Monthly Archives: March 2025

#3813: Poe Dameron – Gold

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Reviews and tagged with , , , , ,

POE DAMERON – GOLD

STAR WARS: THE SKYWALKER SAGA COLLECTION (HASBRO)

Let’s jump back to 2019, a year that was rather rough for 3 3/4-inch Star Wars, at least as far I was concerned.  Under Disney, we’d gotten pretty solid product pushes for each of the movies, but Rise of Skywalker got dropped hardcore because of the poor performance of The Last Jedi‘s tie-ins.  In particular, the basic 3 3/4-inch figures were completely dropped.  Instead, we got a few Vintage Collection figures and a really odd commemorative set that seemed to exist for exactly no one.  Well, anyway, here’s a Poe.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Poe Dameron was released as part of the Star Wars The Skywalker Saga Collection, a Walmart-exclusive line of nine two-packs, each based on one of the Skywalker Saga films.  Poe was packed with Finn, in a set based on The Force Awakens, in theory at least.  The figure stands a little over 3 3/4 inches tall and he has 7 points of articulation.  He’s using the Last Jedi pilot body mold, which is a bit humorous, what with him supposed to be from TFA and all.  At least Poe doesn’t change too much when in his pilot gear.  It’s a decent enough sculpt.  The likeness isn’t amazing, but it’s okay enough, and the details on the uniform are all pretty sharp.  In general, the best of the pilot Poe sculpts, so the re-use is sensible.  The gimmick behind this whole line was that they were painted all gold, which is exactly what Poe is.  It’s…I mean, it sure is gold.  And it’s better than molded plastic, so that’s a plus?  He gets a helmet and blaster, also gold, which are the same as the original release.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Hoooo boy did these figures disappoint me at the time they were released.  They were announced but not shown, and there was this tiny glimmer of hope that they might be *something* and then they were more solid color repaints of stuff we already had.  So, I certainly didn’t pay proper retail for any of them.  Few people did, honestly.  Not even now.  But, they do occasionally surface, and these days they’re kinda cheap, so when this one showed up at All Time, I opted to get another Poe, even if he’s kinda stupid.  He’s fine.  Stupid.  Gimmicky.  But, he’s also a Poe, and he’s at least a decent mold.

Thanks to my sponsors over at All Time Toys for setting me up with this figure to review.  If you’re looking for cool toys both old and new, please check out their website and their eBay storefront.

#3812: Spider-Man Unlimited

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SPIDER-MAN UNLIMITED

MARVEL LEGENDS (HASBRO)

At the end of the ’90s, after wrapping up quite successful runs with X-Men and Spider-Man, Marvel’s animation side struggled to follow up.  1998 saw the ill-fated one season run of Silver Surfer, and the following year saw the release of not one, but two new cartoons, Avengers: United They Stand and Spider-Man Unlimited.  Unlimited‘s main aim was to serve as a direct replacement for Spider-Man: The Animated Series, which…well, it really didn’t do.  One of the craziest things about the whole thing is that, while United The Stand got a solid run of toys, Unlimited got no direct tie-ins at all.  There have been some loose reference figures over the year, but the first proper figure from the show has finally hit, 25 years after the fact!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Spider-Man Unlimited is part of the latest round of Spider-Man Retro-carded Marvel Legends.  He’s the assortment’s resident Peter Parker.  He’s on a ’90s throw back card, which is sort of the right vintage, I suppose, even if he doesn’t have a direct vintage counterpart.  The figure stands 6 1/4 inches tall and he has 34 points of articulation.  Like Spider-Boy, he’s got kind of an older articulation scheme, very similar to the ANAD 2099 body, despite him not actually re-using those parts.  It’s a touch restricted, so I’m not sure exactly why they went this way, but I suppose it’s workable enough.  He’s got a small bit of re-use, making use of the upgraded pinless versions of the 2099 arms and legs, but is predominately new.  It’s a little surprising, but not upsetting.  It’s honestly pretty cool to see how they’ve gone three dimensional on the spider elements of the costume.  To my eyes, the head seems maybe a bit wide, but it’s minor, and I do like the general look of it.  The figure’s paint work is okay.  Kind of on the basic side, though nothing important got missed.  It’s weird to see him without the shading, especially on the face, but I’m also not sure they’d want to go the way of cel shading on a regular release figure, so it’s iffy on how best to handle it.  Spider-Man Unlimited gets the full compliment of extra hands, which I’m certainly a fan of, especially when they don’t drop the open gesture hands.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I was *not* a fan of Spider-Man Unlimited when it dropped.  Generally, I kind of found it boring, at least at first glance.  I was, admittedly, not the biggest fan of Spider-Man: The Animated Series in its first run, either, so maybe I just wasn’t the market for it.  I caught the show in re-runs, though, and found myself liking it a lot more than the first time around.  It’s also a really cool suit design, and it’s just been begging for an action figure.  This one’s not without his drawbacks, but he’s generally pretty cool!

Thanks to my sponsors over at All Time Toys for setting me up with this figure to review.  If you’re looking for cool toys both old and new, please check out their website and their eBay storefront.

#3811: Ming the Merciless

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MING THE MERCILESS

POWER STARS (BOSS FIGHT)

Not-Flash!  AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!  …Get it?  Well, I though it was funny.  And that’s the thing that matters most of all around these parts.  Last week I kept up my Super Powers-adjacent reviews with a look at my first Power Stars figure, Flash Gordon.  Today, I’m looking at his regular opponent, Ming the Merciless!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Ming the Merciless is part of the first series of Power Stars, pairing off with the Flash from the same set.  Like Flash, he’s sporting a more classically-inspired Ming look, leaning more into his more humanoid stylings.  The figure stands about 4 1/2 inches tall and he has 9 points of articulation.  Ming’s sculpt is totally new.  It shares the aesthetics we saw on Flash, but there don’t appear to be any actual overlap of pieces, which is pretty neat.  There’s a fair bit more going on with this one, so there’s more space to fill in.  It certainly makes the most of it.  I particularly like the depth of detailing on the head sculpt.  The collar uses a multi-piece assembly, which is kind of free floating.  I’ll admit, I don’t *love* it, but it’s not horrible.  It’s just a bit loose.  He’s got a cloth cape, and, in contrast to the overly large clips we’ve seen on the McFarlane figures, this one seems a bit too small.  It does the job, though, so I’ll hardly complain.  His paint work is pretty similar to Flash’s in quality, but again has a bit more to it.  There’s a little bit of slop, but it’s generally pretty good.  Ming is packed with a sword and blaster.  The blaster is shared with Flash, but the sword is unique.  Like Flash, you can store them both on his belt.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I snagged Ming at the same time as Flash.  I’m more a heroes guy than a villains one, so I can’t say Ming was really jumping out at me, but at the same time, it’s hard to pass up on the pairing.  He’s neat.  Not quite as cleanly designed as Flash, but that’s ultimately more about the character than it is about the figure.  Over-designed is just a Ming-thing.  Heh, “Ming-thing.”

Thanks to my sponsors over at All Time Toys for setting me up with this figure to review.  If you’re looking for cool toys both old and new, please check out their website and their eBay storefront.

#3810: Superman – Fleischer

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SUPERMAN — FLEISCHER

SUPER POWERS (McFARLANE)

And we are back with the Super Powers reviews, something that I find thoroughly entertaining.  With the news that Mattel will be regaining the license for DC in 2026, we’re now up in the air as to exactly how much more Super Powers there might be, but I guess right now I’m just still reveling in what we’ve got.  Today, we’re back to retreading on characters that already had coverage.  Since the beginning of his run with the license, McFarlane’s had some difficulties getting a solid Superman out at any scale, and Super Powers was no exception.  We’ve officially gotten a good Superman from the line now, but there was a lot of time before that one, so, um, here’s one of those?

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Superman – Fleischer was released in Series 8 of McFarlane’s Super Powers.  He’s one of the two unannounced “secret” variants that they did for this assortment, the other one being DKR Batman.  Both are just simple repaints of the original molds.  In Superman’s case, he’s meant to evoke his design from the Fleischer Studios movie serials.  It’s…well, it’s a mixed bag.  The figure stands about 4 3/4 inches tall and he has 7 points of articulation.  Since this figure was released one series before the introduction of the new Superman mold, he’s using the Series 1 version, which, I’ll be honest, isn’t a favorite.  It’s too tall, pigeon toed, and I’m not much of a fan of the “Todd-ized” head sculpt.  It’s very clearly not meant to be the Fleischer model, so it affects how well it works.  With all that said, I’ll admit, I’ve warmed up to this one over time.  It’s not great, but it’s not awful.  His cape clasp is notably a better fit this time around, but the cape is definitely on the long side for this version of the character.  In terms of the color work, he honestly does alright.  The face paint’s a lot cleaner than earlier versions, and the eyes are decidedly less wonky.  I also do like the general color palette, as well as how the insignia has turned out.  The only down side is that the dye on the cape has stained the figure’s shoulders, which is a real bummer.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I’ve done my best to avoid this mold up to this point.  I didn’t love it when it first hit, and I haven’t loved any of its subsequent uses.  But, I do really like the Fleischer look, and it’s rare on the toy front, so I was interested, if perhaps bummed by the mold choice.  I got the opportunity to see it in person, and opted to give it a try.  It’s better than I expected.  The mold’s still got its drawbacks, but they make the best with what they’ve got.  If nothing else, he’s nifty.

Thanks to my sponsors over at All Time Toys for setting me up with this figure to review.  If you’re looking for cool toys both old and new, please check out their website and their eBay storefront.

#3809: Daredevil

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DAREDEVIL

SPIDER-MAN: CLASSICS (TOY BIZ)

Last week, Daredevil: Born Again, the long-awaited continuation of Netflix’s Daredevil show, dropped its first two episodes, and I’m officially in that Daredevil vibe again, so let’s talk a little bit of Daredevil.  Thanks to the show’s success, we’ve gotten a few instances of ol’ Horn-Head horn-headlining his own set of Marvel Legends, but it wasn’t always that way; he used to pretty much only get by on Spider-Man’s coattails.  Today, I’m jumping back even earlier than last week’s Toy Biz Marvel Legends review, to their pre-cursor line, Spider-Man: Classics, which granted us our first 6-inch Daredevil!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Daredevil was released in Series 2 of Spider-Man: Classics.  There were two versions, a standard red, and a variant yellow.  I looked at the yellow one *way* back in 2014, during my first year here on the site, so here’s the standard.  Daredevil actually wasn’t in the original line-up for the series, with Scarlet Spider in his place for the initial announcement.  It seems like maybe they realized that three out of the four figures being a Spider-Man might not quite work, so DD got the nod to fill out the assortment, and Scarlet Spider was moved to a KB Toys exclusive.  The figure stands just over 6 inches tall and he has 30 points of articulation (which was proudly boasted on the package).  He’s the exact same sculpt as the variant, so he’s using Black Spidey as the staring point, with a new head, hands, feet, and holster.  It’s a sculpt that certainly shows its age, and is hampered a bit by the lack of bicep swivels (which were standardized with the First Appearance Spidey in this same assortment), but there’s a neat stylistic element to it.  I’ve always particularly enjoyed the head sculpt.  This figure’s color work isn’t as involved as his variant, since he’s all-red, rather than the mix of the yellow suit.  It’s not bad, though the boots and gloves not getting any difference in shading reduces their ability to stand out.  The belt, symbol, and eyes do, at least, and there’s airbrushing on the body that really helps to break up all the flat red.  The figure is packed with his billy club, a wall-mountable display stand that looks like a stained glass window, and a copy of Daredevil #241.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I was so invested in getting this guy’s variant back in the day that I wound up missing out on the standard entirely during its run at retail.  By the time I wanted to go back, he’d dried up and we were onto newer releases.  I eventually did find the variant, and I love that one, but I still didn’t have this guy, and that felt off.  I finally got one via a trade-in at work last year.  He’s not quite as unique as the yellow version, and there’s a lot more options for this costume design, but I do still really dig him for what he is.

Thanks to my sponsors over at All Time Toys for setting me up with this figure to review.  If you’re looking for cool toys both old and new, please check out their website and their eBay storefront.

#3808: Wedge Antilles

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WEDGE ANTILLES

STAR WARS: LEGACY COLLECTION (HASBRO)

Sometimes, your favorite character is one of the big names, sometimes it’s an oddball character.  When it comes to Star Wars, my absolute favorite for a long time is Wedge Antilles, a guy who’s ultimately pretty minor, but also not?  I mean, he’s one of the few characters to appear in all three of the original trilogy films (and he’s one of the even fewer to *also* show up in the sequel trilogy, even if it’s just in a quick cameo), and he’s the only person to fly both Death Star runs.  I don’t know, I guess I just have a soft spot for the guy.  He’s also on the lower end of action figure counts for a Star Wars character, so collecting them all is kind of an approachable thing!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Wedge Antilles was released as part of Star Wars: Legacy Collection, specifically as part of a Target-exclusive boxed set that also included his X-Wing Starfighter.  I mean, I guess the X-Wing was really the selling point, but I don’t have that kind of space, so I’m really just in it for Wedge.  This was Wedge’s sixth figure, and continued the trend of him not being released on his own (the only one at this point to have broken that trend was the Original Trilogy Collection figure, and he wasn’t even a regular retail release).  The figure stands 3 3/4 inches tall and he has 22 points of articulation.  His construction was a whole mess of pre-exisiting parts.  Most of them are from the comic pack Nrin Vakil, but he’s also got Wes Jansen’s gloves, as well as a new upper torso and head.  The head notably remained unique to this release, which is kind of curious; they’d just done a new Wedge sculpt for the comic pack version, so it’s strange not to re-use it, and also strange that *this* sculpt wasn’t re-used for the Vintage Collection figure a year later.  It’s not a bad one, all things considered.  It’s a little cartoony, but generally decent, and it sits well on the body.  The paint work is decent enough.  Pretty basic, but that’s what you expect.  His eyes are a little bit goofy, but pre-printing, that was a rather common occurrence.  Wedge was packed with his helmet, which fits well on his head, as well as a small blaster pistol that my figure unfortunately doesn’t have.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Here’s the thing about Star Wars toys, especially of this era: it’s really hard to keep track of everything that got made.  So, this figure?  I didn’t actually know it existed until I was holding it in my hands a few months ago.  I thought I knew all of the Wedge figures, and then, in a whole pile of rebel pilots that got traded into All Time, there was this Wedge I didn’t know.  Naturally, he came home with me, because it was a Wedge I didn’t have.  Honestly, he’s pretty cool.  I think he may well be the best Wedge at this scale.  He just kind of vibes a bit better than the others, and it’s crazy to me that he was only in the one exclusive set.

Thanks to my sponsors over at All Time Toys for setting me up with this figure to review.  If you’re looking for cool toys both old and new, please check out their website and their eBay storefront.

#3807: Spider-Boy

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SPIDER-BOY

MARVEL LEGENDS (HASBRO)

Marvel has, classically, avoided teen sidekicks.  Obviously, they had Bucky and Toro in the ’40s, but once they came back in full force in the ’60s, the sidekicks got tossed out.  Explosively so, in Bucky’s case.  Peter Parker, a high schooler, was the right age for such a role, but was firmly independent, as Spider-Man, a mantle all his own.  Dan Slott, who has written a *lot* of Spider-Man, has given Spider-Man *two* sidekicks.  The first was Alpha, who was a very limited, very story-specific set-up that’s more a footnote than an actual attempt to make a change that stuck.  The second and far more recent one is Bailey Briggs, Spider-Boy.  He’s technically a retcon character, and I classically don’t like those, but Slott’s actually done a good job of making it work alright for Bailey.  And, only a year and a half after his debut, he’s gotten the Marvel Legends treatment!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Spider-Boy is part of the first Retro Card Spider-Man Marvel Legends assortment of 2025.  Amazingly, he’s not the only new character in the assortment (the other is the Francine Frye Electro), which is honestly pretty cool.  The figure stands 5 1/2 inches tall and he has 32 points of articulation.  His articulation scheme is pretty much the same as the 2016 Miles Morales body, which is interesting, because he’s not actually using any of those parts at all, and it’s kind of an old style of articulation set-up.  It’s not *bad* though.  The sculpt is actually pretty solid.  He’s suitably smaller than the Spidey figures, so he looks appropriately built for his age.  The key unique pieces are the head and feet.  The head has a good, solid take on a rather basic design.  I particularly like the profile, and how there’s so clearly a face under there.  The feet give him his proper sneakers, which are certainly fun.  They’re a bit tricky to pose at first, but once they loosen up, the range is pretty good.  He’s also got a backpack piece, which plugs in securely, and looks not unlike the collapsed one used with SpOck.  The color work on Spider-Boy is very bright and eye catching, as it should be.  The blue seems maybe a touch darker than he’s usually depicted, but it otherwise looks pretty good.  Spider-Boy is packed with an alternate “monster” head, as well as two pairs of hands, in fists and thwipping poses.  It’s a little frustrating that the open gesture hands are absent again, especially given that Bailey doesn’t actually *have* webshooters.  Guess I’m sticking with the fists for now.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I was, admittedly, a little skeptical of Spider-Boy at first, but I’ve really enjoyed what’s been done with him thus far, especially in his solo series.  I was definitely looking forward to some form of figure treatment, and here he is!  He’s not a standout piece or anything, generally being by the numbers, but sometimes, that’s all you need.

Thanks to my sponsors over at All Time Toys for setting me up with this figure to review.  If you’re looking for cool toys both old and new, please check out their website and their eBay storefront.

#3806: Flash Gordon

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FLASH GORDON

POWER STARS (BOSS FIGHT STUDIOS)

Well, I got a nice little kick of additional Longbox Heroes the last two weeks to help keep me on that Super Powers-inspired high, but now I’m out of those again, so it’s time to turn to the next best thing: another Super Powers-inspired line!  In fact, this one came first!  Boss Fight, whose HACKS lines I’ve previously reviewed a bit, decided to give the style a try, launching things with an assortment of characters from King Features, which means I get to kick things off with Flash (aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah! Savior of the Universe!) Gordon!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Flash Gordon is part of the four figure launch assortment for Power Stars, which hit in the fall of 2022.  There are a lot of Flash looks to choose from, but they’ve gone with a more classic comic version of the character, which fits pretty much perfectly with the style.  The figure stands a little over 4 1/2 inches tall and he has 9 points of articulation.  There are two tweaks to the articulation to deviate from Super Powers here.  Firstly, there’s the knees, which use the same general assembly as the Longbox Heroes (which is not entirely coincidental; LBH‘s designed Jason “Toy Otter” Geyer noted how impressed he was with the knee joint when still working out the knee assembly on LBH), and secondly, there’s the neck joint, which, instead of being a straight cut joint, is actually a ball-joint.  They both keep the same general look as the vintage articulation, while providing slightly better motion.  Flash’s sculpt is unique to him, and it’s a solid offering.  There’s I think a little more of Boss Fight’s in-house style bleeding through here, so they’re not quite a pitch perfect Kenner style, but also I think it still works very well, and he very much feels like Flash.  His color work is all pretty bright, clean, and bold, which exactly what you’d hope for in such a line.  I have no issues with any sort of slop or bleed over on mine.  Flash get’s an extra head without his headgear, as well as a sword and a gun, which can be placed in the designated spots on his belt.  Storage for weapons isn’t much of a Super Powers thing, but that’s another one of those innovations I don’t mind so much here.  My only real issue with the figure is that the size of the handles being so different between the sword and gun means that you kind of have to pick a hand for each and stick with it, otherwise the gun will fall out of any hand the sword has been in.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I remember when these were announced, and I was quite excited, and…then I just totally forgot to get around to ordering them.  Admittedly, I had a lot going on in my life, so I’m giving myself a pass.  Flash was the one I wanted the most, because he’s Flash Gordon and he’s just got such a classic design.  I particularly appreciate them just going straight to the classic Flash and not making me get a weird cartoon version I don’t really want as much first…sorry, I’m trying not to be too bitter with NECA.  Anyway, I was able to snag a few of these guys at the same time as the Super Powers and Longbox Heroes from the last few weeks, when they got traded in at All Time.  Unfortunately, Flash here was missing the main head, but it happened to come through on its own a week or so later.  He’s truly a fun little figure, and I’m glad I finally got one!

Thanks to my sponsors over at All Time Toys for setting me up with this figure to review.  If you’re looking for cool toys both old and new, please check out their website and their eBay storefront.

#3805: Robin

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Reviews and tagged with , , , , ,

ROBIN

SUPER POWERS (McFARLANE)

“Growing up in Gotham City can be…complicated. Especially when you’re a kid who’s obsessed with Batman and Robin. For Tim Drake, learning everything about his favorite superheroes eventually led him down the path of becoming one himself, after he deduced the identities of Bruce Wayne and Dick Grayson.”

My last few McFarlane Super Powers reviews have all been re-hashes of characters that got covered in the original run.  But, the line’s actually got a solid run of new characters.  Today’s focus is *sort of* a mixed bag, since the name was in the vintage line, but it was actually a different guy.  That guy is Tim Drake, the third Robin.  Though his creation’s outside the window of Super Powers‘ vintage run, his first figure was a vaguely Super Powers-esque one, as part of Kenner’s Batman Returns line (which was largely built on re-worked SP molds).  But, now he’s got one (well, technically two) under the actual Super Powers banner, so let’s check that out!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Robin was released in Series 4 of McFarlane’s Super Powers line, alongside the updated classic Batman.  Since this assortment wound up being rather under-ordered, he’s gotten a subsequent re-release with a slightly changed up color palette, but the one seen here is the initial release.  The figure stands a little under 4 1/2 inches tall and he has 7 points of articulation.  He’s more or less the same height and build as the vintage Robin, which is a pretty good set-up.  The sculpt is totally unique, and it’s…fine.  The body sculpt is decent enough, matching the style of the line, and also capturing his costume design pretty well.  I’m not super crazy about the head.  It seems a little wide, and the hair is…I don’t really know what’s going on there.  It’s certainly not the worst thing, though, and it does still feel more like authentic Super Powers than the earlier McF stuff.  Robin’s color work is rather on the bright side.  It’s not strictly speaking a match for Tim’s costume (which was usually a little darker), but it works well within the context of the line.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

One of the things I’ve been looking for in my Super Powers collecting is characters that feel authentic for a continuation of the original line.  It’s what kept me off the earlier stuff, but I’m willing to make something of an exception for Tim.  Of course, neither of his releases was *super* easy to find, so I kind of had to wait.  Thankfully, I was able to snag this one when he got traded in at All Time.  He’s not one of the stronger entries in the line, but he’s a respectable enough entry.

Thanks to my sponsors over at All Time Toys for setting me up with this figure to review.  If you’re looking for cool toys both old and new, please check out their website and their eBay storefront.

#3804: Captain America – Ultimate

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Reviews and tagged with , , , , ,

CAPTAIN AMERICA — ULTIMATE

MARVEL LEGENDS (TOY BIZ)

“In 1940, as America prepared for war, young and frail Steve Rogers volunteered for an experiment that transformed him into the ultimate physical specimen: Captain America. Enhanced by the Super-Soldier Serum, Captain America’s agility, strength, endurance and reaction time were superior to those of an Olympic-level athlete. Cap also mastered a number of fighting forms, including American-style boxing and judo. These abilities, combined with his indestructible shield, made him one of the finest human combatants Earth had ever known. Steve Rogers battled the Nazis until a mishap placed him in suspended animation deep within the Himalayan Mountains. Decades later he was discovered by Tony Stark and S.H.I.E.L.D. and became a cornerstone of the Ultimates.”

It’s a new month, but I’m still keeping that Toy Biz Marvel train rolling, albeit in a slightly different fashion.  Last month it was all 5-inch figures, but this month, I’m taking it up a notch…and I mean that literally, because the figures are actually gonna be taller, because we’re jumping ahead into the Marvel Legends era for a bit.  Yeah, it’s classic Marvel Legends!  And, I’m still sort of staying in a comfort zone, with a look at one of the line’s Captain Americas…well, two of them, I guess.  And, sure, it’s Ultimate Cap, but I’ll take what I can get.  At least he always makes for a pretty decent toy.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Ultimate Captain America was released in Series 8 of Toy Biz’s Marvel Legends, which was the last series before the introduction of Build-A-Figures, which also led to Toy Biz abandoning the actual numbering for the line.  He was one of the three figures in the line-up to get a variant, which I’ll touch on later in the review.  The figure stands just shy of 6 1/2 inches tall and he has 46 points of articulation.  His articulation’s pretty typical of this era of Toy Biz’s run.  It’s not bad, but it’s definitely a little over complicated relative to the range of motion he gets.  It’s also prone to getting a bit loose over time, especially on the hips.  The sculpt was all-new, and it was…well, it was certainly something.  The articulation definitely took the precedent on this one, so the flow of the sculpt is a little bit odd and disjointed.  His proportions are sort of odd, with the head being a bit small, and the hands and feet being a bit large.  He’s also got a little bit of a hunch.  That said, the work on outfit, especially the texturing, is really good, and conveys the modernized take on his design well.  The variant figure gets a unique head sculpt, which adds the classic head wings.  It’s also just totally different from the standard, with a slightly friendlier expression, which makes more sense for the 616 version of the character.  He’s more modernized to match the body sculpt, so there’s extra stitching, as well as straps on the sides.  It’s an interesting approach, but perhaps not the most truly classic version.  It serves more as a prototype for the more proper classic Cap they built out of this mold the following year.  The paint work on the figure is pretty decent.  There’s a lot of accenting to bring out the sculpted elements, and it works pretty well.  The standard version gets additional grey detailing, as is proper to the Ultimate design, while the standard is straight blue.  However, early versions of the two figures had the details reversed, giving Ultimate Cap the full blue look, and Classic Cap the grey, meaning there are actually a total of four different versions of this figure.  Regardless of the version, Cap is packed with his shield (the same one used with the Series 1 figure), a display stand, and a poster booklet (in place of the usual comic book).  The poster book, interestingly, is actually more classic Cap images than Ultimate, but I’m hardly complaining.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I’m really not a fan of Ultimate Captain America as a character, so I wasn’t much for this one at the time of his release.  I also had the Series 1 version, and he was pretty much perfect to me.  That said, I’ve gotten more comfortable with having a lot of Captain America figures these days, so I ended up snagging the standard release sealed a couple of years ago, and then the variant loose just last year.  And now I have them both.  They’re kind of a mixed bag, but an intriguing part of the Cap Legends genealogy.

Thanks to my sponsors over at All Time Toys for setting me up with these figures to review.  If you’re looking for cool toys both old and new, please check out their website and their eBay storefront.