Judge Death "Death Sentence Edition" Review
Well, I got my replacement Judge Death in recently, and I am happy to report that it arrived without any issues.
I'll admit that this one was a bit of an impulse buy. I don't know much about the character or the Dredd comics...well...at all really. I bought Dredd last year after watching the amazing Dredd 3D (if you haven't seen it, do yourself a favor and go buy a copy right now). I like to have a hero and his arch enemy in my collection, so when Death came up for PO, I jumped on it.
The packaging on the piece was good...almost too good. Each piece was wrapped in paper and foam, each of which was taped on. It was actually rather difficult and time consuming to get this guy unpacked. But, better safe than sorry, so kudos to PCS for doing their part to make sure this piece arrived at collector's doors damage free. I'm not going to bother describing the art on the box because, well, I generally don't give a **** what the box looks like...they all just get stored anyway.
The pose is...well...kind of ordinary, but hey, most statues are, I guess.
The regular edition comes with the open mouth portrait and one open hand for each arm. I got the Death Sentence Edition, which comes with two alternate switch out right hands (one is the impaled Judge helmet, and the other is the impaled gang member head) and one alternate head (mouth closed in a menacing grin). This piece definitely gets bonus points for the ability to customize your display in a number of ways.
I really like this piece. The details in the sculpt and the paint application turned out great, and this piece is definitely on par with the glorious Judge Dredd. The utility belt and belt buckle look amazing, the dragon on the shoulder (which is a separate piece) is very detailed, and the two exclusive hands have immense detail (the Judge helmet is all cracked where death's fingers poke through...amazing attention to detail!). The paint on Death's suit is a bit shinier and is a darker shade than Dredd's...I don't know if that is comic accurate, or if they should be the same. Other than the shade, I can't find a flaw in the paint anywhere on mine. Solid job there.
The one thing that holds this piece back, in my opinion, is the base. It's just kind of plain and boring looking. It kind of looks like he's standing on a big brown turd. Considering how much attention to detail they put into the figure itself, I think PCS could have put in a bit more effort to spice up the base, and make the piece even more visually appealing than it already is.
Overall, it's a very nice piece, and if you are a big fan of the Dredd universe, I imagine it's a must have. Even if you're like me and don't know much about the character, he'll look great on display in your collection. I'll be displaying mine with the closed mouth grin and the impaled Judge helmet.
Pose: 7.5/10, kind of generic, but menacing nonetheless
Detail: 9/10, great, great attention to detail on this figure
Paint: 10/10, I can't find a flaw with mine
Presence: 8/10, for an emaciated walking corpse, this dude does catch your eye with the great paint, huge claws, and maniacal facial expression
Base: 2.5/5, rather bland and boring...could have been done better
Bonus: 5/5, for the great amount of switch out parts on the Death Sentence Edition
Overall, this piece gets a score of
84% (42/50) on the brand new, highly complex Bmutha rating system.
Judge Death is an amazing statue, no doubt.
