McFarlane Toys DC Multiverse Power Ring review

I would have been down to get the McFarlane Toys DC Multiverse line’s take on the Crime Syndicate, but throwing in a Collect to Build Starro? I’m sold. I still need to track down Owlman especially now that I picked up Power Ring.

Power Ring really helps in terms of showcasing the evil mirror image of the Justice League as the corrupted version of Green Lantern John Stewart and it’s nice to nearly have one full team knocked out in this line.

Let’s see if this figure lights up my shelf or plunges it into darkness.

Packaging: McFarlane is still sticking with its basic packaging with the predominantly black with white and blue accents. The only difference here is Power Ring features a larger box to properly show off the Collect to Build Starro piece.

Also of note, there’s no prominent picture of Power Ring on the back besides the cross sell image. There’s simply a picture of the collected Starro.

Likeness: Power Ring is basically a reuse of the DC Multiverse Parallax figure with a new collar piece, head sculpt (of course) and the cape is gone.

That’s consistent with the reference material based on the latest Crime Syndicate series. It’s a smart reuse of a mold that really wouldn’t get much burn for other figures without looking ridiculous and there’s enough new elements that it doesn’t feel like a lazy repaint.

From the front, the head sculpt is pretty solid. I love the extra touch of the furrowed brow as this version of Power Ring was not nearly as confident that he should give in to his evil impulses and align with the Crime Syndicate.

The side perspective makes the head look weird as the back of the head stretches well past the neck giving him a bit of a helmet head visual that looks pretty awful.

Compared to previous Green Lantern figures, McFarlane made much greater strides in sculpting the ring with the added bonus of it actually being raised on his finger instead of looking like a painted-on glob.

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Scale: Power Ring stands at the same height as the rest of the CS members. Ideally, Ultraman would be taller than his teammates, but scale can be finnicky with this line unfortunately. He’s much taller than the GL John Stewart thanks to the Parallax mold.

Paint: I haven’t had many issues with paint problems with this line. It helps that the sculpts aren’t so intricate that it allows for massive amounts of slop or overspray. The shade of green looks great against the black uniform as it almost gives the illusion of being constructed by light and not a spandex material.

There are a few elements on the figure — namely the gloves and thighs — that have green stripes that are just done by the paint. These are done very sharply with no issue. The linework along his mask and the Power Ring logo are also very precise. There’s an odd sheen to his head that almost makes it look like he’s sweating. It’s not a big deal, but is certainly noticeable.

Articulation: The Multiverse articulation can be hit or miss with some figures featuring stellar movement while others have some deficiencies that could be improved with a greater focus on posing instead of statue-like stances.

I was pretty impressed with Power Ring’s range of motion as he was packed with sensible articulation points making for one of the better DC Multiverse figures I’ve handled.

DC McFarlane Power Ring has:

Accessories: Power Ring clearly could have had some accessories with a few constructs, but McFarlane Toys did give him something with a mini-Starro to attach to his face/body.

Naturally he comes with a Collect to Build Starro part. That piece looks massive with a crazy amount of detail with the suction cup elements and teeth in the center.

And as always, the handy small black stand that’s very useful in making some more challenging poses easier to pull off.

Worth it? McFarlane Toys hasn’t wavered with the $20 price tag and for CTB figures, the price jumps up to a still reasonable $25. Given the detail of Starro even at this early stage that doesn’t seem unreasonable.

I was able to get Power Ring on clearance for $7. That is a tremendous deal for a figure of this scale with a Collect To Build figure.

Rating: 8.5 out of 10

With a better execution on the back of the head sculpt this figure would be one of my favorite DC Multiverse figures thanks to the smooth and easy to pose articulation.

Where to get it? Power Ring is still available at Target.com.

As a Target affiliate, I earn from qualifying purchases.