Doctor Who
Exclusive Action Figures: Classic Pyramids Of Mars 4th Doctor

Great looking figure and something to go with the Pyramids of Mars Mummy released earlier. Only problem is this being yet again another UK exclusive.. No one seems to care about those overseas that have no Who figures released or available.. Good to see another Tom figure though..

What with the Classic series becoming more prevalent with every year the Modern series is on the air, fans are clamoring for any new version of their favorite past Doctor. So far that means two distinct versions of each of the Classic series incarnations, but is this Tom Baker 4th Doctor different enough to pay $37.00 USD to get?

The upsides to this figure are that the sculpt is impeccable as always with this line. Every new piece looks wonderful from the new coat, to the shirt and tie. They even resculpted the hat to match the season 13 hat. The paint is also very well applied. The plaid vest is gorgeous and I have yet to find a picture of this figure out of package with the paints applied sloppily. Colors are accurate and they even changed the stripe pattern on the scarf to match the new prop scarf used in that season...however...

The downside is also one of the pluses...the paint. It seems to have some problems. Remember that scarf I mentioned? Yes well they neglected to paint the underside. I find this lack of detail to be a bit of a problem considering they painted it in on the original 4th Doctor figure they released. I am assuming they wanted to save some money. Next is the fact that they painted on a set of VERY prominent eyebrows on him. Problem with this is that Tom doesn't have any eyebrows really. No, I mean it, he doesn't have any prominent eyebrows at all. If you look at just about any picture of Tom Baker you'll see that you can barely see any eyebrows on him at all when his hair isn't in the way. So why they did such a thing on this figure when they were closer on the last figure is anybody's guess. Lastly, yes, the console piece is warped. Visibly.

The good news folks is that since the base model for this figure is the same as the last, the head is EASILY interchangeable with the heads from the older figure. The back side of the scarf, well, how many times do you look behind the scarf anyway? Besides the scarf from the first figure fits on this new one as well. The console piece is also easily fixed with the judicious application of a hot hair dryer or boiling water to soften the plastic and cold water to set it into the correct shape.

Problem is this; IS this figure THAT different from the older figure that it warrants you buying it? The costume is only one season removed from the costume of the season 12 appearance figure. It's not like it's the season 18 all burgundy costume, or even the season 17 City of Death type costume which had no vest and no tie and Tom wore his scarf loosely around his shoulders as opposed to around his neck.

If you're a 4th Doctor fan, or if you are a completest then this may be right up your ally since the issues can be worked around easily enough, however if you are a more casual fan and just want a figure of each Doctor then this may not be good enough or different enough to buy and certainly not for the price. Speaking as a fan and a completest myself though I find this figure to be lacking in too many areas to recommend this figure too highly even to other completests and 4th Doctor fans. You may want to hold out for some later season appearance costumes to be made into a figure because you just might not see enough a difference once you open it to pay nearly twice the price for the one you bought in stores or on eBay. Only way I CAN recommend this figure is if you missed the original release and still want a Tom Baker 4th Doctor. Of course, you'll still be paying nearly the same price to get this one than you would to get the original version after market off eBay.

Just received this figure in the US.
Excellent figure - very happy!! Bring on the other variants!!