Background

Even though Joss Whedon's Firefly television series was canceled back in 2002 (into its first season), it still has a huge cult following. The show (and subsequent film) revolved around the crew of the Firefly-class spaceship named Serenity.

The captain of the Serenity is Malcolm “Mal” Reynolds, who's portrayed by actor Nathan Fillion. The Browncoat is the main protagonist in the series.

Tonner Doll Company, who has the license to produce their Tonner Character Figures based on Firefly characters, has released a Captain Malcolm Reynolds TCF. They've also released his Browncoat as an additional accessory.

The Facts



Captain Malcolm Reynolds TCF
Series: Firefly Dressed Tonner Character Figures
Manufacturer: Tonner Doll Company
Sculpted by: Robert Tonner
Authorized Likeness: Nathan Fillion
Dimensions: 17” Tonner Male Athletic Body
Points of Articulation: Approximately 14 points
Outfit: Burgundy cotton shirt; Twill trousers with suspenders; Brown faux leather belt and holster; socks; Brown faux leather zip-up boots
Accessories: Painted resin gun; Display stand
Edition Size: 1,000 pieces

Packaging

The rectangular box features the Firefly logo on the front of the box. It's different from the previously reviewed Jayne figure. Rather than matte black with gold foil, Malcolm's packaging is glossy black with the Firefly logo in yellow. Inside, the Malcolm figure secured in normal Tonner fashion.

Our Opinion

Sometimes it's difficult to figure out whether a face sculpt actually looks like the actor it's based on. For the Malcolm Reynolds figure, I think it depends on what angle you're looking from. Nathan Fillion's eyes are a little further away from his nose, and the age of the character/actor aren't really shown on his face. But they got that little dimple on his chin perfect. And the sculpt looks pretty good from the straight on view shown above.

But I think what throws me off the most isn't the sculpt...it's the hairdo. From the front, it looks like Captain Mal. However, if you look from the side, it looks like he has long slicked back hair.

The outfit is a spot-on replica of what the on-screen character wore. I would have preferred if Tonner included the Browncoat with this figure and then hiked the price up a little bit, rather than selling them separately. He just looks a little naked minus that coat, no?

The lone accessory is his gun – a Moses Brothers Self-Defense Engine Frontier Model B. In the actual show, they often used resin gun replicas to replace the functional prop piece. They did a great job with the sculpting work on this piece.

OVERALL: While there are some issues with the likeness to Nathan Fillion, Firefly/Serenity fans will be pleased to see one of the show's main characters released as a Tonner Character Figure. With only four characters released from the line – and two of them sold out on Tonner Direct – you'll want to grab one of these for your Firefly collection.

You can pick one up at the following:

Tonner Direct: $154.99

Firefly - Captain Malcolm Reynolds

Figure Quality: 9/10
   Sculpt: 7/10
   Paint: 8/10
Accessories/Outfit: 8/10
Packaging: 8/10
Durability: 8/10
Fun Factor: 8/10
Value: 8/10

Overall: 8.6/10