Batman & Robin Merchandise Review - Talking Electronic Bank from Thinkway

This was a really fun pick up and very appropriate given that I'm spending all my spare money on Batman merchandise. What a great way to save.

I've seen similar piggy banks for Star Wars - talking Darth Vader etc but didn't know they'd made one for Batman & Robin. I think you'll agree it's fun to see Batman swishing around and hear all phrases from George Clooney. 

The dialogue is stilted though - like they took a bunch of takes and edited them. It does sound like Clooney though which is good. I know some recent talking Ben Affleck Batman figures sounded nothing like him.

One thing I didn't bring up in the video is this is Danny Elfman's Batman theme. It's a shame they didn't use Elliot Goldenthal's theme. Maybe it was easier to re-licence Elfman's.

Batman & Robin Merchandise Review - Robin Redbird cycle figure from Kenner

Of all the vehicles in Batman & Robin I think the Redbird cycle was my favourite. It was sleek, it had a little bit of colour and Robin looked cool riding it.

Thankfully Kenner translated the bike to toy form very faithfully. The bike looks great and has the usual extra play features. A missile on the front, trip bars either side and most bizarrely a rocket underneath the bike (surely this should come out the back).

The way Robin rides the bike is the only let down. I shouldn't be surprised - Kenner used this design a lot. The Street Racer Batman bike for Batman Forever worked the same, as did The Shadow movie bike.

Anyway the figure that comes with the bike looks great. It's a rework on the Battle Glacier Robin figure (the one with the snowmobile) painted yellow and black. The colour scheme reminds me of the mid 90s Nightwing costume which was also pretty great.

Batman & Robin Merchandise Review - Deluxe Ice Terror Mr Freeze figure from Kenner

It's weird that considering how toyetic the Batman & Robin movie was that some elements of the film didn't become toys.

Mr Freeze's Freezemobile seems like an obvious candidate for a toy but sadly the closest we came was this Deluxe Ice Terror Mr Freeze that came with this three wheeled dragster.

It's a big step down. I know Kenner had a few of these three wheel vehicles across their various Batman toylines but I never felt they worked. They always felt really weedy compared to the massive batmobile and batbikes.

There's an attempt to make the vehicle more interesting by giving it the ability to transform but again, for me, it's very lacklustre. It just turns into a slightly lower, longer dragster. Why not make it turn into a plane or a sled?

The figure itself is okay. An interesting attempt at giving Mr Freeze a suit with lots of cooling pipes. I appreciate them trying to make a more colourful Mr Freeze.

Batman & Robin Merchandise Review - Talon Strike Robin figure from Kenner

There's a lot of fun Robin figures in Kenner's movie line and this is definitely near the top. For once the Boy Wonder gets a huge backpack in the form of some bird/bat wings.

With his twirling axe and huge wings it's more than a little reminiscent of Hawkman. In fact I had to dig out my JLA Hawkman figure and check it wasn't a retool (it's not).

I also really like the detailing on the suit too. There's loads of Robin symbols on the hips and gloves. A lot of Batman & Robin figures suffer from having limited paint work but I think this is one of the few that works. The orange and metallic blue are really quite striking.

It actually reminded me a lot of the Night Fighter Robocop figure.

Definitely try and track this down.

Batman & Robin Merchandise Review - Ice Blast Mr Freeze figure from Kenner

Back to the Kenner reviews with this early Mr Freeze figure. I'm fairly certain this was the first Mr Freeze figure they put out for the movie toy line. As you can see it's a long way from what Arnie ended up looking like in the finished film and is likely based on some early concept art.

I don't know about you but I actually prefer this to what we got in the film. It's very reminiscent of the blue suit he wore in the Animated Series and has similar red goggles.

I'm also a total sucker for transculent figures and this one has see through arms and torso which admittedly makes no sense but is still and awesome look.

I'm not totally sold on the weird blaster. It's kind of flimsy but I do like the rocket boosters. Very cool that you can put them either on his legs or back.

If you're not fussed about figures looking completely accurate to the movie I recommend this one.

Batman & Robin Merchandise Review - Mr Freeze bust from Quick

Apologies, took November off but I hope you checked out the Knight Force Ninjas Power Kick figure on my YouTube channel.

Anyway, this week we've got a really interesting piece of Batman & Robin merch that I'd never seen until few weeks ago when I picked it up on eBay.

This Mr Freeze bust was a give away with fast food meals at Quick - a French equivalent of McDonald's.

It's a decent sculpt but not much paint work. And I guess it's fun that they tried to include a squirting water feature to make it more playable. I'm particularly amused by the instruction on the accompanying leaflet to pop the head off on put it on your finger!

I haven't see this before but I'm definitely keeping my eye out for the Batman one now. Shame they didn't do a Poison Ivy or Bane.

Batman & Robin Merchandise Review - Blast Wing Batman figure from Kenner

Given that Batman & Robin came out only 2 years after Batman Forever it's not surprising Kenner cut a few corners to have all the figures ready. Here's another example of a figure from the Batman Forever toy line that was repainted and head swapped.

Much like the original figure, it's okay but I feel there's better figures put there with spring out wings. Mech Wing Batman for the BTAS figure was one of the best. This one feels a little underwhelming. Coupled with the gun/spear that doesn't fire. I don't know, it feels a little cheap. Get it if you want.

Note: this is not to be confused with Deluxe Blast Wing Batman. Totally different figure.

Batman Forever Merchandise Review - Robin and Ivy 2 Pack from Kenner

Given all the heroes and villains in Batman & Robin, it should come as no surprise that Kenner made a plethora of two-pack figure sets.

This week I'm looking at Evil Entrapment  Poison Ivy and Night Hunter Robin. 

The Robin is pretty standard. It benefits from a metallic red all over but the accessory is a dud. 

The Poison Ivy figure is great though. Love the green transculent bits and the Little Shop of Horrors-esque Venus fly trap is greaf. I kind of wish they did more Ivy figures - Uma Thurman had 4-5 costume changes throughout the film.

Anyway, this set is worth getting for the Ivy figure. Get it if you can.

Batman & Robin Merchandise Review - Ice Blade Batman figure from Kenner

With Batman & Robin coming out only two years after Batman Forever, Kenner were under pressure to get the figures made in time for the film's release. The timeline for designing, producing, and shipping out figures is usually a minimum of 18 months. So Kenner had to be smart, and one of the advantages they had was that they could repaint a few from the Batman Forever line.

Ice Blade Batman is one such example. A minor repaint and head replacement. I really liked this figure in the Forever line but this version feels like a bit of a downgrade. First off, there's no translucent elements to the figure. Secondly there's the weird purple and yellow colour scheme.

All in all I think this is one for just the diehard Kenner fans who want every figure.

Batman & Robin Merchandise Review - Ice Board Robin figure from Kenner

Following on from the Hover Board Batman figure, we have it's counterpart - Ice Board Robin. This is the one Robin figure that does a decent representation of the first costume Chris O'Donnell wears in the film with the dark blue suit and the red bird symbol on his chest. 

He comes with a little hover board that you can stick him on. Not a fan of that but the staff he comes with is pretty neat. You can split it in two and use one bit as a missile while the other spins on Robin's wrist. Very clever little accessory and it quite possible it was inspired by the Tim Drake Robin in the comics who also used a staff weapon.

As I always say if you just want the figures that look like they do in the film this is one of the ones to get.

Batman & Robin Merchandise Review - Deluxe Glacier Battle Robin figure from Kenner

Looking at one of the Deluxe Robin figures this week based on the airboat-thingy that Chris O'Donnell pilots towards the end of the film. 

Like all the Robin costumes this is based on the Nightwing outfit from the comic books. I think the silver and blue lools pretty great and the cloth cape - a rarity for this line - is a nice touch. 

I particularly love that the vehicle has two modes and you can (admittedly awkwardly) put two figures on the vehicle. All in all a pretty great figure.

Batman & Robin Merchandise Review - Collectable discs from Kelloggs

Quick break from action figures this week to have a look at a weird cereal tie-in with Batman & Robin - these foam discs. At first glance I thought these were Pogs but given there's no hard plastic "slammer" I think they're just a novel alternative to trading cards. These are really easy to find on eBay. Get them if you really want but don't expect them to be a future family heirloom.

Batman & Robin Merchandise Review - Mr Freeze Bazooka figure from Kenner

This week we're looking at the main Mr Freeze figure from Kenner. Kenner made quite a few versions of Freeze for the toyline (I've got some cool photos to show next week). However many of the figures were based on concept art and didn't reflect what the suit looked like in the film. They also put red goggles on a couple of the figures making it hard to recognise it as being Arnold Schwarzenegger.

This silvery figure is as close as we get to what the suit looked like in the actual film. I'd love it more if it was chrome and had a translucent blue on the light up parts of the suit but it's fine... I guess.

The face sculpt is really good. It's clearly Schwarzenegger's face and isn't a generic face like the Uma Thurman Poison Ivy figure. I do feel the figure needed just one more paint colour. Having just two paint colours feels really cheap and bargain basement.

The missile again is good but not particularly close to the one he has in the film. Would have loved if they could have done some sort of diamond weapon using some clear plastic. 

Anyway, you want a vaguely screen accurate Mr Freeze this is the one to get.

Batman & Robin Merchandise Review - Poison Ivy figure from Funko Pop

Okay let's take a break from the Kenner reviews and take a look at something else this week. 

A couple of years ago Funko did a great set of Batman villain figures based on the Burton and Schumacher movies. Having bought the Riddler and Two-Face figures I cooled on getting the ones for Batman & Robin. One of the things that put me off was that they priced the Poison Ivy figure at £25 rather than the usual £10 price they retail for. I don't know why this was - maybe they felt they wouldn't sell as many because the character isn't as popular as the others.

Anyway it recently came down in price to £10 so I snapped it up. It's pretty fun and as always with Funko there's a real attention to detail. All the little bits of the costume are present and correct as are the colours. 

If you like this character/movie and you like Funko Pops there's never been a better time to pick this up.

Batman & Robin Merchandise Review - Deluxe Blast Wing Batman figure from Kenner

Hope you all had a good Christmas. Back to the Kenner reviews. This week we're looking at Blast Wing Batman - one of the six deluxe figures. 

It's a good Batman figure with a silver paint job and a typically giant backpack with spring out wings. Unlike previous figures that had spring out wings this one focuses more on the wings making a chopping motion. 

The backpack can also double as a hover board (which a lot of other accessories in this toyline could do). It's a nice attempt at adding some versatility but it's still only a middling figure in my view. Not bad but not great either.

Batman & Robin Merchandise Review - Aerial Combat Batman figure from Kenner

Kenner often gets accused of producing the same old figures and just repainting them and slapping a different accessory on their back. 

Aerial Combat Batman is genuinely an attempt by Kenner to do something totally new. So I have to give them some props. Rather than make a vehicle and give you a figure to put in it, Aerial Combat Batman gives you a figure already fused into the vehicle. There’s pros and cons to this idea. 

On the one hand, the figure fits neatly, grasps the steering wheel and flips their head up when the canopy opens. You're also not going to lose the figure or the vehicle.

But on the other hand I would love to take the figure out because it looks like it would be a pretty great representation of the Ice suit Batman wears at the end. 

One day I'll hopefully track down the matching Aerial Robin figure too.

Batman & Robin Merchandise Review - Heat Scan Batman figure from Kenner

Right let's keep going with the Kenner action figures. I've got a lot of these lined up. 

Heat Scan Batman was one of the first figures I remember seeing on the shelf in 1997 and possibly the first one I picked up (I can't quite remember). I had some reservations at the time. It’s BRIGHT but then again so is most of the toy line (and to be fair, the movie too). 

Putting the garish colour to one side it's a really good sculpt of Clooney with a huge chunky cape and I like the laser things that clip onto his elbows. It’s really simple but gives the figure and epic quality. 

As I mention in the video it's worth looking out for the Fuji Film exclusive that uses the same sculpt but in all black.

Batman & Robin Merchandise Review - Batgirl figure from Kenner

Okay, I guess it's about time I start reviewing some Batman & Robin merchandise. First up is the Batgirl figure from Kenner. This was one of only two figures they made of the character and unfortunately doesn't look much like Alicia Silverstone. It was based on the concept art by Miles Teves and had a cowl rather than a domino mask. Still it's kind of a fun figure and worth getting if you like this period of action figures.

Concept Art: Batgirl costumes

Batgirl was a new character for Batman & Robin and there were some questions about what her costume should look like. The task was given to costume concept artist Miles Teves who produced these four wonderful and wild designs. 

In an interview even he admitted the boob window on the second was maybe a step too far. Obviously the cowl was dropped for the finished film in favour of a domino mask like Robin.

Those who are disappointed by the lack of yellow should check out the 2002 TV series Birds of Prey which sports the exact same costume with yellow highlights and a cowl.

Also Tim Burgard designed this costume that is also super interesting. It looks like he was going for a mix of leather, latex and (possibly) spandex. I particularly love the goggles over the eyes.

Book: Batgirl To Dare the Darkness by Doug Moench

Following on from the previous post I also have a scanned pdf of Doug Moench's tie in novel Batgirl: To Dare the Darkness.

For those who aren't aware Doug, like Alan Grant, was a writer on the DC comics Batman titles throughout the 80s and 90s. Together with Chuck Dixon and Graham Nolan he is credited with creating the character of Bane (I wonder what he thought of the film's loose interpretation of the character) and also wrote many classic stories including big chunks of the Knightfall saga and the popular Elseworlds story Batman & Dracula: Red Rain.

The story picks up after the events of the Batman & Robin movie and sees Barbara Wilson leave Batman and Robin and set up on her own in Gotham City feeling that she isn't needed or appreciated by the dynamic duo. She considers leaving the Batgirl persona behind (much like Robin did in Facing the Enemy) before reaffirming her vigilante commitments and going up against Black Mask (another character Doug created) and the False Face Society.

Enjoy!

https://archive.org/details/batgirl-to-dare-the-darkness