No matter what comes out of the myriad of stories relating to DC Comics' Bane, he's always gonna be known as the guy who broke Batman's back, and ushered in the 90's pouch-laden monstrosity of Azrael. Fast forward a decade or so and Bane has just hit the big time once again, thanks to the recent announcement that he'll be one of the main villains in Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight Rises! Coincidentally, (we think) Mattel is celebrating the 90's fingerless glove-era Bane in all his glory with this new action figure from their DC Universe Classics line. He's wave 16's Collect & Connect figure, and we here at MTV Geek have pieced him together in order to bring you the review!
Bane was raised in a Caribbean prison named Pena Duro. Forced to live out his father's prison term, young Bane learned how to fight, read, and love... well, not love, while in the confines of those stone walls. Eventually he was forced to take part in experiments which involved the drug known as Venom. The Venom granted Bane with immensely increased strength, but also came with a crippling addiction. Bane later made his way to Gotham City, busted out the inmates of Arkham Asylum, and figured out Batman's secret identity before snapping the Dark Knight's back like a twig right there in the Batcave. Since then, plenty has happened. Bane's kicked his addiction to Venom, he's been an on again-off again hero, and he's even led the Secret Six. This figure though, comes from his wild and wooly days of Bat-breaking!
The sculpt for this Bane figure is all new. Yeah, we know the Four Horsemen sculpted Bane in the DCSH series a few years ago. This is NOT the same figure. Any similarity comes from the fact that there's only so many ways you can sculpt a drugged-up luchadore/fetish mask wearin' crimelord. Bane is a hulking piece of plastic, and towers over other "human" figures in the line. However, it's more in the realistic-yet-freakish way, like that of the WWE’s Big Show compared to your average man. All of the detailing is present, from the zipper on his mask to the stitching and holes on his gloves. One of the nicest pieces on the figure is his Venom dispersing system. His left wrist has the Venom storage and actuator strapped to it, while a pliable translucent hose runs up his arm and to the back of his head, where other tubes jut from his mask and back into his skull. It's very well done and the tubing is long enough that his movement is not restricted by it. All of the tubes and stitching on his mask are sculpted as well. Bane's chest is huge, and is partially covered by a rubber tank top. The wrinkles are all present on the shirt, and thanks to its bendable properties, really looks the part of this muscle-bound freak's wardrobe. Bane's pants and boots are also nicely done. His belt is actually a separate rubber piece that has been attached to his waist, but isn't noticeable as such. Overall Bane looks exactly as he should. The original DCSH figure had a lot of veins sculpted over his arms and chest, but this figure works well without them, as if he hasn't taken his daily dose of Venom.
The paintwork on Bane is top notch. As with most Collect & Connect figures, Bane's size and rarity allows Mattel to give him the best paintwork possible. Bane is mostly painted in blacks, but there are varying shades and finishes used to convey the various textures of his gear. The detailing on his mask, from the zipper to the eyes, are all painted cleanly without any fuzzing from one to the other. Bane's chest and arms are molded in his skin color and then darker tones were used to add shading and bring out the details of the sculpt. His gloves and boots are both supposed to simulate a patent leather-vibe and have been painted with a shiny gloss black. Small touches like the holes on the fingers of his gloves, and the eyelets on his combat boots have been painted and really help add an overall feel of worth to the figure. His shirt, belt, and legs have all been molded in the proper colors with airbrushing added to make them appear more realistic and less like plastic. This is one of the first DCUC figures we can recall that went without any noticeable paint slop at all, regardless of how minor. Bravo, Mattel. Bravo. The paint matches Bane's appearance from the comics perfectly and really helps push the figure higher up on the hierarchy of badass DC Universe Classics figures... well, that and his intimidation factor.
Bane has a completely new sculpt, and with that comes improved articulation. While Bane's not groundbreaking or anything, the figure does benefit from some extra poseability thanks to his size. That big ol' Venom addict features: a ball-joint head, swivel/hinge shoulders, swivel biceps, hinged elbows, swivel wrists, hinged torso, swivel waist, swivel/hinge hips, swivel thighs, hinged knees, swivel boot tops, and hinged "rocker" ankles. All of the joints on the figure we reviewed were tight and match up well. This is particularly important, and sometimes frustrating, due to buildable nature of the toy.
Bane is a tactical and physical titan that often mistakenly gets lumped into the "Dumb Strong Villain" category. Thanks to recent story arcs in Secret Six and with the, previously mentioned, upcoming Dark Knight Rises turn-Bane may very well beat his stereotyped role of "the guy who breaks people." It doesn't hurt that he now has one of the coolest DC Universe Classics C&C figures to date, and that fans are gonna be clamoring for it. Mattel's DC Universe Classics Wave 16 should be hitting store shelves within the next several weeks, and all must be purchased in order to build Bane. Happy hunting everybody!
As for more DC Universe Classics coverage, along with everything else Mattel has on the table, stay tuned to MTV Geek for our upcoming coverage of the 2011 American International Toy Fair!
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