Lord of the Rings: Epic Scale BALROG!!

Press Shots from NECA

This day has been a very long time in the making. In 2001, the Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring hit theaters amidst much praise and effort from a valiant team of creators from Peter Jackson to WETA Digital. Scores of fans flocked to theaters to watch Frodo and his fellow hobbits make the perilous journey to Rivendell and beyond. The One Ring had been found and the Dark Lord Sauron desperately wanted it back! The hobbits made it to Rivendell with the help of Strider, where Frodo volunteered himself to carry the One Ring to Mordor in an effort to end the evil in Middle-earth. The newly formed squad of body guards to assist Frodo in his quest departed Rivendell and were forced through the Mines of Moria. There...they encountered something so vile and dark from the abyss that Gandalf did not veen have a chance! The Mighty Balrog of Moria...Durin's Bane...demon of fire and major roadblock to the Fellowship! Fans shouted and hooted at imagery of the mighty Balrog and collectors rejoiced knowing that an Action Figure was sure to come of this mighty demon from the depths!

The team of developers at Toybiz constructed a Balrog to match their line of 6" scale action figures and presented not once, but twice at Toyfair (2002 and 2003). Retailers baulked saying the figure was too large and expensive to move through retail. Fans cringed with disappointment and started online petitions and hundreds of messgae board attempts to get Toybiz to follow-through. In 2004, Toybiz finally...and definitively ENDED any further discussions...their Balrog would NOT be produced. Meanwhile, the folksa t NECA had been working behind the scenes in acquiring the Large Scazle figure license for Lord of the Rings...what was their goal...none other than to produce a MASSIVE Balrog figure...and include lights and sound to boot! Fans rejoiced that NECA was able to convince themselves that the project was worth the undertaking. It was no easy task...they quickly released versions of Aragorn and Legolas in Epic Scale (standing roughly 20-inches tall and including massive amounts of detail and sound! These figures were praised for their likenesses and amount of detail...and had fans foaming at the mouth with sheer anticipation of what the Balrog would look like with the same amount of attention to detail that they paid these two characters. The Balrog was first revealed at SDCC 2004...unpainted and MASSIVE...wowing fans across the globe. But multiple production issues and many setbacks held the mighty Balrog in check for nearly 2 1/2 years. Finally...only a matter of weeks ago, the folks at NECA posted their first ever production photos...and firmly stated that the Balrog was on a boat from China to the US. Many online retailers (pretty much the only way to get this figure) were waiting at the docks in California...ready to ship these massive figures out once they arrived. Well...to make a very long story come to moderate conclusion...the figures arrives...and too much praise and rejoicing...a long time coming, but well worth the wait!

Suggested Retail for the Epic Balrog is $99.99, but many retailers dropped the price to roughly $87 plus shipping for this figure. The folks at NECA made a major decision regarding the Balrog...it would NOT be sold in Reatil stores...and hence the figure would be packaged in a standard brown cardboard box. Not only did this ensure a lower price point for the EPic figure, but it also ensured SAFE travel to it's final destination...collectors' doorsteps.

Description: Epic Scale Balrog
Concept: Epic Scale REVIEW
Characteristics:

11+ lbs

18-24 inches in height (depending on where you measure from)

over 42 inches tip-to-tip wingspan

So...without any more flamboyant talk about the figure...here is our review...

 

Packaging..........

Box and Inner Containers: NECA made the decision early on to pack this massive (and somewhat fragile) figure in a standard brown cardboard box. They knew that retail chains would not be carrying the figure (especially with the demise of Suncoast and Sam Goody...NECA's favorite brick-and-mortar chain). They also wanted to ensure that the figure remained INTACT throughout its journey from the China factoires to the collectors in the US and abroad! Not only is the packaging acceptable from a collectors point of view...it is exceptional. They went the extra mile in ensure a well protected Balrog. The balrog is packed in 4 separate containers. The first container holds the WINGS (just below this container is a sheet with Wing installation instructions...to be discussed a bit later) )and one of the smaller containers holds the Whip, Sword, and Tail. The other SMALL container is full of...nothing...just imported air! The final, and most important contain, holds the mighty beast's torso and head. The cardboard packaging is sufficient and tight and holds the Balrog safely throughout the shipping process. Great decision NECA, ensure safety over displayability!

 

Sculpt Work..........

The Overall Sculpt and Facial Likenesses: The beauty of the Balrog is it's sheer immensity...but the amount of detail included goes beyond anything that NECA and Balrog fans could have hoped for. The lava detail across the skin and torso is very well done and realistic...capturing the veru fiery nature of the Bane of Durin.

The Wings and the 'FLAPS: The detail on the wings is done very nicely...actually creating the presence of leathery-weathered skin very well. They even went so far as to carry the wing sculpt all the way down the torso and into the tail. Herein lies one of the few problems with the Balrog. While the idea is fantastic in continuity of the wings and making them a complete part of the overall figure (rather than a simple 'attachment' accessory), the method they chose to make it happen leaves a little to be desired. The wings of the Balrog have a sort of 'flap' (for lack of a better word) that hangs down once the wings are attached to the main torso. There are slots or grooves cut into the torso where this flap is supposed to seat and attach. Getting the flap into the groove is pretty tough...but getting it to STAY is darn near impossible (hence the 4.5 score for the overall sculpt). For a tingle pose, it looks pretty darn sweet with the flaps in place, but if you handle the Balrog much more than simple posing...the flaps almost always come out and hang by the Balrog's side like 'spare-tire' loose skin! Even despite this and with the flaps hanging out loose, it does not take too much away from the Balrog Presence...your focus remains on the sheer imensity and detail on the head sculpt

The Head: The Balrog is a real winner across the board...but the amount of detail in the HEAD sculpt is simply amazing. The horns are very cool...with loads of ridges and lavaish flames in the cracks. The eyes are white-hot and the nostils have just the right amount of flare! What sells this Head sculpt is the mouth and teeth...friggin sweet. The teeth/fangs on the outside of the mouth are black like colled lava, while the teeth on the inside are painted with hints of orange and red...creating the hot flaming appearance. Even better is the tongue. It is redish orange on the tip and as it goes back to the back of the mouth is gets lighter and lighter almost turning WHITE HOT at the back...a very cool and lasting effect!

The Fiery Mane: This is yet another sweet sculpted feature on the Epic Scale Balrog. The sculptors at NECA did a fantastic job creating the illusion of fire coming out of the head and back of the Balrog. The excruciating amount of detail in the flames is very impressive and must be seen in person and up close to fully appreciate it. The flashing lights actually are a bit more of a distraction than a benefit of this feature...something we will touch on more a bit later. But the transition from lava fringed skin to the flaming head and mane is well done...

The Tail: This is yet another novel achievement from the folks at NECA. Not only did they make the tail very realistic looking AND give it some articulation, but they took it one step further and used the position and articulation of the take to help in balancing a somewhat top heavy figure. While many fans are a bit negative about using the tail for balance of the figure, this was a superb idea by NECA to ensure that the figure had at least one way of ensuring the figure would stand and remain somewhat poseable. The tail is firm yet maleable and helps in ensuring that the Mighty Fiery Beast does not go tumbling down the flight of stairs at Moria!

The Rest (arms and legs): The arms, hands legs and feet have very cool looking sculpts including finger nails and claws. They even spent extra detail in between the finger tendons to add lava-esque detail. The inverted lower leg portions also have loads of detail that bring out the muscle tone and straining tendons of the Balrog. NECA hit the detail on the nose with these portions of the sculpt. sweet sculpted feature on the Epic Scale Balrog. The sculptors at NECA did a fantastic job creating the illusion of fire coming out of the head and back of the Balrog. The excruciating amount of detail in the flames is very impressive and must be seen in person and up close to fully appreciate it. The flashing lights actually are a bit more of a distraction than a benefit of this feature...something we will touch on more a bit later. But the transition from lava fringed skin to the flaming head and mane is well done...

The BAD: We didn't find any drawbacks from the sculpting perspective other than the interesting flaps attached to the wings that connect via the grooves in the torso. These slots are the reason for the 4.5 score for the overall sculpt...something else could have been done to attach these (or eliminate them).

Paint Application......

The Paint Scheme: The paint scheme and paint application for this figure are the main highlight AND the main detractor for this figure. Right out of the box, the figure has a very noticeable LINE across the chest and upper torso. This is supposed to be a transition from the fiery upper torso and head to the cooler much darker lower torso and body. There is effectively no transition...the color goes very quickly from red/orange to brown/black. The LINE created is definitely an eyesore and could have been done much smoother.

Further, the battery cover for the electronic features on the Balrog's back was obviously painted at a different point in the paint process than the torso. The battery cover on this particular Balrog is nearly all DARK brown/black while the areas arouns the torso near the battery compartment are painted to reflect the lava-esque nature of the fiery demon.

But...and this is where the kick-ass nature of the mighty Balrog comes to life. The amount of intricate painting that goes into creating the fiery look and lava-flowing nature of the Balrog is very impressive. From the very fiery head and mane to the sheer heat coming from the mouth to the cool, yet hot nature of the extremeties. The standards that NECA held firm with the painting of the Balrog are very high and seem to be VERY consistent across the board with Balrog the world over. The paint on the head is immmaculate...white hot to cool fiery red...to warm brown and black at the extremes. The color washing effects of the dark areas and espcially the flaming areas is spot-on. The appropriate amount of effects and detail in the color-washing without overdoing the effect is a difficult standard to uphold and NECA ensures it was done to near perfection. There are a few faulty spots (joints, neck, and some on the tail), but in general the colorwash is very well done.

 

Articulation......

Articulation: For such a LARGE scale figure, the articulation (dare I say it), is a bit too much in places and not nearly enough in others. As far as too much...the legs are a bit too articulated from the perspective that the figure is tough to position and keep stable with the current, sometimes loose articulation. Perhaps the gear-like snapping articulation that Toybiz used on some of their large scale figures would have been a bit more appropriate to retain stiffness in some of the articulated joints. Many fans have stated that they would rather have had NO leg articulation in an effort to make the figure more stable. It would be much better, though, to retain the articulation but use a better stiffening mechanism like the gear-like mechanics that Toybiz employs on large scale figures.

Now, with that said, the figure would have been well suited to have a BALL-jointed head to increase poseability of the figure and enable him to turn his head without having to realing the entire figure. Also...articulated HANDS and FINGERS would have been a HUGE plus for the figure. With the varying sizes of the two included accessories (flaming whip and flaming sword), only ONE hand is shaped to hold the accessories.

 

Electronics......

The Light-Up Feature: The light-up feature is decent at best for the Balrog. When the button is pressed (there are two light-up and sound features...one LONG and one SHORT), the lights on the head and mane flash on and off. For the short sequence, the flashing lasts about 5 seconds and for the longer sequence, about 15 seconds. The flashing is somewhat of a distraction and would have better suited as a steady glow (on for the duration of the sound) or a slow flickering light-up like that of the Master Replicas One Ring of Sauron (almost a rotating looking light-up feature...for those who own this piece...you know what I mean). Check out the following AVI's and you can see the lights and heare the sounds:

Short Sequence- From the Front
Long Sequence - From the Front

Short Sequence- From the Side
Long Sequence - From the Side

The Sound Feature: The sounds that go along with the lights have been characterized across the web as a toilet flushing rather thatn a beatly demonic call in the middle of a cave environment. That is a bit on the extreme side of criticism, but the sound is a bit too low and muted. The folks at Toybiz had a number of sound chips added to stands for their Lord of the Rings figures and most of them had great sound. The great call by Gandalf in Moria of "You Shall Not Pass!" is forever embedded in the sound ship of the Balrog Battle Gandalf figure. The folks at NECA could have made the sound LOUDER and much more crisp to say the least. This is the main reason for our 3.5 score for the Electronics...the sound is just not very good.

The Accessories......

Accessories: The only two accessories included with the Balrog are the Flaming Whip and the Flaming Sword, both of which were part of the pivotal scenes in Fellowship of the Rings and The Two Towers. NO other accessories would have been needed except perhaps a piece of the Bridge of Khazad Dum or a stand with Runes of Moria or something cool like that. But...in reality, these accessories are both appropriate and accurate. The detail of the flame sculpting on both is great. The Whip is made from some sort of strong nylon as it is both strong AND flexible. The Sword has some awesome detail and really looks born of flame. The paint scheme on both is well done and represents well the same items seen in the movies.

 

OVERALL..........

This is an incredible figure...bottom line...a sure winner amongst Lord of the Rings collectors. It does have a few drawbacks, but they are very minor when standing back and taking in the overall impressiveness of the Balrog from NECA. The articulation is decent and the paint is great. The sculpt is the best we have scene for a large scale figure of this size and required detail. We are very happy to see the Balrog added to our collection and MAJOR KUDOS to the folks at NECA, especially Randy Falk, for always being forthcoming and keeping us posted on the progress of the Flaming Bane of Durin! We look forward to the next fan favorite beasty...perhaps the Kraken from POTC...a Mumakil from ROTK...or some other EPIC scale figure. You continue to make us proud!

MORE IMAGES:

For More Imagery...Check out The NECA LOTR Archives here at The Green Dragon!!