A look at Hot Toys 1/6 War Machine's articulation design and other gimmicks in this posting. ^^
[Head]
Horizontal and vertical movement enabled by the ball-type neck joint shown in Part 2.
[Body]
Very much like the neck joint, there's a joint inside the abdomen that allows the upper body to tilt forward and backward, ...
... and to move from side to side.
It's impossible to be seen unless the entire body is dismantled, but I believe the abdomen's articulation is enabled by a ball-type joint, probably one that is much bigger than the neck joint. ^^
The plate between the chest and abdomen can be moved on its own. It can be expanded to minimize the gap between the chest and abdomen when the body is tilted backward; it can be retracted into the chest area when the body is bent to the front.
[Shoulders and arms]
About 90 degrees outward-bend for the shoulder, which is restricted by the shoulder armor actually. ^^;
The upper arm has a separated joint that allows the former to be bent separately of the shoulder joint, just like most other action figures.
Maximum outward bend for the upper arm.
The movement is restricted by the thick bicep armor, which is already colliding with the armpit in the image above. ^^;
(Left) Picture taken with camera flash on, revealing the hinge-type shoulder joint, and it's just made of just ABS plastic it seems. ^^
(Right) In normal display, the joint is well hidden by the armor pieces.
The shoulder armor is spring loaded to constantly keep it in place with the upper arm.
Picture taken with camera flash on to somewhat reveal the spring between the shoulder armor and upper arm.
Just 90 degrees bend for the elbow.
The wrist is of ball-type joint, as revealed in Part 2. The wrist guard can move via a hinge joint.
[Legs]
Maximum expansion range of the hip joint. ^^;
(Left) The hip movement is limited by the "cap" on the side of the thigh (the same component on Tony Stark's Mk. III suit is a countermeasure dispenser).
(Right) Picture taken with camera flash on to somewhat reveal the hip joint. ^^
A separate joint allows the thigh (and entire leg in that sense) to move unrestricted by the hip joint.
About 45 degrees for the leg's forward bend.
Rather restricted articulation for the knee joint.
The same articulation range can be considered as weak on other figures, but given the weight of War Machine and how difficult it will be to maintain a high-maneuver pose, the knee's articulation is just right I would say. ^^
(Left) Without any movement applied, the knee cap can cover the silver joint area very well.
(Right) On the back of the knee, you can find a perfect match between the "panel lines" of the knee joint and the lower leg's joint.
As the knee cap is attached to the center of the joint, there are two well "balanced" split areas on the knee joint when it's bent. The "rail track" details on the joint is very nicely done as well. ^^
Apart from the ankle, the front portion of the foot can move for a slight degree as well. The movable ankle guard compliments the foot's forward bend very well.
Very simple-looking piston-like joint for the ankle, which reminds me of the same kind of design on Soul of Chogokin GX-48 The Big O, ^^ but unlike the latter, no die-cast part is used for War Machine's joint.
For some reasons, the rear skirt armor is made of soft plastic. ^^
Even though the articulation design isn't that super, it's still much better than the previous Hot Toys action figure reviewed - Jill Valentine BSAA Ver. as none of War Machine's movement is restricted by any fabric. ^^;
Done with introducing this Hot Toys figure's articulation design, moving on to its other gimmicks: ^^
[Thruster panels]
The two large flaps on the back can be expanded to reveal War Machine's main back thrusters.
Small as they are, the details and paint work are just as well done as the rest of the figure.
You can see a smaller cover on each of the thrusters. ^^
Two smaller panels beneath the main thrusters can be opened to reveal a set of small thrusters.
The calf armor can be flipped upward to reveal the leg thruster.
The really neat design of this component is the pair of supporting arms with double hinge-joint connecting between the thruster and its armor. Being functional is one thing, the look of the arms really adds to the thruster's details and feel. ^^
Most of the time, the supporting arms don't fold out to be completely straight, as shown in the image above.
The supporting arms can be straightened very easily using tweezers. ^^
Movable calf armor, thruster, smaller fixed thruster armor and a pair of functional supporting arms for each leg, all which are considered just one of the many features on this figure. ^^
Since the various thrusters are proportionately smaller as compared to the other body components, it's not easy to distinguish between the looks with thrusters on or off. ^^;
War Machine's first takeoff from "Iron Man 2".
The figure's design for the leg thruster isn't as bombastic as its movie appearance, but the look and function are still pretty awesome to see and experience. ^^
[Shoulder missile pod] - Right shoulder only.
To "uncover" the missile pod, the lower panel must be pushed down first to reveal a tiny gap for the little flat head screwdriver (shown in Part 1) to reach in and spring the upper panel upward.
The upper panel is lifted until the entire component is exposed and free from its container.
The upper panel is bent outward to reveal the missiles. ^^
As shown in the instruction sheet, you can push the missile pod outward to create a little bit more clearance between the weapon and War Machine's cheek.
The missiles are fixed, but the same nice detailing and weathering effect as seen on the entire figure is observable on the pod. ^^
The "ramp" inside the shoulder container would be lifted for a slight degree when the missile pod's arm is bent backward.
The missile pod itself has a dedicated joint that allows for horizontal and vertical movement. ^^
[The "Ex-Wife"] - Left shoulder only.
Opening and revealing the missile launcher is exactly the same as the right shoulder's missile pod, minus the last step of bending it to the side that is. ^^
The upper panel is lifted further upward and pushed to the back a little bit to completely reveal the launcher.
The little flap beneath the launcher is movable.
Closeup on the launcher's details.
Tremendous cage-design that allows you to see through the entire missile launcher. ^^
Rear view of the entire component.
The "Ex-Wife" itself. ^^
The "Ex-Wife" from the movie.
Except for the rear thruster, the sculpt and paint work of the figure's representation of this weapon is quite accurate.
The size is just right I suppose, as seen from the comparison of the missile's size to one of War Machine's hand versus the movie version's to Justin Hammer's "unarmored" hand from the two images earlier on.
Inserting the missile into its launcher.
The "Ex-Wife".
The most "awesome" moment in War Machine's final fight in "Iron Man 2" XD
Much like its application in the movie, the "Ex-Wife" itself isn't that impressive as compared to all the other accessories and gimmicks on this figure - I actually like its container more than the missile itself. ^^
As a matter of fact, even Justin Hammer's (played by Sam Rockwell in the movie) boast about the "Ex-Wife" is more impressive than the weapon itself. XD
"These are the Cubans, baby. This is the Cohibas, the Montecristos. This is a kinetic-kill, side-winder vehicle with a secondary cyclotrimethylenetrinitramine RDX burst. It's capable of busting a bunker under the bunker you just busted. If it were any smarter, it'd write a book, a book that would make Ulysses look like it was written in crayon. It would read it to you. This is my Eiffel Tower. This is my Rachmaninoff's Third. My Pieta. It's completely elegant, it's bafflingly beautiful, and it's capable of reducing the population of any standing structure to zero. I call it "The Ex-Wife." " - from IMDB.
Could you please say the word "cyclotrimethylenetrinitramine" again? XD
It would be even more impressive if the container can light up to show the missile in standby mode. ^^
Not shown in the previous posting, here are some shots of War Machine featuring the option head unit with Don Cheadle's face.
Some of War Machine's action poses coming up in the next posting. ^^
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