While I have yet to see Justice League, I have seen Wonder Woman and Batman vs Superman. DCEU may not get the formula behind the Universe building like Marvel, what they do have is an iconic Super Heroine like Wonder Woman. Luckily, her movie wasn't that bad and Gal Gadot does a fine job playing the role of the Amazon Warrior Princess. Toy companies left and right have taken shots at capturing Gal Gadot's performance into action figure form and this is S.H. Figuart's effort. Let's check out S.H. Figuarts Wonder Woman and see if this is the compelling Wonder Woman figure we have been waiting for!
It's kind of an odd color scheme for the box since I don't recall Justice League promotions sporting the yellow-stone color. Regardless, it's a good promo shot of the figure on the side with a window box that gives the buyer an idea of what the contents look like.
And one side of the box showcases another promo shot of the figure. While it's a good looking promo shot, the one thing that might go against a figure is that sometimes, the promo version of the action figure is a hundred times better than the actual product.
Again, good product promotional shots. It's no denying that even if the DCEU is on the brink of failing, at least Wonder Woman looks amazing (and the solo Wonder Woman movie was decent).
Wonder Gal comes with a decent amount of accessories. One thing I really like is that she comes with a bundled lasso and a dynamic lasso, which makes for posing a bit more satisfying, despite the fact that it's not ideal (more on that later). She has three alternate hands, two faces, her shield, and her sword. Let's take a look at her faces.
This is her serious face, and honestly, the better looking out of the two. It doesn't look like Gal Gadot in essence, but there are certain angles that bears a resemblance. The details on her tiara (on both actually) seems a bit muddled.
This face isn't half bad and it's the angry one, but something about it doesn't look right. Maybe the eyebrows are too light? Or maybe because of the fact that being more expressive is making the details on her eyebrows less noticeable. Either or, it's not a bad face, but it's not great either.
The details on this figure are pretty good, especially on her upper body 'armor'. The difference between metallic armor and the leather skirt really stands out and I can appreciate the texturing that made it so. The way her boots are designed in the movie isn't like how it is in the comics; they're more like shin pads and this figure made t work without skipping the mall details of the straps 'connecting' her boots together. The bracelets are also sculpted nice and sticks to the Cinematic Universe appearance. They also have her armband on her left side, and since I didn't go over in details about her hair, it's well sculpted, but it does hurt the articulation a little. More on that.
The one thing about joints and bare flesh is that it's harder to hide them. I've seen that with the Mafex Harley Quinn and other figures like her. Wonder Woman's legs/knees are hidden enough but her shoulders and armpits does suffer from the joints making it look unnatural. For those looking for a Wonder Woman figure that isn't so 'toy-looking' this one might be hard to get over. Still, certain shots and angles can hide them.
I've already talked about how we are missing sharper and pronounced paint job on her face, but despite that, the coloring on the rest of the figure is nearly flawless. The skin tone, albeit not entirely Gal Gadot, stand out really well against the dark blue and red color palette. The small tint of brighter colors, like the gold and her silver bracelets makes for good contrast against what would have been brighter dominant red and blue if we were talking about the comic books. We might be missing some shadowing on her skin and hair, all in all, it's not bad.
Her accessories play a major role if we are trying to really replicate her cinematic universe counter part. While Wonder Woman have always been (in)famous for having her magic lasso as her main weapon, the movies really capitalized on her being a warrior so they gave her a sword and shield as primary weapons. S.H. Figuarts followed that trend and did a good enough job. Diana's sword and shield were never that intricately designed in the movies, but they stood out enough and I'm glad they kept the same idea in this figure. She holds them well, and they compliment her overall aesthetics.
And what is Wonder Woman without her lasso of truth, right? Truth to be told (pun intended), I can't remember the last figure that really gives justice to her trademark weapon. The one thing about this figure is that they at least gave us two versions, one that can be posed with Diana holding it as if trying to lasso an enemy, and then one that can be hung on her belt. Honestly, I think a bendy wire lasso would give more entertainment rather than the pre-posed ones. Glad they included one that isn't bundled up, but it still fails to capture what Wonder Woman's lasso is suppose to do. Still, get a few good angles, and some good photos can be taken.
The next part truly depends just how important articulation is for a collector compared to the aesthetics. I've already mentioned that her some joints are severely exposed; but the trade off of that is having wider range of movements. While her arms can be posed in an almost unlimited ways, her legs however, are a bit hindered. And no, it's not just because of the skirt, one can work around that, I am not a big fan of the fact that ti's hard to get an ankle pivot out of her. For any hardcore action figure photographer, the lack of ankle pivot does hinder a lot of things, and not to mention, just getting her to stand semi-dynamic is harder. Her hair is also quite stiff so you can't turn her head to her right without using her torso articulation. Not bad in this department at all and it could be worse.
Speaking of worse, here's S.H. Figuarts Wonder Woman from the Justice League movie next to her Playarts Kai BvS version. Not only does she have superior accessories (not by much though), a stronger resemblance to Gal Gadot, it's also in a price range that is comfortable for most people. But as weird as Playarts Kai Wonder Woman is, she is slightly better in some areas when it comes to articulation.
In conclusion, I can't say that this is the definitive Gal Gadot Wonder Woman I am looking for. Is it better than my previous purchase? Yes it is! By a couple of miles. But it still missed the mark and I think there's plenty left to be desired. I do recommend it for anyone who is enamored by Gal Gadot's depiction of Diana Prince. It's got good paint, some resemblance to the actress, decent accessories, and she can be posed around good enough. Just don't expect wonders. Well, that's about it!
Until Next Time!
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