Premier Toys Wasteland Gladiator 1/6th figure

[Asta]

The Solo sculpt was on top of the Detolf so I decided to capture the scale of Premier's Max.

Placed ear to ear:

I tried the sculpt on a Ganghood 2.0 (Bruce Lee) body and it scaled much better, and actually looked quite good. But that body would be too short for 5' 9" Mel.

However, it is a consideration. I'm wondering what the Premier outfit would look like on the Ganghood 2.0 with longer ankle pegs, or the boots packed to raise the legs.

 

[Asta]

I made the switch onto the Ganghood 2.0 body.

The smaller, slimmer frame has made an amazing difference. The sculpt no longer appears so out of scale, and the fit of the jacket is better, in relation to the trousers, Sam Browne etc.

To gain the required height I put white tack into his boots, and kept testing until he was right. The position of the kneepad above the boots worked out well too, as the gap between them is the same that would be filled when the brace is worn above the boot, rather then around it.

The left hand is from VTS' Ultimate Revenger, and the right from QMx' Sulu.

The sculpt doesn't match the body's skin tone, because the head has a sunburnt quality. However, to the naked eye, where he's stood right now I can barely spot the difference.

The camera flash, as always, accentuates the difference in colour.

 

[FlyAndFight]

Mine shipped out some time ago so cancellation is no longer an option.

I immediately preordered this figure, as at the time, I was:
1) So excited to finally see a Mel Gibson "Road Warrior" figure
2) The other two options had not appeared yet, so comparisons were not available, yet.

This is probably one of the very few times that I regret pre-ordering a figure. The ironic part is that prior to Asta's great reviews, I thought I had made the best pick, based on just the photos, with the head sculpt appearing to me to be the best looking one.

I knew that there would be tweaking involved and I was fine with that, thinking that the majority of the figure would still be used.

That pin-head sculpt will have to go, as will the body. Hopefully I can get most of the rest to work.

EDIT: I have to admit that I have quite a few of the old BBI figures, mostly pilot figures, and they still stand up to today's figures in terms of quality and detailing. I WISH that Premier Toys had reached that level...

 

[Asta]

Mine shipped out some time ago so cancellation is no longer an option.

I immediately preordered this figure, as at the time, I was:
1) So excited to finally see a Mel Gibson "Road Warrior" figure
2) The other two options had not appeared yet, so comparisons were not available, yet.

This is probably one of the very few times that I regret pre-ordering a figure. The ironic part is that prior to Asta's great reviews, I thought I had made the best pick, based on just the photos, with the head sculpt appearing to me to be the best looking one.

I knew that there would be tweaking involved and I was fine with that, thinking that the majority of the figure would still be used.

That pin-head sculpt will have to go, as will the body. Hopefully I can get most of the rest to work.

EDIT: I have to admit that I have quite a few of the old BBI figures, mostly pilot figures, and they still stand up to today's figures in terms of quality and detailing. I WISH that Premier Toys had reached that level...

BBI got better, and I still have two of their modern pilots out on display. They hold up very well.

The ones I got rid of were the villains, and what I think were their first releases - Navy SEAL, Delta Force, GSG-9, SAS...

Saying that, even back then, they were more well thought out than Premier's effort. Some of their choices were inexcusable, but the main problem that affected the whole figure was the body. It's as though they designed the outfit and head on one body, then decided to use a different body afterwards, which threw off the head, the clothing, the Sam Browne and holster.

Mel wasn't one of the 80's beefcake actors, so the slimmer Ganghood 2.0 is a more appropriate option. It has a narrower neck, narrower shoulders, and less bulk throughout so the jacket hangs better, and also covers more of the trousers.

Yesterday I shoved the figure up onto a high shelf so I wouldn't have to see it too closely, but today he's standing amongst the Fury Road figures. His melancholic eyes don't even bother me now, because I know, deep inside, he's happier than he was yesterday.

 

[JacktheRipper]

Some funny responses here. Or are they sad?

It's a bit of both. I'm not too bothered by it...yet. That might change once I have the figure. The other two figures are a ways out. I don't have a Max in the collection, so this will keep me busy. Asta has made some great progress. My emotions have been on a rollercoaster. I'm not at any high or low point right now. The ride is close to ending soon. Hopefully it doesn't completely suck.

 

[Marine Boy]

The bodyswap does make it look a lot better. The dog appears slightly bigger in comparison as well. I should be getting mine in about a week.

 

[xipotec]

My confidence is pretty low now.

I think a bigger sculpt for Max would transform the figure, and help me forget all the issues, some of which are either solved - such as double sided tape for the shotgun and wayward jacket lapel, or because they're hidden at the back of the figure.

I wonder now whether they left his shirt untucked on purpose, so that it appeared to make the jacket longer, due to where they glued the holster straps on the trouser leg.

But that gives too much credit to them for having any real consideration for the figure.

It really did remind me of BBI figures from 2000, because back then there was a lot less expected from 1/6, and we would be far less critical and far more 'wowed' by what was now possible with 12" toy

My confidence is pretty low now.

I think a bigger sculpt for Max would transform the figure, and help me forget all the issues, some of which are either solved - such as double sided tape for the shotgun and wayward jacket lapel, or because they're hidden at the back of the figure.

I wonder now whether they left his shirt untucked on purpose, so that it appeared to make the jacket longer, due to where they glued the holster straps on the trouser leg.

But that gives too much credit to them for having any real consideration for the figure.

It really did remind me of BBI figures from 2000, because back then there was a lot less expected from 1/6, and we would be far less critical and far more 'wowed' by what was now possible with 12" toys.

Ill agree the small head is disappointing, But its pretty common for 3rd party.

I doubt we can really say any of these 3rd party figure are actually trying to compete with HT. Thats not realistic. They are just picking up the scraps that HT will not touch….

I never expect anything but a starter figure from any 3rd party. Hell these days thats all I expect from SSC.

 

[Asta]

The bodyswap does make it look a lot better. The dog appears slightly bigger in comparison as well. I should be getting mine in about a week.

I never did get round to putting him in hot water to straighten his right legs, so I propped him up with two Lego tiles on that side, which makes him stand a little taller. Plus Max's legs are a little deeper into the boots than before.

 

[Asta]

Ill agree the small head is disappointing, But its pretty common for 3rd party.

I've only encountered it with recasts, but I don't think this one was thought to be a recast. And even with the recasts the size difference from a regular sculpt has never been so great that I couldn't fool myself into accepting it.

I doubt we can really say any of these 3rd party figure are actually trying to compete with HT. Thats not realistic. They are just picking up the scraps that HT will not touch….

I never expect anything but a starter figure from any 3rd party. Hell these days thats all I expect from SSC.

There are some really good third party companies out there making really satisfying products at good prices. LiM is exceptional in that their love for Red Dead Redemption meant they were able to create a product with more detail and passion that you'd expect from a giant like Hot Toys.

Then there are the smaller companies making figures that don't require licensing, who are dedicated to accuracy in all aspects, even those you'll never see once a figure is assembled.

As it turns out Toys Works' Jessica Jones still holds the crown for the worst/most useless third party figure I ever bought. I managed to pull Premier's Max out of the fire I was tempted to throw him into yesterday!

I'm still shocked the body swap worked so well, and keep looking back at the pictures I took yesterday to see how this late Christmas miracle occurred.

 

[Wor-Gar]

Asta, how tall does the Gangland Max stand now? He looks greatly improved. Well done.

 

[cpoll36]

I agree Asta, from my knowledge of collecting Max's over the years I don't think the sculpt is a recast, I'm pretty sure it's an original sculpt.

 

[FlyAndFight]

BBI got better, and I still have two of their modern pilots out on display. They hold up very well.

The ones I got rid of were the villains, and what I think were their first releases - Navy SEAL, Delta Force, GSG-9, SAS...

Saying that, even back then, they were more well thought out than Premier's effort. Some of their choices were inexcusable, but the main problem that affected the whole figure was the body. It's as though they designed the outfit and head on one body, then decided to use a different body afterwards, which threw off the head, the clothing, the Sam Browne and holster.

Mel wasn't one of the 80's beefcake actors, so the slimmer Ganghood 2.0 is a more appropriate option. It has a narrower neck, narrower shoulders, and less bulk throughout so the jacket hangs better, and also covers more of the trousers.

Yesterday I shoved the figure up onto a high shelf so I wouldn't have to see it too closely, but today he's standing amongst the Fury Road figures. His melancholic eyes don't even bother me now, because I know, deep inside, he's happier than he was yesterday.

Ah yes, I remember those initial BBi figures. The villian even had an ashen color and the head sculpt looked like a monster. But BBi got serious and improved overall dramatically fairly quickly. For a while there, it was BBI vs DML and BBI was taking the lead. Then BBi mysteriously disappeared at their peak.

As for the Ganghood 2.0 figure, I believe that is the one I used to update my GoT Jon Snow (Night's Watch) figure. It was definitely a shorter body and fit Jon perfectly. It looks like I'll need to acquire one soon...

 

[Asta]

Asta, how tall does the Gangland Max stand now? He looks greatly improved. Well done.

I measured him at 11.5" above his boot soles, which was the 5' 9" target.

 

[Wor-Gar]

Above the soles is really exact. That's great!

 

[Asta]

Ah yes, I remember those initial BBi figures. The villian even had an ashen color and the head sculpt looked like a monster. But BBi got serious and improved overall dramatically fairly quickly. For a while there, it was BBI vs DML and BBI was taking the lead. Then BBi mysteriously disappeared at their peak.

I had that monster villain, and Carlos in his leathers, with his cigar that you could plug smoke into.

Don't know what happened to BBI either.

As for the Ganghood 2.0 figure, I believe that is the one I used to update my GoT Jon Snow (Night's Watch) figure. It was definitely a shorter body and fit Jon perfectly. It looks like I'll need to acquire one soon...

Kit seems to always have them in stock. I think it was the body Nanjin used for Picard, and possibly Sulu, after cutting the necks off.

 

[Asta]

Above the soles is really exact. That's great!

I always measure above the soles.

With the Ganghood body you just keep adding white or blue tack to the insides of the boots until you get the right height. At first I thought it wouldn't work, when comparing the size of the body to the figure as I left it yesterday. But he gained enough height well, while keeping the right proportions. Even the upper strap of the brace seemed to match the correct position compared to the walking still of Max.

 

[ebor]

Thanks for posting all of this Asta...I have ordered a Ganghood 2.0 body to port over.

 

[FlyAndFight]

I always measure above the soles.

With the Ganghood body you just keep adding white or blue tack to the insides of the boots until you get the right height. At first I thought it wouldn't work, when comparing the size of the body to the figure as I left it yesterday. But he gained enough height well, while keeping the right proportions. Even the upper strap of the brace seemed to match the correct position compared to the walking still of Max.

You're giving me hope that this figure can be redeemed.

 

[JacktheRipper]

You're giving me hope that this figure can be redeemed.

There is always hope.

 

[Asta]

You're giving me hope that this figure can be redeemed.

I thought he was largely a lost cause.

Then after photographing the Premier sculpt to show how small it was, I noticed the Supreme/ACPlay/Ganghood Way of the Dragon Bruce Lee figure. Out of curiosity I tried the sculpt on the body, and suddenly saw some light at the end of the tunnel.

Again, the skin tone doesn't match, but I don't notice the difference under the LED lighting in the collection room. The camera always exaggerates the differences when I'm quite close using the flash.