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By Hervé St.Louis
March 16, 2005 - 09:22
The Darkseid and Orion Set
Part of Jack Kirby's DCComics' Fourth World legacy, Darkseid and his son Orion are some of the most powerful beings in the universe. First appearing in Superman's Pal Jimmy Olsen #134, 1970 (Darkseid) and The New Gods #1 published in 1971 (Orion), father and son have battled each other often. Exchanged at birth with Scott Free, also known as Mr Miracle, in peace treaty High Father, the leader of the New Genesis raised Orion. Darkseid, his father, is one of the greatest foes of Earth and its heroes.
Darkseid
Likeness
Hallmarks of Darseid are his strong chin and wrinkled skin. DCDirect has not based this Darkseid on Jack Kirby's. It is more similar to Parris Cullins, John Byrne's and the one drawn by Keith Giffen in the Legion of Super Heroes' Great Darkness Saga. As such this is a modern rendition of the character.
Sculpt
The sculpt is great. All of Darkseid's skin is cracked, as if he had a thick crust cooked on his skin. He has a short nose and a crooked mouth. There are lots of folds on his costume. He looks ready for battle and menacing. One defect is that DC Direct sculpted his mother box within his left hand. Although he's supposed to be obsessed by it, an alternate hand without the props would have been better.
Paint
The paint job is good and simple. There's lots of toning across Darkseid's skin. It makes the cracks look better. His teeth have yellow hues. His eye sockets are dark, making them stand out when his eyes light up. His eye's base colour, when not lit up are dark brown. Darkseid's costume has no highlights, unfortunately.
Scale
Darkseid's scale is why many collectors abhor this figure. Although taller than most Silver Age DC Direct action figures, he does not topple over most all. Darkseid is not too short as many would have you believe. His eye level is higher than the JLA Wonder Woman, and she is one of the tallest DC Direct action figures. Darkseid is shorter than the Martian Manhunter or the Modern Superman. The reason many think Darkseid is too short is because he is not bulky.
Stability
Darkseid's stability is shaky! When I first got him, he could not stand on his own. These days, thanks to the weather, years and his weight, he can! Still, I suggest putting him on an action figure stand. Without, he leans forward easily which will topple him at any occasion. Yet his feet are flat and legs strong enough to support his body's weight.
Articulation
Darkseid has six articulations at the neck, the shoulders, the forearms and the waist. Darkseid is a statue bellow his waist, but the sculpt is beautiful enough that it doesn't matter. Darkseid's arms articulations give him enough posing capabilities, coupled with his personality to forgive the lack of articulations in the elbows, the hips and the knees. The sculpted folds in his gloves make it seem as if he truly is twisting his wrists.
Darkseid Orion
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