On top of the standard release of Tyrion in Armour, Walgreens in the US were given an exclusive Hand of the King Tyrion in 2014.
Weather it is the paint or there is a different sculpt under there, but the face sculpt on the exclusive version is much crisper and a far better likness than the standard release. The hair is painted darker with highlights to add depth and the five o'clock shadow is really well done.
This theme continues down into the brand new sculpted tunic, which has a some particularly intricate designs across the chest and up into the shoulders. The tunic is painted red with washes to weather the tunic which are unfortunately, and as complete contrast to the floral design on the shoulder, very blotchy and clumsily done. The other issue is the hand of the king broach which like the Ned Stark figure is completely obscured by a giant blob of thick gold paint.
The skirt of the outfit is done in soft rubber and has a nice finish which again is fainted to look weathered. Arms and legs are plain and without much detail. The hands are sculpted with Tyrion's rings, one on each hand, and these are also well painted with no bleed or misalignment that you may expect.
The articulation is identical to the standard release (see here) and can be summed up as limited and with varying weak spots which you need to be careful of. There is also that frustrating issue that Funko continue to use different coloured pins in their joints vs the actual figure. That means that when you bend the elbows for example there is a clear peg visible underneath. Stability remains an issue and remember there is no peg hole to drop the figure onto a stand to help him remain upright.
Exclusive Tyrion comes with a short sword which is slotted into it's sheath when unpacked. The sword is nice enough, but quite basic in terms of both sculpt and painting. The Funko issue kicks in here however as when I pulled mine out of the sheath, the whole thing came away from the belt.
The issues on paint consistency is a frustration with some areas being done masterfully and others terribly and if Funko ever get these sorted and strengthen up the joint issue then this will be a range to be reckoned with. There are areas of improvement and this exclusive Tyrion is an improvement vs his standard release, but not enough to be scored past the 3 out of 5.
