Last year, NECA surprised their fans with the Holiday release of figures based on Home Alone. The release of the figures, which included the Wet Bandits and Kevin, was timed perfectly with the Holiday season, and proved to be a big hit with both casual and longtime NECA fans. After the smash hit of those figure, it looks like special Holiday releases are here to stay. In June, NECA shared that they will have a new themed figure this year!
They have just released a National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation – “Santa” Clark Griswold 8″ Scale Retro Style Figure. The figure portrays Chevy Chase’s Clark Griswold as he appears near the end of the film, complete with Santa hat and coat. The figure also includes a Wally World mug and a replica of the Swimming Pool Clark wants to install. The figure is shipping to retailers soon, but can be purchased directly from NECA’s Ebay Store now. NECA has sent along the figure for us to check out. We have over 45 high resolution photos and a review. Check them out by reading on.
National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation – “Santa” Clark Griswold 8″ Scale Retro Style Figure
Pros
- It’s an official Clark Griswold figure!
- Great themed holiday release
- Funny head sculpt
- Accessories are perfect for the figure
- Removable jacket and hat
Cons
- Wish it had one more head sculpt
Overall
Santa Clark Griswold comes in a nice collector friendly window box. The bright blue coloring jumps right out at you. The box has the classic Christmas Vacation logo, new art for the flying, burning Santa decoration and a nice photo of the figure on the back. Inside the packaging, the figure and accessories sit in a plastic tray. A few twist ties hold the figure in place. Also included is a great painting dio backdrop of the Griswold home. I’m a huge fan of the window boxes for the Mego figures, and this is no exception.
Included with Clark are a removable Santa hat, a removable Santa coat, a Wally World moose mug and a swimming pool model. Clark uses NECA’s current Mego style body type. This means the figure stands about 8″ tall and has around 24 points of articulation. The tailored outfit fits the figure well, though it is a bit bulky in spots. The head sculpt looks to be modeled after the surprised, almost deranged look Clark has after he finds out there’s no Christmas bonus coming his way. The head sculpt is a little more comedic and cartoon-ish compared to some of the other Mego head sculpts. However, it seems to be the theme of the Holiday releases, as Home Alone also offered slightly exaggerated head sculpts as well. For me, it works nicely on Clark as the character was always very animated and over-the-top in the film series. It’s still unmistakable who this is. I do wish, however, that a second head sculpt was included. Maybe a more straightforward expression or one of his many disappointed facial expressions just to offer some additional display options.
The paint apps are clean here, featuring improved eyes over the proto we saw at both SDCC and NYCC. The lines are clean and the pupils now aren’t so far down. The skin has a nice, dark redish tint to it, and the hair has multiple paint washes and highlight colors. The joints were all great here. No weak ankles, no paint locked knees or elbows. The clothing is loose enough that is doesn’t hinder range of motion. The hands here are made of a slightly softer material than many of the other Mego figure hands. If you are looking to remove them, to swap them out with another figures hands (which I did in this photo shoot), just use caution and grip them by the peg instead of the hands themselves. Applying a little heat with a hair dryer won’t hurt either.
Christmas Vacation is my all-time favorite Christmas film. It’s a staple Christmas Eve viewing at my house. I was ecstatic to see NECA releasing this figure. I’m quite pleased with the release. Clark is whimsical with some perfect accessories. The exaggerated expression will allow you to have a lot of fun if you want to get creative with how you display it. I really hope NECA gets the chainsaw wielding, hockey masked Clark released as well. If you’re a fan of the film, then this is an easy figure to recommend. Check out some highlight photos below and the full gallery after that.
CompaniesNECA
CharactersClark Griswold
Scale8 Inch