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Few companies know how to stick it to fans like Mattel.
After The Dark Knight toyline had left shelves, Mattel released a few figures as part of their Batman Legacy line - you know, the same line
that gave us Catman and the Arkham City toys. Anyway, they released a movie-based James Gordon, but the only way to get him was in a two-pack with a straight re-release of Survival Suit Bruce Wayne, a figure that was already plentiful and most fans had purchased in order to get a Bruce Wayne head. Oh yeah, yeah, that's great. Don't put Lt. Gordon in a two-pack with Police Officer Joker or anything. No, who would want that awesome pairing, you utter dicks?
But hey, now we're on to The Dark Knight Rises, and a whole new set of Movie Masters. A whole new chance to make things right - or, if you're Mattel, a whole new chance to dick us over. On the plus side, they did have the wherewithal to bring this rare mold back out, to get it into the hands of fans who missed it (or just didn't want to pay double price) last time. And for that we commend them. But how did they release that figure? As a Walmart exclusive. So while he may have cost the right amount this time, he was 200% harder to find.
The likeness on the figure is... well, there's no point in saying it's "good," because when humans look at a face, they reduce it to identifiable elements. Commissioner Gordon has glasses and a mustache, so as long as the toy copies those, he's going to look fine. The last figure had cloudy lenses for his spectacles; this time they're a bit clearer.
Beneath his overcoat (shared only with the other James Gordon), this figure uses the same "suit" body as so many other
Movie Masters. Because no one was sick and tired of seeing that sculpt two years ago. He's just as pigeon-toed as the rest (note to toy sculptors: human feet point slightly outward, not straight ahead), but at least the forearms are unique. In order to make these look like the arms of a coat, there are large, buttoned straps near the wrists. His actual suit jacket is just barely visible beneath the raincoat - they're molded as one. The collar is folded over on the left side, like it's been flipped over by a stiff breeze.
The Dark Knight Rises Movie Masters actually give us toys from all three movies, and this one is based on the middle of the trilogy. Specifically, it's based on the scene at the end of the film (and the middle of all the trailers) where Jimmy smashes the batsignal. There are several ways to tell this, but the first one we're concerned with is the color. The scene in question took place in the middle of a rain storm, so the colors are darker to suggest how wet his clothes are. While the previous figure was in tones of tan and gray, this one is blue and black. Instead of a striped necktie, his has tiny polka dots.
The second thing identifying this figure as hailing from The Dark Knight is the fact that he comes with an axe. yes, he's also got the same gun as the last figure, but he didn't use one in that scene - why not give it to John Blake or Two-Face or one of the other characters who should have come with guns but didn't, thanks to Mattel's constant dumbassery? The axe is a nice piece, with pits and scratches on the head. He can hold the handle easily, and looks great smashing the flood light. And hey, speaking of which:
Despite being an exclusive, James Gordon still comes with a piece of the BAF Batsignal. It's not an integral piece, since that would be evil even by Mattel standards; rather, it's a variant. He gets a "broken" front piece, replacing the lens Blake came with. The glass is cracked and shattered, and the bat symbol is a separate piece that can lay down inside the light. Fortunately, it looks like you'll be able to just swap out the fronts whenever you want - you don't need to buy doubles to build two batsignals.
Walmart got the Dark Knight Rises Movie Masters later than the other stores all did - and didn't put James Gordon out until even later than that. So it was a long time before this exclusive showed up, and then he sold out quickly. The figure is decent, and we give Mattel credit for changing him enough that it doesn't feel like a double dip.
-- 02/07/13
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