After being totally blown away by the Chris Redfield figure, I was definitely looking towards reviewing the remaining Resident Evil 5 Series One figures. This time, it's Sheva Alomar. Interestingly, what NECA got right with Chris Redfield, they fucked up with Sheva Alomar and vice versa. Flavor Text:
"The world has learned the meaning of terror. A decade after the events of Raccoon City, the evil Umbrella Corporation has been destroyed but the effects of its horrific creations still linger. Gripped in fear of another biological incident, world governments formed the Bioterrorism Security Assessment Alliance, determined to stem the spread of biological attacks. Now, Agent Chris Redfield has been sent to Africa to investigate reports of a new more dangerous outbreak. Joined by his partner, Sheva Alomar, both must work together to discover what's really happening and stop whoever is continuing Umbrella's evil legacy."
"Sheva Alomar lost her parents in an accident at an Umbrella factory when she was very young. Later she discovered that her parents' deaths were not merely an accident but the result of fatal biological experiments. Sheva moved to the US and joined B.S.A.A. She was promoted to agent after 8 months of training for practical combat. Due to the disappearance of many of her colleagues she ventures into the deepest regions of Africa to uncover the mystery around Umbrella and the most recent outbreaks."
"Name: Sheva Alomar
Age: 23
Height: 165 cm
Weight: 52 kg
Sex: Female
Org.: B.S.A.A.
West Africa Division"
"Confidential File - 01"
The Good:
- Sheva has no problem gripping her handgun or knife. If you examine those accessories carefully, you'll notice that the handle part of both the handgun and knife is actually thicker than normal (it also helps that Sheva's hands are sculpted in a "tighter" formation).
- Sheva's holster actually works! You can close it with her handgun tucked inside (unlike Chris Redfield's).
The Bad:
- Sloppy paint application and stray marks. There are strange black marks all over her body (joints, arms, neck, face, etc). The paint application on Sheva's lips make her look like she's tight-lipped about something (not very attractive).
- Sheva's blank expression. She's spacing out, staring off into space (kind of like what I do at work, don't tell my boss!). At least Chris has a serious expression.
- Lack of accessories (Sheva only comes with a knife, sniper rifle, and a pistol). For a figure that is touted as "game-accurate," it's certainly missing a lot of weapons.
- Lack of articulation (unlike the Chris Redfield figure). The figure is touted to have 20 points of articulation, but the joints used just perplex the hell out of me. Instead of duplicating the "ab-crunch" joint (found in Chris Redfield), Sheva gets a quasi-ball-jointed waist (and I really mean "quasi"). The "ab-crunch" joint could've gone right under Sheva's breasts. Also what is up with the swivel elbows? Not only does it limit Sheva's posing capability, but it makes her look very awkward. Instead, Sheva's arms should be sculpted slightly larger and insert ball-joints (again, as found in the Chris Redfield figure).
- I wish Sheva's front part of her hair would be a separate "rubberized" plastic (similar to Leon Kennedy's hair in Resident Evil 4 Series One).
- The straps that are sculpted onto Sheva's back, look particularly nasty. It would've been a better idea to have "rubberized" plastic (like Jill Valentine's shoulder pads from Resident Evil 10th Anniversary Series One) straps glued on.
- I really hoped that Sheva's earpiece would be a separate piece of "rubberized" plastic rather than having it permanently sculpted onto her face. (I understand why it was done like that, but a collector can hope).
- FYI, Sheva's bust is bigger than what was sculpted. Just pointing that out.
The Ugly:
- NECA still has trouble accurately sculpting female faces. There is no resemblance of Sheva in her facial sculpt whatsoever. You know, after sculpting a bunch of female figures, you'd think NECA would get it right, but no.
- The presence of the cameltoe is very disturbing and quite an unsightly piece of plastic that no collector should ever see again.
- Just note, when you open both of Sheva's legs (aka, when she does a split), you'll notice that the letter "R" and the letter "L" are carved right inside the leg area. This is so the factory workers know which leg goes where. For collectors like me, it just looks unprofessional and just plain ugly. Chris Redfield didn't have it, so why does Sheva Alomar?
I purchased the entire RE 5 Series One online via eBay for a total of $52.99. I recommend searching through eBay for better deals (but recently noticed that eBay sellers are trying hard to jack people). Go check out cornerstorecomics.com/amazingtoyz.com (both links bring you to the same website). I think they have the best deal out there so far, and from my experience with them, they ship on time and package your items in a secure manner. Also, check out bigbadtoystore.com if you want to purchase the entire set. They're pretty good about packaging and sending out item in a timely manner, but they seem to get their items later than other electronic retailers.
NOTE: I DO NOT REPRESENT EITHER CORNERSTORECOMICS/AMAZINGTOYZ OR BIGBADTOYSTORE. I HAVE NOT BEEN PAID TO MENTION THEIR NAMES. I AM ONLY RECOMMENDING THEIR SERVICES BASED UPON MY PAST EXPERIENCES WITH THEM.
Overall, Sheva Alomar is a disappointment. I know most (okay, ALL) of my suggestions require more materials and involve higher costs, but if a collectibles company wants to produce authentic (or "game-accurate") figures, then it's best to go all in. Sure, the price would be shifted onto consumers, but that's already a given. Produce high-quality figures, charge higher prices. I grow tired of shelling out money for half-assed figures. I really do. After reviewing the Chris Redfield figure, I expect the same if not even better level of detail for the remaining figures of Resident Evil 5 Series One. I don't recommend getting Sheva, unless you're a completionist.
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