Cyberman Voice Changer

The morose metal men may have lost their emotions, but it's easy to get emotional about a toy so cool it could easily be mistaken for an original prop

Cyberman Voice Changer
By Character Options and Underground Toys
MSRP: $50-$70

The planet of Mondas had left the orbit of its sun, and its inhabitants decided that to survive the increasing cold they had to exchange some of their humanoid parts for mechanical devices. The last to go were their emotions. Emotionless machine-humans, they managed to make a propulsion system for their planet, which they led on a conquering mission. This was the premise of an early episode of the classic British TV science fiction program Doctor Who. These recurring villains have returned over and over during the series' original 26-year run, changing a little with each new episode they've starred in.

I'll be surprised if this isn't one of this year's favorite Halloween masks ...

In 2005, the series returned under new direction after 16 years of absence as a weekly TV series. In season two of the new series (considered by fans season 28), this old enemy of the Doctor returned again in a newer, sleeker form to fan applause everywhere. While the new Cybermen differed from the originals by being created by a human on an Earth in an alternative universe, their fundamentals remained more or less the same—they were cybernetic humans whose emotions had been removed.
After having created several nice action figures based on these metallic villains, in both 7-inch and 12-inch scales, U.K.-based Character Options has created a wonderful almost-full-head mask of the newly designed Cyberman, which repeats actual sound clips from the new TV series and modulates your own voice into Cyberspeak.
This Voice Changer mask is molded from solid plastic and fits most heads, from small to large. Three buttons on the side of the helmet perform three separate tasks. One fires the Electronic Stun Grip sound, another plays one of nine phrases from the TV series in that dreaded cyber-voice, and the third modulates your voice to simulate that voice.
The helmet operates with two included AA batteries, and it lights up with blue LEDs just like the Cybermen from Doctor Who.
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This Cyberman Helmet is quite attractive. It is molded beautifully to capture each and every feature of the newly re-envisioned version of the Doctor's second-most-sinister cybernetic enemy (they have to take a back seat to the evil Daleks, I'm afraid). These helmets look good enough to actually be used in the show. There are no exaggerated features or extra junk thrown on (with the exception of the three small buttons on the left jawline). If the helmet had a complete back (it is open enough at the rear to fit a head inside), it could easily be mistaken for an original prop.
The helmet is meant to fit most sizes of head using an adjustable head strap such as you'd find in sports or construction helmets. Fitting a head inside the gap is not difficult, though if you wear glasses it becomes a chore. Best to remove those before donning the Cyber-helm. The nose fits against a rubber guard that allows for a comfortable fit. Just at the mouth is a recessed microphone. Pushing the center button then modulates anything spoken into the microphone. The sound is accompanied by a blue LED lighting up in an effect that accurately captures a speaking Cyberman.
The voice modulator can't cover your speech, so some of your natural voice leaks out, but it does alter it and the speaker sends out the altered voice. The effect is good overall. There is a slide switch that controls the pitch of the modulation, so different voices can use different settings to achieve the same Cyberman sound.
If I have one complaint about this item, it is the fact that it isn't constructed from two pieces like the Darth Vader voice changer (previously reviewed). If a rear section of the helmet could have snapped to the front, concealing the entire head, it probably would have been a bit nicer. But that would make it harder to put on and take off. Erring on the side of easy functionality was probably a good idea.
I'll be surprised if this isn't one of this year's favorite Halloween masks in the U.K., and now that Underground Toys is distributing the Character Options toys here in North America, perhaps you'll see a few here too.
So this Halloween, prepare to be upgraded ... or deleted.

When the first pictures of the new Cyberman were released prior to season 28, fans were universally excited. The re-envisioning of this old foe was very well executed. I, for one, was just as excited to see the nice job Character Options did re-creating the new look of this old villain. As for its use as a Halloween mask, visibility is limited in the helmet, as you only have the plastic eyes to see from. Proper strap adjustment will maximize visibility, but even then it is very limiting. As with any Halloween mask, be very careful using it, as limited vision can cause accidents. —Sean