The Good: Generally decent sculpt, Good accessories, Coloring
The Bad: Stance, Lack of articulation, Rank details, Not so big on the rifle. . .
The Basics: Worf, one of the iconic characters from the Star Trek franchise appears as a mediocre figure in this outing by Playmates.
Little known bit of trivia that few who are not fans of the Star Trek franchise know: the character to appear in the most hours of the Star Trek franchise: Worf. The seven years Michael Dorn played Worf on Star Trek: The Next Generation were expanded upon by four solid years on Star Trek: Deep Space Nine as well as the four Star Trek: The Next Generation feature films, giving him the greatest number of episodes under his belt. Perhaps that is why he has one of the richest characters in the modern Star Trek series'. It also explains why there is so much merchandise featuring Worf.
One of the incarnations of Worf that made a little less sense than some of the others was the Warp Factor Series 1 Worf 6-inch figure. The Star Trek: First Contact figures were in generally the same scale (maybe slightly bigger) and the Worf figure in that was one of the better ones. Thus, to make Worf one of the first figures in the new six-inch line seemed odd at the time, though truth be told, the company did fine on this one.
Basics
The Warp Factor Series 1 set of action figures contains a Worf figure, technically as he appeared in the later three seasons of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. His is wearing the black and gray uniform with the red (Command) top peeking out from beneath, indicating he was on Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. Annoyingly, though, Worf's collar is missing a pip. This is Commander Worf and he only has two pips on his collar, when there ought to be three full ones. That type of detail knocks down a collectible figure like this one with fans. Standing six full inches tall, this is a fair likeness of Worf immortalized in plastic. The uniform is well-detailed for the character and the face is a strong likeness of Michael Dorn's iconic character. The figure includes such important details as the bandoleer sash across his chest and there is a spring-loaded function that allows him to make an action move.
The paint job is generally fine. The skin tones are colored well, though they lack any detail or shading to make a truly wonderful representation of Worf. The uniform is appropriately colored and the figure looks good in that respect.
Accessories
Commander Worf comes with four accessories: A bat'leth, a mek'leth, a phaser rifle with spring-loaded missile, and a StarFleet action base. That Worf comes with weapons makes a great deal of sense, even for a figure capturing Worf after he has left the Security division. The Bat'leth is a 3 7/8", tip to tip, piece of gray plastic that looks like a Bat'leth without any coloring variations on the grips, so it ends up being a very standard look for a toy bat'leth. This is in no way a choking hazard as it would take a LOT to get it into a throat.
The Mek'leth is a 1 1/2" plastic knife that perfectly fits Worf's Star Trek: Deep Space Nine persona. Like the bat'leth, it is silver-gray colored without any accents on the handle to indicate where it is supposed to be held (it's pretty obvious, though). The mek'leth clips awkwardly into a weird holder on the back of the figure. The holder is essentially a boxed out tab or plastic loop that juts out of figure's back. It is unsightly, but functional. The Mek'leth and Bat'leth each fit easily into the figure's semi-open grip.
The phaser rifle seems like a good idea, save that it does not actually look like a StarFleet phaser rifle; it looks like a Klingon disruptor rifle and for the life of me I cannot recall ever seeing Worf use one . . . ever. That said, my real problem is it looks bulky in Worf's hands and the spring in mine crapped out after only three firings of the projectile it comes with.
I like the StarFleet action base. As one who displays the figures, this is nice for standing Worf up and giving him stability to pose him with. The base is essentially a 2 5/8" X 3" stand that is shaped like a StarFleet delta with a little peg for Worf's foot to plug into. It works wonderfully and it provides great stability for posing the toy.
Playability
Worf sets a decent standard for a Playmates Star Trek figure in terms of playability. Despite the awkward tab on his back, Worf has a pretty cool function. When one twists him at the waist, the figure locks in. A small tab below the loop releases the catch, allowing him to spin the upper half of his body with an attack mode that is very cool! This is a pretty cool function that enhances the ability to use Worf as an actual toy.
Worf is blessed as well by having fourteen points of articulation: knees, thighs, groin socket, shoulders, biceps, elbows, neck, and waist. The neck articulation is unhampered by the pony tail on the back of Worf's head as that is made of a softer plastic. The figure stands fairly easily and with the base, it is easy to put Worf into various poses that require a lot of articulation.
Moreover, for use with actual play, Worf has all sorts of movement potential making him one of the more realistic Star Trek action figures to play with (for those who actually play with these toys!). Unlike most of the Warp Factor Series 2 6" figures, the Warp Factor Series 1 6" Worf is designed as an action figure, ready to be posed and not played with!
Collectibility
Playmates mass produced the Warp Factor Series 1 figures, including the Worf. None of them appear to be more or less common than the others. To encourage collectors, every figure in this line has an individual number stamped on bottom of the toy's foot. It is hard to consider something with at least 20,000 pieces a limited edition (my Worf's # is 019946), but Playmates made fans believe by putting the number stamps on each figure.
The problem from a collector's point of view is simple: there were no other 6" figures at the time these figures were released and there have been very few since, none from Playmates, if memory serves. As a result, the five figures in this line (along with the five from the subsequent line) more or less stand alone. This makes them generally less collectible because people tend to want to be able to put all of their figures together and these stand out like sore thumbs.
Overview
It is easy to complain about this sculpt only when looking at the back with the button and the tab. Otherwise, this is a pretty wonderful Worf - possibly the best until the newest line from Diamond Direct. Given that these are overproduced and might never appreciate significantly in value, these make for better display pieces or actual toys as opposed to collectibles.
This figure utilizes captures Worf as he appeared in Star Trek: First Contact, reviewed here!
For other Worf figures, be sure to check out my reviews of:
Worf & Gowron Two-Pack from Diamond Select
Star Trek: Nemesis Worf
Commander Worf from Playmates
Worf In StarFleet Rescue Outfit from “Birthright, Parts 1 & 2”
Lt. Worf
Worf from Galoob
5/10
For other tow reviews, be sure to visit my Toy Review Index Page for an organized listing!
© 2012, 2008 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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