My huge Takara Batman review, with comparison shots

[Murderofcrows71]

The wetsuit is a two piece and the entire suit is definitely black. The legs are a 'farmer john' style with the section that fits over the chest and shoulders made of a mesh material. It was made as a two piece for easy on and off and mainly for bathroom breaks.

The wetsuit section that the chest armour is glued to is a 'snap crotch' style upper wetsuit. Everything is matte black.

In the movie it's made to look as if its a one-piece suit, as where the foam rubber glues to it helps hide the suit. I'll see if I can find the pictures I took of the actual costume displayed.

 

[TheObsoleteMan]

The Tak suit (outside of the boots) looks much more like the film to me, whether the actual materials match or not.

I'm just the opposite. When I look at HT I see the movie costume, and when I look at Takara I see a halloween costume. Of course I don't own the Takara version so I can only judge it from pics, but pretty much every one I've seen makes the Takara suit look cheap in comparison.

 

[pjam]

I'm just the opposite. QUOTE]

Same here, if anything that is the one area I take issue with in MC's review and the pictures of the HT suit in his HT review and the Tak suit in this comparison review seem to bear that out (especially the side angle shots with cape lifted) plus the Tak suit materials may deteriorate and the Tak boots are horrible so how can they be rated the same, don't get that...

 

[Michael Crawford]

First, sculpt wasn't part of the criteria for the Outfit category - I thought I made that clear in the review, but apparently didn't. I covered the sculpt of the body suit in the special section just for that, up above. In that section, the HT body won.

The Outfit section is about material and tailoring. And yes, I like the fit of the Tak much better (all that gap between the body and the suit on the HT is annoying), and while I'm not thrilled with the quality of the cape or the look of the boots, I do like the posability the boots provide. As I stated in the review, each suit has enough pros and enough cons that it ends up at about the same score - and all did well.

And again, when it came to the actual sculpting of the suits, the HT version got the highest score. I spent a lot of time writing the review up, with the intention of making things clear. Obviously, that didn't work.

Finally, I didn't feel it was appropriate to deduct points from a figure for something that MIGHT happen. Will the suit break down over time? It could - and it's also possible that it won't. Of course, I also noticed that the seams on the inside of the thighs of the HT are likely to weaken and rip over time if you try posing him in deep stances too often. It's not that those seams are poor quality, but that the suit is so tight it could become an issue. Should I deduct points because that MIGHT happen? No. I can only judge something based on it's current state, not some hypothetical future. I can mention that future, and warn against conditions that might cause it (i.e. heat), but I'm not going to deduct points from something with no proof at this point.

 

[Darth Kustomizer]

Great review Michael!

Well worth the read considering the amount of time and detail you put into it.

Sorry to read about the broken figure. That kills me esp. when the figure costs more than it probably should.

I recently picked up the Medicom version for all of $90.00 on-line and I have to say that I am very pleased with it. I love the head-sculpt on the Takara version but I just can't get past the boots!

 

[gdb]

Uh...except it's not film accurate. The outfit is NOT film accurate on the Hot Toys version, as the body suit in the movie is an all rubber deal. On top of that, the head sculpt is not accurate - as shown here, Bale does not have a defined cleft chin.

Dude, I'm not attacking your review. In your own words -- and not out of context -- you wrote, "Of the three though, I think the Takara version is the farthest from the actual film representation... and while the type of materials they used for the suit might not match the movie exactly, it worked as an interpretation quite well." Not to mention "those ugly ass boots of his [the Takara's]" or how much you "dislike the appearance of the Takara leg armor." So, uh... it sounds like the Hot Toys' outfit is MORE film accurate than Takara's.

And as to your other point, it seems to me that the Japanese toy market likes to put clefts in their heroes' chins. After all, all three Batmans sport the cleft.

 

[wax murderer]

Thought I'd throw my 2 cents in. I have the Tak version, and am completely satisfied with him. The Med is too small(I have their Luke and Vader displayed separately for precisely this reason) and the head on the HT really bugs me for some reason.I also like the Bale head; my wife is looking to find a body for it so that they can both be part of the collection.As has been previously mentioned, a Cy-Girl stand works perfectly for him; not that he really needs it, but my wife tends to worry about such things(especially considering what we paid for him!)
Anyway, he and my HT Superman are on the top shelf, back to back in an appropriately heroic pose, looking just fine, thanks...PS

 

[sunohc]

Must be fun having a partner in this hobby.
Lots of suport XD

 

[Batman5]

Great review as usual Michael. I can't wait to get my Takara Batman to compare him to my Medicom. While I thought about getting the HT Batman in the initial pics of him from HT it looked like he wouldn't be able to move that well in the legs. To me, articulation is a must, especially for a character like Batman.

Anyway, he and my HT Superman are on the top shelf, back to back in an appropriately heroic pose, looking just fine, thanks...PS

Do you have pics of this cool sounding set up?