NECA’s Cyberdyne Showdown

Terminator: Cyberdyne Showdown

The best thing about the renewed interest in the Terminator franchise was not the lackluster Terminator: Salvation, it was NECA getting the license to produce toys based on the 2nd movie, Terminator: Judgement Day. If you haven’t seen Judgement Day, drop whatever you are doing and go find a DVD of it somewhere. Anyone who doesn’t think that James Cameron’s opus does not belong on the list of most ground breaking films of all time is an idiot. Really.

Not only is this movie one of the most entertaining bits of the 90’s, it was one of first to use CGI in a convincing way. The T-1000 blew movie goers away with it’s polymorphic liquid metal form. Even by today’s standards, the effects in this movie hold up amazingly well. In comparison, McG’s version of the franchise is completely inept.

It did however bring Terminator back into the public eye. I reviewed two figures from the first wave of NECA figures: the T-800 Endoskeleton and the Pescadero Escape.

While the Endoskeleton was a disappointment, the great sculpt of the Pescadero Escape Terminator was more than enough to impress me. I couldn’t wait to get the announced “Cyberdyne Showdown” version that was said to be part of the second wave of figures. Luckily, I found one in a local specialty shop for p1,000.00. I found one later (on the other side of the Megamall) for only p900.00. That’s pretty good for this kind of figure. NECA is usually imported by 2Rats here in the Philippines and their price for anything NECA is usually p1,200.00 and up. I also saw the other figures, including the “Final Battle” version in Greenhills, but it looks like the one I’m reviewing today is getting scarce.

If you have the Pescadero Escape figure, than you might thing twice about getting this one. It’s essentially the same figure. There are small differences in the figure (like the fact that he has a grey shirt instead of black, is without his sunglasses, and has gloves on). You’ll have some fun switching the heads, but for the most part, everything is identical to the first version.

The real reason to get this is the guns. The beautiful, beautiful guns.

First off is Arnold’s main weapon in the “Cyberdyne Showdown” scene from the movie. In it, the Terminator has to keep the police busy while John and Sarah Connor and Miles Dyson plant the bomb that will destroy Cyberdyne, the company that brings about Judgement Day. Naturally, the robot brings a mini-gun to the party.

The 7″ scale version of the gatling gun is absolutley lovely, with a wash of black paint to make it look greasy and worn. It’s made of soft plastic, so things are less likely to break off. This is good, since there are a lot of little parts that stick out. If it had been made of a more brittle substance, it might break when dropped. This way, you’ve got a figure that will pretty much last years.

There is a downside though. The gun is held down in the clamshell packaging with twist ties. Mine came out all bent out of shape. You’ll need to do some hot and cold work with some water to get yours back into the proper shape.

The T-800 also comes with an ammunition belt that feeds into the mini-gun. The belt goes right into a black duffle bag. The whole thing is of a piece, but you can remove everything (bag, belt, and gun) fairly easily. He also comes with a bandolier full of grenades (missing one, which I assume would be loaded) for his secondary weapon.

Our friend Arnold also comes with a grenade launcher. Again, it’s nicely sculpted and even comes with a strap so that Arnie can hold it over his shoulder if he’s using the main weapon.

The really great thing about these guns is that 7″ and 6″ aren’t that far from each other. That means I finally have new additions to my Marvel Legends Punisher armory!

So if you’re an accessory addict and didn’t pick up the Pescadero Escape Terminator, get yourself over to Comic Alley in Megamall, or Shoppesville Plus in Greenhills and get this guy before supplies run out. Trust me, they will.

And he WON’T be back this time.