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Cyclopes are to be found in several tales from Greek mythology, and they have become something of a favourite as monsters. The most famous of these must be Polyphemus, whom Odysseus encounters and blinds in Homer's Odyssey, and has been painted many times over the centuries. These cyclopes are described as giants, and the figures we see in this set stand about 48 mm tall, which is certainly pretty big, though perhaps not big enough to happily eat two men as a single meal, which they are described as doing. Nevertheless these models do tower over any unfortunate human they might find, and they all seem to be in pretty combative poses too. All hold weapons or just a rock, and we thought they all looked pretty good. The weapons are relatively crudely made, and most of the figures are equally crudely dressed in furs that cover the loins, although one also has his over one shoulder in the classic 'cave man' look. Our last pictured cyclops is more sophisticated however, as he wears a sort of jerkin made of multiple patches perhaps riveted together. He also has a kilt made of fabric rather than animal skin, a belt charmingly decorated with a human skull, and a greave on his left leg. He also carries a sword and holds a fairly crude but effective wooden shield, making him stand out from his much simpler fellows.

Obviously their large size makes them rather easier to sculpt, but it is still a good job regardless of the reasons. The skins are nicely textured and the faces suitably belligerent, but the highlight is the hair, which is dressed in various ways and looks really good. The figures are largely free of flash, but the cyclops holding the hammer aloft leans forward, which is great except his base is not really up to the job and he tends to fall down easily, while the one with the axe/mace leans back and tends to topple backwards. That aside, these are appealing sculpts, as are all in this range, and we can confidently say these are the finest cyclopes models we have ever handled.