While many of my custom figures are updates to official Playmates Toys' releases with tweaks for better part choices or overall aesthetics, Commander Riker from the first season of Star Trek: The Next Generation was customized to fill a void left by Playmates. After the first series of figures depicted the "Big Seven" (minus Doctor Crusher) in what was, at the time of release, their "current" Season Five look, the second series of figures was patterned after the characters' appearance in Seasons One and Two. These releases featured some slight retooling of the torso molds to change the high collar back in to the low collar of the first two seasons. But, apparently there wasn't money in the tooling budget for a new Commander Riker head sculpt without the beard. So, while Picard, Data, Geordi, and Worf represent their look in Season One, Commander Riker sports his Season Two look.
For the second wave of figures I can cut Playmates a little bit of slack. Like all toy companies, they were relying on repaints and minor tooling changes to recoup some of the initial investment needed to get the line going. But, like may other collectors, as the line continued I would have much rather seen figures like Commander Riker from Season One than figures from single episode appearances like Riker as a Malcorian from "First Contact" or Geordi LaForge as a Tarchannen III alien from "Identity Crisis".
The real kicker came when Playmates decided to release a non-canonical series of "Starfleet Academy" figures and finally gave us an "Ensign Babyface" Riker head sculpt.
Many other customizers have done a straightforward head swap of the Starfleet Academy Riker head on to the Season Two Riker body. While effective, I simply hate the standard Riker body with its exaggerated "martini glass" physique, permanent phaser trigger finger, and Heisman pose hands.
So, in an effort to create a Commander Riker that was standardized with the other figures I was working on, I set to work on finding the right combination of parts. The head is, like everyone else, from the Starfleet Academy Cadet Riker figure. Like my custom figures of Picard, Geordi, O'Brien, and Q from Season One, Riker uses the Season One and Two Captain Picard torso. In accumulating enough of that figure to supply a body for all those customs, I realized that there was a variant in the figure release.
The torso on the left features four distinctly sculpted rank pips. The torso on the right features three sculpted pips and one that is painted on. The torso on the right just required a quick swipe with some acetone to achieve a demotion to Commander, and it was all set for use with my Season One and (coming soon) Season Two Commander Riker custom figures.
One of the things I distinctly remember about the Star Trek: The Next Generation figures made by Galoob is that Riker and Worf were taller than everyone else. It makes sense - Jonathan Frakes is 6" 4' tall. And so while the arms are the same one I used for Captain Picard, the upper legs were taken from Q to provide some additional height.
The Geordi LaForge lower legs with the red piping around the yoke are not as tall as the legs I used for my Season Seven (coming soonish.... I'll get there eventually I promise) and other Riker figures that have plain black trousers. For those Riker figures I found that the Chief O'Brien legs from the first series of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine figures gave the necessary boost to achieve height without looking out of proportion. I may someday go back and remake the figure with that combination of parts on the legs and paint the red piping myself, but at the time I was avoiding paint whenever possible.
Overall I am pleased to have Number One from Season One properly depicted in my collection. While the officially released Seasons One and Two Captain Picard was exceedingly inaccurate with the wrong style pants and the belt separating the torso from the waist, Commander Riker only features the belt as a holdover from the first series tooling. As described earlier, the Seasons One and Two uniform was very clearly a jumpsuit and while the waist swivel does create a separation between the torso and the waist it still more closely resembles the hated spandex space suit of those first two seasons.
Once again as a quick recap of how I made this figure:
- Starfleet Academy Cadet Riker head
- Season one and two Captain Picard torso and arms
- Q in Starfleet uniform waist and upper legs
- Season one Geordi La Forge lower legs
- Additional Season one and two Captain Picard for left shoulder
