Prime 1 Studio 2014 Movie Michelangelo, Donatello & Splinter Statues
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Ordinarily, you would think that after spending hundreds of dollars to buy a high end statue, I would be anxious to open them as soon as possible
to enjoy them. At the very least, I'd want to check them for any damage. And yet, for more than six months I've had the final three statues
based on the 2014 Ninja Turtles movie from Prime 1 Studios sitting in my living room, unopened. As impressive as the first two turned out, I
didn't know if I was going to be able to find room for the final three. And with these three shipping so close to the release of the
second movie, Out of the Shadows, I have to admit that I just lost interest. But I'm tired of seeing these boxes stacked up in the corner. So
it's finally time to check out the rest of Prime 1 Studios' Ninja Turtles (2014) statues, including Michelangelo, Donatello and Master Splinter.
Packaging - 5/10The two Turtles are packaged just as their brothers were. Each statue is separated into two different boxes, one for the base and one for the Turtle and any accessory parts. Being as he is smaller, they packed Splinter and his base all into one box. And yes, there is some assembly required for all of the statues. But not much. The statues and parts are well packaged in styrofoam. But even with that, I did have a couple of minor issues with damage. One of Splinter's claws broke off of his toe. And one of the belts around Donatello's waist broke. Both were minor issues and easily fixed with a dab of glue. It's unavoidable given the complexity of these statues. But it is still annoying to spend all that money and wait all that time for something like this to arrive, only to find pieces broken, no matter how small the breakage. The boxes that the statues are packed in are not all that impressive to look at. They don't show any images of the actual statues or details. But I have to be realistic. These statues are not going to be sitting on normal retail shelves for sale. Even after they have been purchased, they are too large to make displaying them practical. So their asthetics are not very important. As long as they protect the contents inside so that they make it safely to my shelf, that's what counts. And they did an admirable, though imperfect job in that regard.
Sculpting - 10/10These statues are amazing. Hands down, there isn't a better version of the 2014 movie incarnation of the Turtles or their sensei available to the general public. Actually, given that the Turtles were a CGI creation in these movies, these are likely the most detailed and accurate physical form of these characters that has ever existed. I could go on and on describing all of the detail on any one of these statues. And I still wouldn't be able to do them full justice. So I'll just let the photos do that for me. On a further positive note, unlike Leonardo's statue which could barely keep his sword from falling out of his hands, both Michelangelo and Donatello hold their weapons well. Michelangelo's nunchuks are permanently molded into his hands. And thanks to his two handed grip, Donatello's bo is held securely even though it does not have a peg or other connector to keep it in one position. There is one other aspect worth talking about as well. All of the Turtle statues are designed with the tops of their heads as removeable parts and the eyes as separate pieces. This allows the eyes to be adjusted. But that is a useless feature. The eyes only really look right in one position based on the sculpted pose. So really, the feature just gives you the ability to screw up the positioning of the eyes and make the Turtles look crazy. Making the tops of the heads removeable also increases the risk of damage such as paint chipping around the edges. It does give them a handy way to attach the tails of the masks. But I think the main reason for this was so the eyes didn't need to be painted. The removeable heads aren't really a hinderance. But making the statues more complicated doesn't mean that they are better.
Paint - 10/10The paint work on all three of my statues is as close to perfect as I could hope for. The inconsistency of the gloss verses matte finishs from the Leonardo and Raphael statue is gone. They are still a bit glossier than I would have elected for. But it doesn't look out of place. And the sheer amount of shading and detail work is impressive. If you have a chance to see them in person, it becomes clear why these pieces carry the price tag that they do.
Articulation - Splinter 0/10, Don & Mikey 4/10As with Leonardo and Raphael before them, Donatello and Michelangelo both have the moveable eye balls. As I have already said, the feature isn't really useful. But the mere fact that a statue has any articulation is worth noting. Splinter does not have the adjustable eyeball feature. But I don't expect a statue to have articulation to begin with.
Value - Splinter 5/10, Donatello & Michelangelo 4/10Prime 1 Studios' statues don't come cheap. Michelangelo sells for $700 as did both Raphael and Leonardo. Donatello was even more expensive at $750. But at least we got a slight break with Splinter. He was only $470. Needless to say, that's a lot of money. And ultimately it isn't really the price that hurts the value for these statues. When you see them in person, it becomes instantly clear why the price is as high as it is. Even the extra money for Donatello isn't surprising given the extreme detail that went into his backpack and all the other equipment on him. What kills the value is that they are statues of the 2014 movie characters. And there weren't many people that really liked that film to begin with. But they do have at least one saving grace, they have sold well enough for Prime 1 to have announced statues for both Out of the Shadows and the original 1990 Ninja Turtles movie. And if those statues turn out anywhere near as well as these, we are in for a treat. In the meantime, if you happen to be one of the people that really loved the 2014 movie, and you have the space to display these, then you are getting a lot of bang for your bucks.
Happy Hunting:I purchased my statues from Sideshow Collectibles. They don't have any of the statues for the 2014 film left in stock. But they do have the listings for both the upcoming 1990 movie statues and Out of the Shadows statues. There are multiple listings on eBay for the 2014 versions. But the prices vary considerably. But with a bit of patience, you should be able to find them for close to retail. They are also all still listed on Prime 1 Studio's web site. But they don't seem to have an english version of the site or the store.
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