During Toy Fair 2010, Sideshow Collectibles announced they would be going back to their roots in their The Lord of the Rings license by once again doing maquettes of the characters in Middle-earth. What Sideshow told us was that this line would give us different aspects of the characters we have grown to love. Also during the video (view it here) from Toy Fair we got a tease of the concept drawings of several early pieces in the line.
Then in December of last year, during the twelve days of Sideshow, we got a beautiful look at protos of the pieces to come. The image included: Aragorn as Strider, Gandalf The Grey, Arwen, Legolas, and a hidden character in the back. The hidden character was Gimli, Son of Gloin and shortly after we got a great preview video of the upcoming Boromir maquette. We’re now two pieces in hand for this line with Aragorn already in our collections and now Gandalf the Grey joins him.
Gandalf is one of the most important characters in the world of Middle-earth. From his role in helping to get Bilbo to go on the unexpected journey to his role as leader of the Fellowship in The Lord of the Rings, Gandalf was there. Now, we’ve gotten several versions of Gandalf over the course of the last decade plus, but as Sideshow stated this piece gives us a look at old grey beard in a way we’ve not seen him done before.
Sideshow has done this with Gandalf perfectly and it’s quite a refreshing look. This maquette shows Gandalf’s power as Gandalf the Grey, which we only saw a glimpse of during the Fellowship of the Ring before he fell in Moria, The Hobbit, and the Fellowship of the Ring book. So adding this version of Gandalf to your collection is a wise choice.
PACKAGING
The packaging for the Gandalf the Grey Maquette is really nicely done. The graphic work on the front of the box while simple has a really nice look to it. The front of the box is black with Lord of the Rings in gold and Gandalf the Grey in grey. Both sidesof the box show pictures of the statue with the same text and the back of the box is the same as the front. Inside the box the Styrofoam is laid out as to make sure your statue gets to you intact.
SCULPTING
Jeff Yagher is the man responsible for sculpting the Gandalf maquette. You can tell when looking at this piece that he really paid attention to every detail of Gandalf on screen. The likeness he captured of Sir Ian McKellen as Gandalf is truly one of the best we’ve seen. Every detail in his face is there from the wrinkles in his face to the individual hairs in his beard.
Attention to detail was not left to just the portrait of Gandalf but to his outfit as well. The job done making the outfit look as if were really cloth and if the edges of the outfit were really embroidered. The same was done to his belt and leather pouch both giving the appearance of being leather. Both staffs come detailed matching their on screen counterparts down to the crystal Gandalf uses on the one he has entering Moria.
PAINT
The paintwork on Gandalf is top notch and one of Sideshow’s best paint jobs. Gandalf’s skin tone is amazing really has the look 
of human skin tone giving a very life like appearance. Attention to detail was not spared on this aspect either with a very nice addition over what are supposed to be veins in the hands making them look real. The outfit is nicely detailed to work with the sculpt in the effort to make it look like cloth, and then you get a nice dirty look to the edging of the outfit making it look worn. Even the rock piece Gandalf is standing on looks like something you could find out digging for rocks. Sideshow has really nailed the paint on Aragorn and Gandalf both making them must haves.
ACCESSORIES
Now, with statues, maquettes, and Premium Formats you don’t normally think of them having accessories. Well, with the options Gandalf comes with these are easily called accessories. Gandalf comes with Glamdring, his staff from before he meets up with Saruman, and the staff he has as theFellowship makes its way through Moria. The two staffs present two totally different display options. However, in order to get both staffs you must order the exclusive version of Gandalf from Sideshow Collectibles.
OVERALL
Gandalf costs $250 for the exclusive version and $240 for the regular edition. It doesn’t matter which way you go this piece is a winner and worth the value of the price tag. This is even more true when you see the level of detail, paint, and awesomeness put into this piece. He will fit perfectly into your Lord of the Rings collection and is another great piece in this growing maquette line. Do not hesitate to get on the Wait List for the exclusive or get the regular on order
SPECIFICATIONS
The edition size of the exclusive version of Gandalf the Grey is 400 pieces worldwide and 750 pieces for the regular edition. Gandalf is 17.5″ high x 10″ wide x 10″ long and will weigh 8 pounds.
At the time of this review, both the Exclusive Edition piece and the Regular Edition piece are available as in-stock (usually ships within 24 hours) directly from SideshowCollectibles.com. [Order Exclusive Edition] [Order Regular Edition]
PHOTOS
