DC Universe Classics - Lex Luthor (Gotham City 5 Pack)

When I first heard about the DC Universe Classics Gotham City 5 pack which includes an exclusive Classic Lex Luthor action figure, it was easily considered a must buy for me. Ya, the other 4 figures are just re-paints but we're talking Lex Luthor here. The greatest criminal mind of all time. The other figures included in this pack are Batman, Superman, Catwoman and Two-Face. I'll get to the other figures down the road but lets get right to the main piece of this set, Lex Luthor:

First, as you can see, like many of the DCUC action figures the main parts of the torso, arms and legs are basically re-use parts. Giving this Lex figure its own individuality are, of course, the new head sculpt and some additional fine tuning here and there.

Wrapped around LL's chest is an X shaped....belt (?) with 4 canisters on the front....at least its what i think are canisters. The chest belt is a separate piece from the torso and has a leathery look to it but cannot be removed. There are also canisters placed on each side of his thighs and calves. One thing that you can really see in these pics (above) is that Lex's right arm sort of sticks out which is probably due to the tight packaging.

Lex's paint job is tight and his face is highlighted with a rosy skin tone shade over his forhead and cheak bones. The costume is fairly basic with no difficult areas to get messed up. There aren't any complex designs here. Green pants and gloves, purple shirt and boots, done.

Comparing DCUC Lex Luthor to DC Superheroes Battlesuit Lex Luthor (below), You'll notice that they really are two completely different action figures, different sculpts from head to toe.

The other major difference I thought was the lack of accessories included in the Gotham City 5 pack. Again, comparing the two action figures in the picture above, the old Battlesuit Lex Luthor came with a gun and a piece of Kryptonite. GC5 Lex Luthor comes with Zippo, nadda, nothing. He is sculpted with one closed fist and one open hand so he could've been given a weapon of some sort.

DCUC Lex Luthors articulation is standard from the DCUC toy line. If you have any of these DCUC action figure then you've got a pretty good idea of what you're getting. All joints were in proper working order out of the box.

Overall, Lex Luthor is a must have figure if you're any kind of a DC Comics or Superman fan. The problem is, Lex is not sold separately and you have to fork over 50 bucks or more to get him in a pack along with 4 other re-paints of previously released DCUC action figures. So you need to decide if this exclusive action figure is worth the cost.

Sculpt - 8, Paint - 9, Accessories - 0, Articulation - 9, Fun - 7

You have a few options on how to get your very own DCUC Lex Luthor action figure. First is you can head to your local Wal-Mart store (in the US only) and see if your store is one of the few that have the Gotham City 5 Pack in stock. The second option is to check eBay for the GC 5 pack (i paid $48 US plus shipping) and the third option, is to also check eBay but see if anyone is selling Lex Luthor by himself (loose). Its very possible but expect to pay about $30.00 for him on his own plus shipping costs.

To find Mattel's DC Universe Classics Gotham City 5 Pack on eBay, click here

To search for the Lex Luthor action figures on eBay, click here

Thus concludes another DCUC action figure review. I'll be jumping around finishing off reviews of Wave 8 and the remaining Gotham 5 Pack figures, plus starting on reviews of wave 9 and 10 (if i can get my hands on wave 10 at all) in the near future. So be sure to check back with Action Toy Review for more news, previews, info and reviews on Mattel's DC Universe Classics action figures.

DC Universe Classics - Commander Steel

Mattel's DCUC Wave 8 is getting to be yesterday's news these days thanks to release of DC Universe Classics wave 10 (which is a Wal-Mart exclusive set). So trying to finish off my Wave 8 action figures, today's review will be on Commander Steel.

Quite honestly, I have no clue what the Commander Steel story consists of so I'm not going to pretend I know anything about the character. Lets just stick with the review on a toy basis. Judging by the picture below right, this action figure is a pretty good likeness of its comic book counter part.

As you may notice, with the exception of Commander Steel's head, the rest of his body is made up of re-use body parts.

Very standard looking....

What is a little more unique about Commander Steel is his paint job. It is a nice combination of Metallic Blue with red and white and actually looks pretty cool. It is a similar blue color used on Booster Gold from wave 7.

The quality of the paint job is generally good to above average with no really mistakes or slop to talk about.

As far as accessories go, Commander Steel only comes with the upper torso portion collect and connect piece of Giganta, which, quite honesty, is the only reason I decided to get this action figure. There are no other accessories included.

Since Commander Steel is your standard, run of the mill DCUC action figure as far as body parts goes, the same goes for his articulation. Nothing really different to speak of here. Joints include neck, shoulders, biceps, elbows, wrists, abdominal, waist, hips, thighs, knees and ankles.
All joints on this action figure were in good working order out of the box.

Commander Steel is your typical run of the mill DCUC action figure. I like the paint job color combo on this action figure best. The metallic blue looks cool with the red and white but as I mentioned, the character itself does nothing for me. Really I could think of maybe 50 other characters they could've given us before this one. If you're a fan of the Commander Steel comic, you'll be happy with the purchase. If you know nothing of the character and aren't looking to finish the Giganta BAF, then you'll probably skip this one.

Sculpt - 8, Paint - 9, Accessories - 0, Articulation - 9, Fun - 7

Commander Steel is available all over eBay so if you're looking to pick him up or need to complete your Giganta BAF, then head over to eBay by clicking here.

Now that Wave 9, 10 and the Gotham 5 pack are all out, I'll probably be jumping around from set to set on my reviews instead of finishing off 8, then getting to 9 who knows when. So be sure to check back with Action Toy Review see which review will be next.