We here at Geekstronomy have managed to get our hands on t
he full set of turtle figures from the new Playmates’ line* celebrating the new movie Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows. After testing the poseability and aerodynamics, we have completed the review of the newest figures of our favorite brothers.
The figures themselves are all well-made and individualized. Each turtle has their own custom made shell showing off the attention to detail that these figures were crafted with. Each brother has a different height and even their builds mirror their silver screen counterparts. The best part about each figure is that they all have personalized and color coordinated gear that sets them apart from each other. Accessory belts, arm straps, belts, and even shin guards are custom colored and fitted for each turtle whereas, traditionally, they were all one bland color.
Donatello:
As the smartest of the brothers, Donny has a tactical setup for himself. His staff with looks like a high tech gadget, like it is telescoping and has a taser on the end of it but, alas, the staff is one solid piece of plastic. He also comes with a set of headphones that are really cool and attach to his backpack. They look like they should fit on Donny’s head, but they stretch out and warp, so they don’t actually fit on his turtle noggin.
Michelangelo:
Mikey himself is built closer in stature to Raphael then Donny or Leo. The most notable part of this figure is the skateboard just like Mike has in the movie. He snaps snuggly into the groves on the board and rides excellently atop it. I have had no problems with the figure falling off of the board no matter how hard I push or shove it across the ground. The figures have enough articulation that I can even pose Mikey on top for some cool action shots. The wheels of the skateboard are a bit rough so they will need to be greased up a bit before you can ramp that sucker off some books.
The one big downside to Michelangelo however, is his nunchuks. The plastic that was used to create them isn’t very flexible. When I tried to bend his chucks to change their pose the plastic discolored and threatened to snap. This isn’t to be unexpected though, making a chain on those bad boys is hard and all the previous figures have the same weak point.
Leonardo:
Leonardo’s swords are the highlight of this figure for me. They are just the same simple pair of katanas that Leo has wielded for the past few decades, but with a little more pizazz to them. They are curved! They fit excellently in his back sheath and feel like a more natural fit both in hand and sheathed. Normally Leonardo’s swords are straight like an oversized machete.
The modeling of the figure itself is weird however. In this set of turtles, Leonardo is the smallest in size and thinnest of all the brothers, even Donatello seems to be bigger comparatively. When looking at Leonardo straight on, I can’t help but feel this build makes him appear more feminine. The bulging bicep on Leo’s left side counteracts this a bit, but on the right, his arm is covered in cloth and has a more streamlined build. For some reason, the asymmetrical Leonardo figure is a bit off-putting to me.
-Nate Biller
*Figures supplied by Playmates
