Where the Spartan Warriors are described as being more intense and aggressive soldiers, the Athenians are described as being more strategic, with an expertise more in organized naval combat rather than the “in the dirt” battle that the Spartans apparently excel at. The look of the Athenian corroborates that story, dressed in white layered armor, looking quite a bit more ornate than their Spartan comrades.
The base figure is the same as many others we’ve seen, with the plain male body and a bald male head. Spectacular sculpting and excellent articulation highlight the base figure as they do with every human figure we get in the line. I find myself really liking the look and texture of the armor, and it’s the same look that we got with the Undead Warrior from the Eternal Struggle 2 Pack just a short while ago. Mostly white with some red and gray trim, the Athenian looks significantly different than the Spartan and complements the growing human army nicely.
It’s pretty impressive how figures with the exact same base body and only some minor changes to secondary accessories on top of it can really grow new life, and I find that I’m really impressed with the Athenians, simply due to their brighter colors and more decorative armor. Sometimes the small things help.
The addition of the new bald head sculpt is a very nice change as well.
Accessories
The Athenian is decked out pretty well. He has two separate helmets, one pretty vanilla and the other much more ceremonial, both helmets having come with the NJCC exclusive Ultimate Spartan. He has a shield with a great deco, a sheath with sword, and the familiar spear. All of these weapons can be held easily on the figure, thanks to the loop on the back of the vest. I really dig the face on the shield, which appears to represent the Barbarian, a theme that the Greeks often used to represent menace and danger.
Ultimately, I think I prefer the Spartans with their “down and dirty” combat togs, but the Athenians certainly look cool as well. Their brighter and cleaner overall appearance contrasts nicely with the polished bronze look of their brothers in arms in their battle against the Gorgons. The base figure is fantastic, as they all are, and the accessories add some nice flair.
For the video review, look below.
Athenian Warrior
Character
Sculpt
Articulation
Paint Deco
Accessories
3.6
Summary
An excellent compliment to the Spartan Warrior, I love that Boss Fight is pulling from various parts of Greek Mythology here. With some new helmets, a great new bald head sculpt, and really cool expanded paint deco, we have a whole new addition to the Vitruvian HACKS roster of characters. The Athenian Warrior seems a bit more ceremonial than the Spartan, and ultimately I think I might prefer the Spartan somewhat, but this soldier definitely packs his own impressive punch!
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There are a few things I immediately take away from my early experiences with the Amazon (Elite Warrior) Vitruvian HACKS figure (available exclusively from Kokomo Toys and All the Cool Stuff).
First and foremost, this is the first human female figure that has been released in the HACKS line so far, and I cannot say enough fantastic things about its construction, articulation, and overall durability. The female buck is sculpted somewhat slimmer than the male buck, yet still maintains the excellent range of motion, and doesn’t feel significantly more fragile in any way. She moves and plays just as effectively as the male, and as my six year old grabbed her from the review station and started doing battle with Evil Lyn, my heart skipped a beat somewhat, but the end result was 15 minutes of fun play time for my kid, and no damage done to the Amazon.
The second thing I immediately took away was that Boss Fight Studio is using their tooling dollars very wisely and has already managed to supply themselves with a library of parts that can extend their own lives by complimenting many different kinds of figures.
Her upper torso and arms are the same as the Gorgons we’ve seen so far (though the Gorgons have a different lower torso to jive with their snake tails). She has the same bracers and similar chest armor as the snake ladies as well, and with an amazingly vibrant sort of brushed metal silver deco that really makes the figure pop.
Unlike the Spartans, the leather skirt is a separate piece from the torso armor, and it’s sculpted to look remarkably like real leather, with very fine texture bringing some great depth to the accessory. I also love the loop on the back which enables the Amazon to hold her sword effortlessly back there.
The Amazon’s paint scheme is terrific, with an excellent and realistic skin tone and these incredible paint tampo tattoos that are intricate and fantastic. They bring a ton of character to the figure and the paint masks used to produce them are spectacular. I love the look.
Like the Spartans, she has nearly flawless articulation, and with the Amazon they even added rocker ankles which only serves to enhance the realism of the way she can pose. I have had very mixed reactions with rocker ankles in other toylines as they can sometimes be fragile or cause the foot pegs to not fit in all the way. Neither of these appears to be an issue with the Amazon, as her ankles tilt perfectly, yet still maintain a nicely deep heel hole for the foot peg. I really like the sculpted sandals on her feet as well. I am exceedingly impressed with my first exposure to a human female figure within the Vitruvian HACKS line and fine myself antsy for their fantasy series. My aforementioned six year old daughter has a major affinity for fairies and has already asked me to give her one of the HACKS fairies for her birthday.
As much as I love the structural qualities of the Amazon, it’s the paint deco that really makes it shine, with the combination of skin tone, warpaint (tattoos?), bright silver armor and the dark leather skirt. She’s a very vibrant and exciting looking figure.
ACCESSORIES
The Amazon Elite Warrior is extremely well accessorized. She comes with two axes, two separate helmets, a shield, a sword, and a spear. The shield has a new deco which looks really great. Like the other female Gorgons, she can hold her shield much better than the male figures, and looks truly imposing once she’s all decked out with her gear.
Exclusive domestically to Kokomo Toys and internationally to All the Cool Stuff, this Amazon Elite Warrior has been selling quite briskly. If you want one for yourself (as well you should) you should pull the trigger quickly. She’s got great construction, terrific articulation, and a really exciting paint scheme which all combines to give us a really great figure and an excellent introduction to the female human form within Vitruvian HACKS.
Capable of going toe-to-toe with any enemy on Earth, the fearless Amazon Elite Warriors look like the bad ass soldiers they are. Great sculpting, impressive articulation (with some rocker ankles that are actually functional!) and intricate detailed paint work, this is a figure for the Gorgons to fear. Available in very limited quantities domestically from Kokomo Toys and internationally from All The Cool Stuff, she is the perfect compliment to your Spartan army. A great figure!
I have to think that there will come a time when receiving a new Vitruvian HACKS figure isn’t such a special occasion. Sometime, maybe a few years down the road, after I own a few series of figures, it’ll just be kind of “oh, cool, a new HACKS shipment”.
For now, though? Not so much. At this point, the arrival of a new HACKS action figure is something to be celebrated and something to get very excited for, even when it’s an exclusive item that is little more than a repainted version of an existing figure.
In truth, though, the New Jersey Collectors’ Con Ultimate Spartan figure is more than just a repainted figure, especially so early in the line’s life. He comes with a wealth of different accessories, some of which have not been seen yet, as well as a new head sculpt, which looks to be the same head that’s coming with Leonidas, though I’m not 100% certain of that yet.
For the most part, the Ultimate Spartan is the same base figure as the standard release Spartan with the excellent sculpting and articulation we’ve already gotten used to with other figures. He has fantastic range of motion in his elbows and knees, and I just love the number of different dynamic poses he can get into, just like the other figures. I find that I don’t mind the fact that he closely resembles other Spartans, as it makes it a bit easier to troop build and add some variety to your Spartan legions.
I really like the Leonidas head sculpt with the longer, bushier beard and pretty distinctive look on his face. I would encourage Boss Fight to find a way to maybe get more spare heads out in accessory packs, because once Leonidas is released, I would think you might want to differentiate the ground troops a little bit more. The Blanks will be a good start, but I know I’m not a big fan of eye painting.
The Ultimate Spartan paint deco is pretty fantastic as well. Covered from head to toe in realistic mud/blood spatter he looks like a trooper that has been through the worst that battle has to offer. His skin tone is a bit darker than the other Spartan as well, which is a nice addition to the figure. The spatter detail work is absolutely fantastic with different layers of color differences that really make the figure stand out look exciting. I love that detail work, and although I only bought a single standard Spartan Warrior, I made sure to get a couple of the Ultimates, as it makes sense to me that the ground troops would be the ones that got themselves a little dirtied up.
ACCESSORIES
Aside from the addition of the really nice spatter detail, the Ultimate Spartan comes with a ton of accessories, many of which we have not yet seen before. Several different swords, the familiar scabbard and spear, four different helmets, two axes, two different shields, plus the armor and leather skirt that the standard Spartans come with. All of these different accessories really encourage army building as you can deck out a bunch of Spartans with a bunch of different accessories to really build out your Spartan army and have them look different. Each weapon fits seamlessly into the Spartan’s hand, with the exception of the shields, but that is a known issue at this point with that handle at the end.
Right now the recommendation is to remove the hand at the wrist, slip the shield handle on, then plug the hand back in.
As an exclusive to the New Jersey Collectors Con, the Ultimate Spartan is a pretty fantastic addition to an already robust line of Vitruvian HACKS figures. I remain ecstatic every time I get a new figure in the mail, and find a lot to love about pretty much every one of them. I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention the box art for the Ultimate Spartan as well. It really is fantastic. Very dramatic and really fun, a nice presentation for the NJCC exclusive.
Ultimate Spartan
Character
Sculpt
Articulation
Paint Deco
Accessories
4.3
Summary
As an exclusive to the 2016 Spring New Jersey Collectors’ Convention, the Ultimate Spartan is a significant repaint to the standard Spartan Warrior, and stands apart in nearly every way. With a plethora of fantastic accessories and a staggeringly brutal paint deco, the Ultimate Spartan has been in the bowels of war and looks the part. A fantastic figure and a great value, this is one you’ll want to get your hands on.
Disclaimer – I feel it only appropriate to mention that the folks behind Boss Fight Studios are close friends of mine, and I work alongside them assisting with web development and technical support.
All that being said, I will try as hard as I can to frame this review with an unbiased tilt, looking at Vitruvian HACKS as they stand, and not as creations of my good friends.
Disclaimer over.
Now, I’ve got a dramatic confession to make.
I really don’t care a whole lot for Greek Mythology.
Sure, there was that semester stretch in elementary school where we covered the Oddysey and it sounded pretty awesome, and then I watched Clash of the Titans, and that was pretty neat, too. Sure, I saw 300 and watched until I intimidated by Gerard Butler’s abs, and it was pretty entertaining as well.
But really, I don’t feel especially devoted to the overarcing theology that drives Greek myths. As the basis for many a comic book super hero I can really appreciate the characters and the superhuman beings sprinkled throughout, and the stories themselves are pretty deeply embedded into normal every day life. But if you’d asked me two years ago if I’d invest heavily in an action figure line surrounding Greek Mythology, I would have immediately said “no way.”
Well, I would have lied to you.
Because, you see, as much as I have no affinity for Greek Myths, I DO have an affinity for great toys, and I can say without qualm or hesitation that the first run of Vitruvian HACKS action figures are truly, unequivocably GREAT toys. They are the kinds of toys that transcend their source material and manage to appeal to those of us who aren’t quite as invested in the characters and theories surrounding them. Take a modern/futuristic military fan like me and get me to care about vintage armor, bladed weapons, and a surprisingly intricate storyline that ties things all together.
I think most folks reading this are probably G.I. Joe fans, and I think most of you folks would agree that G.I. Joe as a toyline reached a nadir recently in 2011 – 2012 with the Pursuit of Cobra/30th Anniversary/Renegades line where sculpting, articulation, and aesthetics just came together into one short burst of near perfection. Well, those same elements are in play here, and the results are pretty revolutionary.
The folks developing HACKS aren’t just developing great action figures, but they’re developing a whole new action figure system, allowing for great customization, and they’re engineering a whole new style of design, with the Gorgon snake tails and the way the humans pose and display.
For fans of 1:18 scale toys, no matter what style you prefer, there are things to like here. Not just like, but things to love.
Yes, it’s taken a while to get here. Boss Fight Studio is a new company and they have learned a LOT over the past couple of years, and I’m sure the learning process was painful for all concerned. But the first run of toys are here, and dare I say, they were worth the wait.
Check out more individual reviews of the product below:
Medusa’s most identifiable trait throughout all renditions of the character was, no doubt, the slithering snakes she had for hair. While Boss Fight Studio certainly included fantastic looking aspects of that, they decided to go a step further and put her into full on Gorgon “snake” mode, engineering, from scratch, a fully articulated snake’s tail using ball joints to try and mimic the pose and movement of a real snake.
Throughout the entire concept and design process, how this new engineering would work was probably my biggest question, especially since they used it on so many different characters.
Now, after seeing it born and evolved over the past couple of years, I’m ecstatic to say, it works GREAT. Like, really, really great. The sculpting and texture are amazing, Dave and Fred (the Boss Fight sculptors) put their usual 110% into the sculpting work of the scales and the contours of the under belly. What really puts me over the edge, though, is the material used. Over a solid plastic armature consisting of posts with ball and socket attachments, is a very soft, almost rubber snake skin, that allows for nice movement, but still bends and is contoured like you might expect an actual snake to be.
The weight and balance of the tail are both terrific, and it can twist and pose in many different ways, allowing the figure to be tightly coiled or slightly elevated, without risk of falling. It’s a terrific balance between aesthetics and functionality, and I’m ecstatic with how well the design team pulled it off.
Medusa’s torso and arms are the same as Coral and Black Racer Gorgons, tightly sculpted, but slender…however, even though they’re slender, they still remain very durable and highly articulated. I’m amazed at how thin the body is, yet how much movement it retains, as well as still feeling like it can take some punishment. In fact, I accidentally knocked Medusa off of a display shelf from about five feet up onto my concrete floor, and she remained fully intact afterwards.
Looking at paint applications, Medusa is fantastic, with a great shade of greek skin and a really nicely developed pattern on her snake body. The overall combinations of different shades of green really looks spectacular together. The head sculpt as well, is immaculately done with all of her separate snakes sprouting from her head and her hissing, angry mouth. Intricate paint details abound here as well, making her look nasty and about as realistic as a green, snake-haired reptile woman can look.
But her nastiness doesn’t stop with attacking humans. She comes with what look to be a dagger and whip made out of reptilian backbones, very nicely designed. They are a rubbery material, but don’t seem to be at all warped.
Her armor is different from the other two Gorgon releases, with a great shoulder pad and brushed metal armor on her right arm, a really nice looking breastplate (removable if you take her apart at the mid-section joint) and nice armor at her hips as well. This does a great job differentiating her from the more standard Gorgon “infantry” and gives her a sense of leadership. It would be pretty awesome so stockpile some other Gorgons and perhaps outfit some with this various of armor to make “Black Racer Leaders” or what have you.
No doubt I’ve been excited to finally get my hands on the Vitruvian HACKS figures, and I dare say that my expectations have actually been not just met, but beaten. The material of the snake tail is fantastic, and even though I know these designers well, I had my own doubts about how well they’d pull off the snake body. Well, they pulled it off in spades. The figure looks beautiful, and even better, is exceptionally playable, meaning you can pose it around and just have fun with it. In a time when retail offerings seem to just be continuously offering collectors more of the same, it’s a brisk breath of fresh air to get my hands on something like this, which is offering a completely new outlook on 1:18 scale action figures, and is a line I can see a long and rewarding future from.
Medusa
Character
Sculpt
Articulation
Paint Deco
Accessories
4.5
Summary
The queen of the Gorgons is certainly representative of her namesake, with her vicious, green, reptilian tail, horrific, stone-turning face, and the countless slithering snakes emerging from her scalp. She is the most sinister representation of Medusa that I’ve ever seen in plastic form and perfect in execution. Her highly articulated snake tail balances and poses well, is full of detail, and from head to toe…. errr… head to tail, she is one of the most fun action figures I’ve displayed in a very long time.
