Gipsy Danger (18 inch)
Review by JoshB
We've all seen the previous reviews of NECA's Pacific Rim figures and we all know the problems. However, NECA redeems themselves in a big way with the 18-inch Gipsy Danger.
The toy comes packaged in a large cardboard box with a big clear window. The box is free of extraneous decoration and relies on the toy to sell itself. It would achieve that goal if you could ever find one at retail.
The toy is secured with few twist ties, and the only accessories are the arm blades. Be careful to not snap the blades when removing them.
As you can see, the toy is big. It feels bigger than it's 18" description. Below it is compared to the standard 6" Gipsy Danger.
And for a more common scale, here he is with Wraith Pheyden.
The detail at this scale is fantastic, and really showcases the work that NECA can do when they put their minds to it. The small paint applications and tampo printing really bring a nice level of detail. The head is on a ball joint but is limited in movement by the design. The visor is clear plastic with a paper insert inside - an odd choice but it doesn't look to bad. There's a bright white LED in the head above the visor that we'll show shortly. The chest contains the second light as the power plant illuminates. At this scale you can see the nose cone art on the chest.
Batteries are installed, and lights are activated by a button on the back.
The chest is on a ball joint that is stiff enough to hold subtle poses. The hips are solid, blocky joints with great detents. the legs swivel forward and back, side to side.
Gipsy Danger has decent shoulder articulation with a ball and hinge joint but again, it's limited by the design of the character.
There's a limited hinge joint at the elbow, and a ball joint for the wrist. There are no variant hands.
The shoulder pads are weakly glued in and can pop off easily. They fit back in fine, and some superglue will get them to stick better.
On the back there is phenomenal detail with the exposed engine bits, and as an added bonus you get articulated exhaust flaps.
No variant hands. No bicep swivel. No rocker ankes. But we got those exhaust flaps. Just saying.
From the back the whole figure looks great. The metallic details on the legs look like metal.
The ankles are on a simple ball joint with that odd heel hinge again.
Overall articulation is good, but not very dynamic.
Included are the two swords that are supposed to fit into slots in Gipsy Danger's forearms.
Be VERY CAREFUL with these. Excessive force will cause them to snap. I needed to trim away paint and plastic around the tabs to get mine to fit into the slots in the arms.
Once you get them in, they look great.
I had some fun with the CM's Corporation Patlabor trading figures that are in scale with the Brave Gokin Ingram toys. they seem just a bit big for the Jager but still cool looking.
And seeing as how we've got a ton of snow on the ground, it made sense to bring the toy outside. Enjoy the toy porn.
Overall it's a marked improvement over the smaller figures. Sure, there's a few QC issues and questionable design choices, but the large size and great paint make it worthwhile.
Comments
9 comments postedNice review. I have high hopes for Play Imaginative. I'm patient there is not a thing NECA could do to make me send good money their way.
I don't know why I laughed so hard at this. I think it was the toy porn reference followed by Gipsy Danger on his hands and knees... Yeah, I'm pretty sure that's it.
What's with NECA's distribution lately? Superman and lone ranger clogs comic shops but I never saw Iron Man or Gypsy at ANY store. I know Gypsy's getting a second run due to demand but it just seems like they're producing the same amount of each 18" figure no matter who or what it is. And NECA- PLEASE reissue the alien 18 inch figure at the $100 price point this year with new paint. This is a no-brainer.
Yeah. NECA's distribution is mostly where it sells the best, which is not in South Georgia.
Toys R Us showed this figure for sale ahead of Black Friday, but almost immediately it disappeared from their website by the time it took for me to go to the local store. All they had of NECA was the Prometheus two-pack of the Engineer and Squidbaby and figures from other movies that nobody liked.
I think NECA knows they've got a golden apple with this figure, which is why it's sold out until February even through online stores.
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Great review Josh! and the snowblind photos only make this Gipsy even more epic!
Love the pictures of Gipsy in the snow!
And the (not so) little Patlabor crew men too! I guess to find any comparable figurines in scale, they would have to be the size of an ant.....
I agree that it can use some additional articulation in the biceps, ankles even thighs.... huh, and didn't catch that it was paper behind the visor display. And I'm just not a fan of PVC... in this case it gives Gipsy some nice heft but I still would have preferred good ol' ABS plastic.... imagine sturdy ABS panelings covering up ABS gears and joints.
But overall I'm very pleased with this one... and at the $85-$130 price, you're probably not going to find a better toy of the character. Who knows how much Play Imaginative's version will cost and if it'll be any good (have they even released their Iron Man fig yet?). Sure a company like 3A would absolutely own the Pacific Rim bots but that would constitute the highest of the high end and Bandai would do a great job too (SOC Gipsy Danger?) but I give NECA props for not blowing it on this one.
I got one, but haven't taken it out of the box yet due to lack of display space. I have to say that the lack of articulated fingers (like the 18 inch Spiderman 2 figure), was a big let down for me. Other than that, this figure is pretty cool!
Great pictures Josh!
}D
Gotta add to the snow pic love, nice job!
Love the review Josh
I have to say, that design looks amazing in that scale and it looks like Neca has outdone themselves in terms of detail here. Seems like it's mostly an upscale of their smaller version, at least in terms of mobility, but then again I was fairly pleased with the regular lineup anyway. I know they've received some harsh criticism, but honestly I've found a lot of enjoyment from their PR line, and I'd love to add this one to that lineup.
Hell, it looks nice enough that I might even feel comfortable sticking it with the more upscale offerings from Bandai and Yamato for that matter.