I’ve had the INART Arkham Origins Batman figure for a little while now. I seem to never lack for material when it comes to this blog and it helps that I only make a post or two per week, but still, sitting on a review for over a month is unusual for me. And when it comes to this Batman action figure it’s not as if I’m not pleased with it. Far from it. It’s more that with INART the finished product is so good that I am almost at a loss for words. Even so, this is basically a review blog and I need to do my duty as an action figure enthusiast to talk about this Batman so let’s go!
INART, the 1:12 and 1:10 division of Queen Studios, has really exploded on the scene over the past year with some really incredible takes on characters from The Dark Knight Rises. I’m pretty sure I mentioned in the reviews of the figures I have, but I really didn’t have figures from the Christopher Nolan trilogy on my wish list any longer. I definitely didn’t have Catwoman on such a list. The figures from INART ended up being so good that I just couldn’t say “No.” And unlike a lot of products, action figures or otherwise, the in-hand experience with both was every bit as good as the promotional shots. When INART last year showed off its take on Batman from the video game Batman: Arkham Origins, it was pretty much the same thing all over again. The figure looked gorgeous and it was set to come with a ton of stuff. I have never played the game this suit is based on, but I did play the portable version Blackgate which features the same look, as far as I know. I even reviewed that game right here on this blog and I enjoyed it. The look for Batman in this game and the other Arkham games is not my favorite look for the caped crusader, but it is one I like. It works well with the INART aesthetic as, like the Christian Bale suit, there’s a lot going on. It’s armored, there are lots of panels, straps, and different textures that creates a challenge for anyone looking to reproduce it in plastic and I get a sense that the folks at INART like a challenge.
As good as this figure is, it’s not without some controversy. Originally billed as a 1:12 scale action figure, Batman comes in at around 7.375″ to the tips of his ears. Converting inches to feet for a 1:12 scale figure is pretty easy even for those not gifted at math and I think most can conclude that this is way too big for 1:12 scale. INART corrected the listing later and put him at 1:10 scale which is more reasonable. They went on to clarify that their movie scaled line will remain 1:12 while the video games (and maybe the comics?) will be 1:10. And that’s fine as I don’t personally care all that much if my video game Batman scales with my movie Batman. As long as it scales to other characters from the same source then I’m fine with it, though I do agree that collectors are justified in being irritated since the listing did originally refer to it as 1:12. INART wouldn’t be the only company to have issues with scale. Lots of them list their figures as 1:12 that aren’t even close and it is a pet peeve of mine.
Batman arrived in the usual INART shipper with the actual product box within. Artwork from the game is used to decorate the box and it looks fine, but there’s no window or photography so in-box collectors might not get much out of it. At least I think they’re images from the game, but I suppose it could be product shots. Anyway, The figure is housed in a simple two-tiered tray within that’s well packed and includes detailed instructions. Seriously, I love these included instructions as they remove all ambiguity for what the intended purpose is for each and every little thing. In hand, Batman looks every bit as good as the promotional shots suggest. He’s basically all black of varying shades with some close to a gray like the chest. There are numerous textures in use simulating leather, Kevlar, and steel. There’s lots of subtle shading like black at the edges of the shoulder pads and each little rivet is hit with some silver. The gauntlets and greaves have a metallic finish, but it’s a dingy metallic like the suit has been well worn and the steel beat. The utility belt is more of a graphite and it’s adorned with square boxes and canisters that probably would provide some utility, but definitely wouldn’t house any of the more elaborate gadgets we see him utilize. The flesh of his head is a warm tone with some stubble painted on. The eyes are these barely perceptible slits in the cowl that look so realistic. I don’t know how they get their eyes to look so good. The cape is soft goods and it feels like a spandex type of material. It hangs nice and doesn’t seem to wrinkle much and overall is a nice, quality, material.
This is a very busy suit, but INART seems to have handled it well. The shoulder pads have these straps on them, but they don’t actually connect to the body so they don’t really interfere with anything. He has these big thigh guards, but those actually play into the action figure aesthetic since it works as a place to insert a thigh swivel. The crotch area is a bit odd as there’s the floating belt and then a floating piece underneath that. It almost looks like a back brace, but it’s basically a piece of soft plastic the abdomen sits in. Mine came out of the box a bit screwed up like it got twisted somewhere along the way. I didn’t even notice it for awhile, but once I did I had to look up promotional images to figure out how it was supposed to look. Since most of the figure is connected via ball pegs, it wasn’t difficult to pull it apart at the waist and reset it. And thankfully, it wasn’t misshapen as a result and it took on the proper form which is basically to hug the sides of the abs. It’s such a complicated design though that it didn’t surprise me that it took a bit for me to notice this little piece being out of place.
We may as well go right into the articulation since that plays into the construction of the figure. Like the other figures from INART, this thing articulates much better than it has any right to. The head is a simple double ball setup with a neck joint at the base and he looks up very well. The rest of the range is all there too and it’s such a perfect example of how to do this joint properly (admittedly, it helps that he doesn’t have any hair to get in the way). There are joints at the shoulders, biceps, elbows, wrists, diaphragm, waist, hips, thighs, knees, ankles, and toes. The shoulder ball peg does provide some butterfly type motion going back and forward, but the chest armor prevents much range in that direction. It’s one of the few weak spots as the rest is pretty damn good. The double elbows will bend past 90 degrees as do the knees. There’s a slight boot swivel that provides for some adjustment posing and the covers over the boots are soft and don’t really interfere with the ankle articulation. The hips do drop down and it’s a pretty sturdy joint. Even without using it, Batman can kick forward 90 degrees and can almost do splits out to the sides if you can get the thigh armor to slip under the hip. The diaphragm at first appears very limited, but give it a firm push and it will move forward quite a bit. Combine that with the ball waist and Batman can crunch more than this suit probably would allow if it were real. And every where the figure moves the sculpt is continued throughout so there’s really no gaps or smooth spots. There are a few spots, like the shoulders, where if you push it too much you may pop the joint out of place, but nothing that’s painful to reassemble. I do worry that using that diaphragm joint too much to crunch him forward might start to scuff the abdomen, but otherwise there really aren’t any complaints here. The cape is also wired, though only on the outside and not all throughout. It will offer some posing, though nothing incredible.
Batman comes with a lot of stuff. For alternate portraits we get one which has a teeth gritting, aggressive, expression that looks just as good as the neutral default one. For hands, we get ten and the instructions list them as such: fists, Batarang hands, Cryptographic Sequencer Holding left and right, Gun holding left and right, right hand with smoke pellet, right hand explosive gel holding hand. They’re not all symmetrical as the Cryptograph Sequencer hands are like a grip and a pointing hand. The Batarang hands are basically fists with little slits in them to slot in the included Batarang, which looks nice as it’s all black with a silver edge. The smoke pellet is a bit of a deceiving name as it’s more like a soft ball and Batman palms it to throw. It’s permanently affixed to the hand. The gun holding hands are also not symmetrical as the right hand is a trigger hand and the left is closer to a more natural gripping hand for supporting the barrel.
As you would likely expect, all of the gadgets listed amongs the hands are also included. The Cryptograph Sequencer is basically a handle with a screen at a right angle. This is used in the game for infiltration puzzles and it looks fine, but the screen is just sprayed with silver paint making it look like there was a sticker there that got ripped off. The explosive gel applicator is basically like a gun handle with no barrel. It looks fine, but could have used a gel effect. The Disruptor is also included which is more of a traditional looking gun. Batman holds a rear handle and a front grip and it reminds me of the explosive gel gun from The Dark Knight. It’s a little awkward for Batman to hold as the rear handle is very thick, but it’s doable. The Batclaw is also included which is basically his grapple gun in the game. It too is really thick and a bit awkward looking in Batman’s hand. That’s not a fault of INART, but the design from the game. It’s certainly not as tidy as the same from the animated series. Included with it is a claw part which looks nice, but doesn’t articulate which is a bit of a bummer. There are two pieces of metal “cable” for it, one that is short and one that is long. The short one basically makes it appear to be locked and loaded while the long one can be used for firing poses, though the inability to have the claw open hurts the illusion a bit. Also included is a stand with a rather large, round, base of clear plastic with sculpted circles radiating from the middle like a bull’s eye. There’s an articulated arm to plug into it and it’s pretty sturdy though you may have to tighten the screws initially. Lastly, there’s also a branded INART plastic bag if you want to store all of the parts within it, though I tend to just keep everything in the tray.
The load out is impressive and there’s not much of anything that’s missing. I would have liked an open claw for the Batclaw and I’m guessing some would like a Bruce Wayne portrait, though I’m fine without. The box refers to this figure as the standard version and as of right now there is no other version available or planned, from what I hear. If there were a deluxe version I’m not sure what else would be included apart from the few things I mentioned. The bottom line is this figure looks incredible and it poses very well. I don’t love the design of some of the accessories, but there’s enough here that there’s no shortage of display options. I’ve been messing with this guy often and changing him up on my desk frequently sometimes bringing in the stand, sometimes not. Similar to the Bale Batman, I find he does look pretty damn awesome in vanilla poses which is a testament to how good the sculpt and paint are. He looks great in a crouch, throwing punches, or firing off cables. I don’t even need another character from the game to pair him with as he’s just fine being a one-off for me. Getting him, of course, is a bit tricky if you live in the United States. INART doesn’t have a license to distribute here so the figure has to be imported. He should run somewhere in the $70 range, but at this point a lot of retailers that have stock have probably raised the price. And shipping isn’t going to be cheap so expect to pay close to $100. With where prices are these days within the hobby, that doesn’t seem as outrageous a price as it once were. I don’t know if any figure at this scale is truly worth a hundred bucks, but I don’t think anyone is going to be upset once they get this guy in hand. It’s probably the best Batman figure I’ve had the pleasure of placing my hands on and I can’t wait to see what this company does next.
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