Action Figure Review: Indiana Jones (Temple Escape) from Indiana Jones: Adventure Series by Hasbro

 

   I'm not sure how many times I've said that Raiders of the Lost Ark is tied with Ghostbusters as my favorite film of all time, but it always bears repeating. I'm not sure any movie has as amazing of an opening sequence as Indiana Jones, either. The intro to Raiders of the Lost Ark might be the finest 10 minutes ever put to film. Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny came out this weekend but I'm not going to spoil anything about it yet. I'm kind of still processing it. Maybe in a day or two I'll be ready to give a more insightful opinion. For now, I'm focusing on the figure at hand: Indiana Jones (Temple Escape) from Hasbro's Indiana Jones: Adventure Series. I believe this is a Fan Channel exclusive and while it's currently only available for preorder from Hasbro Pulse it actually has been shipping from shopDisney for around a month. I managed to get mine in early June using my Disney+ membership. This is definitely the most iconic version of Indiana Jones from one of the most iconic movie scenes in history but there is a bit of an issue with this figure: It's exactly the same figure as the standard Indiana Jones (Raiders of the Lost Ark) from the Ark of the Covenant build an artifact series, but with the idol pedestal and the bag of sand included. Oh, and fewer hands. Yeah, unless you want to have two identical figures, you have to decide whether or not you want to build the Ark of the Covenant or if you want this display piece. That was kind of a silly move on Hasbro's part, wasn't it? Surely they could have found some way to differentiate these figures more. Since I'm not going all in on this line and am mostly just cherry picking here and there, I opted for this set as this scene is just way too cool. How this set turn out? Is it a treasure or a trap? Let's find out after the break...

The Facts:

Height: 6 1/8ths inches

Articulation: Double swivel/hinge ankles, swivel/ hinge knees, swivel thighs, balljointed hips, balljointed waist, swivel/hinge shoulders w/ lateral "butterfly" hinges, swivel/hinge elbows, balljointed wrists, balljointed neck, and a barbell jointed head.

Accessories: Revolver, 2 whips, satchel, jacket shell, idol, sand bag, and pedestal.  

Non-Scalper Price: $40 dollars

The Positives:

* Ignoring the face for a moment an there's no doubt that this is Indiana Jones. Hasbro did an excellent job of capturing the intrepid adventurer's iconic costume and everything you expect is here. His beaten and worn leather jacket, his khaki pants, a nicely detailed button up shirt, two belts, and his MKVII satchel. The satchel and the jacket "shell" are separate pieces, as is the pistol belt, so there's a lot of depth to the figure. The build looks right and there's some great detail on the individual outfit pieces. 

* It might be tough to see here but Hasbro definitely added some drybrush effects all over the jacket to really give it a distressed and rugged appearance. It's not something you see that often on Hasbro figures and it turned out really well here. It's not overdone, but it's certainly noticeable. 

* The articulation scheme is familiar here; it's pretty much what most recent non-armored Star Wars: The Black Series figures have. The joints all have a nice range of motion, especially the shoulders and the head and neck. Hasbro also widely went with a balljointed waist rather than a mid-torso joint, so Indy's shirt isn't broken up. He also has true balljointed wrists rather than swivel/hinge wrists. I'm not sure if I think they function better but they look nice.

* Indy comes with his Smith & Wesson revolver. The sculpt is really nice with a lot of detail, though I do wish it had received a paint application for the handle. I'm pretty sure the revolvers in the 2008 line had that detail. 

* The revolver fits into the holster on Indy's pistol belt just fine. I've heard a lot of complaints about the clasp not working on the holster and on the whip but mine seems to work just fine. Maybe there is a slight molding difference between belts on the basic figure and this Temple Escape version?

* Indy also comes with his trusty bullwhip. It's a little brighter than I'd expect but it does have a nice sculpted braid to it rather than just being completely smooth. It comes looped up but with a little futzing around it'll look better.

* A coiled whip is also included which can hang from Indy's belt.

* And here it is! Again, I didn't have any trouble getting it to stay closed but I've definitely heard the issue from others. 

* You have to remove the jacket "shell" to take off the satchel but it is a fully removable piece that looks pretty accurate to the film prop.

* The main draw of this set over the standard release of Indiana Jones by himself is the inclusion of the pedestal for the Chachapyan fertility idol. This is a large piece (the idol is separate and not attached) and while it does have a hollow center, it's a pretty sturdy and well made set piece with some wonderful detail. It's a really fun accessory.

* The pillar has some really nice paintwork and lots of ornately carved details. There's also some moss growing all over it to further give it an aged and rugged appearance. It may not belong in a museum but it is a rather nice piece.

* Here's a close up of the Chachapoyan fertility idol on the podium. It's a nice, shiny gold color. This same accessory does come with the standard figure, but of course if you have that version you'd have nowhere to place the idol. 

* This bag of sand is also unique to the set. It's a simple bag with a sculpted drawstring on it and it's vital for this scene. 

* Notice the platform in the middle of the pedestal; it actually moves up down. You can push it down and pop it back up from underneath. It's just a fun little extra feature, not an action feature or anything, but it's appreciated.

* Let's take a look at the portrait. The hat looks great. It's not removable but the size seems spot on and the color are great. The face; well, it looks like Indiana Jones. Maybe it's the hat, but if you asked anyone who this was I'm pretty sure they would recognize it as Indiana Jones. 

The Negatives:

* Is it Harrison Ford as Indy from this part of the movie though? I think that's a bit weaker. The stubble could be a bit heavier, too. 

   This is a really neat set and overall I'm quite happy with it. A few extra accessories would have been cool, stuff like some extra hands, a torch (particularly the torch with the arrows in it), and maybe even some of the large spiders, but I'm not at all disappointed with what we got here. If you already grabbed the Indy with the parts of the Ark of the Covenant then this set is probably way less appealing, but on it's own it's a great piece. Satipo would be nice to go with it but I doubt that's in the cards for this line. 





 Looking for more of Dr. Henry Walton Jones, Jr., better known as Indiana Jones? Then check out my reviews of the Adventure Series Indiana Jones (Professor), Indiana Jones with Ark and the two Indys from the SDCC "Lost Wave" set: Indiana Jones and Indiana Jones in German Uniform, all from Hasbro's 2008 Indiana Jones toyline, the Retro Collection Indiana Jones (Raiders of the Lost Ark), and the Indiana Jones: Worlds of Adventure Indiana Jones with Adventure Backpack.

For more reviews from the Indiana Jones: Adventure Series check out the following:
Indiana Jones (Professor)
Major Arnold Toht