Miner (My Bloody Valentine) Review

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Miner (My Bloody Valentine) Review

Miner
My Bloody Valentine (Neca)Valentine's Day may have come and gone, but I'm still feeling the love… for action figures.

One of many horror films released in 1981, the Canadian slasher My Bloody Valentine took place on the holiday, focusing on a deranged miner going after those wanting to celebrate the holiday. Coinciding with the film's 40th anniversary a while back, NECA produced a figure of the miner as part of their Mego-inspired line, but with one catch: you could only buy it from Shout! Factory. While he came and went there, I was surprised to learn that months later, he would be getting a mass release. Hooray for second chances!

The Shout! release of the Miner gave him a traditional window box, but the mass release gives him different packaging. This release gives him a clamshell that is somewhat similar to what Mego does, but this packaging is designed to be easier to open than a traditional clamshell. Just get some scissors or an exacto knife to cut along the sides, and then you can easily open or close it. The artwork, courtesy of Justin Osbourn, looks great, and the photo collage on the back is nice as well.

Sculpted by Thomas Gywn, the mysterious killer dons a gas mask and helmet with flashlight like a miner would usually wear, and it adds to the secrecy of their identity. I think the mask extends a bit too far out from the face, specifically around the eyes. The paint on the mask, as well as the helmet, is pretty clean, and the small blood splatters add to its appearance. The mask and helmet are attached to the belt, but are separate pieces from the head. Slide them off and you'll reveal a black, unpainted masked head with eyes showing. And I though the gas mask made him creepy…

Since this is part of NECA's Mego-inspired line, the Miner's outfit is partially tailored. The jumpsuit fits well on the figure, and is as baggy as it should be. The belt, gloves, and boots are plastic, and are given plenty of wash, more than likely reflecting how much time this guy spent underground. Because of how the outfit fits into the gloves and boots, along with the belt overlapping it, there's no way to take off the suit, but why would you want to? The figure stands around 8" tall, fitting in with the rest of the figures in this format.

The standard articulation for NECA's 8" figure body is as follows: ball-jointed head and chest, swivel/hinge shoulders, wrists, hips, and ankles, swivel biceps and thighs, double-hinged elbows, and single-hinged knees. Harry Warden gets all that, expect for the wrists, which, due to the gloves, are swivel joints and nothing more. However, that barely limits the figure, and he can manage plenty of poses with his accessories. The jumpsuit doesn't get in the way, likely thanks to the fact it isn't super tight on the figure. I do wish at some point, NECA would update this body to give it double-hinged knees, which would allow for more dynamic leg poses.

The miner gets some fitting accessories for plenty of murderous fun. First off, there's a pickaxe, because he wouldn't be a miner without it. Since slasher movie villains tend not to limit themselves to one weapon, a knife and a nail gun are also included. The last, and my favorite, accessory is a heart-shaped box. This box opens up not to reveal chocolate, but rather a human heart. The bloodied appearance of the heart is painted well, and the bottom of the box can be held in the figure's hands due to them being soft plastic, but the top cannot on account of its size.

It's definitely cool that this figure got a release almost everywhere after it was thought to be just an exclusive, and it deserves such treatment on account of how nice it is. There are a few nits I have with him, but they're minor issues. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that this character gets the 7" Ultimate treatment, but until then, this version fills a hole in a heart… if he doesn't tear it out, that is.

- 2/15/23