Jack Sparrow

Take it away, Michael Bolton! In the Mirrorverse, Captain Jack Sparrow's life rises and falls with the tides - blessed with incredible luck, yet burdened by numerous curses. But Stellar Magic has allowed him to turn these things to his advantage, channeling the power of his curses to help his allies and harm his foes, all in roguish defense of the Mirrorverse. It's ridiculous to think, given the benefit of perfect hindsight and the character's clearly massive importance to the company today, how Disney was once unsure about Johnny Depp's portrayal of Captain Jack Sparrow. Back then, he was too flamboyant; today, he's an icon for the company, able to be dropped into any game that needs more (non-Marvel, non-Star Wars) content as a reminder that Disney has live-action as well as cartoons. And yet the flop of The Lone Ranger proved that "Johnny Depp + weird mannerisms + Gore Verbinski" did not necessarily = huge success, so there's gotta be something special about Jack. Captain Jack may have started in live action, but the Mirrorverse art style is anything but. Like, Kingdom Hearts did its best to achieve a realistic look, but Mirrorverse almost looks like a slightly grown-up Disney Infinity. Or a cross between that and the old Disney Heroes line. It's absolutely a cartoony design, without a hint of a real person; but it speaks to just how iconic Jack Sparrow is that you'd never think this cartoon is anyone else. While Buzz Lightyear was basically just wearing extra armor, Jack's difference from the normal version is more immediately apparent. He's got a skeletal arm, presumably a full-time feature judging by the bio up above, and not simply when he's in the moonlight. The bones are just as cartoony as the rest of the sculpt, so they're not gruesome. We do have to point out that the ulna and radius bones connect to the wrist in the wrong way, crossing each other instead of lining up. A plus sign, rather than an equal sign. You probably won't notice often, though. Jack's wearing his longcoat over a shorter coat beneath, though the three belts he has strapped around his chest keep it from falling open and looking as rumpled as the "real" Jack. Maybe more than just his arm is skeletal, and he's literally holding himself together with all that? Who knows, make up your own story for him. Among all the tat sculpted hanging from him is his compass, which is a nice inclusion. Everything is a big single piece, however, which messes with his articulation. There are all the same kind of joints seen on Buzz Lightyear and other recent McFarlane toys, but a PVC sheath that runs from shoulders to shins is going to mean some joints are less than useful. Because it's bones, the right wrist is only a single hinge, not the Revoltech-style "swivel/hinge/swivel" combo the left wrist gets, but that's really the only cut corner here. Jack's jackets are blue, like the classic look, with gold trim on the outer coat and brown on the inner. His pants are a warm gray, matching the folded cuff of his sleeve and the fancy lapel/collar dealie on his big coat. There's a red and white striped sash hanging back over his shoulder, possibly meant to be the same item "real" Jack kept looped over his belt, but it's only painted on one side, leaving the interior blank. Additionally, the shoulder on the right arm is blue, like his coat, which we're going to go ahead and sayis wrong: the sculpt is striated, so the suggestion is this area is supposed to be shoulder meat, not cloth; it may not need to be red red, but it should at least be a muscly maroon or something. The figure only has one accessory. Even DST's recent Jack Sparrow, as underwhelming as it was, came with a sword (permanently attached to a hand, but still)! The bio suggests that Mirrorverse Jack is able to fire magic blasts or something, so the toy includes a translucent purple energy effect to wrap around his arm. That's why you won't notice the incorrect wrist very often, because the energy helps conceal the mistake. His left hand is shaped to hold something, but there's nothing for it. There's a variant available, "Fractured Jack Sparrow," which appears to be an evil purple clone of Jack? Suggesting the game is going to reuse its character models for both the good and evil sides of the battle. The plain one looks better as a standalone toy, though. Imagining a world in which Jack Sparrow's various curses all caught up with him is a great "what if" idea, even if you have no interest in playing the game it comes from. -- 10/13/21

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