With The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug gearing up to hit theaters this December, The Bridge Direct has already pushed out their 2nd wave of action figures based on the Hobbit movies. The first figures were pretty darn impressive for a company that many people have never heard of. Let’s just hope that they can keep that standard throughout the entire line. Today I have The Hobbit Radagast 6 Inch Figure for review.
There are only three 6 inch figures in the Desolation of Smaug wave – Radagast, Azog, and Legolas. Which I guess is ok considering if they made any more figures they would just be some gimmicky repaints. I really appreciate that they didn’t do that.
Packaging
The Radagast 6 inch figure comes packaging in blister card packaging that is very similar to what we saw the first wave of 6″ Hobbit figures come in. The background obviously has a different image, but otherwise the packaging is very much the same. One thing that I did notice this time around is that the packaging was very international friendly. Where there is English there is most likely French (I think it’s French).
The back of the packaging is definitely different from the first wave of figures. In the first wave each of the figures had their own personal card backs, but in this wave they all have the same general card back. They don’t even get a bio for each character. The text just gives you a general summary about the movie. I think personalized blister cards really adds to the packaging overall.
Sculpt
For being just a 6 inch figure I was pretty impressed with how much detail that the 6 inch Radagast figure has on his face. Actually, Radagast has a whole slew of details on the entire figure. His face features some nice deep wrinkles, and his beard was done perfectly. You can see some strands of hair sculpted throughout the beard making it look realistic.
His costume isn’t lacking any sculpted details either. Pretty much the whole thing has textures, designs, and other sculpted details that really make this figure pop.
For accessories Radagast comes with his staff and his hat. The hat is removable and actually kind of snaps on his head so it doesn’t just fall off if you turn him upside-down.
Paint
Radagast’s paint job is also pretty good looking. From a distance of about 1ft you really can’t notice any imperfections. I’m really surprised by that because this figure has some really fine details on his costume that could be very easy to make sloppy. Nearly none of the paint is just one solid color, and The Bridge Direct has used a variety of washes to paint Radagast and make him look just like in the movie.
Articulation
If you have picked up the Wave 1 Gandalf figure then the articulation is pretty much the same. But if you don’t have that figure then Radagast has:
- Ball head
- Ball shoulders
- Swivel/hinge elbows
- Swivel right forearm
- Swivel left wrist
- Waist swivel
- Hinge hips
- Swivel/hinge knees
- Swivel/hinge ankles
He is wearing a very thick plastic robe which really limits his articulation. His beard also pretty much makes his neck movement pretty much non-exsistant, but it’s still there. If you force it you can get some ok leg poses, but don’t expect to get anything crazy. He’s old anyways.
Overall
If you have been collecting The Bridge Direct’s 6 inch Hobbit action figures from the start then Radagast is going to be a figure that you aren’t going to want miss. Wave 2 only contains 3 figures, 2 of which you may be able to skip (if you already have them). Radagast has a pretty great sculpt and paint job, making him a great overall action figure for your display cabinet.
Ordering
The Hobbit: Desolation of Smaug action figures are out at Toys “R” Us stores nationwide.
UPDATE: This action figure is no longer available at retailers, but you can take a trip over to eBay and look around for the Bridge Direct Radagast action figure.
This figure was provided for review from the manufacturer. All opinions and text are that of the reviewer.
