Bruise Brother (Madballs (Premium DNA)) Review

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Bruise Brother (Madballs (Premium DNA)) Review

Bruise Brother
Madballs (Premium DNA) (Premium DNA)A lot of companies nowadays show that toys and action figures aren’t just for children. Whether it’s ones geared specifically to older collectors, like NECA and Mezco, to companies who are doing both, such as Hasbro and McFarlane, everyone’s appealing to the real market for toys (sorry, kids). One new collector-orientated company is Premium DNA, who spawned out of online retailer Megalopolis. I know, I know, Megalopolis was nothing but a scam, and hey, I agree with you, but I’m not going to talk about them here.

Premium DNA, which was launched back in 2020, seemed to be going after the more “niche” licenses that are either not talked about much or never got any real merchandise (at least not in years). Stuff like Barnyard Commandos, Earthworm Jim, Battletoads, Banjo-Kazooie, and ClayFighter. Their first line, Madballs, which consisted of a first wave with four figures, went for preorder up in the summer of that year, and I got one just to see how the company’s first offering would be. Over a year later, they finally saw the light of day and reached the hands of collectors. Time to see how the one I ordered, Bruise Brother, turned out.

The packaging reminds me of how Super7 does their ultimates, a slipcover over a large window box (though this one is square, not a trapezoid-like shape). The packaging is shows off the figure through the window in the front, drawings on the sides, and a cross-sell on the back. The back also credits all those who worked on the figure, which is something more companies should do. The great thing about the plastic interior is that there are no twist-ties at all, with plastic trays and tape keeping everything in place, making everything easy to remove and put back. As for the slipcover, it looks nice, but I wish they gave out the name of the character somewhere on it so we know who’s who.

The sculpt of this figure is based off the “Head Popping” figures from back in the 80s, albeit upgraded quite a bit. A lot of the details remain the same, however, with Bruise Brother here being covered in blood and stitches. The bandolier and knife holster are separate pieces rather than being sculpted directly onto the figure, a rather notable difference. The head is the nicest part, though, with great detail on the face and all sorts of scratches and holes in the helmet. The paint is nice as well, aside from a few areas where bleeding is present (and I’m not talking about those holes and stitches where blood’s oozing out). The size of the figure is what surprised me the most, however. While he does stand around 6” tall, his bulkiness is what really contributes to his size.

The articulation is what one would usually expect out of an action figure nowadays, and they a good job with it. Bruise Brother moves at the head, shoulders, elbows, wrists, chest, hips, knees, and ankles. The head and chest are ball-jointed, and the rest are swivel/hinge. The arm and leg joints move great and can hold a pose well, but the head and chest don’t have the range of tilt that I would’ve liked, which is slightly disappointing. Something to note here is that he can easily pop apart at all his points of articulation, allowing you to mix-and-match with his fellow Madballs, something that isn’t present on a lot of figures nowadays.

A good deal of accessories is included with this figure to help bring out the fun factor. First, there are four different pairs of hands - closed, gripping, open, and pointing – that all swap easily. Considering how the original Head Popping figures didn’t have any accessories, DNA went to the man behind the Madball, James Groman, for designing the arsenal. The boxing glove can fit in place of the brother’s left hand, and it’s appropriately disgusting, being covered in teeth and slime. The baseball bat is something one would expect out of a thuggish looking guy, and it’s too covered in teeth as well as nails, but it can be tough fitting it into his hands. The beehive on a stick, on the other hand, is more unusual, but the detail is just as good as the other accessories. Finally, he has a knife. That’s it, just a knife, no gross details or anything. The gripping hands can’t hold it tightly, though, so it just loosely rests in them. The holster in the back of the figure is a good spot for it, though.

I was blown away by this figure (and surprised my Megalopolis preorder actually got fulfilled), thanks to just how well they did with it. While there are a few nits here and there, he’s a mostly perfect figure, which is quite astonishing for the company’s first offering. While Premium DNA has a tainted past that they may not be able to shake off anytime soon, I still see a promising future for them. But in all seriousness, I’m just in it for some ClayFighter figures.