When crime haunts the night, a silent crusader carries the torch of justice. Those with evil hearts beware, for out of the darkness comes The Gray Ghost!
The star character of the TV show of the same name, the Gray Ghost was a huge hero and influence in Bruce Wayne's childhood;
he often watched the show with his father before Thomas's tragic passing.
In a series full of excellent episodes, "Beware the Gray Ghost" is one of the best BtAS ever offered. Heck, it's one of the best Batman stories ever told, period! It wonderfully both honors the history of Batman and adds new material to it: Bruce Wayne grew up watching a show about a masked vigilante who hunted criminals from the rooftops and had a secret headquarters lair, thus giving his heroic fursona a direct in-universe inspiration. Plus, by casting Adam West as actor Simon Trent, the creators both earned his implicit blessing for the then-modern incarnation of Batman (Dini and Timm have gone on record saying they wouldn't have made the episode if West didn't want to voice the character), and offered him a slice of redemption: he wasn't playing a hammy buffoon, he got to show that he really was an actor, delivering a pathos and subtlety his career did not often allow him to display.
The Gray Ghost (the character) was based on pulp staples like The Shadow and The Spider. To that end, he wears a fedora and a pair of goggles to disguise his true identity (somewhat, at least). The head is very true to what we saw in the cartoon, with a big scowl and deep lines around his mouth. The only thing missing is the hair poking out the back of his mask - Simon's old, but he's not bald.
But speaking of old, we're gotta give Simon props for keeping it tight! I don't know what the workout routine of a man in his mid-60s is (for the purposes of this statement, we're assuming the timelines between
Simon Trent and Adam West are roughly similar: play the character when he's almost 40, have this adventure with Batman approximately 25 years later), but the fact that he can still fit into his suit from back then is impressive. It probably helps that he can't afford both rent and food. Since DC Direct credited its sculptors when this figure was first released as #42 in its line, we know that Tony Cipriano did the work, back before he was one of NECA's go-to guys for TMNT stuff. The Ghost wears a fedora, a dark cape, a jacket with a button-up front like The Rocketeer, dark gloves, plain trousers, and black shoes. And like we said, his identity is concealed only by a pair of goggles - you know, at least The Shadow wore a scarf.
2019 DC Direct didn't have great articulation, but it's certainly better than some of their earlier stuff. For one thing, there's a waist, even if the oblong nature of the torso and the length of his jacket mean it can't do much. Beyond that, we get swivel/hinge ankles, double-hinged knees, swivel thighs, balljointed hips, swivel/hinge wrists, swivel/hinge elbows, swivel/hinge shoulders, and a swivel/hinge neck. The hips and neck in particular are surprises, since that's not how most of the BtAS figures worked - remember, this was the era of H-hips, so DCD going this direction was an improvement.
With the end in sight, Todd seems to have finally dropped the "cel shaded" paint from these figures. Thank goodness! I wouldn't have not bought this figure if it had shadows painted on it - I really have been waiting six years for this toy - but getting the plain gray is much better. This is a terrific stand-in for anyone who didn't get the original DC Direct release.
Even the accessories are the same. He never used a gun in the episode, but the poster for his TV show showed him holding one as he loomed over the city, so the toy has one as well. Then there's the remote control car with a camera on top, a copy of the Gray Ghost TV show on whatever kind of home media the world of Batman the Animated Series has, and an alternate right hand holding a pen so he can sign it.
This is one of the series that has a Build-A-Figure, like Condiment King or Lock-Up. This time the BAF is Jonah Hex, and Gray Ghost includes his chest and coat. While I'd love to get an animated Jonah Hex figure, I already have Ra's al Ghul, I just got a Killer Croc, and I don't need another Batman, so this is the only piece I'm going to get. Unless somebody wants to hook me up with the rest.
DC Direct released their Gray Ghost near the end of their run, when "things being released" wasn't exactly a reliable event. Being such a popular character, the price on the secondary market shot way up and stayed there, so I never had a chance to pick him up. This is the one Batman the Animated Series figure I most wanted McFarlane Toys to re-release before they lose the DC license next year, and Todd got it in right under the wire!
-- 11/05/25
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