Here's an up-close look at the 6-inch Mr. Freeze action figure by DC Collectibles and I promise not to use a single cold-related pun.
Big thanks to DC Collectibles for supplying Batman News with a figure for review!
This figure is from the first wave (Batman, Catwoman, Mr. Freeze, and Two-Face) released last fall and it's a perfectly sculpted tribute to the character design first seen in the New Batman Adventures (not to be confused with The New Adventures of Batman).
As you can see by the photo above, the character has 26 points of articulation including ball-joints at the neck, shoulders, elbows, and wrists. He towers over the other characters in the collection and is made from a relatively hard plastic that can make some postures difficult since the arms can't go terribly high. Of course, Mr. Freeze isn't exactly famous for being all that limber to begin with, but still he was always a straight-shooter and this toy can't aim the freeze gun head-on. That other classic Mr. Freeze feature, the glass (plastic) dome, is removable so you can also re-position Freeze's gaze wherever you like. While the sculpt is as perfect of a 3D rendering of the 2D animation as anyone could hope for, the paintwork could have been better. Some of the blue bleeds onto the black and I wish that the black had a light gloss to prevent fingerprints or other blemishes (it would've also given the armor a nice metallic sheen), but as a $25 figure it's still looks pretty terrific.
As I said earlier, this is not the Batman: The Animated Series character design by Hellboy creator Mike Mignola, a design which Bruce Timm requested. Instead, this is the depiction of Mr. Freeze that was seen in his one and only New Batman Adventures appearance, "Cold Comfort." Like all New Batman Adventures designs, Mr. Freeze appeared more svelte and sleek, but unlike those other characters, Mr. Freeze's new look was an integral part of his story. In "Cold Comfort" Nora Freeze has been cured but Victor's condition has deteriorated to such a horrifying degree that he's nothing more than a head atop a robot body. And, back to the figure itself, the unforgettable visual of Freeze's head popping out of its vessel to crawl away on creepy spider legs is recaptured in this new action figure! Those disturbing mechanical spider legs are included as well as a few other important accessories.
The four legs fit into the base of Victor's removable head, but it's hard to secure them inside their respective notches because the greatest flaw of these Animated Series figures is that they feel a little too delicate. And after everything I've read about the Catwoman figure's arms snapping in half I decided not to go all the way with assembling spider-Freeze. If you actually want to display the figure like that then it might be worth the risk but personally I don't want to get a $25 toy with this many points of articulation and only show off the head.
Other accessories include the oh-so-important freeze gun in matte black, three extra pairs of hands (two open and one clenched, all of which have a movable wrist), and a snazzy stand. Despite those narrow Timm-style legs, Mr. Freeze can be positioned upright on his own, but who's going to complain about the added support and stability of this stylish stand decorated with the show's logo and three different perspectives of the original character design.
Overall
It looks fantastic, comes with some nice accessories, and is available at an affordable price. On the downside, while it's a spot-on sculpt, it also feels like you could break it if you're not careful while recreating your favorite iconic pose. I love this figure and am a big fan of all the incarnations of Mr. Freeze we saw on Timm's cartoons so here's hoping there's a Batman: The Animated Series and Batman Beyond version of Mr. Freeze coming soon!
