Review : Amanda Ripley, Spacesuit (Alien Isolation) NECA, Alien Series Wave/Series : Series 6 Released : January 2016
Price : £19.99
When planning the Alien Isolation themed series 6, NECA obviously used a similar approach to series 4 where the main character would appear in two guises and the series would then be finished off with a Xenomorph, which NECA confirm are always the biggest seller.
Having used the Ellen Ripley 1979 figure to create a flightsuit Amanda Ripley, NECA have turned to their well used 1979 Spacesuit sculpt to allow them to release Amanda in Spacesuit. The use of the spacesuit isn't just a gimic to fill a gap, with the suit actually appearing in the game in a number of scenes.
Like the other Series 6 figures, Spacesuit Amanda comes in a blister pack with Alien Isolation header and name card. The side panels are missing vs the earlier series releases and the rear panel is identical in terms of the text and also available sections - with only the image of the figure changing.
Out of the pack, and Amanda is packed alongside her hand gun and the helmet - which is pre-assembled, but will actually split into two parts when we come to put it on a bit later.
Although it must have been tempting to utilise the Amanda head-sculpt from the flight-suit version, the one on here is either new or a considerable tweak - with the head sculpted with the 1940's style flight helmet. The likeness to Amanda is very good, although not as striking as the other release. The head is painted neatly with the eyes particularly good yet again. On first glance you may think there is some paint bleed around the edge of the inner helmet, but as you get closer you will see this is an intentional coloured trim to imitate an inner padded section before the leather helmet's outer coating.
The spacesuit is a direct re-use of the base model we have seen on Kane, Dallas and Ripley. There are a couple of minor tweaks. The first is the box that sits around Amanda's waste, under the chest panel, which is a new design. The other is a variation on the rear life support pack where the lower piece has been changed.
As we already know from the other 3 spacesuit figures to date, the actual suit sculpt is a real work of art with varying panels of different textures and overlaid with various panels and pads. Paint is similar to Kane, but not an exact match with the bronze in particular missing and replaced with a more deep yellow colouring. Everything is neat and crisp and its all weathered so well. There are a couple of beautiful details considering the scale in which we are working - the first being the Ripley name plate on the chest, and the other being the various colours used on the life support pack buttons.
The helmet is again identical to earlier releases, and is presented in two parts. The first is the lower collar which on earlier figures has slotted neatly into corresponding slots in the figure - but on Amanda is not really a clean fit with some obvious gaps. Once the lower piece is in place the upper piece slots on top and this does fit better into each other, but not perfectly. It is as though on this figure the helmet is a harder plastic and doesn't have the give to lock in with the corresponding piece. The rounded clear perspex window is thin enough and clear enough to still show all of the facial features of the figure underneath. Round the back there are two pipes that slot into corresponding holes on the helmet and these do line up and attach neatly.
Articulation, on such a bulky figure, is not great. But there is enough to tweak poses. The head rotates and there is plenty of space under the helmet to do this when the helmet is on. Arms are on ball jointed shoulders, and the attached pads on each shoulder are a softer material to move with the arms so they can be raised upwards and outwards. Elbows are jointed, but with the bulk of the arm won't bend much. Above the elbow is a bicep swivel and that can support the elbow by being able to twist the arm in towards, or out away from, the body. Even with the puffy sleeves, the gloves/hands are able to rotate fully and pivot around under the sleeve.
The chest has a torso joint, and this is tucked away cleanly behind the chest panel and this does have a wide range of movement so Amanda can be turned indpendently to her leg position for a more dynamic look.
Legs have more movement than you would perhaps credit them with on first inspection, with joints at the hip and knee. Amanda will never sit, but she can adopt a wider stance and some degree of squatting.
The only accessory, not including the helmet, is a newly sculpted hand gun which is taken directly from the game. This is a tight fit, but will go into Amanda's right hand.
My only other noted point before I sum up is a bit of a frustration that within 5 minutes of opening this figure the lower box that sits under the chest plate dropped off. It is plugged with a slot but this pops off too easily and I will now need to glue this back in place in order to display Amanda.
This is another tweaked release, using nearly all recycled parts. It is however a lovely looking figure and will look great either stand-alone or even lined up with the other Alien Spacesuited figures. It is a shame the helmet doesn't quite fit cleanly, particularly as this wasn't as big an issue on the other.
I am still glad I got this one, and I still score her a high 4 out of 5.
