With DC’s new universe looming above us, they toy companies are still playing catch-up with the last big event.  No, not Flashpoint.  I’m talking about Brightest Day.   Even though Mattel hasn’t quite caught up, DC Direct is pumping out figures like Deadman before they become obsolete.

There’s not much you can do to a character who’s been dead for his entire superhero career.  But Geoff Johns and Peter Tomasi through Boston Brand a curve ball when they brought him back to life at the end of Brightest Day.  I’m not always a fan of these two writers, but I have to admit that was definitely a great idea.  But nothing in life, or death, is free.  Boston was now the bearer of the white lantern and ring, and charged with finding the true champion of the white lantern’s powers.

One of the more interesting things to me about this story is the White Lantern Entity.  Not powered by emotion like the other corps, the white lantern is fueled by life itself.  This comes through in the story throughout the Entity’s mission.  The Entity is the cause of many of the events in Brightest Day in order to discover the new white avatar and protect all life on Earth.  But the Entity shows little concern for the individuals it uses and their feelings in the matter.  At the end of the day the Entity may be good, but the methods it uses are definitely on the dickish side.

If DC Direct is good at one thing, it’s making a figure look great.  I don’t really mind Mattel’s buck body system, but it sure is a nice change of pace when you can buy an entire wave and they all have different body sculpts.  One of the interesting things about this sculpt is that his collar is part of the torso, while his white neck/chest is a separate piece.  This is a great way of using the natural lines of the character’s design to break up the sculpt, and I really appreciate how well it works.

Since this is the White Lantern Deadman, his right fist is sculpted with the ring.  But unlike most of the rainbow lantern characters we’ve gotten from DC Direct, Deadman’s ring has no sculpted design on it.    This is a bit disappointing because I’ve seen them do it before, so I know it’s possible.  But it’s also not a deal breaker, just an annoyance.

This figure comes with two heads.  One is his classic Deadman look, while the other is of Boston’s human appearance.  I’m actually a fan of alternate heads and this is a great way selling this character again with more than just a ring hand.  The only thing that concerns me is the clear plastic used for his neck peg.  Deadman’s head don’t exactly pop on and off easily.  You have to put a little force behind your tugging and clear plastic doesn’t have a great reputation of being sturdy.  I haven’t had any problems yet, but I doubt I’ll be switching his heads much in the future.

DC Direct may be known for their excellent sculpts, but the other side of that is their notoriously limited articulation.  That’s why I was so surprised to discover Deadman actually has a decent range of motion.  His head is a ball joint with good flexibility, while his shoulders are the classic swivel/hinge.  He’s got swivel biceps, wrists, hips, and boot cuts.  His elbows and knees are hinge joints.  Although I wouldn’t mind seeing a waist and better hip joints, this figure’s still has better articulation than I’m used to seeing from DCD.  Continue to page 2…