collected editions and read up on those old stories. <\/p>\n

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If the Rocketeer figure does one thing perfectly, it\u2019s getting those aesthetics right. The figure looks like it walked off the screen. The sculpt is amazing. I don\u2019t think they could\u2019ve done much better. The helmet looks fantastic and it seems like the costume details are spot on from head to toe. We\u2019ve even got the gum stuck to the back of rocket pack! The sculpt is so good, that my only thought looking at it is that I need every other figure I want done to match him. The only knock on the sculpt is probably the Cliff Secord head sculpt. It\u2019s serviceable, but a Billy Campbell likeness just isn\u2019t there. Also of note, this figure is about 6\u201d tall and fits in with other Funko releases and is closer to Star Wars Black than many of the other 6\u201d lines that have slowly crept up in size over the years. Continue to Page 2…<\/a><\/p>\n

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The other half of that visual is the paintwork, of course, and the figure excels again here. The helmet looks fantastic as do the various straps and buttons. There\u2019s very little slop overall \u2013 I think I have a little black speck on the chin that bugs me. The clothes have the right amount of wash to accentuate their look without feeling overdone. Even the little pink drop off paint on the back is spot on to the sculpted gum!<\/p>\n

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Articulation is almost another bright spot for the figure. Some of the areas are limited to preserve the look, but most still have good range. There are ball-joints at the neck, shoulders, elbows, wrists, hips, and ankles; swivels at the thighs; double-hinges at the knees; and the ab crunch. All the joints were a little sticky out of the both and I still haven\u2019t quite got the right thigh swivel opened up. I\u2019ve been able to get some great poses out of the figure with one big exception. The neck peg isn\u2019t seated in the optimal place on the head and the Rocketeer can\u2019t look forward in a flying pose.<\/p>\n

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So, are you starting to feel like there\u2019s a big, but coming? Well, there\u2019s not. My figure hasn\u2019t broken yet. I do sometimes have the neck peg come out of the neck instead of letting the head go, that\u2019s an annoyance, but I have pliers. Unfortunately, we\u2019ve seen that Michael Crawford\u2019s broke and I\u2019ve been privy to more than a few Rocketeers having issues in my collecting circle. I\u2019m never one to jump on the \u201cBad QC\u201d bandwagon, but I\u2019m seeing more broken pics than I want to see on a toy I really like. The problem, though some claim it\u2019s merely perceived, appears to again be the clear plastic used in the joints. Since the engineers have stuck with these clear joints through multiple releases, I\u2019m guessing they\u2019re just going to stick with it? By a longshot, if that\u2019s true and one of them happens to read this, here\u2019s the deal: we don\u2019t care what the specific problem is. Their figures (GoT, Firefly, & Rocketeer at least) are breaking enough to get a bad reputation. They should be looking at anything they can do to change the narrative. Maybe it\u2019s not the clear plastic in the joints, but the perception is that\u2019s the problem, so sticking to those guns will just strangle the potential straight out of this line. Fix the problem, drop the clear joints too, sell more units. <\/p>\n

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If you count the extra head, Rocketeer included two accessories, the other being his classic pistol. It looks great and he holds it well. I wish we could\u2019ve afforded a few more hands, fists maybe? I\u2019m glad we have the pistol and that his right hand is a snug fit. The splayed left hand is also useful for posing, but I\u2019m a greedy collector. I always want more for my money. <\/p>\n

Overall, I love this figure! But I\u2019m deathly afraid of breaking it. And, again, whether that\u2019s perception or reality, it\u2019s time for Funko to deal with it. They have done such an amazing job. The sculpt. The paint. The articulation. Everything about this figure screams fun! And then more of your friends break theirs than not and suddenly it\u2019s just not so much fun anymore. Granted, I\u2019m a testament to the fact they don\u2019t all break, but I would like more peace of mind when collecting Funko Legacy. I assume we all would. <\/p>\n

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More Reviews:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n
<\/a><\/td>\n<\/a><\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/a><\/td>\n<\/a><\/td>\n<\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n

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For all our Reviews, check out our
\n Review Index<\/a>!<\/strong><\/p>\n

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