One thousand years ago, superstition and the sword ruled. It was a time of darkness. It was a world of fear. It was the age of gargoyles. Stone by day, warriors by night. We were betrayed by the humans we had sworn to protect, frozen in stone by a magic spell for a thousand years. Now, here in Manhattan… the spell is broken. And we live again! We are defenders of the night. We are Gargoyles!
In 1994, Disney introduced a new franchise to kids that would become a fan-favorite, Gargoyles. Since the initial cartoon, which included a toyline that ran until 1997, there hasn’t been much done with the brand despite have such a large following. NECA has filled in the void of this brand and are now offering Goliath, the first figure in this line that will see all in-show characters. This has been a much needed line in the minds of those of us that had watched the show in its initial run, and for those of you watching the series on Disney+ now, this line will also be of most interest to you.
Goliath leads a full line of figures coming, that includes Demona, Thailog, Bronx and Hudson that have all been announced. Smaller characters such as Bronx and Lex will include parts and accessories for some of the larger figures, such as Bronx will include draped wings for Goliath.
Thank you to NECA Toys for providing their Gargoyles Ultimate Goliath Figure for review.
Availability: October 2021
Goliath is packaged in a window box with an opening flap, with artwork inspired from the series on the front, images of the figure on the sides, a description and images on the back. The opening flap includes another image of the figure, and Goliath is packaged in a plastic tray along with his accessories. The wings are located behind him in a plastic trap, and assembly for those and the tail is required.
Goliath makes his debut as an action figure for the first-time since the 1990’s, and NECA’s team has done such an outstanding job on this initial launch. Goliath is visually quite appealing, and every aspect from his sculpt, engineering, quality and deco makes him one of the best figures of the year, which should speak volumes considering there’s the TMNT line to consider.
He stands at over 7″ tall, and over 8″ with the wings attached. The wingspan make Goliath one of the longest figures that NECA ever released, which is roughly 21 – 1/2″ long. The wings are quite impressive, with sculpted details and textures that makes them look on the realistic side. Goliath himself is stylized from NECA and given a realistic touch, and is not a direct cartoon based figure. He is given several shades of purple skin tones inspired from the cartoon, black hair with a wash, brown lion cloth, and a black belt with a gold belt buckle.
The two head sculpts are quite dynamic and represent two different sides of Goliath. The monster-like head shows his fangs and white eyes as he gets angry, while the more normal face shows his humanity side. The attention to detail is so well done, especially the paint applications and interiors of the mouth.
Goliath also includes his wings, five interchangeable hands (two closed fisted, two clawed, and one open left hand), a bendy tail, his book and the jalapeño pepper. The open hands can hold the Jalapeño pepper and his book. The book includes nicely done painted details, including words on the pages, and has an aged look to it. The Jalapeño pepper is painted in dark and light green.
The wings are one of the most impressive designs on a figure that NECA has put out, and these can be removed or placed back on to your liking. The wings are cast in black plastic, with purple skeletal structors, and a paint wash over the black that makes them shiny and very appealing, and this is where you see all that great sculpted textures. The wings are on pegs that plus into his back, which the holes on the back are hidden under his hair.
The wings are also on the light side, with a strong ABS plastic and these are long enough to look like they can actually support him in flight as seen in the cartoon, which the vintage toy did not have. This light weight helps to pose the wings and keeps them in the desired spot, rather than seeing them fall down, which might have happened if they had some weight to them. The wings have some pointy edges, and feels like it will not bend or warp, so that’s also a plus.
The wing articulation includes a swivel-hinged joint on the back, and you can move them up, down or out. The detail also makes the inside of the wings look like leather, which makes them look even better. It seems like this is the direction that NECA is going to go in with all the Gargoyles figures, having a big wingspan for each new figure, which means that a lot of space is going to be required for this line-up. So you better start making room or boxing up some older releases.
Goliath is also fully articulated, including a ball jointed head, ball hinged shoulders, swivel biceps, double-hinged elbows, swivel-hinged wrists, ball jointed torso, waist rotation, ball jointed hips, swivel thighs, double-hinged knees, hinged and rocker ankles, and hinged toes. The tail is bendy, and is a swivel-hinged joint connected to the lower back.
The amount of articulation here is extremely impressive, and the functionality of the design and how it moves is some very impressive work from the team. He also has a good range of balance and stability, and the tail is not required for this as the feet can hold him up right even with the wings extended. This helps by being light in weight, which is a plus. The joints also have not been painted, so there is no flaking that you see on some other figures, which is hopefully a new standard moving forward on all their offerings.
Overall, Goliath is amazingly done, and fans are surely going to want this figure. Every aspect about this has been well thought out and executed, especially the engineering, paint applications, and overall likeness to the quality. Being the first of a new line, Goliath needed to win the hearts of fans, and they have surely won me over with the first figure. You can be sure to see the same great quality going forward with this line, which will see all core members of the team, villains, and most likely other surprises. Even if you have never seen Gargoyles, you should still jump on board this line, as it’s just that good from the start. Make sure to grab Goliath now while you still can, and you can find him at the stores listed below:
Purchase:
