RESERVOIR DOGS

By: SCOTT COLLURA
Date: Sunday, September 30, 2001

As the boundaries of what passes for a toy continue to be pulled and stretched at by toy companies everywherewith so-called "robot" dogs lining toy store shelves everywhere, kids turning white and pasty while sitting in front of their video game console of choice day in and day out, and alleged "educational" items tricking gullible parents into plunking down their cashit's comforting to know that the bastion of the geek's toy collection, the action figure, is also seeing its limits pushed to new extremes after years of atrophy and disappointment.

It started with McFarlane, but plenty of cool companies have now got the bug too. It seems just about any movie or TV character that ever existed is getting their own action figure nowadays, and the kiddies aren't even the main focus of many of these toys. It's a collectors market out there, and while 10-year-old Johnny in Any Town, USA might not know who Snake Plissken is, every maturing fanboy worth his weight in comics positively must have said action figure. It's no wonder that companies continue to unearth cool movies to adapt to plastic.

Which brings us to Mezco Toyz and their line of RESERVOIR DOGS figures, based on the popular and hugely influential Quentin Tarantino film from 1992. Until recently, these action figures would never have been thought to be viableafter all, they are inspired by one of the bloodiest mainstream pictures of the past ten years. But there you have it: these things are popular, and rightfully so, as they are fine toys to be sure. Just remember that the "For Ages Over 8" label on the packaging should be interpreted liberally by parents with young ones.

The set is composed of four of

the characters from the film, though some succeed better than others in reproducing the actors they're based on. First up is "Mr. Orange," played by Tim Roth (recently seen as Thade in PLANET OF THE APES) in the movie. Mezco pretty well nails the actor's likeness with this sculptthat sort of beady-eyed and greased-back hair thingwhile dressing him in the traditional all-black suit, white shirt, and black tie that is the trademark of the film. The figure features 20 (!) points of attitude and articulation, though the seams that allow such diverse movement aren't very distracting thanks to the mostly black paint job. Mr. Orange, the undercover cop who infiltrates the Reservoir Dogs, fittingly is equipped with a police badge as well as gun and sunglasses. He also comes with two alternate hands that can be popped on and off, and two separate bases to stand on (one is a "street" base while the other is a smaller disc base).

"Mr. Blonde," as

portrayed by Michael Madsen, was the psychopath of the lot, a group that set out to conduct a simple robbery that turned into a bloodbath. Mr. Blonde, whose real name was Vic Vega (and might have been the brother to PULP FICTION's Vincent Vega), was the only of the Reservoir Dogs to enjoy the ensuing madness that followed their botched crime as the team find themselves holed up in a warehouse. The action figure does a fair job of recreating Madsen's look from the film, though anyone who has seen the actor's expanded girth recently will have trouble recalling the slimmed down version portrayed here. Also fitted with 20 points of articulation, and dressed in the same black suit as the rest, Mr. Blonde comes with a gun, sunglasses, a fast-food soft drink, an extra hand, two bases, and that unforgettable straightedge razor of hisalas, no dismembered ears are included.

Harvey Keitel played "Mr. White," the seasoned[IMG4R] member of the gang who takes Mr. Orange under his wing, only to face sore disappointment when he learns the truth about the undercover cop. His figure receives the least effective sculptit hardly looks like Keitel (though when the doll wears its sunglasses, the resemblance is a bit better). It could be that Mezco wasn't licensed to use Keitel's face, but either way the figure itself still stands up to the rest of the group in terms of detail. Black suit, 20 points of movement, two bases, two extra hands, sunglasses, two revolvers, plus, in a classy touch, a Zippo lighter.

The fourth and final[IMG5L] figure in the set is "Mr. Pink," as portrayed by the unforgettable Steve Buscemi. Mr. Pink, as with many of Buscemi's roles, was a whiny loser, seemingly ill-equipped to deal with the life of crime he'd chosen for himself. One of his biggest concerns in the film is that he got stuck with the "Pink" name, but, of course, he'll have bigger problems to worry about by the end of the film. The likeness of the figure nails Buscemi perfectly, while the 20 points of movement, black duds, and accessories are all a part of this package as well. He comes with an extra hand, two bases, sunglasses, and a "loot" bag, though the lack of a gun accessory is curiousuntil one reads the fine print on the packaging which indicates that the actor requested that no gun be included.

All four figures come in pretty stylish red packaging, complete with simulated bullet holes strewn about. The four can also be linked together via their street bases to form the "infamous walking scene" from the film. Each figure by itself is pretty cool, and the four together are simply excellent. Just one question: where're Mr. Blue and Mr. Brown?

RESERVOIR DOGS

Grade: A-

Reviewed Format: Action Figures

Distributor: Mezco Toyz

Retail Price: $12.99