1/6th scale TOA Heavy Industries Synthetic Human by 1000Toys action figure review

This week I'm covering a different scale of figure in my review, a 12 inch (commonly called 1/6th scale) Synthetic Human by 1000Toys. Normally I focus on 6-8" figures but here we have something pretty special. Only a limited number of these were produced and you had to be lucky enough to be picked from 1000Toy's sale drawing in order to purchase one. Various toy reviewers received one to review for free and there was a variant offers at SDCC 2014. This is 1000Toy's first foray into the world of action figures. How does the Synthetic Human fare? Let's find out.

The Synthetic Human ties in with the Biomega Manga and comes in an extremely sturdy, collector-friendly box. The outside has a light canvas texture with some logos. Inside is perfectly cut foam that houses the Synthetic Human and the two extra hands.There's a foam lid that protects the front of the figure and a cover page of sorts that protect it. The thumb notches to pull the box apart are located at the top and bottom rather than the sides. Getting the box open is somewhat challenging given the vacuum caused by the two halves and the lack of properly spaced notches to hold the inner section with.

Sculpting for the Synthetic Human is nothing short of an amazing replica of human form. Like a cross between i-Robot, wooden artist model, and a skeleton, the design is sleek and detailed. Every joint and seam is cleanly designed and there are sculpted plugs over the screw holes that keep the design smooth. Different ports/vents dot the body in various places and the Synthetic Human even has a belly button, something I found charmingly funny given its name. A customizer could have a field day with all the different ways to modify such a perfect blank canvas such as this figure like the way the SDCC 2014 variant was done.

The Synthetic Human's faceplate can be removed revealing the robotic skeletal head underneath which is extremely detailed if not downright frightening! The eyes have tiny sculpted pupils and actually move via pegs inside the skull when you take it apart. Each segment of the body has a clean sculpt all the way inside the joint and there's very little gap that shows when posing, a credit to the design. Symthetic Human's fingers and toes have plenty of detail as well, nothing is skipped over.

It's the articulation department where the Synthetic Human truly shines. You can very well create any pose you wish with the range of motion offered in this figure and balance as well. From standing on one foot to a full crouch, the Synthetic Human can do it all. The eyes and jaw of the inner skull move and the neck motion is outstanding. The torso/abdomen is segmented and can arch any direction. The toes and heel are positionable for precise stances and the shoulders/hips have multiple pivots/hinges at many junctures. The fingers are not poseable (tho that would have been an amazing feat) but you can swap out an open or closed fist. I'm not a collector of 12" figures so I can't compare him against Hot Toys True Type bodies but he has to be up there in range of motion.

Paint work for the Synthetic Human gives the figure a robotics-factory-production feel, the main body shell being a glossy white with matte grey-green under sections. There's panel lining all over the figure and a very light grey wash has been applied to the white along the edges helping to define each section. In all it's very clean work and the grey plastic joints blend in well. Synthetic Human's inner skull has an amazing amount of detail too with each tooth outlined and a speaker/port inside the mouth. The red/black pupils look very cool especially when moved to give the figure a lot of personality.

The only accessories the figure comes with are the two extra clenched fists that can be swapped out from the wrist peg. The pegs have tips that grip inside the joint unlike Revoltech pegs which slide out without a stop to them. Some sort of swappable faceplates or spread-finger or gripping hands would have been nice seeing as the relaxed hands don't do a great job of holding articles. I can't really count the lack of accessories against the company seeing that this is their first product and the future figures look to have all sorts of gear and weaponry.

So what's the verdict here on the Synthetic Human? If you're a 12" scale collector and want something really unique looking, track one down. If you like amazingly posable, i-Robot type factory-production humans, this guy is your best bet. But you're going to have a very tough time getting a hold of one. Right now 1000Toys is only holding drawings for purchase orders (and in VERY small amounts) in which you only have 24 hours to enter and hope you're picked. From there you have to turn to Ebay and pick one up (all eBay links are eBayPartnerNetwork affiliate links that help me out!) or choose the SDCC variant. The Synthetic Human is a great leap into the 1/6th scale market for 1000Toys and they look to have even more offerings in the future.