Batman: the Animated Series Action Figures Review

DC Collectibles are Headed Back to the Original Batman Animated Series

If you asked almost any true Batman fan if they have seen the original Batman animated series, they would look at you with a “that’s a dumb question” face. Of course! Who hasn’t? (If you haven’t then you are missing out.) That being said, DC Collectibles made a lot of hardcore fans very happy by releasing both Batman the Animated Series action figures and The New Batman Adventures action figures. And we were lucky enough to be asked by DC Collectables to review a few of them! So get ready for our sweet Batman: The Animated Series action figures review!

Batman: the Animated Series Action Figures Review – Packaging

The box is pretty basic but in a good way. I love the placing of the character’s name in large lettering as well as the figure’s number in the collection. I also love that they included a small sticker that states how many pieces come in the packaging on the top right corner of the plastic cover. Looking through the front, you can clearly see the figure and some of the accessories. Unfortunately, many of the accessories are blocked by the labeling which forces you to look at them through the sides or bottom of the plastic covering. On the right-hand side of the plastic cover, you can see who sculpted the figure. On the left-hand side of each box, there are 5 holes punched through a layer of the plastic which is a bit of an eyesore. The cardboard backing has a very cool design that is visible through the plastic. Figures from The New Batman Adventures get a design showing a black silhouette of Batman, Nightwing, and Robin on a blue background. The same is shown on the back of the packaging except that the colors are reversed with the silhouette being blue and the background being black. The Batman the Animated Series figures get a silhouette of

Batman raising his cape against a red background. Again, the colors are reversed on the back of the packaging. Fans should recognise the silhouettes from their respective series, which was a nice touch from DC Collectables. There is little else that really stands out on the packaging other than your typical warning labels and copyrights. One thing I loved is that they are pretty easy to take out of the box without completely murdering the packaging. If you look at the back of the box there is a long piece of tape holding the plastic to the cardboard. You can easily remove this without damaging the artwork. On the front, the plastic is glued to the cardboard so you will have some damage there. Once the plastic is removed, everything else comes out very easily and can be put back in just as easily. One thing to note is that every one of these action figures comes with two small pamphlets. One shows a few characters and how their hands can be removed as well as how to assemble the stand. The other shows the characters in the collection, and on the other side shows the Batman the Animated Series silhouette and the New Batman Adventures silhouette. Overall, the packaging is very nice and I would give it 4 out of 5.

Batman: the Animated Series Action Figures Review – Nightwing

Nightwing’s figure features 4 pairs of changeable hands, one Wing-Ding (Nightwing’s version of the Batarang), a pair of binoculars, and a 3 piece stand. He stands approximately 5.6 inches tall and was sculpted by Gentle Giant Studios.

Articulations

Nightwing’s head can rotate 360 degrees side to side though his hair will sometimes catch on his shoulders so be careful there. The head has a small amount of pivot, and can look slightly down but not much. His shoulder joints can move outward until level with the top of his chest and if you rotate them 360 degrees. One thing that stands out right from the beginning is that the figures elbow/forearms are very disproportionate. I think this was an attempt to match the style of the animated series, but I feel the figure takes this a little too far.

The elbow joint does bend just past 90 degrees and has full rotation. His hands can rotate 360 degrees and bend both forward and back but can not swivel. This hip joint allows you to rotate the chest piece 360 degrees for those really creepy poses. The leg joints can move just past 180 degrees outward and move slightly forward and back. The figure’s calves have a similar problem as the elbows, but it’s not nearly as bad. This may have to do with the fact that this action figure was sculpted by Gentle Giant Studios while some of the other figures in this collection were sculpted by Irene Matar. His knee joints can bend back about 90 degrees and his ankle joint allows a decent amount of movement forwards and back. One big point in DC Collectables favor is that they included 4 pairs of interchangeable hands. The hands come off without too much effort while still remaining snug enough that you are not worried about them falling out. Well done, DC.

Overall

I have heard that this collection has had some problems with paint jobs, but I have to say that this figure’s paint job looks great. It has sharp and clean lines on the mask and hairlines. I love that they made the symbol on his chest a separate piece. One problem I have with this figure is that the legs and feet are very small when compared to the body. Not only is this a bit of an eyesore, but it makes positioning your figure difficult, to say the least. I also feel they should have included some ankle rotation to help with posing the figure. Luckily, DC Collectables included a 3 piece stand that will stabilize the action figure. The Stand itself was a great addition to this figure. The base plate shows three Nightwing from three different angles and shows the new Batman Adventures logo alongside his name and another logo. The stand is clear plastic, and you can not only adjust where on the plate the figure is held but how high the stand itself is. Some might feel like the stand is a bit intrusive but it is a small price to pay for being able to pose the figure how you want. Overall I would rate this figure around 3.5 out of 5. You can purchase this Nightwing action figure here.

Batman: the Animated Series Action Figures Review – Batgirl

Batgirl comes with 5 pairs of interchangeable hands, 3 gadgets, and the 3 piece stand. She stands at approximately 5 inches tall and was sculpted by Irene Matar.

Articulations

Her head is capable of rotating 360 degrees, however, her hair can limit this movement. If you are willing to put some stress on the hair piece, then you can get the full rotation. She does have a small amount of head pivot but once again her hair limits this and makes it look a little awkward. Her cape is made of a soft plastic and can move freely. Her shoulder joints can move outward up to her shoulder line and rotate a full 360 degrees. Her elbows can bend to a 90 degree angle have 360 degrees of rotation. Her wrist joint has full rotation and can bend to a 90 degree angle in both directions. Unlike the other figures, she lacks rotation in her hip joint which is kind of a bummer. Her legs can move forward about 10 degrees short of a 90 degree angle but are limited in their movement backward. In fact, I would suggest being careful not to bend the figure’s legs backward much at all as her backside is sculpted and bending the legs backward too far can damage her booty. She has the basic knee joint allowing for a 90 degree bend but her ankles are unique. They have 360 degree rotation that rotates her entire body. This really helps to make her ankle positioning look more natural. On top of that, she is the only one of these figures we have reviewed that has ankle pivot, which is always good in my opinion, as the ankle joints can make or break the ability to pose your figure. Her ankles can also be bent up but not down.

Overall

On this figure, the paint was once again very good. It is sharp and clean, especially with the bat symbol on the chest. I did see some slight damage to one of the pointy parts of the mask (I don’t know the technical term for pointy things. Maybe the ears?) which bummed me out a little bit. I love how many hands this figure comes with. She has open hands, fists, and two pairs meant to hold gadgets. The last pair is not really a pair as much as two extra hands. They are both left hands. One is meant to hold the Batarang and the other comes with a gadget attached. It looks like the Batclaw and for some reason is painted yellow just like her hand. I feel like that is a little odd and disappointing. It blends in with her hand and leaves something to be desired. Although this figure is proportioned fairly well, it is still hard to pose due to her tiny feet so the stand is once again a huge help. Overall, I would give this figure 4 out of 5. Maybe a 3.5 due to the damage on her “pointy thing.” You can buy the Batgirl action figure here.

Batman: the Animated Series Action Figures Review – The Penguin

The Penguin comes with 3 pairs of interchangeable hands, Two umbrellas, a tea cup and spoon, and a three piece stand. He stands at 4.5 inches tall and like Batgirl, Penguin was sculpted by Irene Matar.

Articulations

The Penguin’s head can be rotated 360 degrees, but the joint is VERY stiff and I do not suggest trying unless you don’t mind risking damage. His shoulders can move outward slightly and have full rotation. The elbow joints can bend about 35 degrees and the hands have both 360 degree rotation and can bend forward and backward. Like Batgirl, Penguin lacks rotation in the hip joint. His legs can move forward slightly but can not move back. Although this limits the ability to pose him, I LOVE it! Let’s face it, Penguin is short and fat. I doubt he could move his legs very far either. Penguin lacks any knee joint, probably due to the fact that he hardly has legs, and his feet have some slight rotation.

Overall

One awesome feature on the penguin is that he has a monocle! It’s made of a clear plastic and really completes the figure. Like the other figures, the paint job is great. So far, the rumor that these figures have bad paint jobs has only been that. A rumor. He came with 3 pairs of hands that look awesome! They kept true to the series and gave him three fingers, all of which look a little like a penguin’s flipper! I’m geeking out over it. His hands include fists, hands for holding accessories, and open hands. One thing to note is that the hands movement changes significantly depending on which hands you insert. This is not uncommon but should be noted. The Penguin came with the three piece stand and some other pretty cool accessories, like a tea cup and a spoon. He also came with two umbrellas. One is the umbrella collapsed and the other is opened. The opened one is two pieces, the handle and the umbrella itself. My biggest problem with this figure is how hard is was to get him to hold any of his accessories. The umbrella slips down his right hand and barely stays when placed in his left hand. The cup falls out of his hands very easily so make sure you get everything positioned just right before placing it in his hand. On top of that, the limited arm articulations make holding the opened umbrella awkward at best. The closest I could get to having the umbrella covering his head was about half but this resulted in a very awkward arm placement. Maybe this was the price to pay in order to have his flipper-like hands but I feel like it could have been done better. That being said, I was able to place the closed umbrella in his hand like a cane. In fact, I was able to pose him on one of the classic poses for The Penguin which is shown on his stand. This figure is by far the easiest to stand up, which is great, because the stand does very little to hold this figure other than maybe a back support. Overall, I would give this figure 3 out of 5. Maybe a 3.5 due the amazing job on sculpting his face. You can buy this Penguin figure here.

Batman: the Animated Series Action Figures Review – The Riddler

The Riddles figure comes with 3 pairs of interchangeable hands, his walking cane, a three piece stand, and a small display of “Wacko Toys.” He, like the others, comes with the previously mentioned packets. He stands at 6 inches tall and was sculpted by Gentle Giant Studios.

Articulations

This figure was very stiff when I pulled it out of the packaging. The only piece that was easy to move was his head which can look down slightly and can rotate 360 degrees. His arms can move outward almost level with his shoulders and rotate 360 degrees around. His elbows were by far the hardest to move into another position. I was very concerned that I might break the arm piece off when I was positioning the figure. One trick you can do is to use a hair dryer on the joints. This will loosen them up fairly well, however, this can damage your paint so do this at your own risk. The hands on this figure were a little harder to take off and put on. They do rotate 360 degrees but that is the only movement they have. He has a hip joint that rotates his chest 360 degrees. His legs can move outward to almost be level with his hips. The legs can also move backward 90 degrees but only move a small amount forward. His knee joint bends to a 90 degree angle. His feet can rotate 360 degrees but do not have any swivel.

Overall

Once again, I feel that they did a great job with the paint on this figure. All the lines are clean and the colors are vibrant. Like the other figures, the Riddler comes with a 3 piece stand and base that shows the Riddler from three different angles. As previously mentioned, this figure has 3 pairs of interchangeable hands. One very cool feature of this figure is that his suit coat is made of a soft plastic. When you rotate his arm his suit actually changes shape with the movement. Some collectors may be concerned about creasing the suit but I personally think this was an awesome choice on DC Collectables part! If you are nervous about creases, you can simply pull the arm outward before rotating it and it avoids creasing the suit coat fairly well. I think they dropped the ball on with the hands. I could not get him to hold the top of the cane as shown on the base of the stand. You may be able to “Macgyver” it to look that way but I wish that they included another pair of hands that would accommodate that position. One of the best parts of this figure is that he comes with a stand of his “Wacko Toys.” He is the only figure that we reviewed with such a large accessory and it rocks! The only other accessory that comes close is the Penguins umbrella. I do wish each of the little toys would come off and Riddler could hold them. Even so, this is the kind of accessory that can make an action figure very unique. I rate this figure 4 out of 5. You can buy this Riddler action figure here.

A Batman: The Animated Series Stop-Motion Video

After I finished reviewing these figures I spent the next few days posing them along my desk and it got me to thinking. One of the big reasons we all collect these figures, or at least a reason I do, is to set them up and show them off. This led us to make a stop motion teaser for a Batman animated series short! I doubt we will ever actually make the short but the teaser really shows off the articulation of these figures and honestly, it was a blast to make. Give me any excuse to play with my figures without my wife rolling her eyes as she walks past. Seriously though, it was a lot of fun and really shows off the figures in a way that would be hard to do with simple photos. I hope you enjoy it:

Strange Bedfellows

The Collection

This collection is very cool and each figure has its ups and downs. While the figures had problems, I feel like each figure had, at least, one thing that made it stand out, while none of the problems made me feel like it was not worth collecting. And the sculpting on their faces was incredible. It really took me back to watching Batman after school. While this was only a sample of the collection, I feel like I would be safe to rate this collection a 4 out of 5. So, let us know what you thought of our Batman: The Animated Series action figures review below.  Thanks!

Ordering Options

You can buy the figures in this collection on DC’s Official Shop.

You can also find these figures on Big Bad Toy Store, Entertainment Earth, and Amazon:

Big Bad Toy Store – Nightwing Action Figure

Big Bad Toy Store – Batgirl Action Figure

Big Bad Toy Store – Penguin Action Figure

Big Bad Toy Store – Riddler Action Figure

Entertainment Earth – Nightwing Action Figure

Entertainment Earth – Batgirl Action Figure

Entertainment Earth – Penguin Action Figure

Entertainment Earth – Riddler Action Figure

Amazon – DC Collectibles The New Batman Adventures: Nightwing Action Figure

Amazon – DC Collectibles The New Batman Adventures: Batgirl Action Figure

Amazon – DC Collectibles Batman: The Animated Series: The Penguin Action Figure

Amazon – DC Collectibles Batman: The Animated Series: The Riddler Action Figure

Editors Note:

In Novemeber 2016 DC Collectables will be releasing a Batman Original Animated Series Batwing. It will be 36 inches long and will even open at the cockpit to fit the Batman The Animated Series action figure inside. It is set at $144.99 and you can Pre-order it through Entertainment Earth!