Diamond Select Toys has spent the last few years revolutionizing the size, detail and quality that we can expect from value-priced PVC statues, and as they’ve become one of my absolute favorite companies, it only seems right to kick off 2019 with a Marvel Gallery review to see how far the line has come. The less than $45 Marvel Gallery Venom Statue just started shipping this winter, and despite its low price, it’s one of my favorite (and the most unique) Venom figures in the land…

The Right:

With the sheer number of companies that have tackled Venom merch over the past few years, you might think that the character would feel played-out toy- and statue-wise by now. But Venom has had many looks and interpretations over the years, so even after many iterations, something that feels fresh and new can still be released.

Such is the case with the first-ever Symbiote to grace the Diamond Select Toys Marvel Gallery PVC statue series: Venom himself. Rather than going for a full-on action approach, DST chose to emphasize the horror element of the character for this figure. And it works. It really, really works.

Basically, what we’ve got here to the classic Venom Symbiote merging with Eddie Brock and forming up over his body. The inhuman strip of teeth stretching over Eddie’s face looks downright terrifying, and I love how there are tendrils weaving together all over the body.

The symbiote isn’t all smooth in the way it often is on low-end collectibles, either—it’s covered in sculpted textures that give it the feel of a living thing (as opposed to just seeming like a cost of smooth paint the way it often does on cheaper items).

At a glance, I wasn’t exactly enamored with the actual Eddie Brock portrait on this figure, but I’ve come to be at peace with it after sitting back and letting the design as a whole wash over me. The Eddie Brock head is eons better than Hasbro’s attempt, and the way he’s got his teeth gritted gives the portrait a bit of edgy intensity.

I think the lips probably didn’t need to be quite as pronounced on this Eddie Brock Venom head, but as a whole I think the head works.

That said, my absolute favorite way to look at this Marvel Gallery Venom Statue is from angles where you only see a bit of the Eddie head.

I feel like these are the best perspectives to view the piece at for its horrific nature to really shine.

The base is some simple stony terrain and brick wall debris. The paint deco on the base gives it the detail to bring it to life and not look plastic-y. It’s subtle and doesn’t distract from the figure, while enhancing the statue as a whole–exactly what a good base should do. I also really dig the way that the symbiote is oozing into the rocks–uber-creepy!

Perhaps the most outstanding features of this Diamond Select Toys Venom Statue are its size and price, though: this is a big 10” Statue with a lot of heft to it, yet priced at a dirt-cheap MSRP of 45 bucks (and even less than that shipped on Amazon right now).

It’s astonishing to me that DST has been able to price this line as low as they have for as long as they have, and the $5 price increase that we’re evidently getting this year doesn’t rub me the wrong way at all. If there’s one “best value” Marvel line around, this is it.

The Wrong:

The one aspect of this release that really falls flat for me is, oddly enough, the packaging. The box itself is not only really plain, but the print quality on it (particularly on the back) looks really cheap and awful.

Thankfully, I’m a toy collector and not a box collector, so this isn’t a big deal for me. But for those who like to keep their figures and statues boxed, the presentation value of this release is definitely sorely lacking. It’s a shame for such a gorgeously detailed monster of a statue to give some collectors a bad first impression because of unimpressive packaging.

Overall: Large, heavy, and wonderfully designed, the Diamond Select Venom Gallery Statue is one of the best things that DST has done to-date in any of their Marvel Statue ranges. The packaging feels really underwhelming, but the Venom figure inside the box is something wholly different than what anyone else has done—and also wholly satisfying. A unique concept well-executed at a shockingly low price—kudos to you, DST. Highly recommended.

GRADE: A