August 2016 haul: DAM TOYS 1/6th Gangsters Kingdom Diamond 5 "Ralap" & Wolf + Bane

It has been a quiet month for me in August as well as I only got two items: DAM TOYS Gangsters Kingdom series 1/6th scale Diamond 5 "Ralap" 12-inch action figure and Wolf "Ghost" PLUS a custom-made 1/6th scale Bane head sculpt and costume set. I've been eagerly waiting for this set since it previewed in September 2015 (see the toy blog post HERE) and it has taken almost a year for this product to be released. The problem with pre-orders is that sometimes it takes so long for the figure to be released that by the time it gets made, the interest for that particular figure might have waned or is no longer there. In the old days, there was a lot of impulse buying. You see, you like, you buy. Nowadays however, you see, you like, you pre-order and wait for it to come. I guess Dam Toys must have their hands full with lots of products to release. I won't complain as long as it gets made. There have been quite a number of figures that were previewed (like the Iconic Toys "The Savior" figure - posted HERE) but never saw the light of day so I'm quite pleased this finally came.

The Custom-made 1/6th scale BANE Head and Costume set was previewed in May (check out the post HERE) so at least it didn't take that long to be produced. There's no branding whatsoever because it's custom-made and done in small quantities but the quality looks good. How good? As good as Hot Toys so that's something. More on that in my action figure review to follow. Meanwhile, check out the first shots taken of these 1/6th scale products from my August 2016 haul.

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I have stopped collecting this Dam Toys Gangster Kingdom series as I didn't find any more joy with each figure's release. Only some of the figures excite me and those I pre-ordered but I gave most of them a miss because they just didn't appeal to me anymore. Diamond 5 got me all excited because the character is inspired by WOLVERINE, and he has CLAWS, and a pet WOLF!

The 1/6th scale wolf and figure are packed side-by-side. The wolf has two interchangeable lower jaws. Diamond 5 Ralap's accessories are packed in a foam tray below the main figure.

Close-up picture of the 1/6th scale head sculpt. Most of the cast in the Gangster Kingdom series are based mostly on real actors and some famous people (e.g. Wayne Rooney). Does the head sculpt of Diamond 5 "Ralap" resemble Hugh Jackman who plays Wolverine in all the X-Men films?

A comic book is also included. It introduces Diamond 5 into the storyline weaved around the Spade and Diamond gangs. Gangsters Kingdom is all about the gang war between two rival gangs, the betrayals and the desire to end the other's existence.

Bane is a fictional supervillain appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, commonly as an adversary of the superhero Batman. Known for his mix of brute strength and exceptional intelligence, the character is often credited as being the only villain to have "Broken the Bat". The custom-made 1/6th scale BANE Head and Costume set comes with: Bane head sculpt, leather-like brown jacket, green combat vest, weightlifting belt, grey military pants with belt, dark green combat boots, broken Batman mask, two pairs of hands.

This is Bane from the 2012 British-American superhero film "The Dark Knight Rises". Bane is portrayed by Tom Hardy who gained 30 pounds (14 kg) for the role, increasing his weight to 200 pounds. You can't really tell it's Tom Hardy because of the mask he has on. According to costume designer Lindy Hemming, the character wears a mask that supplies him with an analgesic gas to relieve the pain he suffers from an injury sustained "early in his story". It's funny because Tom Hardy will again don a mask that is quite similar to this in the 2015 action film "Mad Max: Fury Road" as Max Rockatansky. At least he gets to remove the mask and show his face for most of the film.

NEXT: Review of the custom-made 1/6th scale BANE Head and Costume set.