[En Sabah Nerd]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Trivial Psychic

After having taken Jason out of the packaging and messed around with him for a bit, I'll get right to the point. This is the LAZIEST attempt at an "Ultimate" figure that NECA has done so far. There is nothing "ultimate" about a figure that has literally little to no improvements over the original, other than the fact that I can honestly say that the joints do feel a bit more sturdy on this guy and less prone to breakage when compared to the older Part 3 Jason figures. QC wise, that's it. The paints are terrible when compared to the older figure, and this figure suffers from the same wobbly hip issue that the "Jason Lives" figure had.
They did fix the wobbly head issue from the zombie Jason figure, but then again, that was never an issue on the original Part 3 figures to begin with, so no extra points there.

The blood apps are too bright and are almost cartoony, especially when compared to the older bloody version Part 3 figure (which I sadly have no more, as it broke during a recent move...) as well as the Part 4 figure, and the head has this ugly, overdone, black wash over it that causes it to differ in skin tone quite a bit from the figure's neck and torso. The paint on his head wound is also poorly done when referenced to the original.

The original head is on the right, while the newer "Ultimate" head is on the left. Notice the heavy handed wash and shoddy blood application on the new one in comparison to the older one.



That said, there are still some positives to be had, as NECA finally fixed the hockey mask. This is a much better representation of the Fibrosport styled Detroit Red Wings mask that Jason wore in the film, as the eye holes are much larger, the mask a bit wider and more contoured, and a bit longer from top to bottom. The nose of the mask is shaped better as are the hole placement, and the straps are a little more loose than the previous version, allowing you to slide it on and off the head of the figure a lot easier for display. The only thing that worries me is that the straps this time around are made of a softer, rubber material that I'm afraid might tear or corrode over time. The paint apps on the new hockey sculpt are much better with scuffs and weathering, and the battle damaged one is finally correct with the damaged chevron on the forehead, which the previous version got wrong. This ONE improvement over the original figure is the one saving grace that keeps me from feeling like I wasted my money, as it finally feels like I have the Richard Brooker Jason I've been wanting all my life.

(New mask on the left, old mask on the right.)


Other than that, there are no other real improvements to speak of outside of the cool box and accessories. Another set of gripping hands would have been nice for the pitchfork and axe, and truthfully, I wish the machete had been made bloody. My favorite accessory is probably the wrench that he beat Ali with, although it fits somewhat loose in his hand unfortunately.



Despite my griping, there is one more thing that I should mention that's actually is a win for this figure, and it's that the hockey masks and heads are interchangeable with the older Part 3 figures. Meaning, if you have either of the older Part 3 figures, you can very easily kitbash the head from it, so that it matches up better with the skin tone. Or, simply remove the masks off of the new heads and place them on your older figures. While my old battle damaged Part 3 figure might have broke, I did keep the important bits (the head, mask, weapons, and hands) and was very easily able to swap them onto the new figure. And since this Ultimate figure is covered in blood, that essentially means that I was able to replace my old bloody version at a fraction of the cost, while replacing the mask on my clean version with the new goalie, giving me two, great looking figures.

Thanks for the breakdown. Since I never managed to grab any NECA Jason before the first ultimate figure I am definitely planning on getting this one even if it really isn't an "ultimate" version it is still the iconic Jason we all recognize for an affordable price. I find it quite amusing that while I prefer Freddy I'm sticking with just the one figure of him but then with Jason, who I like much less than Freddy, I want multiple looks. I was also just reading an article where the author was talking about how "terrible" the Friday the 13th franchise is despite its fan-following and I thought it was lame of him to not acknowledge that the first film was rather well received and has aged pretty well, then some guy in the comments said the original Nightmare on Elm St is also bad and I lost my shit. Every self-respecting horror fan should know the first NoES is a gem!