Toybox REVIEW: SV-Action Peni Parker & SP//dr

Release Date: June 2022

RRP: 13750 yen

While it seems that MAFEX have given up halfway through the Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse cast, thankfully Sentinel arrived to pick up the slack and see the main Spider crew through right to the end with their aptly-titled SV-Action line. Starting things off simply with figures of both Miles Morales and Peter B. Parker, Sentinel then threw a bit off a curveball - not going the predictable route by doing Gwen next but instead surprising everyone with SV-Action Peni Parker & SP//dr. Given that even Hasbro haven't touched this pair with the Marvel Legends range, it certainly shows their dedication to the critically-acclaimed film.

Straight off the bat Sentinel have done a great job with the packaging of the figure, which uses the style and colour palette of Into the Spider-Verse to full effect. But rather than show off the figure inside laying on its plastic tray, the box is a largely windowless one that instead shows off the toy in a range of dynamic poses. The only window present is a tiny one in the top corner, which shows off the Peni Parker figurine included rather than the main SP//dr figure. Meanwhile the other side of the box (which could be the back or front depending how you look at it) features proper artwork of SP//dr together with the Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse logo. Open the box up and the contents are spread across two plastic trays - one main one for the figure/accessories and a smaller one underneath for the display stand. Also included in the box is an instructions booklet, which shows off the various features the figure has via step-by-step images.

First appearing in Edge of the Spider-Verse #5 in 2014, SP//dr is robotic suit partnered with Peni Parker - the "Spider-Man" of Earth-14512. The Peni Parker and SP//dr of Into the Spider-Verse are a little different to their comic counterparts though, hailing from Earth-TRN704 and a more stereotypical anime look. This SP//dr features an egg-shaped body with long spindly limbs, with a domed-screen face that can display a variety of expressions. Sentinel have translated the design into figure form beautifully, with their SV-Action SP//dr sporting vibrant colours and clear moulded detailing. The dome has been done in a semi-translucent black plastic with painted eyes, nicely giving it the look of a screen display. Similarly vibrant are the clear blue plastic joints connecting the limbs, which are an effective way of conveying the absence of joints the onscreen design has. While it isn't quite the same, the colour and size of the joints (in comparison to the body pieces they're connecting) do make them them feel like some sort of energy or magnetism connecting them together. 

The clean look is perfectly fine but if you want something a little more grungy and film-accurate, Sentinel have included a sheet of waterslide decals which can be applied to the figure should you so wish. These decals are directly based on the ones that appear in the film, ranging from a number of kawaii graphics to a   "Hello, my name is Spider-Man" name badge. The decal sheet has multiples of each design just incase something goes wrong when applying (or if you want to use them elsewhere). Despite having trouble with using waterslide decals in the past, thankfully these ones were really easy to work with and applied to the figure without any issues. That said, I have mixed feelings about having to apply them myself considering this is a 13750 yen figure we're talking about. I can kind of see why Sentinel did it though, given at there doesn't seem to be definitive places for each of the designs to go - even the instruction booklet only gives a few examples. Looking at screen caps and promotional art the placement of a couple is pretty consistent, but then there are a few that seem to move about (or outright disappear) depending on the image.

SP//dr's head and body may be one solid piece but there's still plenty of articulation in the limbs, consisting of swivel hinge shoulders, elbows, hips, knees and ankles as well as standard wrist swivels and hinged hands/claws. Right from the initial reveal of this figure collectors may have been concerned about the use of translucent blue plastic for the shoulder/elbow/hip/knee joints and how fragile these might turn out to be over time. While it's still a bit too early to tell if the plastic will degrade over time, for now at least collectors can rest assured that there's no immediate issue with the joints - they have the same buttery smooth motion you'd expect from opaque plastic. The combination of numerous swi

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