Halo 3: Mongoose

Halo 3 Mongoose

Presenting the Halo 3 Mongoose! Easily one of the worst possible vehicles you can find yourself driving in that awesome video game. If you've played the game then you know that the Halo Mongoose is unarmed, tends to skid a lot - great for drifting - has a horn for an offensive weapon (Beats shouting "Get out of the way!")  and is one of the most unstable gun platforms (Even with a rocket-launcher) in the game - one of the easiest if not the easiest to overturn. I came across this particular Halo 3 Mongoose in Filbars while spending the afternoon with my wife. It cost me around PhP 1,600. It costs around PhP 1,000 on Amazon sans shipping

The Halo 3 Mongoose comes from the Halo 3 franchise of McFarlane Toys. There are variants of this particular vehicle, the difference being the driver. In my case, the only one available was a Halo Mongoose being driven by an ODST Rookie (Orbital Drop Shock Trooper - think Spartans with shorter lifespans, waaay shorter lifespans). The ODST Rookie supposedly has VISR mode engaged, but honestly there SHOULD be no real way you can tell that unless you're wearing the helmet - but the only explanation why he and his Mongoose are lit up like they're from Tron is if you're seeing him through VISR. 

A cursory glance through the internet at the other variants - driven by a Yellow colored E.V.A. (Extra Vehicular Activity) Armored Spartan (A space-suit Spartan on a land vehicle?) and a light blue E.O.D. (Explosive Ordnance Disposal) Spartan show that the "Tron" highlights are absent from both the Mongoose and the figure riding it. So the light-green piping on this particular Halo 3 Mongoose is definitely because the driver's vision is enhanced by his VISR. 

What's to like about the Halo 3 Mongoose?

As with the Halo Reach Warthog, the Halo 3 Mongoose is a replica, not a toy. And the detail as you can clearly see is impressive. 

Despite being a replica, the Halo 3 Mongoose does come with some articulation. All four wheels independently move. The turning fork turns but doesn't influence the tires. There are secondary riding pegs that allow the driver to lean forward (Which surprisingly the ODST trooper despite having 26 points of articulation, cannot do due to the bulk of his armor) that can be raised or lowered and there is a rear seat that can be raised - BUT NOT LOCKED - into position - I didn't even know the Halo Mongoose had a provision at the back for someone to actually sit down. 

Now let's take a moment to appreciate that the Halo 3 action figures from McFarlane are a full head shorter than the Halo Reach figures - even the Spartans are shorter as can be seen in this series:

Noble 6: "Nice ride"

Noble 6: "Give it to me"
ODST Rookie: "Over my dead body! You can't bully me around just because you're bigger!"

Noble 6: "Don't you mean 'We're bigger'"

Jorge: I say we eat him.

Couldn't resist the size humor. But hey! Anyone who's played Halo knows that if the Spartan wants to drive, the Spartan will drive! The good news is, despite the size difference, the Halo Reach Spartans can still drive the Halo 3 Mongoose and it's not a bad fit.

The only problem I've encountered with this fit is that if you want Noble 6's butt to literally touch the seat of the Halo 3 Mongoose, you can actually slip a portion of his butt armor under the hand-hold at the back, this pushes the figure down and locks him into place. The downside to that is that if you do that, he can't take any passengers. Noble 6 also doesn't look so bad standing at the back in the gunner's position - which I'm sure most Halo players have experienced. 

Halo 3 Mongoose

The nice part about this is that you can just assume that the ODST Rookie is just what he is, a green recruit.

Someone who was actually deemed too short to join the military but because times were desperate they let him through. He's still big enough though to drive the Halo Warthog. Which clears up Noble 6 to provide escort/scout duty for the rest of his team.

Another great thing about the Halo 3 Mongoose is that the scale fits G.I. Joe figures.

In fact because they are not as encumbered as the ODST or Spartan, they can lean forward on the Halo Mongoose allowing for use of the secondary pegs. I'd say it makes a wonderful G.I. Joe vehicle.

If I'm right, that's also unfortunately how someone is supposed to sit on the back - note Scarlett with her legs splayed open - which brings us to the only things we don't like about the Halo 3 Mongoose: 

1) There is no locking mechanism for the rear chair. How far does this thing go up and once it's up, what holds it up?

The only reason why Scarlett remained perched where she was was because a) her legs were wide open and b) she was holding on to the gunner's rail. And seriously! How are you supposed to sit there? With your legs wide open?

2) The plastic is a bit shoddy. But then it's a replica, it's meant to be looked at and appreciated not played with - which is funny considering we reviewed the Halo Warthog as one tough solid vehicle whereas the Halo Mongoose is not.

After a bit of "rough" playing the front bumper clicked off. I haven't repaired it yet and it's not obvious, but that bumper is just hanging in there. 

3) Well.... TRON... nuff said. 

Still the Halo 3 Mongoose is a fine addition to any Halo collection and a wonderful addition to any G.I. Joe collection as well. I paid premium for it but I do believe it was well worth it.

Noble 6: Where do you think you're going?