McFarlane Stranger Things Series 2 and Deluxe Demogorgon – Toyark Photo shoot

Unless you’ve ignored it completely, then you have at least absorbed a little bit of the hype around the Netflix show Stranger Things. They currently have 2 seasons already completed, and a third filming soon. The show follows a group of kids from Hawkins, Indiana, as they deal with the odd events that have suddenly been plaguing their small town in the 1980’s. That’s an over-simplification for sure, as the show features themes from horror, to science fiction, to 80’s style teen comedy. The show has built up its following by mixing in great atmosphere, solid writing, retro flare and strong performances from Winona Ryder and the child-heavy cast. It’s not perfect, but when each season hits its stride, there’s a lot of fun to be had.

Today we’re taking a look at some of the McFarlane Toys figures based on the show. The second assortment of Stranger Things 7″ Scale Action Figures are now available in stores. The first wave, with Hopper and Eleven was released late last year. The newest assortment includes 7″ scale versions of Dustin Henderson and Lucas Sinclair. They’re joined on toy shelves by the new 10″ tall Demogorgon Deluxe Figure. The line will continue to grow with additional figures in the near future, as we’ve seen previews of multiple new figures. McFarlane toys sent along wave 2 for us to check out. We brought in the series 1 figures as well, and have a full gallery to check out. Read on for my thoughts and 50 photos of the figures.

Stranger Things Series 2 and Deluxe Demogorgon Figures by McFarlane Toys

Pros

• Excellent looking figure in the Demogorgon
• Demogorgon has solid articulation and range of motion
• Improved articulation over older McFarlane 7″ releases
• Good overall sculpts
• Nice accessories
• The card backs are great for collectors who keep stuff sealed

Cons

• Likenesses could be better
• Digital printing of faces uses some pretty large dots
• Dustin can be a bit tough to stand

Overall
One of my initial draws to Stranger things was the 80’s vibe it embraced. The packaging does a great job of capturing that classic tone. Switiching from window boxes to classic card backs, McFarlane does a nice job of presenting the figures. The front features the excellent artwork of illustrator Kyle Lambert, while using a large bubble to clearly show the figures and accessories. The back showcases the figures from this wave, as well as announcing some upcoming figures (including Steve and Barb). It is a shame you have to cut the bubble to remove the figures, but collectors who keep their figures sealed will have a great piece to display on their walls.

The two figures in series 2 are Dustin and Lucas. McFarlane has started to move away fro mthe staction-esque figures from their initial color Tops line, adding in more useful articulation where they deem appropriate. Both Dustin and Lucas include these updated articulation cuts, which resemble the style of the McFrlane 5″ figures from a few years back. There’s about 12 14 points of articulation on each of the two figures. the sculpts themselves are pretty nice. There’s a lot of detail and texture work, especially on the clothing. Paint work on the bodies is excellent, with some nice use of paint washes to highlight the sculpted details. The head sculpts are a bit of a miss. Dustin isn’t too bad looking in-hand, but Lucas didn’t fare as well. They aren’t bad sculpts, but McFarlane has been pretty good with their likenesses in the 7″ line and these aren’t quite as good. The digital printing they used showcases some noticeably large dots. From a distance it’s not too bad, but the printing does stand out compared to the rest of the figure which is more traditionally painted. I did like the accessories for the most part. Lucas’ slingshot can be held fairly properly, and the backpacks for both figures were a nice touch. I do like that hey include hands that specifically fit the walkie talkies, making them look fairly natural in their hands. I do recommend using the included figure stands for these two. Dustin’s sneakers are a bit too accurately sculpts, and have more rounded soles, which makes him a bit tougher to stand. Lucas didn’t have too much of an issue staying upright.

The highlight of this shoot, for me, was the Demogogon. This figure is packaged in their 10″ deluxe style window box. Normally, this size class from McFarlane featured little to no articulation. Not the case here. The Demogorgon has a pretty solid range of articulation, with about 15 points overall, and good range of motion. The sculpting is excellent here, with strong detail work to texture the skin well, and showcase the taut, muscular look of the creature. Paint work is good here as well. Probably the only quibble here would be that the mouth doesn’t close. Didn’t bother me much, but it is worth noting.

Series 2 of the Stranger Things figures are solid releases, with a few issues that do crop up. The good news is that if you aren’t satisfied with these particualr releases, there will be alternate offerings in the future, including the fun looking set featuring all four kids in Ghostbusters Hallloween Costumes. The Demogorgon is absolutely worth a buy though. Even if you aren’t into the show, it makes for a nice creepy creature for horror fans. Check out soem select photos below, and the full gallery after that.

Background featured in pics below are from Extreme-Sets.com. Enter code TOYARK at checkout and get 15% off your order!