Sonic the Hedgehog Speed Star

       

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Made By:
Jakks Pacific
Scale:
N/A
MSRP:
US$8.99
52
Overview:
Packaging (Design):8/10
Packaging (Durability):8/10
Casting (Body):9/10
Casting (Interior):N/A
Casting (Chassis):7/10
Casting (Engine):N/A
Paint (Exterior):N/A
Paint (Interior):8/10
Paint (Trim/Graphics):8/10
Overall Panel Fit:N/A
Total Score:8.0/10

 
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Jakks Pacific Team Sonic Speed Star
Team Sonic Speed Star packaging Team Sonic Speed Star cockpit Team Sonic Speed Star front detail Team Sonic Speed Star Sonic the Hedgehog Team Sonic Speed Star wheel detail Team Sonic Speed Star rear

 
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Background

The Speed Star had its debut in 2010's Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing, described as having been built by Tails using parts from a previous Dr. Eggman invasion. It later recieved an updated look for 2019's Team Sonic Racing, this time as a gift from Dodon Pa. In this game, it could be modified with myriad performance parts to increase top speed, acceleration, or defense.

 

Packaging

Much like their Mario Kart vehicles, their Sonic series uses a standard cardboard blister card across the series with only aname change for the individual character. The art features a large image of Sonic near the top left corner, next to the series title. Below this is a blue field with angular lines and a large gold ring surrounding the vehicle and the Jakks logo in the lower right corner. The card is cut to the edge of the ring, adding a little extra visual interest to the design. The name of the character and car is printed on a small white field just inside the ring, and a smaller ring with "Die-Cast Vehicle" in four languages is just above and to the right of the blister. The back of the card has a large photo of the included vehicle, and five smaller photos of the other characters in the wave - Tails, Sonic, Silver, Shadow, and Dr. Eggman - plus all the required legal info. It's a simple, clean design that looks great, but as is the case with any of these cards it needs to be destroyed to get to the vehicle.

 

Casting/Paint

Despite being referred to as a "die cast vehicle," the only part of the Speed Star that's actually die cast is the black-painted chassis plate. The rest of the car is made up of an assembly of plastic parts, generally split at the color breaks. The casting is sharp and clean, with nice tight joints and no sign of flash or other mold errors. Even the wheels are two-part assemblies, with the red centers pressed into black plastic wheels that look great plus they eliminate any risk of scuffing during play. For such a small vehicle it packs a ton of detail work, from the molded lip around the headlight panel to the twin ports in the rear diffuser. Every seam, crease, and contour of the game design is captured here.

Sonic is cast in a softer, slightly darker blue than the Speed Star, and looks just as good. With six spikes and two ears cast as part of the same piece there are some inevitable parting seams, but Jakks' crew did a great job of minimizing them to the point that you really have to look to see them. He also features some great looking detail work, including the spikes down his back, a nose barely bigger than a pin point, and sharply detailed hands holding an open steering wheel. Compared to how Mattel handled steering wheels, this a particularly nice detail to see.

Paint is decent overall. On Sonic, it's actually well above average: sharp edges, perfet registration, and excellent coverage. His smirk is painted white, ostensibly an attempt to show a toothy grin but it comes across as a paint error. Fortunately it's pretty much on the underside of his face so it doesn't detract from the otherwise stellar work. The Speed Star isn't quite as sharp, with minor ghosting at just about every edge. The worst is on the left side intake, where the white divider slops onto the lower inlet.

 

Features/Accessories

Nada; what you see is what you get.

 

Accuracy

No complaints on the quality of the casting: Jakks did an excellent job capturing Sonic's racer, from the overall shape to the small details. Sonic himself looks teriffic as well, arguably one of the best 2D-to-3D translations of the character I've seen at this size. There is a bit of problem with internal proportions, though - the car is generally shown larger in relation to Sonic than what we're seeing here. It's not terrible, cetainly not enough to ruin the overall look of it, but the two appear just slightly out of sync.

 

Overall

Another nice piece from Jakks, equally good as a toy or a collectible. I do wish the car was a hair bigger, but I recognize the fact that this was designed to fit with typical "1/64" scale vehicles.

 

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