It Came From The Basement: Darkstalkers' Jon Talbain

During this weekend’s clean sweep of the basement at Cummings Worldwide HQ, I unearthed this gem: Darkstalkers’ Jon Talbain.

Given the sheer volume of toys entering CWHQ, particularly during the early 2000s, this figure stands apart in two regards: 1) I can actually remember where I purchased it (KBToys) and for how much ($2.97); and 2) its terrific representation of the badass fightin’ werewolf from Darkstalkers 3.

Toy technology has come a long way over the last 8 years, with some reproductions getting ridiculously close to their original sources of inspiration while including unprecedented amounts of articulation.

How does Talbain stand up?

The sculpt rocks: This is as good a representation of a non-Nintendo and/or non-soldier video game character as I’ve ever seen. Not to damn with faint praise: Look at the illustration above and compare it with the photo. This is Talbain come into the third dimension, molded in plastic, and shrunk down to 1/18 scale.

Articulation is pathetic matched up against today’s standards–11 points of articulation, including a hinged jaw–but pretty standard for the McFarlene Toys-era from whence he was spawned. The biggest drawback are the fingers which lack any articulation at all. A perfect action figure? No. But an awesome one? Definitely.

Also awesome? The opening to the Darkstalkers’ anime series:

The basement hunt continues for Baby Bonnie Hood and her picnic basket, lil’ dog, and Uzi…