McFarlane Toys DC Mulitverse: MR. FREEZE (Batman & Robin)

“The Iceman cometh!”

Arnold Schwarzenegger served up a heaping helping of cheese in 1997’s Batman & Robin. He dished out one cold line after another, fully embracing his role as Victor Von Fries, better known as the villainous Mr. Freeze. Freeze partnered up with Poison Ivy in an attempt to steal enough diamonds to fuel his research to save his dying wife. As loud and dumb as this film was, Schwarzenegger managed to put quite a bit of heart into the role of Mr. Freeze, making him something of a sympathetic villain.

McFarlane Toys’ released a four figure wave based upon Batman, Robin, Batgirl, & Poison Ivy from the Batman & Robin film, and if you collect all of them all, you can assemble the Build-A-Figure of Mr. Freeze as played by Schwarzenegger in the film. He’s a really cool-looking figure that is definitely worth the cold, hard cash that I put up to get him.

Here’s a rundown of which pieces come with each figure in the line:

  • Batgirl – head, pauldrons, freeze gun
  • Poison Ivy – torso
  • Robin – arms and ice accessories
  • Batman – legs and ice accessories

The figure was easy to assemble, with all of the pieces locking into place with a nice “snap.” The freeze gun fits well into Mr. Freeze’s right hand. The left hand can be used to hold the vertical grip on the front of the gun. The figure’s articulation is pretty limited, with the pauldrons preventing full range of motion on the shoulders and the legs having fewer POA compared to the other figures in this line. Plus, Mr. Freeze is bulky, so he can’t move too well even if he wanted to do so.

As far as the design of the figure goes, it’s a bit lacking. The face looks really great, but the matte blue/grey paint applications can’t compare to Schwarzenegger’s shiny, silver look from the film. All of the parts of Mr. Freeze’s suit that light up in the film are simply painted with light blue coloring. I would have preferred it if McFarlane would have used translucent plastic on these parts like they did with the top and back of Mr. Freeze’s head. The details on the suit look decent, but a ton of detail was left out and probably with good reason, as the suit in the film has a ridiculous amount of detail. I also wish that McFarlane would have gone with silver paint on the suit instead of the molded grey that is used on the figure.

I’m still really happy with this figure overall, and hope that McFarlane will release an updated or alternate version of it at some point in the future. He looks awesome on my shelf, especially when he’s surrounded by the rest of the figures in this line. My dream figure from McFarlane of Mr. Freeze would be him in his smoking jacket, complete with polar bear slippers and a cigar. If McFarlane is reading this, please consider this release!!!!! Pretty please?!?!?!?

This brings my review of all of the figures in the Batman & Robin Build-A-Figure wave to an end. I hope that you enjoyed these reviews and I thank you for reading them! See you soon!

McFarlane Toys DC Multiverse: BATMAN (Batman & Robin)

“Hi, Freeze. I’m Batman.”

A film starring my favorite superhero (Batman) and one of my favorite supervillains (Mr. Freeze) should be one of my most beloved films of all time. Unfortunately for myself and a ton of other Batman fans, 1997’s Batman & Robin was a terrible, brightly colored mess. Leading the charge in this caped crusader caper is none other than People Magazine’s sexiest man alive (1997 and again, for some weird reason, in 2006), George Clooney. Clooney was on fire at the time, appearing in the successful series ER and the Quentin Tarentino flick, From Dusk Til Dawn. His career would continue to grow……but no thanks to Batman & Robin. Clooney has openly admitted that he was terrible in the film, and he consistently ranks at the bottom of most “Favorite Batman” lists.

Despite the fact that Clooney is my least favorite live action Batman, I plopped down some cold, hard cash in order to purchase McFarlane Toys’ version of Clooney’s Batman in his black suit from the 1997 Batflop. I mainly bought it in order to complete the Mr. Freeze Build-A-Figure, but I have to admit that this is a pretty cool action figure. Clooney’s Batman is the fourth and final figure in this particular Build-A-Figure line that also includes Batgirl, Poison Ivy, and Robin.

Clooney’s Batman looks awesome in action figure form. The black suit is covered in some type of fine powder (possibly a byproduct of the plastic production). Batgirl and Robin also suffered from this, but to a greatly smaller degree. The powder wipes off easily enough, so it’s not necessarily a big deal. Batman’s cape is soft plastic and looks wonderful. His gauntlets, like Robin’s, feature some pretty sharp “bat fins” that might hurt little kids, so be careful if a child is playing with this figure. The suit features a ton of detail including the bat insignia on the chest and boots. It includes the infamous “bat nipples” like the Robin figure as well. The likeness to George Clooney (or at least his chin), is pretty much perfect. Batman’s articulation is great as well. Like the Robin figure, Batman’s arms can easily move up and down and aren’t bothered by the cape at all due to the fact that the cape is placed out of the way on the figure.

Batman comes with two “freeze” accessories that attach to his hands. They are somewhat awkward looking and I don’t particularly care for them. The figure also comes with the standard collector card and figure base. When it comes to the Mr. Freeze Build-A-Figure, Batman comes with Freeze’s massive legs.

As much as I dislike Clooney’s performance in Batman & Robin, I absolutely love this figure. The accessories are lame and the powder is annoying, but neither of these things stop me from recommending this figure to any fan of Batman. He’s definitely worthy of shelf display.

Thanks for checking out my post! The final post, which will feature another look at all four of the Batman & Robin figures and, most important of all, the fully assembled Mr. Freeze Build-A-Figure, is coming tomorrow. See you then!

McFarlane Toys DC Multiverse: ROBIN (Batman & Robin)

“My rubber lips are immune to your charms.”

Despite a bad script and some terrible special effects, Chris O’Donnell did a fairly reasonable job as Robin/Dick Grayson in 1997’s Batman & Robin. He was one of the funniest parts of the film and worked well with his co-stars. McFarlane Toys has added a figure of O’Donnell’s Robin in his black and red suit to its Mr. Freeze Build-A-Figure line. He is the third figure in the line following Batgirl and Poison Ivy.

The figure features a very good likeness of Chris O’Donnell as Robin. It also features the oversized “red robin” chest logo that goes across both of Robin’s shoulders and down his arms to his wrists. The rest of the figure is black and much like Batgirl, features a ton of detail including more “robin” logos on the belt and boot tops. The cape is soft plastic. Robin’s gauntlets feature some pretty sharp bat spurs, so be careful if a young child plays with this figure. He also comes with the infamous “bat-nipples” that every fan of the film loves…..cough. The figure moves freely at every point of articulation. The cape is behind the shoulders, so Robin can lift his arms straight up into the air. This is a good looking figure, and is a great addition to this line.

Unlike Poison Ivy and Batgirl, Robin actually comes with two accessories. They are “freeze” appliances that can be snapped onto his body…..I think. McFarlane isn’t very clear on where to apply these accessories, so I pretty much just set them to the side. He also comes with the standard base and collector card. As for the Build-A-Figure, Robin comes with Mr. Freeze’s arms.

While he is slightly less impressive than Batgirl and Poison Ivy, McFarlane’s version of Robin from Batman & Robin looks pretty sweet. He’s a welcome addition to my collection.

Thanks for checking out my post. I have one more figure to review in this series before I reveal the completed Build-A-Figure! See you soon!

McFarlane Toys DC Multiverse: POISON IVY (Batman & Robin)

“So many people to kill….so little time.”

With love dust, a poison kiss, and Bane at her side, Poison Ivy was a terrifically terrible villain in 1997’s Batman & Robin. Portrayed by Uma Thurman in the film, Poison Ivy teams up with Mr. Freeze in order to take over Gotham City and, eventually, the world. McFarlane Toys captures Ivy in a surprisingly beautiful figure that is almost as captivating as Uma Thurman in the film.

Poison Ivy is the second figure in the McFarlane Toys DC Multiverse Build-A-Figure Batman & Robin line. She’s a wonderful figure and quite possibly my favorite figure in this particular lineup. McFarlane did a fine job of capturing Uma Thurman’s likeness on this figure and aside from her head, hindered by her hair, her articulation is flawless. Her costume is also beautiful and full of plant details, all the way down to the ivy leaf in her palm. The coloring and a few small details don’t quite match up with the on-screen costume, but I’m more than willing to look beyond these minor errors due to the fact that the figure looks amazing overall.

Ivy comes with ZERO accessories except for the standard figure base and collector card. The collector card features an image of Ivy from the film’s poster and the exact same text that is found on all of the other cards in this series. As far as the Build-A-Figure goes, Poison Ivy comes with Mr. Freeze’s torso. One thing of special note is that there are socket “rings” inside of the torso’s arms that pop out with ease and could easily be lost. The right ring popped out while I was extracting the torso from the packaging, and had I not seen it pop out, I probably wouldn’t have even realized that it was gone.

I’ve provided a number of images in this post so that you can get a good look at all of the details in this figure. It’s an extremely beautiful figure and if you’re strictly a fan of Poison Ivy, it’s a must have. Of course, if you plan on building Mr. Freeze, this figure is also a must. I really hope that McFarlane releases another figure of Ivy in her green body suit from the film. This figure is for every DC Multiverse collector.

Thanks for checking out my post. More bat-tastic reviews are on the way!

McFarlane Toys DC Multiverse: BATGIRL (Batman & Robin)

“I want to help Batman and Robin.”

Although the 1997 Batman & Robin film is one of my least favorite films in the DC Universe, I have to admit that I really, really liked the costumes and some of the characters. One of the characters that I really enjoyed seeing on the big screen was Batgirl/Barbara Wilson, portrayed by Alicia Silverstone. McFarlane Toys recently released a four figure collection based on characters from the film that includes Batgirl, Poison Ivy (Uma Thurman), Robin (Chris O’Donnell), and Batman (George Clooney). Collecting all four of the figures allows you to assemble the Mr. Freeze (Arnold Schwarzenegger) Build-A-Figure. Batgirl is the first figure in the set. Let’s take a look at her.

The McFarlane Batgirl figure features a very good likeness of Alicia Silverstone. Her costume is based upon her black outfit from the film. Considering the fact that it is completely black, McFarlane didn’t have to waste many resources on paint. The details in the suit, which are plentiful, look very nice. Batgirl’s articulation is awesome as well. She is only hindered at the neck due to her long hair. Her cape is made of a very soft plastic that makes it very flexible. It does not, however, change shape.

McFarlane is notorious for having limited accessories with their DC Multiverse figures, but this particular Build-A-Figure set is atrocious. Batgirl comes with ZERO accessories. The only thing she comes with are the standard DC figure base and collector card (which features artwork from the film’s poster). As for the Build-A-Figure accessories, Batgirl comes with Mr. Freeze’s head, pauldrons, freeze gun, and a freeze gun “blast” that can be attached to the gun. Also, it’s pretty refreshing to see a McFarlane figure with an actual gun, as Warner Bros. pushed to have a “no gun” policy with McFarlane’s DC Multiverse line.

Batgirl is a great looking figure and a wonderful addition to my collection. I’ll be reviewing all of the figures in this line over the next few days, culminating in a review of the Mr. Freeze Build-A-Figure. Thanks for checking out my review!

Fouke Monster Festival 2024

Fouke, Arkansas

Myself and my Filmsquatch co-host, Patrick Bennett, made our way to the legendary town of Fouke, Arkansas to enjoy our third visit to the Fouke Monster Festival on Saturday, April 27th. The event took place at the Fouke Middle School and featured a number of excellent speakers and guests. Filmsquatch had a table set up at the event and we had a great time getting to know some of our loyal listeners and introducing a few new fans to our show. We also had an excellent time meeting the Fouke Monster and talking with the young ladies that set up their Arky Creations table across from us at the event.

I’ll be completely honest and say that I was humbled to hear that most of the folks that we talked to at the festival had either listened to our show or heard about Filmsquatch. Even better, all of them seemed to enjoy the show! We actually signed a few autographs at the event! It makes me very happy to know that the moronic musings of myself and Patrick have brought a little joy to the Bigfoot community. I am very grateful to each and every person that has listened to our podcast. I really appreciate all of you wonderful people.

Of course, no trip to Fouke is complete without visiting the Boggy Creek Boutique and the Monster Mart. Patrick and I were happy to catch up with Jeff and Cindy Sheldon, the owners of the Boggy Creek Boutique, and two of our coolest friends. They’ve gone above and beyond in promoting us and our show, and we’ll be forever grateful to them for their support. If you are ever in the Fouke area, swing by their shop and tell’em Filmsquatch sent you! I snapped up some delicious apple barbecue sauce from Leaf On The Wind Studios and my favorite salsa from Gladden Farms at the boutique. Patrick and I were both gifted shirts from the boutique as well. Oh, and be sure to check out our signed photo on the boutique’s wall of fame! We’re hanging out with some horror legends! It’s great to know that we gave good friends in the Fouke area. They feel just like family.

Just before leaving Fouke, we stopped off at the Monster Mart. They’ve added more items to their Boggy Creek area and have also added a few new things to their museum as well. I picked up a Boggy Creek license plate (which is currently on my car) and an energy drink for the road. Patrick also grabbed a few souvenirs as well.

Patrick and I plan on making more trips to Fouke later this year. I’ll be sure to let all of you know about our continuing adventures as Filmsquatch. As always, thanks for checking out my posts. Be sure to check out the Filmsquatch podcast as well. Just click the hyperlink at the beginning of this post. Also, be sure to visit all of the other links in this post and feel free to share those pages with your friends!

Sasquatch Sunset

“Hwoop!”

The Zellner brothers give Bigfoot their offbeat treatment in 2024’s Sasquatch Sunset. Written and co-directed by David Zellner, the film follows the lives of four Sasquatch over the course of a year. It’s a lot like watching a ninety-minute version of Wild America without Marty Stouffer narrating the action. There is also a lot of absurd and ridiculous humor thrown into the film as well, and it can be off-putting at times.

L to R: Director/Writer David Zellner, Director/Alpha Male Sasquatch Nathan Zellner, Young Sasquatch Christophe Zajac-Denek, Female Sasquatch Riley Keough, and Beta Male Sasquatch Jesse Eisenberg.

The film stars Nathan Zellner as (what I have dubbed) the Alpha Male Sasquatch, Riley Keough as the Female Sasquatch, Jesse Eisenberg as the Beta Male Sasquatch, and Christophe Zajac-Denec as the Young Sasquatch. We get to see them live their lives, from the mundane to the silly to the dangerous, across the four seasons beginning with spring and ending with winter. Had the film made a decision to be either an adult comedy featuring Sasquatch or a dramatic nature film instead of attempting to fuse the two styles together, it probably would have been a great film. The film features amazing emotionally-charged moments of beauty, suspense, and wonder, and a smattering of silly, sometimes vulgar comedic moments that derail the film. I couldn’t settle into any specific rhythm with this movie. The cinematography and music are ridiculously beautiful and lift the film to a higher level.

The actors did an amazing job in this film. I genuinely felt for these characters as they experienced a wide range of emotions and dealt with a number of situations, from funny to terrifying. Riley Keough truly shined in this film as the female Sasquatch. Much like Kevin Peter Hall in Harry And The Hendersons, Keough let the audience know what she was feeling and thinking with her eyes in brilliant fashion. As for the three males, they all did excellent jobs, although they were often sidelined by comedic moments featuring cryptid erections and sophomoric humor. When I say cryptid erections, I mean it. There are Sasquatch penises throughout this film and a number of attempts by the two older males to have intercourse with the female.

The creature behavior in the film leans heavy toward chimpanzee behavior, which was a bit of a letdown for me considering how much I love Bigfoot and cryptids in general. The Sasquatch fling their poop, urinate with excitement, and bounce around a lot like chimps in the film. They do wood knocks and whoops like Bigfoot is believed to in the wild, but I did not like the chimpanzee actions. They also exhibit some human behaviors, primarily used for humor in the film.

As far as the creature costumes go, they are nearly perfect. The creatures don’t look like people in suits for the most part. The only shortcoming in my opinion is with the creature feet. The toes are one molded piece and look very fake. Other than that, however, the rest of the costumes look amazing.

True believers and fans of Bigfoot may be turned off by the behaviors of the creatures in this film. The absurd and gross-out humor may be too much for some viewers to stomach (although there wasn’t anything worth leaving the film for as many news releases claim in my opinion), but the beautiful moments in the film far outweigh these brief moments of sophomoric humor. Is it worth seeing in the theater? Maybe, but this film definitely isn’t for everyone. I enjoyed it and feel like I didn’t waste my time in the theater, but I can definitely see some folks walking out at the end of the movie thinking, “What in the heck did I just watch?”

Thanks for checking out my post. See you again soon!

Jurassic Park Amber Collection: Dr. Alan Grant (2021)

“After careful consideration, I have decided not to endorse your park.”

If Dr. Ian Malcolm was the rock star in the original Jurassic Park film, Dr. Alan Grant was the record producer that kept a level head when the band (or, in this case, the park) lost its way. Dr. Grant was always aware of the dangers in Jurassic Park, but he was also confident that he could save Lex, Tim, an pretty much everybody else that he was responsible for in the film. He was an excellent character played to perfection by the wonderful Sam Neill.

When Mattel first started releasing figures in its Amber Collection way back in 2019, I couldn’t wait to get my hands on an Alan Grant figure. Sadly, scalpers scooped up most of the human figures in this collection before regular collectors could nab them, and I had to wait until late 2023 before I could get my hands on a reasonably priced Alan Grant figure. Well, I finally got one and have managed to find a little time to review it.

Dr. Grant features over twenty points of articulation. He comes with three accessories: a second set of hands in which one is holding his ancient velociraptor claw, a second head with detachable sunshades, and the same flare that is included with the Ian Malcolm figure in the same line. The main head on the figure features a molded hat that cannot be removed but it does have slots to attach the glasses onto the head if you so choose. In all honesty, I’m not a fan of the glasses. They are clunky and don’t look good on either noggin. The spare left hand fits loosely in the wrist socket as well. It’s so loose on my figure that he can’t properly hold up the flare. I do love the velociraptor claw hand, however, as that moment was one of my favorites in the film.

The details on the body of the figure are very good. Grant’s watch and belt have tons of detail as do his pants and shirt. Grant’s bandana is tucked inside the collar of his shirt but looks nice. My only complaint is with the head sculpt, especially the second head with the glasses. The head with the hat is a decent sculpt of Sam Neill, but the second head looks downright creepy. I think that it’s the teeth that creep me out the most. They just don’t look right.

Despite those few shortcomings that I listed, this is still a very cool figure. It’s definitely worth buying if you’re a fan of Grant or of the original Jurassic Park film. I now have the core trio of the original film and Muldoon as well. I may or may not get John Hammond, Dennis Nedry, and Ray Arnold. I do wish that Mattel would bring back the Amber Collection, if for no other reason but to give us Lex, Tim, and Donald Gennaro action figures that scale with the other figures in the collection. Production on the line ended in 2022, and Mattel gave us the smaller scaled Hammond Collection.

Thanks for checking out my post. My next five action figure reviews will be…..batty!

CyPhaCon 2024!

My Local Convention

I’ve been attending CyPhaCon for many years now and it was great to return to this local event yet again. This year, CyPhaCon featured Edward James Olmos, Barry Lowin, Mela Lee, and tons of anime voice actors for fans to meet, take photos, and get autographs. I was there as a representative of the Lake Charles Film Festival once again, and had a table on the second floor of the Lake Charles Event Center that allowed me the opportunity to catch a number of fun and informative panels.

There were a ton of amazing cosplayers at the event and I took a ton of photos. Some of my favorite cosplays are featured in the gallery above. One of my newest friends, Kettlebriar’s Workshop, showed off a couple of his cosplays: an Inquisitor from the Star Wars universe and a member of the Green Lantern Corps. Of course, I also had to get photos with all of the Furries because I love me some Furries!

I also presented two panels: The Cinematic History of Batman and Max Fleischer: Animation Pioneer. My Batman panel had a nice audience and my Fleischer panel, while more of a niche topic, did draw in a few people. I attended panels presented by my bud, Frank Schiavo, and anime voice artist Drew Breedlove. I also attended a panel by voice actors Suzanne DeCarma and Lisette Monique Diaz. The vendor area was packed with excellent items, artwork, and additional fan groups.

I had a really fun time at CyPhaCon this year. They’ve already announced the dates for next year, April 11th through the 13th, and I’m already excited to see what my local convention has in store for 2025!

Thanks for checking out my post! My next event is the Fouke Monster Festival in Fouke, Arkansas later this month. I plan on doing a brief write-up about that event once it’s over, so be on the lookout for that one as well.

McFarlane Toys DC Multiverse Gold Label Owlman

“As long as there’s a Batman…..there will be an Owlman. His true dark reflection.”

While I’ve often listed Black Manta as one of the most wicked villains in the DC Universe, Owlman, Thomas Wayne, Jr., might be one of the few villains to match him. Owlman is Batman of Earth 3 (at least in this instance). He teams up with the Alfred Pennyworth of his world to not only murder his parents and his younger brother, Bruce, but to also take out the Grayson family in order to drive Richard Grayson to him so that he will become his sidekick, Talon. Using fear, Owlman takes control of Gotham City and the Crime Syndicate, Earth 3’s evil version of the Justice League.

This Owlman figure, a Gold Label exclusive from Walmart, looks great. I picked him up on clearance for around thirteen bucks, and I can only assume that he hit the clearance shelves because casual fans don’t recognize the character. That’s a good thing for me, as Owlman’s complete lack of accessories makes thirteen dollars a much more desirable price point. Owlman comes with nothing other than the standard DC figure stand and a collector card.

I really like the details in this figure. The paint apps are a bit sloppy at times, but look very nice overall. The blue in his suit really pops and his helmet looks wonderful. I love Owlman’s utility belt and his “feathered” cape. His gloves look great as well. He’s also about a half inch taller than most of the other McFarlane DC Multiverse figures, which is pretty cool. Overall, the details work extremely well with this figure.

He features the standard McFarlane points of articulation and is only hindered at the neck and shoulders. His pauldrons prevent his arms from lifting up all of the way. Also, I noticed that the way this figure is packaged, the pauldron on his right shoulder is forced up slightly higher than the left one. His cape is soft plastic and can be lifted in one piece. Other than the lack of accessories, this figure is a fine addition to the McFarlane lineup.

Thanks for reading my post. Do you have this Owlman figure? Let me know what you think about him in the comments section.

Owlman and the boys!