Sideshow - HULK Premium Format Exclusive - StatueForum Review

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Sideshow Collectibles – Hulk Premium Format Exclusive – StatueForum Review

Sideshow Collectibles presents it’s long and eagerly awaited revisit of The Incredible Hulk premium format statue. Devoted fans of the emerald skinned Avenger are in for a real treat as this stunning release from Sideshow Collectibles is a spectacular work of art.

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The classic silver age Kirby era monster portrait:

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The modern age comics portrait:

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Close ups of the fine detail:

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Sideshow Collectibles – Hulk Premium Format exclusive – Statueforum Review

The impressive team behind the design and development of the Hulk Premium Format are as follows: Kris Anka (Design), Andy Bergholtz (Design), Pablo Viggiano of Vigiano Studio (Sculpt), Andy Bergholtz (Sculpt), Mike Najera (Paint), Jennifer Johnson (Cut and Sew) and the Sideshow Collectibles Design and Development Team.

The Hulk stands an impressive 20 inches tall, 15 inches wide and 19 inches deep, weighs approximately 20 pounds, and should display in an IKEA besta. Both the exclusive (edition size of 1000) and the regular (edition size of 2500) retail at $549.99 plus shipping. Sideshow began shipping out this statue to clients on September 15, 2015.


Sculpture: Sideshow did an exceptional job capturing the rage and monstrosity of the rampaging Hulk. The sculpture seethes unrelenting power and fury. The Hulk boldly stands poised and ready to face whatever dreadful and death-defying challenge which awaits him head-on. This is a definitive Hulk – volatile, explosive, maniacal, and horrific.

The statue ships with two distinct and nicely detailed portraits. Fans of both (or either) the monstrous and/or modern portrait should be very pleased. While I admit to having a preference for the monstrous era of the gamma irradiated goliath as it depicts my favorite interpretation of the character, I’m certainly pleased with the enraged interpretation as well. The monstrous portrait looks like something right out of the classic silver age comics which originally launched the most fearsome and powerful Marvel comics character way back in May 1962.

Sideshow strays away from its standard museum pose and offers something which literally feels like it could leap right off your display shelf and crush anything in its path. It’s also nice to see Sideshow challenge its own history and offer a sculpture which some fans may actually come to prefer over the now classic Hulk premium format released over a decade ago. While I’m not ready to say that this newest offering is superior to the original, I can say that say the original and latest PF premium formats are arguably the two best interpretations of the Hulk to date from any company, which still says a lot.

During the preview stage, I wasn’t sure what I was going to make of those abnormally large trap muscles on the Hulk’s back as it kind of made him look like a green skinned Hunchback of Notre Dame. Alas, although those concerns were mostly, though not entirely, put to rest, I still would have preferred smaller traps. I actually would have preferred a more sensible look to the Hulk's muscle mass in general.

The unfortunate downside to an otherwise exceptional sculpture is the visible seams around the portrait area – but that’s more a production issue, which I will address in greater detail later on. The base of this new release employs a rather busy rubble environment with remnants of Iron Man’s Hulkbuster armor. It’s a really nice touch, especially the Hulkbuster forearm. Sideshow also added a few other nifty doodads into the base, for example, a well-placed pipe right underneath Hulk’s left foot which makes it look like it’s been crushed beneath his gargantuan footfall. The scene appears set from an all-out battle with Iron Man. That is very cool.

The statue comes in 8 pieces: The Hulk body, the base, Hulkbuster arm, two pipes, a rusty panel, and two portraits.

Rating: 8.5/10
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Paint/Mixed media: The paint applications on the polystone are really good. Even though it’s basically one color with some shading, it looks awesome. I’m particularly impressed with the darker shading on the Hulk’s lips. The purple-pants fabric looks fabulous as well. I especially appreciate the weathering look on Hulk's pants (i.e., what looks to be dirt and concrete residue) as it really adds to the authenticity of the moment. The knitting is definitely above average.

The area I can see some fans having an issue with is that the color shading and gloss on the portraits do look darker than the coloring on the body. While it’s not that noticeable, one can’t help but wonder if this was unintentional or by design. Given the choice, I’ll always opt for consistent shading.


Rating 8.5/10
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Production and Build quality: This is a strong and solid piece, and noticeably heavier and larger than the last few premium format releases. There’s no tilting or imbalance to it or cause to be concerned about long term leaning issues. You’ll likely need to consult the Sideshow website to make sure you correctly position all the extra pieces on the base.

Alas, the one noticeable downside to the design is the very noticeable seam where the portrait is placed around the neck area. While we all knew this was coming, especially after seeing the red Hulk, I still kind of hoped it wouldn’t be an issue this time around. The seam (i.e., in this case, a gap) on my modern portrait is so obvious, there’s actually enough space between the portrait and the body to fit a business card. Wow. I sent Sideshow a request for a replacement. Hopefully, I won’t be told that all modern portraits were designed like this. At the cost of $550 a statue, I would hope that it wouldn't be too unreasonable to expect pieces to fit properly. Sadly, there are more issues to report with the modern portrait. The teeth just do not look well done. You can see gaps between the teeth and some splotchy paint applications. They also appear to be glued into place from behind the lips, which struck me as an unusual production choice.

While there's a gap issue with the classic portrait as well, it isn't as obvious. Still, in 2015, my sense is that we shouldn't be seeing gaps of this nature or awkward looking fits between pieces. Sideshow isn't new at this game.

















As I strongly prefer the monstrous portrait over the rampaging one, I would have been much happier if the Hulk simply shipped with the monstrous head already attached. The seam issue does kind of limit your display angle options. To be fair, the seams and gaps are generally visible from the side and behind the statue, which likely isn't how the statue will be displayed by collectors. However, I can see it bothering the fan with the more scrutinizing eye. If I can recommend anything to the Sideshow development team moving forward, it's to forego offering multiple portrait options on statues which don’t feature cloth or some kind of costume structure around the neck area as it appears impossible to hide the seams in that kind of scenario. Noticeable seams simply never look good. Never.

Rating 6.5/10
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Design: You can’t get much better than arguably second best Hulk statue ever designed and produced. Too bad about those visible seams. Ultimately, this is a head-on statue, meaning that this isn’t a piece which can really be displayed or appreciated from different angles. Either the piece faces you or you put it back in the box. If you can be okay with that (I am, largely), you should love this piece. It truly is a captivating piece.


Rating: 8.5/10



Overall, I think this piece is a success despite the shortcomings. All this to say that it can’t be easy having to always have your work compared to your earlier work (i.e., just ask U2 or the Rolling Stones). However, on this particular occasion, I think Sideshow stepped up to the plate and offered the fanbase something they can be proud of displaying. This ¼ scale Hulk statue definitely has its place in your collection. However, the seams issue definitely cost the piece some quality control points. This could have, dare I say should have been, a ten.

Overall rating: 8/10

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Extra photos!

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