1000Toys 1/12 Scale HellBoy Figure Review
In the world of comic books, there’s certainly no shortage of supernatural superheroes. Some have risen to prominence like Doctor Strange and John Constantine, who have become household names due to the popularity of the MCU and CW’s Arrowverse respectively. On the other hand, there are some heroes that have faded from the public attentions, those being The Crow, Spawn, Blade, and so on and so forth.
Fortunately for one in particular, has managed to keep himself relevant this past decade. Of course the one I’m referring to is none other than Dark Horse’s Hellboy. Hellboy was created by comic book artist and writer Mike Mignola. The character first appeared in San Diego Comic-Con Comics #2 (August 1993), and has since appeared in various eponymous miniseries, one-shots and intercompany crossovers.
Now enough of that, we’re to talk about 1000Toys’ figure.
1000Toys’ Hellboy figure comes packaged in the box you see right there, with a removable slip cover . The front of the box shows a comic book version of Hellboy with the BRPD emblem debossed and is a possible reference to the “Storm and the Fury” comic cover. Flipping the box around however, shows you a promo image of the figure. While on the inside, its a simple clamshell box protecting the figure and his accessories.
Overall Figure
Out of his plastic prison, Hellboy looks absolutely stunning! The creative team behind this figure did an amazing job in bringing Mike Mignola’s 2D comic art to 3D form.
Upon closer inspection, you can see the team took the time to bring out the minute details on Hellboy. Details such as cuts, scuff marks, chipping that can be found all around his body and shaved horns. They’ve even applied some blackwash to provide some muscle definitions.
Speaking of muscle definitions, from what I’ve gathered, the way they did was by using a rubberize material in certain areas of the figure. these areas include the torso, shoulders and his tail. To my best guess, this was to emulate flexible muscles without sacrificing articulation.
Accessories
As far as accessories are concerned, Hellboys comes with just the bare minimum. Don’t get me wrong, like the old saying goes, less is always more, right? anyway, accessories include an extra head with a scowling expression, four sets of hands; mostly for his left arm, and a gun with a holster to store when not in use. There’s also his utility belt with a cross hanging on it.
One major accessory that’s worth nothing is Hellboy’s coat. The coat is entirely made out of cloth, and is completely removable from the figure. Another thing to note is that there’s wire inserts in the coat. This makes it easy when you want make those “wind blowing” poses.
Articulation
Articulation starts at the neck, and is connected via ball joint. it moves like a normal neck would. There’s a ratchet joint hidden below the neck to provide greater range of motion.
Torso has ratchet joints in the abs, and a simple rotation and side to side swivel in the waist. like I’ve said before, the torso is a rubber material, keeping it seamless.
Hellboys left arm is connected via ball joint in the shoulder. it can move up a up 90° and rotates a full 360°. The elbow bends at two joints. A hinged ball jointed wrist, and can rotate either at the base of wrist or the hands.
Similarly, his right arm supports the exacts same points of articulations as the other did. the major difference is in his “Right Hand of Doom”. The right hand supports insane levels of movements as each finger is individually articulated.
Hellboy’s tail is connect via ball joint on the back of his butt. While the tail does not move, it can rotate a full 360° for you pose your liking. In addition to that, the tail sorta acts as third leg and makes the figure more stable.
Moving down to the legs, they’re pretty much the standard as modern action figures go. They can kick upwards a good 90°, while to the back due to the way the butt was sculpted. Also, the legs can spread outwards, unfortunately not the full splits. A 360° rotation on the thighs. Double jointed bends at the knee. While the lower legs can rotate on the calf, this is to give them more range when pivoting the feet. Lastly, the feet can move forward and back, pivot side to side.
Conclusion
After messing around with the figure, I am genuinely impressed with it. When you look at the promo images online; the just don’t do it justice, you definitely need to hold one in your hand and play with it to truly appreciate with what 1000Toys has made.
The biggest selling point for me with this figure was the articulation. When I was playing with it, I just keep finding these hidden articulation joints, which just made it such a joy to pose! If I were to compare them to most Japanese figures with tons of articulation to them, they’re often a pain to play with and just overall fragile. This Hellboy figure is the exact opposite, it was clearly made for both play and display.
If you can get over the price ($104.99) or just love the character, I highly recommend you getting it.
