Pulp Arcana Studios: Raise the Black

Valaverse’s The Black

Valaverse’s Action Force became a favorite figure line I reviewed over the last year. The combination of realistic design, great accessories, and wonderful articulation make this line a blast every time I open one. You can see how much I liked the Dia de los Muertos Sidewinder figure here.

Recently, Valaverse announced a new line, sharing the same world as their Action Force line, but with a different vibe and aesthetic. Dubbed “The Black,” this line takes the classic idea of pirates and reimagines them in a modern military setting. It is a compelling idea, and I was incredibly excited to see how this would be brought to life.

Our first glimpse of this new line is here. Valaverse released this special edition”The Black” figure and had it available at Zolocon. Thanks to my buddy Matthieu Sanchez from the Mythic Legions Cabal on facebook, I was able to get one of these figures in hand.

The Black is a legend, a dark superstition that haunts the waters. Envisioned as a kind of mascot for the line, this is a larger than life icon brought to life. I think this is such a cool concept for a precursor figure for the line, and I can’t wait to take a look at it.

So come with me and brave the dark waters. It’s time to raise The Black.

A PULP ARCANA FIGURE FIELD REPORT Mission Brief:

Artifact Identified:

The Black

Action Force/ The Black

Valaverse

OUT OF THE CRATE:

As a convention exclusive, this Valaverse figure came in a plain brown package with the logo for The Black on the front. It is simple, stark, and effective. I have to admit, it got me excited for what might be inside.

Once out of the initial box, we get the actual figure package. The typical Valaverse packaging has been altered a bit for this new sub-line. The card is black with a blue-grey logo and a moonlight wave design behind the figure.

The figure is fully visible in the bubble, in the old school style that Valaverse favors. I love this. It reminds me of the figures I used to buy when I was a kid, so I am always a little hooked by nostalgia with this kind of packaging. The figure looks amazing in the package.

For someone who is not super into military figures, I have fallen hard for the Valaverse stuff. The combination of realistic styling, great accessories, and great articulation have made these some of my favorite figures both on my desk and in photos. With the addition of the Black as a sub-line, I am even more in.

One thing to mention. I did receive an additional lower torso with the figure, with a note from Valaverse explaining that for a small amount of these figures, the upper torso would come off easily from the lower torso. To rectify this, Valaverse included an additional lower torso for all figures. I think this is a classy move, and while my figure was absolutely fine, it is still very much appreciated.

THE DEVIL’S IN THE DETAILS:

Freed from the packaging, The Black is stunning. When I had the figure set up in my light box, my thirteen year old son came by, took one look at him and said “Whoa. Is that a statue?” There is just such a great visual impact from this figure.

Undeniably, it comes from the insane head sculpt. The combination of menacing skull with the writing tentacle beard is a statement. It immediately establishes this figure as a terror of the seas. The face sculpt evoked Davy Jones from Pirates of the Caribbean, but takes it further and the effect is great.

The body is simple, with a dark green upper body and arms, and black pants with silver accents on the knee pads and boots. The brown leather of the shotgun holster on the left leg and the knife sheath on the right contrasts just enough to break up the simplicity without clashing.

Perhaps the most pleasant surprise for me was the wired cape. I love me a good wired cape, and this one is pretty great. It not only gives a great sense of dynamic movement to the poses for the figure, but it also comes with a wired hood so that you can have a mysterious hooded look to your figure.

However, the hood may not see much action because, like any good pirate, The Black comes with a tri-corn hat that fits perfectly on top of the bare skull. When put all together, hat at a rakish tilt, cape styled like it’s blowing in the wind, the overall impression of the figure is greater than the simplicity of its parts.

Finally, like any good Valaverse figure, this one comes with a decent number of accessories. We get the full complement of hands, including the cupped hands for holding the barrel of a rifle. A sawed-off shotgun fits perfectly in the leg holster, and can break open for reloading poses. Classic styled survival knife fits snugly in its sheath on the thigh, and a broad bladed machete-like sword takes the place of the traditional cutlass for our modern pirate. It slides into a sheath that can be worn on the back, pegging into the backpack hole. There is even a convenient opening in the cape to accommodate this.

MOBILITY AND MANEUVERS:

One of my favorite things about Valaverse figures is their articulation. I find these figures really satisfying to pose. The Black is no exception. The joints move smoothly and have a wide range of motion. Double-jointed elbows, good butterfly joints at the shoulders, and bicep swivel allows flexibility when trying to get the figure into action poses like firing a gun or swinging a sword. I did notice that without a vest or chest rig, the torso articulation gives quite a bit more motion than I usually see with an Action Force figure.

Leg movement is just as good. Double-jointed knees and good ankles make getting the figure to stand a breeze. But the real unsung hero for the lower body is the drop down hips. I didn’t used to think these were a big deal, but the added flexibility they give has proven valuable to me in trying to get certain action poses.

I have to also mention the wired cape does a ton of heavy-lifting when you pose this figure. The cape drapes nicely over the shoulders, but when you go to pose it, the wires give great shape to the cape. Like I mentioned above, this creates a sense of dramatic motion that gives so much presence and character to the figure.

RECOVERED EVIDENCE:

FINAL RECKONING:

While fairly simple, this is a character that is far greater than the sum of its parts. All the individual pieces, from the head, to the hat, to the cape, all come together to create a silhouette that is immediately iconic and stunning. The more I posed this figure for the review, the more I loved what I was seeing. Valaverse has already become one of my favorite figure makers, even with me liking but not loving military aesthetics. With this bold move into modern day pirates, they have got their hooks into me even deeper.