The Orion painted hardcopy showcased here exhibits an extremely nice pedigree of sorts in that it's the *exact* catalog photography sample shown in the 1986 Toy Fair catalog. Fortunately the vast majority of these 3rd series photo samples survived the test of time and most are viewable here for collectors' enjoyment. Cyborg, Cyclotron, Golden Pharaoh, Mr. Freeze, Tyr, and Orion were all shown in painted hardcopy form, while Mr. Miracle, Samurai, and Shazam were protomolded (internal first shot) figures. Since neither Shazam nor Plastic Man surfaced with the rest of the catalog photography samples, it's difficult to gauge the with certainty the material used on those two.
The above photos show the hardcopy completely disassembled from both front and rear vantage points. The hole drilled into the torso back helped secure the figure during photography. As evidenced by the photos, the limbs are completely removeable from the torso and attach via cylindrical dowels.
A distinct difference exists in the upper helmet between the painted hardcopy (left) and production figure (right). Notice the hardcopy shows two ridges protruding from the center with a number of raised details, while the production figure replaces the extra detailing with an additional two ridges.
The final images shows the painted hardcopy (left) standing beside the production figure (right). Hardcopies are typically larger in size, as is the case here. Some other prototype stages present in my collection related to the Orion action figure include the following:
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