DC Multiverse Jessica Cruz figure review
One of the main priorities for DC Rebirth was to continue the attempts to diversity the DC Universe. That was most evident with the move to take Hal Jordan off planet and have his status as Earth’s Green Lantern be filled by Jessica Cruz and Simon Baz.
I figured Green Lanterns would be a well-intentioned title that wouldn’t prove sustainable, but it’s been a surprise hit and Baz & Cruz have been a fun pairing. I was pretty thrilled that Jessica Cruz was chosen as part of the revamped DC Multiverse line. She’s an interesting character and the Green Lantern ranks were pretty heavy with dudes. Let’s see if that enthusiasm was warranted.
Packaging: I’m a big fan of this new DC Multiverse packaging. I love the layout of the figure and accessories as well as the ridged bottom of the package. The artwork is from the main Jim Lee promotional art in the DC Rebirth announcement. I do wish they could mix up the art on the side panels.
Even with this brief amount of space, I think Mattel is doing a good job summarizing the character and explaining their Rebirth era history.
Likeness: Jessica doesn’t have a very unique look from a normal lantern. With a number of various artists handling Green Lanterns, there are no set guidelines for distinct features like her face and hair. Cruz looks just solid. My one ‘issue’ is I would have loved an alternate portrait with Jessica’s eyes that aren’t whited out.
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Scale: Mattel decided it was OK to have female figures that haven eaten in the last week. Jessica has a much fuller body than the previous DC Classics female figures. She stands taller than the Classics females, but still scales well with the male Green Lanterns and is smaller than the Rebirth Superman.
Paint: The paintwork is very clean throughout even with the green lining along the gloves. There’s some light fading on the white boots, but for the most part, the white paint holds strong.
Naturally, the green on the shoulder joints wears off very quickly. That’s not shocking, but I wish companies could come up with a smart solution for this decades long problem.
Articulation: Oh man, Mattel is so close here. In posing Cruz with DC Classics figures, she’s got much better articulation, but the legacy issues of no double elbows and better ankle articulation still holds the Multiverse line from Marvel Legends level of posing. Still, Jessica can be posed far more creatively than the standard DC figure. Mattel smartly provided enough range of motion in the hips for wider poses and the hair doesn’t restrict movement as much as I initially thought.
Jessica Cruz has:
- neck
- ball-jointed shoulders
- elbows
- wrists
- torso
- hips
- thighs
- knees
- ankles
Accessories: Cruz has a lot of accessories — some that work better than others. Her main accessory is an energy effect intended to simulate her ring’s power.
It looks more like Cruz is tangling with Poison Ivy, but I appreciate the attempt to mix up a Lantern construct. They don’t hang on all that effectively either and I doubt I’ll keep them on her long-term. Additionally she comes with the Lantern she shares with Baz to charge up her power ring.
Most importantly for folks who have been building him, Cruz comes with the Collect and Connect legs for Clayface.
Worth it? Right now it’s hard to find Cruz for the standard $20 retail price. She’s one of the first to sell out on Amazon, but if you catch it at the right time you can grab her like I did unless you really, really need to complete Clayface and want to pay $50.
Rating: 9 out of 10
Where to get it? If you’re incredibly lucky, you’ll find Cruz at Wal-Marts. Otherwise you’ll have to get somewhat lucky and find Cruz at Amazon.com.