“It is a strange fate that we should suffer so much fear and doubt over so small a thing.”
The Diamond Select Toys Lord of the Rings 7-inch series of Select Action figures has reached Series 5 and these were released in late Summer 2023 bringing us two more figures for our collection. Boromir is the 6th member of the original Fellowship to be released joining Legolas, Gimli, Aragorn, Gandalf, and Frodo. The packaging remains as it has been for all the releases to date with a rectangular window box with a hanging tab that uses a blue/green background colour inlaid with the familiar map of Middle-Earth. While these are very much themed around The Fellowship of the Ring, the packing uses the main Lord of the Rings logo in its usual gold textured ornate text. There is no specific character image on the front only a composite shot of Gandalf, Frodo, and Sauron as seen on all releases to date. The only character-specific element on the box front is the character name.
The rear of the box repeats the Lord of the Rings logo at the top, with much of the rest of the space used to showcase the figures in the current series - Boromir and Lurtz. Neither of these characters gets any background text, and instead, there is a short synopsis towards the base of the packaging around the Lord of the Rings. On either side of this sits images of some of the other figures released to date. Diamond continues to use twin plastic inserts so the figures are not only behind the main window but then packed between a clamshell within the box. This provides added protection, but reduces visibility of the figure for inbox collectors or when shopping for a suitable paint job. Unpacking this is also quite an operation with both tape and rubber ties to unfasten. The accessories within are not always secure either so small pieces like Boromir’s dagger can fall out while unpacking so be careful.
Boromir is the usual heavy plastic figure we now expect from Diamond and is brought to us in his Fellowship of the Ring gear comprising of a deep burgundy undershirt with only the shoulder sleeves visible yet beautifully decorated with golden patterns and edgings. Under this is a layer of chainmail, only visible between the shoulders and the wrists with the wrists bound in bracers with two tones of brown, painted straps and clasps and a silver Tree of Gondor emblem sculpted into the piece. He is wearing a pair of plain brown trousers, tucked into black boots, and over all of this then sits a long tunic that goes down to Boromir’s ankles. This deep grey piece is made up of individual parts starting with the torso, then the midsection, and finally a softer plastic skirt piece tied with a brown leather belt with further script detail and painted silver buckle. The tunic also features further designs around the neck and front seams with two silver clasps further up. Weathering is then added with a washed muddy look around the end of the skirt piece.
The LOTR figures to date have been a bit hit and miss on human likenesses with Legolas struggling, Gimili exceeding expectations, and Gandalf, Aragorn and Frodo somewhere in between. Boromir falls into that final category. It is not a nailed-on Sean Bean likeness, more like a good impersonator with his general features. The face includes painted detail around the eyes and beard, some shading to add definition. The hair is particularly well done sculpted to hang matted down his face, around his ears, and over his right eye.
The costume has a couple of alternative options too - starting with a pair of alternative hands allowing Boromir to be displayed with his hands exposed or as though wearing black leather gloves. Like many Diamond figures, the base plastic does make changing parts a bit more challenging. These alternative hands offer no difference in terms of grip options and appear to be the flesh versions painted which sadly means visible flesh colour in the joint if you bend these backward.
Boromir also features his green cloak from Lothlorian, a slightly frustrating inclusion considering this accessory has been promised but dropped on the other Fellowship characters, so the overall look with them all wearing their cloaks is not an option. The cloak itself is a more pliable green textured plastic with a sculpted hood (folded back against the cloak), and sculpted folds as is hangs off Boromir’s shoulders. The base colour is enhanced with additional green tones adding light and dark within the recreation of the cloth. The cloak is finished with a green metallic leaf clasp, and some slight weathering to give a worn look around the base of the piece. The cloak remains removable giving you the choice of having it displayed or not.
The key driver for Diamond’s Select figures has always seen aesthetics override articulation and this is true also of Boromir. Articulation is the standard 16 points of articulation, some pinned, and with a limited suite of movements across each joint. Boromir can reach some basic poses, but nothing overly dramatic, and often at the detriment of his inclusive accessories as we will see. He does stand well enough with ratcheted ankle joints that plant him firmly in position.
We now get into the usual issue with the LOTR figures from Diamond in that the accessories do not appear to have been produced to work with the figure and therefore there are a number of issues when posing them. Boromir’s weaponry starts with a small dagger and what appears to be its sheath - I say what appears to be, as the sheath doesn’t actually work and allows the dagger to be inserted. Instead, both the dagger and sheath remain independent. The issues then get worse as the gripped hands can't hold either piece securely, nor is there any socket or strap on the belt to place the dagger. This piece went straight in the parts box.
A similar issue exists with Bormomir’s sword. It too comes with a sheath which his time does work, but again has no place to be hung or Boromir’s person. While Aragorn got a plug-in option on the body, this feature has been skipped on Boromir making the sheath redundant and leaving fans missing out on a key part of his costume unless aftermarket ‘additions’ are made. Like other weapons in the series, the sword is a hard plastic which enables more details and a crisper edge, The decor on the sword and sheath is detailed and well executed so they do look great. The hard, and quite brittle, plastic does make the sword hard to fit into the hands with those too made of a similar plastic and also very stiff. They have also made the pommel of the sword bigger than the gap in the hand. Hot water will work for you here to give some play but it is another disappointing piece of engineering in terms of how the figure interacts with the accessories.
Moving on to the shield, which is a brown wooden textured finish with a metal surround and sculpted bolts. The centre section is also a silver finish, framed with a bronze winged and star design. The piece looks really good like the sword, but the interaction with the figure is limited by a single-hand grip around the back that is difficult to get Boromir’s hand to hold and then also leaves the shield sitting at the end of Boromir’s arm and not in the more natural position against his forearm. This seems an odd decision considering the Uruk Hai shields to date have included wrist straps which allow more options for display.
Sadly, the worst is yet to come. Boromir of course includes the horn of Gondor, a lovely sculpt with a white ivory finish with gold and silver designs at either end. It hangs on a real twisted black rope, yet this is far too short to be of any use other than for Boromir to wear around his neck as a necklace. The horn will just about fit into the hands, but the elbow articulation fails to go even anywhere near 90 degrees so Boromir can’t be posed blowing his horn, just holding it partway to his mouth.
Boromir is the sixth member of the Fellowship to be released and is a welcome companion piece to a wider display. Like all Diamond LOTR figures the body and costume details are outstanding, including the weathering. The articulation is a bit disappointing, more so on Boromir in terms of his accessories with the elbows needing more range. The accessories look the part but are frustrating in terms of working with the figure with the sword sheath not having any way to attach to the belt, a dagger and sheath that are too small for the hand's grip, and a sword pommel that is too big. The shield too has issues in how it is held, and while the horn will fit in the hands - the articulation stops that most iconic pose and even the rope is too short to hang it as part of the costume.
For those on the journey to assemble the Fellowship of the Ring, Boromir is a must-have addition even with the flaws but I would act now as there seems to be less and less stock of these hitting the UK after some of the early figures hung around and went to clearance. The RRP is also wildly varying and I’ve seen upward of £39.99 in places. Shop around - these should be somewhere between £25 and £30 at a push, with our review copy being purchased at Star Action Figures for £24.99 which is good value for money.
Keep Track of all the Lord of the Rings figures from Diamond Select at our comprehensive
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About Me : As a child of the 70's and 80's I grew up in a golden age for action figures and in my youth bought and sold myself through collections of Star Wars, G.I. Joe (Action Force) and M.A.S.K. while also dabbling in He-Man, Transformers and Ghostbusters. Roll forward and I am now reliving that Youth with the action figures of today and am a collector and fan of the larger 6-8 inch figures from my favourite movie and TV licences - including the ones mentioned above, but also the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Doctor Who and the Aliens. I launched The Mephitsu Archives in 2015 with a view of creating a UK focused site or these figures where fans can pick up the latest action figure news, read reviews and get information on where to buy their figures and what is currently on store shelves. I hope I am delivering that to you guys...