Because it's not? I know the figure isn't perfect, but it's certainly nowhere near being a "substandard mediocrity". The body is much closer than before so describing it as being "nowhere near accurate" just sounds too presumptuous even for an "opinion".
Here's what I think is actually wrong with this figure:
- No-nose syndrome
- Head should be a tiny bit smaller
- Traps still need to be a bit bigger
- Less abs, more belly
- Vest and coat need weathering
- Wrong-colored straps on the vest
- Pants aren't baggy
- Pants color is not completely accurate to the actual production design
Now having read the majority of the old complaints across the whole thread, I kept tabs on what people were complaining about or wanted to be changed and here's what I think HT did right with the final product:
- Improved HS by removing the exposed skin under the back of the mask
- Hardy sculpt is still spot-on with good choice of brow expression
- Bulkier body, which combined with the vest, makes his traps look bigger
- Large-enough-but-not-too-large arms which nails Bane's look (both the stuntman and Hardy)
- Detailed sculpted scar on the back
- Added zippers on the pants
- Added water effects on Batman cowl
- Choosing articulated arms over rubber (while the double-jointed elbows would've been great for the "boss" pose, the joints would look more jarring for a bare-armed character like Bane)
- Choice of color for pants actually matches the harsh lighting reflected during sewer fight (sort of like how many Alien figures from ALIENS are colored blue because they look blue in the film despite actually being brown)
With that, I think the pros equalize with the cons in their own right. Average figure for the keen eye, but still a good figure to stand out well enough on the shelf. Not bad, but not perfect either. I'm definitely happy with the figure simply because I find that HT did enough improvements that made the figure that much better than before. While said changes may seem miniscule for the perfectionists, I personally think they made huge a difference especially for a character that is characterized by his physicality and haunting presence.
I don't get all the complaining either.
