Deadshot by DC Direct (Identity Crisis series 1)

DC Comics Toys
Deadshot by DC Direct (Identity Crisis series 1)
By Big Bear
February 27, 2007 - 22:48

Otherwise known as Floyd Lawton, Deadshot first appeared in Batman # 59, in 1950. I first saw him as a member of the Suicide Squad a few years ago and was intrigued by the character, but never really read up on him. Recently he made a splash on the Justice League cartoon series when he tried to kill Aqua-Man. Now that he had a part to play in the "Villains United" and "Identity Crisis" storylines, he seems to be hotter than ever. While I admit that I know very little about him, since this is the first time that Deadshot has ever been featured as an action figure, he looked to cool to pass up. Add on the fact that he is a Batman villain is also a great touch, as this figure looks like he could take on Bats while pumping shots at the Punisher.

Likeness

The likeness is based on his curent costume design which can be found in Identity Crisis, Villains United, and Infinite Crisis. He looks like something that came to life off of the sketch pad of Michael Turner. Since Mr. Turner's art is so popular these days, action figures collectors will not be disappointed.

Sculpt

I have to give it to DC Direct, their artist based sculpts are greatly improved, and Deadshot is no exception. Deadshot, as most of the figures in Identity Crisis series 1, are rendered beautifully. He looks like he can't wait to load the ammo and let loose. He has only one flaw: he is equipped with extra long arms. Sadly, they say fit to give Deadshot arms as long as a gorilla. This is an issue that is apparent with most of the figures in this particular toy line. This makes him look a little awkward when his arms are posed straight down on his sides. otherwise than that, Deadshot is truly a good looking piece.

Paint

Deadshot also has a great color scheme. Simple does it, and the basic colors of red and white is such a good look on this figure. Red is the base color for his costume, while the white is for his mask and crotch area. There are also accents of yellow on his gloves and feet, added with some silver give a little bit of flair that does not over do it on this figure. I had no problems with any color bleeding on my figure. Everything here is neat and straight up, just how I like it.

Scale

As far as scale goes, I can only compare him to the few DC Direct figures that I do own. Most of DC Direct's products are slightly bigger than Mattel's DC Super Heroes and the Marvel Legends by Toy Biz and Hasbro. He falls right in line with my Blackfire, and my JLA CLassified figures though. The height difference is normally a half to a full inch, which is not too bad in the world of action figures.

Stability

Deadshot is happily, a very stable figure. I have not had him fall over once when I would pose him. I barely even display him with his stand. He is a solid figure without any part of his body being to heavy that he may topple.

Articulation

I normally turn down many DC Direct figures due to pricing and lack of mobility. Well, I was happy to find that Deadshot was on sale and that he was chock full of movement. The long arms are aided with bending elbows and a very nice ball jointed shoulder. Deadshot even has a ball joint for his neck, which allows him to move his head left and right, as well as up and down. He comes with bonus movement as his forearms rotates as well as his wrists. This extra rotation is so that you can also ligne-up his wrsit mounted triggers in any motiont hat you want. Deadshot has cuts in his calves for rotating his boots. Also, his bending knees, and crotch cuts all aide to give him some very nice leg movement. The "T"-crotch gives him a limited riseto his kick, but he can extend the leg in the backward motion as if he were swimming or flying like Superman. He is very well articulated, with the only thing that he is missing is waist movement. However, Deadshot is so well designed and poseable that it makes you wish that Deathstroke action figure looked and functioned like him.

Plastic

The plastic used on Deadshot is very strurdy. I gave him a few falls off the table to test him and he came out fine. No marks or breaks. The soft parts of his mold are in his wrist shooters. He is naturally made of a more solid PVC in his face and torso. If properly taken care of, Deadshot should last you for years to come.

Props

Since his guns are mounted onto his wrsits, the only accessory is that he comes with an Identity Crisis stand in order to hold him up for posing.

Packaging

Deadshot is in a simple bubble card package. The front plastic case is an embossed design of shattered glass so that it displays the cover art of Michael Turner with a view of members of the JLA apparently in grief. The front plastic is designed as if everything is seen through a broken mirror. The artwork and color just add to the package design. On the back of the card is a very brief commentary on each figure in the assortment.

Cost

Normally, DC driect figures sell anywhere from $12.99 to $17.99. I was fortunate to get mine for $10.00 each.

Availability

If you can't find the Identity Crisis figures at your nearest comic shop, then try certain online sites such as: SciFigenre.com, MidtownComics.com, CMDStore.com, as well as Amazon.com.