With the fourth season of AMCâs hit television series underway and the promise of the second round of comic-based interactive adventure coming from Telltale, itâs the perfect time to peruse the painted plastic people (living and dead) of McFarlane Toys The Walking Dead series four TV figures.
Yes I can. Go read the comics.
WHATâS IN THE BOX
Dixon Brothers 2-Pack
Daryl: Crossbow, axe, prison keys, knife, pick axe, redneck cool.
Merle: Bayonet hand, pistol, knife, machine gun, redneck rage.
Exclusive Rock Grimes: Rifle, revolver, zombie-catchy pole thing, more hands than he should have.
The Governor: Thatâs not a knife, this is a knife, pistol, extra head with un-extra eye.
Andrea: Pitchfork, rifle, pistol, tasteful vest, sass.
Carl Grimes: Hat, duffle bag, knife, prison keys, entirely too much intact skull.
Riot Gear Zombie: Flip-up helmet, dagger in his neck, possibly sass.
Gas Mask Riot Gear Zombie: Gas mask with a face attatched to it, because ew.
WHAT I LIKED
Likeness â When McFarlane Toys tries to recreate real people, they often come off looking fake in the package. Thatâs because real people should not be sealed in plastic. Freed from their prisons and cast in the right light, the each of the actor-based figures actually does a fair job of being who it is supposed to be.
Poseability â Not only are the figures in McFarlane Toysâ The Walking Dead series four quite articulated, with moving wrists, ankles, knees, elbows, shoulders â all of the nice moving bits â they donât look like they should be highly poseable. I was was expecting a bunch of plastic statues. I was pleasantly surprised.
Fine Detail â The wrinkles, the textures, the tiny veins in Merylâs hands that I just know would be there if I were to take Michael rookerâs hand and go skipping down the lane. They make the figures look a bit busy up close, but from optimal viewing distance (Iâd say about three feet) those details coalesce into a real tiny person. Or corpse. Corpse-people.
WHAT I DIDNâT LIKE
Brittle Plastic â Merylâs machine gun snapped in half while I was trying to remove it from the package. Thatâs not good, especially in a figure line with such fine detail. Every finger, knife, strap or pistol barrel feels like itâs on the verge of breaking with the slightest force. The figures are sturdier than that, but the feeling wonât go away now.
Sloppy Paint â same issue Iâve had with many of McFarlaneâs recent releases, the finer the details of the sculpt, the more likely whoever is in charge of painting the bits on will screw something up. Several blotches in this batch, Iâm afraid.
MY FINAL WORD
These are unmistakably action figures based on the characters from The Walking Dead television show. Even the pair of zombies, faceless (ha ha) monsters in any other line, stand out here as characters from the television show. Thatâs the whole point of the line, and it gets the job done. Theyâre a bit too brittle for my vigorous play style, but a collector that shelves or cases their conquests shouldnât have a problem.
Now if we could only get them to do video game-based toysâŠ
