We at Brick Hello sometimes love to look at details, and details make all the difference. In this case, we take a look at 4 unique and related mini-figures for close for comparison. The list of the suspects in question are (in order of release):
1. Deadpool Minifigure from 2012’s Wolverine’s Chopper - Set 6866
2. Donald Duck from 2016 Collectible Minifigure (CMF) Series
3. Deadpool Duck from 2017 San Diego Comic Convention (aka Duckpool)
4. Fakepool Duck, a clone released days later after the SDCC 2017 official release (aka Fakepool)
Below is an image of all 4 suspects together, with a replacement set of legs to give it better comparison to the other two ducks. I think it’s pretty easy to pick out which is the Fakepool Duck. We’ll take a closer look at it in a bit. What we’ve done to make sure you don’t mistake the real deal with the fake is to attach a little icon. It’s quite self explanatory which is which I’m sure. Let’s press on!
Let’s first take a look at the two Deadpools and a comparison of their prints. We can
see that both of them has their expressive eyes with Duckpool giving a better raised wink of sorts. The torso for Duckpool has a better brown print but Deadpool wins when it comes to his pants. he’s got prints on ‘em, while Duckpool sports a generic red set of legs.
If you flip the two figs and take a view of the back, I think Duckpool has got better prints with his brown holster prints where Deadpool only has black. It’s kind of cute to see that both feature the same muscle tone lines.
Now, lets come to the part where we compare the Ducks! We’ve got Donnie, Deadpool and Fakepool here. For the rest of the photos, I’ll have Donnie remove his cap, and shorten his legs to the same height as the Duckpool and Fakepool.
First off, if you take a look at the color of its beak, it’s a dead giveaway! The original Donald and Duckpool has an orange tinge to it. From the profile, we notice a slight bump at the head as opposed to a smooth rounded shaped skull.
Several things to notice in this shot here, let’s point them all out one by one
1) Shine - The Fakepool has a shine compared to a duller or matte surface for Deadpool.
2) Eyes - The whites of Duckpool’s eyes, especially the one on our right has a more curved shape and slant with more character
3) Chest - Fakepool lacks a chest muscle lines
4) Holsters - The holsters are drawn differently (take a closer look)
5) Inner beak - The detailing for the inner beak for Fakepool is very rushed and inconsistent.
6) Paintjob - If you notice, the color of the beak runs into Fakepools left eye a little. Looks like a bad or rushed painjob
7) Brows - The upper brows between the two has a difference
8) Eye shaping - The black circle of Duckpools eyes are resting close to its beak, whereas for Fakepool, it seems to be floating
At a tilted view, you get a better sense of the detailing on the insides of the beak. You can see clearer on how Fakepool has some additional yellow paint running up to its eyes.
Here’s a closer comparison between Duckpool and Donald Duck. You can tell the heads are made from the same moulds (duh! obviously) but the details insides of the beak shows that it sports a different tongue color
At the back of Duckpool vs Fakepool, several things stand out
1) Fakepool has no prints! This is probably due to the fact that that this figure was released a mere days after Duckpool was released only on photos and no one actually got a real sample of what it looked like behind as of yet.
2) Look at the feathery tufts, for Fakepool, it’s symmetrical. For Duckpool, there’s an added layering, right, left, right pattern. Small details, but this tells us that the moulds used is not one and the same.
Here’s a closer look at the arrangement together with Donald. It’s pretty obvious at this angle that both Lego headpieces has that right, left right pattern, whereas Fakepool has it all lined up straight.
A top view of the two heads shows a deeper set of lines and at a different shape from the authentic Deadpool Duck. I think this somewhat gives us the conclusion that the fakes actually do not use the same moulds that come from LEGO but develop their own. If you take an even closer look, you’ll notice that the mould of the beak of Duckpool is seamless, but Fakepool has a line right down in between.
The side profile of the ducks show two things
1) Fakepool has a ‘shinier’ plastic mould as we’ve observed before
2) The paint job on the beak of Fakepool is bad at the edges
In this angled profile you can notice two more differences
1) the arms of Fakepool has a line straight through perhaps due to the gating effect from manufacturing, whereas Duckpool has a smooth arm.
2) The sides of the beak shows that Fakepool is adorned with just a paint job, whereas Duckpool enjoys a detailed dual mould manufacturing process which gives it a beautiful finishing.
Let’s take a look at the insides. You can see again that the Fakepool sports a paintjob, whereas the Duckpool is made from two color moulds and it goes all the way deep. The LEGO prints can be found deep within.
Fakepool on the left and Duckpool on the right, you can see the smaller gating footprint on the top of the head pin.
The below are the leg parts for (left to right) Deadpool, Duckpool and Donald Duck. All of them have the LEGO prints embedded. The Fakepool ones (not shown) is obviously non-printed and plain.
The SDCC Duckpool Mini Review
As with all exclusives today, coming in a blister pack and a single cardboard backing.
No big deal, but collectors go after these with great detail to keep it mint in condition. A look at the back and front of the backing card in detail.
The Fakepool Mini Review
This is how the item got delivered. In a sealed plastic baggie. Bought on e-Bay at about $3 USD before shipping, you can find it cheaper across other sides probably for less than a buck. I got these early as soon as they were out, hence the premium.
Parts laid out with two heavy weaponry left on the manufacturing sprue.
I have to admit, the heavy weaponry looks good, but its hard to get Fakepool to grab them properly
LEGO does not produce these mean looking machines, which to me, looks pretty cool and good! 😛
As I tried to detach the machine guns from Fakepool's grip, the hands popped out. Classic case of quality you get with fakes.
To compare with the Deadpool, these are the accessories he comes with in the Wolverine Chopper’s set.
For those wondering why does the Fakepool have flippers? Well, it's a Marvel property and looks like the clone makers stayed more true to the real comics that featured Deadpool Duck earlier this year. This is the cover where Duckpool was first introduced, and check out those weapons and flipper. From an accessory point of view, clone brands honored the Deadpool Duck better. You got to give them points for that.
Bonus Round!
If you’ve stayed with us long enough, we want to reward you with further insights of the ducks in terms of weight. Let’s have a quick look…
Fakepool Head Only = 1.56 Grams
Duckpool Head Only = 1.65 Grams (slightly heavier than the fake!)
Fakepool Torso and Legs = 2.05 Grams
Duckpool Torso and Legs = 2.11 Grams
Fakepool Full Figure = 3.61 Grams
Donald Duck (replaced with short legs and no cap) = 3.72 Grams
Duckpool Full Figure = no surprise = 3.72 Grams
There you have it, we can tell obviously and expectedly that there would be weight differences with the fakes. Perhaps the next time you want to spot a fake, hopefully this approach can help.
Summary
Final thoughts about the 4 musketeers. The Fakepool is pretty obvious, even from a distance. I’m not sure why would someone want to own this if you’re a LEGO purist. Bad paint job mostly and not a good replica without its torso back print. It’s forgiven considered it was released probably 3 days right after the SDCC figurine was handed out at the convention. Probably decent enough to be spotted from a distance, but after looking at it this close, I for sure will be able to tell the fake from the real. You could certainly tell the number of differences when inspected much more closer.
Yes, there’s a hefty premium to be paid for such exclusive minifigures, but I must say this is quite unique because of its headpiece. I don’t suspect there could be many other duck headpieces being used besides Donald Duck, and with this timely release of Duckpool. The Lego Group certainly did plan perhaps or a nice coincidence to introduce this character since it already had the mould.