I wasn’t sure what to think when I saw the initial Mezco Batman Ascending Knight solicits. On one hand, it looked different than what I expect out of a Batman figure, but the difference is in the name. The ASCENDING knight. He isn’t the Batman we know… yet. Instead, he’s the first of 3 different versions of comic related Batmen Mezco is doing. This is the first, a Batman at the dawn of his career, inexperienced and not quite sure what will work and what won’t. The next up is the Sovereign Knight, which just based on early pictures, doesn’t look shabby either.
I mentioned in my Gwenpool that sometimes a figure jumps up to the front of the review queue. I figured I’d explain that part a little more. Obviously, I don’t review toys for a living. I work a full time, very demanding job plus I am a writer. Additionally, I have a band and a pretty full life of family and friends. The website takes a lot of work and even though I’ve “earned” $6 and some change for a year’s worth of clicked links to Amazon, I would still call it a labor of love. No one forces me to do any of this. It’s just a passion.
When I say a figure jumped the queue, it works like this, usually: As I write this, I have the next 3 weeks worth of articles done and scheduled. That means if I die on my plane trip tomorrow night to Vegas (as I write this), you’ll still be haunted by my words for the next few weeks.
Suck it, afterlife.
On top of that, I have about 6-8 other articles in various degrees of completion, ie pictures taken but not edited. Articles are written but no pics, etc etc etc. When I get a figure I either really like, is really hot, or a combination of both, I usually push that figure through the process ahead of figures that have been waiting a while, or may never see print. My muse is fickle. I must entertain her when she arrives. Lucky for you Mezco fans, this figure qualifies as a queue jumper.
What’s in the Mezco Batman Ascending Knight box?
So.
Much.
Stuff.
When I mentioned how I’ve felt short-changed in the past (like on Black Adam), it’s because we get figures like this for the exact same price. The Mezco Batman Ascending Knight is chock full of goodies. We get the figure itself, several sets of hands, a Bat-Breach device that no one is quite sure what it does, a million tiny Batarangs, an odd tiny Bat-Crossbow, a grappling gun with various attachments, those horrible Mezco cape props, his Mezco display base, and display arm, and finally, we get a Bruce Wayne Sculpt. Let’s take a look.
What doesn’t work with the Mezco Batman Ascending Knight figure?
Like most Mezcos, the ankle articulation on the Mezco Batman Ascending Knight is weak. It’s slightly better than Superman. I’m not sure what good a crossbow would do someone who doesn’t kill. I suppose he could be using tranquilizer darts. Also, while it looks cool, the Breaching Bat seems like it would be a pain to carry around on his utility belt.
The aesthetics of the figure itself is very divisive. In my opinion, it seems unnecessarily busy. However, I have to remind myself, this is his first outfit and for all I know, he went to Play It Again Sports and picked up used spelunking gear.
This outfit is similar to his First Appearance look below.
The long ears, the shortened, almost stubby gloves. If you take away the patterns on the outfit and replace the gloves with purple gloves, he’s pretty much right there. It seems like such a simple homage to the classic Batman look that I don’t know why they didn’t at least make a variant like that. Missed opportunities.
I know I’ve said it before, but I loathe their cape articulation system. In general, I wish Mezco would figure capes out. This cape, like the BvS Batman, seems to be a faux leather. If it’s the same material, the one on my Batfleck is already wearing a little and I barely touch him. Be warned!
What works with the Mezco Batman Ascending Knight figure?
I like that they took risks with this figure. There are Mezco haters in the world, I am not one of them. I don’t inherently hate “Mez-flair” as it has come to be known. Simply put, I just wish this figure had a little less on his outfit. Yet, even with that flair, this Mezco Batman Ascending Knight is still an exceptional young Batman offering from the Mezco Team.
I am assuming they gave us ten Batarangs in case we lose them. In my opinion, that is excellent since just the other day, I lost one of the 3 magnetic bullet effects from my Classic Superman. I imagine they don’t sell those on the secondary market. Even though I mentioned the Bat-Breach device and the mini-crossbow, again, it comes back to me appreciating that they take risks. Besides, are you telling me that your Mezco Punisher or Deadpool wouldn’t use a crossbow? Even a tiny one? How about Deathstroke? Point being, it definitely has a place in our collections.
The Bruce Wayne sculpt is superb. I tried to really get close on his eyes because the paint apps in this department look stunning. You can tell this head wasn’t a throwaway piece. This fan appreciates that kind of stuff.
His articulation scheme, even though I mentioned his ankles, seems to be in the same vein as the recent Spider-Man release. This is a good thing because Batman needs to be able to move.
Should you get the Mezco Batman Ascending Knight?
Yes. I know there are a light grey and blue variant, as well as a black one. This is the standard release and he checks all of my boxes for a stellar Batman figure. He’s a superb figure in an amazing (for the most part) line. He is quickly becoming scarce, so if you haven’t ordered him yet, you may want to get on that. Try here:
Like I said, move fast, he is selling out.
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