Alien Arthur Dallas and Ellen Ripley Hiya Toys PX Previews Exclusive Figures In-Hand Review

One of the things I’ve always loved about the spacesuits in Ridley Scott’s 1979 Alien is their industrial design. They’re bulky, covered in equipment, and look like something the crew of the Nostromo would actually wear while investigating an unfamiliar planet. They also happen to be great designs for action figures, provided the Hiya can reproduce all that equipment without sacrificing too much at a smaller scale.

Hiya Toys tackled two of those designs with its 1:18 scale PX Previews Exclusive figures of Captain Arthur Dallas and Ellen Ripley. Originally released in 2022, both figures stand approximately four inches tall and feature removable helmets, interchangeable hands, and accessories specific to each character. Dallas wears his pink Mk.50 Compression Suit from the expedition to LV-426, while Ripley comes in the white spacesuit she wears during the final scenes aboard the Narcissus escape shuttle.

Big Bad Toy Store provided both figures for this review, so a big thank you to the team at BBTS for sending them over. The spacesuits have some excellent sculpted detail for their size. Dallas comes reasonably close to Tom Skerritt, but Ripley’s likeness to Sigourney Weaver misses the mark.

Packaging

Hiya Toys went with matching black and blue window boxes for Dallas and Ripley. The Alien logo sits across the top, with character portraits along the bottom and the figures visible through the front windows with their accessories.

The narrow side panels feature photographs of the figures in their spacesuits against dark backgrounds.

The opposite sides use additional full-length photographs, with Dallas and Ripley shown in their respective spacesuits. The presentation is simple, but I like that Hiya Toys uses actual product photography rather than relying entirely on illustrations.

The backs are even simpler, with a large Alien logo against a mostly black background. There’s no elaborate character biography or extensive artwork here.

Inside the boxes, the figures are secured in clear plastic trays. Hiya Toys also includes illustrated backing cards featuring the Alien creature against a dark background. Those illustrations are a nice addition, particularly since the exterior packaging doesn’t devote much space to artwork.

The clear trays provide a better look at the included accessories, including the interchangeable hands and weapons. Each figure also comes with a black grated display base, matching the industrial appearance of the Nostromo’s interiors.

Figure Details

Arthur Dallas

Captain Arthur Dallas, played by Tom Skerritt, leads the Nostromo crew’s expedition to investigate the mysterious signal coming from LV-426. His pink Mk.50 Compression Suit is covered with quilted fabric sections, white protective panels, and dark armor, and Hiya Toys has recreated much of that complicated design.

The chest and shoulder armor have brown and gray weathering, while the pink sections feature darker shading around the sculpted folds. The clear helmet dome, external framework, and headlamp are particularly important parts of the suit.

Dallas comes with interchangeable hands, a gun, and a portable handtorch, along with his display base. The armor extends from the shoulders and chest down to the reinforced legs, with ribbed sections around the arms and knees. The black grated base has connecting pieces, so it can be joined with Ripley’s for a larger display.

The front of the suit is packed with sculpted detail. The chest armor has several layered sections, including a small blue marking, while the equipment at his waist has additional blue and gray paint applications. I particularly like the patterned sections around his knees and forearms. They’re small details, but they help reproduce the unusual look of the original spacesuit.

From the side, you can appreciate just how bulky this equipment is. The helmet has a substantial external frame surrounding the clear dome, with mechanical components along the sides and top. A corrugated hose runs from the helmet to the equipment pack on his back.

The equipment pack deserves some attention of its own. There are several sculpted compartments, control panels, red fittings, and small colored indicators. The darker components of the equipment pack have some nice weathering, particularly around the sculpted compartments and control panels.

The opposite side reveals more of the helmet’s framework and the equipment mounted behind it. The arms have reinforced forearm sections and textured fabric around the elbows, while the lower legs combine ribbed protective panels with the pink fabric. Hiya Toys has done a good job preserving the proportions of a suit that was never particularly streamlined.

With the helmet removed, Dallas’s head sculpt comes reasonably close to Tom Skerritt. The hairstyle and beard are there, and there’s something of Skerritt in the face, but the likeness isn’t quite dead on. I’d still prefer to display him with the helmet and collar in place.

Dallas includes a small gun with a dark finish and a few red details. The close-up also reveals more of the equipment attached around his waist, including a blue control box with tiny painted buttons.

Dallas also includes a portable handtorch, another piece of the wonderfully clunky, industrial technology from the original Alien. I’ve always liked the practical, utilitarian design of the equipment aboard the Nostromo.

Ellen Ripley

Ellen Ripley, played by Sigourney Weaver, wears the white spacesuit from the closing scenes of Alien. After escaping the Nostromo aboard the Narcissus, she discovers that the Xenomorph has followed her onto the shuttle. Her final confrontation with the creature gives us another opportunity to see the film’s elaborate spacesuit design. Hiya Toys uses much of the same construction as Dallas, but the white color scheme changes its appearance. Ripley includes a removable helmet, interchangeable hands, a harpoon gun, and the matching grated display base.

Ripley’s suit has the quilted fabric, layered chest protection, ribbed sleeves, and reinforced boots have plenty of definition found on Dallas’ design. There’s also gray shading in the recessed areas, particularly around the knees and lower legs.

The helmet has the same large transparent dome and external framework, with the equipment pack extending behind her shoulders. A black corrugated hose connects the pack to the helmet assembly. The white finish also brings out the sculpted details around the shoulders and upper arms.

On the opposite side, the layered construction of the helmet is especially apparent. The large framework surrounds the clear dome, while the suit has sculpted straps, raised panels, and protective sections running down the arms and legs.

Ripley’s equipment pack includes small red, blue, and yellow paint applications, along with several molded compartments and controls. The white armor has some gray shading around the sculpted seams, and the rear of the legs features additional quilted fabric detail.

And then we get to Ripley’s head sculpt. Unfortunately, Ripley’s head sculpt is another story. The hairstyle is reasonably close to her appearance in the original film, but the face misses Sigourney Weaver’s likeness altogether. The large collar hides part of the lower face, which is probably how I’d leave her displayed.

With more of the face exposed, the shortcomings are even easier to see. The eyes, nose, mouth, and overall proportions don’t capture Sigourney Weaver’s appearance. I know we’re dealing with a four-inch action figure, but I still think the technology available in 2022 should have produced a better likeness. Ripley might be the one who needs the Wilson treatment from Home Improvement. That collar can do the work of Tim Taylor’s backyard fence!

One issue I ran into with Ripley involves the interchangeable hands. The socket inside the extra hand is too small for the ball joint on her wrist, making it difficult to attach the hand properly. It’s a frustrating fit issue, especially when swapping hands is supposed to be a basic feature of the figure.

Ripley’s harpoon gun is a small but important accessory, considering its role in the film’s finale. Hiya Toys has recreated the elongated barrel, raised sight, and dark red section along the body. It’s a nice inclusion for a figure based specifically on Ripley’s appearance aboard the Narcissus.

Overall Impressions

What I appreciate most about these Hiya Toys figures is how much of the original Alien spacesuit design survives at 1:18 scale. These aren’t simple suits with a few armor panels attached. Between the quilted fabric, layered protection, oversized helmets, equipment packs, and assorted mechanical details, there’s a lot like about both figures.

I particularly like the contrast between the two suits. Dallas has the darker armor, weathering, and pink fabric, while Ripley’s white suit makes many of the sculpted details easier to see. Side by side, they also represent two very different moments from the original film like the expedition to LV-426 and Ripley’s final encounter with the Xenomorph.

The head sculpts are a mixed bag. Dallas is close enough to Tom Skerritt that I can see who Hiya Toys was aiming for, even if the likeness isn’t perfect. Ripley is a much bigger disappointment. Her face simply doesn’t resemble Sigourney Weaver, especially compared with the care taken on the spacesuit itself. I’d display both with their helmets, but for very different reasons.

Ultimately, the spacesuits are what I really about this pair. The detailed equipment and the contrast between the two designs are enough to make them interesting additions to a collection devoted to the original Alien. Dallas is recognizable enough underneath his helmet. Ripley, unfortunately, is another matter.