Steel Clan Robot (Gargoyles (Neca)) Review

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Steel Clan Robot (Gargoyles (Neca)) Review

Steel Clan Robot
Gargoyles (Neca) (Neca)Most gargoyles are flesh and blood, as with any other creature in the world, but there are some that aren't, like David Xanatos' army of evil "Steel Clan" robots. I've seen this release in-store a lot, but it wasn't until a few days ago I caved in and got it.

This is probably the last time I'll mention the packaging with this line, since we all know these figures have great box art, and this one in particular depicts an army of these robots glaring at you with their menacing red eyes. Other than that, it's all the same. Same text on back, same cross-sell, same interior backdrop.

Xanatos must have a thing for Goliath, as the Steel Clan robots are made in his image. The chiseled jaw and long hair are reminiscent of him, but it's basically a blockier, mechanical version of the big guy. It's mostly silver, though the eyes are red, and the "ears" are cyan. The paint is clean all around, and there's even a few black lines here and there, to bring out the techie details a bit. Marty Henley and David Giraud provided the sculpt, making it one of the few figures Djordje Djokovic wasn't involved with outside of box art.

Standing 8" tall, the Steel Clan robot does what all of the other figures in the line do: replicate the on-screen design while making it more detailed. There's more visible bolts, panels, and whatnot on the character, and it brings out the look much more than the simpler in-show designs. The wings are pretty big, maybe even moreso than the organic gargoyles, but there's joints that allow you to adjust the wingspan, keeping it from taking up too much space. Although there's a few makes here and there, the paint is done well, and the mix of metallic black, silver, and cyan makes for one pleasing design.

There's more articulation here than the other figures in the line, which can be attributed to the design. The Steel Clan robot has a barbell head, neck, and chest, swivel/hinge wings, shoulders, wrists, tail, ankles, and toes, swivel biceps, forearms, and thighs, double-hinged elbows and knees, ball-jointed waist and hips, and bendy tail. In addition, the shoulder pads flip up to prevent them from hindering arm movement, and as mentioned already, the wings have joints to adjust their span. Most of the joints moved with no issue, though the toe hinges are a little tight, and I didn't have as much issue getting it to stand are most of the figures from this line. I guess it helps the wings aren't too big or heavy, and you're not going to need a base of any kind to keep it upright.

There's not too much in terms of accessories, but there are four sets of hands: clawing, gripping, closed, and relaxed. The hands swap with ease, but you're likely to jab yourself on the knuckles of the tighter hands. The forearm blasters are a cool inclusion, and getting them on isn't too hard; just pop off the panels on the forearms and plug in the correct blasters. Lastly, there's some rocket thruster effects: one for the back, and two for the feet. There was no issue plugging them in, and your only concern will be finding a strong enough support to keep it in the air.

Since NECA will every now and then repaint or retool one figure into another, that's what they did with the Steel Clan robot. Said variant is Xanatos in his robot gargoyle armor, repainting the figure into red and black, putting some necklace thing on the chest, and throwing in an extra portrait with Xanatos' head exposed, bearing a "don't mess with me" expression. Other than all that, it's basically the same as the Steel Clan, but with less army-building potential. I'll admit it doesn't interest me that much, but maybe if I can get it on a discount, I'd be willing to pick it up.

The Steel Clan robot may just be the best release in the line, thanks to a great, metallic sculpt, very good articulation, and it's something worth army-building, especially if you can get it for cheap. Now that NECA's gone through the major players, I'm more than happy to get more unique, B/C-list stuff like this.

- 4/15/24