I work at Entertainment Earth, so I can tell you that the Jakks Giants Link was (quite literally) a huge hit. Its 20-inch size means you can only fit so many in a booth each day, and both Link (with special premium deco) along with the clear blue Darth Vader jumbo figure were the first things to sell out each morning in 2015. People couldn't get enough of them - which makes me happy, as I'm all about Nintendo and Star Wars.
The Jakks Pacific "giant" figures - currently 20-, 31-, or 48-inches tall - are pretty spectacular. For $20-$30, each 20-inch figure has a smattering of articulation and usually an accessory - this is a "premium" version, a "prepaint" of the regular release Link figure. Both are basically the same, save for deco - so completists may not want both given the amount of space they take up. Mario is the only other jumbo figure out for Nintendo right now, but Link is probably the one that will raise more eyebrows just because there's a lot less Zelda stuff in circulation.
The large scale of the figure means that to keep costs down, you can usually keep articulation down too. Link doesn't skimp too much as he sports ball-jointed shoulders, swivel wrists, a jointed neck, and articulated hips. It's not a Figma, but it's a lot bigger - depending on your collector needs this may be an improvement. This is one of those figures that your spouse will look at you funny for buying, especially if you live in my house and have a lot of action figures. Since it was an exclusive from work - and Nintendo - I couldn't say no to it. I've got a Mario en route and if they ever do Samus, I'll take one. Or two.
Detail on these figures is usually pretty good - not necessarily great, but decent enough for the price. For being a first-on-sale it's a little better than the mass release I see at Toys R Us, with added silver on the shield and chain mail. Oh, and the belt and the button on his chest strap. The sword also has enhanced deco, with metallic paint that really makes a huge difference - but, in all honesty, if you only see the cheap version you'll probably be happy with it. You have to know what to look for to really notice the difference, and while the exclusive version is nicer it's hard to really tell unless you know to look for silver. The exclusive is silver, the regular version is grey - and the silver is the clear winner. The golden Triforce on the shield is a nice perk, too. It's certainly better than yellow.
Link is as much of a monument as a toy - really, it's more of a fixture than a plaything. These have the potential to be low-level collectible statues and are far more interesting than a small cardboard cut-out or fabric poster. I'd like to see more characters and costumes, but so far this format has been less about "collecting" and more about getting a handful of figures for a low price for kids. This is a collector-level figure and I think the gambit will work as long as the awesome version comes out first - side-by-side, I'd probably pick this premium version. Or whatever I saw first. So for the time being, I'm real happy with this one and I'm also glad Mario is unlikely to warrant too many special premium paint applications to tempt me. I look forward to seeing what Jakks makes big next, this is a pretty satisfying figure and I can't wait to not buy the matching Sonic someone will some day make. But I'll take other Links... Zelda II long-nosed elf Jughead would be great.
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