he idea of Arthur and his Knights of Camelot is one of the most enduring and romantic tales of all time. So it was with great cheek and complete irreverence that the crew of Monty Python, perhaps the most infamous of all English comedy troupes, brought the tale to the big screen in a film that is now and forever a part of this timeless legend. The story of Arthur, King of the Britons, gathering his men to complete a quest given to him directly by God, is a sweeping story of daring, adventure, cowardice and complete hilarity—not to mention a deadly bunny.
Coming to a footbridge on his journey to gather knights to his cause, Arthur, and his loyal servant, Patsy, encounter a large, menacing figure—the Black Knight. Arthur invites the knight to join him in his quest for the grail, but the knight stands steadfast, unanswering. Finally giving up on this new recruit, Arthur begins to cross. "None shall pass," says the Black Knight. What ensues is perhaps the most bloody—yet most hilariously funny—swordfight of all filmdom, culminating in the Black Knight's limbs being sliced off, one by one, until he is left wriggling on his stumps, screaming "Oh. Oh, I see. Running away, eh? You yellow bastards! Come back here and take what's coming to you. I'll bite your legs off!" Even completely limbless, the Black Knight is ever vigilant.
When Sideshow announced some time ago that it would begin creating 12-inch action figures from this cult classic film, the collecting community issued a collective cheer, while at the same time remaining dubious. Forever, it seemed, companies have created likenesses, toys, busts, tangible souvenirs of films and other media. Yet it seemed to fans of Python's Holy Grail the same would never come to them. Sideshow proved them wrong.
The Black Knight, an incredibly flexible 12-inch action figure, comes dressed completely in black faux chain mail, boars' head tabard, heaume, and gloves (but no boots of any kind) and is supported by a printed display stand in colorful, humorous packaging that sports such informative text as "Thou shalt exercise extreme caution whilst removing the contents herein. If you doubt your courage or your strength, cease entry to this package, for severe flesh wounds await you all with nasty, tiny, sharp, pointy edges!"
The Black Knight is sculpted by Jared Chapman, and the figure's overall design is credited to the Sideshow Toy Figure Team.
And now for something completely desirable
When such beloved characters are put into physical form by any company, there is usually a sense of trepidation by collectors, the fear being that they will botch the job and do a disservice to the image of those characters. Sideshow, arguably this decade's leading licenser of excellent collectibles, did not disappoint fans in the least.
From the Holy Grail property, Sideshow first released the five main knights, and immediately fans grabbed them eagerly from shelves. After their initial success, Sideshow began to release other characters, such as Patsy, the French Taunter and the Bridgekeeper, and now it seems the whole cast of characters is available.
Yet not even the Knights of Ni nor Tim the Enchanter has the spirit of this Black Knight figure. What these figures have in common makes them eminently desirable for fans, collectors and people who just like to play with their toys—great articulation, decent likenesses, excellent clothing, gorgeously crafted gear and interesting little items from the film. However, what distinguishes this fantastic figure is the fact that, one by one, you can mimic the swordfight with Arthur—by plucking his limbs off!
And before parents get outraged at the violence inherent in this figure, it should be noted that the intended audience for this series of toys is 12 and up, while legally it is suitable for 3 and up due to small parts. Yet anyone who has laughed uproariously at this scene in the film will not exactly be shocked by the eventually limbless action figure they are holding.
This excellent effect is achieved by mid-limb joints that attach by plugs. Cleverly, the black "chain mail" outfit easily accommodates the severing by overlapping the areas where the limbs come apart. Due to the nature of the material, this seam is fairly well hidden until used, and the effect is quite amusing.
For those who think that this is a great opportunity to peek under the helmet to see what the Black Knight may have looked like, expect to be thwarted. The helmet is not removable, and only a simple sculpted section of face, painted entirely black, including the eyes, can be seen underneath.
The simple black tabard and elegant longsword are excellently crafted as well, and complete this figure to perfection.
