#3869: R2-D2 with Launching Lightsaber

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

R2-D2 with LAUNCHING LIGHTSABER

STAR WARS: POWER OF THE FORCE II (HASBRO)

“Though small and unassuming, the astromech droid R2-D2 has proven to be a pivotal figure throughout the quest for freedom in the galaxy. Whether delivering Princess Leia’s message to Ben Kenobi or accompanying Luke Skywalker in his X-Wing fighter as he delivered the fatal blow to the first Death Star, Artoo’s actions have become legendary within the annals of the Rebel Alliance. But unknown to his compatriots, Artoo already had plenty of time and experience at the center of action. Many decades earlier, he served on board the ship of the young queen from the planet Naboo. Even then, he displayed an unmistakable knack for helping others out of dire circumstances.”

You know, there’s often a lot of contention about the best particular version of a particular character in figure form.  It’s especially true of Star Wars, where all the main characters have dozens of figures at the least.  So, it can be pretty hard to narrow such a thing down.  But that’s best.  What we rarely talk about is worst.  Sure, a lot of that’s subjective, but I’m going to go out on a limb and say that today, I’m taking a look at the *worst* R2-D2 action figure ever made.  Well, let’s get to it.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

R2-D2 with Launching Lightsaber was part of the 1998 “Flashback Photo” assortment of Star Wars: Power of the Force II, officially released after the Hasbro change-over in anticipation of Episode I’s release.  This was R2’s third standard release figure in Power of the Force, and his second in 1998 alone.  In contrast to the other “movie specific” R2s in the line, which were all based on the first movie, this one is specifically a Return of the Jedi R2, based on the scene where he launches Luke’s lightsaber on Jabba’s barge.  The figure stands 3 inches tall and has a whole two points of articulation, which aren’t really useful, what with the permanently extended third leg.  But I’ll get to that.  The sculpt is all new, and it’s…well, it’s something.  Since the whole point of the figure is to launch the lightsaber, the sculpt is sort of worked around the whole launching mechanism.  The third leg is permanently extended, to give him more length to fit the saber, but it has to be extra wide to fit the mechanism, and even still ends up being little longer than it needs to be too.  He’s also still a bit long, and his other legs get stretched to compensate.  It’s all sorts of wonky, and not remotely close to what R2’s supposed to look like.  He’s just…wrong.  The paint work isn’t bad, I suppose.  He’s the second instance of the flat silver on the head dome, which is more accurate, and the weathering isn’t too bad.  R2 is packed with a missile version of Luke’s saber.  Like R2, it’s been notably modified to fit the new set-up, and it’s…well it’s also weird.  It launches alright, though, so I guess there’s that.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

The thing about getting the whole run of Power of the Force is that it’s the good and the bad.  So, sure, there’s some cool ones, but then there’s this guy.  He’s not great.  The gimmick’s a soft one at best, and it’s not implemented all that well, and the end result is such a mangled take on R2 that it’s just hard to see why.  But, you know, it does at least make him unique.

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.

#3868: Donatello

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

DONATELLO

TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES ULTIMATES (MANUFACTURER)

My looks into Super 7’s Ultimates banner have jumped back and forth a bit between several of their licenses, but given just how sizable their Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles line is, it’s one I sure do circle back around to a lot.  I last left off with a Donatello variant, and now I’m circling back with another Donatello.  The distinction this time around is that it marks the line’s transition from ’80s TMNT to ’00s TMNT, because these days the 2003 series is *also* vintage, so we might as well revisit that one too, right?  Right.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Donatello is part of Series 12 of Super 7’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Ultimates line.  This is the first of the two 2003 assortments, and features the new versions of the main four.  This is Donatello’s fourth figure in the line, and his second “standard” version.  The figure stands 5 3/4 inches tall and he has 38 points of articulation.  The 2003 figures mark a departure from the prior offerings on a number of fronts, the first of which is the articulation set-up.  These figures get an increased count of joints, as well as an increased range of motion.  Most notably, there are double joints on the elbows and knees, which fixes the range issue seen on a lot of the earlier Ultimates figures.  He also gets a better range on the neck and the waist joints, which in general just makes for a better posing experience.  In terms of styling, where the figures up to this point have largely been based directly on the original Playmates sculpts, the 2003 figures are notable based not on the toys, but on the actual cartoon directly.  It’s certainly a stylistic shift, but it works.  It’s sharp, and angular, and a good match for Donnie’s design from the show.  There are two heads present.  One with a more neutral expression and a friendly smile, and the other with more expressive eyes and his teeth showing.  Of the two, the neutral’s more my speed, but they both work well, and they’re internally consistent.  His color work is basic, largely relying on molded colors.  What paint is present is cleanly handled, and he matches up well with the muted tones of the show.  Donnie is packed with three pairs of hands (in fists, open, and gripping), his bo staff, a turtle communicator, and a pair of goggles.  That’s rather on the light side compared to prior Super 7 offerings, notably missing much in the way of goofier and more specific items.  Given what these guys cost, that’s not ideal.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I went back and forth with this one, I really did.  I’ve enjoyed the Super 7 figures I’ve gotten for the most part, and I do like a good Donatello, but also I’m kind of stepping back on my modern figure purchasing, and these are rather pricey for what they are.  But, given how short ordered these seem to have been, I didn’t really want to miss out on the chance to get him.  In hand, I actually do really like him.  The changes they’ve made do really make for a better figure.  I do wish he was either a little cheaper or came with a bit more stuff, but I don’t feel like I *wasted* my money, which is at least a good 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.

#3867: Amazo

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

AMAZO

AMAZING ANDROIDS (DC DIRECT)

“Created by the infamous Professor Ivo, Amazo was the world’s first android. His “absorption cells” give Amazo the ability to absorb the powers of any super-being he meets, something he has done time and time again in his many battles with the Justice League.”

You know, I’ve got two Super Adaptoids reviewed here on the site, but thus far only a single review dedicated to the *original* green guy that replicates the super hero team’s powers, Amazo!  Introduced in 1960 (six whole years before the Adaptoid), Amazo is a Justice League foe that resurfaces with a decent regularity, since power mimicry is usually a pretty good angle for fighting a super hero team.  It took him until 2000 to finally get any sort of action figure treatment, courtesy of DC Direct’s early look into the weirder side of DC.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Amazo was released in November of 2000, as part of the Amazing Androids line from DC Direct.  He’s the set’s one proper antagonist.  He’s based on his original design from the comics, which had also just resurfaced pretty recently at the time of this figure’s release.  The figure stands about 7 inches tall and he has 9 points of articulation.  You’d be forgiven for expecting that to be 10, since it sure does look like he’s got a waist swivel, but he, in fact, does not.  It’s got no motion, just an awkward assembly point.  The figure’s sculpt is unique to him, and a little bit pre-posed, which was still rather a new concept for DCD at this point.  There’s enough articulation to *sort of* change him up, but not really in any meaningful way.  But, his chosen pose is at least an okay one.  The details are a little on the simpler side, but are generally sharp and pretty well defined.  He looks the part, for sure, and I quite like that scowl on his face.  His paint’s also pretty simple, but generally okay.  The skin’s a little thick, which hides the sculpt a bit, but I do rather like that inhumanly green pallor he has.  Amazo was originally packed with his replica of Wonder Woman’s lasso.  It was just a simple spool of gold string, but it could hang on the little spot on his hip if you wanted.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I had no clue who Amazo was when this figure was first shown off, but he fascinated me, and I really wanted one.  It was probably the Green Lantern ring that really sold me, but that’s hardly the point.  My dad gave me a few appearances to read, and made sure I got the figure, which I seem to recall showed up while I was away on a trip of some sort.  He was waiting for me when I got home, alongside a bag full of promotional Mr. Mxyzptlk and Bat-Mite pins that I was still giving out to people well into my teens.  He’s not the most technically impressive figure, but he does look cool and he casts an imposing silhouette amongst the other early DCD figures.

#3866: Maestro

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

MAESTRO

THE INCREDIBLE HULK (TOY BIZ)

“From the future comes the corrupted version of the Incredible Hulk, the Maestro! Turning away from good, the Maestro defeated all of the world’s heroes in his future time, and now wears their weapons and armor as trophies. Using his incredible strength to become the ruler of the war-torn society, the Maestro is evil personified and he’s not finished. The only hope for this terrible future comes as the Hulk of our time is pulled forward to face the Maestro in battle and defeat him. Warned of the arrival of the Hulk, the Maestro readies himself for the greatest clash of his life!”

Two weeks ago, prolific comics writer, novelist, and columnist Peter David passed away.  Peter was a family friend, who I had known pretty much since I was born, and a regular attendee at the sci-fi conventions my family helped run.  He’d been battling with some health issues for a few years, but his passing still seemed sudden, and it is odd to think that a man with such a distinctive voice will now be absent from so many conversations.  Peter had a hand in a lot of very popular comics over the years, and in particular did a lot of pretty noteworthy things during his time writing Hulk.  He really explored the internal struggle of Bruce Banner and his duality as the Hulk, bringing to the forefront many different versions of the title character.  Alongside the late and great George Perez, Peter created Maestro, a dark take on the Hulk from an alternate future.  He got a pretty quick turnaround on the toy front, which I’m looking at today.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Maestro was released in 1997’s “Transformations” series of Toy Biz’s The Incredible Hulk line.  Rather appropriately, the assortment also had Smart Hulk, the version of Hulk from the present day that he faced off against in his initial story, so that worked out pretty well.  The figure stands about 6 1/2 inches tall and he has 8 points of articulation.  He’s not particularly agile, but he’s a Hulk, so they don’t tend to be.  The neck is particularly stiff, though, due to the beard and long hair.  Generally, he’s really just good for the one pose.  It is, at least, a pretty cool pose.  The sculpt is rather on par with the rest of the main Hulk line.  It’s solid, and there’s a lot of pretty nice little detailing.  The warts and such on the skin are gross, but they’re kind of supposed to be, right?  In the story, Maestro is Hulk after the rest of the Marvel Universe is dead, so to reflect this, the figure gets a Toy Biz original twist on his design: the fallen hero armor.  He’s got a bandolier sporting the helmets/heads of Juggernaut, Ultron, Iron Man, Dr. Doom, and Nova, and Dr. Strange’s cloak attached to that.  He’s also got a damaged version of Cap’s shield, with a chain connecting Mjolnir to it on his left arm, and he *should* have a gauntlet on the right arm made of Wolverine’s bones, but mine is missing that part.  It’s a really cool, really distinctive visual, that’s not based on anything from the comics, nor has it ever been adapted into the comics, but it’s still very cool.  Maestro’s paint work is pretty nice, actually.  The core body gets quite a bit of accenting and smaller detail wrk, and the fallen hero armor gets a lot of color.  The only slight oddity is the all-red eyes; he usually just had normal eyes, but they made them red.  It’s not a bad visual, but doesn’t quite represent the character’s comic look.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I remember seeing this figure in the store when he was new, and I was always fascinated by the armor (especially since it was our only glimpse at a classic Iron Man or Ultron during the Toy Biz run), but for whatever reason, I just never got around to buying one.  It’s been on my list since I got back into the collection in college, but was always just outside my immediate “gotta buy it” price range.  In light of Peter’s passing, I decided it was time to stop putting it off and finally get one, which I did.  He’s really cool, even if he’s not strictly comic accurate.  I’m glad I finally got one.

Flashback Friday Figure Addendum #0031: Magneto

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Flashback Friday Figure Addendum and tagged with , , , ,

MAGNETO

X-MEN (TOY BIZ)

Okay, you guys, I’m doing it for real this time!  I’m *actually* wrapping up Toy Biz X-Men Series 1….more or less.  I’m focussing on the more, though, because I think that sounds better for me personally.  So, for today’s Flashback Friday Figure Addendum, let’s return back to Magneto!

“The evil mutant master of magnetism, Magneto is the arch-enemy of the X-Men. With his magnetic power, Magneto’s magnetic force can pull even the heaviest objects to him, throw them miles away, or cause them to shatter with sudden explosiveness. Magneto plans to enslave mankind and mercilessly rule Earth with the other evil mutants. But first he must destroy the X-Men, the super hero mutants who are mankind’s defenders.”

Magneto’s first action figure came from Mattel’s Secret Wars line. Though sold as a villain, the story was an early adopter of the heroic turn for the character. By the time of his second figure, he’d run the whole gamut of villain to hero and back again. It’s a little odd to see the character referred to simply as an evil mutant, but that’s where he landed when the team came into all of their notoriety, I suppose.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Magneto was released in Series 1 of Toy Biz’s X-Men line, as one of three villains presented therein. Magneto had gone through a few different costumes by this point, but returned to his classic design just in time for this figure’s release. The figure stands 5 inches tall and he has 9 points of articulation. Magneto’s sculpt was an all-new offering, and it remained unique to this figure all throughout Toy Biz’s tenure with the license. Magneto sports perhaps the finest sculpt in the whole first series. His proportions are notably less goofy and his posture far less stilted than other figures from this assortment. He’s not painfully scrawny like Cyclops was, and he can actually manage some decent poses, unlike Storm. His helmet was removable, and while that made it more than a little bit oversized, and just a touch goofy looking, it does mean we were treated to the fully detailed un-helmeted head beneath it, which does a very nice job of capturing Magneto’s usual stern but well-meaning expression. Despite the big emphasis on the whole “evil” bit in the bio, that’s not quite what was presented by the figure here, and he ends up very true to the character in that regard. Though later figures in the line would go the sculpted cape route, this one got a cloth piece, keeping with the vaguely Super Powers-esque aesthetic that these early Toy Biz offerings had. Like the bulkier helmet, it’s a bit dated looking and slightly goofy, but it’s not bad for what it is. Magneto’s paintwork is pretty straight forward stuff. The red parts are all molded plastic, and everything else is painted. Application is mostly pretty clean; there’s some slight slop on the boots and gloves, but it’s very minor. In addition to the removable helmet and cape, this guy came with three pieces of “metal debris,” which, via magnets in his torso and hands, could be attached to the figure, thus simulating his powers.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I have two of this guy, and it’s all my dad’s fault. Well, not directly, I suppose. When I was just getting into collecting, my dad and I were doing a lot of tandem buying, where we’d both get something. On one of our trips, he got this figure, and I really liked it, but I never ended up finding another at retail. A few years later, I found this guy (along with Nightcrawler) at a flea market, sans helmet and cape. Despite the missing pieces, that was certainly good enough for me, at least at the time. In recent years, I become slightly more picky about such things, so I ended up tracking down a second one, via my friends at Yesterday’s Fun, and this one had the missing pieces. This remains my favorite Magneto figure, and I’m happy to have a more complete release.

Man, I did cover my bases on “more complete” at the end there.  Good for me.  Well, now he’s *actually* complete.  And then some!  I managed to find those missing “debris” parts for my figure, and, along the way, I also managed to snag the paint variant that I neglected to mention the last time.  For his initial and all subsequent releases, Magneto got the all purple collar, as seen in my original review, but for only the initial run, there was also a variant with a red box in the middle, unpainted.  It gives him an extra bit of flair, but I imagine it was a lot more difficult to keep consistent, hence just filling it in for later runs.  Not crazy different, but nifty.

#3865: Clone Captain Rex

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

CLONE CAPTAIN REX

STAR WARS: THE BLACK SERIES (HASBRO)

“Rex served the Republic on the front lines during the Clone Wars, taking orders from Anakin Skywalker and Ahsoka Tano first as a captain and later a commander.”

Since The Clone Wars has little cross-over in terms of actors with the live action films it crosses over with, most of its original characters are portrayed through their entire runs by veteran voice actors, rather than the people that might play them in live action.  Some of them have made the jump with the same actor; Katee Sackoff as Bo-Katan is probably the best example.  What’s an interesting quirk of the nature of the Clone Troopers, who make up a solid portion of the show’s cast, is that they’re mostly new characters, but they’re voiced by an actor different than the one who portrayed them in live action.  This means that Captain Rex, easily the most prominent clone in the series, and really the most prominent clone in the wider franchise, spent the first decade and a half of his existence never having once been played by Temuera Morrison, the guy that originated the clones in the first place.  This was finally addressed in 2023, however, when Rex made his live action debut in Ahsoka via some key flashback sequences.  And, hey, Hasbro’s also taken advantage of that appearance to give us another Rex figure!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Clone Captain Rex is figure 16 in the Ahsoka show subline of Star Wars: The Black Series.  He’s in an assortment that also features the flashback version of Anakin from the same show, and they’re both based on their appearances from the earlier flashbacks, meaning Rex is in his Phase I armor.  Since the first Rex was in his later design, it makes this one a much needed variant.  The figure stands just over 6 inches tall and he has 31 points of articulation.  He’s built on the 2020 Clone Trooper body, rather than using the prior Rex body.  Technically, this does make him more accurate to specifically this armor set, and it’s not too bad a mold.  He gets a new pauldron, and belt with kama, which work about as well as they usually do.  The pauldron seems a bit floaty (I liked the affixed one from the last Rex mold), and the kama is a bit restricting, but those are both rather typical.  One minor but super cool touch is that he’s got a new left hand, which has a trigger finger, meaning he can *finally* hold both blaster pistols properly.  Yay!  His helmet is the standard Phase I style one, with the range finder added on.  Underneath, we get a head that looks to be very similar to the prior Rex, if it’s not actually the same sculpt.  It’s certainly a little sharper, though, and it fits better in the helmet.  His paint work aims for a cleaner look for Rex, which is true to the show, and also fits, this being Rex from earlier in the war.  It’s cleanly applied, and he generally looks pretty good.  Rex is packed with just his two blaster pistols.  It’s again accurate to the show, and I’m glad he can properly hold them, but also that feels really, really light.  I know that the Phase II helmet shouldn’t *technically* go on this body, but it might have been nice to at least get one as an option.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Rex’s appearance in Ahsoka was exceedingly exciting for me.  I literally jumped for joy.  And, as soon as I saw that Phase I armor, I was hopeful it might mean getting him in figure form.  It took a little bit longer than I expected, but I think it was worth it.  I like any chance to get another Rex, and I’ve always had a soft spot for the Phase I armor.  The figure winds up being mostly by the numbers, but, as silly as it may sound, that tweaked left hand *really* works for me.

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.

#3864: Roboto

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

ROBOTO

MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE: MASTERVERSE (MATTEL)

Okay, so it’s worth noting that I *have* reviewed something Masters of the Universe-related this calendar year, but its also been since all the way back in January, which is something of a gap.  It sort of happens with Masters, due to my more selective collecting.  On my short list of characters I pretty much always buy in any given style is today’s focus, Roboto.  He was added to the Masterverse line-up in 2023, while they were still pretty heavily leaning into Revelation style figures, so that was his focus.  Despite that being a generally classic take on him, he’s never the less gotten a revisit, aiming more at specificially updating the original figure, which I’m looking at today.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Roboto is part of Series 16 of Mattel’s Masters of the Universe Masterverse line.  He’s under the “New Eternia” banner, which serves to update the classic designs more directly, and also offer up some optional “improvements.”  The figure stands 7 1/4 inches tall and he has 32 points of articulation.  Like most modern Robotos, he lacks mid-torso movement, and this time around the swappable hands are worked into the standard wrist peg system, rather than adding an additional cut joint.  The mouth plate is movable, but not quite to the extent of the Revelation version, so it doesn’t really feel much like practical articulation in that sense.  Despite both being based on the original Roboto design and sharing a number of common design elements, there are not parts shared between the two Masterverse Robotos.  It’s not terribly surprising, given there’s just generally been very little crossover between the two themes.  He does, however, share his legs with the New Eternia Trap Jaw, continuing the trend of that particular re-use.  Though totally new sculpts, they’re using the same general set-up as the Revelation ones, complete with the same slightly odd layout of the kneepads relative to the articulation.  From the mid-section up, he’s an all-new sculpt.  It takes the broad strokes designs of the vintage figure and sort of does its own sort of thing with them.  He’s a bit more rounded, especially on the torso and head designs, and there are more intricate elements worked into things.  The head is more involved than we tend to see, using a three-piece assembly.  He’s got the usual mouth guard, as well as a “helmet” piece, both of which can be removed to reveal a robotic skull underneath.  The torso brings back the gear turning action feature we frequently see with this guy, which is a lot of fun.  The color work on this figure is in keeping with the generally metallic leanings of the more recent New Eternia figures, which I do rather like.  The helmet is totally clear, which makes for an iffy look in the photos, but looks really, really nice in person.  Roboto is packed with an alternate take on his mouth guard, a standard right hand, and axe, blaster, and claw attachments, which pretty much cover all of the basics.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

After getting the Revelation Roboto, I didn’t really feel like I *needed* another version.  But, a Roboto’s a Roboto, so it’s not like I was really going to balk at buying a new one.  The pictures on this one were sort of iffy at first, so I wasn’t sure how much I’d like it, but in person he looked really good, and I have to say, he turned out really nice.  Personally, I think I still lean a bit towards the Revelation figure, but it’s cool to see a different approach to the same general design, and there’s a lot of really fun elements to this figure’s implementation.

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.

#3863: Dr. Fate

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

DR. FATE

MYSTICS, MAGES, & MAGICIANS (DC DIRECT)

In the early of DC Direct, they were steering clear of DC’s heaviest hitters, so as to not compete with what Hasbro was doing.  This led to more obscure character coverage, as well as some older character coverage.  In particular, there was quite a run with the Justice Society of America in those early days.  Sort of bridging the gap from the supernatural themes to the JSA themes was the first proper team member, Dr. Fate, who I’m taking a look at today!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Dr. Fate was released in the Mystics, Mages, & Magicians series from DC Direct, which arrived August 16, 2000.  Fate was joined by fellow JSA member Spectre, as well as Zatanna, and John Constantine.  This marked Fate’s second figure, following up on his vintage Super Powers release.  The figure stands just over 6 inches tall and he has 9 points of articulation.  None of the early DCD figures were tremendously well articulated, but Fate’s definitely got some oddities to him.  The arms are fine enough, but the legs are curiously missing knees, while still having ankles.  It’s good for finding the sweet spot on balancing him, but how close the feet are together does look a little silly.  His sculpt is on the basic side, generally keeping with the early years of DCD.  It’s clean, and bold, and replicates the design of the character pretty well.  He’s got a removable helmet, which reveals a somewhat pin-headed Kent Nelson beneath it, but it’s still a neat idea, at least in theory.  The main helmet is also really nice, and a good replica of the helmet of Nabu from the comics.  Did I say “main helmet”?  Yes I did!  There’s also an alternate helmet, showcasing Fate’s more super-hero-y helmet from the ’60s, which shows off the bottom half of his face.  This is the only time its ever been done in toy form, so it’s certainly nifty!  His color work is generally basic, with flat yellow and blue for the most part.  The helmets and the amulet are all vac metalized, though, which….well, it’s got mixed results, I guess.  It’s certainly a cool idea, but it clashes quite a bit with the flat yellow.  Still, it was nice to see them try something different.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

This figure’s sort of notable for being the earliest instance of me wanting my own copy of a DC Direct figure my dad was already buying.  He had a full set of the series coming from a friend, but I was impatient and wanted to buy my own when they came into Cosmic Comix.  I don’t know why specifically it was Dr. Fate I wanted enough to get my own, but that’s where it landed.  He’s a fun, if perhaps simple figure, and he instilled in me a love for Fate’s rather distinctive design.

#3862: Rom

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

ROM

MARVEL LEGENDS (HASBRO)

In 1979, Parker Brothers, traditionally a board game company, nominally got into the action figure world with Rom, an early electronic toy that took the traditionally figure guise.  The toy was a pretty colossal failure, and would have likely been completely forgotten were it not for the licensing agreement Parker Brothers made with Marvel for a comic adaptation of the figure.  Despite the toy’s failure, the Bill Mantlo and Sal Buscema’s comic adaptation was very successful, running 75 issues and 4 annuals, far outlasting the original toy.  Because of the weirdness surrounding the whole thing, Rom’s always been a rarity on the toy front, and has also been completely absent from anything Marvel related.  But, with the character now owned by Hasbro, and Hasbro being on good terms with Marvel, Marvel’s been able to reprint the original series, and Hasbro’s been able to put out a new figure, under the Marvel Legends banner no less!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Rom was released in the Classic Comic Collection series of Marvel Legends, alongside the Banshee figure I reviewed last week.  He further contributes to the eclectic nature of the assortment, which is just kind of a grab-bag of random characters and looks.  Hey, it got me classic Banshee *and* a Rom, so I shan’t question it.  The figure stands just shy of 7 1/4 inches tall and he has 31 points of articulation.  His articulation scheme is a little different than the usual Legends release, but it’s very much workable, and it does well within the confines of his unique design.  His sculpt is completely new.  It’s based on Rom’s slightly refined look as the series progressed and he moved a little further from the toy-inspired elements of his original design.  There’s still plenty of those vintage elements, though, and he’s very clean and sharp.  It’s one of the slickest Legends sculpts of the year, for sure, and it works really well with his articulation scheme.  Rom’s paint work is decently handled.  Notably, all of the silver is painted, rather than molded, which gives it a more even finish, without any of those swirly bits.  He’s also got some slight red detailing, with the eyes in particular working very well to capture that comic design.  Rom is packed with both his Neutralizer and Analyzer, as well as an effect piece for the Neutralizer, and two pairs of hands (in gripping and a fist/flat combo).  He’s also got a small replica of Rom: Space Knight #1, which is using the same mold as the GSXM included with Banshee.  It’s still kind of a weird gimmick, but at least Rom’s actual on the cover of the issue he comes with.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Rom’s a thing I mostly know through reputation, and not through much actual direct interaction, since the original toy’s pretty rare, and the comic was out of print for so long.  That said, I’ve always dug his design, and I’m also always down for a good robot toy.  His last figure was really hard to get, so that was a no-go. This one proved easier, so here we are.  Banshee was sort of by the numbers and simple, whereas this guy is rather involved and rather a departure from the standard style.  He’s very much an impressive figure, and hands down the best Rom ever made, as well as the best figure in this particular assortment (even if Banshee is my own personal favorite).

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.

Flashback Friday Figure Addendum #0030: Archangel

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Flashback Friday Figure Addendum and tagged with , , , ,

ARCHANGEL

X-MEN (TOY BIZ)

Hey, did you guys realize there were still some figures from Toy Biz’s first series of X-Men I hadn’t addendummed?  Because there are.  So, here I go, fixing that.  Ooooooooooooooh yeeeeeeeeeaaaaaaaaah!  …*ahem*… Sorry about that.  Anyway, here’s Archangel.

“Archangel is the high-flying X-Man with a knock-out secret weapon– wingtip darts filled with paralyzing fluid! Archangel can fire these darts with uncanny accuracy from any height and speed. With his amazing metal wings, Archangel is able to fly faster than the speed of sound and silently attack like a striking eagle. This ability strikes terror in the hearts of evil mutants, for their first warning of Archangel’s attack is usually the impact of one of his darts!”

In the late ’80s/early ’90s, there was a trend in comics, of taking characters with formerly passive powers and either creating a new character with those powers plus an offensive component, or even just reforging the original into something more “kick-ass.”  Founding X-Men member Warren Worthington III, originally known as Angel, found himself on the receiving end of one of these make-overs, become the war-ready Archangel.  It was a lasting look, and one that was at the forefront when it came time for Warren’s first action figure.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Archangel was released in Series 1 of Toy Biz’s X-Men line.  His presence is somewhat interesting, as he’s the only X-Man in the line-up who wasn’t from the “All-New, All-Different” lineup.  Archangel was still wearing his hideous “Death” togs he got from Apocalypse at the time of this figure, so that’s what he’s wearing here.  Boy, was this costume ugly.  I mean, I love it, but it’s ugly.  The figure stands 4 3/4 inches tall and he has 9 points of articulation (his wings can also move, but it’s tied into his action feature, and they don’t really hold poses or anything).  His sculpt was unique to him.  It’s not terrible, but I do think he’s a fair bit more dated than some of the others in the set.  His head’s kind of large, and his facial expression is sort of goony. I think it’s the eyes; they seem too close together.  The body is rather stiffly posed, and his proportions are definitely a little off.  The arms are probably the worst part; they just look so scrawny when compared to the rest of him.  The wings are okay, though they suffer a bit from the comics’ lack of consistency on the exact shaping of them.  They’re also slightly marred by the “missile launching feature” at the tops.  I use the quotes because there’s no actual spring-loaded feature or anything; you just pushed them out with your thumb.  Kind of disappointing.  The torso is also impacted a bit by the wings.  Toy Biz wasn’t sure how to attach them, so they went for this this big honking block on his back.  Elegant it is not.  Archangel’s paintwork is decent enough; it’s a little brighter than a lot of interpretations of this costume tend to be, but it’s not like it was going to get *less* ugly.  There were two versions of this guy’s colorscheme; the original release had white wings, while the re-release offered both white and grey wings.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Archangel was one of my earlier additions to my collection.  Though the Invasion series had hit right when I started collecting (and given me my first three X-Men figures in the process), the Archangel variant included there wasn’t quite as plentiful, so I ended up getting this guy’s re-release instead.  He’s not aged particularly well, and I definitely prefer other Archangel’s, but he still has a quaint sort of a charm to him.

This review hit in the midst of a run of these reviews I ran in 2018, as I was doing a dive into the first series of the line, following finally getting a complete set of them.  At the time, I didn’t have his two thumb missiles, but I have managed to square up a pair of them to go with mine since.  They’re kind of unimpressive, but at least they’re there?  Wooooooooo.