You can't argue the Hasbro ark looks more screen accurate with the high shine. I know the Sideshow one is annoyingly dull, especially at that price, but it's still a nice piece and a nice representation of the ark. I personally was unwilling to shell out the $60-$100 the Hasbro ark has been fetching on ebay, and I thought the weighty-ness of polystone made the Sideshow price a little more palatable for me. Heck, I thought the hoops Hasbro made you go through originally was overboard too! What was it, 4 12" figures plus $10? Maybe if it was one or two figures and $10 it would have been more reasonable to me.
Anyway, can't wait to get home and take a look at the ark! Toht is packed away under my desk calling out to me to open him! (dirty!)
And drJedisith, there's something oddly appropriate about the blurry pics you put up. They give the scene "atmosphere"