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McFarlane and his toys are almost like the Dallas Cowboys, the Celtics, pro-wrestling; either you think the stuff is great, or you can't stand the sight of it and have sworn to fight it's very existence at risk to you own life and limb. ... ok, maybe that last part only applies to people who can't stand the Dallas Cowboys. Anyway, rather then just bang-out another list of pros, let's have some fun and look on both sides of the fence. Think of it as Toyfare meets Crossfire, with less yelling.
1. Why they rock; SCULPT. Before the Spawn toys hit the market, everyone's idea of detail was having actual facial features on a figure. Musculature, who needs it? Rivets and panel lines, why bother? IT'S JUST A TOY. Fortunately, McFarlane thought otherwise, and the toy line has been about incredible amounts of detail in the sculpt. The REALLY big plus; OTHER companies finally caught on. The Power of the Force figures look much more realistic, and notice the plethora of figures from smaller companies that are hitting your comic shop, with great sculpting and over-all work.
2.'Why they suck; inconsistent articulation. Unfortunately, the articulation on these pieces can be anywhere from stunning to down right carp. For instance, Manga Samurai Spawn has outstanding articulation, among other features. On the other hand, the 'X-Files' line, although had AWESOME sculpting, had HORRIBLE ARTICULATION. Ah, could we at least bend the legs A LITTLE. Basically, Scully and Mulder could move their shoulders, their waists, and Mulder's neck. No legs, no knees, nada below the belt. Come on, I know you want something to look like art on your desk, but this thing is also supposed to be a TOY.
3.Why they rock; Lots of cool characters and incarnations. Samurai Spawn, Dead Spawn, Manga Spawn. This is just within ONE action-figure series. Ok, so they're all Spawn, but they are most certainly NOT the same figure. You look at different Batman figures from The Animated series, ok, he's got a net on one, a rocket on the other. Basically, same mold, just more junk on it. Each Spawn figure is a beautiful sculpt, with ALL different accesories, articuation, the works.
4. Why they suck; not the most durable things in the world. Yeah, you can pose them any which way, just don't beat them around too much. Since the figures were designed for possability more then anything else, they tend to be a bit on the flimsy side. Take a Star Wars figure, and you can probably through the dang thing in the washer and have it some out fine. Spawn figures, though, can be kinda twitchy. Pull a joint too hard, and you hear the little 'snap' ALL collectors cringe over.