Halo Toy Review: McFarlane Halo 5 Guardians Action Figure Spartan Hermes variant

This is NOT Kelly from Blue team. It is the same spartan armor, but in Green as opposed to Kelly’s colors.

McF Toys logo

Technical Specifications:
Articulation:
• Ball Joint Head
• Ball Joint Shoulders
• Ball Joint Elbows
• Ball Joint Wrists
• Swivel Chest
• Limited Ball Joint hips
• Hinge Knees
• Limited Ball Joint Ankles
Accessories: Rockets, Boutshot
Additional Contents: REQ Pack sheet (Requisition Pack) This sheet has a code on one side that you can redeem for Halo 5 Guardians in-game content. The content redeemed for varies from code to code.
Cost: $15-18 (US) depending on where you buy it at retail
Availability: Mass Retail

And on with the pics! (Click pics to make BIGGER)

McF Hermes Variant BOX
As always, the display of the figure and contents within are great with McFarlane Halo figures.McF Hermes Variant contents
This is what you get in the box. The Boutshot is two-toned. That Rocket Launcher is fantastic! And of course the figure, which you will see much more of. Continue on, please.McF Hermes Variant Head-torsp detail
As with every McFarlane Halo figures, the sculpt and detail is amazing. The detractor from this figure for me is too much green and not enough subtle paint detail. Not just the skin, but other parts that could have been detailed in paint better.McF Hermes Variant hip-leg detail
The small abdomen plate and the under suit area just above the butt plate have a darker green applied to them. Not quite enough variation though.
McF Hermes Variant helmet detail
Another look at the helmet. I do like that the visor has the hexagons on it.

WeaponsMcF Hermes Variant holding rockets
Now the Rocket Launcher…Wow, a fantastic addition to the McFarlane Halo line. LOTS of detail with paint there. This is more what I was meaning with regards to the figure. Note the pin in the right most pic about.McF Hermes Variant rockets storage
The hole in the back is the store the Rocket Launcher. The pin is inserted there.McF Hermes Variant holding Suppressor
The figure can hold the Boutshot well. Though, I do urge to take your time here. The hands are nearly closed so you have to carefully bend out the fingers to get the gun into the right position. McF Hermes Variant suppressor storage
The hole on the thigh to place the Boutshot via a small pin.

ArticulationMcF Hermes Variant srticulation 2
Another great point to McFarlane Halo figures is the amount of articulation they have. The hips could have been better articulated, but otherwise, you can pose the figure in a lot of positions. Above shows a semi-slide into action, with gun ready.McF Hermes Variant srticulation 1This pose took a little bit to get balanced. Note the foot off the ground is pointed outward some.

Evaluation
Sculpt: Excellent 10 of 10 medals!
Articulation: This figure has articulation that has become pretty standard with McFarlane Halo figures. Hip articulation is limited. Posing, in some natural human poses, can be difficult. (This has remained consistent through the first of the Halo 5 Guardians figures) 8.5 out of 10 medals
Paint Application: The paint here is not as good as many of previous McFarlane Halo figures. Mostly because it’s limited to nearly 3 colors. Green, yellow and black. It makes for a kind of boring color scheme (unless you’re a Green Bay Packers fan, then it’s awesome)  7 of 10 medals.
Accessories: The Rocket Launchers is superb. If the figure had that level of paint deco, I’d have award it more medals. 9 out of 10 medals
Playability: Standard playability. It can be pose in many positions. 10 of 10 medals.
Overall: 44.5 medals out of a total 50 medals.

This figure is pretty standard. The overpowering green and limited paint application elsewhere are a the biggest detractors for me with this figure. Again, the hip articulation could have been better to make it easier to put in more dynamic poses. One of the main issues with variant figures based off of named characters is that this feels like a ‘poor man’s’ character. If you don’t have and can’t find Kelly, then by all means get it. If you really like the color green, then get it. For me, the biggest reason I wanted this was for the Rocket Launcher. That doesn’t quite justify the cost…but then I wouldn’t have had the figure to review for you either. So I bought it.

Do I recommend this product? Mixed and leaning towards no. Since this is one of the last 4 in the final wave of figures from McFarlane Toys, you may find some value in it there. For me, the green is so over powering and lacks proper weathering that it makes the figure stale by comparison to the Kelly figure of the same armor.

If you have any questions about this set that I didn’t cover in the review, please feel free to ask me. Either reply below or e-mail me at [email protected]

Thanks for reading and let me know what you think of the review. If you get this yourself, please let me know your thoughts on it too!

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-Sal

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About Sal

I’ve got tons of experience with Halo gaming and collecting. I feel I have something to offer to the greater Halo fan community. Posts along the way will be about tips and tricks in the games as well as collecting and many more Halo related things. I’ll also repost interesting articles from the official site, Halowaypoint.com, or from fellow Halo fan sites. As I continue this blog, I hope to help gamers who want advice on the games, as well as any collectors with regards to where to find collectibles as well as deals, coupons and so on. You can also follow me on Twitter at: http://twitter.com/#!/HaloFanForLife or Facebook at: http://www.facebook.com/halofanforlife11. Welcome to my blog and I hope you’ll come back again and again. -Sal