JND Studios 1/6 scale Heath Ledger Joker figure

[potatocorner4life]

Quite a night and day difference, I wasn’t impressed because of their 1/3rd.. but this sculpt looks miles better.

 

[R_R_X]

As a stop-motion lover I never imagined 1/6 figures would end up evolving into essentially stop-motion puppets.

Begs the question of how long these will last though, stop-motion artists switched from latex to silicone ages ago because it's more durable but it still seems to be prone to degrade over time, silicone prostheses also don't have a long lifespan but those are for constant daily use.
I can also already hear many people complaining about the magnetic eye system, seems like it won't be as easy to handle as SERS given it's just a loose ball in an eye socket.

Another drawback of silicone is how the paint will hold up over time and you can't really have the same level of detail as you do with printed elements on a hard surface.

In any case not really interested in these, some whispers on Chinese forums are saying there will be 3 version ranging between $700, $1200 and $1500 so definitely for the "elite" class of collectors, I'll stick to my peasant plastic toys.

 

[GaryPool]

View attachment 677033
Quite a night and day difference, I wasn’t impressed because of their 1/3rd.. but this sculpt looks miles better.

They're pretty similar to be honest. The biggest change was the paint app which took some of the likeness away, a long with the hair. Their in-house stylists have gotten a lot better now, though.

I cut my 1/3 to match the hair shape from the proto, it's the same sculpt, they just took some white makeup from his left side. Just the lips and scar look different here, it's mostly the makeup bringing out his likeness a lot better.

Also, people need to keep in mind that Kojuns has been In research and development with this new process for a lot of years, I'm sure the issue of prolonged movements and paint applications will have been figured out, even through the quite severe paint app progress on their 1/3 line makes me feel pretty confident in this.

This is definitely a brand new era in collecting. Will be interesting to see other companies responses what with the patents for the tech etc.

Will be ordering this 100% off the bat.

Also that hair looks incredible for 1/6, definitely an improvement over the 1/3.

 

[chrisstbh]

Everyones gonna hate these figures when the joints start breaking and you can’t just replace the wrist pegs or body swap.

Any issue with these and the whole figure is done.

 

[Captain Clown]

Molecule8 walked so that JND could run.

 

[potatocorner4life]

They're pretty similar to be honest. The biggest change was the paint app which took some of the likeness away, a long with the hair. Their in-house stylists have gotten a lot better now, though.

I cut my 1/3 to match the hair shape from the proto, it's the same sculpt, they just took some white makeup from his left side. Just the lips and scar look different here, it's mostly the makeup bringing out his likeness a lot better.

Also, people need to keep in mind that Kojuns has been In research and development with this new process for a lot of years, I'm sure the issue of prolonged movements and paint applications will have been figured out, even through the quite severe paint app progress on their 1/3 line makes me feel pretty confident in this.

This is definitely a brand new era in collecting. Will be interesting to see other companies responses what with the patents for the tech etc.

Will be ordering this 100% off the bat.

Also that hair looks incredible for 1/6, definitely an improvement over the 1/3.

I agree, the skin looks a lot softer which I prefer. JND has a tendency to do emphasized wrinkles especially on the forehead similar to the their Indiana Jones. Not my cup of tea but from how this profile is displayed, it resembles Heath much more for me.

Talking longevity, if they’re using silicon for their 1/3 I think 1/6 should be fine as well considering that their brand is known for that material. The fingers breaking I’ve been hearing on this forum is the only concern. But for me as long as it’s not fragile it’s not a problem. Like with any high end material it’s not worth stretching it over what’s recommended.

 

[nm.ct]

Many collectors with their InArt Jokers after they saw the JND teaser:

View attachment 676997

And poor Hot Toys haven’t even released their Artisan Joker and they have to deal with this

This is downright revolutionary. If JND pull this off, they will change the whole hobby.

until they see the price

 

[ScoobyDoo]

Yeah…I guess I’ll buy another ledger joker. I’ve been critical of JND because most of their stuff looks like melted wax, and they aged the actors 100 years, but this is too good of an evolution in the 1/6 game to ignore this. I gots to have it, no matter the price.

(yeah, I say that now until I see the actual price )

 

[Johnny Utah]

Price will kick them in the balls right out of the gate.

 

[agonistes86]

Kit just posted on FB in a comment that "there's a two-pack for 2k". Don't know if he's joking.

This looks really incredible in terms of bringing 1:6 to the next level. I don't think it's for me (if that price is true I'm out anyway), but I love the innovation. And the more high-end 1:6 brands, the better.

Just seeing this made me revisit my InArt Joker again just now and repose him. Same as when HT announced their Joker, this breaks a mental barrier for me to make it easier to customize my InArt.

 

[Pennyworth]

It’s really exciting to watch the hobby grow. I feel like InArt found a sweet spot between quality/cost/value and I’m good to stay on the sidelines with this….at least until these Jokers start walking and talking…..

 

[BigWayne]

Price will kick them in the balls right out of the gate.

I'm sure the price will certainly turn away some in the hobby, but I'd bet dollars to doughnuts they sell everything they make. They appear to be using exciting, new technologies that no one else can offer and they're really engaging people in an emotional way - just look at the comments so far.

If the two pack rumor at $2K is true, I likely won't pick it up just because that's a lot of money. But based on how this is looking, I will be picking up at least one.

. . . and then I'll be putting my rooted Inart two pack up for sale.

 

[DiFabio]

In my experience, squishy faces and bodies don’t bode well in this hobby.

I’m interested in the figures that are going to last the next couple of decades, not the ones that will degrade in less than 5 years. If you keep the head or neck or fingers posed in anyway that isn’t what the mold “sock” was originally formed in, it’s going to crack, that’s just a given.

Be fun to to mess around with and pose and take pictures of for sure, but to keep? Nah. Doesn’t matter though, we’re at point in time in this hobby where most collectors rent the figure anyway. They make monthly payments then have it for a month before they sell it for the next one.

 

[Sachiel]

The important question is will it have the correct blazer color?

 

[Cocoboloboy]

I’ll likely pass on this too if the price is gonna be much above $500. I’ll be satisfied with HT’s sculpted Joker and wait for a character that‘s a must have for me like Indy if they make one as nice looking as what their Joker appears to be.

 

[nexus]

This looks phenomenal. I’ll likely buy it just because I know I’ll get sucked in. At least I’ll stop wondering the HT Artisan will convert. While this does amp up competition in the space HT still has a stranglehold on licenses and produces for the masses. These are really a super premium category and super limited, not to mention it’ll probably be a couple of years before they’re in hand. I’m actually more interested in knowing what will be JND’s second release and how many figures they plan to produce a year.

 

[BigWayne]

In my experience, squishy faces and bodies don’t bode well in this hobby.

I’m interested in the figures that are going to last the next couple of decades, not the ones that will degrade in less than 5 years. If you keep the head or neck or fingers posed in anyway that isn’t what the mold “sock” was originally formed in, it’s going to crack, that’s just a given.

Be fun to to mess around with and pose and take pictures of for sure, but to keep? Nah. Doesn’t matter though, we’re at point in time in this hobby where most collectors rent the figure anyway. They make monthly payments then have it for a month before they sell it for the next one.

Posing not withstanding, and not knowing the exact type of silicone used, it can last well beyond 5 years.

From this manufacturers website:

Hopefully, someone with more knowledge can post about the type of silicone JND is using and their expectancy for posing tolerances.

Based on that, I only hope that I can last longer than this figure

 

[BACON!]

How will your $1500 investment age over time? What if one of the joints needs to be repaired under that silicon? What kind of weight can those fingers hold? Sure, looks like these guys have made great strides in production, but to my knowledge, Jazz Inc is the only company that takes longterm material compatibility into consideration so as my collectible ages, it does not get more brittle or weaken in time. I get why they may want to use silicon on statues, but promoting that kind of movement in the video I think is overpromising

 

[DiFabio]

Posing not withstanding, and not knowing the exact type of silicone used, it can last well beyond 5 years.

From this manufacturers website:

View attachment 677084
Hopefully, someone with more knowledge can post about the type of silicone JND is using and their expectancy for posing tolerances.

Based on that, I only hope that I can last longer than this figure

If you just had a piece of silicone sitting there on a table, it would for sure last. When you have silicone wrapped over a plastic or metal endoskeleton that can move freely underneath . . . that’s a different story.

Try Mezco for example. For their 1/12 Batman figure they decided to use a squishy, silicone body suit over a metal armature. Well it IS durable but if you leave the body in articulated poses or even with the arms down, it rips the suit apart. To keep in good condition, you have to keep it posed in it’s original mold injection stance,

silicone suit with armature skeleton removed

They (JND) are taking a plastic and metal skeleton and wrapping silicone components over it. If you pose it in anything but it’s originally injection mold, it’s going to stress in places. Likewise, if the head, neck, or finger joints break, there is no way to access it without ripping the silicone skin off.

 

[BigWayne]

@DiFabio - Thanks for posting that - I get your point.

Aside from what you already pointed out, I would also expect that any accessories that go with this guy will be made of plastic, rather than metal used by Inart, because that would really tax those fingers with the extra weight.

It seems like JND certainly has some information that needs to be shared regarding what we can expect.