Author Archives: Ethan Wilson

Mutant X Re-Read #19: Young People of America, Join General Nick Fury in Ridding the World of the Mutant Plague

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Mutant X Re-Read

…AMERICA’S FUTURE!

MUTANT X #18 (MARVEL COMICS)

“In another place–in another life–Alex Summers led a team of mutants in a battle against oppression. His methods were extreme, his tactics questionable, but–in his soul–he knew that he was fighting for the greater good.

Now that soul has been transferred to another world, and Summers, also known as Havok, has found himself living a lie, allied with a team of mutants who are sinister, parallel versions of his friends and family. It is to this dark, new place that Havok has come, where he stands as a man alone… a mutant alone. Alex Summers is Mutant X.

Fear him. Fear for him.”

25 years ago, Marvel Comics launched Mutant X, a Havok led X-spinoff. I recently came into a complete run of the series, and so now I’m going to re-read the series once a week, and you guys get to come along for the ride!

This week, Nick Fury steps up his recruitment, and the Six become supporting players in “…America’s Future!”

THE ISSUE ITSELF

Mutant X #18 is cover dated March of 2000.  It has Howard Mackie as writer, Cary Nord and Billy Patton on pencils, and Andrew Pepoy on inks.

We are introduced at the start to Jack Lang and Dianne Davidson, two recent recruits to the Children of Humanity, Nick Fury’s anti-Mutant movement. Fury gives a speech to his new recruits as a montage is shown of Jack and Dianne’s training. Meanwhile, Alex, Brute, and Bloodstorm guard a young mutant boy. The Children of Humanity send out reinforcements to track the boy down, and Jack and Dianne encounter the boy, Harry, in the woods, alone. Dianne is dead set on following orders to deal with Harry, but Jack is hesitant after encountering him in-person. As they debate, they are set upon by Bloodstorm, followed by the other two. Dianne bursts into flames, revealing she is a mutant, something missed by the CoH’s screening. A shocked Jack calls for back-up, but before it arrives, a hooded woman steps out of the shadows and warns that someone is coming. The group is attacked by Frank Castle and his Punishers, and escapes thanks to a diversion from the hooded woman. Back on their plane, the woman reveals herself as Jean Grey. Meanwhile, Jack sits and thinks, his eyes reflecting a Punisher skull.

In a notable narrative change-up for the series thus far, Havok winds up a minor player, as the story shifts to Jack and Dianne, giving us a look at the other side of the human/mutant conflict. In contrast to the extremist bigots of the last issue, these two seem like nice, well-meaning people at the surface. In true dramatic irony, it is Dianne, seemingly the more hateful of the two, who discovers she herself is a mutant, while the seemingly friendlier Jack finds himself pushed more into fanaticism. It offers up some interesting current parallels as well, given the use of Frank Castle and the Punisher skull to symbolize Jack’s slippery slope. Where the last issue felt too close to the main universe, this feels more properly removed, giving a less cut and dry look at human bigotry, in contrast to the main universe’s cleaner lines on such things. At the end, even with his nicer demeanor, Jack is still the villain of the piece, more closely resembling real world bigotry, and also showing the darker turn of this particular universe.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I missed a lot of the anti-mutant subplot in my original reading, so I didn’t know quite what to expect of it. After last issue, I felt they were losing some of their alternate universe angle, but this one again refreshes things. It’s not a *fun* issue, but it’s a solid one, and I liked getting a different perspective for a change.

I snagged this whole run from my usual comics stop, Cosmic Comix, so I want to give them a shout out here, because it was a pretty great find.

#3508: Tunnel Rat

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

TUNNEL RAT

G.I. JOE: CLASSIFIED SERIES (HASBRO)

My GI Joe reviews aren’t *quite* as infrequent these days as they have been, I suppose, but my investment in the franchise’s latest incarnation, Classified, is certainly waning. At this point, I’m just sticking to characters I have a prior attachment to, rather than trying to build up a full lineup. First introduced into the franchise in 1987, and even getting a focus in the animated movie from the same year, Tunnel Rat’s not necessarily one of the faces of the franchise, but he’s become a recurring element of its more paired down core team approaches. And, four years into Classified, he’s getting a 6-inch update.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Tunnel Rat is figure 83 in the G.I. Joe: Classified Series lineup. They’ve done away with assortments at this point, but he’s been shipping alongside the classic Firefly, as they’re both mass release figures. The figure stands 6 inches tall and he has 34 points of articulation. Tunnel Rat’s articulation scheme is more or less the same setup we’ve seen on all of the male Classified figures. It does what it does. It can at times make him a little floppy, but that’s just G.I. Joe. Tunnel Rat is sporting an all-new sculpt, courtesy of sculptor Fred Aczon, patterned pretty much directly on his v1 figure. It’s…well, I certainly have some opinions. Let’s discuss just looks first. On a purely aesthetic front, he’s a very nice looking figure. The technical side of the sculpting is definitely solid. That said, the design being so slavishly loyal to the original means that you get a guy who’s clearly patterned on a Viet Nam-era soldier, inexplicably hanging out with high-tech paramilitary squad in 2023. It’s not entirely without adjustments, though. Notably, while the original figure was inspired by Larry Hama, both facially and in terms of footwear (hence the cowboy boots), this one goes for more generic facial features, and grants him more standard issue footwear. While the head looks nice, I can’t help but feel it loses a bit of the personality sported by the original. Still, it’s an overall decent look. So, with the overall positive assessment of the look out of the way, let’s discuss functionality, because oh boy is that a thing. As has become increasingly common for the line, Tunnel Rat’s assembly has all of his gear each as its own separate overlay piece. While this is great in theory, what with the potential of customization and all, in practice it leads to a lot of loose floating pieces, all on top of each other. In Tunnel Rat’s case, his neckerchief, shoulder holster, ammo belt, and satchel are each a separate part, all vying for the rather small space that is his torso. With no way for any of them to peg into place or lock in, they just get mangled into a mess of stuff sliding all over the place every time you try to pose him. In particular, the ammo belt wants to slide off the shoulder, and the holster wants to pop up off chest, and they are going to fight you every time you move. If there was just some way to lock a few pieces in one spot, I think he’d be a lot more fun. His color work is about what you’d expect, being on par with the rest of the line, as well as consistent with the original figure. There’s a little bit of missing coverage on the edges of the bandanna on mine, but he otherwise looks pretty solid. Tunnel Rat is packed with his large rifle (with folding legs at the front and a removable magazine), a pistol, a knife, night vision goggles, his backpack, and two flashlights. While the rifle’s folding legs are more secure than the folding stock on Falcon’s shotgun, the magazine falls out very easily, which is frustrating for posing. Likewise, the backpack again doesn’t contour to the figure’s back at all, meaning it also falls out of place a lot, adding even more to the general not-fun-ness of handling the figure.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Tunnel Rat’s been a particular favorite of mine since I got into the smaller scale Joes in the early ’00s, and he was one of the very first vintage Joes that I added to my collection. I’ve loved his updates for Sigma 6 and Renegades, and he’s been a character I’ve been hoping to see added since Classified launched. This figure is one that I wanted to love so badly…but unfortunately I just don’t. Sure, he looks cool, but he’s absolutely no fun, and that kind of sucks. It’s just another sign that the line’s just really not what I’m looking for, I suppose.

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.

#3507: Magneto

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

MAGNETO

MARVEL LEGENDS (HASBRO)

As the “mind’s eye” take on the characters for a very large portion of the fanbase, X-Men: The Animated Series holds a pretty special place for the X-franchise as a whole.  The show got 5 seasons in its original run, but there’s always room for more, right?  Right.  We got our first continuation in comic form, which was honestly pretty fun.  However, three decades after the fact, we’re getting a proper follow-up, X-Men ’97, which will see a return to the show’s universe to animation, as well as the return of most of the original show’s cast.  With the show’s original release set for the end of 2023 (before it got delayed to next year), there’s already plenty of merchandising out there, including a whole set of Marvel Legends.  Today, I’m taking a look at the updated version of Magneto!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Magneto is part of the six-figure line-up for the X-Men ’97 tie-in assortment of Marvel Legends.  Though they’re not directly referencing any older figures, this set is nevertheless using the retro card layout for their packaging.  Magneto is based on his appearance in the new show, which looks to be more or less the same as his appearance in the original.  That makes him a pretty standard classic Magneto, which is honestly pretty cool, since we haven’t gotten a standard release classic Magneto in Legends since the Toy Biz days.  The figure stands about 6 1/2 inches tall and he has 32 points of articulation. The last four Legends Magnetos have all been built on the Spider-UK body, which remains a solid choice for the character. This one is definitely a derivative of that one, using modified versions of the arms and legs (which are now pinless at the elbows and knees), plus the Magneto-specific forearms and boots from the Family Matters set. It’s all topped off with a new head, torso, and cape, all courtesy of sculptor Dennis Chan. The Family Matters set-up wasn’t bad, but the new pieces clean it up just a touch, and the new head/helmet combo is just so nice. Easily the best classic Magneto sculpt at this scale. Magneto’s color work is decent enough. The 97 figures aren’t doing cel-shading like the Animated figures did, but they’re certainly still keeping the general coloring vibe going, so they can all still fit together. This guy definitely leans into his animation colors, and does so rather nicely. I quite like the shading around the eyes. Magneto is packed with two sets of hands, in open gesture and fists. It feels a little light. An alternate head, sans helmet would have been really cool, as would some effects pieces of some sort.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I was pretty happy with the Family Matters Magneto, so I wasn’t much looking for a new classic Magneto.  That said, there were a few minor things on the last one that I was up for seeing some improvement on, most notably the head/helmet.  This new one really hit the spot, and he’s just overall a nice improvement on every front to the last one.  He’s a definite upgrade.

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.

#3506: Mon-El

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

MON-EL

LEGION OF SUPER HEROES (DC DIRECT)

In the early days of the Legion of Super Heroes, the team had a rule about no duplication of powers between members, which seemed largely to be in place to avoid issues of members whose powers were just native abilities of everyone on their planet being outclassed by people from the same planet.  There were, however, some seeming exceptions to those rules, since Mon-El, a guy whose powers were effectively the same as Superboy and Supergirl, has been a long-term member of the team.  Maybe they just all felt sorry for the guy?  I mean, he’s fatally allergic to lead, which feels like it would really suck.  Also, his super hero name is just because he didn’t know who he was when Superboy found him, and Superboy thought he was his older brother, so he gave him the El name, coupled with “Mon” because he landed on Earth on a Monday.  Guy’s named after a day of the week.  And he’s allergic to lead.  That’s all pretty rough.  He did at least get an action figure.  So, he’s got that going for him.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Mon-El was released in Series 2 of DC Direct’s Legion of Super Heroes line.  It was a small line-up, with just Mon-El and Brainiac 5, both pretty notable additions to the line-up.  The figure stands a little under 6 inches tall and he has 11 points of articulation.  Mon-El largely shares his sculpt with Series-mate Brainiac 5.  It’s a decent sculpt, and the two of them had enough common elements to make it work well enough.  Typically, Mon-El’s a little larger than Brainy, but they were both clearly meant to be based on their early Silver Age appearances, when they were both closer in build.  Mon-El gets a unique head, a skirt/belt piece, and a cape.  They’re pretty basic pieces, but they definitely get the job done, and they fit the rest of the line’s styling very well.  Mon-El’s totally painted, like most DCD figures of the era.  It’s a pretty solid set-up.  The colors are very bright, and the application is cleanly handled.  He even gets a little bit of blue accenting on his hair, which adds a little extra to the sculpted elements.  Mon-El included no accessories, which was the norm for most of this line.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

When the Legion figures were originally coming out, my Dad and I kind of had a “shared” collection of DC Direct figures, with the Legion being officially his, but on the proviso that I could borrow them pretty much whenever.  However, Ferro Lad’s addition to the line meant that I *had* to start building my own collection.  Since then, I’ve been slowly building my own set.  Mon-El’s one that’s eluded me for a good long while, since he doesn’t show up nearly as often as some of the others.  I wound up getting this one this past summer, courtesy of Cosmic Comix, who got in a decent DC collection.  He’s basic, but I like him.

#3505: “Charger” Mark McCutchen with Unlimited Series Car

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

“CHARGER” MARK McCUTCHEN with UNLIMITED SERIES CAR

NASCAR RACERS (HASBRO)

“Welcome NASCAR fans to the Unlimited series races! Prepare to be floored by the new state of the art cars and challenging new courses. Can Team Fastex hold on for the win to beat out rival team Rexcor for the season championship?”

Do you ever have one of those memories, like one of those very intense memories of something, only to have, like, no one else even acknowledge that said thing even existed?  I mean, probably.  It happens to us all, right?  Well, one of those for me is NASCAR Racers.  Launched in 1999, it has very little to do with actual NASCAR, and was instead a cartoon about futuristic car racing.  Honestly, it’s more an update to Speed Racer than an adaptation of anything real world.  The show ran for two seasons, and managed to spawn a small line of toys from Hasbro.  And then the show ended and the toys disappeared, and everybody stopped talking about it.  Well, I’m gonna talk about it now, and nobody can stop me!  So, let’s look at “Charger” Mark McCutchen and his Unlimited Series Car!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

“Charger” Mark McCutchen and his Unlimited Series Car were part of the standard component to Hasbro’s NASCAR Racers line.  Charger being the most prominent of the show’s racers got the most toy coverage, with two standard releases (this one and an ice-themed variant), plus a deluxe electronic release.  This one was based on his standard racing set-up from the show’s two seasons.  The main Charger figure stands 2 1/2 inches tall and he has 4 points of articulation (the legs move as one, rather than independently).  He’s a rather basic piece, not really designed to do much on his own, but he’s not bad for what you’re getting.  He’s fairly recognizable as Charger as seen in the show, and he’s even got a removable helmet, bound to get lost, right?  His color work isn’t quite a match for his show design; his clean yellow accenting from the show is changed to more of a lightning pattern here.  It still reads more or less the same, but it’s definitely different.

Though Charger’s name was the main focus on the packaging, the majority of the box was taken up by his car.  It’s a fully detailed racing car, which is honestly pretty cool.  There’s four moving wheels (something you should never take for granted), and the canopy flips up so that you can place Charger in the driver’s seat, which doubles as a fully removable “Rescue Racer,” like the cars had in the show.  The car also featured a shooting missile on the front, as well as Sonic Thrusters that pop out of the sides.  Or, at least they should, but they’re stuck on mine and I don’t want to force them.  There’s a lot of fun lille gimmicks at play with this one.  There’s also a lot of really fun detailing on the car, especially in terms of its coloring.  While the patterns on the figure were a little off, the car is pretty much spot-on to the show’s models.  The proper details are largely done via decals, which add a lot of really fun elements to the mix.  I particularly enjoy seeing his sponsors, all of which are Hasbro brands from the time.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

My first encounter with NASCAR Racers was one of frustration, because its pilot movie pre-empted Avengers: United They Stand.  That was my favorite show, and I would except no substitutes.  But, when it *wasn’t* pre-empting Avengers, I got to actually liking the show on its own, and I was pretty well hooked by the end of the first season.  I didn’t have standard Charger as a kid, instead getting the deluxe Future Car release, alongside “The Collector” and his car.  I’ve since lost, like, everything to those two.  Since the original run, I haven’t been able to find any other toys from the show.  That is, until I stopped at Factory Antiques (THE LARGEST ANTIQUE MALL IN THE U.S.!!!…according to their brochure) to break up a long drive, and they had all standard Team Fastex racers.  Given the pricing on these things these days, a whole set wasn’t something I could swing, but with some encouragement from my very lovely wife, I decided to at least get Charger.  He’s just as fun as I remember these things being back in the day, which makes me very happy.  Maybe someday I’ll get the chance to own the rest, but until then, Charger suits me just fine.

#3504: Hydra Stomper Series Wrap-Up

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

WARRIOR GAMORA, NICK FURY, YELENA BELOVA, & HYDRA-STOMPER

MARVEL LEGENDS (HASBRO)

As become the trend for the last handful of Marvel Legends assortments I’ve taken a look at, I’m wrapping up my latest round of Legends reviews by a quicker, all-in-one wrap-up for the figures I’m less interested in for this particular assortment, along with the main course, the Build-A-Figure!  So, let’s jump on into that!

THE FIGURES THEMSELVES

Warrior Gamora, Nick Fury, and Yelena Belova are Figures 1, 3, and 6 from the Hydra Stomper Series of Marvel Legends.  They’re the last three figures that contribute to the assortment’s Build-A-Figure, the Hydra Stomper, who is assembled from parts included with 6 of the 7 figures in the assortment.

WARRIOR GAMORA

“In the MCU, Gamora was raised by Thanos to become a deadly assassin. But in this universe, her tactics are challenged by a new, unusual target: Tony Stark.”

In the first season finale of What If…? we were treated to a team of heroes assembled from the cast of prior episodes throughout the season…and Gamora.  One episode got pushed from Season 1 to 2 due to production delays, and it was the one that would have explained what the heck was going on with this version of Gamora, so we kind of had to infer some things.  Season 2 should finally give us that episode, however, so maybe we’ll finally get what’s going on there?  Well, in the mean time, she’s got an action figure, which stands just shy of 6 1/2 inches tall and has 29 points of articulation.  Her mobility is a little on the stiff side, but she does at least get the pinless joints.  Also of note is just how hard it is to keep this figure standing, which is rather frustrating.  She’s sporting an all-new sculpt, which looks rather accurate to the animation models, placing her on par with the figures from the last set in that regard.  In terms of coloring, she’s again pretty well-matched to the show look.  The paint application is a little sloppy on edges of hands but otherwise clean, and the colors certainly pop.  Warrior Gamora is packed with her own version of Thanos’s double-bladed thing, as well as the left arm of Hydra Stomper, and an extra left hand.

NICK FURY

“In the years following the Blip, a weary Fury must face his biggest and most personal challenge yet when he learns of the Skrulls’ clandestine invasion of Earth.”

As I touched on in my Talos review, I wasn’t much of a fan of Secret Invasion.  It’s handling of Nick Fury was on my list of things I didn’t really care for.  Personally, I felt it to be a bit of a waste of Samuel L Jackson’s talent.  But, I’m not here to review the show, I’m here to talk about the toys.  This Fury is based on his later in the show look, as he’s in the process of going back to being his old self.  It’s a fairly basic Fury, with a little dressing up, so it’s not the worst choice.  The figure stands 6 1/2 inches tall and has 34 points of articulation.  His articulation is rather on the restricted front, for a handful of reasons, chief among them being how his coat is set-up.  The figure is based on the tall suit body, or is at the very least using its arms and legs.  He’s got a new head, torso, and coat, courtesy of sculptor Paul Harding.  The head sculpt is sporting a solid likeness of Jackson, and is definitely the best thing about the figure.  The coat isn’t terrible *looking*, but it’s still very restricting.  The hands look a bit too large for the body, and his whole build feels kinda scrawny for Nick.  In general, the figure’s not very fun to mess with, which is kind of a bummer.  His paint work is rather on the basic side, but that’s kind of expected.  It does what it needs to.  Nick does at least get a respectable accessory set-up.  He’s got his knit cap (which sits quite well on the head), plus two styles of pistol, two muzzle flashes, two smoke effects, and the left leg of the Hydra Stomper.

YELENA BELOVA

“After the Blip, former Widow Yelena returns to a world without her beloved sister Natasha. Now, Yelena seeks revenge on the man responsible for her sister’s alleged demise: Clint Barton.”

Yelena’s re-appearance in Hawkeye was hinted at during Black Widow‘s post-credits scene, so it wasn’t a terrible surprise when the masked assailant trying to kill Clint in the show turned out to be her.  But, of course, Hawkeye was generally not a show built on crazy twists and turns, so much as just pretty straight forward narrative payoff.  For the story, Yelena has gone back to a more traditional Black Widow appearance, so that allows for a different approach to her design for a figure.  Said figure stands about 6 1/4 inches tall and has 27 points of articulation.  Construction wise, she’s got re-used arms and legs.  The arms are from the old Yelena, while the legs are a mix of pieces from the prior Yelena and the solo movie Natasha.  The new suit detailing doesn’t completely match the old sculpt, but I guess it’s close enough. My figure also has a weird mold scarring on the right leg, which was annoying.  She gets a new head, torso, and wrist bracers.  The head sports a better overall likeness of Florence Pugh, but its relative scaling seems a little off compared to the body.  The rest of the new parts are decent enough, fitting in with the old parts.  In terms of paint, the face detailing seems a little dark, but otherwise, it’s not bad.  The body work is pretty basic, but that’s pretty much expected.  Yelena is packed with two sets of hands, batons, and the torso to the Hydra Stomper.  Given how key her masked appearance is to the overall set-up of her arrival on the show, it feels like this figure is missing an alternate masked head.

HYDRA STOMPER

In the first season finale of What If…?, when the Watcher pulls in Captain Carter for his mission, he plucks her out of her timeline’s version of the opening scene of Captain America: Winter Soldier.  When he returns her at the end of the episode, that universe’s Natasha informs Peggy that they’ve found something, revealing a glimpse at some sort of variant of Steve’s Hydra Stomper armor from the ’40s.  Since Steve stepped into Bucky’s overall role in that universe, it is presumed that he will also become that universe’s equivalent to the Winter Soldier.  We won’t really know for sure until the follow-up actually airs during Season 2, but we’ve got a figure of his updated design (which is, disappointingly, not called the “Winter Stomper”), and that’s pretty cool.  The figure stands 7 3/4 inches tall and he has 28 points of articulation.  His sculpt is an all-new one, since its meant to be based on a total upgrade of the armor (based on the one shot of it we’ve seen, anyway).  He’s a lot smaller than the last one, and just how accurate that is remains to be seen, since our only shot doesn’t have anyone else there for any sort of scale.  The new look definitely has a more proper post-WW2 vibe about it, without feeling like it’s 100% modernized, either.  It’s a little sleeker and more rounded off than the previous design, which also fits with that slightly smaller scaling.  It’s still a very chunky sculpt, though.  All that said, his articulation winds out working a little bit better, since there’s not as much boxiness to work around.  The rocket pack also has a much easier time staying in place this time around.  Hydra Stomper’s color work replicates his new, updated color scheme, which is silver and red, instead of the prior drab green and white accenting.  The molded plastic for the silver is the swirly kind, which I’m a tad iffy on, but it does alright.  The painted accents are cleanly applied, and works pretty well.  Though he’s a Build-A-Figure, the Hydra Stomper still gets a reasonable accessory set-up, with two sets of hands and an unmasked Steve head.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

The Disney+ assortments have been a bit of a mixed bag, but there keeps being enough of a draw in each set (usually, the Build-A-Figure, honestly) to pull me back in.  With the Captain Carter stuff being my favorite part of What If…? by far, there’s no way I was passing up on this set, even if I didn’t strictly speaking want every figure in it.  Ultimately, it’s overall more of a middling assortment.  Not bad, but just more middle of the road than anything.  Stomper and Fisk are both nearer the top of the list, being pretty much exactly what I expected them to be.  Talos winds up as the unexpected gem in the line-up.  The show may not have been great, but that figure sure is.  Goliath is by the numbers, but a thoroughly solid figure.  Agatha is practically a glorified statue; she looks good, but there’s very little play factor.  And the rest?  Well, they didn’t warrant me keeping them, for one reason or another.  Gamora’s a decent sculpt, and probably the best of the three.  Yelena’s got some issues with deco and re-use, and as good as the likeness may be, the first figure still feels like a better overall toy.  And Fury?  Fury is easily the weakest of the bunch.

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.

Mutant X Re-Read #18: Cyclops and Havok Together Again!

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Mutant X Re-Read

THE WAKE UP CALL

MUTANT X #17 (MARVEL COMICS)

“In another place–in another life–Alex Summers led a team of mutants in a battle against oppression. His methods were extreme, his tactics questionable, but–in his soul–he knew that he was fighting for the greater good.

Now that soul has been transferred to another world, and Summers, also known as Havok, has found himself living a lie, allied with a team of mutants who are sinister, parallel versions of his friends and family. It is to this dark, new place that Havok has come, where he stands as a man alone… a mutant alone. Alex Summers is Mutant X.

Fear him. Fear for him.”

25 years ago, Marvel Comics launched Mutant X, a Havok led X-spinoff. I recently came into a complete run of the series, and so now I’m going to re-read the series once a week, and you guys get to come along for the ride!

This week, the Cyclops of this strange alternate reality returns in “The Wake Up Call!”

THE ISSUE ITSELF

Mutant X #17 is cover dated February of 2000.  It has story and art by Howard Mackie, Javier Saltares, and Andrew Pepoy.

In narration, Havok recounts nightmares he’s been having since the team went on the run from SHIELD.  in them, he sees The Six, Scotty, and Elektra all killed by some unseen force.  Alex awakens from his latest recurrence of the dream and goes on a walk to clear his head.  He’s ambushed by a figure hiding in the bushes, who reveals himself to be Cyclops, there to protect his brother from some unseen force.  The force, who is a shadowy figure different from the one in Alex’s dreams, attacks, and Alex fights back, revealing….Mysterio, Spider-Man, and that one kid from the Daily Bugle who is on non-specific drugs…oh, wait, sorry, that’s the third part of the anti-drugs thing.  Good thing they don’t ruin the momentum of the story telling, huh?  Anyway, Alex is knocked unconscious and awakens strapped to a table in a lab, right next to his brother.  Cyclops recounts what’s happened since we last saw him, revealing that he and the Starjammers were attacked by this shadowy figure days earlier.  The Starjammers were taken out of commission and Scott fled, feeling in his gut that he needed to protect Alex.  Based on context clues, Alex is able to piece together that their captor is an alternate universe version of Mr. Sinister.  The alternate Sinister arrives, and explains that he needed the two of them for their genetic code.  With that gathered, he intends to keep them hostage for further study.  The two escape and destroy his lab.  Cyclops leaves for space once more, believing they will both be safer if they are separated.  Sinister watches footage of the lab’s destruction, as Jean Grey enters and asks if he intends to let them go.  He does, and remarks that he can’t wait to unleash his “X-Man” on the world.

The return of this universe’s Scott Summers wasn’t an unwelcome one, but ultimately, it doesn’t feel as fresh or different this time.  Not a ton happens in this issue, and what does feels like a rather generic Mr Sinister plot, which doesn’t really require the alternate universe setting.  Dispensing with the Starjammers in flashback is also a bummer, because I liked their dynamic in Scott’s first appearance.  At the very least, it’s nice that they weren’t actually killed off the way the X-Men were.  Also, after building up the newly re-formed Six line-up, they get sidelined for the issue, which continues to be frustrating.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I really enjoyed Cyclops’ first issue, but this one was…I mean, it’s not bad. But, it’s also not quite as thrilling.  There’s a lot more build-up to other stuff, and a lot more Havok just sort of wandering around.  I did like the angle of Havok knowing Sinister based on his encounters in the main universe, but Sinister then being pretty much exactly like his mainstream counterpart feels like a waste.

I snagged this whole run from my usual comics stop, Cosmic Comix, so I want to give them a shout out here, because it was a pretty great find.

#3503: Ultra Magnus

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

ULTRA MAGNUS

TRANSFORMERS: STUDIO SERIES (HASBRO)

“Ultra Magnus leads defensive measures against the Decepticons invading Autobot City.”

Well, it’s been another few months with no Transformers around these parts, so, you know, maybe I’ll address that?  Yeah, let’s do that.  And the best way to address a Transformers drought is…well, let’s be honest, with me it’s either gonna be Ultra Magnus or Soundwave.  Today, let’s focus on the former. Back in 2021, Hasbro started working Transformers: The Movie figures into their Studio Series line, in celebration of the movie’s 35th anniversary. At the same time, Earthrise and Kingdom added a few more compatible characters in a fairly close to movie style. Ultra Magnus’s anniversary-related figure wound up in Kingdom, and sort of walked the line between cartoon and toy, having an animated style exterior, while still retaining the toy style inner bot. This doesn’t quite hit the same mark as a Studio Series release, so, obviously a follow-up was needed, right?  Sure, yeah, let’s go with that.  I will literally never turn down a new Magnus.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Ultra Magus is a Commander Class release in Hasbro’s Transformers: Studio Series, where he’s numbered 86-21.  Magnus is notable for being the first instance of a Commander release under the Studio Series banner; previously, they were just a main line thing.  It also means he bumps up a class after being typically in the Leader category.  In his robot mode, the figure stands 9 inches tall and he has 30 workable points of articulation.  His articulation is generally improved compared to the usual Magnus, so he get a lot more poses than you might expect from a guy that’s so bulked up.  In particular, he gets a really cool set up on his hands, allowing for “fists”, basic grip, trigger grip, and even pointing.  The only part I’m not super keen on is how the shoulders work when extending out to the side; you’re effectively just popping them out of the socket, and the hinge isn’t strong enough to actually hold them up.  Magnus’ sculpt is all-new, and, as noted in the intro, it eliminates the inner robot mode, since he had nothing of the sort in the movie or cartoon.  This allows the design to focus purely on Magnus’ armored up design, and not have to worry about contending with an additional mode.  As such, his proportions work out slightly differently, and he doesn’t have spots where you can still see the smaller bot poking through.  It’s a strong sculpt, definitely capturing his movie design very well.  The only part that feels off to me is, again, the shoulders, which seem to be a little too wide for proper animation accuracy.  It’s not far off, mind you, and has to do with folding up parts from his alt-mode, so it’s not the end of the world.  Ultra Magnus gets a few built-in features.  To replicate the scene in the movie where he is drawn and quartered, his arms and legs are removable, by way of a spring-loaded locking system.  Magnus also gets a spot in his torso to house the Matrix of Leadership (as he does for a while in the movie), which is likewise spring loaded.  Pulling up the blue armored section of the torso flips the two chest doors open, revealing the included Matrix.  Magnus is packed with his toy-style rifle, plus his smaller emergency rifle from the movie, both of which can be stored on his back.  He also includes 7 different effects pieces, which are modular, and can be combined into different set-ups in conjunction with the rifles and the rockets.

With no inner bot, this Magnus transforms directly into his car-carrier vehicle mode, rather than the separate cab/carrier set-up of the Kingdom and Siege molds.  He’s a Commander Class, so there’s a definite complexity to the transformation.  It’s definitely a little more on the fiddly side, and I was consulting the instructions more on this one than others.  That said, it’s not terribly unintuitive, and its still a Magnus, so there are certain broad strokes that still land for the sequence.  The resulting vehicle mode is honestly pretty good.  There are a few spots where it doesn’t *quite* tab together perfectly, but otherwise it works, and the carrier portion is even large enough to properly carry Deluxe Class car bots, which is definitely a plus from the compatibility stand-point.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

After getting the Kingdom Magnus, I didn’t think I needed another G1-style Magnus.   I mean, that one’s, like, really solid.  How do you top it?  You don’t, as it turns out.  You go a different direction.  This one definitely was a surprise, but a happy one.  He’s definitely fun.  I don’t know that he beats out Kingdom Magnus in my *personal* order, but that doesn’t mean I can’t appreciate another Magnus for my Magnus shelf.

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.

#3502: Goliath

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

GOLIATH

MARVEL LEGENDS (HASBRO)

“In this universe, an alien threat forces Bill Foster to put aside his differences with former partner Hank Pym to join S.H.I.E.L.D.’s newest team of heroes.”

Though a minor character in the overall scheme of the Marvel universe, Bill Foster is a pretty big deal in real world terms, as one of Marvel’s first prominent African American characters.  In the comics, he would eventually take on his own super hero identity, the Black Goliath, ultimately shortening it to just “Goliath.”  Bill was added to the MCU in 2018’s Ant-Man and the Wasp, where he’s a disgruntled former partner of Hank, with his past as “Goliath” only briefly hinted at.  The second season of What If…? is poised to explore that at least *a little* further, with at least one of the episodes offering up a costumed variant of Bill, which just so happens to be one of the designs picked for action figure treatment.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Goliath is figure 5 in the Hydra Stomper Series of Marvel Legends, and is one of the three What If…? figures to grace the line-up.  The figure stands 6 1/4 inches tall and he has 30 points of articulation.  Structurally, he’s using the arms, legs, and waist from the Ant-Man and the Wasp version of Scott, with a new head, torso, and belt.  We haven’t seen a ton of exactly what Goliath is going to look like in the show, but this set-up does seem pretty consistent with what we *have* seen.  I do like how they’ve kept elements of Bill’s Goliath costume from the comics, while filtering it into something a bit more consistent with the other Pym-suits from the movies.  I particularly dig how they’ve set-up the lenses on the helmet to mimic Bill’s usual domino mask.  The new head is solid; it’s got the proper transparent lenses, which the Ant-Man built on this body lacked.  The new belt also incorporates another Goliath-centered element: the big “G” belt buckle.  I absolutely adore that.  Bill’s color work carries the heaviest weight in making this a suitably unique release.  The blue and white makes for a good contrast, to be sure.  The actual application is decent enough.  the blue seems a tad thin, but otherwise tings are clean.  Bill gets no accessories of his own, but he does get the arm and alternate hand for the Hydra Stomper Build-A-Figure.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Bill’s a character I really do love in the comics, so I’m happy about any sort of outside media appearances for him.  While his MCU appearance didn’t do a ton with him, it was still cool to see him, and I enjoyed that they left the door open for more of him.  I have no idea what his What If…? appearance is going to be like, but I’m certainly looking forward to it.  In the meantime, there’s this figure of him, and I already have the only other Bill Foster figure, so I might as well have this one, too, and keep that full set running.  He’s a pretty basic figure, but I do enjoy him.

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.

#3501: Blackbird Jet – Mobile Air Command

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

BLACKBIRD JET — MOBILE AIR COMMAND

X-MEN (TOY BIZ)

“The Blackbird Jet is a hypersonic transportation vehicle for X-Men. The jet is equipped to fly long-duration, high-altitude reconnaissance as well as attack missions. With a myriad of weapon delivery systems and electronic counter-measures, the Blackbird is markedly superior to any adversary.”

To close out this month’s look into the non-figure components of Toy Biz’s X-Men line, I’m looking at what is quite probably the centerpiece of those non-figure components: the Blackbird.  First introduced when the team returned with its all-new, all-different line-up in 1975, its become a fixture of the franchise, with multiple iterations in the comics, and some sort of presence in every notable media adaptation of the team.  It’s use as a major set-piece in the ’90s cartoon also netted it a release in the accompanying line of toys, which is what I’m taking a look at today.

THE VEHICLE ITSELF

The Blackbird Jet was added to Toy Biz’s X-Men line in 1995, alongside Series 4 and 5 of the main line.  While most components of the line were comics-based items that happened to have the same general looks as the cartoon incarnations, the Blackbird goes for a more directly cartoon-based look, albeit adapted a little bit to the constraints of the line’s scale and price-point.  The vehicle measures 15 1/2 inches long and has a 12 1/2 inch wing span.  The Blackbird’s sculpt was a unique one, and a pretty good one at that.  It very much takes the show design to heart, and translates it into a pretty good three-dimensional recreation.  It’s a bit scaled down from where it should be for a 5-inch line, since it would need to be able to fit the whole team, at least two side-by-side.  Instead, the cockpit is a one-seater, and the rest is scaled to match.  Like the rest of this line’s vehicles, its set-up to work with the pre-size-creep figures, so you’re not able to fit later figures into it.  But, it works well with the figures it was designed to be contemporary with.  It its default set-up, the Blackbird looks like the exterior of the one from the show.  The cockpit raises, so you can get a pilot in place, and the mid section also flips open for a passenger.  There’s also missiles to be launched from the back as well.  However, as the box so proudly proclaims, the Blackbird also transforms into three “Action Stages.”  The cockpit separates to become the “Command Center Explorer,” the tail and wings become a glider with ejector seat, and the fuselage slides out into a full-on command center, with a whole view screen set-up on the interior of the top half, which swings up out of the way.  The internal details are largely handled via decals, which include some pretty fun little touches.  The internal decals on my copy have certainly seen some better days, but it’s still very cool.  Aside from the decals (which also add a pair of X-logos to the wings, for some extra X-branding not present in the source material), everything else is molded in proper color.  The metallic blue works very well, and I’ve always dug the translucent red for the canopy. In terms of extras, the original release of this vehicle only included the two missiles, but there was also a later release, which packed in an unmasked Wolverine figure.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

My original Blackbird was, I believe, an Easter gift from my parents.  I recall getting it alongside Phoenix.  It’s notably one of the last things I remember being given at my parents’ old house, before we moved to the one they currently live in.  When they were in the process of buying their current house, there were a few visits to inspect various things, which I went along for, and the Blackbird (almost always piloted by my Series 1 Cyclops, until I got Wolverine II, so that I would have a Wolverine that actually fit in the thing) came with me, so that I had something to entertain myself.  It would go on to be one of my go-to vehicles for a great many figures (rivaled only by my Power of the Force Millennium Falcon in that regard), lasting for a very long lime.  It took quite a beating over the years, and I eventually lost all by the main chunk of the fuselage and tail.  When I got back into 5-inch collecting in college, I wound up getting a replacement, which is the one seen here.  It’s such an amazingly fun piece, and I’m glad to have one, even if it’s not my original.  But, I suppose replacing the Blackbird is kind of appropriate, since the X-Men have done it a great many times.

As a sort of a post-script here, for my birthday this year, my parents helped me reclaim at least one part of my original that I didn’t expect to find again: the original blueprints!  As I’ve touched on here before, my Grandfather was something of a hoarder, and that included squirreling away tons of paperwork from everything imaginable.  Evidently, at some point I left my Blackbird’s blueprints at his house, and he’d filed them away with other papers he’d kept.  While working to clear out the house over the summer, my Dad stumbled upon them, and my Mom had them framed for me, which is pretty sweet!