Toy Review: The Dark Knight Rises Movie Masters Ra’s Al Ghul Action Figure (Mattel)

Here we have for you today the last and final figure to The Dark Knight Rises Movie Masters series, Mr. Ra’s Al Ghul. This figure was the “Mystery Figure” that Mattel tried to keep under wraps when they first announced this wave, but due to relentless detective work from our toy trading communities sku numbers were found and – VIOLA – his identity lay discovered.

Packaging: This figure comes with your standard The Dark Knight Rises packing with the Batman arm gauntlet look on the side. The back of the box gives you a breakdown of the Bat-Signal, numbering sections that come with each figure. As you can see, the Blake figure shows sections 4, 5, and 6 that come with Catwoman, John Blake, and Ra’s Al Ghul, respectively.

The Figure: Ra’s comes packed with his piece of the Bat-Signal, which in this case is the back of the symbol. This part also is the main power supply of the Bat-Signal. It takes 3 AAA batteries (not included), and you will need a small Phillips head screw driver to remove the battery casing. This figure comes packed with an instruction booklet that details the assembly of the whole Bat-Signal, including the aforementioned battery installation procedure and how to operate the lighting function of the signal. The Bat-Signal has a 30 second internal timer, along with a single LED bulb that projects a very bright symbol (I tried to take a picture of the symbol but my camera was not cooperating).

He has one accessory, a gas mask, as seen in the Batman Begins during the final battle with Batman. He has multiple points of articulation starting with the head (side to side and minor up and down movement). Arms move at the shoulder, bicep, elbow, and wrist. He has ab movements and waist swivel. Legs move at the thigh and knee. The ankles turn, but do not point up or down. Paint application is amazing, no sloppy application at all. The gloves on both hands are painted on with superb detail; the jacket is removable if you wanted to remove it. His head sculpt is a tad weird, but like with the John Blake figure, again when seen in person much better looking than in pictures.

Overall:
This figure was created with the adult collector in mind, but has an age limit of 4 and older. This figure, unlike the John Blake figure, has a small part, so if a child were to play with it, you would need to take the gas mask accessory away to ensure their safety. His role in Batman Begins made him a popular character in the franchise, and when he reprised this role in The Dark Knight Rises people were not surprised that this was the “mystery figure” that Mattel made. Most are collecting this line just to complete the Bat-Signal, and with the detail that the signal has you cannot fault them.

Pricing:
Ra’s is currently being found at Wal-Mart, and online on Amazon.com. The fair price range for Ra’s is anywhere from $16.99-$21.99 at cost depending on the store you find him at. Ebay has auctions asking as much as $45-$60, but actual completed auctions have an average of $39-$59 shipped. The case break down seems to have Ra’s as one per case, so the “rare factor” is still there. Rumor has it Mattel has come out and canceled this line – though the story’s source is from another online outlet, and Mattel has neither confirmed nor denied this. If this is true then this will make the search for these figures all the more frenzied. Again, I would not want to pass up on this figure. Why wait? If you see this at retail grab this great figure and complete that Bat-Signal, even if you snag it to help out your fellow collector!