Toy Review: Mezco’s Johann Krauss & Liz Sherman

Johann Krauss & Liz Sherman

Sigh. I don’t know how it is with you guys, but as a collector I’m compulsive. While I’m not a completist, there are certain lines where I’ll get toys that aren’t necessarily great, but are needed to completete a certain lineup. The most recent example is my recent purchase of Johann Krauss & Liz Sherman from Mezco’s Hellboy II: Golden Army line.

Seeing as I have a Hellboy and an Abe, I needed a Johann and Liz to complete the team. They wouldn’t be the same without them.

If you’ve read my review of the rest of the Hellboy line or my review of Wink, then you know that the first releases in this line were pretty impressive, but the ones for the Golden Army set were pretty crappy. Somehow, Mezco, who were right up there on top with paint the first time around, went and found the one factory that could give their new toys the worst paint applications in the history of EVER.

Seriously, I didn’t want to buy this line looking at how bad the paint was on the figures. There’s no question why the Prince and Princess are rotting on the shelf now. Their paint jobs are by far the worst of the lot. Abe comes in at a close 3rd. I’ve actually seen Abe quite a few times now, but the paint is no where near as good as the first shirtless release. None of the subtle, washes are there, nor is the transluscent quality of the color. It’s just flat blue with blue stripes, lobbed on thick.

These two aren’t much better off.

You’ll have about as much trouble finding them locally as anything. They weren’t as popular as Wink, but since restocks were immediately placed in sets, it was hard to find singles. You were forced to buy the awful along with the relatively acceptable. I was fortunate enough to find a set that had recently been liberated in Toy Kingdom. They even had one of those Hellboy’s with Big Baby and an Abe.

Like I said, I couldn’t stop myself. I picked them up so that I could display the whole BPRD strike team.

Once you get over the horrible paint (REALLY! just look at the shiny, spotty wash on Johann! and the slop all over Liz!), there’s some good things about them. The sculpt is really great. Johann looks appropriately steampunky while Liz looks very feminine. Liz’s likeness to Selma Blair isn’t all that good, but the figure looks like a female. That’s more than you can say for most Marvel Legends.

Accessories is another plus. It’s not a lot… but it seems Mezco gave it some thought. Liz has two extra hands, one with a gun, and one with a flame. I don’t really like the one witht he flames because the way it comes up out of her hand doesn’t sit right with me. Instead of her hand being engulfed as it was in the movie, it looks as if the flame is just shooting out like a roman candle. The gun hand is pretty good though.

Johann has two extra hands as well, both sculpted to look as if he’s expelling himself in to the ether. The gaseous clouds look far more convincing than Liz’s flame. He’s also got a second bubble for his helmet, but with a cracked dome. I guess so you can take you’re Hellboy and reenact that locker room sequence.

No, not the one you read at www.slashfanfiction.com. The one in the movie.

Articulation is pretty good. Not great. Liz is missing a few key joints that would have put her in the top, like thigh swivels. She’s go the same hip articulation you see in GI Joes, only since she’s in a bigger scale, the crossbar that holds her legs is smaller, which means less play. She’s basically stuck in a standing position. Same with the German dude, though since he’s supposed to be stiff, I can give that a pass. Arm swivels are missing as well, so she can’t hold her gun in a Weaver position, which sucks.

The rub with Liz is that she’s LIMP. There isn’t really one pose where she looks like she’s about to kick but or singe your short and curlys. Even the hand holding the gun is like, “look I have a gun, don’t my hands look pretty? Why is Hellboy so immature? angst angst pout”. The vapid expression they gave her strenghtens that impression.

There’s also some issues with the sculpt/articulation on Johann. He shares the same lack of mid-swivels as Liz, but like I said, their not as important on him. The problem is that instead sculpting around costume elements, the designeers went and SPLIT things like kneecaps and elbow pads down the middle. So on his knee he’s got this pad that is part of his suit and the hinge joint breaks that pad in half when you bend it. It’s ugly. EDIT: It’s been pointed out to me that the design of the costume in the movie shares this same feature of split knees and elbows. *headpalm*. For someone who watches this movie all the time, I can’t believe I missed that. I am chagrined.  He is the better built of the two though.

I don’t recommend getting these toys. Their price tag is much too high for the quality you’re receiving and they don’t mass as much as a Wink figure to make up for it. If Mezco had spent a little more time working on their articulation and put out a figure that was on par with a Marvel Legend or NECA figure, they might have gotten a few points, but as it is, not even the nice accesories can save it.

The only reason to get these is if you’re trying to complete your BPRD team, and if you find them as singles. Otherwise save yourself the trouble.