Review: DCUC 15 Sinestro Corps Batman and OMAC

So the spectacular K-mart DCUC sale has come and gone and that coupon is no longer valid. Hopefully some of you guys out there who were interested were able to at least snag a Martian Manhunter or Jack Knight. Today I’m going to look at the misfits of wave 15, the ones that you either already knew you wanted or didn’t when the wave was announced. That’s right, Sinestro Corps Batman and OMAC

It's not a foreground thing: OMAC's head is really that big

Sculpt/Design:

Both of these guys make use of Mattel’s beloved buck system: SC Batman is just the normal Batman figure with new forearms, right hand, and lower torso (or in the words of the common folk, crotch). At least I think it's new; the only 'new' quality about it is the belt and that could be a reuse from other Sinestro Corps members. Plus, as I'm sure you've noticed, there's a newly sculpted head. What a head too, as Batman’s obviously not relying on his yellow ring to frighten people; he’s banking on his pissed off expression. 

Do you smell that smell? Batman's smelled that smell and he's obviously not happy because it's the stench of crime

OMAC on the other hand has a fairly normal expression. He’s the Sinestro body with new boots, gauntlets, belt as well as a new head. With that giant Mohawk you’re not going to be mistaking Buddy Blank here for any other character, especially since it’s weirdly oversized. I’m not sure if that was intentional or not; perhaps Brother Eye increased his cerebral capacity requiring a cephalic upgrade as well.

OMAC's a little shorter then Plas but that huge noggin' and Mohawk make up for it

There’s not a ton to say here; they both look like they should and the scale seems appropriate. OMAC may be a little on the small side since he uses the still slightly shrunk Sinestro body but his Mohawk makes up for it. There don’t seem to be any details missed on the two; some may have wanted a raised ‘Eye’ emblem on Buddy but I don’t know if that’s accurate or not.

This is the only way I could get Batman to stand for this picture

Paint/Quality Control:

The paintwork on these guys had to be good because there’s not a lot of spaces Mattel could hide a screw-up. The pointy Sinestro Corps starburst is pretty solid on Batman here though you may want to look through a few before picking one out; not all of them were great but none were grotesque either. Don’t worry, if these have hit your area you’ll have tons to pick from as I’m pretty sure he’s half of every case; my K-mart had at least 20. Mine was among the better I’ve seen but the center of the Sinestro starburst shifts a little as it runs down the points of articulation. OMAC hasn’t fared as well but that could be because I’ve only seen 2 of him in person. The one I got was mostly fine but the other had orange paint flakes around his emblem and some slop on his gauntlets.

One area these two definitely falter is in quality control; there aren’t any outrageous problems but Batman has a slightly bent leg due to his positioning in the package. This was fixed by boiling it but I hate having to do things like this. I’ve still got a Black Adam with a wonky partially rotted left knee from where the clear bands holding him in his blister ate away at the joint. Besides that, as I’m sure some of you have heard by this point, the Corps symbol on his chest and arm band point in different directions.

Not the clearest picture but I try.

That’s right, the armband is upside down. We should be glad that it wasn’t the chest symbol but I still think this earns a hearty Gawd DAMMIT Mattel from me. While you could say this is a paint issue I think the fact that there was a reference for the symbol’s orientation less than 3 inches away on Batman’s chest is what puts it here.

GAWDDAMMIT MATTEL!!

Batman’s not alone in his issues: OMAC came out of his blister completely bowlegged. His feet wouldn’t sit flat on the ground and after boiling, they’re still having a little trouble staying level. He also had a stuck wrist joint though I was able to work it in after freezing. Buddy’s right elbow was warped a little as well which continues a strange trend in this wave. Also, his right wrist is bizarrely loose but not enough to spin around on its own. Those problems together give him something of a bum right arm.

OMAC's strangely short looking lower legs

Articulation:

Both these guys have:

-Ball-jointed necks and shoulders

-Cut elbows, knees and ankles

-Swivel waists, biceps, wrists and thighs

-Ab crunch

That’s the standard for DCUC but it should be noted that OMAC has a great neck joint. Lately, that joint has had a pretty limited range of movement though Mattel has said they’re looking into it. Batman’s neck retains the small range so it’s hard to say how successful they’ve been in that effort. All the joints are tight, excusing Buddy’s right arm. That’s a real mercy on these two as with loose ankles they wouldn’t have the chance of a ‘Heroic Age’ comic launch to ever stand properly.

Accessories:

We get one real accessory this time, not including the BAF Validus part and the goofy little pin-back buttons. SC Batman has got a Batarang construct which attaches to his right fist so that it appears to be flying out of his ring. Its cast in a weird off-yellow color though as opposed to the bright neon of other constructs like this. Kind of like those are lemonade and the Batarang’s a frozen lemon bar. It does clip on easily and holds well so it’s got that much going for it. Personally, I don’t think I’ll ever use it but it’s good that they thought of it.

Yeah that's right. It's the color of a frozen Lemon Bar and NOTHING else

Rather than putting them below this time, I’ll mention that Bruce has got the Validus torso and OMAC one of the arms.

Overall:

These are two of the weaker figures in the wave when standing next to the truly excellent Martian Manhunter and Raven. OMAC’s wonky arm and Batman’s symbol goof-up put them in time-out but the bent legs are what sends them home for the day. I wasn’t particularly excited about either of these guys as character choices since OMAC has no home other then “pseudo-obscure Kirby characters” and Batman is apparently from a comic that’s not been published yet. Still, they both stand out visually though Bruce may end up blending into the Sinestro Corps over time. I wasn’t planning on getting either of them originally, hoping to find people who didn’t want their Validus parts, but I can’t say I regret getting either of them. OMAC’s growing on me especially though both of them kind of have that lost puppy quality because of their bent legs. I think if not for that, OMAC fans really couldn’t have asked for more. I have to give a little value to SC Batman for being a more interesting variant then the 29^th mathematical permutation of Capsule/Pouch, Black/Blue, Big Bat/Small Bat and Oval/No Oval. If you have any interest in these guys pick them up; just be very careful about looking at their knees inside of the blister card.

SC Batman: **1/2

OMAC:  **1/2

You got something to say about my ears?