Unmatched Cobble and Fog: Jekyll & Hyde

 

Two sides of the same man - the scheming of Doctor Jekyll and force of nature of Mr. Hyde. Who will be the author of your demise?

Jekyll and Hyde is the fourth and final "official" figure for Unmatched: Cobble and Fog. Having actually read The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde I have frequently been disappointed with the portrayal, especially in the last 40 years of so, of Mr. Hyde in visual medium and with miniature manufacturers. He is usually portrayed as a version of the Incredible Hulk, which is not how he is described in the novella: 

“Well, it was this way,” returned Mr. Enfield: “I was coming home from some place at the end of the world, about three o’clock of a black winter morning, and my way lay through a part of town where there was literally nothing to be seen but lamps. Street after street, and all the folks asleep—street after street, all lighted up as if for a procession and all as empty as a church—till at last I got into that state of mind when a man listens and listens and begins to long for the sight of a policeman. All at once, I saw two figures: one a little man (italics mine) who was stumping along eastward at a good walk, and the other a girl of maybe eight or ten who was running as hard as she was able down a cross street. Well, sir, the two ran into one another naturally enough at the corner; and then came the horrible part of the thing; for the man trampled calmly over the child’s body and left her screaming on the ground. It sounds nothing to hear, but it was hellish to see. It wasn’t like a man; it was like some damned Juggernaut."

Richard Mansfield in the first stage version of the novella in 1887.

Based in Soho in London's West End, Dr Jekyll is a "large, well-made, smooth-faced man of fifty with something of a slyish cast", who sometimes feels he is battling between the good and evil within himself, leading to the struggle between his dual personalities of Henry Jekyll and Edward Hyde. He has spent a great part of his life trying to repress evil urges that were not fitting for a man of his stature. He creates a serum, or potion, in an attempt to separate this hidden evil from his personality. In doing so, Jekyll transformed into the smaller, younger, cruel, remorseless, and evil Hyde. Jekyll has many friends and an amiable personality, but as Hyde, he becomes mysterious and violent. As time goes by, Hyde grows in power. After taking the potion repeatedly, he no longer relies upon it to unleash his inner demon, i.e., his alter ego. Eventually, Hyde grows so strong that Jekyll becomes reliant on the potion to remain conscious throughout the book.

Oh well. The figure is done well as it depicts the moment of transformation. To accentuate this, I decided to pull an "Incredible Hulk" and paint the Hyde side green. Guilty as charged!

A nicely sculpted 28mm hard plastic figure.