Really, what more can be said about the Alien franchise? You know, besides launching the careers of Sigourney Weaver, Ridley Scott and the late H.R. Giger, putting sci-fi horror on the map, spawning a plethora of other films, books, comics, video games and toys. Well, with Fox declaring April 26th “Alien Day”, and with several films in the franchise being in varying stages of development, there’s still plenty to be said. NECA has been in on the Alien franchise for a number of years now with its line of action figures. And with their seventh wave in the line, NECA has brought us something unexpected: A translucent concept version of the original 1979 “Big Chap” xenomorph.

Packaging:

The figure comes housed in the same standard clamshell packaging that the rest of the line has come in since its inception. For this particular figure, the package also sports a sticker labelling it a “concept figure”. The back of the packaging gives you a brief overview of this figure’s origins.

Sculpting/Paintwork:

Basically, this figure is a recoloured version of the original 1979 Alien figure that appeared in the second wave of the line three years ago, but with a cool paintjob. Instead of having the base colour mixed with the plastic, that colour is omitted. The result is a clear plastic figure. The figure is painted in a cream, bone-like colour, with a slightly darker wash to bring out the details in the sculpt. The result of this is that in the right light, the figure will allow light to pass through it, creating some really cool effects. Speaking of the sculpt, it was amazing back in 2013, and it still holds up today. Standing at 9″ tall, the figure sports great details, which are only enhanced by the paint. The dome on the figure is now clear plastic, allowing you to see the elongated, ribbed skull underneath. All the various wiring, tubes and biomechanical panelling that Giger put into the original costume are replicated here nicely. The only complaint that I have is that my figure wasn’t so lucky in the quality control department. Besides missing paint applications in spots, the dome was glued on crooked, and the wire for the tail is poking out of the sculpt. Then again, I’m often left at a crapshoot with these figures, as I have to purchase them online. If you do see this figure in the store, do a quick check to make sure the paint and pieces are applied correctly.

Articulation:

The figure sports over 25 points of articulation. The tail is done using a wire down the middle of it, allowing you to pose it in a variety of ways. The head is on a ball joint, but is hindered a bit by the pieces on the figure’s back, as well as the glued wires coming off of the figure’s face. Still, you do get an acceptable range of movement. The mouth can open and close, but is also a bit loose, which results in having the tongue dropping down at inopportune times. The arms are on pin and socket joints, which move in and out and rotate. There are cut joints at the top of the bicep, which allow you to rotate the arms. The elbow joints allow you to bend the arm at 90°, as well as rotate the lower arm in and out. The wrist joint allows the six-fingered hands to move up and down, as well as swivel. The torso features a ball joint, allowing you to rotate and crunch the abs appropriately. I know some people have said that this joint tends to be loose, but I never experienced it on my end (go figure). The legs are on pin and socket joints, allowing you to move the legs at 90° with no hindrance by the sculpt. The legs also move in and out, as well as rotate at the hip. Do be careful and keep a hair drier handy to loosen these joints so that you don’t have an unfortunate breakage. The knees feature a double joint, allowing you to bend the legs almost in half to get some classic xenomorph poses. The ankles can be rotated and pivoted, although pivoting is hindered slightly by the sculpt. Finally, the sculpt features toe articulation, allowing you to move the toes up and down. The toes also feature a peg hole, allowing you to get those classic poses without worrying about balance. Despite loose joints and the figure’s penchant to want to stick its tongue out, there’s a fantastic range of motion found in this figure’s articulation.

Accessories:

While there are no real accessories to speak of, the figure does sport the famous jawed tongue as previously mentioned, which features a slightly darker paint app to make it stand out from the rest of the figure. As well, the tail has a wire embedded in it, allowing almost infinite posability.

Overall:

Apart from quality issues and some loose joints, this is a solid figure. The paint app and sculpt work together to bring out the amazing amount of detail NECA has put into the character, and the translucent effect is pretty cool. Yes, this is a repaint of a past figure, and is more or less a niche figure for more casual fans who might want to pass on it for either the Grid or Warrior Aliens that are also part of this wave. But for those in love with the line as well as the films, this is a no-brainer in terms of decisions. Do pick it up if you find one that passes your quality check.