Daenerys Targaryen was released in 2019 as part of the first wave of Game of Thrones 6 inch scale action figures from McFarlane. The wave was based on the final season with figures of Daenerys, Jon Snow, Arya Stark and the Night King.
Packaging 3/5
McFarlane have chosen a clamshell design for the Game of Thrones figures with a card sandwiched between the two halves of the blister to create the figure backdrop on one side, and the card back on the other.
The GoT logo sits in a further insert at the front of the blister at the figures feet, while the character name sits in a sideways orientated panel half way up the right hand side. The text you can see is not character bio or anything exciting and is instead a warning that reads...
"The Game of Thrones television series is specifically designed to be viewed by adults and therefore may be unsuitable for children under 18"
Above the nameplate is a circular panel containing the dragon symbol for House Targaryen. Round the back of the box is a checklist of the other figures in the wave although this has been done side on rather than on the same orientation as the box?
Paint & Sculpt 2/5
The likeness to Emilia Clarke is OK, and it is pretty well painted with natural looking blue eyes and shading and blusher around the eyes. The head is quite large and if you put her next to Jon Snow (see image a bit further down) the head for Daenerys is significantly larger. It is almost like a 7 inch scale head on a 6 inch scale body. The hair piece is very well done with intricate braids and strands down either side of the face and down the back.
The costume is a sculpted rubbery dress over an articulated body and while it is a good reflection of Daenerys's outfit from Season 8, it still hangs a little odd. There is a simple barbed chain across one shoulder, painted in silver and this holds a dragon scale cloak over the right shoulder. The finish on this cloak is very well done including shading between each scale.
Accessories 2/5
Daenerys comes with three map markers as accessories, one for each of her armies - the Unsullied, The Dothraki and the Sunspear marker for Dorne. These are detailed and even have a carved look about them. They are a bit larger than they would be in reality. They can be held by Daenerys or would look great on a scratch built map diorama.
What is odd, and a shame, is the lack of a Dragon map marker considering how important they are to Daenerys and to Season 8 overall.
And as is the norm for McFarlane figures, a stand is also included. This is circular and cast in gloss black with a white Game of Thrones logo. There is a single peg that corresponds to a hole in the figures right foot.
The stand works well although the fit is not particularly tight. Daenerys does stand well on her own without the stand so it is not crucial for display,
Articulation 1/5
Daenerys carries the least articulation of any of the McFarlane GoT figues with a total of 13 workable joints. There may be a 14th in the waist under the dress, but this is not useable.
Head : ball joint neck
Body : nil
Arms : shoulder pinned pivot, single jointed rotating elbow, ball joint wrist
Legs : hip pinned pivot, single jointed rotating knee, ankle rocker
Posing is limited mainly to the arms which are thankfully pretty mobile. The head can be posed, but has a habit of defaulting to a position where Daenerys is looking down and this can be frustrating.
The ankles feel OK and the figure stands well enough out of the pack, but they are not ratcheted so over time this will cause stability issues - even with the stand.
Summary
Once again a McFarlane release suffers from proportional issues with a large head out of scale to the rest of the body - and this is a shame as the head is not too bad considering face print technology is not in use with these figures.
Articulation is limited and there are issues in the joints we do get with the head defaulting to a chin on chest position over time.
Paint apps are good and the cloak in particular is very impressive. I score the Daenerys Targaryen Game of Thrones figure a below average 2 out of 5.
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 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...
action figures, reviews, review, articulation, mcfarlane, game of thrones, daenerys targaryen, mother of dragons,