This set contains four figures - Bubba Ho-Tep (from Bubba Ho-Tep of course), John McClane (from Die Hard), the Endoskeleton (from Terminator), and Flyboy (from the original Dawn of the Dead). I already reviewed Bubba and John at my other site earlier this week, and today I'm covering the Endoskeleton and Flyboy.

These are hitting online shops, as well as some Hot Topic and Spencer's stores. Expect to pay around $13 or so, depending on the retailer.

If you have any questions, comments, or suggestions, you can always reach me at mwc@mwctoys.com. If you enjoy this review, take a minute to check out my other site at Michael's Review of the Week, and let me know what you think. Now on to the review!

"Cult Classics 3 Flyboy and Endoskeleton"

Unless you've been leaving under a rock for the past 22 years, a very big rock, you know who the Endoskeleton is. He looked better with skin of course, but it was the cold heart of steel that made him such an unstoppable force.

Ah, but what about Flyboy? Who the hell is this? Fans of the original Dawn of the Dead will recognize him instantly. This is Stephen, one of our four survivors who, like Roger, doesn't quite survive. Instead, the zombies eventually have their way with him, and he becomes this shuffling mindless brain eater.

Packaging - ***
I liked the colors of Flyboy's packaging so much, I used it for both reviews. The bright yellow, reminiscent of the dawn in Dawn of the Dead, looks terrific with the rest of the package graphics. These are clamshells of course, so you'll need a sharp knife to free him, and once you do you'll toss the package. But they hold up to shelf wear and peg damage great, and show off the figure from three sides.

Sculpting - Flyboy ***1/2; Endoskeleton ***
The Endoskeleton has a ton of detail, looking very much like his counterpart right out of the film. The plastic is a little softer here than usual, which allows for the pistons to work with less chance of breakage. This slightly softer plastic does hurt the detail a little, particularly in the face, but not so much that you'll have any major issues.

The size is pretty good, done in a 7" scale. He'll fit in fine with other movie figures, although I think he could have used a little more height. A few internal scale issues exist, like small feet, but these are fairly inconsequential, and will only be noticed if you are really paying attention.

The left hand has been sculpted to hold the barrel of the plasma gun, but you'll need to use the enclosed second right hand to hold the grip. The standard right hand is sculpted in a more open, yet menacing pose. The sculpt also works extremely well with the articulation, and he does not need the display stand to stay upright.

Flyboy is a terrific sculpt, looking very much like the unfortunate Stephen as played by David Emge. The weird head tilt, zombie posture, and shuffling walk are all captured nicely, and even those who have only seen the film once should recognize him instantly. The zombification of the face is particularly well done, with a drawn, haggard, rough appearance to the skin and dead eyes.

The hands are sculpted to hold the gun if you'd like, or hang at his sides. I'm not a big fan of the foot pose though, with one boot in mid-air. Using the included display stand you can keep him erect, but without it you can forget about it. Even with the stand, the pose doesn't seem quite right. I would have much prefered both feet on the ground. Emge's zombie shuffle was one of the greats of all time, and his approach across the mall is a classic scene. The foot positioning could have worked a little better in this regard, but it's a fairly minor nit. BTW, I've had readers mention that his foot should turn in, like in the film (he shuffled with the foot in a very weird position), but I can't get it into that position. YMMV.

EDIT: I pulled the foot off the leg - very carefully - and managed to reposition it. It was definitely painted tight for me, but it can get into a position closer to the film. I reshot the first photo above to show it.

Paint - Flyboy ***1/2; Endoskeleton ***
Both paint jobs have some minor issues, the Endoskeleton slightly more than Flyboy.

Silver is a mighty tough color, especially when that silver is intended to replicate steel. Silver tends to paint thin as it is, allowing any color beneath to show through easily. With a character like the Endoskeleton, where the steel is supposed to have a oiled, machined appearance, going with a bright chrome isn't necessarily the best option. Unfortunately, going with a straight silver paint isn't either.

They've used a slightly dull coat silver here, going for that weathered look. Instead, it tends to just look like poorly painted silver plastic. They did what they could, but they were fighting an uphill battle all the way. There's also not a lot of small detail work outside of the eyes, but that's due to the character design.

Flyboy fairs better, with some excellent paint work adding to the nicely done sculpt. The paint accentuates the zombie look of the sculpt, and for once, that's a good thing. The paint is also fairly clean, with small details well cut and nice definition between colors where appropriate. The blood is a little cartoony, but it was in the film as well. There's some use of wash on the body, but it's not overdone, and other than the slight disappointment with the appearance of the blood, this is a top notch paint job.

Articulation - Flyboy **; Endoskeleton ***
Flyboy is pretty short on articulation, and what's here really won't add much to the posing. He's designed to look good in one stance, and that's about it. He has a ball jointed neck, but the sculpt restricts most of the movement, and keeps the head in the same awkward pose as in the film. He also has ball jointed shoulders, a cut waist, and cut wrists. His ankles have some slight movement, but are blocked by the pant leg sculpt. Some folks have gotten the right ankle to turn appropriately, but I haven't had any luck yet. The foot should turn almost completely inward, so that it looks like it's broken. If you can get it to do that, it will stand on the base much better.

The Endoskeleton is actually quite amazing in its articulation. The key here is that all the pistons (at his neck, jaw, elbows, waist and hips) actually move up and down or in and out, allowing these joints much more movement than you'd expect.

The neck moves slightly side to side, and the jaw opens. The shoulders are fairly complex joints that allow movement forward, backward, in, out and even twisting at a cut joint high on the bicep. The elbows move up and down, and the waist turns slightly, also due to the movement of the pistons. The wrists turn of course, and the pin knees and toes work just like you'd expect. There's also a cut joint at the ankle, and the hips sport more complex joints that allow slight movement forward and backward, and even allow the Endo to do the complete splits. The sculpt works well with the articulation, and he stands great on his own in a number of interesting poses.

Accessories - ***
Each figure comes with a gun and a display stand, appropriate to the film of course.

Endo's stand is excellent work, with a ton of detail and realism sculpted into the graveyard of human skulls. Both the sculpt and paint are great, but neither foot peg works particularly well. Both are too short on mine to really attach to his feet very well, and he tends to topple over more ON the stand than off.

Flyboy's stand includes the remains of another of the unlucky ones. Grabbed as he was shopping at the mall, there's only his upper torso left, with the remains of cash and cosmetics strewn about. It's an appropriately gory base, and fits in with the film well.

The Endoskeleton also has a plasma rifle, and Flyboy a handgun. These weapons are right out of the respective films, and make complete sense as accessories to these characters. The Endoskeleton also has an extra, gripping right hand to use with the rifle. Be very careful popping the hands on and off though, as the post is quite small anc could get damaged. Also, the fingers are somewhat brittle, and I managed to break a thumb removing the hand with too much force.

Fun Factor - Endoskeletion ***; Flyboy **
If you're looking for a nifty gift for your 8 year old nephew, I'd recommend skipping Flyboy, unless you're looking to get your sister to stop speaking to you.

However, the Endoskeleton makes a pretty good toy, although the child in question would have to understand that the joints have to be handled carefully. The small pistons can be broken, especially at the elbows.

Value - **1/2
These run around $12 or $13 from most retailers (although I'm sure Spencers will be higher). That's a pretty average price, and while the sculpts are great on most of this series, there's really nothing here to make them stand out in this category from the pack.

Overall - ***
Flyboy was almost another half star better, but the slightly awkward pose (and my inability to get him in the correct stance) ended up detracting enough from my overall enjoyment to hurt his score. However, there's no doubt he's going to take a place on the monster shelf alongside other great characters, and if you can get his ankle correct, and don't mind the cartoonish aspects of the red paint, you'll be extremely happy with him.

Mcfarlane Toys did an Endoskeleton not that long ago as well, but it wasn't a figure I picked up. From personal recollection, the sculpt is very similar, while the paint on the McToys version was slightly better. However, this version has the McToys robot beat in the articulation department. The display stand looks terrific, although I really wish he attached to it a little better.

Where to Buy -
Local stores like Hot Topis and Spencers may get these in, and you have plenty of online options:

- Amazing Toyz has the singles for $11 - $13 each, depending on the character.

- CornerStoreComics has the singles for $12 each, or the full set for $44.

- Time and Space Toys has the singles at $12 as well.

- Alter Ego Comics has the set for $48. The listing says only three of the figures, but at that price (and with the photo including the Bubba figure), I'd assume that's all four.

- Killer Toys sells the individuals for $14 each, or the set for $50.

Related Links -
There's a couple useful links:

- first up is NECA's website, with info on upcoming figures.

- you should check out the review of the other two figures in this series, John McClane and Bubba Ho-Tep.

- and also check out the reviews of past Cult Classics figures, like Patrick Bateman and Mohawk Gremlin from series 1, or all of series 2.