While last year saw the release of the excellent "Remembrance of the Daleks" box set, it was missing one key element. There were also box set releases for the rest of the stories Davros, the Daleks' creator, appeared in - from Genesis all the way to Revelation. These four sets all had a Davros figure included, so the following figure was the next logical step. The third 'Remembrance' figure pack (after the 7th Doctor/Dalek 2-pack and the aforementioned box set) finally sees Davros released in his guise as the Imperial Emperor Dalek. But he is not packaged alone, and is included with the destroyed Imperial Dalek that appeared in part 3 of the story. This set is a Forbidden Planet exclusive in the UK.
The Emperor Dalek dome is nicely detailed, however the visor hexagon is a clear plastic window rather than an accurate viewing screen. I found this particularly disappointing, since one aspect I liked about the emperor design was the eye screen with moving line (as pictured here). Not only does this window make the figure look like the screen has been deactivated, but in certain light it is also possible to see Davros peeping inside the casing. The front section of the dome can be lifted to reveal Davros...or what's left of him anyway. The headsculpting detail is excellent, capturing the mask Terry Molloy used in 1988 nicely, but the body section isn't quite as impressive. The detail on the wiring that covers Davros is a sloppy collection of paint apps, most not covering the actual moulding. Davros has zero points of articulation, not even a neck joint.
One minor complaint is that mine suffers from a few paint scuffs, such as splashes of gold paint on the skirt and a black mark on the back of the dome (both of which are particularly noticeable on the ivory colouring). Of course, this may just be a one off incident and could vary between sets.
While the Dalek mutant has an articulated claw (complete with metal prosthetic details as mentioned in the series) but arguably some artistic liberty has been taken on the sculpt. While the mutant itself is never fully revealed in the episode, the figure has a mutant more akin to the ones seen in the modern series, complete with brain detailing and single eye. Regardless, the mutant is nicely detailed, as the ooze surrounding it and the charred Dalek mid-section.
How good this set is depends on a variety of factors. The 2-pack costs a grand total of £29.99, so equally divided the figures cost around £15 each. This is an awful lot when you consider that a) the previous Dalek packs were £35 each, and included FOUR figures, b) both figures have very limited motion and c) in some cases the accuracy/quality may be less than stellar. Dalek/Davros fans will certainly be happy by the release, but I can't help feel that I would have preferred a cheaper single Davros release...but unfortunately it seems Character Options doesn't work in single packs any more. Still, it's great to finally have all the versions of Davros released and at last an emperor Dalek, fingers crossed that Character are at work on an 'Evil of the Daleks' emperor and then maybe one day a TV21 comics Emperor....
...okay that will probably never happen. But let a man dream.
No comments:
Post a Comment