Iconiq Studios Muhammad Ali (with new TBL body) updated with Part II

Part I (for Part II see here)

With the way things are going with me, if I didn't try to shoot and write this up now, it was not going to happen for ages, so here it is, short and sweet.
 
I care little about boxing, but even I can't fail to recognize the name Muhammad Ali (or even the original Cassius Clay) when I come across it. Iconiq Studios just released a new set based on the champion, as well as a companion bust (more on that later). It featured, like some of Iconiq's other releases, a specially designed TBLeague seamless body, which is pretty much a must for this type of sports figure. So, between the character being iconic (all puns intended) and this new body (which, like Ryu's, seems like it might not be released as a base body by TBLeague), I had to get one.
 
Packaging
 
Pretty much what one might expect. A nice sturdy shoebox-type container, with stylized/posterized imagery of the subject, and glossy design and lettering for the product name. Inside is a credit card for the designers, a black foam lid, and then two black foam treys containing the action figure and its accessories. Everything is safe and collector-friendly, although the transparent plastic baggie protection for the gloves is a little difficult to remove (it is taped shut quite tightly).
 

 
Accessories
 
 
The figure comes ready to fight, in its Everlast shorts and red boxing gloves. Additional accessories include alternate boots in the bent toes position, two pairs of alternate wrapped hands (relaxed and fists), a round base and gooseneck stand (with a horizontal clamp, obscured in the photo), the robe, and an instruction leaflet. It is a nice selection but not exactly loaded. Looking at images from Muhammad Ali's boxing days, it would have been nice to get bare hands and feet and maybe a t-shirt.
 

 
Sculpting
 
Iconiq did a beautiful job, but also pulled a nasty trick. The sculpting itself is detailed, sharp, and flawless, and extends not only to the head but also to the boxing gloves and wrapped training hands, as well as the tall boxing boots. Everything is sharp enough to be realistic, even if it is not meant to be molded plastic. However, the regular set includes only a very expressive yelling head, which, while very well done, is of course not ideal for most of us. If you want a neutral expression, you have to buy an additional "bust" released in parallel by Iconiq (it is a rather nice head), or to buy the combo pack of the figure and "bust." And that would bring you all too close (or above, depending on where you are purchasing) that unenviable $300 line. I only bought the additional "bust"/head later, and will update this posting with some extra images once it arrives (see here).
 

 
Below I have replaced the Iconiq head with an old neutral expression head from Storm Collectibles' Muhammad Ali: The Greatest. It is not a perfect match, but close enough, and not too different from Iconiq's separate "bust" head.
 

 
The specially-designed TBLeague seamless body appears to be the right shape and height, standing almost 32 cm tall (in the boxing boots), which is about right for Muhammad Ali's 190.5 cm (which translates to 31.75 cm in sixth scale, if barefoot).
 
Paint
 
The paint job is somewhat limited, but generally excellent. I did not notice any bleed or sloppiness, the eyes are glossy, the head matches the body's skin tone perfectly, and the molded plastic stitching and other details on the boxing gloves and boots are colored with precision. There seems to be a faint wash on the wrapped hands and boots, which helps make them appear realistic. The open mouth, with teeth, mouthguard, and tongue, is painted very nicely and precisely, something helped by it being an separate piece inserted after painting (as apparent when looking at the inside of the head).
 

 
Articulation
 
As with most such TBLeague seamless bodies, the articulation is excellent. There isn't much in the product's design that would limit this, except the tall boxing boots and the gloved and wrapped hands. Given that these are all molded plastic, they limit virtually all ankle and most wrist articulation. This is partly addressed by the inclusion of alternate boots sculpted in a bent-toe position, but that goes only so far, as these can easily rotate around the foot peg's axis under the weight of the figure. In addition to the image above, see below.
 

 
Outfit
 
The soft goods part of the outfit is limited to three items: the Everlast shorts, the white robe with the name Muhammad Ali on its back, and the socks. They are all done very well and nicely scaled, although the shorts tend to balloon a bit too much for my liking. The socks are actually cut open below the ankle, and would only make sense when the figure is wearing footwear.
 

 
Fun Factor
 
I doubt we already have a comparable figure for someone Muhammad Ali actually fought in the ring, but there have been other boxing figures, including ones using seamless TBLeague bodies, like the recent Star Ace Apollo Creed (from Rocky IV) and Star Ace Clubber Lang (from Rocky III). I don't own either set, but have partly reconstituted them from parted-out parts. Somewhere I have more boxing gloves, but haven't had a chance to find them. And yes, Muhammad Ali's boxing boots are huge by comparison with Star Ace's.
 




 
Value
 
While this is not an over-loaded set (see discussion of accessories above), it is not necessarily under-loaded either. The price varies depending on the retailer, but the simple set, reviewed here, is in the neighborhood of $200-210 USD (and of course tends to be more on the secondary market). In principle this is not little for a fairly simple set like this, but current prices make it seem more reasonable. The star appeal and quality also play into it, as does the specially designed TBLeague seamless body. But it really ought to have included the neutral head, which they craftily reserved for the separate "bust" release. That would cost you another $85 USD (although you might get lucky and catch a discount bringing it down by some 20 bucks or so). Or you could go for the combo version, which retails at about $280. Naturally, shipping and local taxes would make quite a difference, and factor into your decision. As usual, the true value of a product depends on your own attachment to or use for it.
 

 
Overall
 
While I have no special attachment to boxing or to the subject, I'm glad I did not pass this up. It adds some variety to my collection and actually has some other figures to play with. Without being extravagant, it is a nice set. It is also a new and nicely done seamless TBLeague body, that might not be available otherwise. I do wish they would make it available as a base body and release it in both this skin tone and "suntan," but won't hold my breath.
 

 
Where to Buy?
 
I got mine at Big Bad Toy Store, mostly because it had it in stock and offers $4 flatrate shipping within the US. Here are some links:
 
Big Bad Toy Store (all three options) $68-280
 
Monkey Depot (regular set) $199
 
Timewalker Toys (regular set) $200 (the additional bust is waitlisted)
 
Alter Ego Comics (regular set) $199
 
I hope this has been useful. As always, what do you think?

Part I (for Part II see here)
 
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#iconiq #muhammadali #boxing #male #modern #everlast

As you've reasonably pointed out, including this head as the only one with a base release feels like a dirty trick. A head with open mouth and side-glancing eyes is more suited to be an alt one, not the main head.

Great review though, and the shot of Apollo punching him in the jaw looks quite lively

Thanks for the review, Gub! I thought long and hard about this one but ultimately decided against it. That said, I’m glad to see that Iconiq is continuing to put out high quality stuff. I’d be inclined to pick this up after the fact now if they announced another famous boxer, like Forman or Frazier (for example). Then I would be inclined to collect them.

Thanks for the review! The body looks quite good, wish one could get it separately ..,

Visisonor wrote:As you've reasonably pointed out, including this head as the only one with a base release feels like a dirty trick. A head with open mouth and side-glancing eyes is more suited to be an alt one, not the main head.

Great review though, and the shot of Apollo punching him in the jaw looks quite lively

Glad you agree and that you liked my attempts at goofiness.

MeMyself&I wrote:Thanks for the review, Gub! I thought long and hard about this one but ultimately decided against it. That said, I’m glad to see that Iconiq is continuing to put out high quality stuff. I’d be inclined to pick this up after the fact now if they announced another famous boxer, like Forman or Frazier (for example). Then I would be inclined to collect them.

You are very welcome, and thank you for commenting. I agree with what you say -- and if this body were available outside the set, I would have been even more likely to pick it up (in multiples). Iconiq's stuff is good, but it could offer a bit more for the price. Forman actually boxed against Ali so would make sense. Maybe Frazier did too -- I forget. I don't know that Iconiq has plans for a very extensive or consistent boxing or sports line.

skywalkersaga wrote:Thanks for the review! The body looks quite good, wish one could get it separately ..,

You are very welcome, thanks for commenting. And amen to that, I couldn't agree more.

Part II: Bust and Alternate Head

As promised, even if there hasn't been much feedback for this review, I am updating with the newly-received alternate head and some more comparisons.

Iconiq Studios produced, in addition to the action figure set, a separate sixth-scale display bust with a more neutral head sculpt. I found a deal (it was discounted) and went for it, as I prefer more neutral head sculpts, and it looked very finely done. I was not disappointed, although there are some things that might have been better: the overall shape of the head is perhaps a little too round by comparison with the yelling head sculpt of the action figure set; the expression really is very neutral and perhaps a little pensive. But anyway, here it is with the box it comes with (as fine a box as any for a sixth scale collectible) and on the bust, which is nicely painted, sculpted and textured with more detail than the TBLeague body that comes with the action figure set, for obvious reasons:



The bust with the head stands about 15.5 cm tall.

Here is the alternate neutral head sculpt swapped for the angry head on the action figure itself:



I managed to get a second body and pair of gloves, so mixing and matching the two pairs of boxing boots, here is a comparison between the two heads on the same bodies:




Here is a comparison between Iconiq's neutral head (right) and Storm Collectibles' slightly more orange version (left) from a few years back:



Sibling rivalry?



And the possible reason for it:



Hope you found it useful. As always, what do you think?

A very compelling reason for the rivalry

The neutral head looks better to me than the screaming one. However, I agree that the expression is not entirely neutral - the Storm head in matching skintone would be even better.

I really like that body, wish I could get one.,.

Visisonor wrote:A very compelling reason for the rivalry

The neutral head looks better to me than the screaming one. However, I agree that the expression is not entirely neutral - the Storm head in matching skintone would be even better.

She arrived yesterday, at the same time as the neutral head and bust, and caused problems immediately!

Yes, the Storm Collectible head in a better skin tone would be very suitable -- and it is not too far off as it is. I do still like the the new neutral head by Iconiq.

skywalkersaga wrote:I really like that body, wish I could get one.,.

Me too. They should release it in both suntan and this color, like they did with M36 (the basketball body). Unfortunately, judging by the Ryu body they made for Iconiq in the past (which is being used for another Iconiq set), TBLeague is perhaps unlikely to sell this as a base body (perhaps it is an Iconiq exclusive). Which is a shame, because they haven't done any male bodies in forever.
I don't know what shops in Europe part out sets, but I got the loose one from a parted-out set here in the US. Or perhaps ordering directly from China is still a viable option for you, so search eBay?

The likeness of the sculpt(s) is really top notch!

BAMComix wrote:The likeness of the sculpt(s) is really top notch!

I thought so too. Thanks for stopping by, Dal.

Wow, thank you for the review! This figure wasn't even on my radar, but that body (and entire release) is fantastic! If only TBL were to release these bodies separately...

Nice figures. The bodies are nice, but they seem a bit small for Ali, who was a Heavy Weight, not a Middle Weight, and his muscles weren’t nearly as defined. Overall, there’s only so much that can be done outside of making a one-off body for these types of figures, which logistically isn’t financially feasible in most cases.

Diana wrote:Wow, thank you for the review! This figure wasn't even on my radar, but that body (and entire release) is fantastic! If only TBL were to release these bodies separately...

Thank you, Diana, I'm glad that you liked it. The subject matter is not really a big priority for me, but having a boxer (famous or otherwise) is a nice addition -- it's the first one I have as an actual set. Like you, the body was my main priority, and I wasn't sure I would be able to get one or more parted out (turned out that was possible, although they do sell out fast).

Stryker2012 wrote:Nice figures. The bodies are nice, but they seem a bit small for Ali, who was a Heavy Weight, not a Middle Weight, and his muscles weren’t nearly as defined. Overall, there’s only so much that can be done outside of making a one-off body for these types of figures, which logistically isn’t financially feasible in most cases.

Thank you, Mark, I'm glad you liked them. I did a little bit of research before posing and photographing, but I know you have a better eye for anatomical detail and likeness than I do. I would think all the more reason to release this body as a base body too. But I doubt they would, considering the one they did for Iconiq's Ryu.

So that's the body you turned into Thor! Very impressive custom, then, worked very well. Thanks for the review, btw. Still not sure what to make of the product. On the one hand it's nice, on the other kinda limited and you're right, the choice about the heads is pretty low. Like everyone else, I wish this body was available as a regular base body from Phicen.

ZombieTestSubject wrote:So that's the body you turned into Thor! Very impressive custom, then, worked very well. Thanks for the review, btw. Still not sure what to make of the product. On the one hand it's nice, on the other kinda limited and you're right, the choice about the heads is pretty low. Like everyone else, I wish this body was available as a regular base body from Phicen.

Yep, that's the same body! Thank you, I think it turned out well, but been improving it a little bit since. I do hope TBLeague/Phicen does decide to make this a regular base body, in multiple skin tones.