JULES & VINCENT
PULP FICTION MINIMATES
I’ve previously mentioned here how I am not much of a fan of Pulp Fiction. In the last couple of years, I’ve familiarized myself with most of Quentin Tarantino’s film catalogue, and I’ve enjoyed a few of them quite a bit. However, I just can’t bring myself to Pulp Fiction enough to even make it all the way through the movie. I’ve tried several times, but I just can’t do it. That said, it got Minimates, so I couldn’t completely ignore it, right? Today, I’ll be looking at two of the film’s most definitive characters, Jules & Vincent.
THE FIGURES THEMSELVES
Jules & Vincent were released as a two-pack in the Pulp Fiction Minimates line. In fact, they’re the only two-pack in the line so far, as the rest have all been four-packs. Given that these two are such a distinctive pair, however, it makes perfect sense to offer their main looks by themselves.
JULES
Jules is one of the legendary Samuel L Jackson’s earlier film roles, and it helped to make him as well-known as he is today. He’s also one of the few parts of the movie I could actually stand, so that’s definitely a plus. He’s shown here in his distinctive black suit/black tie look that he sports for the majority of his time in the film. The figure is roughly 2 ½ inches tall and he has the standard 14 points of articulation. He’s built on the standard Minimate body, with add-on pieces for his hair, jacket, and tie, as well as unique hand pieces. The hair is the same piece we saw on the Casual Jules ‘mate I reviewed earlier, though it first appeared here. It’s a good sculpt and it captures the character’s look pretty well. The jacket and tie are both pieces we’ve seen lots of times before; they’re good pieces, so there’s no need to change things up now. The hands are new, and they’re by far the coolest part of the figure (but also slightly annoying. We’ll get to that in a sec.) They’re sculpted holding his “refreshing beverage” and “tasty burger” from the movie. The pieces are stylized just a bit to fit the ‘mate aesthetic, but it’s clear what they’re supposed to be. They’re exceptionally fun pieces, and I hope we see them again. Paint on Jules is pretty decent, though not super intricate or anything. The face is slightly different from the Casual Jules, but still has a great SLJ likeness. The paint on the drink and burger is just a touch sloppy, but pretty good overall. Jules is packed with a handgun, a wallet, and a clear display stand. Remember when I said the hands were slightly annoying? Here’s where that comes in. Even though he’s got accessories he’s clearly meant to be able to hold, he doesn’t actually include a set of normal hands. To DST’s credit, a set of hands for him was included in the following boxed set and you could also have them sent to you by contacting CS, I just haven’t done either of those things.
VINCENT
Vincent Vega is one of the film’s main characters, played by John Travolta, whose career was re-ignited courtesy of Pulp Fiction. Here’s the thing: I don’t really care for John Travolta. Guy rubs me the wrong way. That’s probably a big piece of my dislike of the movie, to be honest. Anyway, here he is. Like Jules, he’s in his definitive suit and tie look. From the neck down, he’s essentially the same as Jules, apart from having normal hands. He makes use of the basic jacket and tie, which are still good pieces. He’s got his own hairpiece, which does a pretty good job of capturing Vince’s slicked back look from the film. Vince’s paint is pretty straight forward, with the body being pretty simple black and white. The details on the face are nicely handled, and they present an excellent likeness of Travolta, so there’s no mistaking who this is supposed to be. Vince includes a handgun (Same as Jules’), a briefcase, and a clear display stand.
THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION
So, if I don’t like Pulp Fiction, why do I keep getting Pulp Fiction Minimates? Well, this one wasn’t really a conscious effort. For their 6th anniversary, Luke’s Toy Store had a special sale, which included grab bags. I picked up a few of them, and this pair was in one (I also got a second, loose Vince in another). Not exactly something I would have picked up on my own, but it’s not a bad set, and I did end up getting them for less than retail. Jules is legitimately a pretty cool ‘mate, and Vince is at the very least well made.
The Figure In Question 