Whosoever touches this gem shall be granted the power of the Crimson Bands of Cyttorak!
Henceforth, you who read these words, shall become ... forevermore ... a human Juggernaut!
- Inscription on the fabled Crimson Ruby of Cyttorak
Hi guys,
this review will be dedicated to one of the coolest busts I have ever seen.
It definitely is one of the greatest busts in my collection and it's a bust which is here to stay in my collection no matter what.
The craftmanship used to sculpt and paint the bust, the level of details and the impressive pose give this bust a remarkable presence making this bust a true eye-catcher.
The fact that the bust portrays my absolute favourite comic book character Juggernaut will of course influence my judgement and I do not pretend that my opinion is the one and only truth about this bust.
No, I am just a big Juggernaut fan who loves this bust and in my review which I will post shortly I will do my best to explain what I like so much about this bust.
In my review below I will explain my view on this bust more in-depth but in case you would like to have to have a short and clear summary it would be something like this:
'
Among Us Walks The Juggernaut!' was the title of X-Force #3 published in 1991 and Gentle Giant has done an incredible job to make these words come true!
My Verdict
Unstoppable: incapable of being stopped
- Merriam-Webster Dictionary
Manufacturer: Gentle Giant
Edition Size: 910
Bust number: 137
Release date: Q3 2014
Scale: 1:6th
Statue size: the bust is almost approximately 7 inches / 17 cm high
Sculpt:
10 – Perfect
I realize Juggernaut is nothing more than a comic book and movie character but everytime I look at this bust I just cannot help but think that this is the way Juggernaut should look like: big, powerful, muscular, intimidating and dangerous. Juggernaut is a demi-God, he is the Exemplar of Physical Strength and he is the avatar of the incredibly powerful mystical deity Cyttorak.
He should therefore look the part and Gentle Giant really delivered the goods in spades here. Juggernaut enormous physique, his huge heavily muscled chest and arms with muscles like boulders, the focused and intense expression on his face while shouting a battlecry with a thunderous voice all are top-notch and add to the presence of this mini-bust.
Juggernaut's pose is an important factor as well: Juggernaut is depicted while he is walking and to me that is an incredibly cool reference to Juggernaut's most unique power: once Juggernaut starts to move in a certain direction he is virtually unstoppable as long as he wants to keep moving.
This bust is all about power and might but that does not mean that there is no eye for details. In fact quite contrary I'd say. The finely sculpted veins on Juggernaut's arms, the proper way his teeth are sculpted, the details on Juggernaut's mystical bands, costume, helmet and belt; it's all good no matter where you look.
This is The Juggernaut; this is what Stan Lee and Jack Kirby must have had in mind when they created The Juggernaut back in 1965.
Juggernaut has seldom looked this good and that is the biggest compliment I can think of. Well done Gentle Giant!
Paint & Mixed Media:
8.0 – Impressive
There is no mixed media included or used with this bust but the paintjob is as good as it gets.
I like the ruby-red color of Juggernaut's costume, bands and helmet and am happy to see that it is applied to the bust very neatly.
There are no oversprayed or missed parts and there are no paint blotches. Really a job well done here.
What makes things even better is the delicate way in which Juggernaut's veins are painted with a blueish color and the realistic way in which his lips, teeth and eyes are painted.
I like the paintjob a lot and yet I have deducted some points here because of the fact that I would have liked a little bit more color-variation in the ruby-red color of The Juggernaut's costume. Admittedly there are lighter and darker tones in the color used and I like the way shadowing is used.
That being said it I would have liked it is there was a bit more variation in the color of Juggernaut's costume just like for example in the picture below showing Juggernaut's classic costume:
Design:
10 – Perfect
Who are what is The Juggernaut? What is his role in the MU; what are his powers? Where does he come from and where is he going to? What is in short the essence of the character?
I can imagine that when the design team of Gentle Giant decided to release a Juggernaut bust, those were the kind of questions which they needed to answer.
Looking at this bust I feel Gentle Giant not only perfectly understood who and what The Juggernaut is but they also managed to capture his essence incredibly well in their design.
The Juggernaut is a powerhouse, a force of nature to be reckoned with.
What we see here is an unstoppable force of nature so powerful and destructive that the X-Men have every reason to fear and dread him.
The fact that Juggernaut's left arm is placed in front of him is very cool in two ways since it not only implies Juggernaut is in motion but also emphasizes the huge size of his arm and muscles. It looks like Juggernaut is partly leaning on his left fist and even though that also caused some worry (see my comments below in the paragraph about Production & Build Quality), it also looks absolutely amazing.
The power, the might, the mystical energies flowing through his body as well as the near limitless strength and the overwhelming devastation that The Juggernaut can cause, are captured masterfully in this bust and if Cain Marko would exist, I am almost certain that he would recognize his alter ego in this bust.
Wolverine may be the best there is at what he does and Hulk may be the strongest one there is but Juggernaut is the only truly unstoppable one and that awesome fact is reflected in all aspects of this bust.
Production & Build Quality:
8.0 – Impressive
The bust is made of one piece and no further assembly is necessary before you are able to display the bust.
The bust feels very solid and I have no doubt whatsoever that if treated with the normal TLC, this bust will last you your entire life.
Juggernaut is as rugged as they come and this bust followed his great example in every way.
Before I received the bust I was a bit worried that Juggernaut might be leaning on his left fist which could cause some scratching on the bottom of his fist.
My experiences so far are however that you can freely move the bust around without fear of scratching his fist; I think there is approximately 1 mm free space between the bottom of the base and Juggernaut's left fist. (That being said I would still advise to lift the bust if you would like to place it somewhere else instead of moving it just to be on the safe side)
Overall rating:
9.0 – Excellent
I realize that one man's meat is another man's poison and nothing is more personal and subjective than one's feeling about a bust or statue.
Everybody has his own preferences and everybody may have another idea of what Juggernaut should look like.
Still, I think this bust does a lot of things right and is as such a worthy tribute to The Juggernaut.
The essence of Juggernaut is captured in this bust and in a way the Juggernaut really has come to life.
Whereas the Juggernaut Mini-Bust by Bowen Designs emphasizes the self-confident and defying attitude of The Juggernaut laughing at the futile attempts of the X-Men to stop him, this bust from Gentle Giant focuses much more on the enormous and destructive power of The Juggernaut.
Gentle Giant has shown us that The Juggernaut is a destructive force of nature and as such I think this is a bust which is mandatory for all fans of The Juggernaut.
If you like The Juggernaut, and even if if you do not like him, get this bust; I am certain you will not regret it!
Background Information
Juggernaut: a massive inexorable force that crushes whatever is in its path
- Merriam-Webster Dictionary
Cain Marko was once a soldier serving in the U.S. Army in Korea.
When he and his step-brother, Charles Xavier, stumbled upon an underground shrine , Cain discovered a large ruby and claimed it for himself.
Little did he know that the ruby was the infamous Crimson Gem of Cyttorak, and it granted him immeasurable power.
His violent transformation triggered a cave-in.
Xavier managed to escape before the entrance collapsed, but Cain was left buried in the rubble.
He stayed there, slowly digging himself out for years as the betrayal of his step-brother's abandonment festered.
Now, fueled by hatred and powered by a burning desire for revenge, the Juggernaut is UNSTOPPABLE!
Physical Attributes
Height: 9'5"
Weight: 1,900 lbs.
Eyes: Blue
Hair: Red
Powers and Abilities
Juggernaut is an avatar for the deity known as Cyttorak. Juggernaut gains various superhuman powers while acting as an avatar, as described below:
Superhuman Strength:
Class 100+ without breaking a sweat.
The Juggernaut possesses vast physical strength which exact limit is unknown but he is able to lift far in excess of 100 tons effortlessly.
He is undoubtedly one of the strongest beings to ever walk the Earth and has recently been given so much power by Cyttorak that he is now even able to defeat
the mystical deity himself shoud he decide to do so.
A fine example of Juggernaut's titanic strength is the fact that he was able to go toe to toe against an enraged World War Hulk until the moment Cain was outsmarted and removed from the field of battle .
World War Hulk could not overpower or defeat Juggernaut based on sheer strength and Juggernaut managed to deliver some earth shattering blows to World War Hulk.
Superhuman Stamina:
The mystical energies of Cyttorak that empower his musculature generate no fatigue toxins during physical activity, granting him limitless superhuman stamina in all physical activities.
Invulnerability:
Cain is virtually impregnable to all forms of conventional physical injury regardless of magnitude or intensity.
Although Cain is able to be harmed by exceedingly high levels of mental or mystical attacks, these attacks have rarely been shown to cause any permanent damage.
Regenerative Healing Factor:
Despite his extreme resistance to physical damage, Cain can be damaged by sufficiently powerful forces such as mystical forces.
If damaged, Cain possesses an accelerated healing factor that enables him to nearly instantly regenerate any damaged or destroyed bodily tissues.
For instance, he has been injured by Shatterstar's sword, which is forged from a mixture of extra dimensional technology and magic and healed instantly.
The demon being D'Spayre once flayed the Juggernaut down to a skeleton only after absorbing almost all of the Juggernaut's power and even then,
the Juggernaut could not be stopped and was able to instantly regenerate all the damage done once he regained his full power.
The only other time the Juggernaut has been physically injured is by the likes of Thor in a physical battle, and that was only after Thor used Mjolnir to negate his mystical enchantment.
Immortality:
Cain is functionally immortal. His aging process is completely halted and he is immune to the effects of all toxins, poisons and diseases.
He is also sustained by the mystical energies flowing through his body and has no need to eat, drink or breathe.
Force Field:
The Juggernaut is capable of generating a personal force field around himself, extending to about 1 foot in diameter.
He uses this force field to heighten his already impressive resistance to injury. In his earliest appearances, he is able to use this force generating ability
to hurl people and objects near him away from him, though now it seems to function only defensively.
Rampant Charge:
Once he begins to advance in a certain direction, it is virtually impossible to halt his movement.
Some obstacles such as many tons of rocks and plasma-discharge cannons can slow him down but once in motion virtually nothing can really stop him.
The only known examples of him being stopped involve physical force with mystical involvement which is Juggernaut's sole weakness.
Thor was able to stop Juggernaut him in his tracks but Thor's powers are mystical in origin and during a battle with War (Hulk), in which the mutant Apocalypse,
increased the Hulk's strength and power enormously by grafting Celestial tech to him, which again involved mysticism, Juggernaut was ultimately stopped and almost killed by Apocalypse's Horseman.
Abilities:
Juggernaut is able to summon and remove his mystic armor at will.
As a result of his days in the military and his experience as a superhuman criminal and hero, the Juggernaut is a brutal hand-to-hand combatant,
preferring to use street fighting and brawling techniques that allow him to make full use of his great strength and near invulnerability.
A Personal Tribute To The Juggernaut!
Thunder and lightning
The breaking of glass
An earthquake of violence
A hurricane which lasts
A volcano of danger
A tornado of strength
The destructive force of nature
Wreaking havoc close at hand
There is nowhere to hide
And nowhere to run
Your fate is sealed
Your doom has come…
The sound of your fear
Is like a drum beaten hard
Now that you are certain
… The Juggernaut is near!
Rainer
