The Baroness (Desert Ambush)

It was perhaps not the best example of what the movie line would give us, but lo and behold several months ago, the first glimpse we got of the upcoming Rise of COBRA line was this version of the Baroness, and the fandom outrage was palpable. It didn't help that we had gotten the COBRA 5-Pack version had recently been released, and this appeared to be a step in the wrong direction. But ultimately, it's not so bad, it's just got one glaring fault that ends up bringing the entire figure into a more negative light.

If you can't tell, the most prominent feature (and the worst one) on this figure is the face. It's funny, actually, as there was some publication a month or two ago where Sienna Miller apparently asked for some resculpting done to her... backside, I guess. It seems funny that she was concerned about that when the face sculpt looks so absolutely horrid.

I try to give the Hasbro sculptors the benefit of the doubt where possible, especially when you figure they must have used some scanning system for the actor likenesses, but whatever happened with this figure, something went sideways, because that face not only doesn't look anything like Sienna Miller, I think it looks more like Dennis Miller. A clean-shaven Dennis Miller in a brown wig, but, still...

What really is too bad is that besides that one fault, the figure is actually not bad at all.

From the neck down, the figure is slender, well-proportioned, and well sculpted to resemble the layered leather outfit that the character wears in the film, yet there is very full range of motion in pretty much every joint you can see. Elbows, shoulders, hips, the whole nine yards. If you can think of a position (keep it clean...) then this figure can pretty much match it.

Hasbro elected to use a mixture of sculpting and paint apps to simulate the different straps and parts of the Baroness costume, and it's relatively successful. The silver painted leg holster straps are sort of iffy, but still get the point across.

I've mentioned in other reviews that for some reason we're getting a lot less functional holsters and sheaths with these movie figures, and that continues here. Hasbro gets around it somewhat with The Baroness as they attached pegs to her two pulse pistols which can, in turn, plug into two holes on her legs. It works to a certain extent, and matches how they're connected in the film, so it's all good with me.

The Baroness is another figure that looks like she's absolutely loaded in the package with a ton of gear, but ends up not having quite as much as I thought. The spring-loaded launcher and rocket is fairly forgettible, though, I really love the movie accurate pistols and briefcase! That's a very important briefcase in the story, too, so it's cool to see it included. I also love that it opens and fits four of the nanomite warheads, too, that is a cool touch that also ties nicely into the film.

At first I was not exactly sure how her grappling thing is supposed to work, but once I read the IDW Rise of COBRA adaptation, it became a lot more clear:

Very cool, I think. The Gunship even has handles underneath to accomodate it!

Lastly, I do think Hasbro did a pretty good job on her sunglasses. Granted, I would rather she come with regular clear glasses, but the removable eyewear is really nice. It hooks into her hair and stays on her face remarkably well, yet can be removed fairly easily, too. I find it odd that both figures so far have the shades instead of the standard see through lenses, but perhaps that's a production related issue.

Decent sculpting from the neck down, somewhat bland, but okay paint applications, and servicable accessories give you an all around fairly average figure. She isn't nearly as bad as her horrible head sculpt would indicate, but there's nothing to really write home about either. The Paris Pursuit version has been spotted, so personally I'd wait for that one, even though I believe it shares the same head. At least the guns look really cool.

Thankfully this figure, even though it was the first one we saw, is no real indication of the quality of the Rise of COBRA figures. It really only gets better from here.

Buy this figure at Big Bad Toy Store

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