Wednesday, September 4, 2013

Hero Maker





Revell Inc. has come up with a clever solution to a problem.

It’s no secret that plastic models are getting expensive and that less and less young people are taking up the hobby.  Revell’s dilemma: how to keep the price down and bring in new customers?

One of the reasons that youngsters often shy away from making plastic models is that they can be complicated to assemble.  Thrown in paint and decals and most youngsters feel intimidated, then frustrated and abandon any hopes of making a model.

Revell came up with a clever solution to draw young people in by making a simple, snap together, pre-painted model series based on popular comic book characters and packaged to look like an action figure.

The series: Revell’s new Hero Maker: bubble packed, action figure sized Ironman and Spider-Man.

Honestly when I first saw the figures I thought they were action figures.  It wasn’t until I saw the name Revell that it dawned on me that the figures were actually plastic models disguised as toys.  Clever, very clever!

Then I looked at the price and just like action figures they fell right into the same price bracket.  They are easily affordable as compared to other ‘toys’.

Of the two figures Ironman has to be my favorite, the gold and red armored figure comes disassembled as upper and lower torsos, legs, arms and head.  Removable chest plate, leg plate and back plate allow modelers to see the inner workings of the Ironman armor.

Once snapped together the figure stands with legs spread, left armed raised as if ready to fire a Repulsar Ray and right arm bent at the elbow with fist clenched.  It’s a nicely crafted figure with tight fitting parts, clean color application with no run over in an attractive package that showcases the figure in plain view.  

The Spider-Man figure features the Webslinger also disassembled into body parts and includes a detachable Spidey symbol and special web base for posing the crouched Spider-Man figure poised to shoot his web.  

Like the Ironman figure the Spider-Man figure is expertly sculpted, captures the look and feel of the character and features tight assembled parts and crisp paint application.
So, whether you go in for model kits or action figures, Revell has you covered.