[Joe Moore]

Advanced Look at the Alien 40th Anniversary Big Chap Alien Ultimate Figure by NECA – Toyark Photo Shoot

[SpasticPlastic]

I think the egg is more similar to the Covenant egg in size, not the launcher one. That one is huge.

[Tony_Bacala]

Great set, love the green light pics, nailed tone of movie.

[hotheads]

looks great, but are the hip joints loose? All of my recent aliens have loose hips and fall constantly.

[Dolemite]

The figure looks beautiful and is a great update to the original. I have the 2014 release and the dome is colored white in the areas that are colored black-ish on this release (front and rear). Is one version more screen-accurate than the other? Great photo shoot by the way, Joe. Like Tony said, you really nailed the lighting and the look of the egg chamber from the first movie.

That said, I really have to address what is clearly a ongoing pattern of false advertisement on the part of NECA. For all of these ultimate re-releases they keep boasting about "all new sculpts." They even say it on the product description page this figure on their website:

We’ve given a deluxe upgrade to the Xenomorph known to fans as “Big Chap,” with an all-new sculpt standing over 9” tall.

Yet by Joe's own observations in his review, this is the exact same sculpt as the 2014 release. Why does NECA continuously insist on doing this? Claiming the sculpt is all new when it actually isn't seems like an underhanded way to entice people to buy the figure if the articulation update alone isn't enough for them.

Thoughts?

[Joe Moore]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dolemite

The figure looks beautiful and is a great update to the original. I have the 2014 release and the dome is colored white in the areas that are colored black-ish on this release (front and rear). Is one version more screen-accurate than the other? Great photo shoot by the way, Joe. Like Tony said, you really nailed the lighting and the look of the egg chamber from the first movie.

That said, I really have to address what is clearly a ongoing pattern of false advertisement on the part of NECA. For all of these ultimate re-releases they keep boasting about "all new sculpts." They even say it on the product description page this figure on their website:

We’ve given a deluxe upgrade to the Xenomorph known to fans as “Big Chap,” with an all-new sculpt standing over 9” tall.

Yet by Joe's own observations in his review, this is the exact same sculpt as the 2014 release. Why does NECA continuously insist on doing this? Claiming the sculpt is all new when it actually isn't seems like an underhanded way to entice people to buy the figure if the articulation update alone isn't enough for them.

Thoughts?

Thanks for the kind words! Glad people are digging the shoot. Every time I think I need a break from Alien, I wind up having a good bit of fun taking pics.

I believe the white cloudy dome from the 2014 is a little closer to accurate, but the cloudiness of that is a bit more opaque than it should be. It should be closer to the new one, with much less dark on the front of the dome. On the new one, the factory probably got a little too heavy handed with the black paint on the dome, and that may vary a small bit from figure to figure.

I never did say it was the exact same sculpt, as I make specific mention of newly sculpted areas. I just said the sculpt is still good, as they do seem to share some pieces. Is it a 100% new mold? Probably not, but it's not a simple repack/repaint of the 2014 release. There are clear differences between the two figures. The upper arms, legs, tail, feet, parts of the head sculpt are all newly sculpted. What seems to be the same are mainly the hands and torso, as there was nothing that needed to change there to accommodate the updates.

[Dr Kain]

Those pictures are fantastic. I might have to pick this guy up despite no longer have a place to put my Alien figures.

[Dolemite]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Joe Moore

I never did say it was the exact same sculpt, as I make specific mention of newly sculpted areas. I just said the sculpt is still good, as they do seem to share some pieces. Is it a 100% new mold? Probably not, but it's not a simple repack/repaint of the 2014 release. There are clear differences between the two figures. The upper arms, legs, tail, feet, parts of the head sculpt are all newly sculpted. What seems to be the same are mainly the hands and torso, as there was nothing that needed to change there to accommodate the updates.

Yeah, that all makes sense, and it certainly seems to give NECA the leeway to say "all new sculpt." Kinda.

BTW, I missed this pic. You replicated the pose the alien was in when it was hanging upside down from the ceiling right before it got Brett! Genius shot, dude.

[Kayman26]

The darker dome is actually a bit disappointing to me. I think the white translucent one is far more creepy looking. I wonder if a head swap would work?

[Joe Moore]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kayman26

The darker dome is actually a bit disappointing to me. I think the white translucent one is far more creepy looking. I wonder if a head swap would work?

It will take a bit of work to do that. There are two wires that connect from the head to the back of the figure. You would need to cut those off, and then glue them into place once on the other body.

A better solution might be to head up the head sculpt with a hair dryer around the dome. That may loosen the glue enough to remove them and swap just those. I haven't tried that though, so use extra care and heat incrementally so it doesn't mel the plastic dome.

[Joe Moore]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dolemite

Yeah, that all makes sense, and it certainly seems to give NECA the leeway to say "all new sculpt." Kinda.

BTW, I missed this pic. You replicated the pose the alien was in when it was hanging upside down from the ceiling right before it got Brett! Genius shot, dude.

Thanks! I really wanted to get chains in there, but I just didn't have anything available, and didn't have time to run to a store. So just did what I could.

[Stranger]

Any chance we could see a side-on shot comparing the two? I can tell it's an entirely new head sculpt with a more streamlined design making it less bulky.

[Dolemite]

Yeah, I'm really torn about the dark vs. light dome thing. I found this pic of the original Big Chap suit used in the 1979 film (displayed at the Museum of Pop Culture in Seattle, Washington), and it does indeed seem that the dome on the new NECA Ultimate figure is not accurate.

BUT, as Joe pointed out, while the dome on the original 2014 release is closer to being accurate, it's also off as the cloudiness is too opaque. Sadly, the new Ultimate figure went too far in the opposite direction.

[Joe Moore]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stranger

Any chance we could see a side-on shot comparing the two? I can tell it's an entirely new head sculpt with a more streamlined design making it less bulky.

Here you go.

[En Sabah Nerd]

I'm definitely going to pick this one up since I love me some Alien but the dome color is a bit of a letdown.

[scarrviper]

Excellent gallery as always. It feels like this ultimate version has been in the works for a long time.

My biggest concern is quality control. I still don't have on original 1979 alien in my collection, so I'm really counting on this release to finally fill that gap in my collection. I've had to make due with the isolation version as a stand in. From what I have seen and experienced, neca has not had a good track record when it comes to xenos and QC. I never did pick up any of the ultimate Aliens version because every one I saw at Target looked really sloppy, warped, and even broken in the box.

With this release, my specific concerns are the paintjob and especially the attachment of the dome. I've seen way too many instances of previous domes being crooked, misshapen, or ruined by excess glue smeared all over them. I really, really hope I can find a good sample of this guy when he drops.

Now for the positives, the improved articulation is nice to see. The new egg and facehugger look fantastic, It's about time we got the original designs. The paintjob of the skull under the dome look improved, I agree that the front of the dome does look a little too dark, perhaps that will vary. Sometimes these early samples from Neca are different from what we see in stores. We saw that with the H2 Myers last year.

[Stranger]

Thanks! Yeah it looks like they pulled the lips back! Subtle but effective!

[muaddib]

The original Big Chap Ultimate photos had the entire dome transparent. I prefer it that way rather than the darkened front and back.
Also doesn't the darkening make it look different from the new 1/4 big chap?

[Dolemite]

Quote:

Originally Posted by muaddib

The original Big Chap Ultimate photos had the entire dome transparent. I prefer it that way rather than the darkened front and back.

Yeah, you're right...NECA's original promo photos for the Big Chap do indeed feature a fully-transparent, tinted dome. That looks so much better than what we appear to be getting at retail. Dammit!

[abake]

First time poster and big Alien fan.

Wonderful photos and review, thanks!

I really like the improved articulation, and it's a bonus that the new knee joints made the legs slightly shorter, as the earlier figure's legs were just way too long.
What I'm not too keen on is the dome's paint apps (as everybody else has pointed out, the blackened front is exaggerated) and the huge teeth...
The dome and the underlying painting of the detail remind me of the MM5 McFarlane figure. And that's not good.
As for the teeth, it seems to me they just made them bigger, because the upper lip looks the same as before, i.e. slightly curved down to actually cover the teeth. Unfortunately, that messes up the entire look of the face, and makes and already problematic profile even more problematic with the upper teeth jutting over lower teeth.
Also, the dome isn't placed properly, the front should cover the ribbed detail. So, all in all, the head is a mess!
It seems to me that the only "resculpting" done was to accommodate the improved articulation and the bizarre decision to make the teeth larger, with absolutely no regard for making it actually more accurate.

[Dolemite]

Picked this up today, and I'm happy to report that the sculpt, although subtle, does indeed appear to be completely new. So, I take back my bitching about NECA's alleged false advertising.

Great figure, BTW.

[Dr Kain]

Still have yet to see this dude nor the 40th anniversary figures.

[En Sabah Nerd]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dr Kain

Still have yet to see this dude nor the 40th anniversary figures.

None of the 40th anniversary figures are supposed to be out yet.

[Dolemite]

Quote:

Originally Posted by En Sabah Nerd

None of the 40th anniversary figures are supposed to be out yet.

Got the Big Chap at Target. That was all they had in terms of Alien stuff so far.

[En Sabah Nerd]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dolemite

Got the Big Chap at Target. That was all they had in terms of Alien stuff so far.

I specifically meant the non-ultimate figures we'll be getting, although the ultimate Big Chap is still in honor of the anniversary so you got me there. I haven't checked my local Target recently, maybe I'll try later this week. Even with the dome color issue I still really want that figure.