KR|Dimness Review #10: Tolaaf

Toy prototype details

Name: Tolaaf^TM

Subtitle: volcanic monster

Line: KR|Dimness

Item type: action figure - Nº 7 in the line.

Character details

Name: Tolaaf

Classification: lavatic creature

Sex: seemingly male

Home: Tahron

Era: 5 years before Foundation

Affiliation: Dark Legion (indirectly)

Rank: commandant of the Lava Sentinels who guard Mount Atubion.

Background

First appearance: KR|Dimness #1 - Into dimness: Part I – Awakening

Brief bio: wordless and stumping creatures of living hot molten rock, the Lava Sentinels were the monstrous protectors of Mount Atubion. Originally given life by the Multiversal Balancers, to guard the volcano and the magical spark that powered it, the Lava Sentinels eventually rebelled and only obeyed their commandant Tolaaf. When Wordron used his army of demonic parasites to bring Clavisaur back to life and retrieve the prodigious helmet that was once in his possession, he placed his trust in the Lava Sentinels, to prevent the Forseha tribe from harvesting a powerful remedy that originated from the volcano's soil. Tolaaf's ability to explode into burning rock fragments and rebuild himself made him a deadly enemy of all those who opposed his fiery horde, but thanks to their fearlessness and team spirit the Forseha people fought him courageously and drove the evil Lava Sentinels back to their lair.

Articulation

Standard, except that the forearms and calves are ball jointed.

Description

Head: made of a cracked dark-grey rocky material, carved with prominent brow ridges, deep-set devilish eyes, an open mouth (which exposes a number of sharp, crooked light-greyish teeth), and a structure on the chin and lower cheeks that looks like a beard. The cracks, as well as the eyes and mouth cavities, glow a bright orange colour as a result of the lava that moves beneath the hardened surface of his body. He also wears a sort of stony helmet covered in angular, spiky rock fragments (which reminds me a bit of Amaso from Steel Jeeg); the helmet can be removed, revealing a bright orange outpouring of lava oozing from his seemingly empty cranium

Body: made of a dark-grey rocky material criss-crossed by cracks that glow a bright orange colour. Although several body pieces are reused from the ragged Ter-Ah-Sur build, the sculptors at PoliganToys were able to manipulate that original buck to make this figure look like a big rocky beast. In fact, the torso/neck portion, the lower arms and legs as well as the hips/crotch part are all new massive, wonderfully sculpted overlay rock pieces that are attached to the figure. These pieces, which are all removable, add a great amount of size to the figure (he indeed looks like one of the largest in the series yet) and show a lot of craggy volcanic details such as cracks, crevices, blisters and glowing lava outflowings. I especially like the lower legs that resemble columnar basalt structures. The stony piece comprising his shoulders, chest and back has a nice crater-like collar portion that comes up around the back of the head, while the limb parts display spiky elbow and knee areas, as well as large hands equipped with spiked knuckles and huge feet sporting stony claws

Wearables: the torso/neck overlay includes a harness that is made of a ropey golden-yellow material and displays a volcano-shaped symbol at the centre of the chest piece. The forearms and the shins show pairs of large open lune-shaped golden-yellow bangles; similar ornamental lunes are also visible near the flanks on the stony torso piece. The waist/hips area is studded with golden-yellow nuggets, the central one of which is much larger and chiseled with some kind of demonic face design. Additionally, the guys at PoliganToys took artistic license with the chest emblem, the "clothing" on the crotch piece as well as most of the helmet, and changed those from light-grey to a more sky-blueish, larimar colour to add contrast. Despite I would have been fine if those details had been kept comic-book accurate, I do like the change.

Tolaaf's stylised harness; the triangular design at the centre of the chest piece represents a volcano-shaped symbol.

Action feature

In the comics, in order to knock down any enemies that stand in his way, Tolaaf has the ability to generate powerful volcanic eruptions from the inside of his body, ejecting his head and emitting a blast of toxic gasses and lethal burning material from his beheaded neck. The head is connected to a long incandescent chain, so he can use it as the striking end of a ball-and-chain flail before it blows like a volcanic bomb. The figure includes two stiff red-hot faux chains for two different display options: one that has a coiled end to be positioned around his left forearm and a thin ring-shaped end inserted between his head and neck (the beard and collar help conceal this piece), and a version of it in action, which has one end to be placed in both hands and the other end plugged into the ball joint socket of the head. An additional eruption effect, seemingly made of smoke, ash and lapilli, can be attached to the neck in place of the head when the latter is detached.

Moreover, when his head explodes, a new one is produced by his crater-like neck. So, a volcanic dome-shaped, mid-formation head with a blistered texture and a general glowing lava appearance is also included.

Weapons and accessories

Apart from the two chains, eruption effect and alternate head, Tolaaf comes with a spectacular flaming whip, which has a nice wavy shape and a metallic dark-blue handle. Judging by the similarity between this handle and the two chains' handgrips, I believe the whip is actually a third, much hotter version of the incandescent chain.

In addition, the guys at PoliganToys tossed a few alternative pieces in the package, so that Tolaaf can match his evil lavatic minion's styling. The set includes a head, a spiked collar, two pairs of lower arm/leg pieces and several weapons. First of all, it's necessary to remove the head, the torso/neck and the large limb rocky pieces, since Tolaaf's warriors have a slenderer look. When stripped of the torso covering, the cracked dark-grey rocky trunk shows a small triangular bright orange gemstone embedded in the centre of the chest. The alternate head sports a mane of long golden Pele's hair emerging from the crater-like cranium, a wrinkled texture, empty eye sockets that emit a faint orange glow, and a gaping mouth that allows for plugging in the eruption (more like spitting in this case) effect. Similarly to the collar, the plug-in gauntlets (one of which is hand-less) and clawed boots are made of the same ropey golden-yellow material seen on Tolaaf's harness, and display spikes all around the cuffs and the tops respectively. Finally, there is a boulderstone covered in spiky rock fragments, which is meant to be connected by the swinging-looking faux chain to the hand-less left arm, as well as a double-tang (i.e., with each blade held in the handle by two projections, leaving a cutout at the base of the blade) axe, a sword and a shield for the right hand. All the above-mentioned weapons are made of a dark-grey rocky material criss-crossed by cracks that glow a bright orange colour, and show some sky-blueish details, i.e., the spikes, the handle, the hilt and a ring design, respectively.

Final thoughts

Character value: ♦♦♦♦ As a chunk of living lava, this is a character who totally belongs to the barbarian filled era of the KR|Dimness series. I just love how epic and brutal he looks!

Articulation: ♥♥♥ Tolaaf has the same great, sturdy articulation that most other KR figures have and, except a little around the shoulders, the various overlays don’t impede movement too much

Sculpt and paint: ♣♣♣♣ The overlays used to augment the standard body sculpt manage to make him look big and broad, rather than fat, thankfully. The subtle variety in the shades of dark-grey on his body helps bring out a lot of detail and makes him look like actual stone

Accessories: ♠♠♠♠ Most of the accessories are cast and painted to mimic Tolaaf's texture and colour scheme, and feature some great sculpting. The flaming whip looks really, really vicious and definitely makes him appear like a torment for the Forseha people

Playability: ♪♪♪♪ There is a lot of love about this figure, as it is something quite different from what has come before in this line (perhaps with the exception of Clavisaur)

Overall: ☺☺☺☺ Tolaaf is definitely a highlight of 2019 so far and has jumped up on my list as my favourite KR|Dimness prototype. While we've got more than half of the year still to go, I can't help but feel like he will be a tough guy to beat.

KR Review #79: Ceratank

As one of the first Key Raiders vehicles shown in the comics, the Ceratank^TM was pretty high on my wish list for inclusion in the KR|Foundation series.

When PoliganToys announced that I would get a fully-sculpted, figure-scaled prototype of this vehicle, my reaction was ecstatic. With the expansion of the line following the inclusion of the Rotakord in the previous quarter, it actually seemed possible that I might get it, despite PoliganToys regularly claiming I would not.

Finally, rolling over the terrain in search of the enemy, moving closer to its prey with its jaws opening and closing to devour all in its path, this vehicle, hungry and on the hunt, is finally in my hands!

Details

Name: Ceratank

Subtitle: rumbling vehicle of destruction

Classification: land vehicle

Home: Tahron

Affiliation: Rexodon

Rank: transport.

Description

The Ceratank is a powerful, fearsome-looking command tank with a bony armour on the hull front, which strongly resembles a Centrosaurus skull. The blocky, angular hull is painted in a metallic dark-blue colour, while the large beaked ivory-white ceratopsian head bears an elaborate backwards curved horn over the snout, a pair of large hornlets that hook forwards over the jagged frill and a pair of small upwards directed horns over the eyes.

The front of the hull is flanked by wheeled outriggers, while the rear section is mounted on tank treads, each with a series of black metallic wheels and a seemingly articulated band of cleated black metal plates passing around. The vehicle can be rolled forward or backward thanks to the addition of a wheel hidden under each tread. The continuous tracks and front wheels are partly concealed and protected by a pair of metallic dark-blue armoured side-skirts, which are embellished with a number of curved ivory-white bony structures resembling ribs, and a pair of front mud-guards, each shaped and coloured like a five-clawed bony foot.

The driver's highly detailed cockpit is placed behind the armour-head and is covered by a domed canopy. This hood, which is cast in clear plastic and reinforced with metallic dark-blue beams, is hinged at the front and can only open by folding up and forward after detaching the bony head (in the comics, it is the head that is hinged and can be lowered to reveal a set of steps for boarding or disembarking the vehicle), so you can sit a figure in the driver's seat; my complaint, apart from the fact that the cockpit can only hold one figure (while in the comics it's a two-seater with a large heads up display), is that the top of the bony frill is right in front of the pilot’s face, which I find kind of weird. Thankfully, the clear canopy can be swapped out for a metallic dark-blue armoured version, to better match its comic book battle-mode depiction.

Finally, the back part has large air intakes and exhaust pipes (or perhaps rocket boosters) on top of the engine compartment, and carries a long, curved ivory-white bony tail composed of eight large vertebrae and equipped with two points of articulation, i.e. a hinge and a swivel, near its base. Theoretically, by popping the tail off at the swivel joint, a Ceratank could be connected to a second identical vehicle stripped of its head and, by repeating this process several times, it would be possible to build a caterpillar-esque monster tank made of a large number of units.

It's interesting to note that the skull (around the eye sockets), front paws and tail end display various metallic dark-blue techno-embellishments, such as panels, tubes, wires and pistons, while the eyes themselves are in fact fiery red headlights.

Action feature

The Ceratank's engine cover on the rear section can be opened thanks to three folding-up hatches (two on the sides and one on the back, with the latter becoming a headrest), revealing a single-seat rear cockpit ornamented with highly detailed wall panelling and armed with a removable swinging/swivelling two-handled double-gun on the front. Although this toy is large enough to accommodate two figures comfortably, one on the front and one on the back, it isn't an exact replica of what I've seen in the comics - it's still a ton smaller than its fictional counterpart, which can transport many people into battle.

Additionally, the tail, which bears a missile-launcher on its end, can swivel and fold up for shooting forward. In this position, the cannon plugs into a spot right behind the front cockpit, while the tail, owing to its curved shape, becomes a handle that can be used to carry the Ceratank around.

Furthermore, an additional bony neck piece (with length, shape and colour similar to those of the tail) can be inserted between the hull and the head. This piece's function is to recreate the neck-extending attack feature seen in the comics and, thanks to a ratcheted joint in the middle, allows the head to be directed upwards. In this configuration, the monstrous vehicle's jaws can swing open agape, showing a number of menacing serrated teeth, and snap shut to hold one unlucky figure. Alternatively, the mouth can be used as a handy place to store the driver's weapons.

Weapons and accessories

Aside from a missile that can be fired from the tail-launcher thanks to a spring-loaded mechanism, the Ceratank has two large guns mounted to the top of the wheeled outriggers, which are exposed by lifting the two paws on the front (each paw is articulated with a hinge at its base). Each gun is painted in a silver colour, has a reptile's head design on the tip and can move up and down for better aim.

Moreover, the outriggers are actually "launchable" pods that detach from the sides of the hull. These pods look like small metallic black and dark-blue driverless bikes, each with a larger tire in the back than in the front and surmounted by the pivoting gun.

All things considered, the Ceratank is long overdue to be made into a prototype and is a welcome addition to my collection. Its size, meticulous detail, and the fact that you can comfortably fit two figures on this thing with no problem, make it essential for any KR enthusiast who has the space for it. This masterpiece of a vehicle is without a doubt an extremely impressive toy!

KR|Dimness Review #9: Forseha Defenders

Toy prototype details

Name: Forseha Defenders^TM

Subtitle: combative tribespeople

Line: KR|Dimness

Item type: multi-pack (3-pack) - Nº 3 in the line.

Character details

Name: Forseha Defender

Classification: mammal (various species)

Sex: male or female

Home: Tahron

Era: 5 years before Foundation

Affiliation: Forseha

Rank: tribal warrior.

Background

First appearance: KR|Dimness #1 - Into dimness: Part I – Awakening

Brief bio: for many centuries, the reclusive Forseha people rejected the technology that had quickly spread across Tahron, and continued to live in a primitive terramare settlement near the Ucamur^TM region. In their veins, most of the tribe members held the blood of the great ancient champion Myneran^TM, who, alongside other valiant paladins, had been entrusted with keeping the legendary Key safe from the ruthless reptilian armies. Because of this valuable lineage, the Forseha tribe was targeted by the evil Wordron, who wished to access the bloodline’s link to the powers of their ancestor for reviving the mysterious golem Clavisaur. Blessed with strength, deep knowledge of the forest environment and the ability to use the resources of nature to their advantage, these warriors were tough adversaries for Wordron. After courageously defending their clan from an army of demonic parasites, many of the tribesmen suffered mystical wounds that put them into an unconscious state. Eventually, the few unaffected heroes freed their companions from the curse and together joined forces to defeat the Dark Legion.

Articulation

Standard, excluding hinged abdomen for the female figure and calf swivel for both human figures (due to the fact that they wear neither boots nor shin guards).

Description

The set includes three figures: a human male, a human female and a non-human male.

Heads: the two human figures' heads have Indigenous Brazilian features, both showing brown skin, fairly long brown hair and hazel eyes; I really like their facial expressions, which instantly communicate brawn. The non-human figure has a similar appearance to a hippopotamus, identifiable by the large mauve taupe head with a long muzzle, eyes, ears and nostrils placed high on the roof of his skull and broad horny lips

Bodies: the two human figures show brown skin, while the non-human figure exhibits a hairless mauve taupe body. The male's body displays a few L-shaped black war-paint markings here and there, while his chest and back are mildly hairy. All the three characters are barefoot; in particular, the hippo-like figure has four-toed webbed feet

Wearables: the human male figure wears a short light-brown raffia fibre tunic with L-shaped white decorative patterns, a dark-brown leather strip tied around the right forearm, a dark-brown knotted rope belt and a long torn off-white skin loincloth. The female figure wears a one-shoulder leotard with a cut-out on the right flank, a dark-brown leather armband on the left arm, a pair of narrow tubular bronze bracelets on the right arm, two narrow tubular bronze anklets ornamented with layers of light-brown plant fibres (or perhaps fur...), a belt made of several bronze discs laced together and a short pale-straw grass skirt. The leotard seems to be made of two pieces that are stitched together: the top piece (perhaps originally part of a bikini-like outfit) is made from pale cream-coloured fur that is brownly marked with blotches and stripes, while the bottom one is made from light-brown raffia fibre. The non-human figure wears a thigh-length shaggy tunic (made from the same blotchy/striped fur described above), two dark-brown leather gloves and two dark-brown leather calf protectors with tattered light-brown turndown tops. The tunic is secured around the waist by a dark-brown leather belt equipped with a little skull buckle and a small scabbard for a dagger on the side. All the three garments are embellished with necklaces that are variously adorned with claws, stones and shells, and I like that the two males can exchange their tunics to add more variety to the set (they both also look cool shirtless).

Weapons and accessories

Although the Forseha Defenders are extremely skilled warriors, their figures have no action feature, but they do come with a nice set of weapons that are very fitting (and savage) for the three characters. The human male wields a spear that definitely has a primitive look to it, with a pointed dark-grey chert head tied with brown rope to a long shaft. The shaft itself is composed of two parts, which are also held together by rope: an upper whitish bony segment and a longer lower wooden part. This piece is also very detailed, with the knapped, almond-shaped head having scratches and nicks in it.
The female character brandishes a very cool tomahawk, which has a nice sharp sculpt and features a whitish bony handle fitted with a head of bladed dark-grey stone. I love how it looks weathered - you can see the dents and chips in the blade, as it looks like its owner has had many uses for it.

The non-human figure has a double bearded axe and a dagger. The axe shows two polished dark-grey stone blades mounted asymmetrically (i.e., one of the two blades is upside down) to a wooden handle. Again, this piece shows excellent attention to detail by the folks at PoliganToys, with good woodgrain and dinted stone features. The dagger also has that primitive look seen in the other weapons, with rope holding two bones crossed to form a hilt and the polished dark-grey stone blade all together.

Additionally, the three figures come with three alternate heads that show slightly different details compared to their standard ones: the human male sports darker brown hair and beard as well as a band of light-brown raffia fibre tied around the head, the human female has shorter, darker brown hair and a bony band worn on the front, while the non-human chap shows the mouth wide open, revealing large yellowish canine and incisor tusks.

Final thoughts

Character value: ♦♦♦ In my opinion the Defenders are a vital part of the KR mythos, just like the Theriom Troopers/Knights/Soldiers. I hope they'll be mass-available, because they would make an excellent customisation base

Articulation: ♥♥♥♥ The standard KR articulation is only hindered slightly at the neck by the longish hair of the human figures

Sculpt and paint: ♣♣♣♣ Sculpt of course is killer; there are a surprising number of new parts on the two human characters, since they're barefoot and not wearing much around their forearms and lower legs. Paint is crisp and clean

Accessories: ♠♠♠♠♠ All the weapons are cast in a solid and sturdy plastic and feature fine sculpts and excellent paintwork. They all have a nice dark paint wash to give an appropriate level of crudeness to the pieces. The additional heads are an impressive extra

Playability: ♪♪♪♪ I had a great time posing these savage warriors fighting any beasts and monsters from my collection

Overall: ☺☺☺☺ The Forseha Defenders multi-pack is an amazing set and all the figures are very well detailed. The alternate heads are excellent and are going to replace the standard heads on my figures from here on out.

KR|Dimness Review #8: Modi-Rha (Dimness Edition)

Toy prototype details

Name: Modi-Rha^TM (Dimness Edition)

Subtitle: athletic sidekick

Line: KR|Dimness

Item type: action figure - Nº 6 in the line.

Character details

Name: Modi-Rha

Married name: Cleorsu^TM

Classification: human

Sex: female

Relationships: wife of Wordron, mother of Barkos

Home: Tahron

Era: 5 years before Foundation

Affiliation: Dark Legion

Rank: counsellor.

Background

First appearance: KR|Dimness #1 - Into dimness: Part I – Awakening

Brief bio: the orphan of Nemhisto^TM and estranged sister of Demo-Rha^TM, Modi-Rha was brainwashed by Duke Wordron when he became convinced that his native realm, O-Kin, would be better off with him as its ruler. Initially unaware of their blood relationship, she married Wordron and joined her husband's plan to challenge King Li-Khon^TM for the throne of Tahron. Armed with a variety of weapons and superhuman abilities, Modi-Rha proved a merciless warrior, but was eventually defeated and exiled with her family at Ucamur. There, she was persuaded to leap into battle once again, this time against the Forseha people in order to exploit their link to the powers of the ancient champion Myneran^TM. When Wordron revealed his demonic nature, rather than subjugate the Forseha tribe members, Modi-Rha instead freed them from the Dark Legion's clutches and helped them prevail over its despotic leader.

Articulation

Standard, excluding hinged abdomen.

Description

Head: half-Asian features, her skin, hair and eyes have an albino character, but their colour, instead of being completely white, tends to a very light-toned violet. Her haircut is an asymmetrical shave on one side of the head that leaves the rest of the hair long and arranged into a twisted side-ponytail (however, the trimmed side is not completely shaved, but buzzed very short with a tribal design). Apart from the addition of the ponytail and a different tribal design, her slightly aged look makes it possible to distinguish this head from her Enmity version's one

Body: the exposed parts of her body, i.e., neck, stomach, arms and legs, show a very pale, light-toned violet skin

Wearables: a gold armour with purple details, a gold choker, two gold armbands, two gold bracelets, two gold sandal-boots with knee guards, a gold belt (with a square blue buckle that holds a short strip of sheer violet fabric) and a short purple leather tasset skirt. Besides the Dark Legion symbol (i.e., a diamond-shaped black gemstone, which, when looking deeply into it, shows a subtle discolouration resembling a demonic face), her armour is equipped with two laminar, studded purple shoulder pads and two loops for storing her daggers. The knee guards are ornamented with purple gemstones, while the openwork of her boots allows her ankles and part of the top of each foot to show through.

Modi-Rha's stylised armour; the circle at the centre of the chest piece represents the Dark Legion symbol.

Action feature

In the comics of the KR|Dimness series, at some point Modi-Rha is shown to possess the paranormal ability to store energy (specifically derived from sound and light waves), convert it into a destructive force and release it either gradually (by disintegrating anything that she touches with her right hand and by creating a barrage of knives of light to be thrown at her opponents) or all at once in the form of a separate spirit that is capable of flight/teleportation and can generate "darkness explosions" upon contact with solid objects (this sort of astral projection can only last for a very limited period of time). In the toy, the dark form of energy that she can project from her body takes the shape of an energy blast effect, which is cast in a black plastic and fits onto her right hand fairly snugly. This piece also shows bright violet lines on its surface, like if it had fractured without coming apart, and has a really great swirly pattern to it that looks appropriately supernatural.

Weapons and accessories

Aside from the energy blast effect add-on, Modi-Rha comes with a cool set of accessories. A number of these accessories, her requisite quarterstaves and sickle-daggers, are related to her stick fighting and knife throwing skills. The two quarterstaves are long, stout rods of wood tipped with spiked golden caps at both ends and equipped with purple leather strips wrapped around the shafts for a more comfortable grip. These staffs can clip onto the back of Modi-Rha's armour in a criss-cross pattern.

The sickle-daggers come in two forms: as three separate pieces and combined into a triskelion-shaped throwing star. Each knife has a purple hilt, as well as an angled blade that can be sheathed in one of the two loops on the front of the armour. The third knife may be stored in an additional black leather sheath that can be tied around either thigh. The combined spinning star version is never shown in the comics, but is a very nicely sculpted piece. All the angled blades have a golden face and a glow-in-the-dark one, to mimic Modi-Rha's ability to concentrate the bright form of her superhuman energy into her hand, with it manifesting as a supernatural glow of the knife she holds.
Additionally, the figure includes an alternative masked head that wears a purple cloth covering. The best way to describe this headgear is saying that it resembles a mix of a hijab and a ninja mask. For a piece that is mostly just a purple hood, there is absolutely no lack in details thanks to lines and folds around the opening for the eyes. While not much of her face is exposed here, her furrowed brow, coupled with her bright eyes, suggests a fierce expression.

Final thoughts

Character value: ♦♦♦ Modi-Rha is a pretty cool and important character in the KR mythos, so it makes sense that she has a new figure in this series, even if she's not very different from her KR|Enmity counterpart

Articulation: ♥♥♥♥ Her articulation is pretty standard for a KR female figure, but her skirt is short enough to allow for some combat poses that many of the other ladies cannot manage

Sculpt and paint: ♣♣♣ Like with her previous version, she has an extremely well sculpted facial expression, matching the intensity of her character. The paint seems fine, although it doesn't mimic the comic book colour scheme faithfully

Accessories: ♠♠♠ Her weapons are really cool, and she looks good wielding them. If she’s missing anything, it’s a repaint of herself that resembles the shadowy black silhouette projected from her body. I'll be waiting for a variant

Playability: ♪♪♪♪ How could I not enjoy a ninja-masked chick that is a master knife thrower and can produce a dark force of total destruction?

Overall: ☺☺☺ This figure isn’t perfect, her skin tone is a bit too light and her accessories are kinda limited, but in every other respect, she is definitely great.

KR|Dimness Review #7: Pike

Toy prototype details

Name: Pike

Subtitle: young furry apprentice

Line: KR|Dimness

Item type: action figure (small figure) - Nº 5 in the line.

Character details

Name: Pike

Classification: lagomorph mammal

Sex: male

Home: Tahron

Era: 5 years before Foundation

Affiliation: Forseha

Rank: tyro.

Background

First appearance: KR|Dimness #2 - Masq-Lor's quest

Brief bio: as the youngest son of the Forseha tribe's master artisan, Pike learnt the value of work and responsibility since his childhood. He grew up loved by his parents and cherished by his many siblings, but while his father taught him the ways of craft, he soon found fondness for the art of fighting, feeling the need to protect the people around him. Although Solamya believed Pike wasn't ready for combat, few realised how far he had climbed to worthiness. Above all, Dakun, observing Pike's flourishing virtue, recognised the striking similarities between him and Masq-Lor, and hoped that one day they would both use their noble nature to defend their tribe together.

Articulation

Standard, except that elbows and knees are swivel/hinged, wrists are ball jointed, and there are no bicep, abdomen and thigh joints.

Description

Head: similar to a hare, characterised by a short reddish-brown fur, a slightly prominent face (I guess it's been flattened to give it a more humanoid appearance), long elliptical ears (the right one is almost straight up, while the left one is bent forward), big green eyes and large protruding incisor teeth in the upper jaw. The face is very well sculpted and displays a subtle smile that definitely fits the young age and the cuteness of the character, although the overall expression shows some boldness

Body: smaller than the adult characters (only 13 cm, a bit more than 5"), slim, thick reddish-brown fur (with a few nicely shaped black markings), long four-toed feet with strong dark claws and a short, rounded bushy tail sculpted over the back of his shorts. The fur on the front of the torso and on the centre of the tail has an off-white wash

Wearables: a metallic light-blue collar, two metallic light-blue bracelets, two metallic light-blue calf protectors with knee guards, a studded metallic light-blue belt and dark-green shorts. The collar bears two golden rings (one on the front and one on the back) to which a dark-green cloth that seemingly straps across his crotch is tied; the lower-front part of the cloth carries a metallic light-blue ornament (which is shaped like two stylised rabbit ears pointing downward) supposedly representing the belt buckle and hiding the gap between this part and the shorts (which are fictionally one piece)... too bad that the "buckle" turns together with the torso when it's swivelled at the waist cut and nothing similar has been added to the back. However, the collar, bracelets, knee guards, belt buckle and cloth are all engraved/embroidered with very nice decorative patterns.

Action feature

In the comics, Pike shows several abilities. First and foremost, thanks to his remarkably long and strong legs, he's a fast runner and an exceptional jumper. In fact, Pike has new legs, which are, from hips to ankles, 1 cm (almost ½'') longer than the standard small figure's legs. This means that at full height (for example when posing in a jump action scene) the figure is taller than other equally-sized characters such as Mor-Rak, Zhongat or little Barkos. However, he can be displayed in a slightly crouching position, both to bring him to a more standard height and to give him a characteristic "rabbit" posture.

Additionally, Pike is shown to be very skillful in boxing and in quickly digging burrows (or even warrens of interconnecting burrows) for shelter whenever he's in danger. So, the figure's bare hands can be replaced with two alternative pairs of brown leather-gloved hands, which have, besides attached shield-shaped metallic light-blue wrist guards, either a clenched pose or an open pose with a golden claw extending from the tip of each finger.

Weapons and accessories

Apart from the pairs of alternate hands, Pike comes with a greenish extra belt derived from the long woody stem of a liana, and two versions of it in action. The loose fitting belt is removable and it took me a bit to figure out how it should sit on the waist. By moving the knot slightly behind his left hip and above the waist cut, the straps on the front side will hang down in front of the buckle sculpted on the garment piece.

The other two separate pieces (i.e., a whip and a sling used to hurl a couple of sculpted stones) work pretty well for some cool in-action poses and are made to look like the belt has been removed and is used as a weapon.

Final thoughts

Character value: ♦♦♦♦ Pike is yet another KR figure to divide a potential fan base. I personally love the comic Masq-Lor's quest (which I'll review at some point), and this character’s design and role are really appealing in my opinion. He’s definitely the most benign-looking creature of the series

Articulation: ♥♥♥♥ The standard articulation is not hindered by his outfit at all

Sculpt and paint: ♣♣♣♣ Pike reuses Mor-Rak's body with some new parts, including a brilliant head sculpt that has a bit of a dry-brush to bring out the fur texture. The torso armour is really more like a costume, but has some nice details such as rivets, indented seam lines and raised designs

Accessories: ♠♠ While I like all the accessories, I do wish they were a bit more exciting. With such a small figure, I would have appreciated some larger pack-in item

Playability: ♪♪♪ I imagine I enjoy this figure far more than many other fans would do. I actually like him far more than I anticipated I would

Overall: ☺☺☺ I dig Pike. He’s simple, small and a perfect April Fool's Day joke, but he's also a fun addition to the KR|Dimness family.

KR|Dimness Review #6: Barkos

Toy prototype details

Name: Barkos^TM

Subtitle: defiant heir

Line: KR|Dimness

Item type: action figure (dual figure) - Nº 4 in the line.

Character details

Name: Barkos

Classification: human

Sex: male

Relationships: stepson of Wordron

Home: Tahron

Era: 5 years before Foundation

Affiliation: Dark Legion

Rank: rear marshal.

Background

First appearance: KR|Dimness #1 - Into dimness: Part I – Awakening

Brief bio: raised as a hereditary duke, Barkos was in fact born to Modi-Rha^TM and a fellow soldier in O-Kin's Golden Eagle armed force. When his biological father was mysteriously found dead, Duke Wordron, secretly his mother's half-brother, acknowledged his paternity of the newborn child. Marrying Modi-Rha and having a son, in turn, allowed Wordron to maintain his noble status in O-Kin's high society. After briefly encountering the Therioms during his childhood, Barkos was exiled with his family at Ucamur. In spite of his little talent for the supernatural, he inherited enhanced psychic abilities from his mother, which made him an excellent channel for the great powers of the prodigious helmet that was once more retrieved by his stepfather. Upon wearing the helmet, Barkos was transformed into a ferocious werewolf with incredible strength and the power to leap great distances, but when Wordron sent him to the Forseha settlement to subjugate the rebellious tribe, he faced Yla-Nha and was instantly defeated. When Modi-Rha, in an attempt to free her son's mind from Wordron's thrall, revealed the truth about his parentage, Barkos felt unable to oppress the Forseha clan further and, as a result, defected and helped the tribe members escape the Dark Legion's wicked plot. Following his adoptive father's death, he found it difficult to be recognised as a hero by his enemies despite his brave act. However, having discovered the gleam of hope within himself, he decided to hide the powerful helmet in a secret location, to prevent anybody with evil intentions from gaining possession of it.

Articulation

Both figures have the standard articulation; the enhanced form also features a tail, which is a ball jointed separate piece.

Description

In the comics, Barkos wears a magic helmet that in certain situations gives him incredible abilities and changes his look. Despite the two figures represent the same character, they render the two alternative forms and appear very different. Although it's not clear whether these figures will be released individually or in a 2-pack, I'm going to describe them separately.

Normal form

Head: pale white skin, a wide, long stringy black mohawk and blue eyes. To add further boldness to the look, his hairstyle is combined with shaved sides that include some wicked tattoos, which kind of recall claw scratches. He also has a pair of devilish pointy ears, while his eyebrows seem to be missing

Body: the exposed parts of his body (i.e., arms and chest) show pale white skin

Wearables: a short-sleeved dark-green vest with silver edges and armholes (which expand into riveted shoulder pads), a pair of dark-green trousers, two silver bracelets (each with a knuckle protector and a pair of spikes sticking out of the side), two silver boots (each with an ornamented knee guard that resembles a wolf face) and a silver belt (equipped with a buckle bearing the Dark Legion emblem, i.e., a diamond-shaped black gemstone, which, when looking deeply into it, shows a subtle discolouration resembling a demonic face). The vest falls just below the hips, features a stand-up mandarin collar and is open on the chest (although the two sides of the vertical opening on the front are loosely joined with two light-brown leather strings and secured by the belt at the waist), exposing two criss-crossed gold and silver necklaces.

Enhanced form

Head: similarly to other characters in the KR universe, Barkos wears one of the silver magic helmets, which in certain circumstances produces a wolf-like half mask (or visor) and gives him incredible physical and mental powers, changing his appearance significantly. The figure comes with an helmeted head, characterised by the grey-wolf visor activated, fierce bright yellow, glowing eyes and a covering of dark hair around the open mouth (which exposes large sharp whitish fangs). In addition to the standard side crests, the helmet is also adorned with two triangular metal decorations resembling canine ears

Body: he exhibits the bulkier sculpt that has previously been used for Grabtrak and Khon-Uhr, which displays a thick mottled grey to brown fur on the limbs, as well as claw hands and feet (unlike the normal form, this version of Barkos is barefoot). During his transformation, Barkos also grows a long bushy grey to brown tail, which in the figure is connected to the back of the loincloth via a ball joint

Wearables: a silver armour with dark-green details (which features a number of claw scratches on the chest plate), two laminar silver bracelets, two studded silver ankle bracelets, a studded silver belt (with a wolf face-shaped buckle) and a fairly long dark-green furry loincloth.

Barkos' stylised helmet with side crests.

Barkos' stylised armour.

Action feature

To simulate the retractile claws seen in the comics, a pair of large ivory claws can snap into each bracelet of Barkos' enhanced form.

Weapons and accessories

Barkos' normal form includes a dagger with a greenish wooden hilt (whose shape is made to resemble the end part of a long bone) and an S-shaped silver crossguard that develops into two intertwining blades; each silver blade ends with a sharp point, making the weapon recall Thulsa Doom's dagger from the 1982 movie Conan the Barbarian. The dagger can have its blade inserted in a light-brown leather sheath attached to a loose fitting belt, which is a separate piece that can be repositioned to one's liking.

The enhanced form comes with a sword that is an augmented version of the above-mentioned dagger. This weapon has a greenish oxidised bronze hilt (whose pommel resembles a wolf skull) and two S-shaped silver crossguards set side by side, which develop into two long parallel blades; each blade, in turn, is composed of four smaller intertwining blades (two made of silver and two made of gold) and ends with an arrangement of four prongs that recall the claws of a wolf paw. The sword can have one of its two blades inserted in a dark-brown leather scabbard attached to the back of a removable harness, whose shoulder straps are ornamented with silver spikes and massive shoulder pads (each equipped with four large bony claws projecting sideways).

Finally, there is an alternative head for the figure's normal form, which wears the inactive helmet, i.e., with neither the grey-wolf visor activated nor the metal ears. This head works as the necessary bridge between the unhelmeted and the helmeted-with-visor heads.

Final thoughts

Character value: ♦♦♦ Yes, Barkos lacks that natural evil of his stepfather, but his defiant nature makes him definitely boss

Articulation: ♥♥♥ The long hair of the normal form restricts the neck articulation somewhat. Otherwise, both figures can take very natural poses, allowing for some great display potential

Sculpt and paint: ♣♣♣♣ This adult version of a character that we had already seen as a kid in the KR|Enmity series turned out really nice - he's one bad ass looking dude! Most of the paint work is quite good, especially on the fur of the enhanced form, which looks terrific

Accessories: ♠♠♠ I really love his augmented sword, with its double blade and ornate hilt. Unlike the smaller dagger, the sword is also a very sturdy piece

Playability: ♪♪♪♪ The KR|Dimness series is more and more proving great fun, and Barkos is just another example of how good PoliganToys can be when they want to... fortunately, they often do!

Overall: ☺☺☺ I wasn't expecting a whole lot out of Barkos, since he doesn't have the cool dragon/skeleton theme of Wordron. But once he was out of the package, I began to appreciate his overall look and design, and it's actually nice to have another animal-looking enhanced warrior in the series.

KR|Dimness Review #5: Yla-Nha

Toy prototype details

Name: Yla-Nha^TM

Subtitle: charming shieldmaiden

Line: KR|Dimness

Item type: action figure - Nº 3 in the line.

Character details

Name: Yla-Nha

Classification: human

Sex: female

Home: Tahron

Era: 5 years before Foundation

Affiliation: Forseha (indirectly)

Rank: leading amazon.

Background

First appearance: KR|Dimness #1 - Into dimness: Part I – Awakening

Brief bio: daughter of the Kmutuk^TM tribe’s chieftain, Yla-Nha was a sharp-witted fighter and champion athlete who rose quickly in the strata of her clan. She trained in the art of war under several masters, learning vital close combat techniques, especially with the aid of edged weapons. When young, she was very impulsive, sometimes putting herself in serious danger, but fortunately her excellent skills always saved her. Yla-Nha became a celebrated figure in her tribe, until she was deceived by the treacherous clan's spiritual leader, who, in order to become chief, secretly tricked and manipulated her into murdering her parents. During the territorial disputes in the area near the Ucamur region, the Kmutuk clan fought against the Forseha tribe and Yla-Nha, rejected by her people, asked the rivals for succour. Once she discovered the truth, she sought revenge and assisted the Forseha people in defeating the evil Kmutuk chief, freeing her tribe from his despotism. Yla-Nha’s resourcefulness impressed Dakun, who enlisted her help whenever the Forseha tribe found itself in the middle of turmoil.

Articulation

Standard, excluding hinged abdomen.

Description

Head: Nordic features, white skin, long blond dreadlocks decorated with copper beads, and purple eyes

Body: the exposed parts of her body (i.e., left upper arm, right forearm, right leg and stomach) show white skin. The right arm and the left leg are protected by a pauldron (equipped with an ornamented besagew) and a thigh armour respectively, both metallic purple with copper details

Wearables: a basque-like metallic purple armour with copper details (including a pair of ornamented bra cups and a spaulder curved upward on the left shoulder), a large metallic purple wrist/elbow guard and a copper armband on the left arm, a narrow metallic purple bracelet on the right arm, two brown leather boots (each with metallic purple toecap and chain mail sides, and the top widening sideways), a metallic purple tasset belt (with two horn-shaped copper ornaments hanging down in front) and a short orange skirt. A metallic purple choker fits closely round her neck, while the armour seemingly has a vertical opening on the front side, all the way down, which is fastened with two buckled brown leather straps and a copper button.

Yla-Nha's stylised armour.

Action feature / Weapons and accessories

In the comics, Yla-Nha wields a six-piece set of blades (she is shown to skilfully handle up to four of them at the same time), which come in a variety of shapes (mostly machete-like, with copper blades and the hilts wrapped in brown leather) and sizes, and are thus suited to a wide array of combat situations.

Furthermore, the blades can be assembled to form a single large sword, which in its various states of combination serves as her primary weapon. The concept is very similar to Final Fantasy's Fusion Sword. As detailed in the diagram below, the six-blade assembly consists of:

- One fascine knife (1) with a distinctively large handguard (which the other swords lock onto) and a wide, straight length of blade that tapers to an equally long but thinner length ending in a point. This is the main blade that forms the base of the six-piece sword and is the only one among the six that is double-edged

- One panga machete (2) with a grooved blade that broadens on the backside and has a sharpened upper inclined portion. This weapon is actually hollow, meaning that it's essentially a thick sheet of metal folded in a V-shape when looked from above (the edge of the blade being the bottom point of the "V"), with the lower third of its length wrapping around a double-hilt. This blade locks onto either edge of the main blade, snugly covering most of its length and serving as the front edge of the assembled sword

- Two identical tsakat/saw combos (3 and 4), each with a long saw-toothed, billhook-like blade. These two weapons attach to both sides of the main blade's free edge, with the two pointed curves projecting towards opposite directions, and form the back of the assembled sword

- Two identical double-daggers (5 and 6), each with a cane knife blade accompanied by another short, highly curved blade (like that of a kukri or a kopis) attached near the hilt at an angle. These weapons have a mechanism between the hilts and the blades that allows them to partially fold up like a switchblade. It is in this folded form that the two daggers lock onto the two sides of the assembled sword, with their most angled blades projecting towards opposite directions. These knives fictionally possess some sort of locking mechanism designed to hold the other blades in place and to cover their hilts, and their addition completes the assembled sword's asymmetrical, spiky silhouette.

Yla-Nha's stylised assembled sword; the left half represents the front edge, while the right half represents the back.

The figure comes with all these weapons in both their separate and assembled configurations (seven pieces in total). The blades in their disassembled state can be stored in a number of loops that Yla-Nha carries on her armour: two in a criss-cross pattern on the back (for the fascine knife and the panga machete) and two on the sides of the tasset belt (for the two tsakat/saw combos). Although the fact that there are only four loops seems strange, considering that there are six weapons, it could imply that Yla-Nha would never be in a situation where all six blades need separate carrying. So, it is possible that each tsakat/saw combo and each double-dagger might be fictionally combined in one piece in order to fit into the same slot.

Final thoughts

Character value: ♦♦♦♦♦ Yla-Nha looks a lot like a female version of Foundation Masq-Lor, much more barbaric and bad-ass than other formidable amazons we have seen in other series of the KR universe

Articulation: ♥♥ The hair and the skirt are cast in a stiffer plastic than it would be ideal and, as a result, they hinder movement a bit. It’s not the worst I've seen, but it could have been better

Sculpt and paint: ♣♣♣♣ Everything about the looks of Yla-Nha is top notch, from the top of her head all the way to the soles of her boots. I really like the metallic purple and copper-orange details of her outfit. Her skin is a little bit glossy, though in normal light I don’t find it too unacceptable

Accessories: ♠♠♠♠ The figure comes with a set of really nice weapons. The assembled sword is a beautifully detailed piece of work with a great design, I love it! Too bad, however, they replaced the leather scabbards seen in the comics with simple loops

Playability: ♪♪♪♪ I was hotly anticipating this prototype when PoliganToys announced it, but my excitement was reduced a bit by the news of the scabbards removal. I’m glad to say that such a change is not as ruinous to my enjoyment of this figure as I thought it would be

Overall: ☺☺☺☺ Yla-Nha looks great alongside the more barbaric characters like Solamya and Dakun, while still fitting in with the rest of the KR line. I’m more than happy to add her to the shelf!