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Hot Toys Terminator: Salvation T-600 [Weathered Version]
Figure gives new meaning to "killer toy"...
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Hot Toys has been making good use of their 1:6th scale Terminator: Salvation T-600 action figure sculpt. We've received a bare bones Endoskeleton this summer and more recently a concept art variation featuring a new minigun and backpack. While both are insanely cool in their own right, I'm glad I held back for the version up for review today: The T-600 [Weathered Version].
The new T-600 [Weathered Version] Movie Masterpiece figure uses the same amazing body sculpt and articulation as the original. You can read all about that figure in our review HERE. There are, however, several key differences that help catapult this cyborg to superstardom. These include:
As pre-Schwarzenegger Terminators, the T-600s seen in Terminator: Salvation have to improvise with their "human" camouflage. The result is a patchwork display of tattered military apparel and an eerie rubber skin mask only a Terminator mother could love. While the disguise is laughable upon close inspection (or confrontation), I can see it bewildering a human resistance soldier from a distance.
The T-600, thankfully, comes already garbed in its tangle of shredded clothing. Previous Hot Toys figures (I'm looking at you Colonial Space Marines) had you dress up the entire figure. It was a tedious task, so you can imagine my sigh of relief with the T-600. Well, almost...
You do have to put the ammo backpack on and it can be tricky. There are clasps for both shoulder harnesses and a clasp across the waist, each requiring a steady hand with a pair of tweezers to loosen up the straps and snap the buckles shut. Once on, the backpack fits and looks great, minus one glaring problem: You now can't access the button to activate its light-up eyes. Located mid-back, the button ends up totally obstructed by the backpack, not to mention lost in a maze of torn clothes. Determined to try the light-up feature I ended up using a knife to blindly reach behind. No luck. Frustrated, I unsnapped the waist clasp (which took me forever to get latched to begin with) to get a better view. There it is! Push. Nothing. My T-600's batteries were DOA. Realizing I'd have to fully remove his backpack to change out the batteries, I opted not to bother. I'm one to use a light-up feature no more than once or twice, so the loss really doesn't bother me. However, the button placement is perplexing and deserves mentioning.
Reminding me of some "zombie" Terminator, the tattered clothes amaze with ripped and shredded chaos. I especially like the bandanna around his neck for partially covering its face and the layered wrappings around the legs and arms. Sculpted elbow and knee pads, boots and gloves further add to the weathered T-600's unique "rotting" appearance and look spectacular. The gloves are particularly stunning; the exposed Endoskeleton bone poking through is uber creepy cool.
The "human" mask is VERY haunting. I reminds me of a lifeless baby doll, and that's not a good thing in my book. Freaks me out. Regardless of my baby doll phobia, I found that the mask didn't fit very well. You really have to struggle with it to get it on right, and as you can tell by my photos, I gave up at "good enough". To each their own, but I much prefer the wickedly evil Endoskeleton head exposed, snarling with rage.
Where previous versions just packed the minigun, the T-600 [Weathered Version] boasts a minigun AND a new handheld grenade launcher. The launcher, like the minigun, fits in the weapon-grasping gloved hand nice and snug, though some careful pushing and prying is required to get it there.
First you need to slide each weapon's arm mount - a circular cuff that fits around the T-600's forearm - on first. It is here that I ran into my second problem: I snapped an arm piston. DON'T FOLLOW THE PRINTED INSTRUCTIONS AND REMOVE THE HAND TO PUT THE WEAPON ON.
I did this, cautiously prying the minigun hand off and its bundle of 3 pistons, slipped the weapon cuff over the arm and attempted to slide the hand and all three pistons back into place. SNAP. Now it wasn't a major blow as I was able to glue the piston back and quickly slide the suckers back into place sight unseen, but it was a jarring experience. While it will require some cautious pushing and prying to ease the cuffs over the gloved hands, it can be done and the process is far kinder than Hot Toys' recommended approach.
Another minor issue I encountered arming my T-600 was with the grenade launcher's rubber hose. It connects from the back of the weapon and plugs into a hole on the lower left side of the backpack. My problem was getting the hose to fit firmly in the backpack hole. The hose's connection peg, being made of rubber, wouldn't shove all the way in and had an irksome tendency to pull completely out whenever I repositioned the T-600's left arm. My solution? I dremeled out a hole wide enough to shove the entire hose in. It still looks great, in fact you'd never know it was altered, and best of all, that hose ain't ever coming free.
The last new addition to the T-600 [Weathered Version] is an awesome skull-strewn display base. This small slice of apocalyptic ruin looks amazing, each skull appearing almost fossilized with age. Hot Toys used a nice marbleized texture and realistic bone-like color to make this happen.
Unlike the blocky, name plaqued floor bases included with the other T-600's, this base features a more natural ovid shape sans any distracting title. Better yet, see all those itty-bitty bullet shells? Hot Toys supplies you with a bag full of them to place wherever you want! I placed a small dab of glue down for mine so they wouldn't roll off and get lost. Good stuff.
It's a shame the T-600 didn't get more screen time because this is an extemely wild Terminator design. Thankfully Hot Toys' T-600 [Weathered Version] remedies that oversight by releasing a tangible action figure to forever gawk at. Despite a few pesky issues, the T-600's hyper-real sculpt, well-engineered articulation and towering 14-inch height more than make up for it. It's just too cool for words.
The retail for this bad boy, if you can find it, is around $170. That's a lot of dinero for an action figure, but then this isn't your typical action figure. The T-600 [Weathered Version] is jaw-dropping sci-fi ART.
The T-600 [Weathered Version] is available to order at these fine sponsors: BigBadToyStore.com, Urban-Collector.com, and HobbyLinkJapan.com.
For over 60 new images of the T-600 [Weathered Version], CLICK HERE!
Review and Photos by Jeff Saylor
Review Sample Courtesy of Hot Toys
