Before Mattel debuted their DC Universe Classics (DCUC) toy line in 2008, there was the DC Superheroes (DCSH) line. Because Mattel only had the rights to the Superman and Batman catalogs at the time, the line consisted of characters from those books. Naturally, by Series 7 they were already running out of Batmen to include in the assortments.
Knight Shadow Batman is what they came up with to include in the wave along with Camouflage Bane, Batgirl, and Two-Face. If can’t tell you if this guy is canon or not since I can find no mention of a comic arc that explains his existence. It could be that he’s just a creation of Mattel to fill out the line. If that’s the case, I’m of the opinion that it’s far superior to something like “Bouncing Battle Batman”.
The figure is really just a re-colored DCSH Series 3 Batman with a new head. The new head is really just a Batman cowl with a full mask that covers his entire face. Like Ninja Batman.
That right there sold me. Ninja. Batman. Mattel can’t possibly have it any cooler than that.
Well, that’s not entirely true. Though the Four Horsemen sculpt still rocks, the fact that his hip articulation is blocked by the massive 90’s throwback pouches really ticks me off. They couldn’t have just made it one or two, or made them smaller, no. They have to be HUGE and circle his entire waist.
What does he carry in there anyway? A Walkman? A Super Molecular Dust Separator?
If you buy the figure mint-on-card (the package is a dark, purple carded bubble), you’ll also get 3 different batarangs to play with. I got mine loose from a re-seller for about Php 300-350 ($7-8 US), so sadly, no accessories. That’s okay since his fist doesn’t really hold things well (why do toy companies continually make accessories that don’t fit?) and I inevitably lose them 5 minutes after I open the package, anyway.
The figure has 23 points of articulation, which I’m not going to bother enumerating here. If you’ve ever handled any DCUC or DCSH figure in the past, you already have a good idea about how the line plays.
The Mattel figures are probably among the most fun action figures out there because of their superb design and wonderful poseability. Even Toy Biz never really accomplished the same level of fun with their Marvel Legends (ML) line with any consistency. Some ML figures boasted more articulation, but many of those joints were rather useless (for example, the hand articulation on the Toy Biz Juggernaut).
Knight Shadow Batman shares more in common with Azrael or Two-Face than the older Mr. Freeze so you shouldn’t be disappointed.
I haven’t seen this figure for quite a while so it might be that it’s already sold out at the re-seller stores. If you find it now for below Php 500.00, then I think that’s an acceptable price. Considering that new, in-package DCUC figures cost Php 1,300.00 in Toy Kingdom it’s still a bargain, even without accesories.
The only question you should ask yourself is do you really want a non-canon Batman costume?
Remember; Ninja. Batman.
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