I'm sorry, Stickman but I politely disagree.
I feel that the Sideshow line is THE BEST "Planet of the Apes" line I have ever seen. Sure it's had it's rough spots. I believe the mixture of cloth and leather in the original costumes presented a challenge for the Sideshow designers to replicate in the 1/6 scale. So some of the clothing looks a tad "overstitched". Also, it is unfortunate that they were experimenting with rotocast heads during time of the line. Most upsetting to me, the colors were a little off with Zaius. And the the later exclusives left a bit to be desired. I'm SO with you on the circus poster. I would have much preferred a "Battle" Caesar exclusive! At least Sideshow didn't charge us extra for the damn poster. But I sincerely believe that the strengths of the Sideshow Ape line far outweigh it's flaws.
And I believe Sideshow FAR out shadows the other Ape lines attempted by other companies. Mego never once got a figure right! Dr. Zaius in a white costume and black Superman boots! Zira And Cornelius with painted eyebrows, lipstick, furry cuffs, and Indian moccasins! And the WORST Gorilla sculpt in the history of toys! And they outfitted the two TV fugitives in pajamas they never wore in all 13 episodes! And the worst figure was Urko! What was up with him? Did they have only B&W photos to base his coloring on? You would think considering they gave him an ORANGE helmet with BLUE glyphs, a MUSTARD vest and PURPLE tights! He looked like a member of the Village People! I know that the toy biz was way different back then, but... I was only 8 when the figures came out and I knew they sucked even then. So, to me Mego ONLY scores points because they were THE Apes toys I played with first... not because they set any high bar of quality.
As for the Medicoms, I like them fine however I found the whole series very limiting... the articulation was particurally worthless. They might as well be static figurines. Granted the sculpts were very impressive... yet the paint ops were VERY sloppy therefore masking or mudding the detail. I went through a whole box of Zaius' before I could find one I wanted to buy. And some of the poses were boring or not functional... for example, WHY can't Astronaut Zira hold her helmet? Unfortunately, I bought the entire set BEFORE Diamond picked them up so these monkeys were not cheap! I liked the array of figures they made... I just didn't love them or found them to be as much fun as they could have been. I have high hopes for the Palisades line. Yet their ugly Army of Darkness line gives me reason to pause.
Like you, Stickman, I love 1/6 scale figures as a whole. The first figure I EVER played with was Captain Action and his stunning array of costumes. So when Sideshow announced their Ape line of 12"ers I was in heaven. Barring the Ape abominations produced by Hasblow, this would be the first time the Apes would properly presented in the scale I'm passionate about.
And, at least for me, Sideshow didn't disappoint. Sure, we have had to tinker a bit here and there to make them to where we like them. I know I had a friend who is a professional painter touch up my Zaius to where I like him. But isn't this what makes this hobby so much fun, sometimes? To make these figures our own? To buy a figure that makes our creative kitbashing juices flow?
Isn't that the reason we Ape fans are all frantically buying all the Sideshow gorillas that we can get our hands on?
