Deadpool was actually the very first character I ever bought a full-body resin statue for, way back in 2005 (from Bowen Designs). So you could say I was a Deadpool-collecting fanboy before Deadpool was cool—or at least since before he was gratuitously merchandised. As such, I was primed and ready to buy whatever Deadpool Iron Studios put out as soon as they announced it was on the way. Deadpool turns out to be one of the most expensive entries in the whole X-Men BDS statues lineup… but that doesn’t mean he’s necessarily one of the best…

Up until now, I’ve pretty much straight-up gushed about every statue released in the Iron Studios X-Men Battle Diorama Series. Unfortunately, that streak ends here, with a statue of a character who I’m generally an easy mark for merchandising-wise: Deadpool.

I had my concerns about this Iron Studios Deadpool BDS when I saw it make its exhibition premiere at the last NewYork Toy Fair in 2020, but I went ahead and purchased it anyway and now it’s in my home. Just what does this 1/10 resin Wade Wilson do right… and wrong? Here’s my review…

Might as well start with the rather large unicorn in the room. You may have noticed that I’m a mite sour on this piece. But why, you ask?
The base for this piece is, well… truly bizarre.

I know I said I was tired of increasingly ubiquitous Sentinel debris bases, but this giant cartoon-styled plush unicorn base makes Deadpool a jarring departure from every other X-Men BDS released. Thematically and stylistically, it just does not fit.

This statue feels like I’m being pandered to in a condescending way, and I can’t say I like the feeling at all. I enjoy small nods to the fans and fan-service to a certain degree, but this just feels over-the-top and goofy to me for the sake of itself.

I feel as though Iron Studios started out brainstorming with the notion that people like Deadpool unilaterally want him to be cartoony and zany with both a ridiculous amount of guns and numerous doofy elements, and went from there–like Iron Studios went down a checklist of “wacky Deadpool fan-service elements”, marking off box after box.

Deadpool himself is in a goofy one-legged pose atop the stuffed unicorn, aiming a finger gun with his left hand and wielding a rocket launcher with his right hand, while wearing a rainbow unicorn backpack stuffed full of junk.

The crammed backpack is rather apropos, as the piece in general feels cluttered and messy. I straight-up hate that the rocket launcher strap pegs into Deadpool’s shoulder, necessitating its display or else leaving Wade with an unsightly hole in his body.

I think it’s possible to strike a balance of the silly and serious aspects of Deadpool’s character, but Iron Studios has ventured into the all-out ludicrous zone with their interpretation and it simply doesn’t work for me.

It’s a genuine shame that I hate the concept/design of this piece so much, as the actual paint and sculpting are excellent, as usual from Iron Studios.

Because this is a higher-priced “DX” release, we get two interchangeable heads for Deadpool: masked and unmasked Wade Wilson portraits. Hamburger face Wade grosses me out, so I’ll never be displaying it after taking these review photos. The magnets are strong and do work outstandingly for swapping the heads around, though, and both heads are beautifully executed.

Overall: This is the first piece I’ve reviewed from the Iron Studios X-Men statues series that just doesn’t jive with me. There’s a plethora of beautiful details on this piece, but the overall design feels cluttered and like Iron Studios is trying way too hard. To me, this piece feels awkward and out of place displayed with the other straight-up serious releases in this lineup. I don’t regret getting this Deadpool, necessarily, but it is the closest I’ve come to such with a purchase from this series.

GRADE: C