Author Topic: Lord of the Rings: Armies of Middle Earth  (Read 17451 times)

Offline BigDumbWookiee

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Re: Lord of the Rings: Armies of Middle Earth
« Reply #15 on: August 6, 2003, 07:18 PM »
JJ - They are substantially smaller than 3 3/4" figures.

Got my first set today, so I thought I'd give you guys a little review:

San Diego Comic Con Exclusive Weathertop 3 Pack
Contains: 2 Unique Ringwraiths, 1 Uniqe (exclusive to set) Twilight Frodo



Ringwraiths:
From looking at pictures, these Ringwraiths are different than those available in the standard retail sets. So if you want more unique Ringwraiths, this set is great :) They are also different from the Action Figure Express exclusive Weathertop set, which contains three Ringwraiths (One may be close though).

The Ringwraiths do not have articulation, but come in very awesome poses. The weapons are also removable, as well as are the bases. The sculpts are top notch, and the paint application is superb.

Twilight Frodo:
Same sculpt as standard Frodo, but in clear "twilight" plastic. A very nice sculpt, also has a removable weapon and base. Not too much paint, because its clear, but there is a little, to give the figure depth and dimension. The base on this figure is a little tricky, and wont hold under its own weight (so if you pick up the fig, the base usually falls off). However, once you stand the figure, it will stay put fairly well.

So, on a ten point scale:

Ringwraiths:
Paint: 10/10
Articulation: N/A
Sculpt: 10/10
Accessories: 10/10 (no other extras are really necessary)

Frodo:
Paint: 10/10 (for the little paint there is
Articulation: 8/10 (Head and arms, legs on this version dont appear to be articulated)
Sculpt: 10/10
Accessories: 10/10 (once again, not much call for extra crap)

I had to pay secondary market price on this, so cant make comments on the price value.

Definately glad I broke into the world of collecting these! :)

So far, the only brick-and-mortar store I've seen these at is Super Target. I visited two other Target stores (one finished with the reset, the other almost done), and neither of them had them. Maybe regular Target doesnt have them?

Also, Toys R Us.com has an upcoming exclusive set (making the number of exclusives 4 so far). It's a Helm's Deep 10 pack, with exclusive King Theoden on Horseback. Looks like a great set, especially if you want to build a Helm's Deep set :)

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B00009AA40/qid=1060211427/sr=1-10/ref=sr_1_10/103-6909182-2789420?v=glance&s=toys

The AFX exclusive Weathertop set is still available to order at www.actionfigureexpress.com

The exclusive Gollum is still available for free with $40.00 purchase at www.kbtoys.com

This convention exclusive (will it be at WW Chicago?) set is currently only available on the secondary market. The packaging didnt say anything about SDCC, so maybe you can snag it at WWC.
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Offline Darby

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Re: Lord of the Rings: Armies of Middle Earth
« Reply #16 on: August 6, 2003, 07:24 PM »
I saw these for the first time today at Target, and after taking one look at them, I was like, "Wow, so not collecting these."  They are significantly smaller than I imagined (I knew they were small, but yikes) and made no impression on me sculpt wise.  The sculpt and paint deco on a lot of the figs I saw left a lot to be desired.

That said, the two Uruk Hai sets (battering ram etc.) left me wondering WHY ON EARTH Toy Biz has yet to make a Helm's Deep Armored Uruk.  A gaggle of kids and Soccer Moms exploded when they saw these, leading me to believe that kids will find this line a much better (and cheaper) alternative to Toy Biz.

I did buy one Gandalf on Shadowfax to put on top of my computer.  Gandalf inexplicably has red hair.   :-\

Offline BigDumbWookiee

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Re: Lord of the Rings: Armies of Middle Earth
« Reply #17 on: August 7, 2003, 08:38 PM »
Well, on with the reviews! :)

I don't have the Moria Orc pack, Im waiting for my free one from KBToys:



3 Packs:

Ringwraiths:
Contains two black cloak Ringwraiths, 1 Twilight Ringwraith. The two black cloak Ringwraiths are the same as those from the convention exclusive pack.

Ringwraiths:
Same as the above review, outstanding figures, and actually do have a little arm articulation! The ones above do too, but I just noticed. Both swords are unique sculpts!

Twilight Ringwraith
No base with this guy, his robes flair out and make a base (solid on the bottom). This is probably the best painted figure of them all. Incredible paint job, nice arm articulation, and superior sculpt. Cool sword as well!

Ringwraiths:
Paint: 10/10
Articulation: 8/10
Sculpt: 10/10
Accessories: 10/10 (no other extras are really necessary)

Twilight Ringwraith:
Paint: 10/10
Articulation: 8/10
Sculpt: 10/10
Accessories: 10/10 (no other extras are really necessary)



Weathertop:

Contains Frodo, Sam, Ringwraith

Ringwraith:
Unique sculpt, bringing the total so far to three unique Ringwraiths! A more interesting pose as well, showing more under armour.

Frodo:
Same sculpt as Twilight Frodo. Sting sword has little engraving on the blade. Above average paint job. Base is tricky to get to stay on. Articulated head, arms, waist

Sam:
Really neat sculpt with a cool backpack, has a removable sword. Good paint job. Really back heavy though, and the base kind of sucks (we wont stand on it properly) so he ends up falling over if not propped up. Articulated head, arms, waist

Ringwraith:
Paint: 10/10
Articulation: 8/10
Sculpt: 10/10
Accessories: 10/10 (no other extras are really necessary)

Frodo:
Paint: 8/10
Articulation: 8/10
Sculpt: 10/10
Accessories: 8/10 because the base sucks

Sam:
Paint: 8/10
Articulation: 8/10
Sculpt: 7/10 for being backheavy, doesnt fit right on base
Accessories: 8/10 for a bad base



Rohan:
Contains Eomer, Eowyn, Rohan Soldier

Eomer:
What a great sculpt! Very nicely done armour! Intricately detailed sword, standard articulation. The armour is painted very well. Probably the second best figure so far (just under Twilight Ringwraith)

Rohan Soldier:
Decent figure with an umcomfortable looking pose. Nice armour and sword and has a cool arm shield. Leans a little bit, because of the pose.

Eowyn:
This figure blows. Not only is it kind of a weird choice, but the sculpt and paint arent so great either. Her hand that should hold her sword is a stubby mit, I had to cut into it to jab the dang sword in there.

Eomer:
Paint: 10/10
Articulation: 9/10
Sculpt: 10/10
Accessories: 10/10 for a great base and sword

Rohan Footsoldier:
Paint: 9/10 for being a little sloppy in areas
Articulation: 8/10
Sculpt: 8/10 for leaning
Accessories: 8/10 for a disapointing base

Eowyn:
Paint: 6/10 for being bland and poorly done
Articulation: 8/10
Sculpt: 4/10 for a hand that cant hold the damn sword and loose arms
Accessories: 8/10 for moderate accessories



Rider Sets:

Ringwraith on horseback:
Very awesome figure! Looks like it was taken right out of the movie! The horse is great and looks just as cool as the Ringwraith. Nice removable sword! Figure is permanately attached to horse, and the horse to the base

Ringwraith on Horseback:
Paint: 10/10
Articulation: 7/10 for one arm
Sculpt: 10/10
Accessories: 8/10 for cool accessories, but figure not removable from horse, nor is the horse from the base



Gandalf the White on Shadowfax:
A very cool figure, with a nice pose taken out of the movie. Not really many complaints on this. You can take the horse off the base, but it wouldnt do any good (the horse stands on its hind legs). The bad thing on this is the attempted weathering on Gandalf's hair, which makes it look red.

Gandalf the White on Shadowfax:
Paint: 8/10 for red haird Gandalf
Articulation: N/A
Sculpt: 9/10 because it could use improving
Accessories: 9/10 for a cool staff and removable base



Aragorn on Horseback:
Nice looking sculpt, cool sword and nicely done horse. Base is decent, but horse cant be removed and the base with him is pretty warped.

Aragorn on Horseback:
Paint: 9/10
Articulation: 7/10 for one arm
Sculpt: 9/10
Accessories: 9/10 for a warped base



Sharku on Warg:
A VERY cool figure! Sharku looks absolutely fantastic, and is a good contender for best figure if he was a stand alone. The Warg is also cool, but the paint job is kind of weak. Sharku has two weapons, both removable! No articulation. You can take the Warg off the base though, and it stands pretty well without it.

Sharku on Warg:
Paint: 8/10 because the Warg is weak. Sharku would get a 10/10 though
Articulation: N/A
Sculpt: 10/10 because its top notch all around, well balanced and looks cool
Accessories: 10/10 for having two kick ass weapons and a removable base (and the ability to display the figure and have it look right without said base).

Overall, Im very happy with the entire line! I hate the Eowyn figure, Sam's drunken pose and constant falling pissed me off, and last I checked, it was Gandalf the White, not Gandalf the Red. Other than that, top notch stuff!

Stay tuned for more! My next review will cover Kazad-Dum, Orthanc Chambers, Moria Orc 3 Pack and Gollum.

Also coming soon, Weathertop 8 Pack (Action Figure Express), Helm's Deep 10 Pack (Toys R Us) and as soon as I find the damn things, the Siege Ballista and Battering Ram sets! :)
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Offline Scott

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Re: Lord of the Rings: Armies of Middle Earth
« Reply #18 on: August 8, 2003, 10:28 AM »
Adam, your enthusiasm for this line is slowly sucking me in, got to stop reading these posts :-*  Sounds great!

Offline BigDumbWookiee

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Re: Lord of the Rings: Armies of Middle Earth
« Reply #19 on: August 8, 2003, 04:59 PM »
I'm really happy with the line so far :)

The Balrog from the Kazad-Dum set looks like it will be underscaled though :( I should have one soon

Eowyn still sucks though......
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Offline Ben

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Re: Lord of the Rings: Armies of Middle Earth
« Reply #20 on: August 8, 2003, 09:00 PM »
I cracked and bought the Ringwraith on Horse set. It's pretty wicked, but it's hard to screw up something as simple as this.

I like the Frodo/Sam/Ringwraith set. That'll probably be my next purchase. I wanted to buy Gandalf, but he isn't exactly white. Is it so hard to paint a Gandalf the White figure white? It's taken two companies and neither of them can nail it.
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Offline BigDumbWookiee

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Re: Lord of the Rings: Armies of Middle Earth
« Reply #21 on: August 8, 2003, 09:17 PM »
Yeah, I wasn't impressed with the red in Gandalf's hair either. I think their goal was to give his hair dimension, but they could have used a less obtrusive color, like gray. I think part of it may have to do with the peach color in his face as well, which could have blended into the hair. Just an explanation though, not an excuse...

And damn that drunken Sam. He wont stand on his own (at least with his base flat on a surface). Also a bit of a problem with Aragorn's horse leaning, but it may just settle and not be very noticeable.

Im actually warming up to the Rohan Soldier though! But the one thing that really sucks is that his head wont turn to the left, so you're going to have an army of right handed Rohan soldiers who also only fight on their right side. He does have nice arm and waist articulation though, and a little handywork might get his head to turn left.

I just wish they'd release character packs and army builder packs. Like the upcoming Elf pack; it will have Haldir in it, which means I have to build a Haldir army if I want an elf army. The only true army builder pack in Series 1 (or 2 for the matter)is the goblin (moria orc) pack. Luckily other packs will have generic army builders, like the TRU exclusive set will have a lot of generics in it. The ballista and battering ram have generic Uruks. Maybe once the line gets in full swing, there will be more completely generic packs. I'm not happy with the fact that there arent any regular Aragorn, Legolas or Gimli figures planned for the first 4 series (although there is a Legolas and Aragorn in Helms Deep armor with the Helm's Deep set). But, they will probably come out with this stuff eventually. I want to build a nice Amon Hen.

The good news is, there will be 4 series by the time ROTK is released! :) 4 Series of 3 packs, 4 Series of Riders, 2 weapons/warrios sets, 4 small playsets, 1 large Helm's Deep set.

Oh, did I mention Eowyn sucks?  ;D
« Last Edit: August 8, 2003, 09:26 PM by BigDumbWookiee »
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Offline BigDumbWookiee

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Re: Lord of the Rings: Armies of Middle Earth
« Reply #22 on: August 8, 2003, 09:20 PM »
Did I miss the scene where Eowyn gets all of her fingers on her sword bearing hand cut off, and she galavants around with just a mit and a thumb stub?



What sucks more, as you can see on her left arm (your right side in the picture), her sleeves hang down from each arm, so unless you want gravity defying sleeves, you can only put her in one pose (which in fact, is NOT the pose pictured)
« Last Edit: August 8, 2003, 09:29 PM by BigDumbWookiee »
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Offline Scott

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Re: Lord of the Rings: Armies of Middle Earth
« Reply #23 on: August 8, 2003, 09:22 PM »
Damn you Adam! (And Brent!)  I caved and bought Gandalf, Frodo pack and Ringwraith pack, nothing more I tell you!  Nothing!

Offline BigDumbWookiee

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Re: Lord of the Rings: Armies of Middle Earth
« Reply #24 on: August 8, 2003, 09:28 PM »
You want them aalllllllllllllllllllllllll! AAAAAAAAAALLLLLLLLLLLL I TELL YOU! :)

Except Eowyn. She sucks.
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Offline BigDumbWookiee

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Re: Lord of the Rings: Armies of Middle Earth
« Reply #25 on: August 10, 2003, 10:14 PM »
Here is an absolutely fantastic set! Even if you dont want to collect the whole line, any LOTR fan would like this:

http://www.kbtoys.com/genProduct.html/PID/2441159/ctid/17?_ts=y&ls=default

A Fellowship of the Ring 9 Pack! WITH BILL THE PONY! :)

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Offline Scott

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Re: Lord of the Rings: Armies of Middle Earth
« Reply #26 on: August 11, 2003, 12:53 PM »
Yep, definite must buy right there Adam, nothing else damn it!

Offline Scott

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Re: Lord of the Rings: Armies of Middle Earth
« Reply #27 on: August 11, 2003, 12:54 PM »
Damn, maybe this



Helm's Deep

Offline BigDumbWookiee

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Re: Lord of the Rings: Armies of Middle Earth
« Reply #28 on: August 11, 2003, 03:13 PM »
Well, naturally, if you get the Helm's Deep set, you need to get lots of Orcs, Elves and Humans to go with it ;) And the Orcish siege weapons of course.

You'd probably be best off just collecting the whole line  ;D
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Offline Scott

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Re: Lord of the Rings: Armies of Middle Earth
« Reply #29 on: August 11, 2003, 03:24 PM »
[jedimindtrick]You will not tempt me any more[/jedimindtrick]