As some of you may remember, not that long ago we ran a poll asking what type of content readers would be interested in. Surprisingly, one thing that we’d never done on the site that came up in the poll was more content about toys; it’s not only something we’d never really considered, it’s something that we didn’t really know a lot about. But, when readers as wonderful as you ask us to try new things, we’re only happy to oblige!
So today we’re trying something new: the Toy Box, in which we’ll be looking at toys as a semi-regular feature on the site. And if this is something that appeals to you, please let us know in the comments below and/or get in touch with us on what you’d like to see or know about the product we’re looking at — this is very much new territory, something we’re testing, so bear with us on the growing pains.
With that out of the way, lets kick things off with our first edition of the Toy Box, looking at the Ancient Predator 1/6th Scale figure by Hot Toys from Sideshow Collectibles. And man oh man, did we pick a difficult toy to start out with.
As a note, I’m not an expert on figures. I am a big fan of the “Alien” franchise, the “Predator” franchise and the “Alien vs Predator” franchise, but while I find it easy to talk about their movies and videogames and comics, my experience with toys are limited. I had a few Alien and Predator toys when I was kid (that are somewhere in a box in my attic right now), but my main experience with those was action figures, not as collectibles.
This Sideshow Collectible feature is something different entirely. A massive figure that defines collectible, this thing takes what I knew about toys — ie, action figures to smash against each other while grunting — and ups it to the next level. In fact, I’d hardly call it a toy at all; it has all the makings and markings of something you could call a toy, sure, but this is definitely something for the adult collector who is looking more towards putting this in a display case as a bragging point for anyone who comes by his or her home.
Which, you know, is fine and great and dandy and wonderful. If you want a talking piece that shows you mean business as an adult collector, this is the piece for you. Designed to look like one of the predators featured in the Aliens vs Predator film, this is probably the most detailed and authentic a predator I’ve ever seen aside from looking at a costume through a glass case — and as someone who is quite fond of Predator, this is truly something remarkable to behold.
(But, well, I’m clearly easily impressionable. It’s my first Toy Boy review, you know? I’m sure the seasoned veteran sees this sort of thing with much different eyes, but I’m rather bewildered and impressed.)
Sculpted by Joseph Tsang, the Predator itself comes in a rather attractive box. Apparently utilizing a display that is available across the brand, the black box is reminiscent of the Predator DVD case released right before Alien vs Predator came out. Featuring the words “Alien Vs Predator” in gloss over the front, the entire packaging is a rather attractive design, highlighting the Predator’s mask on the front and the bloody stand of the figure on the back.
The first thing that is noticeable when unboxing the Predator is actually how complex it is. With reportedly over 22 points of articulation, the figure is fully posable; and with interchangeable fangs and hands, there’s different opportunities for what to do with the figure. The accessories that come with it are varied and beautifully detailed, surprisingly sturdy (and made out of metal in regards to his blades, from what I can understand; the instructions warn you that they’re quite sharp) and for the most part every piece you’re given is put to use on the figure itself, leaving very little to put back into the box aside from what hands or facial features you don’t care for. This is a package where Hot Toys seems intent on giving you your moneys worth for what you’re plopping down on this figure (which retails at $274.99), and that makes the bang for the buck feel a bit more worthwhile, especially when you can set up the Predator to be as menacing or passive as you want.
Continued belowNow, I should note: when unboxing, I didn’t realize how much assembly was required. The figure comes with quite a lot of accessories and an instruction manual that tells you what goes where, which is great, but what I didn’t realize before undertaking this task was how much work goes into putting this together without breaking it. Perhaps it’s just my inadvertent tendency to put too much energy and effort into taking things apart (especially with Lego sets), but most of the time I was afraid I’d break a piece. They’re all fairly sturdy and firm, but with a figure of this quality it always feels like you’re one false move away from breaking it.
That and, while I’m sure it’s a mistake, the hand that was supposed to hold the spear with the severed Alien figure (so awesome) wouldn’t actually allow me to put the spear in it. I had to take a knife and very carefully separate the fingers of the opened hand so that it could be pulled apart.
As for the quality of the figure itself, it’s rather impressively put together. While many of his accessories and attributes pop right off (such as the shoulder cannon on the back, which you have to assemble), the Predator’s fishnet outfit is rather impeccably and neatly placed over his body — to the extent that, apparently, if you try and take it apart you’ll damage the figure. With a few loose leather loops holding it all together it seems like this is something that could easily fall apart; but, provided you’re gentle with it, I don’t see much reason to fret over it.
What impressed me most was the attention to detail on the head, though. While you have a couple different options for unmasked (mouth kind of open or mouth very open) and a couple options for the mask (a detailed mask or a not so detailed mask), the intimacy with which the face is sculpted is very much the crown jewel of the piece, pun intended. With elastic feeling hair that is easy to move around, it becomes very easy to hide some of the bits and bobs that you use to assemble the Predator, from the string his trophy necklace hangs from to the cord that’s attached to his masks — which, by the way, are set-up to actually light-up for the Predator’s famous triangular sniper scope. While it’s not very bright, it’s a nice little addition.
Assembling the figure takes some time and patience and a gentle hand, but when you’re done the end result is quite nice. While I had a bit of difficulty getting it into the pose that I wanted (which I’ll chalk up to this being my first time doing this sort of thing and, again, being afraid that if I twisted too hard I’d break it), putting it on the table and studying it in more completed detail was quite satisfying. It’s very aesthetically pleasing, so long as you’re into Predators and fishnets and blood and gore and weaponry. But in the battle against the Alien menace, this Predator is one I’d want to have on my side.
Take a look at a gallery of the Ancient Predator figure, shot in my cruddy and make-shift home “studio”:
For all the information about pre-ordering the figure, you can head to Sideshow Collectible’s website directly or peep on some of the details below, as provided by Sideshow:
Ancient Predator Sixth Scale Figure
Pre-Ordering: Currently available for pre-order
Product Link: http://www.sideshowtoy.com/collectibles/alien-vs-predator-ancient-predator-hot-toys-902211/
Price: $274.99Summary:
Sideshow Collectibles and Hot Toys are delighted to present the first 2014 Toy Fair Exclusive, the Ancient Predator sixth scale figure.
In the film Alien vs. Predator, we are taken back in time to find that predators discovered Earth and taught humans to build pyramids. In return the people worshipped predators as Gods, willing to sacrifice themselves as alien hosts for the predators to hunt. The movie-accurate Ancient Predator collectible figure is specially crafted based on his image in the film featuring two detachable light-up bio-masks, highly detailed head sculpt and body markings, a spear with dismembered alien head and rocky ground diorama base.
