After The Child debuted in The Mandalorian at the end of 2020, fans were clamouring for merchandise and figures. Due to the secrecy of the character, manufacturers were some way behind with their products and it wasn't until late Spring 2020 that Child toys and figures made it to store shelves. The Hasbro 6.5 inch The Child landed in June 2020 and while it was not in scale to any other range at the time, it provided a size and price to appeal to young role players.
Packaging 4/5
This 6.5 inch The Child arrives in an open package with a cardboard wrap around the base of the figure. The decor is white with the Star Wars logo to one side and the Mandalorian logo next to the character name. A cut out of The Child pops up above the character name, and more images from the show are used on the side panels.
The back has an image of the toy itself and some icons confirming the articulation points - we will get to these in a while. To the side in a yellow box is a short piece of background text that we have associated with more collectible lines like the Black Series.
"A MYSTERIOUS ALIEN PURSUED BY BOUNTY HUNTERS ON BEHALF OF IMPERIAL INTERESTS"
The inner box is using a yellow backing design and the figure is clipped into the base of this by means of two clips. To get a these you need to open the front of the box and fold out the base. The two clips release easily with a quick turn by hand.
Paint & Sculpt 4/5
The look of the figure is very good with an excellent head sculpt that captures the shape and expression of The Child. Being of a larger scale the eyes can be individual pieces set into the head and these are done in an almost glasslike finish which capture a lot of reflection.
The rest of the body are the robes with texture like fur around the collar and cuffs, with the rest of the robes quite plain other than some feathering down each side.
Paint apps are restricted some shading around the head - eyes, cheeks and ears mainly. The robes and hands are cast simply in the base colour. They have added some wavy white lines to the head to represent hair - this does look a bit off and is unnecessary in my opinion.
You can see the size of the figure here alongside his Black Series 1 inch counterpart and the Black Series Mandalorian. The two Child's do share very similar palette colourings.
Accessories N/A
There are no accessories included. I guess for the price point we should not expect much, but a bowl that the figure could hold and a frog to chase would have been fantastic.
Articulation 3/5
This is not a highly articulated figure by any means, coming with just three joints in total. The head is sat on some form of ball joint which allows both rotation but also the ability to look up and down, at least within the restrictions of the robes collar.
The arms are then the other jointed pieces with a pivot ball joint at each shoulder. This allows both arms to be lifted up and rotated. This means the "Force" pose is achievable, and almost encouraged, by the way they've sculpted the right hand. It is a pity the hands do not rotate at the wrist. This would have potentially opened up a little more poses.
Summary
This is a very fun piece and does capture the look of The Child, albeit in a very affordable piece that seems to be retailing around the £20 mark. There are plenty of other offerings including plush and sound FX pieces - but this certainly holds its own on looks.
At 6.5 inches high, the figure is a bit under 1:2 scale. But at this size it becomes a good role play The Child in terms of its scale and relative height to a child (a human child).
My son, aged 10, is more the target audience for this release - and he thinks it is brilliant, although I suspect if I showed him the sound FX one he would migrate to that one. At the £20 price this is a great item and the two of us score this a 4 out of 5, and we can't wait to find out more about The Child when The Mandalorian Season 2 comes around.
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...
action figures, reviews, review, articulation, INSERT KEYWORDS
Comments