Impromptu Review: “Batman: The Brave and the Bold” Happy Meal Toys
In what is possibly my saddest post thus far, I’m going to walk you through the brilliance that is the latest Batman offering from McDonald’s: their second wave of Batman: The Brave and the Bold toys. They’ve offered figures before, but this is significant because each set comes with three figures. That’s three toys and a case of juvenile diabetes for $4. Amazing.
A little background on the subject matter: this Batman show is awesome. It’s incredibly silly, and not at all the Batman that you’d think I would enjoy, but man is it fun. It mixes Golden and Silver Age second string heroes with modern interpretations of others who team up with Batman to fight evil. Like ghost pirate ships. Also, this happened.
It’s a goofy show, but with tongue planted so firmly in cheek it threatens to come out the other side.
…..
That was gross.
Anyhoo, why I’m doing this review: I got the last two sets today. By ordering them on Amazon.com. Because I never got them at McDonald’s. Like I said, sad.
So, here’s Jay’s Impromptu Review of Some Happy Meal Toy
First things first, this promotion was quite a deal. Like I said before, you got three figures in one package. They’re only about an inch and a half high, but with eight sets, that’s twenty-four toys in this line. That’s insane. Even more insane? Some of the characters they included, but I’ll get to that.
SET ONE:
A punching Batman... well, that's redundant, isn't it?
Here we have, as you can see, “punching Batman,” the Penguin, and the Batmobile. The best figure here is probably the Batmobile, because the Batmobile freaking rocks. In the set I have, the paint application for each of the figures is pretty good, although Bats’ left eye looks a little squinty. I like the paint job on the Penguin, if only because he has a monocle in his right eye. That’s a classy breed of criminal, my friends.
SET TWO:
Did nobody tell Harvey that his brown and purple suit kind of clashes?
This set is probably the least desirable character-wise, which is understandable: a C-list villain in Grundy, a C-list hero in Firestorm, and Two-Face, while admittedly A-list, isn’t exactly the most interesting character visually. However, each figure is really well done: Grundy has a dapper mobster look going, Firestorm is actually transparent red plastic to give him a more “glowing” look, and Two-Face is nicely detailed. He even has a coin in his right hand, which old D.A. Dent is never without.
SET THREE:
"Batman, Robin and Gorilla"? Don't you tell me you wouldn't watch the crap out of that.
One of my personal favorites, figure-wise. I will always have a soft spot for Robin (and a long-box full of his solo series issues), and even in his Pre-Crisis Earth-2 outfit it’s still a nice figure. This is my favorite Batman figure in the set, even if the color scheme is nowhere to be seen in the show. The pose is just really dynamic and is appropriately menacing. As for Grodd… it’s a talking monkey that wants to take over the world. With that, I move on to…
SET FOUR:
Nothing like a tiny figure of the embodiment of God's vengeance included with your burger...
Here’s where we get obscure. I doubt most of you have never even heard of either of the characters, have you? That’s fine, because that’s precisely why this show exists: to showcase lesser-known characters alongside the Dark Knight. Like Firestorm, Gentleman Ghost (man, that’s a terrific name) is made of transparent plastic, and also has a top hat. The Spectre is a bit dull in comparison, but don’t say that to his upraised fist. Haunted Coach is a ghost car with skulls for hubcaps and glowering eyes for headlights. I’ll let that sink in.
SET FIVE:
I... just can't get over a villain named "Sportsmaster."
Here, we have “karate chop Batman,” which is as delightful as you’d want it to be, the Flash and Sportsmaster. Batman is okay, even though the gray Batsymbol looks a little odd. Flash is… bent weird, and also ripped to the extreme, but still: Happy Meal Flash. Right on. Sportsmaster is as bizarre as you’d think, but he has a molded on whistle, so it’s all good. Also, he’s voiced by Biff Tannen.
SET SIX:
I want to know where I can get a car with a hood that looks like my face.
This set has another one of my favorite figures: Bat Mite. I never, ever, ever thought that I’d see a Bat Mite figure of any kind, let alone in a Happy Meal. He makes this set, even with a pretty solid Joker figure and a car that… has the Joker’s face on it. Honestly, it’s my least favorite of the vehicles, but still: BAT MITE!
SET SEVEN:
The Riddler looks good, and "Batarang Action Batman" is pretty cool if a little poorly painted. I'm saying this here because it pales compared to the star of the set.
PLASTIC MAN AS A CAR.
I’m going to go as far as saying that we will never see a single greater toy in the history of man. We should be sending this into space for aliens to find. IT’S PLASTIC MAN AS A CAR. This was one of the sets that I didn’t originally pick up, and you have no idea how much I needed that one figure. Because it’s PLASTI [mercifully passes out]
SET EIGHT:
Ah yes, Black Manta. Who is purple. Enh.
Let me first say that this version of Aquaman is the greatest interpretation of the character ever. Watch the show to see why. The final set itself is pretty solid: good sculpts and paint jobs on Aquaman and Black Manta, and Batman Robot is a nice solid figure, but none of them are PLASTIC M okay, I’ll stop.
OVERALL:
I don’t know why I bought all of these. I really don’t. If it makes you feel better, I only ate, like, one Happy Meal and just bought the rest by themselves. Which doesn’t make it better, come to think of it…
But seriously, they’re great little figures, even if they have zero points of articulation, and the well-known characters are balanced nicely with more fan-favorite, obscure characters.
My favorites in the line are Bat Mite, black suit Batman, Gentleman Ghost, and, yes, Plastic Man. As a car.
I hope you enjoyed this Imromptu Review. I’m going to rearrange these on my comic book shelf, and I’ll leave you with this video of Aquaman:
(Note: I meant to take the pictures myself, but my phone’s camera stinks, so thanks to Super Punch for the images.)
Impromptu Review: “Batman: The Brave and the Bold” Happy Meal Toys
In what is possibly my saddest post thus far, I’m going to walk you through the brilliance that is the latest Batman offering from McDonald’s: their second wave of Batman: The Brave and the Bold toys. They’ve offered figures before, but this is significant because each set comes with three figures. That’s three toys and a case of juvenile diabetes for $4. Amazing.
A little background on the subject matter: this Batman show is awesome. It’s incredibly silly, and not at all the Batman that you’d think I would enjoy, but man is it fun. It mixes Golden and Silver Age second string heroes with modern interpretations of others who team up with Batman to fight evil. Like ghost pirate ships. Also, this happened.
It’s a goofy show, but with tongue planted so firmly in cheek it threatens to come out the other side.
…..
That was gross.
Anyhoo, why I’m doing this review: I got the last two sets today. By ordering them on Amazon.com. Because I never got them at McDonald’s. Like I said, sad.
So, here’s Jay’s Impromptu Review of Some Happy Meal Toy
First things first, this promotion was quite a deal. Like I said before, you got three figures in one package. They’re only about an inch and a half high, but with eight sets, that’s twenty-four toys in this line. That’s insane. Even more insane? Some of the characters they included, but I’ll get to that.
SET ONE:
A punching Batman... well, that's redundant, isn't it?
Here we have, as you can see, “punching Batman,” the Penguin, and the Batmobile. The best figure here is probably the Batmobile, because the Batmobile freaking rocks. In the set I have, the paint application for each of the figures is pretty good, although Bats’ left eye looks a little squinty. I like the paint job on the Penguin, if only because he has a monocle in his right eye. That’s a classy breed of criminal, my friends.
SET TWO:
Did nobody tell Harvey that his brown and purple suit kind of clashes?
This set is probably the least desirable character-wise, which is understandable: a C-list villain in Grundy, a C-list hero in Firestorm, and Two-Face, while admittedly A-list, isn’t exactly the most interesting character visually. However, each figure is really well done: Grundy has a dapper mobster look going, Firestorm is actually transparent red plastic to give him a more “glowing” look, and Two-Face is nicely detailed. He even has a coin in his right hand, which old D.A. Dent is never without.
SET THREE:
"Batman, Robin and Gorilla"? Don't you tell me you wouldn't watch the crap out of that.
One of my personal favorites, figure-wise. I will always have a soft spot for Robin (and a long-box full of his solo series issues), and even in his Pre-Crisis Earth-2 outfit it’s still a nice figure. This is my favorite Batman figure in the set, even if the color scheme is nowhere to be seen in the show. The pose is just really dynamic and is appropriately menacing. As for Grodd… it’s a talking monkey that wants to take over the world. With that, I move on to…
SET FOUR:
Nothing like a tiny figure of the embodiment of God's vengeance included with your burger...
Here’s where we get obscure. I doubt most of you have never even heard of either of the characters, have you? That’s fine, because that’s precisely why this show exists: to showcase lesser-known characters alongside the Dark Knight. Like Firestorm, Gentleman Ghost (man, that’s a terrific name) is made of transparent plastic, and also has a top hat. The Spectre is a bit dull in comparison, but don’t say that to his upraised fist. Haunted Coach is a ghost car with skulls for hubcaps and glowering eyes for headlights. I’ll let that sink in.
SET FIVE:
I... just can't get over a villain named "Sportsmaster."
Here, we have “karate chop Batman,” which is as delightful as you’d want it to be, the Flash and Sportsmaster. Batman is okay, even though the gray Batsymbol looks a little odd. Flash is… bent weird, and also ripped to the extreme, but still: Happy Meal Flash. Right on. Sportsmaster is as bizarre as you’d think, but he has a molded on whistle, so it’s all good. Also, he’s voiced by Biff Tannen.
SET SIX:
I want to know where I can get a car with a hood that looks like my face.
This set has another one of my favorite figures: Bat Mite. I never, ever, ever thought that I’d see a Bat Mite figure of any kind, let alone in a Happy Meal. He makes this set, even with a pretty solid Joker figure and a car that… has the Joker’s face on it. Honestly, it’s my least favorite of the vehicles, but still: BAT MITE!
SET SEVEN:
The Riddler looks good, and "Batarang Action Batman" is pretty cool if a little poorly painted. I'm saying this here because it pales compared to the star of the set.
PLASTIC MAN AS A CAR.
I’m going to go as far as saying that we will never see a single greater toy in the history of man. We should be sending this into space for aliens to find. IT’S PLASTIC MAN AS A CAR. This was one of the sets that I didn’t originally pick up, and you have no idea how much I needed that one figure. Because it’s PLASTI [mercifully passes out]
SET EIGHT:
Ah yes, Black Manta. Who is purple. Enh.
Let me first say that this version of Aquaman is the greatest interpretation of the character ever. Watch the show to see why. The final set itself is pretty solid: good sculpts and paint jobs on Aquaman and Black Manta, and Batman Robot is a nice solid figure, but none of them are PLASTIC M okay, I’ll stop.
OVERALL:
I don’t know why I bought all of these. I really don’t. If it makes you feel better, I only ate, like, one Happy Meal and just bought the rest by themselves. Which doesn’t make it better, come to think of it…
But seriously, they’re great little figures, even if they have zero points of articulation, and the well-known characters are balanced nicely with more fan-favorite, obscure characters.
My favorites in the line are Bat Mite, black suit Batman, Gentleman Ghost, and, yes, Plastic Man. As a car.
I hope you enjoyed this Imromptu Review. I’m going to rearrange these on my comic book shelf, and I’ll leave you with this video of Aquaman:
(Note: I meant to take the pictures myself, but my phone’s camera stinks, so thanks to Super Punch for the images.)
Like this:
~ by jayaws on August 12, 2011.
Posted in Analysis, Batman, Commentary, Lists