In Retrospect - Mafex Armored Batman

I originally wrote this review for the Mafex Armored Batman when these Dawn of Justice figures were first released. If some of this seems disjointed, that’s my excuse. Even as I start this retrospect, I can hear the chants of “But it’s Mafex, what do you expect?” I have probably flip-flopped on my opinion regarding the other two figures released from this line so far (Batman and Superman) a lot. On one hand, the Batman is lacking in flexibility, while Superman practically flops around like a marionette. “Their quality control is lacking!”

Maybe, but then I also look at the figures from a purely aesthetic standpoint, and despite Mafex having no idea what color the flesh is on an actual human, the figures are VERY nice.

Perhaps I am judging my Mafex figures and their articulation (or lack thereof) based on the same standards I hold my Figuarts figures. Ultimately, that isn’t fair, because they tend to cost anywhere from $30 more to double the cost of a Mafex for a web exclusive. The same holds true for the Mafex Armored Batman.

So no, a Mafex figure isn’t a Figuarts figure, but it also isn’t a Marvel Legend or a *gasp* Multiverse figure.

What’s in the Mafex Armored Batman box?

Here we are, with the brand spanking new (ok, not so much now) Mafex Armored Batman from Batman vs Superman: Dawn of Justice. The box is what we have come to expect from most companies these days. Clear plastic showing off the figure and accessories. Pictures of the figure all over the box in various poses and a lot of Japanese writing on it that could very well be insulting my family. I don’t know. I don’t speak Japanese (still) and I always assume the worst.

My first impression after taking him out of the box, was “wow.” This is just a gorgeous figure. The detail on the armor, the weathering, it just looks great.

The Mafex Armored Batman Accessories –

Not nearly as much as the non-armored version, but again, more than you would get with your average Legends figure. I believe that with the upcoming Mafex Knightmare Batman (this was back when we thought the Knightmare batman would be released within a reasonable time period), we will get a busted helmet and kryptonite spear for this figure and I’m pretty excited about both additional accessories (I was right to be excited, they are awesome). He has three sets of hands which consists of fists, open (or neutral) and a “holding” hand which holds his only other accessory, which comes to us in the form of the grappling hook he used during the fight with Big Blue. The detail on the hands and the grappling device is amazingly intricate. Take a look at the pics!

The Mafex Armored Batman Articulation –

If you have the Mafex Batman and Superman from DoJ, the articulation is very similar. If you don’t, you get roughly 20 points of articulation. Double jointed elbows and knees, wrist pivot and spin, ankle pivot, hips, and torso, etc. Nothing unexpected with the Mafex Armored Batman. I’m always at odds with the multiple exposed pegs that allow this kind of movement but I’ve learned to overlook them. The hands can be tricky (like most imports, it seems) as it’s probably easy to snap off the peg when you’re swapping out hands. They (the pegs) tend to run away from you during the change-out.

The head has VERY minimal up and down range of motion, so don’t put your Supes too high up or ol’ Brucie boy will be looking at Clark’s feet.

Mafex Armored Batman Height-

The figure stands at roughly 6.3 inches tall and looks appropriate next to regular Batman and our angsty friend from Krypton. Here are a couple shots next to the Multiverse Carrie Kelley Robin, the Matty-Collector new 52 Batman as well as the new reissue Figuarts Iron Man mark 42, Black Widow and DC Icon Deadman. While the DC Icon line looks tiny next to Legends figures, I found they are really in scale with the Mafex line. All of this is, of course, relative. How my mind thinks this fictional character should look next to this other fictional character. That being said, I am a bit of a scale obsessed weenie so maybe you can use some of my OCD to help size up your display.

Mafex Armored Batman Negatives –

The only real downside I could find is that the joints are really loose. Not as loose as Superman’s joints, and certainly nothing that prevented me from getting him into some cool poses, but I just wanted you to be aware of the issue if it’s a deal breaker for you. There are plenty of options to tighten those up if you use the Google. Again, only if that bothers you.

Mafex Armored Batman Conclusion –

This is a great figure. From a display point, the Mafex figures look really good and the Mafex Armored Batman is no exception. Let’s face it, I’m not a 12 year old anymore (granted, my girlfriend and kids would disagree, but they’re not the boss of me) so I don’t spend a lot of time “playing” with the figures. I do restage them quite often and honestly, I’ve had zero issues with any of them. Even the orangeish (is that a word? It is now…) flesh isn’t that noticeable when it’s sitting in a lit display case. I guess if I was the type of guy who spent days harassing Wendy’s Facebook page about their new fries, I’d probably dedicate blogs to how much the skin tone bothered me.

Wait, I did do that to Wendy’s Facebook page until they blocked me. In my defense, their new fries are not dissimilar to eating salted ear wax. Yet the skin tone isn’t a deal breaker for me. Maybe I’m growing up?

Said the guy writing action figure reviews.

But I digress, the Mafex Armored Batman looks like a work of art. I had initially bought the original three Multiverse figures from Dawn of Justice at Target, but took them back the next day as I didn’t see the point in having them AND the Mafex ones that I had already preordered. I’ve seen customizers make the Multiverse Armored Batman look great. I don’t have the time or inclination to do so but I admire their work. Even with that work, I imagine the joints are still limited and you get almost no accessories with them.

I also can’t justify doubling this price and getting the Mezco. Not that I don’t like the Mezco line, but this Mafex Bats does everything I want an action figure to do except light up and again, I can’t justify the cost for light up eyes in this instance.

If you were a fan of the movie, if you’re a fan of Bat-Fleck at all, if you just like the character, you need this figure. You can get him at the usual haunts: