Asmus Toys: Merry and Pippin Lord of the Rings 1/6 Scale Figures

[koolkollectibleskhai]

Thanks for the review, Khai!

No worries, thanks for checking it out! My thoughts are pretty consistent with others here, especially around the facial paint apps and likenesses. But again, overall, I'm actually pretty happy with them. I just hope Asmus follow through and make the entire Fellowship and not sell us short.

 

[Rydeck]

I think you hit the nail on the head. I think these figures are great but not a one has nailed the likeness 100%. I think they are great representations of the characters though. Something to keep in mind, would another company take on this line? I don't think so, so I'm going to stick with them even if the likenesses aren't perfect.

Quite right. Although, ACI did produce two LOTR figures and I think ACI was interested in continuing with more if they could renew the license. I haven't heard anything in that regard, so ACI's LOTR line is presumably dead.

LOTR seems to have fallen pretty far in the cultural/popular consciousness, so it may not make much sense to chase down the LOTR license to sell figures to the small cross-section of LOTR film fans and 1/6 scale collectible fans (props to Asmus for doing exactly that). It's funny because I remember the LOTR movies being heralded as this generation's Star Wars, but we have new Star Wars movies now and The Hobbit trilogy that carried the banner for LOTR was critically underwhelming.

If another company did take it on (besides ACI), I doubt they'd ever be going as deep into the license as Asmus is with the likes of Gothmog, Mouth of Sauron and Grishnakh. The only comparable licenses that come to mind with that much depth are Star Wars and Iron Man 3 (House Party Protocol armors), but Star Wars' following is, of course, massive and Marvel's superheroes are staying fresh in people's minds with at least two new Marvel movies a year.

 

[bigpig]

Anyone had a repaint on these?

I also hope they do all 9. Would set my mind at ease if we seen a sneak peak of Gimli

 

[hoodonit00]

Anyone had a repaint on these?

I also hope they do all 9. Would set my mind at ease if we seen a sneak peak of Gimli

I know they have said the 9 would all be shown this year. It's weird that we have seen nothing of Gimli. IIRC he was to be one of the original figures to be released. Hope we see some new teases soon.

 

[Thainitty]

I agree with everyone here that I'm keeping my fingers crossed for the entire fellowship.....I feel like the hold up with the rest of the characters is asmus getting too far ahead of themselves so now they're playing catchup. I think we have been waiting for mouth of sauron to ship for a long time. My merry and pippin arrive tomorrow and I'm already prepared to be ho hum about the faces, hair and paint....if it bugs me I'll just put the hoods up. I'm still disappointed about aci losing the license cause their aragorn and wraiths are really nice (in my opinion)

 

[MaxGoof]

The fact that only the heads for Merry and Pippin are awful is actually a good thing, though: when and if Asmus follows through with an add-on pack with extra heads and the Lorien gear, these could turn out to be their very -best- figures.

 

[Bucky Underbelly]

Got my set this week and I'm really impressed with them. I think they definitely don't photograph very well, but look great in hand. I'm not actually bothered by the sculpts at all. They look pretty great to me. And the outfits and bodies really do shine. They're light accessory-wise, but that's okay, too. Especially for the price. Very satisfied with mine. Especially since the set I got don't have terribly rosy cheeks. Their coloring is pretty normal. Very satisfied.

As for any future "accessory pack" remember that Asmus hasn't actually promised anything. (Especially about improved heads.) They've only said it's something they might look at. I suppose it depends on how well these two sell.

 

[diegohdm]

 

[bigpig]

The fact that only the heads for Merry and Pippin are awful is actually a good thing, though: when and if Asmus follows through with an add-on pack with extra heads and the Lorien gear, these could turn out to be their very -best- figures.

The heads are far from awful. Little bit to much gloss and Rosie cheeks

 

[FlyAndFight]

The paint apps don't bother me as much as the sculpts themselves. It's the only thing keeping me from ordering the figures. (and the fact that I have a pair of custom figures that look great.) My customs are based on the Sideshow Frodo and Sam figures, which I think look fantastic and their only real negative is that they are slightly too tall for the scale. I really like the fact that Asmus scaled the hobbits correctly. The bodies and outfits look great as well. Quite a dilemma...

 

[Thainitty]

Just got mine and they really are a lot better in hand than pictures would have you believe. I'm very pleased, now bring on frodo and sam

 

[The Ween]

For those looking for Frodo:

 

[koolkollectibleskhai]

Yeah, Asmus just posted that on their FB page! Thank god they continue to do them all!! Cant wait to complete the Fellowship eventually!

 

[dwing]

Like the fit of the clothes.

 

[koolkollectibleskhai]

Yea, I think the material and tailoring of the clothes in this Asmus line are probably the stand out feature. The head sculpts and facial paint apps aren't really at Hot Toys level yet, but the costumes are pretty awesome.

 

[dortizjr1]

Question for Asmus: Is it in the realm of possibility for armor sets to be released for Merry and Pip? - really more of a wish, along with seperate head scupts for /with helmets...

 

[Asmus]

Question for Asmus: Is it in the realm of possibility for armor sets to be released for Merry and Pip? - really more of a wish, along with seperate head scupts for /with helmets...

thank you for the question,
at moment, we do not have plan for Merry and Pippin's armour,
but we will revisit the head for more ineteresting expressions for sure.

 

[cmiller99]

That's good to hear. I'd be interested to see a merrier Merry.

 

[Lee in MI]

Just opened these bad boys and WOW! They are pretty awesome. The cut & sew is top notch (very few loose threads and what-nots like earlier offerings), the bodies are nice and tight but not too restricting. The headsculpts are way way way more impressive than most pics would have you believe. I thought the lack of ankle articulation would bother me but they stand very well and the detail with the dirtied feet on the bottom and the haired feet on top are just brilliant!

Nice job Asmus! Keep em coming!

 

[SithThundercracker]

Well, while Asmus is thinking about what to do I'm taking some shortcuts towards those hobbit capes.
Need to find a better fabric for Merry's (this one is too stiff and ravels too much on the collar) and a proper neck closing for Pippin's but I'm confident: