Post #11 - The Amazing Spider-Man 1/6 Scale Figure by Hot Toys

With the Amazing Spider-Man 2 swinging back into theaters on May 2, I figured it would only be relevant to review Hot Toy's 1/6 scale Amazing Spider-Man figure.  Like most superhero movies these days, the second Amazing Spider-Man movie will followup with a brand new suit.  However, this particular figure is based off of Spider-man/Andrew Garfield's likeness as seen in the first movie.

So let's see how good ol' webhead adds up.

Packaging - Just like many other Hot Toys offerings, the shoe-box like packaging comes with some very colorful graphics and visuals.  The front of the box re-uses a promotional film poster design, along with an embossed spider-web that doesn't transcend images very well.  The inner carton insert, as well as the back displays Spidery some very dynamic poses.

 Hot Toys does a good job at making simple packaging highly collectible.  It's a definite plus.  They come loaded with brilliant graphics and design, while making it safe and effective for storage.

Packaging Score - 3.5 out 5


Sculpt - The TrueType body for this figure is nothing short of perfect.  It is very true to Andrew Garfield's body type, as it looks tall and lean.  Almost gangly.  The body underneath is constructed from a solid black plastic.  Spidey's suit is not removable.  It is stitched and glued on.  I'll go into more detail about the suit in the paint category, as it takes up a large portion of the figure's aesthetics.

This figure comes with two heads.  One is obviously the Spider-Man masked head, and the other is the likeness of Andrew Garfield.

Spider-Man's mask is detailed well with a fine honey-comb like texture overlaid by the embossed lines of webbing.  The eyes are constructed of an almost amber colored lens, surrounded by a thick black bevel.  The neck, which is oddly one of my favorite parts, transitions well into the head sculpt, yet it is made of the same fabric as the suit.  This looks great because when you turn Spidey's head, it creates a little ruffle in the neck line making it appear as if Spidey's mask is really re-adjusting to the direction of the head.

The Andrew Garfield head is no less impressive if not more.  Hot Toys does a terrific job at recreating skin-tones and texture.  From hair to chin, Hot Toys did an amazing job at fully realizing the likeness of Andrew Garfield.  The face comes with the cuts you see on Garfield or Peter Parker later on in the film.  In some ways I wish they hadn't added them, as I'd prefer to have a clean faced version instead.  My only qualm about the Garfield head is the facial expression.  It seems a little blank, rather listless or hollow in a way.  I'm not asking for a figure to ooze charisma, but wow... am I boring you much, Spidey?

 Sculpt Score - 5 out of 5


Paint - The suit which is constructed of fabric plays a dominant role in the figure's overall aesthetics. So for the majority it will be our main focus.  The entirety of the suit is outfitted in the honey-comb style mesh material, with parts of it overlaid by a red cobweb pattern and bold lines running vertically.  The Spider-Man icon is displayed boldly across the chest without feeling lost or blemished.  In terms of color, I feel that the blue for the suit is a little too bright and just needs to be a tad bit darker.

*Side note: When articulating or posing the figure, I suggest that you proceed with caution, because of the potential to tear the suit at the seams.

Along each wrist is a web shooter device.  The device is made of a simple piece of painted plastic.  A hard translucent piece of plastic can be attached to these shooters in order to make it appear as if Spidey is shootin' out webs.  Since they are fixed to the suit, they can appear awkwardly crooked at times as the suit can't truly rotate.  This means that the web shooter cannot always aim where intended.

The spider-man head is made from a hard plastic, but the added texture suggests that it is made from the same material as the suit.  More importantly, the red used in the mask perfectly matches the one in the suit.

Briefly mentioned before, the skin tones, hair and other facial features are perfectly replicated.  There's nothing more to be said about that in short, amazing!

Paint/Suit Score - 4.5 out of 5


Articulation - Spidey comes with 30 points of articulation, but it seems lacking in areas such as the Neck and hips.  There was initially a great deal of concern about rotating the shoulder upward past 80 degrees.  However, I chose to be fairly aggressive with my figure and found no issue at all.  In fact, the only issue I found is that there is a huge potential to break the joint that connects the leg to the hip.

I find it somewhat of shame how limited this figure is in terms of articulation.  The boastful 30 points should say a lot, but between worrying about tearing the suit and breaking joints, I have found that most people choose to display Spider-Man in a very neutral pose.  That's sort of sad.  I mean c'mon.  It's Spider-Man!

Articulation Score - 2.5 out 5


Accessories - This figure comes with a small but decent amount of accessories.  He comes with 5 pairs of interchangeable hands, that come with different hand positions to accompany certain poses that are also adaptive to the 4 included web accessories.  The figure also includes a stand that can be seen in previous images.

Accessories Score - 3 out of 5


Conclusion - Overall, this figure is a great addition to any fan of Spider-Man or the movie.  The figure comes with certain compromises, but I still feel that he is worth picking up.  It would have been nice to see a little bit more in terms of accessories.  Perhaps, a loose mask that Andrew Garfield could hold as if has just unmasked or even a diorama that can be used for display purposes.

This figure is still available at Sideshow Collectibles.  So pick one up for yourself today!

Overall Score - 3.7 out of 5