Review: #184
Name: Coyote Tango
Brand: Pacific Rim (NECA)
Allegiance: Jaeger
Year of Release: 2014
Size Class: 7" figure (Series 3)
Variations: none as of yet
FIGURE:
In the Pacific Rim fiction, Coyote Tango is a Mark-1 Jaeger (i.e. one of the first generations). Coyote Tango appears very briefly in the film (during Mako's memories) to the point where you won't really be able to remember any details.
It appears more prominently in the other tie-in materials such as the novels and comics. Anyway, as you can probably tell, it's most distinctive feature is the dual cannons resting on his back.
The first question that anyone asks would be, does those cannons swivel? The answer is yes. Each one can be independently swiveled forward to for a shoulder cannon. Neat.
The "head" or pilot cockpit has painted windows, highlighting the fact that this is not a sentient mecha but rather a human controlled one. The head is only a restricted swivel, only able to turn a few degrees left or right.
Continuing the trend of the line, there are some amazing sculpted detailing. I'm particularly impressed by the elbow joints which has tiny molded gears and pieces.
Each cannon it attached to a plate that also swings forward. I love the fact that the swivels are displayed as gears so it feels like machinery inside the Jaeger is moving when you position those guns forward.
While Coyote Tango may seem to not have much paint, it's because they are all subtle. He's got a metallic/rusty airbrushed effect around the whole body and there are a lot of tampographs such as "USAF" on the chest. The torso sculpting is also exquisite.
I find that the arms appears too rounded and chubby to look good. That and the fact that the arm articulation is extremely limited.
Coyote Tango is shorter than Cherno Alpha who was also released in the same wave.
And... just because I like Transformers, here's a quick size comparison with a Deluxe figure. I am surprised at the size and heft of Coyote Tango, it seems good value for money when it comes to the mass of plastic used.
As briefly mentioned above, articulation is probably the most disappointing aspect of this figure. You couldn't tell from just photos but Coyote Tango has extremely limited range for all joints and you can throw dynamic poses out the window.
First off, his arms. He has two "elbow" joints but both of them can only bend a few degrees (above picture shows the maximum bend). He has balljoints wrists and shoulders that can't lift out that much but at least has 360 degrees rotation.
The legs fare better, the knees can bend to nearly 90 degrees but the hips can't move around too much. The ankles are on balljoints. Of note, I had a horrible quality control issue on my figure with the left knee in which the peg joint did not fit properly, slightly disappointing as it called the knee to not be able to move at all (took a short while to fix which required disassembling the figure).
The feet are also angled weirdly, they have tapered soles such that Coyote Tango will not rest completely flat on the table. You need to balance him on the heels otherwise he'll fall forward. An unusual design choice.
There is also a torso joint available for use but since there are supposed to be hulking figures, you don't really pose them in dynamic situations.
A decent figure, you're more likely to be turned away from the fact that he doesn't play a prominent role in the film or the design doesn't appeal to you.
OVERALL:
Considering that the RRP of these guys is something like US$20, Coyote Tango is good value for money. He looks good and displays well. Play value may be a little bit lacking due to restricted articulation but he will fit well with the other Pacific Rim Jaegers.
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Interested in the review for Cherno Alpha? If so, find it by clicking on this link.