“Dynamic.”
Diamond Select’s PVC Gallery line in a nutshell.
I was first struck by this Batman Beyond statue at New York Comic Con 2017, before it even came out. I had covered Diamond Select Toys previous to the event as well, for my Above and Batman Beyond podcast. A few months after con, the company was nice enough to send me one of these 9″ PVC Gallery statues of the Bat Beyond. It’s always been a standout Beyond piece for me, so I’ve been very proud and happy to have him on display. It’s impossible not to check him out daily.
We’ve talked about this diorama Beyond a million times on the pod network, on both ABB and my DC Collecticast. But, now that I’m writing for C506, I thought, why not take some more pics and post this here as well?
Diamond Select Interview
Skip to podcast minute 48:20 for the NY Comic Con interview with DST:
https://soundcloud.com/benjamin-david-288828851/ep-6-interviews-from-con-beyond-new-york-comic-con-2017-vidcast-coverage-abbeyond
From my NYCC interview with Diamond Select’s Zach Oat:
Zach: I love the PVC Diorama. That busted pose is just amazing. Even now, looking at it, maybe it’s just the paint, I love how this one pops. Even now, on a black table top, the smoke and the jets are practically glowing. Just from the nature of being translucent.
PVC Boot Jets
And, it’s the boot jets that really set this statue apart. There are plenty of stunning (and dynamic) resin statues of Terry McGinnis out there. But, resin simply can’t do what PVC can in this case. The translucency of the plastic allows for that glowing effect Zach mentioned, which is exactly what caught my eye at con.
Following the keyword dynamic for Beyond means that you have to account for plenty of jet boosted action. His ability to fly is a distinguishing feature of this Bat from his Bruce Wayne predecessor. That ability is powered by the boots, so it’s exciting to see it as a feature of focus. Humans are also helpless when it comes to shiny things. Anything that glows is irresistible.
Sculpting/Paint
Another irresistible glow from this statue comes from the paint. The bright, futuristic Neo color palette of Batman Beyond is perfectly executed by Diamond here. Sticking with the boot jets, the clear, glowing yellow is a stellar portrayal of cartoon fire. Then, the very base of the figure is finished off with clear gray smoke–as it would appear, again, in the animated series. Brilliant.
The smoke makes up the entire base of the figure, which makes the whole clear approach even cooler. No matter what angle or light, Batman looks like he’s flying and hovering. But, we all know the best light to go for. The one that makes it glow. We know this.
Diamond has yet to disappoint in their paint work for Batman Beyond. For that matter, all of the characters I’ve seen from the DC Animated Universe are painted this well. There’s something about Diamond’s combination of material and paint that have always impressed me. That goes for their resin statues equally with PVC.
Zach from Diamond wasn’t wrong using the word “pop” to describe the paint either. The red and black color contrast of the Beyond color scheme has got to be right. And, does it ever pop. I love the way the Batsuit’s logo runs so high up his chest. It’s a dramatically larger Bat symbol than most. And, dramatically more colorful. There’s a good opportunity for mistake there, but Diamond kills it per usual.
Bruce Timm and many of the creators of Batman Beyond were heavily inspired by comics of the Silver Age. The turned-up-to-10 mid-century glowing yellow of Terry’s boot fire, and the contrasting red we just mentioned are really honored in this diorama piece.
Acrobatic Beyond
A large number of Diamond Select’s statues are sculpted by the geniuses at Varner Studios. Their sculpting work on resin statues is just as strong as it is here on the Gallery line. Back to our dynamic keyword for the PVCs, it’s Varner who sculpts Terry into action. An important distinction between Bruce Wayne Batman and Terry McGinnis Batman is their size. By virtue of Terry being a teenager, his frame is smaller, more slender. As a result he’s more acrobatic and gets into more flexible Spidey-like poses than Bruce.
All of the curves and lines you would want from a Bruce Timm Beyond statue are sculpted here. From the 1999 Kids WB screen to your display, Varner meticulously carved this Gallery piece into 3D.
Beyond Fair Pricing
It’s fair to say this statue is beautiful. What’s not always fair is pricing for statues this nice. A no-brainer selling point of Diamond is good old pricing. This statue we all just gushed over is only $40-45! No one, including myself, can believe that price point. No one online, the numerous fans and retailer I talk to at conventions. No one. And, it’s stayed very close to that range among all of the Gallery line, Batman or otherwise. It’s not a cliche in saying, “You can’t beat that price.” Because, you honestly can’t.
This Diamond Select Batman Beyond 9″ Gallery PVC diorama statue is available in comic shops and online retailers.
For all the latest in Diamond Select news and DC toys, check out DiamondSelectToys.com.
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