Because I basically eat, drink and sleep toys, I’m immersed in collecting culture pretty much 24/7. And as such, sometimes other collectors who I think are being overly demanding can grate on my nerves just a little bit. This was the case when the exclusive Marvel Select Groot figure went up for order online earlier this month and a number of folks complained he was a ripoff because he didn’t come with a free Rocket Raccoon figure. And so, now that my Groot Marvel Select figure has arrived, let’s take a look and see whether this figure is a good value or not…

The Right:

After an intro like that, you can probably imagine that I’m going to get on my soapbox and rant a little bit at some point. And so, I might as well open this review with said rant and get that elephant out of the room.

Thus, here goes: Anyone out there who thinks that they’re being ripped off by this 10″ Marvel Select Groot figure not coming with a bonus Rocket Raccoon figure, you are totally out of your mind. (If you’re reading this, I love you for being a reader–but you’re out of your mind.)

Following in the acclaimed tradition of other “big” Marvel Select action figures, the Diamond Select Toys Groot figure is vastly bigger than pretty much any single-carded figure you will find at a comparable price from other highly-articulated toy lines. Groot is about 10 inches tall and quite heavy, with his heft giving him a quality feel.

For the sake of comparison, the Hasbro Marvel Legends Groot Build-A-Figure is noticeably shorter and far lighter than the DST Groot Select figure.

I know not everyone has the Groot BAF, so let me compare this figure to the new X-Men Marvel Legends Colossus as well. Sorry Bearded Lumberjack Colossus, but as big as you compared to the other X-Men Legends, you’re positively dwarfed by the Diamond Select Groot action figure!

So to summarize, if you’re peeved that a totally unique-sculpted, limited release exclusive, highly-detailed and heavy 10″ action figure like this one didn’t come packaged with another smaller, fully-articulated unique-sculpted action figure, all for the price of $25: you are being unreasonable and unrealistic. End rant.

Unlike the other comics-based Groot action figures released up until now, this toy is based off of the modern Marvel NOW Groot. Hey, I love the DnA blue costume too, believe me, but that’s not the era that DST is trying to capture with their Guardians of the Galaxy figures–and that’s okay, because the figures they have made for us are outstanding.

The head on this figure may be a bit more “cartoon”-ish than some folks like, but it reminds me a lot of the Loveness Groot ongoing series character design.

And while this head may not look especially angry, the fire in those eyes is anything but friendly!

The entire figure is covered in gnarled tree detailing, with a dark wash over the figure to bring out the details of the sculpt. The sculpt here looks every bit as good as the Hasbro Build-A-Figure, if not better–and it’s larger and thicker to boot.

On the articulation front, Groot has the standard Marvel Select 16 points of articulation–and in this instance, that’s more than enough. The ball-jointed head and upper torso, hinged feet with rockers and swivel-hinge hips let Groot take on far more extreme poses than he ever does in the comics.

Wood-God doing a high ninja kick…? Sure, why not, right! With his big feet, Marvel Select Groot stands up one-legged in extreme poses just fine. 

The one accessory the Marvel Select Guardians of the Galaxy Groot figure comes with is a display base that interlocks with the bases of the other figures in the series.

This base has extra tree roots on it (for obvious reasons) and looks nice, although I don’t have much use for the base as a standalone. I’ll talk about the fully assembled combined base in a later review, though.

The Wrong:

Lest anyone got sickened by my gushing praise for this figure, I do (of course) have a couple of relatively minor complaints.

Straight out of the package, some of Marvel Select Groot’s joints were feeling a wee bit more loose than I prefer on a new toy. He’s holding his poses just fine without any problems for now, but I am slightly concerned that the weight of this figure’s limbs is going to really wear down and loosen the joints of the limbs over time.

In addition, I’m a little surprised and bummed that neither of Groot’s hands is molded into a closed fist. As a character whose primarily role is bashing enemies, it seems kind of weird that his toy isn’t equipped with even one closed fist for fistacuffs action.

Overall: Despite unfair initial complaints I heard about the costume choice and lack of a free bonus Rocket Raccoon action figure when this figure was originally revealed, I’m finding this to be an exceptionally well-done Groot toy and a fine addition to the Marvel Select toy line as a whole. The figure itself has plenty of articulation and an even greater range of motion than I’d ever expect to see Groot utilize, the sculpting and paint detail are up to the usual DST high standards, and the figure’s heft and quality are equally impressive.

I would have liked a closed fist and slightly tighter joints, but otherwise this Groot Marvel Select figure is all-around exceptional and a fantastic value for his price. Get this Exclusive Groot figure from the Marvel Shop while it’s still available for retail price, because I foresee this figure being expensive on the aftermarket after it sells out. Highly recommended.

GRADE: A