DC Superheroes - Catwoman

Today's I'll be going over the Catwoman action figure from Mattel's DC Superheroes action figures, series 8.

So far Mattel has not given us a large variety of female characters to choose from. The current DCUC series only has two females (Harley Quinn & Wonder Woman). The previous DCSH line had 3. Batgirl (2 variants), Supergirl (3 variants) and Catwoman. Now that Mattel has access to the full DC Universe list of characters (not just Batman & Superman), expect to see more females figures in the future.

At first look, this is a good looking figure but it does have its flaws. Catwoman's outfit design looks very similar to the look she had in the Batman Hush comic. Also you could say its similar to the Catwoman from "The Batman" cartoon. She is in a full black outfit with big goggles (which cannot be removed) over her eyes, a zipper that runs right down the middle of the torso and buckles on her belt and boots. There is some nice detail in the leather belt and wrinkles in the costume around the neck, waist and back of the head. The sculpt is similar to the other female DCSH female action figures with the exception of the head of course. The arms are very thin but they do fit in compared to the size of the figure. The hands are different too. They are open and look like sharp little claws made of a softer plastic so you don't scratch your eyes out. Catwoman stands at about 5' 3/4 inches tall.

The paint job is ho-hum at best. Its mostly a dull black with the exception of the zipper and buckles which are silver and the gloves and boots which are a very glossy black. The paint on the face is most disappointing. The skin tone is terribly done. Its done in a dark flesh skin tone over most of the face except around the mouth. There is a circle of lighter flesh color around the mouth and it just looks cheap and lazy. The lipstick and eyes are painted on fairly clean. The eyes are hard to see through the goggles though. It would have been nice if they were removable.

Mattel has given us a few extras to go along with this action figure. First is a removable purple & black back pack (above). Also included is her traditional whip, a black necklace and a cat statue. Unfortunately, the whip only loosely fits into her hands. It falls out very easily if not positioned properly.

One area where this figure does not fall short is articulation. We have joints in the neck, shoulders, biceps, elbows, forearms, abdominal, waist, hips, thighs, knees and ankles. Very standard compared to the other toys from these series.

Overall, Catwoman is not my favorite DC Superheroes toy. Not by a long shot. From far away, she looks great, but close up, not so much. Maybe i need to wear beer goggles. The paint job on the face was the real letdown and her goggles should be removable. The accessories are plentiful but it ticks me off when they don't fit properly in their hands. Articulation is the best you can get on any 6 inch Catwoman figure.

Sculpt/Design - 6, Paint - 5, Accessories - 10, Articulation - 9, Fun - 7

CATWOMAN OVERALL - 6.5

If you're a Batman fan looking to fill out your villain gallery, then sure, she fits in nicely. There are other DC Direct figures you can try like Hush Catwoman or the Long Halloween but they have their faults as well. Due to distribution issues with Mattel, this figure did not have a big release so there are a limited supply available. Problem is, you're looking at about $25-50 US for her right now. Ouch!! Since the toy was released in 2007, it is now discontinued and eBay is your best bet to get her.

To find Mattel's DC Superheroes Catwoman on eBay, click here

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DC Superheroes - Mr. Freeze

Ice day for a review....uhhhh!!! Now that I got that lame Mr. Freeze joke out of the way, on to my review of this very sweet (avoiding the term "cool") Mr. Freeze action figure which was a 2007 NY Comic Con Exclusive meaning it wasn't and never will be available at your local Walmart or Target.  This is a rare action figure and can be found only be found on eBay and you're looking at a minimum of $35 to $75.  But this action figure is well worth the price to a collector and/or Batman fanatic.

First off, this was not a new sculpt when it was released. There have been a number of repaints for this figure that i can recall which adds to the complaints of Mattel re-using or recycling the same figures and parts. It was originally released in the 2003 Mattel Batman figure toy line. One variant with goggles, and one without. It was released again with a new paint job in 2006 in the DC Superheroes toy line in series 3 and then finally this exclusive figure came out a year later in 2007.

So, aside from the re-using the same sculpt issue, this is still a great looking toy. Mr. Freeze's stands 6 inches tall with bulky wide shoulders and big boots. The Tech Suit has plenty of detail including small patches of ice leaking out in various spots. The head is under glass which is NOT removable. The face looks great supporting a cold evil expression.

For the most part, the paint job is decent. The metallic blue color over the boots, gloves. belt, neck and shoulders looks awesome and was a great choice. The rest of the suit is mostly black with red buttons or gauges positioned in various places. There are some spots where the paint goes over the lines, like around the belt and the blue part of the shoulder piece but overall there is nothing really bad. The face is painted nicely and very clean with some highlights in a lighter tone over the forehead, chin and nose. Unfortunately, this is probably the only area on the figure where there is any highlighting which is a shame. The worst part of the paint job in my opinion is the frost they've attempted to put around the glass helmet. It just looks like splattered paint and is really quite sloppy. I could have done without it.

Mr. Freeze comes with one huge freeze gun that is permanently attached by a plastic hose to a very bulky back pack. The back pack just pops right into Freeze's back and fits in securely. The gun is meant to be held by two hands. His right hand at the trigger and his left hand on the handle towards the front of the gun. The gun can be held by just his right hand but it is quite heavy and just weighs his arm down. Despite the clunkiness, the gun and the back pack have plenty of detail although, like the figure, could use some shading and highlighting. He could also perhaps use a smaller gun, one that is just the size of a hand gun and doesnt attach to anything as seen in Batman the Animated series.

As for articulation, Mattel has done a good job. Mr. Freeze has joints at the shoulders, biceps, elbows, forearms, mid-torso, hips, thighs, knees, calves and ankles. As for the neck, as I mentioned the glass helmet is not removable. But it turns when you turn the lower end of Freeze's body so the head is always facing the direction that the feet are facing. The shoulder joints are constricted a bit by the bulky tech suit design. Out of the package, the joints were a bit loose for my liking. Mostly in the knees which ticked me off a little. Usually i find i don't have this issue from this line of action figures. Regardless it's not bad enough where he can't stand but I would have liked the knees to be tighter.

Out of all the different re-paint versions of Mr. Freeze Mattel has given us, this is probably the best looking of the bunch. Hopefully if Mattel decides to do another Mr. Freeze figure, they will choose a new sculpt. I think 4 re-painted versions is enough. Despite its flaws, (the re-used sculpt, paint flaws and the clunky accessories) Mr. Freeze is still bad ass! A great fit with the other DCSH and DCUC toys from Mattel. He would not be bad with DC Direct toys either but keep in mind DCD figures are generally a bit taller than Mattel figures.

Sculpt/Design - 8.5, Paint - 7, Accessories - 8, Articulation - 8, Fun - 8

Mr. Freeze Overall - 8/10

Since this is a NY Comic Con exclusive toy, this figure is hard to find. If you do find it, it's expensive at this point. A quick search on eBay came up with 2 auctions for this figure in the $50 range. The other versions can be obtain at a cheaper costs

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To find DC Superheroes Mr. Freeze by Mattel on eBay, click here.

Thanks for reading my action figure review blog currently featuring DC Superheroes, DC Universe Classics and DC Direct toys. Be sure to check back for more reviews, news and information about your favorite comic book action figures.