Comparing Mattel's DC Multiverse line to Mcfarlane's part 4

As Mcfarlane keeps pumping out figures, I've now got eight more examples I want to go over where I compare figures based on designs that Mcfarlane and Mattel have both tried their hands at. The two companies have had such a drastic difference in approaches to making these action figures, and I've had quite a bit of fun looking at the old and holding it up against the new and seeing how they fare against one another. I've been open about saying I think the DC line is in better hands now, but that isn't to say that Mattel's run with the license wasn't without merit and these comparisons give me a chance to look back on what they've done as well. So in this edition we will be comparison figures for three Batman, a Superman, a Flash, a Wonder Woman, a Reverse Flash, and a Swamp Thing!

Batman (Rebirth Era)

Mcfarlane had kind of done a Rebirth Batman figure with their Dark Knights Metal Batman; however, the suit was so stylized to fit that storyline that I didn't want to compare it. Now that Mcfarlane is giving us a more vanilla-style Rebirth era Batman I think it is fitting to compare Mcfarlane and Mattel's attempts! The first thought while looking at Mattel's rendition is "stiff" and the figure contains the same old single jointed articulation routines I don't want to keep talking about. The entire silhouette and sculpted look of Mcfarlane's figure looks more like a natural Batman action figure, complete with great articulation, a much more accurately painted belt piece, and in general looks like a better translation of what we see on the page. 

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Superman (The Dark Knight Returns)

I will go right off the bat and say that I like that Mattel painted the belt buckles on their Superman, and in terms of headsculpt I think the Mattel one gets it a little closer to what we all think of Superman looking like in the comic book itself. I will turn around though and establish that I think the burly, stacked sculpt for Mcfarlane's Superman matches up a lot better to the source art against the more jacked, ripped larger muscular body Mattel utilized. Mcfarlane does fall back to the single jointed arms with this figure; however, I think they look a lot prettier and natural than Mattel's usage, and as always I appreciate the added articulation Mcfarlane has been giving the figures to match today's standards. 

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Batman (The Dark Knight Returns)

I won't be using Mattel's DC Multiverse Dark Knight Returns Batman for this comparison as that figure decided to go with the blue coloration for Batman's suit, so instead their earlier DC Unlimited line sports a much better comparison to make between these two designs. Hands down, I think Mcfarlane takes it and with this figure they've also made one of their best. This Batman looks straight out of Frank Miller's comic and depicts the stockier, older Batman with fantastic sculpting that accentuates all the wrinkles in the costume! Meanwhile, Mattel decided to use a purely muscular body for their Dark Knight Returns Batman which isn't accurate at all.

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Speed Force Flash (Justice League) 

To be entirely fair, I don't think either of these figures really pulled off their effects well. Mcfarlane giving the back of their Flash entirely blue translucent plastic is pretty neat and does carry a really nice effect, though seeing it envelope more of the figure would've really done the job. Alternatively, Mattel's Speed Force Flash is entirely translucent plastic but doesn't carry the blue hue seen in the movie and Mcfarlane's figure leaving it looking more like a plainly transparent Flash. Putting both of these figures together and giving Flash a blue translucent hue over most of the figure would have been the perfect way to depict his Speed Force connection. As for the base figures themselves I've already gone over my comparisons for them, and this time around Mcfarlane still neglected to paint the silver linework running through Barry's suit. The effects are much nicer than Mattel's though, and both the extra headsculpt and stand that Mattel's version comes with doesn't offer much.

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Batman - Tactical Suit (Justice League)

Mattel's version of this suit had a lot of sculpting detailing going for it, I will admit. but the articulation on the figure really brings it down and in this case all the added sculpt work in some places even hinders the figure's posability further! Mcfarlane's doesn't run into that issue, with the articulation being as top notch as ever along with the crisp, finer sculpting details and armoring. I do appreciate that Mattel added more of the gold paintwork throughout Batman's suit, though at rest the legs were sculpted in a way so that his feet are angled outward when the sculpt is finally lined up-giving Batman a kind of penguin-esque stance. The texturing on Mcfarlane's cape for this Batman is also so nice and makes it truly look like the fabric from the film, while Mattel's cloth cape is a very toy-like cloth.

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Wonder Woman (DCEU)

Aside from the CW Arrow figure this was Mcfarlane's first foray into the live action universe, specifically the bug budget movie universe that has been building. Wonder Woman 1984 was releasing around the time which is primarily why we received this Wonder Woman figure, and it's one of the first big comparisons I had when looking back at what Mattel gave us. Just like Superman, Mattel took the first Gal Gadot mold they had from Batman v Superman and continuously released it without many major updates. Even the first time the figure was released it was long outdated, with poor articulation, awkward sculpting cuts, and unrecognizable face sculpts. Mcfarlane's had a hard time nailing unobscured facesculpts; however, the rest of this figure is a major upgrade when compared to what came before. Due to its "1984" source material there is no holster for her sword; however, aside from that there is no difference in the costumes which Mcfarlane's sculpting and articulation really shines on. 

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Reverse Flash

In keeping with traditional Reverse Flash action figure ways, both of these figures are primarily just repaints of the preexisting Flash molds. That means I will approach these two much the same way as I did the Speed Force Flash as I've covered both of these molds already. Mcfarlane's articulation allows the figure to get into much more natural running stances, not to mention the skinnier body mold made for Flash/Reverse Flash really suits them while Mattel's shared the same body buck as nearly every other figure in the line, meaning their Reverse Flash was the same size as Superman which is not right. In terms of the new pieces to make this figure into Reverse Flash, the sculpted lightning bolt insignia and forearm bolts are all far superior to the painted on versions, and while both head sculpts work for Reverse Flash, I personally prefer the blacked out more demonic eyes he sported in a lot of the Rebirth stories. Thawne's staff included with Mattel's version is a great accessory, but the trade off here is that I'll give Mcfarlane the applause for having a huge selection of fun effect pieces for running!

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Swamp Thing

This one is a bit of a tougher one. The old Mattel Swamp Thing does a lot right! The amount of sculpting detail work that went into that figure is very impressive even today, and the amount of paint used to bring a lot of those details out is fantastic! I love the flowers, mushrooms, and vines running throughout Swamp Thing's body! Not to mention the figure came with an excellent stand, having the added benefit of being a con-exclusive. Hopping over to Mcfarlane the sheer size of their Swamp Thing makes for quite a presence on the shelf, and the sculpting work here is fantastic as well with all manner of shrubs, ferns, and plant-life detectible if you look hard enough. The paint does its job overall but it would have been nice to have individual plants piqued out like Mattel had on their Swamp Thing, namely the roses on Swamp Thing's back which were painted the same swampy green/brown as the rest of the figure. Articulation is still subpar for Mattel's copy, but it is still one of the best looking Swamp Thing figures to date!

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