Doctor Who: A Collector's Guide To The 5.5 Character Options Action Figure Range

2017 - Bargain Hunt

Another quiet year of figures began in February with the release of a new wave of collector's figures. These sets were available from Forbidden Planet and from the Character Options website. A 10th Doctor figure from Voyage Of The Damned in tuxedo suit was released with Sonic Screwdriver (only). Two new figures of 12 were released, both featuring the Series 9/10 version of the Sonic Screwdriver, and were both the only releases of these figures. A version of 12 from Before The Flood in hoodie and black t-shirt and a figure from The Girl Who Died in hoodie and white t-shirt were released. The 10th Doctor's TARDIS console was rereleased in the new style packaging in July for £39.99 (and some retailers £49.99). 

The same month, B&M released their next wave of figures exclusively in their stores. This range was announced in April, along with some new Sonic Screwdriver releases and a 12 inch Dalek release from B&M stores. The boxes were now much larger for their releases, and were issued with the 4th Doctor, 9th Doctor, and "Monsters" themed sets. These sets were labelled the product codes 2942455 and were now priced at £16.99. By far the least popular of the three was the 9th Doctor set which was based around Rose, featuring 9 in burgundy jumper (6th), Series 1 Rose (3rd), and a grey Auton (3rd). The paint apps were revised for these figures, and the release of 9 has heavier weathering on the leather jacket. The Rose figure was the same sculpt used for the 2005 Dalek battlepack, but this variant is most notable for being the most detailed for Rose's hair paint.

The 4th Doctor set contained Tom Baker from Pyramids Of Mars with Sonic Screwdriver (3rd), Leela with knife in tan outfit (2nd), and a Classic series K-9 (only - remodelled from the Series 2 versions now with a greyer wash). In this set, Leela has darker hair and more noticeable blue eyes but other differences are minor. The K-9 Mk1 is a darker grey than previous releases along with a black tail, top panel and painted side view screen. The "Monsters" set contained the Cyber Controller from The Tomb Of The Cybermen (2nd, only previously available as a build-a-wave set), a Cyberman from Attack Of The Cyberman and gun (only) and Commander Skorr with helmet and pistol (6th). Sontaran "Skorr" is essentially a re-named re-release although he can either come with a rank insignia badge of 3 (Commander) or 5 (General) in this set. 

It's unknown why this Sontaran is called 'Skorr' when it uses the Staal head sculpt. The badge is on the collar below the helmet line. Like with the Third Doctor set the previous year, it encourages fans to buy both sets in order to complete their collection. The face of the Cyber Controller for this release has a darker grey and the figure now has a silver rim below the brain section. The decoration on the brain is also slightly more obvious on this new version. The Attack Cyberman is a combination of the Earthshock and Rogue Cyberman with appropriate paint application. The gun also has a different paint application.

Apparently, the 4th Doctor's head was removable to fit another 4th Doctor head on. K-9 did not have the spring loaded panel and is a pull back and go one. 9's sonic reused an old sculpt, the same one as in the 13 Doctors set the screwdriver which was not bendy, and the lips of the 9th Doctor paint apps don't match the sculpt. The next short wave of Character Options figures would not be released until August 2018, making the gap between the next wave of figures the longest from July 2017 to the following August...