Statue Spotlight: XM Studios' 1:4 Beast

Marvel's X-Men continues to be a popular line of collectibles amongst statue collectors and with a plethora of characters to choose from, XM Studios has made a name for itself developing the widest variety of 1:4 scale X-Men statues. From characters like Omega Red to Professor X, XM Studios has developed characters that other companies have not touched at all, let alone in the 1:4 scale range. Hence the excitement for this 1:4 scale Beast statue, the first licensed Beast in this scale, that was announced in mid-2020. XM Studios is also one of the most transparent companies when it comes to the offering information and pictures regarding the development of a statue. With that information at my disposal, I thought it would be interesting to review the progress of this statue as offerred to collectors and, ultimately, discuss my thoughts on the finished product.

July 2020 - Digital Tease

Like with any statue, the first tease, regardless of how much the piece it exposes (sometimes it is just a black silhouette), is a world of infinite possibilities. With many collectors needing a Beast for their X-Men displays, there was a considerable amount of noise and hype surrounding the piece. I was especially excited because this is an essential character for me, as I'm sure he is for many others. There was not much to go on here, but the aspect I focused on most was the sculpt in the fur, which I found to be pretty impressive.

November 2020 - 2D Digital Concept

The first full look at the statue's concept blew me away. I thought it captured the ferocity of the character really well through the facial expression and in the crushing of the sentinel's fingers. Again, the sculpt of the hair won me over big time, as I thought it would be really easy to mess it up. Having the tufts too thick or too thin, not having enough variation of layers or variation in the direction of hair flow could all result in an odd looking Beast. It could mean the difference between a Justice League toy from Target and a Sense of Right Alliance toy from the dollar store, if you will. It's important that this looks like Beast and not just some blue beast-man.

I liked the base, though conceptually it can seem a bit odd that he is pulling the fingers off a hand that is seemingly already removed from the Sentinel's body, but that is the type of criticism that would leave you disliking most statues. While for some the Sentinel base has been overused, I think it was a great choice to remain consistent with many of the other recent XM pieces that include a Sentinel theme. This was one of the first XM Studios concept art pieces for which I did a mock-up coloring (below). Having color helps me better develop a more fully-formed opinion and my coloring completely sold me on the piece. Unfortunately, I think I became too hyped with the coloring I provided that my expectations for the piece lent to some disappointment.

December 2020 - Full Printed Statue

The first 3D view of the statue really encompassed the surprisingly compact nature of this piece, which set a precedent in my mind regarding the price. I initially attempted to do a concept coloring of this print, but the colors were not showing up well and the end result was put to shame by the quality of the 2D concept coloring. The quality of the sculpt could really pop finally seeing the printed statue. The contrast in textures between Beast's hair and his costume, the smoothness of the Sentinel metal, and the roughness of the shattered concrete brought a really modern feel to the piece.

February 2021 - Body Paint Application Reveal

Ok, this is when things started going a bit downhill for me. The first reveal for the paint application fit the sculpt well, in that it is a more realistic coloring to match the modern sculpt. The problem for me was, the extensive black shading used for the depth made the overall color appear to more closely mimic the character of Dark Beast more than the traditional Beast. I think it helps amplify the rage but it still feels off.

March 2021 - Base Paint Application Reveals

These next pics came off the great Sentinel color debate of 2021. Recent statue releases would indicate that the XM Sentinel's hands would be a light color of blue, but this rattled collectors concerned with the lack of color contrast and the statue being too blue. While Sentinels have traditionally had blue hands, there are also instances of a more purple color scheme, thus the opinion from many that purple should be incorporated even though it would break the consistency of blue hands that had already been established. To appease both sides of the argument, XM decided to take their modernization to a new level and incorporate both colors into the Sentinel design. While I would have preferred the traditional blue (with the right hues and shading, you can still maintain a lot of contrast), I was ok with this decision. I actually think it comes off pretty well. At this point, it was just a matter of waiting for the full reveal and Pre-Order (PO).

May 28, 2021 - Full Reveal and PO

Thus comes the second most exciting time in a statue's journey, second only to being unboxed, the pre-order. I woke up early on the 28th to check the usual sites where Beast would be available to compare prices and decide where I would order him from. Spoiler: I have not pre-ordered him.

Statue Details:

Beast - 1:4 Scale

Edition Size: MTO (Made to Order) Max 999

Price: SGD $1,299 / ~$980 USD

Size: 17.3" H x 15" W x 10.2" D

As alluded to earlier in the post, there were a few unrealistic expectations that I had, one related to the color and the other to price. This is a small statue, standing roughly 17 inches tall and 15 inches wide. Sure, it's a bit boxy and looks to have a good mass, filling up the entire amount of space that contains it with the thick body and large hand. However, that is quite a hefty price for such a small piece, even when you include the "Never Been Done by a Licensed Company" tax. I thought the dark shading might become less noticeable when seeing the full statue, but it's even more exemplified. I have always leaned heavily towards modern designs and takes on characters, so this should be right in my wheelhouse, but I have remained hesitant on ordering it. Now, that is only while knowing that Iron Studios is planning to jump into the 1:4 X-Men market and have already announced that they are working on a Beast as the first in that line. Without that knowledge, it is highly likely I would have already bit the bullet on this offering.

Then comes the lone switch-out, an alternate head sculpt, with is quite baffling. It is just really bad. I assume it is supposed to be Beast's glasses, which the majority of the time are drawn to be round, but these look like goggles without lenses. Even had they incorporated a more classic shape to his glasses, these colors are quite offsetting. The problem is XM could not really do them in black because the dark shading in his face causes black glasses to get lost (I photoshopped to see how it would look), leaving the extra head sculpt as useless as ever. Now, had they used a lighter shade of blue with a slightly darker blue as the primary shading color, a traditional black could have been used instead. At the end of the day, good or bad, the extra head is just unnecessary and does not add anything to the regular sculpt regardless. Perhaps a switch-out hand of some sort or no switch-out at all and lower the price.

I did a quick concept coloring of the statue had they gone with a lighter tone of blue in the body and, personally, I think that this better captures the character.

I know I may be in the minority of X-Men fans needing a Beast statue who did not jump on this, but it just did not call to me. That does not mean I won't end up with the XM Beast, it just means I am willing to hold onto my money for a little longer and, perhaps, see what Iron Studios has to offer. I do, however, think this statue should have been an easy win that got muddled in a couple of poor design choices.