The Doctor has made his way to the states!
Well, the Doctor has been in the States since at least the 70s thanks to PBS.
The Doctor has made it to toy stores!
Well, the Doctor has been in plenty of toy stores for the past few decades.
The Doctor has OFFICIALLY made it to US toy stores!
Well, Walgreens isn’t really a toy store, but its a close enough description for now.
That opening is funnier if you imagine David Tennant rambling it off.
Walgreens is a mass market store in the USA, and chances are that there are approximately 8 of them in a 10 mile radius of you right now. They literally have thousands of stores. Known primarily as a pharmacy, they also carry convenience items such as eggs and diapers and toenail clippers. They even have a small section for toys and games, and that is where things get interesting for us nurds. The Walgreens toy section is a veritable nerd heaven. Maybe this was not always the case, but recently there has been a amazing amount of nerd-friendly stuff showing up on the shelves. Things like Game of Thrones figures and Pop Vinyl by Funko, Walking Dead figures by McFarlane Toys and perhaps the biggest coup; exclusive Hasbro action figures from Marvel Legends and the Star Wars Black series. Well, the biggest coup besides OFFICIALLY BRINGING DOCTOR WHO TOYS TO THE STATES.
You may not understand why this is so exciting, I mean… comic shops, Hot Topic and internet stores have all had Doctor Who stuff in them and sometimes that stuff has been toys! Yes, that may be true, however we were still paying import prices on that crap. These Walgreens figures? These are regular action figure prices. The prices we pay for normal toys here in the US. The Sonic Screwdrivers Walgreens carries? 10 bucks cheaper than anyone else. For those of us geeks NOT made out of disposable cash, or those of us with kids that want these toys too, this is a Godsend.
As an aside, I understand the plight that the rest of the world has with importing action figures from the US and that your prices are way higher. I sympathize. However, this is also my article and I live in the US so please shut up.
Enough with the chit-chat! Let’s talk about the figure! As far as I can tell, nothing is new about this figure compared to the UK version. The packaging is the same, the figure is the same.
Ol’ Davey is in the 3 3/4 inch scale, and is mostly compatible with other figures of this size. He seems a bit smaller than G. I. Joe figures, but about the same size as the Indiana Jones series. For the most part, he fits right in.
He has mostly useful articulation. Neck, legs at hips, knees, pin/disc shoulders (very helpful), and elbows. You can get him into good poses for your shelf, and kids can move him around enough to play with him effectively.
The sculpt is actually pretty good. Sculpting can get tricky at this scale, but this one works pretty well. It looks like Tennant, and his trench-coat is really nice.
The paint is more touchy here. It is standard for mass-market releases, which means it is simple. Nothing wrong with that, but it doesn’t help the sculpt out any. If this figure had a better paintjob, this figure would be really incredible. As it stands, the details are good with not much slop.
The accessories are appropriate, with the Doctor’s trusty Sonic Screwdriver and a TARDIS logo base also in the package. The base works well, although the figure doesn’t need it to stand, which is nice. The Sonic is properly scaled, but I think it was painted incorrectly on our figure, as the “blue light” seems to be painted on the wrong side.
Overall, it’s a great figure and if you are a Doctor Who fan you probably need one. The great news is that it is easy to find, with Walgreens on every corner. If you are as excited about finding these in the States as I am, you need to support Walgreens and pick some of these figures up! I’m not exactly sure which of them are available here now, but I have seen the 11th Doctor, a Dalek, Amy Pond and the “regeneration” 12th Doctor (Peter Capaldi head on a Matt Smith body). I hope to find a proper 12th Doctor, and my daughter wants Clara. I already picked up Amy for her, but shh… it’s a surprise for her birthday.
I suppose you have a better thought on the subject?