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Review : Sean Fifield Prometheus (NECA) Wave/Series : Lost Wave Released : July 2017
£22.99
Pros : That Gruesome Head Sculpt Cons : Helmet will not fit without disassembling the head (and no instructions to do this)
Our look at the Prometheus Lost Wave (or Wave 3) comes to an end with the most visually impressive figure - the disfigured Sean Fifield.
Like Shaw, Fifield was first revealed in 2012 but would later be cancelled until NECA resurrected the wave some 5 years later.
Like Shaw and Vickers, Fifield arrives in the standard NECA blister packaging. The backdrop are hieroglyphics inspired by the movie with a starfield header and an electric blue Prometheus logo.
The backing paper, it's too thin to be called card, was the most bent and distorted of the wave on Fifield, as best illustrate on the centre image above. The blister was also mis-shapen at one side and had bulged and expanded at some point between being sealed and me unpacking it from the delivery.
The same thin paper is used as an insert at the front of the blister. Here we get the character name in a similar light blue font on a starfield background. Unlike the majority of the wider Aliens range, there is no side art - but this was not used on the original Prometheus figures either which does make the Lost Wave consistent with the 2012/3 releases.
The rear of the pack starts with the starfield backdrop and the Prometheus logo and then a repeat of the character name, Sean Fifield, in larger text. We then see the backdrop blend to the hieroglyphics image we see on the front, on top of this is a paragraph about Fifields role on the Prometheus mission.
A large image of Fifield's head and torso sits to the side of this text in a lighter blue triangle. Under this, in similar triangles, are the rest of the Prometheus range - both the 2017 releases and the original 2012/3 releases. As I have said on the reviews for Vickers and Shaw - this is a bit of a double edged sword in that while it keeps the packaging and the wave linked, despite the 5 year gap. But it may also be confusing for new collectors who won't be able to find any of the original figures in stores at retail, and will find the prices have skyrocketed on the secondary market.
Out of the packaging we are presented with Fifield, his helmet and the torch accessory. Your eye will obvious go directly to the head sculpt on the figure, which is particularly impressive - even for the level NECA work at on a consistent basis. The head does a great job of both looking like the actor, Sean Harris, while in full mutant make-up.
The skin is a textured and pock-marked with an enlarged cranium. The eyes are deep set, but painted well with clear defined pupils. The teeth and individually sculpted and sit behind the lips and what is left of Fifield's moustache. What remains of a beard and hair is draped over the head and round the chin.
All of this detail is painted in a glossy flesh tone, with brown wash to bring out the scarring and pock-marks. There are red patches for blood and areas of black wash to represent the black liquid running down the face. Even the teeth and lips are painted, with my only criticism being a strand of hair that looks like it should be black and is in fact flesh toned.
The Spacesuit is designed really well and is consistent with the onscreen prop. It is made up of a blue undersuit, on top of which are panels to encompass the chest, shoulders, forearms, thighs and knees. Each panel has sculpted lines and detailing, down to intricate bolts and fastenings at the knees and round the belt.
The blue suit is weathered and dirtied to quite an extreme level. There are then decals applied to the front of the torso for the Prometheus logo. To the rear of the neck piece is the Weyland Yutani logo. And to the side of the chest panel is a Spartan helmet logo in a red box. While each of these are very well applied and crisp in detail - they should be as dirty as the suit and have been applied after the weathering and not before..
Fifields body is the same as designed and revealed in 2012 and the articulation is consistent with that era - while Shaw and Vickers seem to be upgraded at some point in the 5 year hiatus.
The body does pretty much all you would want it to do. The head rotates and will look up and down marginally until the beard blocks the movement. The arms are ball jointed at the shoulder so both move out to a right angle and they rotate. The elbows are a single joint and bend to 90 degrees. While the elbows have a rotate function, this is stopped by the panels of the space suit - this leaves the arms a little restricted and unable to come together. The arm articulation ends with ball jointed wrists and that gives each hand the ability to swivel as well as bend forward and backward.
The chest and waist are articulated and with what feels like ball joints in each. This means you can bend Fifield's torso quite a way forward or backward in relation to his legs. This does mean a fairly satisfactory crawling pose can be reached if you want to replicate that portion of the movie as Fifield mercilessly beats his way up the Prometheus ramp. You will also be able to reverse this pose to have him laid backwards - all ready to be run over by that rover.
What you can't get is the spider pose that the crew find him in with his legs wrapped around his head. The hips are an older type of T-joint and while they allow the legs to swing into a sitting position and out to the side, they are not overly flexible - they do also spoil the look of the figure when posed compared to the ball joints and flexible groins that we now see on NECA figures.
The knees are double jointed, and just above them sits a thigh swivel. There is then a fairly stiff ankle rocker which rotates and moves back and forth. Standing Fifield is not an issue.
Accessory number one is the melted and damaged Spacesuit helmet. This comes separate in the pack, and within the helmet itself is a small baggie containing the helmet/shoulder camera. The helmet weathering is absolutely stunning - you would almost think it actually had been burned and melted. Even the broken glass edge looks sharp enough to cut you (it isn't of course).
Now here comes my first gripe about this figure - and it is a big one I am afraid. It is impossible to put the helmet onto the figure over the head. I've tried numerous times - and having read other reviews it is not just me - every reviewer has found the same. The only way to get the helmet on is to pop off the head - which will need some warming up via hot water or a hairdryer to make it budge. Even with the head off the process isn't easy as you have to slot the helmet into the neck piece then work within the helmet confines to push the head back onto the plug.
While I appreciate NECA re-used a lot of parts on this figure - there is no excuse for including a helmet that cannot be worn. There is not even any instructions on what to do, you are left to figure it out. I wonder how many non-seasoned collectors will be willing to pull off a figures head?
Once the helmet is in place and the head re-attached, the look of Fifield is now complete and replicates what we see in the movie. The head fills the helmet void and stares menacingly out of the broken glass. The blackened helmet actually enhances the sculpt and makes the paint pop against this darker background.
The camera, that comes in that small baggie, is an articulated piece which fits on the prow of the helmet. It slots in easy enough and can be posed in terms of the orientation it points. It also fits on a slot in the shoulder. Again, neither operation is explained anywhere on or within the packaging.
The final accessory for Fifield is very bizarre. It is the torch/data pad that came with the original David-8 release. Considering NECA's usually attention to detail, throwing in this piece feels lazy - particularly as other options already exist like the Hammerpedes which originally infect him in the Engineer's ship.
The accessory itself is crisp and well cast in a black plastic. It has neat white panelling and a white lens for the torch.
The Fifield figure, as we have alluded to through the review, is a direct re-use of the original 2012 David-8 body - with the helmet amended and a new head sculpt. The weathering obviously darkens the suit and dirties it, and NECA haven't included the tubing that they use on David-8 between the helmet and backpack.
Fifield is a visually impressive figure and in the Alien 7" world does that very unique thing of being a bad guy that isn't a Xenomorph. This makes him a nice change for your Alien Universe display. The sculpt cannot be faulted - both the head and body are faultless and the paint is really well applied.
The big issue lies with the helmet and the difficulty in getting it fitted. I also find the inclusion of the torch a bit odd? I am going to take a star off for these two concerns and award Sean Fifield an impressive 4 out of 5.
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