Thursday, April 9, 2015

Out of the Box: Hiccup & Drago (Spinmaster's How to Train your Dragon 2)

Out of the box: Hiccup and Drago
I think I've mentioned once or twice that I'm quite fond of the How To Train Your Dragon franchise. I've always thought it's a shame that, aside from the FunkoPop figures, there weren't any collector figures out there, but since it is fundamentally a kids' movie, I thought it would be fun to take a look at some of the play figures that are available.

The majority of the HTTYD toys that have been released are of the dragons - and some of those are stunning, although I've held off on picking any up because they tend to be either too large (and being about to move house, I'm trying not to bring home any new large items) or so small that I'd be afraid of misplacing them.  So instead I decided to check out a couple of the human figures that are sold as accessories to the dragons (they're designed to be able to sit on the backs of the associated figures).

In the box.
The back of the box.

The set that I picked up is called "Viking Warriors: Hiccup vs. Drago", and includes the main hero and villain from last year's sequel, a weapon for each of them and a helmet for Hiccup.  As is standard for small scale play pieces, the faces on these two are not terribly detailed - but to my surprise, that wasn't true of their bodies.  The detailing on Hiccup's armour, boot, prosthetic foot, and skydiving harness as well as that on Drago's coat, boots, prosthetic arm and hair (the hair is truly epic, although being moulded, it limits the shoulder movement quite a bit).

Out of the Box: Hiccup
Both figures have a standard amount of articulation: seven points on Hiccup (neck, shoulders, hips, knees) and six points on Dago, who lacks a neck joint due to the moulded hair.

Out of the Box: Dago
The accompanying weapon accessories are decent.  They aren't hugely detailed, but are made of a sturdy rubbery vinyl that can bend without breaking, which is an important feature in a play figure.  The final accessory, Hiccup's helmet, is made of similar material.  Unfortunately, the helmet doesn't quite fit in my set, but that seems to be a one off issue, as I've seen other owner photos where the helmet did manage to be (perhaps forced) onto Hiccup's head.

This is as far as the helmet made it.
Overall, I'd be hard pressed to complain about these figures.  While I'd love to have more detailed ones for display, that's not what these were created for, and what they're meant to do they do well.
Armed and ready for battle.




6 comments:

  1. I've never seen these movies so I don't know what they are about. Bearing that in mind, I'm more drawn to Drago's figure. He's got girth and oomphness that I find appealing. His hair looks more like molten crude oil than dread locs but they are still cool.

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    1. Heh "oomphness " is the perfect term for him!

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  2. I haven't seen these movies but the toys are very cute!

    (PS - I love the header!)

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  3. We love these movies at our house and now that you mention it, I guess I'm pretty surprised as well that they really didn't make too my figures of the actual characters. My daughter LOVES Astrid and the only thing I was ever able to find was a 14 inch plush doll (although to be honest, I didn't really kill myself looking, lol. ) I think all of the characters have such funny personalities and it would've been nice to see more collector-style dolls.
    Can you imagine if Tonner made a 16 inch Astrid?? :)
    These guys look pretty cool, though I have to say, although I kind of wish they had elbow articulation!

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    1. Elbows would have been great - although at this size I can see why they might have been a breaking risk.

      And now you've got me imagining what Tonner versions would have looked like! :)

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