Toy Review: Gargoyles Demona and Bronx Figures by NECA

After kicking the Gargoyles line off with a double-dip on the first sculpt to create Goliath and his duplicate Thailog, NECA‘s gone all-in with all-new sculpts for the next two, Demona and Bronx. Demona utilizes a new female body, while Bronx is essentially a stylized take on Ghostbusters‘ Terror Dogs. Because Bronx features a significantly smaller body, he comes packed with a large bonus: Goliath’s wings in folded form. It’s not quite on the build-a-figure level, but it does serve as incentive to collect more than one figure.

In order to make the original wings spread out, NECA made them light and hard. The folded ones, on the other hand, feel heavy and rubbery, as one might expect gargoyle wings to feel. It’s surprising how easily the original wings come out; the new ones also have pegs to go in those wholes, but Goliath’s head must be popped off first, to make room for the hair.

While the old wings-out display never fails to impress, the cape look makes him appear more sinister. And as a bonus, takes up far less shelf space. Again, due to the hair, he does end up looking down.

Notice the wings hang lower than his actual height, but being soft, the ends trail along the ground.

Bronx, meanwhile, packs in a ton of articulation, including a new style of ball-within-ball hip joints. But don’t try standing him on his hind legs. Despite a double ball-jointed neck, he can’t really look down like that.

Bronx includes two heads. One with a hinged jaw, and one with mouth all the way open. The latter works best for his meat snack.

Though his face may look more cartoony than the others, his body’s musculature is the highlight. If this were a livestock animal, customers might worry it had been shot with too much growth hormone.

The waist also includes a hidden skin-over-frame joint. It won’t hold poses, but while playing you can bend it side to side. The tail’s on a ball joint, too — anything you ought to be able to move on Bronx, you can.

RELATED: Toy Review: Gargoyles’ Evil Clone Thailog, by NECA

Demona, meanwhile, has a gorgeously sculpted athletic female physique. Dudes who like feet may not enjoy those big gargoyle toes, but collectors who like their figures to stand up will. Nice cloth texture detail on the costume too. Unlike Goliath, her wings have little hands on them.

Rather than swappable heads, Demona features swappable faces. Remove completely and you get a fetaureless horror straight out of The Conjuring. The Crooked Woman, maybe?

Demonic or no, she does seem to utilize digital face printing.

The dual ball neck joint can create a bit of a bobble-head look, though. It’s all how you pose it. Both heads sport metal earrings.

Demona includes multiple hands, but the ones that hold her weapons will see the most use. They’re nicely detailed and hold easily. The only drawback is that the bazooka doesn’t really sit on her shoulder and hold in her hand at the same time. Or maybe it can and requires a better poser than I. But it doesn’t come naturally.

Her articulation mostly mirrors Goliath’s except that her knees do the double hinge rather than disc-and-pin ball. This allows for better crouches.

Yes, that is a metal ring on her right ankle. And the book, the Grimorum Arcanorum, comes double-hinged from the spine.

RELATED: Toy Review: The Wide-Winged Goliath Kicks Off NECA’s Gargoyles

The only thing that would really improve her sculpt is if NECA could crack pinless joints the way Hasbro has. For now, she beats most competitive figures. NECAs Ninja Turtles animated figures may be their flagship line now, and for fans who want toys that exactly resemble cartoons, they’re amazing. But for those who remember the days of toys looking better than their animated counterparts, it’s Gargoyles all the way. This line is so strong that one could easily imagine the toys coming first, and the cartoon getting made afterwards as a means to promote them.

Both Demona and Bronx can be had at Entertainment Earth for $37.99. (Superhero Hype is an affiliate partner with Entertainment Earth, and may earn fees based on purchases made through site links.) Also note that Demona’s folded wings are set to show up later with another figure.

Take a look through the gallery below for more images.

Recommended Reading: The Disney Afternoon: The Making of a Television Renaissance

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