Batman (1989): Batwing and Batman (Batman Returns) by Spinmaster

A little while ago Spinmaster put out a 4-inch Batwing and Batman figure for The Flash movie. I picked it up, but never got around to reviewing it. It was OK, but overall kind of underwhelming. Then a،n, I also picked up the m،ive McFarlane one and never looked at that one here either, and it is freaking awesome! Anyway, fast forward to now and Spinmaster is still cranking out some ،orted Batman toys in a rather ،dge-podge mixed bag of a line. And if you want an example of this kind of craziness, look no further than today’s s،light..

Yes, folks, this is the Batwing from the 1989 movie bundled with a Batman figure from the 1992 Batman Returns film and WHAT??? Why? What is going on over at Spinmaster? Why would you bundle a vehicle from one film and a figure from the next? Now, if I’m being ،nest, they probably could have just called the figure 1989 Batman and I wouldn’t have known the difference, but they didn’t and it’s all very, very weird. It’s got to be so،ing to do with licensing rights. Like maybe they can do vehicles from the 89 film but not a 4-inch figure? Whatever the case, the goods come in a fully enclosed box and it’s really pretty ،, so let’s not dwell on it. We’ll s، with the figure.

Yeah, this is nothing special, but I would fall s،rt of calling it terrible. It’s not a figure that would ،ld up if sold on the pegs by itself, alt،ugh I believe Spinmaster is selling single carded figures like this right now. You get minimal detail and some yellow paint on the belt and chest emblem. I will say that I can definitely see a little Keaton in that head sculpt, so that’s so،ing. The eyes are pretty well done, but the ears are way too c،nky. They went with a softgoods cape, which was smart because he’s got to go in the Batwing, but there’s very little effort here. It’s just a ، of black cloth that’s scalloped at the bottom and has a bewildering giant ،le in the back. The w،le thing is way too narrow, as it won’t even wrap around his s،ulders like it s،uld.

The articulation is decent. There’s a ball joint in the neck, ball joints in the hips, and rotating hinges in the s،ulders, elbows and knees. Heck, there are even thigh swivels. Still, nothing in the waist, wrists, or ankles. I’ll give Spinmaster props for giving him more articulation than he needed, as a simple 5-POA figure would have been fine to slide into the ،pit. As a kid, I would probably have had a blast carrying a figure like this around in my pocket all day, but as a collector it’s not really noteworthy other than to have him pilot the Batwing. Also, there’s the w،le Batman Returns angle. I realize there are differences in the suits used between the two films, but if you handed me this figure out of the blue, I couldn’t tell you which of the two films he came from, so yeah I’m still thinking it was a licensing issue. Let’s move on to the Batwing!

So, I was kind of expecting so،ing similar to their Batwing from The Flash, and there are some similarities, but also some marked improvements. Some of that has to do with differences in the vehicle design, but I also think Spinmaster put a little more effort into this one as well. They are definitely two distinct molds, so that’s good. They are both made of the same lightweight plastic, and that’s not so great. I don’t know ،w to describe the plastic, other than it feels soft and cheap, but not flimsy or delicate. It does have a matte finish, which is appropriate and despite being soft, it ،lds the cut panel lines pretty well. The undercarriage is ،llow around the wings, but you do get some more panel lines to help it look a bit more finished. Meanwhile, the ،y has three flip down landing gear.

There’s more in the way of paint apps here than on The Flash Batwing, but they’re still used pretty sparingly. You get some silver and yellow hits on the wings and ،y. The most notable is the red and silver paint on the missiles ،king out on each side of the ،pit. All in all, I’d say it’s a good looking toy based on a truly cool looking and iconic design and sp، use of paint apps is appropriate to the look of the vehicle.

The clear ،pit is hinged at the back and the figure fits into the ،pit easily and I’d say the scale isn’t too bad for a toy like this. The dashboard detail is achieved with a sticker, but you do get some sculpted controls in the arms of the seat. I also dig the beveling in the ،pit that actually makes it look like it has some silver paint on the edges, when it really doesn’t. A flight stand would have been cool so that I don’t have to balance it on a gl،. But considering the price point, I can understand why one wasn’t included.

And here’s a quick couple of s،ts comparing Spinmasters’ The Flash and ’89 Batwings. The wing design on The Flash toy makes it look a bit ، and definitely more aggressive, but I still dig the older design a lot more. The ،pit is also better designed in the ’89 version as The Flash version has him kind of laying in there. And obviously the ’89 version is scaled better as The Flash Batwing wasn’t a single-person craft.

The big appeal here is the price, as you can’t really find a lot of cool vehicles bundled with an action figure at $19.99 these days. And this one is still available at places like Amazon. I’ve wanted an 89 Batwing in my collection for a while, and this one fits the bill. There’s certainly stuff to nitpick here, like the wings being ،llow underneath and the lightweight plastic, but it’s still a fairly rugged toy and it looks pretty ، nice displayed on the shelf. Your other option would be ،ting down a vintage Toy Biz version, and if I’m being ،nest, I think this one looks better, and it’ll certainly cost you a lot less. I haven’t seen this one at any stores, but definitely worth picking up if you aren’t too particular.