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If there was a prize for the best look alike Green Lantern action figure, DC Direct's Guy Gardner would win the prize. This figure was released in the same wave as the Silver Age Hal Jordan. This Guy Gardner, while not being the current incarnation of the character appearing in comics, is one of the best remembered versions of the character.
Likeness
Guy Gardner has always been the Green Lantern with the attitude. The hero that wasn't all nice, decent and upstanding, like your classic DC Comics character. In the comics, during the Justice league International run, we saw a man that had tantrums, that mocked others, that was a smart ass. This figure comes with a little smirk on the face that captures exactly this aspect of the character.
Guy Gardner also had a peculiar costume. He popularized big boots a decade before everybody jumped on the bandwagon. He wore a turtle neck and a flashy 80's jacket. He sported a weird haircut that we're most likely to see on kid's head than a grown man. Again the figure displays all of this.
Sculpt
Like many new DC Direct figures, Guy Gardner is sculpted in a plain stance and not a dynamic one. This in not a problem at all. All of his proportions are right. Guy's gaze is sightly off. He looks like someone who's day dreaming. One thing that bothered me with this figure was his boots. Many artists used to draw Guy's boots as simple cylinders. In this figure, the boots are narrower at the bottom.
Another problem is the crotch. The cut with the thighs is not smooth and as well hidden as other recent DCDirect figures such as Kyle Rayner or the modern Superman. Guy's forearms look too short, because of the way his gloves are sculpted. It makes his upper arms look too long, in comparison. My last problem with Guy is narrowness of his knees. They should be larger.
Paint
Guy's paint job is where the figure loses marks. DC Direct favours using the one base colour. This looks bad on figures with so much sculpting details such as Guy Gardner. When looking at Guy's gloves, they are painted white with no toning. If they had inked the rectangles' contours in his gloves with black lines, it would have made them stand out more.
They should also have painted Guy's shaven head with a lighter colour, like in the comics. Guy's Green Lantern logo has the same problem the Silver Age Hal Jordan figure had. It looks like it can be erased easily. Finally, the paint job is not even. Smudges and spills in the paint application are plentiful.
Scale
Guy Gardner's scale matches the Silver Age Hal Jordan's very well. However, just like the Jordan, his face seems a bit larger than past figures such as Alan Scott, the Huntress, or Barry Allen. However, Guy matches Kyle Rayner, the modern Superman, Metamorpho and John Stewart look good next to him. Blue Beetle looks a little bit smaller than Guy's scales, but if you imagine him as a smaller guy, it works.
Standing upright
Thanks to his large boots, Guy is very stable. Nonetheless, with his thin knees, I foresee trouble times ahead this summer. Guy's thighs and legs are also thinner than his upper body. His arms and the lantern he carries also weight a bit. Let's hope his big boots will be sturdy enough.
Articulation
Guy's articulations are great. He has the standard eleven points of articulations that consists of neck, shoulders, elbows, forearms, hips and knees. His shoulders are ball-jointed and their motion is good. Guy's forearms can also rotate where the gloves start. This is always a good thing with a Green Lantern figure. Something that would have made the articulations cooler would have been waist rotation.
Plastic
The plastic used on Guy, is the new heavier brand. Of note many recent DC Direct figures have coatings on top of the plastic that we can rub off easily. The coat doesn't make the figure shine like the old ones. It looks good, but it's not durable.
Props
Obviously, Guy comes with a Green Lantern ring and a power battery. He has the standard battery and rings. Those two props are staples of every Green Lantern figure now. I don't mind them, especially the lanterns. The rings, I don't know what to do with anymore. I' m considering selling them off!
Packaging
Guy Gardner came in the new resalable packaging offered by DC Direct. While useful for displays and storing opened figures, it's also a drag on the environment by creating too much pollution. The packaging used the same gradient pattern used by DC Direct in the last few years. The back features related figures and a short bio on Guy.
Cost
Guy costs the same thing as most single DC Direct figures. That is to say, he costs too much. Again, DC Direct should really work hard on enforcing one price on all its figures. The variations are too random and not customer friendly.
Availability
Expect this figure to sell out very fast and to be available only on Ebay and the secondary market. Guy Gardner is a very popular character who starred in Green Lantern and the Justice League for years. Although killed in Our Worlds at War, he returned to life. Though he doesn't look much the same, Guy has a following.
If he should show up in the upcoming Formerly Known as Justice League series by Giffen, Dematteis and McGuire, many people will hunt him down. Guy is a solid character from one of the most popular DC family, the Green Lantern. Many people like his refreshing bad boy's attitude. Since the figure is also a winner, I would not waste time before picking it up. Buy it now, or forever regret it.
Update February 6 2005:
This figure has sold out from Diamond Comics, the exclusive distributor of this action figure.
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