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Monty Python and the Holy Grail
Black Knight

By Daniel Lipkowitz, Assistant Editor

From Sideshow Toy comes the seventh release in their series of 12" figures from Monty Python and the Holy Grail.

It's...

The Black Knight!

Following on the heels of the Knights of the Round Table and King Arthur's faithful servant Patsy, the Black Knight hails from one of the most memorable scenes in the classic British comedy. Challenging Arthur to deadly combat, the brave but delusional warrior refuses to surrender in battle despite the consecutive -- and extremely bloody -- loss of each of his limbs. And now he's a scale replica-slash-toy!

Packaging:

In a change from the open-faced packaging of the first six Holy Grail figures, the Black Knight's box has a front flap, held in place by a Velcro fastener and featuring Terry Gilliam's illustration of a frightened Arthur and his knights held aloft inside the Grail. The six principal members of the Monty Python troupe are listed along the left side of the box face, with "John Cleese as The Black Knight" in the center. In a neat extra touch, two strips of shiny coating have been used to make it seem as if Cleese's credit has been taped haphazardly to the front of the flap. Reflecting the Black Knight's colorful fate, red ‘blood' is spattered around the bottom of the box on all sides.

The back of the box superimposes a photo of the toy in full dismembered splendor over a relevant page from the movie script. Stills from the Knight's fight scene with Arthur run down the right side.

The inside of the front flap provides a brief historical background on the film and explains the Black Knight's scene and character. Beside the flap, one can examine the figure through a large and unobstructed window. The Black Knight comes in a plastic tray next to his sword and stand, suspended over a bloodied crimson backdrop. The figure is held in place by a few plastic-coated twisty ties and easily removed or returned for storage or display.

In classic Python tradition, the generic toy-packaging warnings have been replaced by slightly sillier text. "And the Ages shall be 12 and up! (no more, no less...)" cautions the box. "And yes, we really need all of these ties, so stop sniveling!" the bottom flap answers any who might dare question the plastic twisties. The back features a disclaimer that the toy does not spurt blood, issue taunts, hop about on its own or come in any color besides black. Even the toy-design credits include listings for sword training, provision of medical attention and limb gathering, with a tiny note apologizing for the fault in the credits and noting that those responsible have been sacked.

All in all, a class act as packaging goes.

Costume:

Sideshow has done a very good job with their 1/6-scale rendition of the Black Knight's simple but striking costume. The black cloth tunic has just the right thickness to hang and fold realistically when the figure is posed, and the crimson boar's-head symbol on his chest has been rendered fairly accurately, although film stills show that the original had thicker black lines and a bit more creasing around the snout.

The Knight's chain mail bodysuit and collar are represented by a slightly reflective black mesh fabric, which sparkles in the light to simulate a heavy coat of metal links. The ‘bootie'-style coverings on his feet make it difficult to stand the figure up on its own, but that's where the stand comes in handy. Most of the costume parts are stitched in place, so any attempts by customizers to strip the Black Knight may require some careful snipping.

There are visible lines on the Black Knight's sleeves where they separate (and on his leggings as well, although the line there is hidden by his tunic), but they have been minimized as much as possible. The outer sleeves are unhemmed, keeping them relatively flush so that the double layering is less obvious, but running the eventual risk of fraying. If you'd like to go for the shorts and T-shirt look, the lower sleeves and leggings can be slipped right off once the limbs are separated from the body (see Features section for details).

The Black Knight's helmet is definitely the best part of his costume. Credited to sculptor Jared Chapman, the helmet is molded in black plastic and painted in dark gunmetal with faint silver streaks, beautifully capturing the look of used iron. Sculpted rivets and tiny dents and imperfections add a lot to its authenticity and realism.

It must have been difficult to figure out how best to depict a helmet with an eye-slit on a character whose face is never seen. Sideshow made a good choice: the Black Knight does have sculpted features inside the slit, but molded in matte black, they vanish into shadow in anything but direct light. The effect, when viewed from more than a few inches away, is of peering into a dark abyss.

I'm always a little nervous when putting accessories into the somewhat stiff fingers of the first set of knights from the Holy Grail line. Thankfully, the Black Knight's gloves are made from a slightly softer plastic. They're nice and flexible, but still strong enough to grip a sword firmly. In fact, the gloves are just about the best 1/6-scale hands I've seen, and I hope that Sideshow sticks with this material for future releases.

The Black Knight's belt looks nice and leathery and is a great improvement from those of the first set of knights in the line. If I had one very small complaint to make about the figure's otherwise terrific costume, it would be in regards to the belt buckle. Flat, clean and silver, the scalloped buckle would look perfect on a factory-new suit of armor. On the sinister Black Knight, though, it seems a little too smooth and plastic-like in comparison to the worn and pitted helmet. Some sculpted imperfections or weathering, as seen on the product photo on the back of the box, would have made the buckle blend in better.

Accessories:

The Black Knight comes with one accessory: his longsword. Unadorned and elegant, the weapon is colored dark gunmetal with a black hilt. It's a very clean and smooth sculpt, and like the belt buckle might look better with a bit of denting and weathering, but the dark coloration makes its like-new-ness less obvious. The sword looks great in the Knight's hand, and the grip is long enough that he can pose holding it in two-handed style. Pay attention to the age warning on the box; this is definitely not an accessory for small children to play with. The sword is realistically long, thin and sharp at the tip, and while the plastic is flexible enough that it won't easily break, it should still be handled with care.

In what happily seems to be a new trend for Sideshow's 12" figures, the Black Knight also comes with his own stand. Assembled from three pieces, it features a large circular base with the movie logo and "John Cleese as The Black Knight" printed on it above a grail icon. A V-shaped metal brace wraps around the figure's waist, with black plastic tabs at the ends to prevent damage to the costume. Sliding the brace into its plastic post narrows the V, tightening its grip on the figure. It's a solid and good-quality stand, capable of supporting the Black Knight in plenty of poses, and it makes me wish that the first six figures in the line had their own to match.

Articulation:

Using Sideshow's standard male body, the Black Knight has plenty of poseability. He has double-jointed knees and elbows, ball-jointed mid-torso and neck, shoulders that can angle forward and back, and pretty much everything else that you could ask for in a 12" figure. His ankles rather oddly hinge side-to-side rather than fore and aft, but thanks to a mid-calf and ankle swivel, this is easily changed.

Features:

Hey, 12" figures aren't supposed to have extra features! Well, the Black Knight does, and it's quite appropriate to his role in the film. Faithfully recreating his epic duel with King Arthur, the Knight's arms and legs can be detached at mid-bicep and upper thigh. The smooth ends of the severed limbs are bloodied but not gruesome, with a simple peg and hole system to lock them back in place. It takes a bit of effort to tug them off, but fortunately the plastic seems strong enough to hold up to repeated removals. The arms do end up a little looser than usual thanks to the connection pegs, but they're easily strong enough to hold up a weapon as light as the sword. Alas, although the left and right limbs can be swapped, the Black Knight's arms and legs use different-sized pegs and are therefore not interchangeable with one another.

Overall:

With a good costume and a great extra feature, the Black Knight is just plain nifty. If you're a fan of Monty Python or a collector of 1/6th-scale medieval figures, this is one to pick up.

You can see pictures of the Black Knight in our Gallery!

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