A 12-inch Batman is great for kids or serious collectors, depending on the toy line. Six inches is a good size if you want a nice amount of detail and articulation and don’t want Bruce Wayne to get lost under the couch. But for my money and purposes, the four-inch Batman of Spinmaster’s Bat-Tech line is the perfect anytime, pocket-sized Caped Crusader.
Spinmaster has been making four-inch Batman figures for a little while now. You see them popping up occasionally on shelves at Target or Walmart before the relatively low-priced figures (between $US10 ($13) and $US15 ($19) generally) are snapped up by compulsive Batman shoppers like myself.
What’s cool about Spinmaster’s four-inch Batman line, aside from it being the perfect size for sticking in your pocket, is that each package includes a trio of “surprise” accessories. These colourful plastic weapons and tools tap into the tiny collectible stuff trend that continues to dominate toy sections everywhere. You get a cool figure, plus some extra bits to fiddle with.
The particular figure I’m playing with here is one you won’t find on store shelves. Spinmaster made up a number of special edition toys for this year’s New York Toy Fair, which did not happen due to covid-19. That left them with a bunch of these special boxes filled with special Batmen.
Inside is a special Batman and an assortment of chunky gold bits that serve as Batman’s armour and weapons. There are several very large batarangs, a grappling hook, a sub-machine gun (probably not), and a suit of armour that makes Batman sort of look like he’s trying and failing to look like DC Comics’ Aztek.
The accessories fit on well enough but can be a little clumsy-looking. The gloves in particular peg into Batman’s fists, so he can’t wield his weapons with the gloves on.
But that’s fine, because Batman needs no shiny gloves to fight crime. He just needs a dark outfit, a small nylon cape, and a Macbook Air to pose on.
Getting up-close and personal with the four-inch Batman you can plainly see scuffs on his tiny plastic body, but that’s part of the charm. He’s battle-worn and beaten up a bit. That makes it easier to put him into dangerous situations.
Do check out the Spinmaster website for its full lineup of Batman stuff, from these four-inch toys to the 12-inch Batmen who will not fit in my pocket no matter how much I try. Do not set Batman on fire, and you will have a Bat-friend for life, or until you lose him behind the couch.
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