jaztermareal
Super Freak
- Joined
- Mar 5, 2011
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I posted this the other day on OSF but thought it might be appreciated here also:
full body comparisons and general overview:
Medicom, Sideshow v1, Sideshow deluxe and Hot Toys (deluxe)
20220714_084758 by kraggy2011, on Flickr
20220714_084728 by kraggy2011, on Flickr
20220714_082459 by kraggy2011, on Flickr
20220712_074727 by kraggy2011, on Flickr
Overall I like the Hot Toys one the most for its proportions and quality but it has its drawbacks which I will get into in a moment.
Medicom is kinda glossy and the armour appears to be vinyl, so softer than Sideshow/HT armour. The detail is softer, the paint simpler and the proportion are not perfect. It is taller than Medicom figures usually are so scales fine in that sense but it does look a little skinny especially at the hips. The articulation is very limited by the suit and armour so no dynamic poses are possible. The helmet looks off sculpt-wise also so that does not help it. Obviously it is the oldest of the lot so it is to be expected that it will be the worst. The good news is that its undesirability means it can often be had for quite cheap second hand (IIRC I paid about £60 for it) so if you need another background trooper to fill the ranks it is a good option.
Sideshow v1 is the second oldest if I am not mistaken and it feels like a step up from the Medicom. It includes (slightly) more accessories, has a better helmet sculpt, better paint, better articulation etc etc but it does have wide hips giving it that ugly thigh gap and being sideshow the joints have a tendency to get loose making the figure floppy if you aren't careful. A body swap could potentially fix both issues.
Sideshow deluxe is similar to the v1 as far as construction goes it seems to have the same body and armour and same materials used but the helmet is new (more accurate and better sculpted just a tad oversized) the weathering is heavier and there is a ton of accessories. It still suffers the thigh gap of its predecessor along with the loose joints. Overall a step up from the previous version but not perfect. Both Sideshow versions also have slightly too broad shoulders.
Finally, the Hot Toys version (both standard and deluxe are identical except for 4 accessories) has the best overall quality and proportions, with some key drawbacks. The proportions overall give it the man in suit look that the others fail to achieve. it isn't overly skinny with narrow hips like the Medicom, nor does it have the thigh gap or overly broad shoulders of the sideshow versions. The weathering is more subtle and realistic and the armour is slightly differently proportioned in logical ways (thigh armour is longer allowing for better posing, the helmet is a little longer for realism etc) and the base body has nice stiff joints with some ratchets so it can hold poses better.
the main drawbacks are in missing details: the = marks on the right side of the chest plate are missing as is the blue paint on the back plate. The Phase 2 helmet is slightly undersized while the 1 helmet is oversized. The Phase 1 helmet has more issues I will get on to later.
Overall, while each figure is an improvement on the prior release none are perfect. HT overall is the best figure hands down but Sideshow managed to beat it in terms of accuracy IMHO.
helmet comparisons:
Phase 2:
Medicom, Sideshow v1, Sideshow deluxe and Hot Toys (deluxe/standard)
20220714_083905 by kraggy2011, on Flickr
20220714_083922 by kraggy2011, on Flickr
20220714_083956 by kraggy2011, on Flickr
20220714_084010 by kraggy2011, on Flickr
With the Bandai helmet collection version:
20220714_084054 by kraggy2011, on Flickr
20220714_084111 by kraggy2011, on Flickr
20220714_084127 by kraggy2011, on Flickr
The Medicom has the weakest sculpt overall while the best is a toss up between the Sideshow deluxe and HT ones. The HT one is slightly undersized while the Sideshow deluxe is just slightly oversized. The Sideshow v1 seems to have the best size but sculpt is off. The HT helmet is proportionally longer when viewed side-on which while inaccurate is a good change IMHO and it looks more like a head can fit inside it.
The blue stripe on the Medicom version incorrectly goes down to the black band on the rear of the helmet while others it stop above the band. It also is missing the two dots on the round piece on the rear of the helmet and the line that goes horizontally through it protrudes rather than being indented.
Phase 1 helmets:
Sideshow deluxe vs Hot Toys deluxe
20220714_083251 by kraggy2011, on Flickr
20220714_083303 by kraggy2011, on Flickr
20220714_083313 by kraggy2011, on Flickr
20220714_083325 by kraggy2011, on Flickr
With Bandai helmet collection version:
20220714_083410 by kraggy2011, on Flickr
20220714_083421 by kraggy2011, on Flickr
20220714_083431 by kraggy2011, on Flickr
With Hasbro Titan Hero series for comparison:
20220714_083458 by kraggy2011, on Flickr
The HT version has a couple major issues for me:
the frown is too thick, it makes it look like a mouth breathing muppet. The size is wrong too as it is too large overall while it misses the red light detail in the rear of the fin as well as the 4 protruding lumps on the circular section below said fin. Where it does well is it has clearly defined lines on the rear "vent" section and the macrobinoculars from HT's Rex look like they should be attachable, which gives options. The weathering is also very well done. Realistically subtle and in the logical areas you would expect.
The Sideshow helmet overall has a great, accurate sculpt with all the details you would expect including the red fin light. The weathering is a little heavy handed but that really is a nitpick.
Sideshow wins hands down. Hasbro has a surprisingly good sculpt though. I bet a great paint job could make it work as a good background grunt.
continued in next post due to image limit
full body comparisons and general overview:
Medicom, Sideshow v1, Sideshow deluxe and Hot Toys (deluxe)
20220714_084758 by kraggy2011, on Flickr
20220714_084728 by kraggy2011, on Flickr
20220714_082459 by kraggy2011, on Flickr
20220712_074727 by kraggy2011, on FlickrOverall I like the Hot Toys one the most for its proportions and quality but it has its drawbacks which I will get into in a moment.
Medicom is kinda glossy and the armour appears to be vinyl, so softer than Sideshow/HT armour. The detail is softer, the paint simpler and the proportion are not perfect. It is taller than Medicom figures usually are so scales fine in that sense but it does look a little skinny especially at the hips. The articulation is very limited by the suit and armour so no dynamic poses are possible. The helmet looks off sculpt-wise also so that does not help it. Obviously it is the oldest of the lot so it is to be expected that it will be the worst. The good news is that its undesirability means it can often be had for quite cheap second hand (IIRC I paid about £60 for it) so if you need another background trooper to fill the ranks it is a good option.
Sideshow v1 is the second oldest if I am not mistaken and it feels like a step up from the Medicom. It includes (slightly) more accessories, has a better helmet sculpt, better paint, better articulation etc etc but it does have wide hips giving it that ugly thigh gap and being sideshow the joints have a tendency to get loose making the figure floppy if you aren't careful. A body swap could potentially fix both issues.
Sideshow deluxe is similar to the v1 as far as construction goes it seems to have the same body and armour and same materials used but the helmet is new (more accurate and better sculpted just a tad oversized) the weathering is heavier and there is a ton of accessories. It still suffers the thigh gap of its predecessor along with the loose joints. Overall a step up from the previous version but not perfect. Both Sideshow versions also have slightly too broad shoulders.
Finally, the Hot Toys version (both standard and deluxe are identical except for 4 accessories) has the best overall quality and proportions, with some key drawbacks. The proportions overall give it the man in suit look that the others fail to achieve. it isn't overly skinny with narrow hips like the Medicom, nor does it have the thigh gap or overly broad shoulders of the sideshow versions. The weathering is more subtle and realistic and the armour is slightly differently proportioned in logical ways (thigh armour is longer allowing for better posing, the helmet is a little longer for realism etc) and the base body has nice stiff joints with some ratchets so it can hold poses better.
the main drawbacks are in missing details: the = marks on the right side of the chest plate are missing as is the blue paint on the back plate. The Phase 2 helmet is slightly undersized while the 1 helmet is oversized. The Phase 1 helmet has more issues I will get on to later.
Overall, while each figure is an improvement on the prior release none are perfect. HT overall is the best figure hands down but Sideshow managed to beat it in terms of accuracy IMHO.
helmet comparisons:
Phase 2:
Medicom, Sideshow v1, Sideshow deluxe and Hot Toys (deluxe/standard)
20220714_083905 by kraggy2011, on Flickr
20220714_083922 by kraggy2011, on Flickr
20220714_083956 by kraggy2011, on Flickr
20220714_084010 by kraggy2011, on FlickrWith the Bandai helmet collection version:
20220714_084054 by kraggy2011, on Flickr
20220714_084111 by kraggy2011, on Flickr
20220714_084127 by kraggy2011, on FlickrThe Medicom has the weakest sculpt overall while the best is a toss up between the Sideshow deluxe and HT ones. The HT one is slightly undersized while the Sideshow deluxe is just slightly oversized. The Sideshow v1 seems to have the best size but sculpt is off. The HT helmet is proportionally longer when viewed side-on which while inaccurate is a good change IMHO and it looks more like a head can fit inside it.
The blue stripe on the Medicom version incorrectly goes down to the black band on the rear of the helmet while others it stop above the band. It also is missing the two dots on the round piece on the rear of the helmet and the line that goes horizontally through it protrudes rather than being indented.
Phase 1 helmets:
Sideshow deluxe vs Hot Toys deluxe
20220714_083251 by kraggy2011, on Flickr
20220714_083303 by kraggy2011, on Flickr
20220714_083313 by kraggy2011, on Flickr
20220714_083325 by kraggy2011, on FlickrWith Bandai helmet collection version:
20220714_083410 by kraggy2011, on Flickr
20220714_083421 by kraggy2011, on Flickr
20220714_083431 by kraggy2011, on FlickrWith Hasbro Titan Hero series for comparison:
20220714_083458 by kraggy2011, on FlickrThe HT version has a couple major issues for me:
the frown is too thick, it makes it look like a mouth breathing muppet. The size is wrong too as it is too large overall while it misses the red light detail in the rear of the fin as well as the 4 protruding lumps on the circular section below said fin. Where it does well is it has clearly defined lines on the rear "vent" section and the macrobinoculars from HT's Rex look like they should be attachable, which gives options. The weathering is also very well done. Realistically subtle and in the logical areas you would expect.
The Sideshow helmet overall has a great, accurate sculpt with all the details you would expect including the red fin light. The weathering is a little heavy handed but that really is a nitpick.
Sideshow wins hands down. Hasbro has a surprisingly good sculpt though. I bet a great paint job could make it work as a good background grunt.
continued in next post due to image limit
