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So far, Raven Spawn has proven one of my favourite figures of this year. From McFarlane Toys' popular "Spawn" line, Raven is a new interpretation of the central character, included with five other interpretations in the Alternate Realities series. Even those who disliked the Spawn line would find something to like here, in either the large, demonic Alien Spawn, or the zombified Pirate Spawn, or the death knight himself who I'm reviewing today, Raven Spawn.
Raven is a verson of Spawn from the recent-ish comic HellSpawn - although his overall look is something
of a Deadite in armour, he still has the Spawn insignia and bright green eyes, present in all of the Spawn characters. His size was complained about by some fans, as he looks a lot shorter than previous figures. This isn't a problem on his behalf, though - he's 6⅝" tall, and standing in my collection he doesn't look too short aside from up against the obviously exaggerated large figures, in which case he has a sense of individuality.
Detail on Raven Spawn is exceptional, and coming from McToys, that's amazing. Raven is decisively beautiful - his entire color scheme is composed of less than 10 colors, all dark and gloomy (aside from his penetratingly creepy, glowing green eyes, which shine out from his rotting skull) - and yet he still looks spectacular.
His skull hides behind the strange armor, an obscuring helmet piece with a crest that runs down into a cape, over his toned body which is plated
with armor and gold, as well as various adorning skulls and spikes. Of particular impressiveness, beyond the armor and spikes and gold, is Raven's well-toned ass, which is really quite impressive. I've included a picture to show it off, because it really is something. Raven hardly needs weaponry with an ass like that, I'm sure the enemy would drop at the sight of such a damned good butt. Forgetting I said this, paint application on Raven is also flawless, with no splotches or over-drip. To add to the dark image, Raven has a chain around his waist with two Tortured Souls-esque scythes hanging from it. It's a nice touch that completes the figure.
Aside from this chain and scythes, which are removable, Raven has only one accessory - his axe. This is the perfect weapon for Raven - it looks like no other axe I've ever seen, completely original. It's 7¼" long and is encrusted with skulls, gold rings, rope and other noticable details, leading up to the double-sided axe piece which looks a little scary. Raven can hold it in one hand or two, and it looks great, perfectly suiting the undead warrior. The paint scheme also matches his armor, which is impressive - it's a great piece.
Raven's articulation isn't quite as impressive as the sculpt and detail -
weighing in with 14 points of articulation, Raven has the joints, but his armor gets in the way of really using it. His skull, for example, has a neck joint, but it isn't poseable due to his helmet; his shoulders, also swivel-jointed, don't move a great deal due to the extended spiked cape armor. Although this doesn't fully deplete
Raven's poseability - with his axe, he has a few good poses and attack stances, and can still be played with suitably, which is a grand thing - Raven is the perfect enemy for He-Man, Ash, or any zombie-related toys you can think of. As an undead warrior, sky's the limit with his play value!
Overall, Raven Spawn is a grandiose figure, a worthy addition to any demonic (or otherwise) figure collection. Everything about him rocks, aside from the slightly limited articulation, but it's irrelevant really. Raven can be played with, but he's more for the collectors, as he's a beautiful display piece. A bonus with getting this figure is that he's almost a picture perfect representation of myself, The Shocka, meaning you can have your own little me sitting on your shelf! What more could you want? Much recommended!
-- 09/21/02
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