Action Figure Review: Batman (Fighting the Frozen) from DC Page Punchers by McFarlane Toys/ DC Direct

 

   Remember the 2011 Return of Bruce Wayne line from DC Direct? It was based on Grant Morrison's Batman: The Return of Bruce Wayne and featured four figures of Batman in different time periods: Batman: Wild West, Batman: Witch Hunter, Batman: High Seas, and Batman: Prehistoric. They were very cool figures but, like many DC Direct figures of that era, they were essentially mini statues with minimal articulation. It was a wildly cool concept, though, and I'm hopeful that McFarlane Toys and DC Direct continue to draw inspiration from it in their DC Page Punchers collaboration. Today I'm looking a new take on the Prehistoric Batman, the second of four figures from the newest DC Page Punchers series. This series comes with a new comic book called Batman: Fighting the Frozen which tells the story of a time travelling, steampunk inspired Mr. Freeze causing trouble for Batman of the Bat-Clan and his allies 16,000 years in the past. Can Batman discover fire in time to help him defeat Mr. Freeze? Does this version of Batman live in a literal bat cave? Will the sticks and stones he uses as weapons break the bad guys' bones? Find out after the break...

The Facts:

Height: 7 3/8ths inches

Articulation: Hinged toes, swivel hinged ankles, double hinged knees, swivel/hinge hips, balljointed waist, balljointed mid torso, swivel/hinge shoulders w/ ballsockets, bicep swivels, double hinged elbows, swivel/ hinge wrists, and a barbell jointed head.

 

Accessories: Axe, sword, comic book, collector card, and display stand.

 

Non-Scalper Price: $25 dollars

The Positives:

* Oh my gosh, is this guy cool or what? First up, this take on Batman is one hefty figure. He's is massive, muscular, and loaded with detail. If you mixed together Batman with Conan the Barbarian or Vikor, this is what you might end up with. The design is just so incredibly cool. I liked Funko's DC Primal Age line and their take on Batman, but this guy is just way beyond that. His muscle detail is excellent with excellent definition. On my review of the Fighting the Frozen Batgirl someone commented that she was wearing too many clothes. Well, Batman has less than her, so they ought to be happy! What he is wearing is very awesome in a crazy, Elseworlds and Stone Age kind of way. His bat logo is hewn from stone. His gauntlets and utility belt are made of fur, hide, and stone, and he's sporting some pretty impressive prehistoric gadgetry. 

* Batman's face is craggy, like stone worn away by water, wind, and time. He does not look happy at the time traveling Mr. Freeze and his endangering of the Bat Tribe. You need to be cautious when you mess with a guy who is wearing together an animal-hide mask that he stitched together himself from pieces of a giant bat. 

* Now those are some serious gauntlets! Holy smoke! How cool are these, right? Great sculpting an great paint applications make all of the details on this figure stand out.

* This isn't just a prehistoric belt with a bat log; it's a utility belt! Yes, there are lots of (non-removable) gadgets on here like a coil of rope, three stone knives, an arrowhead, and a boomerang. I love all of the gear he's toting, even if it's rather primitive. 

* Batman's cape is made from stitched together leather. Well, it looks like it, anyways. It's really just soft, flexible plastic with a great shape to it.

* This version of Batman actually follows the Spawn school of shoe design with two different boots. The right boot has a furry shin cuff while the left boot has an armored kneepad and lots of teeth tied around the shin. 

* You also get the included display stand to help keep Batman standing strong!

* This guy is articulated, sturdy, and moves like a charm. Yeah, he's bulky, so he's not going to be doing yoga or anything, but he's definitely ready for some incredible brooding poses and any battle stance you want to put him in. I can't stop picking this guy up! The Fighting the Frozen series might be my favorite action figure series of the year thus far.

* Batman comes packing some pretty awesome stone age weaponry. First is an axe. It's got a wooden handle and a bat shaped blade made of stone. Isn't this thing just gnarly? It's so freaking manly. I mean, so long Mjolnir; the bat-axe is the latest and greatest in manly, powerful weapons.

* Batman's second weapon is a primitive sword like weapon with a stone blade that's also shaped like a bat. I love how far he takes the bat theme here. This looks like it would cause some serious pain if you got smacked with it. 

* The Page Punchers also come with collectible card sporting an image of the included comic cover. Since everyone gets a unique cover in this series (like in the Aquaman series), each card is unique. There's a short summary of Batman: Fighting the Frozen on the back, too.

* And here's the full size comic book: Batman: Fighting the Frozen. It's a very cool steampunk meets caveman time travel story that ought to remind you of the older Elseworlds titles. 

   Batman is another Epic figure in the Page Punchers Batman: Fighting the Frozen series. This is such a cool series of figures and Batman might be the best figure in the series. Batgirl is pretty good, too, but I think I have to give Batman the edge here. He's just so freaking awesome and a perfect mixture of an incredibly detailed sculpt with a solid, playable action figure. We're over halfway through 2023 and this series has really been a standout for me. I'd love to see more crazy stuff like this from McFarlane and DC Direct in the Page Punchers line in the future!




   I've reviewed so many different versions of Batman that he has his own review archive. Check out the Dark Knight Gallery for all of my Batman reviews. 

For more DC Page Punchers reviews check out the following:
Aquaman
Batgirl (Fighting the Frozen)
Black Adam
The Flash
John Constantine
Supergirl (Injustice)