Here is the thing, as much as I have been looking forward to complete another KR faction after the Rexodon, Cah-MalTM wasn't even in my priority list.
Don't get me wrong, this 49th action figure prototype from PoliganToys is cool and has been executed rather flawlessly in terms of concept. But there are some other prototypes (*cough* Herrion *cough*) that I would have liked to receive by now.
However, Cah-Mal has allowed the Spektrosaurs to cross the finish line and this is enough to consider him a success. So cheers to him!
Details
Name: Cah-Mal
Subtitle: camouflage-expert warrior
Classification: lepidosauromorph reptile
Sex: male
Home: Tahron
Affiliation: Spektrosaur
Rank: petty officer.
Background
Cah-Mal's only appearance is in the ninth KR comic issue The Cereutian menace: Part II – Salvation. Evolved from an ancient species of lizard-like warriors, Cah-Mal was recruited by Bi-Harr after displaying his extraordinary camouflage ability. Like many other reptilian soldiers, he eventually became a member of the Spektrosaur army after Lor-Drek's defection. Armed with exceptional acrobatic skills, Cah-Mal often distinguished himself in battle by stunning his foes with his quick lashing tongue and tail. Despite his loyalty to Lor-Drek, during the Cereutian invasion he was brainwashed by Noctylius into allying with Denortos. Defeated by the Therioms, Cah-Mal was then abandoned in the former Spektrosaur stronghold, where he now waits for the next master to serve.
Articulation
Standard, with the addition of a ball jointed extra neck piece, hinged fingers and toes, and a tail, which is composed of 12 ball jointed pieces and can work as an auxiliary limb.
Description
Head: similar to a chameleon, characterised by bumpy, wrinkled purple skin with few black stripes, a prominent maroon cranial crest and large green eyes with beady black pupils. For the first time in this line, the eyes are articulated and can move separately from each other, fictionally to achieve an extremely wide visual field and detect enemies on the opposite sides. He bears three large ringed bony horns (one protruding from his snout and two from his brow) that have an aged (i.e., with a very slight tint of yellow) ivory colour. The underside of his throat displays a small saw-tooth shaped maroon crest
Body: purple scaly skin with a bumpy texture and black dotted stripes. On each hand and foot, his five digits are divided in two flattened groups of two and three long sharp claws respectively, giving each extremity a tongs-like appearance. Both his head and wrinkled neck extension are on ball joints, which definitively gives him a hunched over look and an extended range without hindering the movements at all. He also displays an amazing curled prehensile tail emerging from under the loincloth
Wearables: a short-sleeved leather garment (orange at the top and black at the bottom) with a large Spektrosaur symbol (i.e., a greenish flame) stitched onto the front, double wrist and shin guards (each composed of an orange leather band and a copper cuff overlapped), an elaborate copper jockstrap with a buckle that resembles a reptile skull and a black furry loincloth. The shirt-like garment blends in with an elaborate copper collar, which is actually part of the neck extension, and shows ripped sleeves as well as a crest of spikes that are attempting to push through the cloth along the spine.
Action feature
In the comics, Cah-Mal is distinguished by several characteristics, including spectacular acrobatic skills, a very long and rapidly extrudable tongue, and the ability to become invisible by changing his overall colouration and blending into the surrounding environment. In the figure, the only elements related to his gymnastic mastery are his articulated pincers-like hands and feet, and prehensile tail.
Cah-Mal can project his long sticky tongue from his mouth in order to, for example, steal weapons from his foes located some distance away. So, the figure comes with an alternative head, which displays sculpted (i.e., not articulated) eyes, the open mouth armed with two rows of small sharp teeth and the club-tipped tongue out. The tongue, whose colour fades from green to orange-pink, is also articulated and can move left and right on a little disk set at the back of the mouth.
Finally, the colour change feature can be achieved using something warm. Simply by rubbing Cah-Mal with a cloth that has been wet with tepid water, his skin will become mustard with rust dotted stripes, while the flame on his tunic will turn red. Due to the resulting bright colouration, I believe that this colour change functions more as an aid for displaying aggressively to the enemies, rather than becoming invisible. I honestly think it's a nice touch, but, like with regular Masq-Lor, I'm not a big fan of it.
Weapons and accessories
Cah-Mal comes with just one accessory, but it’s such a cool and fun piece. It’s his really unique and creepy skeletal crossbow. It looks like it has been engineered using a number of long bones and utilises an undefined fanged reptile's skull as a bolt (which is a separate piece, not shooting though). The real neat thing is the paint job: the weapon seems made of black charred bones, while the bolt has the same aged ivory colour of Cah-Mal's horns. It is nicely detailed with cracks and pits, and includes a clip for Cah-Mal's arm.
Overall, Cah-Mal turned out to be a pretty great figure. He’s a solid addition to complete what I consider to be the funnest among the four factions. His "chameleonic" colour scheme gives him a unique touch that is only matched by the newly sculpted parts. Both his body and his accessory received a nice amount of detail and much more engineering than I expected. To be honest, I’m happier to add him to my shelf than I thought I’d be.
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