The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey 2012/The Desolation of Smaug 2013 The bridge direct

With Peter Jacksons Oscar wining blockbusting trilogy, based on the works of author J.R.R Tolkien, still unchallenged as the most epic and awe inspiring fantasy Movie series of all time it was no surprise that the first book in Tolkien's Lord of the rings series The Hobbit ( There and back again) would eventually find its way to the silver screen. At first the Movie adaptation was to be helmed by director Guillermo del Toro but he soon dropped out to make way for Peter Jacksons triumphant return! Unlike the previous Trilogy which was based on three books the Hobbit only had a single novel from which to make three full 3 or so hour movies the second of which entitled "The desolation of Smaug" follows directly on from the events in "The unexpected Journey" continuing on Bilbo Baggins adventures across middle earth only this time he faces a deadly foe in the form of Smaug a ferocious Dragon who has taken possession of the lonely mountain and all of its gold! It is an event that is very briefly mentioned in the very first movie of the series "The fellowship of the Ring". Here we will look at the Gandalf and Bilbo/Gollum 3.75 inch figures released to tie in with "The Desolation of Smaug" in 2013 (These figures were previously released for "The Unexpected journey" the previous year and had just been repackaged for the second movie):

Legolas: The elven warrior was a trusted ally to the Fellowship on their quest to destroy the one ring and was invaluable in the fight against the armies of Mordor, and as it turns out he was also a big part of the action in the Adventures of Bilbo Baggins post the original trilogy Fans of the original novel will note that Legolas doesn't actually appear at all in the Hobbit book at all (at least he isn't mentioned by name) but it seems there was room for a ass-kicking Elf and their is only one guy for the job! 

Legolas Greenleaf is one of the nicer looking figures in the set with a strong resemblance to Actor Orlando Bloom and some very nice intricate paint details on his attire and weaponry  (see bellow) His costume here differs from what we saw in the original LOTR Trilogy so this Legolas should stand out from the other toy incarnations that came out for those movies

What really sets this figure apart from the others is his awesome range of accessories including his trusty bow and duel knifes plus his quiver with arrows which unfortunately are just sculpted in and are non removable!

Grinnah the Goblin: Making a brief but memorable appearance in the unexpected journey Grinnah is the chief  interrogator of Goblin town leading the captured Band of Dwarves to the Great Goblin King for punishment!



The Goblins are quite grotesque looking characters and this figure does a pretty good job at conveying with Grinnah here, this is a very nicely detailed sculpt with the flesh painted details really making him appear quite life like!

Accompanying the Goblin are three separate pieces all cast in the same brown plastic with some slight paint detailing added for realism two strap type items that are very tricky to keep from falling from the figures shoulders and his whip for beating your dwarf figures with!

Thorin Oakenshield: Dwarf warrior Thorin is slightly bad tempered and hot headed and despite his size when it comes to battle he is as skilled and capable as any man,elf or wizard! Thorin when met with tragedy in his family sets out for vengeance earning his title Oakenshield for his courage in battle against the evil Goblin leader Azog!

It is hard to find fault with this series of figures they all seem to be very nice representations of the characters they are based on and in this small scale is great to see so much detail in the paint applications and sculpting and Thorin here is no exception, he comes in slightly shorter than say Gandalf and Legolas but is slightly taller than Bilbo and Gollum which is perfect as he is a Dwarf after all! Again there is some nice little touches here that really helps to sell the character likeness such as the small grey streaks in the hair!

Completing Thorin is a nice selection of weaponry including two swords including the Orcrist along with a scabbard and a removable Oak shield that attaches to his left arm. All are very nicely sculpted and painted but it is a shame that he doesn't come with an axe as he wields one in the movie!

Gandalf the grey: The first (and last time) we saw Gandalf in his Grey variation was back in 2001's "The fellowship of the ring" from whence on he was known as Gandalf The White! So it is great to see the Wizard back in his scruffy Grey robes complete with Hat and scarf. As mentioned in the introduction this is a repackaged "The Unexpected Journey" Gandalf figure with the only difference being the packaging in which it is encased. Gandalf as seen here with all of his accessories stands slightly higher than the average 3.75 inch figure when the tip of his hat is taken into consideration. He holds his accessories well and can even clutch his sword when it is sheathed in the scabbard which detaches from the hip, the scarf is also detachable and the hat removable all of which fit nicely n his person.

A better look at Gandalf's head sculpt reveals a very strong Ian McKellen Likeness with a very nicely sculpted beard and hair which has light grey highlights to add an extra dimension though because of the length of the beard and hair the head movements are a tad restricted!

Gandalf is supplied with some very nice accessories including his staff, Hat, sword, Scabbard and scarf all of which have nice little minute details that are all the more astounding when you consider the size of these things! All the accessories are screen accurate and are what you would expect the character to be equipped with. All in all Gandalf is a very impressive figure who is a perfect example of what can be achieved in the smaller 3.75inch scale; a fantastic sculpt with appropriate accessories and paint applications that haven't been lazily applied!

Radagast The Brown: Only the third wizard to appear in the entire series and he is certainly the scruffiest and most eccentric of the trio who much prefers the company of woodland creatures to that of his Bipedal allies. Though the characters appearance is only fleeting in the original source material his inclusion somewhat makes up for the fact that he was omitted entirely in the first three movies.    

As played by Dr Who legend, Sylvester McCoy, Radadgst is one of the more memorable new additions to the franchise and as such it is nice to see that the action figure captures the character likeness so well, though he looks a little less ragamuffin like than his on screen counterpart! still there are plenty of nice little details (including bird poop highlights in his beard) and some intricate paint applications bringing the figure to life! 

The only two accessories that the figure comes with are his trusty staff and hat both of which are cast in brown plastic and look fantastic when placed on the figure

Bilbo Baggins: The shire Hobbit boasted of his many adventures in the first instalment of the Lord of Rings and now we are able to actually witness them! Though this time it is Martin Freeman starring as the hairy footed half man and in the Desolation of Smaug he will face his greatest foe yet, a huge dragon with a penchant for gold!
Here is Bilbo with all of his accessories clutching his small elven sword. Though his scabbard is non-removable the other accessories can be placed on and taken off him including his rucksack and water container his vest is also removable. Bilbo is much smaller than the Gandalf figure (being that he is a Hobbit and all) standing at  around the 2-3inch mark!

He has very nice detailing on his clothing with very few paint applications to speak of other than the hairs on his feet,his eyes and eyebrows and the silver tip of the scabbard all of which are painted very neatly! one point of contention is the face sculpt which is very soft looking and while some of martin freeman can be detected it isn't as strong as the image on the back of packaging might suggest!

Bilbo only has three accessories if you don't count the vest and necktie and these are A rucksack type item a drinking flask on a rope and his elven sword, these are all nicely sculpted with some paint applications, the sword is particularly nice looking with some markings on the blade! All of the accessories are accurate to the character as portrayed in the films and all fit will onto the figure.  

Gollum: Originally appearing in the first trilogy in the series Fan favourite Gollum is a feat of technical genius thanks to the talented folks at WETA and the awe inspiring performance from Andy Serkis merging to create one of cinemas greatest characters! Gollum is one of the few characters from the original three movies to make it into the Hobbit prequels as in the original novel 

Gollum is one the smaller figures in the line and as such is more delicate looking with his thin spindly arms and legs and as such is very limited in articulation when compared to Bilbo. He has no accessories to speak of but that is made up for in his very nicely sculpted features and realistic paint applications to resemble skin lacerations and other similar detailing  

The Hobbit may not be quite as fresh and awe-inspiring as the original Lord Of Rings trilogy was but there is no doubt that the three newer entries have plenty to offer fans who have been left with a huge hole to fill since the original series ended ten years earlier! This obscure little toy company have provided a toy line worthy of the epic adventure series and have even in some ways bested the offerings from Toy Biz who provided the action figures for the previous three movies! Bridge Direct have gone all out to give fans 3.75inch scale figures of their favourite middle earth characters to add to the ever growing numbers of action figures produced in this scale (including lines from Marvel and DC)
with generally good likenesses, great articulation and a nice selection accessories these figures make a fine addition to any action figure collection!




Figures in the series:


The Unexpected Journey:


3.75inch


-Bilbo Baggins
-Thorin Oakenshield
-Gandalf the Grey
-Legolas Greenleaf
-Grinnah the Goblin


2-Packs


-Bilbo Baggins and Gollum
-Fili and Kili The Dwarves
-Balin and Dwalin The Dwarves
-Legolas and Tauriel
-Fimbul the Hunter and Warg
-Thorin and The Goblin King


6inch


-Gandalf
-Bilbo
-Thorin
-Legolas
-Tauriel


The Desolation Of Smaug:


3.75inch


-Bilbo Baggins
-Thorin Oakenshield
-Gandalf the Grey
-Legolas Greenleaf
-Azog
-Radagast
-Mirkwood Hero Pack