There was a bit of an exciting development last year with Super7 unearthing unproduced Kenner prototypes of Alien action figures from 1979. Having the reference material and original molds on hand, they had the opportunity to create new action figures based on the vintage style, called "ReAction Figures," as in, "Retro-Action." These 3¾" figures are a throwback
to the vintage Star Wars figures, and today we're looking at the Alien from this line, produced by Super7 and Funko for wide release.
The Big Chap (as this suit was called on the UK set where the first movie was filmed) is an amazing toy to behold. He stands nearly 4", slightly taller than your other 3¾" figures and the others in this line, as you'd expect. H.R. Giger's iconic design really works here - although these faux-vintage toys aren't supposed to be super detailed, the Alien sculpt looks fantastic and has all the details you expect, and more. Look at his ribs coming out of his chest, and the bumps on his arms, it's really cool. His paint, while simple, really makes all of this stand out, and he also has some glow in the dark paint sections as well.
Taking a closer look at this figure you can see how
great the design is, striking the perfect balance between the kind of amazing detail we get out of toys now and the very basic sculpts from vintage figures. And the Big Chap here has a bonus - although he doesn't have any real accessories, the clear dome on the top of his head here is removable, allowing a better look at the detail (including the glow in the dark sections), and to work his action feature. Now, I know most adult collectors aren't
really fond of action features, at least ones that aren't just decorative, but the feature on the ReAction Alien is really cool: under the dome top is a little lever which you can slide forward and backwards so his phallic second jaw can slide forward out of his mouth. This isn't springloaded or anything, so you can leave it posed if you want, and it looks very cool.
The Big Chap has the same five points of articulation shared with the other Alien ReAction figures: shoulders, legs and neck, with a bonus joint here - his tail. I really like the way his tail is curled up, too. Being created from the vintage design I wasn't expecting a super-articulated toy, but there is one place I would have liked to have seen movement: his wrists. Preposed as they are is fine, as if he's to attack with his claws, but it unfortunately makes me think of him banging out a tune on the piano. Fancy little man!
The packaging for the ReAction Aliens
is a terrific throwback to those vintage Star Wars figures, with a nicely detailed cardback featuring photos from the film as well as very cool artwork. The back features photos of all five from this series as well as instructions for this guy's action feature. My fav part of this excellent packaging is how the "ReAction" logo looks identical for the original Kenner logo, an awesome little touch.
What's really great about this figure is having a 3¾"-scale Alien to mix with Star Wars figures, and he's in the perfect scale to take on Jedi and Han Solo, or hide in the Millennium Falcon, waiting to attack. And it's a really fun, durable toy, very playable and suitable for any kind of collector. Overall, this is a great toy and these initial releases bode really well for the future ReAction toys we'll be seeing soon. Highly recommended!
-- 10/21/14
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