DCUC Series 15 Martian Manhunter & Variant

Appearance
Martian Manhunter finally arrives, but does he live up to expectations? J’onn uses the Hawkman torso and mostly reused parts. However he’s significantly taller than standard DCUC figure. The extra height comes from the lower legs and new boots, and makes him in scale with other figures. This is unusual since most figures are exactly the same height, but the height does help him stand out on display. His head is larger too, which stands out but is probably more in proportion with the body than other figures.

There’s only two places on this figure with paint and that’s the trunks and the eyes. The paint is cleanly applied, but J’onn could benefit from some paint wash on the body. His colors are flat, and the light green reflects a lot of light. I also would have preferred a darker green to match his comic appearances. Stylistically J’onn fits in perfectly with existing figures. Overall I would say the sculpt is perfect, but the colors could use some work. Both head sculpts have a nice amount of detail and a stern facial expression that fits the character well.

Articulation
Martian Manhunter has standard DC Universe articulation. The head can hardly look up or down. The ab crunch can move forward a good amount, but has very limited movement backward. The legs and arms are not hindered by the soft cape. I’ve tried switching the hand on the variant but you’re not going to be able to do it without heating up the piece.

Posing
The balance on this figure is good, and lends itself to flying or standing poses. An open hand would have been useful on this figure so he could do poses for his psychic powers. The fists do well for fighting poses or flying with Superman. The variant is much better for action poses because of the blade hand. The sharp edge contrasts with the rest of the figure giving him a much tougher appearance. Overall Martian Manhunter is better suited to heroic poses than action poses, but he’ll fit right in with the JLA.

Closing Remarks
Martian Manhunter could use some small improvements, but has the same quality and strengths as the other big 7 in the DC Universe. Having to wait so long for this figure, I was hoping for something to really distinguish him as a figure. Nevertheless J’onn is a solid figure because being average in DCUC is not a bad thing. Martian Manhunter is definitely worth picking up.

Thanks to the folks at Mattel for providing us with this product for review.