You wanna get nuts? Let’s get nuts!
When 2023’s The Flash hit movie theaters, it came at a difficult time for the film. It had already been announced by then that James Gunn would be rebooting the DC cinematic universe, and lead actor Ezra Miller was having well-publicized personal and legal issues. But regardless of these factors, there was one thing about The Flash that had everyone excited: the much-anticipated return of Michael Keaton as Bruce Wayne/Batman.
For fans of DC collectibles, Hong Kong-based Hot Toys has released a sixth scale figure of Batman from The Flash, loaded with accessories. Sideshow Collectibles, the main distributor of Hot Toys collectibles here in the United States, sent me the figure to unbox and share my thoughts.
What Is the Batman (Modern Suit) Sixth Scale Figure by Hot Toys?
The Batman (Modern Suit) Sixth Scale Figure is a high-quality collectible and poseable figure that stands at 11.81″ in height. It’s manufactured by Hot Toys and distributed through Sideshow Collectibles, and currently costs $279 (after a recent cut from $310). Purchase of this figure also goes towards qualifying for the Sideshow free sixth scale figure holiday promotion, which runs through December 28th.
The Batman (Modern Suit) Sixth Scale Figure features:
- Authentic and detailed likeness of Michael Keaton as Batman in Modern Suit from The Flash movie
- One (1) newly developed Bruce Wayne head sculpt with separate rolling eyeballs system
- One (1) newly developed cowled head with separate rolling eyeball system and three (3) interchangeable lower faces capturing iconic facial expressions
- Movie-accurate facial expression and skin texture
- Approximately 30 cm tall
- New specialized body with 30 points of articulation
- Six (6) pieces of interchangeable gloved hands including:
- One (1) pair of fists
- One (1) pair of relaxed hands
- One (1) pair of weapon holding hand
- Each head sculpt is specially hand-painted
Costume:
- One (1) Batsuit with Batman logo on chest
- One (1) Batcape
- One (1) interchangeable Batcape (wired structure)
- One (1) black and metallic silver colored belt
- One (1) pair of black boots
Weapons:
- One (1) line launcher
- One (1) rope attached batarang
- Two (2) ninja wheels
Accessories:
- One (1) remote
- One (1) bomb timer
- Specially designed themed figure stand with Batman logo and LED light-up function (Yellow light, USB power operated)
Exclusive Accessory for First Edition
- One (1) batman cowl with stand
Unboxing the Batman (Modern Suit) Sixth Scale Figure by Hot Toys
The figure arrived packed into a snug-fitting cardboard mailing box. For extra protection for your collectible during shipping, Sideshow also offers double-boxing for a small extra fee.
The Batman figure comes with an art sleeve wrapped around the box. Remove the sleeve, and you have a window box where you can see most of the contents of the package:
Inside the box is a large tray with a form-fitting lid, which holds the Batman figure and larger pieces, as well as a small tray for accessories. Here is the main tray with the lid removed:
If you turn the lid over (with the cover in place to keep everything from falling out, naturally) you can see that the figure’s cape is fed through the back of the tray, to keep it from getting bunched up. The second, interchangeable wired cape is also found underneath the tray.
Here’s a look at the secondary cape out of its packaging:
Taped to the bottom of the tray is a small bag containing fold-out instructions for working with the figure. Here’s a look:
Here’s the small tray which holds all of the handheld accessories. Also included in the tray is a special tool (in the far left of the photo) that you can use to move the eyes in the two different heads, as well as change the faceplates in the cowled head.
And here’s a look at the figure, out of the box with all of the protective foam and plastic removed:
The first edition of the figure also comes with a display cowl and stand, which won’t be included in subsequent editions:
Finally, the Modern Suit Batman also comes with a USB-powered light-up stand.
Posing the Batman (Modern Suit) Sixth Scale Figure by Hot Toys
To adjust the separate rolling eyeballs of the Bruce Wayne head, you pop off the back of the head for access, and then move the eyes manually with the included tool.
Moving the eyeballs can change the dynamics of a pose, without even having to move the body much. Here, a simple shifting of the eyes and tilt of the head conveys much.
Of course, moving the eyes can also result in some, shall we say, interesting looks. Like this:
And this:
The cowled head also has the rolling eye system, but you move the eyes in this head by working the tool in through the bottom of the cowl. The magnetic faceplates can be popped out of the cowl using that same tool.
Swapping heads and hands is easy to do. The Bruce Wayne head simply pops off, and then you can pop on a black neck piece in its place. The cowled head slots right onto the neck piece. Swapping hands is a similar process; the wrists have peg joints. The figure also ships with a couple of replacement peg joints, just in case you break any of yours.
The soft pieces of the costume appear to be made of a flexible pleather-like material. You’re probably not going to want to try and have Batman do the splits, but you can definitely recreate poses from both The Flash and the original Tim Burton Batman and Batman returns.
It’s also easy enough to swap out the regular cape for the wired cape. You can then open it up as if Batman is about to fly, as he does in The Flash. The wired cape holds its pose nicely.
And here’s a look at Batman on his lit-up stand, ready to fight:
Batman (Modern Suit) Sixth Scale Figure by Hot Toys – Final Thoughts
Let’s get this out of the way first: I’m a big fan of Tim Burton’s 1989 Batman. For me, Michael Keaton will alway be my Batman. And it was well worth seeing The Flash in order to see Mr. Keaton put on the batsuit one more time. So when Sideshow sent me the Batman (Modern Suit) figure, I was excited to see what Hot Toys had done with the collectible.
One of the things Hot Toys is known for is their incredible details on their sixth scale figures. In this regard, the Batman (Modern Suit) definitely does not disappoint. I have a friend who’s planning on making his own batsuit cosplay next year, and he’s already planning on borrowing this figure from me to use as reference for the costume. And the included accessories are equally as meticulously sculpted and painted.
Speaking of accessories, I love the extra cowl and stand included with this first edition of the figure. It’s a fun little bonus, and I’m thinking about putting it out on my desk so that I can enjoy looking at it every day at work.
As mentioned before, there are plenty of weapons and gadgets included for creating different Batman poses. And if you have room on your shelf, the Batman (Modern Suit) looks really striking when that alternate wired cape is displayed.
There are a couple of elements that really elevate the Batman (Modern Suit) Sixth Scale Figure over some of the other comparably-priced Hot Toys figures. One of those is the rolling eyeballs system, which really helps bring life into the poses of the figure. The other is the deluxe figure stand. Rather than a simple plastic base with a logo, it looks like Batman is standing on top of the Bat Signal. The lightup function works great, with the yellow light matching perfectly with the bat emblem on Batman’s chest. I only wish that it was battery operated, as it can be inconvenient to run a USB cord to power the base, depending on where you display the figure.
If I had one real criticism, it’s that I feel like Hot Toys missed the mark on the Bruce Wayne sculpt. The mouth is probably the closest to capturing Keaton’s likeness, but the whole thing feels just a little off for me. It’s good that the sculptor was able to nail Michael Keaton’s mouth though, as the figure looks amazing with the cowl and any of the three lower face plates attached. Here’s a comparison between a still from The Flash and the corresponding faceplate to the figure when Batman looks directly into the camera and says, “Yeah. I’m Batman.”:
Overall, the Batman (Modern Suit) Sixth Scale Figure is a fantastic collectible from Hot Toys. It’s faithful to the designs from The Flash, and comes with a lot of nice extras to create dynamic poses on your shelf. Admittedly, the Bruce Wayne head isn’t quite as dead-on of a sculpt as you’ll find with some other Hot Toys figures. However, I think most people (myself included) will probably be displaying the figure with the cowl option. And that appearance, wrinkles of the intervening decades notwithstanding, brings me right back to 1989, sitting in the movie theater and watching Batman come to life on the big screen.
For more information or to purchase the Batman (Modern Suit) Sixth Scale Figure from Hot Toys, head over to the Sideshow webstore.
Sideshow provided this figure for evaluation, but had no input into this review. As an affiliate, I may make a small commission on qualified purchases.
