Stel

Despite all evidence to the contrary, it turns out Cybertron isn't in the Marvel Universe after all, it's in DC's. The planet Grenda is one of the most unique phenomenon in Sector 3009 as the world and all of its inhabitants are all robotic in nature. Although its origins are unknown, the will of its people are not. The mechanical denizens of this world are capable of experiencing all the facets of the emotional spectrum. It was Stel's ability to shine brightly with the power of will that made the Guardians of the Universe pick him as the protector of his sector. Living robots with emotions? Sounds familiar. Stel is the Build-A-Figure for Green Lantern Classics Series 2, and as is the usual style, comes in seven pieces with six figures: arms, torso, legs, then the head and crotch together. Of course, if you buy two of each of the "head swapping" Lanterns, you'll end up with four legs. Once assembled, Stel stands a daunting 9½" tall. Some fans have complained that he's too big, but they're talking out their cracks. Official sources list him at 9'6", which means this is spot-on. And hey, he weighs 60 tons, which is as much as 12 pickup trucks - you think he's supposed to be small? He has a balljointed head, swivel/hinge shoulders, swivel biceps, hinged elbows, swivel/hinge wrists, hinged torso, swivel waist, swivel/hinge hips, swivel thighs, hinged knees, swivel shins and hinged rocker ankles. The joints all move easily - perhaps too easily in the case of the hips, which, without a traditional butt to bump up against, tend to swing more than you'd expect. When you first get Stel assembled, the proportions look weird. His legs seem too long for his body, but it's just a side effect of his robotic nature: the skinny waist and the oversized boots and hips combine to make him look bottom-heavy - like a Rescue Heroes figure or something. If you actually compare the proportions, though, you'll find he's fine. Most of the figure's detail is sculpted on, and he looks quite impressive. There are green ports on the arms and legs that are painted to look like they're glowing with energy, and rather than just having limbs that look like metal muscles or something, he's got heavy-duty pistons sculpted onto his legs and trunk to suggest how he'd move. The armor on his chest and shoulders is a separate piece, glued into place on the chest and back in order to give him a feeling of depth. The armor on mine was glued in crooked, however, and consequently the black paint app on the GL symbol in his chest was misaligned. I pried the glue loose, straightened the armor and repainted the logo myself. It was annoying, but not difficult. The green chosen for this figure is closer to the blue end of the spectrum than most GL uniforms are, but the pattern of it and the black manages to capture the feel of the costume nonetheless - he's even got silver on his arms and hands to suggest the GLs' white gloves! His head looks like a cross between a Transformer and a Zaku from Gundam, rather than the "coffee can with eyes" he had when he first appeared. Actually, Stel may have the most varied looks of any Green Lantern over the years. As a living computer, he's very good at calculating the odds of any situation - but as a risk-taker, he then tries to beat those odds. The result is that he gets beat up a lot, and much of his body gets destroyed, but since he's not technically "alive," he can just patch the gaps (and missing limbs) using his ring energy until he can have some real repairs. This figure uses one of his more recent designs, and as such is a great-looking, fun addition to your Green Lantern Corps. Sodam Yat | Star Sapphire | G'Hu | B'Dg | Dex-Starr Despotellis | NautKeLoi & Medphyll | Skallox & Nite-Lik -- 07/22/11

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