As reported in an earlier post, Polar Lights has reissued MPC 1970s Haunted Mansion series (see Play it Again, Tom/Sam review/post), relabeling the kits with Manor in lieu of Mansion and removing the Disney designation. (Though these re-releases surfaced a while ago, they are again making the rounds to tie into the current, Haunted Mansion movie.)
For this post, I'm reviewing Escape from the Dungeon, originally Escape from the Crypt, which was (is) one of MPC's most elaborate dioramas.
The (glue-required) kit, which measures approximately 7" x 9", includes an amiable executioner, who (when triggered) drops his ax (or shovel) between a wee fellow's chained ankles, but in so doing, hits an inconspicuous chunk of chain (connected to a nearby ball) that springs a skeletal corpse from out the coffin where the luckless bloke sits. (The wee fellow, by the way, resembles one of the Disney attraction's hitchhiking ghosts and in plastic form comes with an optional, Viking helmet, for those who may desire such Nordic flavor. The part works for either the figure or the diorama's base decor.)
This kit (as with Play it Again, Tom/Sam) is molded in glow-in the dark styrene (the original, MPC release wasn't) and is rubber-band activated per the executioner and the casketed corpse.
The base is most elaborate, simulating tiered stones and a barred, front arch, and embellishes the upper pieces with utmost, foreboding style.
Escape from the Dungeon goes for about $40 - $50 through most online sources and is worth every, grim penny.
No comments:
Post a Comment