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Write a Review link for that item. Pumpkinhead (Syndicate Collectibles) (Syndicate Collectibles)The 2000s saw many a toy company come and go, and one of the most recognizable was SOTA Toys. While best known for their Street Fighter line, they've had plenty of other lines as well. Years after its shutdown, SOTA frontman Jerry Macaluso teamed up with retailer Toynk to form Syndicate Collectibles, who's put out a variety of products so far, but not much when it comes to action figures. One of the few action figures they've done so far is Stan Winston's Pumpkinhead, who, coincidentally enough, was made by SOTA years ago. With the standards for horror figures having changed since SOTA's days, it's time to see how their successor handled this creature. Pumpkinhead comes packaged in a large, blue box with its visage on it. It's pretty simple in appearance, aside from the darkened woods background, but I feel it fits the license well, though it wouldn't have hurt to actually credit the people involved with creating the figure like SOTA did. This is a fifth-panel box, similar to NECA, and the reverse side of the front flap has a shot of the film, tinted blue, and accompanied by a quote. There are a few ties to remove for the figure, but it's nevertheless easy to get everything out. Jerry was able to work with Tom Woodruff Jr., who played Pumpkinhead in the film, to scan a casting of the original suit to ensure accuracy, and you can see it paid off. Despite its name, Pumpkinhead doesn't look very pumpkin-like, but is still monstrous. It has a bulbous head, blank white eyes, and sharp fangs and tusks. There are three heads to work with: one roaring, one snarling, and one with a closed mouth. I would've liked a smirking head, but the options here fit the character well. All three heads suffer from the same issue, that being the softness and lack of detail. Don't get me wrong, it's accurate to the film, but the detail is lackluster for the price and character. The paint is pretty good, with clean work and plenty of wash, but more detail to the eyes would've been good, alongside yellower teeth. Pumpkinhead is a 1:12 scale figure, and it stands around 9 1/2" tall. It was an imposing creature in the film, so the tall height works great for it. The design reminds me a lot of an Xenomorph, what with its long arms and tail, sharp claws, and animal-like legs. Syndicate's crew did a great job with the sculpt, even if, again, the overall product is very soft-looking. The nails are still plenty pointy, but the fingers are a softer plastic to prevent them from being too painful to handle. The character is primarily tan, with wash all around to bring out the details, and the lines for the nails are very clean. It’s also covered in veins, which are both sculpted and painted blue to help make them more visible. There are some small black marks on the tail, but aside from that, the paint is very well done. The articulation reminds me a lot of something you'd get from NECA, with plenty of joints (though I'm sure NECA would've given it more than Syndicate did). Pumpkinhead has a barbell neck, swivel/hinge shoulders, elbows, wrists, tail, knees, hocks, and ankles, ball-jointed chest, waist, and hips, swivel thighs, and a bendy wire in the tail. The joints move smoothly whilst still being able to hold their position, though the single ball-joints are a little loose. I would've loved more bend out of the leg joints, to allow for deeper stances and more dynamic poses, but you can still achieve quite a bit with what they can do. The neck and waist both work better than the chest, and the heads swap easily. Aside from the extra heads, there isn't much for accessories here, as Pumpkinhead's only other extras are a wooden cross and an extra right hand for holding it. The hands are tough to swap at first, but after that first time it gets easier. I would've liked a base to help it stand, as well as a rifle to recreate my favorite kill from the movie. For Syndicate's first figure, Pumpkinhead turned out very well. Sure, it's quite lacking in detail, and articulation could've been better, but I love the end result nonetheless. There's also a 1:6 scale version that's really just this one but larger, but for $300, I'll pass on it. Given that NECA did their own, better version of the other horror monster Syndicate did (the werewolf from The Howling), I'm keeping my fingers crossed that they do Pumpkinhead as well, but until then, I'm happy with this one. - 11/12/25   by Toasted Brains |
| The Thing (Blair Monster) |  | Submission Order |  | Raphael |
| None | | Pumpkinhead (Syndicate Collectibles) Series | | None |
| The Thing (Blair Monster) | | Written by Toasted Brains | | Raphael |
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