“We must never stop failing, because the minute we do, we've failed”
Hasbro’s Dungeons & Dragons Golden Archive series of 6-inch collector-focused figures was built on the initial release of 2020’s Drizzt Do’Urden and Guenhyver set, and came into being on the back of the 2023 release of the new Dungeons & Dragons movie - Honor Among Thieves. This new collection kicked off with the odd release of the Gelatinous Cube and soon expanded into the first full wave of figures based on the movie characters.
Each figure is packed in a plastic-free windowless box with a top hanging tab and a corner angled off into a triangle a the top right, paying homage to the dice used playing D&D. The box is predominantly black with gold ornate trim surrounding the character image on the front and the logo with a picture of the figure and contents set into the front as an insert over the main image. To the left of the box is a larger image of the character, while the right side spine carries a brief character bio. The rear of the box includes a larger posed picture of the figure and further confirmation of the accessories as well as a QR code taking you to the DnD homepage.
Edgin Darvin’s figure replicates his movie costume with a blue shirt, beige trousers, and knee-high boots, each cast in their base colour and with no further paint application. This casting of parts has caused some colour variations in the legs with the knees and groin a visibly different shade than the other parts of the legs. Edgin also features a belt, added as an individual piece around the waist with sculpted but unpainted buckle detail - a shame considering the details we've seen on other costumes like Holga and Simon. Over this is Edgin’s coat, a softer plastic overcoat in a deep olive green finish with painted bronze fastenings down the front. In reality, this colour is out of line with the screen costume which has a more blue/grey tone.
The head sculpt bears a passing resemblance to Chris Pine but features a more elongated look and like Holga a forehead that looks a bit too big. Photo-real print tech is applied to the eyes and mouth and adds stubble around the lower part of the face. There is a glossy finish to some elements of Edgin’s face, the heavy eyebrows in particular. As we saw with Forge, Edgin’s better likeness is when viewed from the side profile.
Edgin features a small dagger tucked away in a holster under his coat. This is particularly difficult to access and is rudimentary in execution with a dark grey handle, and silver blade. Edgin also comes with the Tablet of Reawakening, a green jade cast accessory with very well-defined carvings but no paintwork to enhance these further.
Edgin comes with his Lute and the strap and harness in which to mount it over his back when not in use. The harness is a removable piece, created in a softer brown plastic with a basked weaved bottom section and inlaid with a gold-painted clasp. The Lute is a lighter red/brown finish with inlaid relief details including the strings which are painted in beige. The rear of the Lute features a nutshell design with patched elements in metallic silver, brown wood with silver rivets, and a leather-look patch. The Lute and its harness are the best accessory to date in the D&D Golden Archive line and work perfectly in terms of being held by the figure, and in a holstered position on the figure's back.
Articulation on Edgin is the highest of the line so far, 22 points in total with the addition of a boot cut swivel alongside the double joint knees & elbows, butterfly joint shoulders, and ball joint waist and neck. That provides Edgin with sufficient movement to play his Lute as well as wield the other included accessories - his gripped hands having enough play in their softer plastic to hold all of them - although the dagger grip is quite loose.
Edgin does quite a few things right, with another well-recreated costume - albeit with the wrong shade on the coat. The head sculpt is OK, the accessories well designed and brought to life, and the figure comes with the best articulation we’ve seen to date providing Edgin plenty of posing options. Even with all this going for him, Edgin and the rest of Wave 1 have not sold brilliantly well and are now on deep discount - which does pose questions over any further figures in the line. Worth picking up for the less than half-price RRP, and he does make for a nice Adventurers display heading up the other Wave 1 figures.
Keep Track of all the Indiana Jones Adventure Series from Hasbro at our comprehensive
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About Me : As a child of the 70's and 80's I grew up in a golden age for action figures and in my youth bought and sold myself through collections of Star Wars, G.I. Joe (Action Force) and M.A.S.K. while also dabbling in He-Man, Transformers and Ghostbusters. Roll forward and I am now reliving that Youth with the action figures of today and am a collector and fan of the larger 6-8 inch figures from my favourite movie and TV licences - including the ones mentioned above, but also the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Doctor Who and the Aliens. I launched The Mephitsu Archives in 2015 with a view of creating a UK focused site or these figures where fans can pick up the latest action figure news, read reviews and get information on where to buy their figures and what is currently on store shelves. I hope I am delivering that to you guys...