Tag Archives: All Time Toys

#1991: Soundwave

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

SOUNDWAVE

TRANSFORMERS (HASBRO)

So, this Transformers thing…it doesn’t appear to be going away, does it?  Like last month, I am once again bookending a month’s reviews with Transformers.  Today’s offering is slightly different, however, because rather than looking at something new, I’m actually looking at something quite old.  About as old as a Transformer can possibly be, in fact.  It’s no secret that Soundwave is my very favorite Transformer, so it’s probably not a huge shock to see me go back to his beginnings, and take a look at his vintage figure.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Soundwave was released in 1984, as one of the line’s first Decepticons.  He was a re-working of the Microman Micro Change Cassette Man figure, and is actually one of the least changed imports the line had to offer, with only minimal re-tooling and some slight changing of his color palette.  In his robot mode, Soundwave stands 7 inches tall and has 15 workable points of articulation.  Though his sculpt is certainly boxier and more rudimentary than more modern offerings from the line, Soundwave is probably one of the best sculpts of the 1984 line-up.  He’s pretty posable, and maintains that sort of retro robot feel without getting too goofy or basic.  He’s also a rather sturdy feeling figure, which is certainly nice to find in a figure that’s 45 years old.  I particularly like the metal feet, which help to keep him up and standing.  There’s also virtually no kibble left over from his alt form which is downright impressive on such a figure.  Said alt form is, of course, that of a micro cassette player.  Cassette Man was part of a line of figures meant to be mini robots masquerading as everyday items.  While Soundwave in the show had to rely on some weird mass-shifting to go from one form to the next, the toy just sticks with letting him be a realistically scaled player, which is certainly a neat idea.  His transformation from one form to the other is pretty straightforward, which was a relief to a relative Transformers novice such as myself, and the cassette player form is a convincing one.  I mean, it’s not like it’s super complex or anything; it’s really just a box, but it does that whole box thing pretty well.  Soundwave, like many earlier Transformers, foregoes paint for more decals and the like.  For the most part, they’ve held up well, but mine is missing his Decepticon logo (which was actually replaced by a rubsign decal for figures released in 1985 and beyond).  Soundwave was originally packed with a shoulder cannon, a handheld weapon, and one of his cassettes, Buzzsaw.  My figure only has the shoulder cannon, which is really the most important to him personally.  Soundwave included an “action feature” of sorts as well; the door on his chest is spring loaded, allowing for a proper ejecting of any cassette-based associates.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

This Soundwave was traded into All Time alongside a larger collection, and spent a good couple of months just sitting back behind the counter, just the see if anyone might as to purchase him.  No one did, and I found myself sitting there fiddling with him one night, at which point I realized I kinda didn’t want to put him back.  So, home with me he came.  He’s somewhat dated, but still pretty darn awesome, and I’m honestly pretty happy I snagged him.  I mean, what kind of a Soundwave fan would I be if I didn’t have the original?

#1990: Speeder Bike (w/ Princess Leia Organa in Endor Gear)

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

SPEEDER BIKE (W/ PRINCESS LEIA ORGANA IN ENDOR GEAR)

STAR WARS: POWER OF THE FORCE II (KENNER)

The Star Wars franchise has long placed a good deal of emphasis on the distinct vehicles utilized by its heroes and villains, with at least a few new designs for every film.  For Return of the Jedi the cool new vehicle was the speeder bike, a hovering cycle that was perfectly tailored for exciting chase scenes.  It of course got a release during the vintage line, and by extension, it found itself among the re-purposed vehicle molds for Power of the Force II in 1997.  Where the prior release had been sold on its own, for PotF2, it was available with one of three pilots: the Biker Scout, Luke Skywalker, and today’s focus, Princess Leia Organa.

THE VEHICLE ITSELF

The main focus of these sets was the Speeder Bike, seen here as it appears on the forest moon of Endor.  As I touched on in the intro, a lot of the vehicles for Power of the Force II re-used the molds of their vintage counterparts.  For the bikes in particular, there’s a definite feeling of “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it”.  Measuring about 7 inches in length and standing about two inches off the ground, the Speeder Bike is a fairly decent replica of the on-screen version of the vehicle.  Some of the features have been simplified ever so slightly, and it still has the original mold’s adjustments to make seating the figure on it a little easier, so the controls are vertically oriented rather than horizontally, and there’s still that little plunger that held the original figures’ legs in place.  The plunger was no longer necessary thanks to the vehicle specific riders, but I can’t complain about it remaining, since that keeps it backwards compatible, and meant it could still be used with figures not specifically designed for this set.  The foot pedals have springs built in to maintain tension, allowing the bike to stay up straight even if not totally balanced in its weight distribution.  Later bikes would instead resort to flight stands and the like, but I actually like how this works, and it certainly makes it playable.  Speaking of playable, there’s a whole other spring-loaded feature designed with play in mind.  When you press the pack on the rear of the bike, it pops apart into several pieces, simulating the rather catastrophic damage the bikes tended to take in the movie.  In terms of coloring, the original bike was always a little on the pale side.  This one went a little more accurate, and also supplied some decals if you wanted to go even further with the accuracy.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Included with this bike was a variant of Leia, seen here in her camo gear from Endor.  Since this is what she’s wearing when on the bike, it’s pretty sensible, don’t you think?  Leia’s Endor appearance had previously appeared in the vintage line, though this would be its debut here for Power of the Force.  It would, however, later be retooled and released alongside a Commemorative Coin.  But this one was first.  She stands 3 3/4 inches tall and has 7 points of articulation.  These pilot figures were the first to sport knee articulation, which was a definite plus for this Leia, though the articulation is perhaps a little rudimentary in their implementation.  The sculpt is about on par with the rest of the line.  The helmet is permanently attached to her head, which is honestly the best way of handling it.  Her poncho is a separate piece made of a somewhat rubbery material.  It’s a little bit bulky, but not terrible as a whole.  Under the poncho, Leia’s got a fully defined uniform, which is a respectable match for what she was wearing in the film.  Leia’s paintwork is actually pretty darn decent.  Most of it’s pretty basic, but the work on the helmet and poncho is subtle and quite nicely implemented.  Leia is packed with a blaster pistol which, while it may look really similar to Han’s, is actually a totally unique sculpt.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

As a kid, the only of these sets I had was the one with Luke.  Back last year I finally picked up the one with the Scout Trooper.  Leia here?  The last of the three to be added to my collection.  All Time got her in last winter, and I picked her up during my splurge of PotF2 purchases.  For the money and time it takes to acquire, this release of the speeder bike, regardless of which figure it comes with is really the best option.  It’s pretty accurate, the spring loaded features are fun, and it scales nicely with the other offerings.  Plus, the Leia figure that’s included is actually not a bad offering, and is probably the best of the three potential figures to go with.

#1989: Sgt. Apone

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

SGT. APONE

ALIENS (NECA)

“Tough and gritty, Apone keeps the Marines in line. Right arm now bio-mechanical.”

When NECA’s highly-popular Predator line started running out of actual movie-based Predators to release, they started reaching back to the ’90s line of Predator figures from Kenner, a fairly popular move.  Obviously, it’s not a huge shock that the Aliens line would follow suit.  We got the Kenner variant of Ripley back on the first Alien Day, with Vasquez following suit the next year.  There was an assortment of Kenner inspired Xenos released between the two in 2016, and we’ve finally gotten a follow-up assortment just this year.  We’ve also gotten our first main series release for a Kenner human, Sgt. Apone, a character whose movie version we have still yet to see, due to Al Matthews, Apone’s actor, being notoriously protective of his likeness.  But hey, at least we have *some* version of Apone.  And one that’s super ’90s-tastic at that!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Sgt. Apone is one of the three figures in the Kenner-inspired Series 13 of Aliens from NECA.  The figure stands 7 inches tall and he has 22 points of articulation.  As I noted when I reviewed the original Kenner Apone, his design from Kenner was perhaps one of the most divergent from the source material.  Gone was his uniform and standard military gear, replaced by something I can only describe as “uber ’90s”.  He’s got a backwards baseball cap, fingerless gloves, a bright-colored t-shirt with the sleeves torn off, and even a pair of sneakers inspired by the ones Ripley has in the film (which her Kenner figure didn’t have; I can only imagine that Al stole them from her).  The look is unique to say the least.  For the part of this specific figure, he’s done a pretty amazing job of faithfully capturing the details of the original figure, while still updating him so that he won’t look *too* out of place with the rest of the movie-inspired figures.  There’s a lot of great small detail work going on, from the wrinkles of his pants, to all the little stitches and wear on his boots.  The facial likeness is a tricky area of course, since it’s not officially an Al Matthews likeness, same as the Kenner figure before it.  But, like the Kenner figure, it’s still got a more than passing resemblance to the guy, meaning he still looks like Apone.  For the more resourceful customizers out there, I can see this head leading to a pretty easy movie accurate version of the character.  If there’s one drawback to the sculpt, it’s the way the cybernetic arm impedes the articulation on his right elbow.  It’s not terrible, and you can still get some good poses, but it’s not as good as the left.  In NECA’s defense, the original Kenner figure threw the arm on with no intention to articulate it, so they’re just doing their best to remain faithful to that design.  In the end, it’s not that big an issue, but it did somewhat stick out at me.  Moving onto the paint, Apone’s got some solid work, and is appropriately garish in color scheme.  He’s got his signature “No Bugs” scrawled across his shirt, which definitely looks cool, and as a whole the figure just really pops.  What I like the most about it, however, is that NECA didn’t just do the basic colors, they’ve also gone behind and added some accenting work, especially on those boots, so even though he may be bright and painful, he still looks like a real person.  Apone includes two “grenades” and a shotgun, just like his old figure.  The gun is re-used from one of the Genisys Terminators, but it’s actually a surprisingly good match.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I’ve definitely been wanting an Apone for my NECA Aliens collection, and while I still want a faithful movie version at some point, I really can’t complain about getting this one.  The super ’90s nature adds a lot of charm.  Here’s hoping for some more Kenner Marines to go with him!

I got this guy from my friends at All Time Toys, who have (or had, at least) the whole series.   If you’re looking for toys both old and new, please check out their website and their eBay storefront.

#1982: Ultraman – B Type

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

ULTRAMAN — B TYPE

ULTRAMAN FIGURE-RISE (BANDAI)

Hey, how about a look into two things I haven’t looked at in a long time?  It’s been over a year since I reviewed anything Ultraman related (the end of Ultra-Act and subsequent transition into Figuarts has been a rather major contributor to that), and three whole years since I’ve reviewed any model kits, but now I’m just throwing caution to the wind and looking at an Ultraman model.  I know, crazy stuff for me, right?  Just stepping way outside my comfort zone for this?

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Ultraman (B Type) is the first in Bandai’s newly launched line of Ultraman-themed Figure-Rise kits.  They’ve previously offered kits for Dragon Ball Z and Kamen Rider, and it’s not a huge shock to see them move onto another immensely popular license.  So far, it appears this line will be taking its cues from the currently running Ultraman manga, which sequelizes the original show, while working in elements of its successors in a new timeline.  This figure is the main Ultraman from the series, Shinjiro Hayata, son of the original Ultraman, wearing his second set of powered armor (as noted by the “B Type” at the end of the name).  The kit is billed as 1/12 scale, so the final figure stands a little over 6 inches tall, meaning he scales pretty decently with the Figuarts stuff.  He’s got 31 points of articulation, so he’s not quite on the same posability level as most of those figures, but he’s not terribly far off either.  Of all the models I’ve built, Ultraman is definitely the most intense.  As in “took multiple sessions to complete him” intense.  He’s made up of a lot of small, little pieces, that all click together very carefully.  While this may be a little stressful on the assembly side, it pays off on the appearance front.  This is definitely a sharp looking figures. Details are well-defined, and he’s a good match for the source material’s very machined appearance.  If I have one complaint, it’s that the figure’s not quite as sturdy as I might have liked.  I’ve had no breakage issues, of course, but the torso assembly pops apart with regular handling (mostly by design, to be fair).  He’s more a pose and set figure than a mess around with him figure.  Paint’s a no-go on these sorts of sets, so there are a few different ways to handle variations of color.  For the most part, this guy goes with the “mold it in the right color” method, meaning there’s a lot of very precise part assembly.  However, there are also some pretty extensive decal applications mixed in with that.  Again, they can get a little stressful, but the end result pays off, and you’d be hard pressed to discern these decals from actual paintwork.  Of course, time will tell as to their longterm hold-up.  Ultraman is pretty well accessorized for a thing I built myself.  He’s got five interchangeable hands (fists, open, and a trigger finger for his right side), a Specium Ray effect, two Specium Slash effects, alternate forearm guards for use with the Specium Ray, alternate guards with Specium Blades deployed, the MARS-133 rifle, and a display stand.  Pretty much, he’s on par with a Figuarts or Ultra-Act release.  He has one more feature: he lights up.  There’s a battery pack with LEDs attached that’s installed in the torso (hence how easily it comes back apart).  Using the included tool, you can turn it on and off.  It illuminates his eyes and color timer, and with a push of the button you can even switch the color timer from blue to red, which is fun.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Is it allowed to be Max’s fault two days in a row?  This one’s a borderline example at the very least.  He wanted one of his own, and they come in cases of two, so he needed another buyer.  Well, hey, I like Ultraman, right?  Admittedly, I was looking to get back into the model building anyway, and I didn’t yet have a Manga-style Ultraman, so why not give it a try?  He’s an intense build, but I do really enjoy the final product, and I think he’ll slot in pretty well with the rest of my Ultras.

I picked up this set via All Time Toys.  If you’re looking for toys both old and new, please check out their website and their eBay storefront.

#1976: Mon Mothma

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

MON MOTHMA

STAR WARS: POWER OF THE FORCE II (KENNER)

“The senior senator of the Old Republic went underground to form the Rebel Alliance following the rise of the evil Empire. She was instrumental in the Rebel’s struggle for freedom.”

Hey, look at that!  It’s Mon Mothma, better known as the only other woman in Star Wars…well, at least until 1999.  Okay, that’s not strictly accurate.  She’s not the only other woman; she’s just the only other one who actually spoke on screen.  She’s never been a super prominent character or anything, but the aforementioned lack of other speaking females outside of herself and Leia does make her rather memorable.  She’s also had no less than three film appearances, and none of them have been part of the same trilogy.  How about that.  She’s never been the most toyetic character, but she did find her way into the Power of the Force line in the ’90s, and I’m gonna be looking at that figure today.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Mon Mothma was released in the 1998 assortment of Power of the Force figures, and made her action figure debut here.  Not a huge surprise, given she’s not the most action oriented character.  Mostly, she just stood there.  This figure depicts her in her official standing around robes, as seen in the film.  Nice.  She does this standing around at a height of 3 1/2 inches and she has 4 points of articulation; since she just stands, but does not walk, she does not have any joints at her hips.  Mon Mothma’s sculpt is actually pretty darn decent.  She’s not at all pre-posed, nor does she suffer from odd or exaggerated proportions.  Her head even sports a passable likeness of actress Caroline Blakiston, which is more than can be said for most of the human figures in this line.  Or any Star Wars line, for that matter.  Likenesses aren’t classically their strong suit.  Her robes are rendered via two separate pieces.  The underlying robes are sculpted as the figure’s body, with the upper robes being a separate overlay piece.  This not only allows her some extra mobility (since the upper robes are a softer plastic), but also adds some additional depth to a sculpt that could have been rather on the soft side.  Mon Mothma’s paintwork is reasonable.  It’s not thrilling or anything, but that’s kind of the nature of the beast, since she’s by design rather monochromatic.  Mon Mothma wasn’t running around blasting or slashing things, so she doesn’t get any sort of offensive armaments.  However, she does get a little pointing stick like she has in the movie, allowing her to dispense valuable knowledge.  And, as we all know, knowledge is power, so really, she doesn’t make out all that badly, now does she.  Bet she could take on the entire Imperial fleet with that bad boy there.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Mon Mothma was a slightly rarer figure when she was first released, so I didn’t have one growing up.  Nor do I really think I would have sought out one, because she’s not a very play-oriented sort of character.  But, in my mission to get a complete run of PotF2 figures, I was definitely going to need her.  Fortunately, my friends at All Time Toys were able to help me out on that front, and got me a loose one for my collection.  She’s hardly the most thrilling figure the line had to offer, but the more mature collector in me still rather appreciates her.

#1975: Arnim Zola & Hydra Supreme

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

ARNIM ZOLA & HYDRA SUPREME

MARVEL LEGENDS (HASBRO)

“A clandestine ally of Hydra, Supreme Leader Captain America reveals his true allegiances and joins forces with Arnim Zola to bring Hydra to a position of dominant world power.”

Hey, you know what I just haven’t reviewed enough of recently?  Marvel Legends.  They’re just so scarce around these parts.  Oh, no, wait, they’re the other thing.  Abundant.  Very abundant.  Well, they’re about to get moreso, because, hey, more Marvel Legends.  Today, I’m swinging on over to the Hydra side of things, with a look at head scientist Arnim Zola, alongside the Cosmic-Cube-altered Hydra Supreme version of Captain America.

THE FIGURES THEMSELVES

Arnim and Hydra Supreme were released back in January as the “Hail Hydra” set, the latest Marvel Legends two-pack.  It’s technically an EE-exclusive, but can also be gotten through a number of other retailers, since EE does wholesale and all.  The two figures are both inspired by 2017’s Secret Empire event.

ARNIM ZOLA

A fairly classic Cap villain, Arnim is a fairly prominent fixture, both in the comics and the movies.  He’s also not a stranger to Legends, having been a Build-A-Figure shortly after the Return of Marvel Legends line began.  This release is largely a re-release of that one, with a few minor tweaks.  The figure stands about 7 inches tall and has 27 points of articulation.  The sculpt is largely a re-use of the Build-A-Figure, but he gets a new head (resembling his slightly more streamlined appearance from recent years), as well as swapping out his puffy-sleeved arms for Colossus’ more conventionally armored ones, all resulting in an ever so slightly more modernized take on Zola.  While some of the articulation is a little stiffer than more modern releases, he’s still pretty suitably posable, certainly posable enough for a character like Arnim.  The paintwork is another change between the two Arnims.  Where the first one went for a bolder, brighter, more comics-inspired palette, this one again angles more for a modern take, with a darker, metallic appearance.  Even the face is more modern, with a more intense, cackling expression.  Admittedly, I think I prefer the color scheme and face of the prior figure, but this one’s certainly not bad.  Arnim is packed with a small device of some sort, as well as the more boxy head from the original release.

HYDRA SUPREME

The Hydra Supreme is like the standard Hydra, but with tomatoes and sour cream.  At least, it is when you play by Taco Bell rules.  Specific Hydra rules may be *slightly* different.  But I like to hope that the indoctrination of Steve Rogers included adding extra toppings to him.  And maybe giving him a nice Baja Blast, as well.  This figure depicts the Cosmic-Cube-ified Steve Rogers from the very end of Secret Empire, when he’s given up the heroic patriot charade entirely.  The figure stands 6 1/2 inches tall and he has 32 points of articulation.  At first glance, he appears to be be an all-new sculpt, but he actually has a sizeable amount of re-use.  His arms and lower legs are from Taskmaster, and his hands are from the Bleeding Edge armor Iron Man.  That leaves the head, torso, and upper legs as new pieces.  The end result is quite a cohesive looking figure, who is also quite accurate to the source material.  Since he’s drawn from Bucky Cap-based pieces, he’s perhaps a little smaller than Steve should be, but, admittedly, it doesn’t seem too far removed from how he was depicted in the comics.  Maybe being evil is a good weight loss program. His colors are decidedly on the Hydra end of the spectrum, as they were in the book.  It’s certainly a different look for the character.  Hydra Supreme is packed with a unique shield, based on his design from the comics.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I hadn’t gotten back into Legends yet when Zola was a BaF, so I never did get him built.  I was happy to see him offered up again here, since he’s a pretty important piece of the mythos.  Arnim’s a decent figure in his own right, but the surprise hit for me is definitely the Hydra Supreme, who’s just a really fun figure.  I’m hoping we might get to see him recolored as a Civil Warrior down the line.

#1970: Kree Sentry

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

KREE SENTRY

MARVEL LEGENDS (HASBRO)

Mar-Vell’s appearance in late 1967 was not our first taste of the Kree empire.  In fact, our first run-in with them was several months earlier year, when the Fantastic Four faced off against Sentry 459, a deactivated Sentry stationed on Earth.  Its defeat by the team would signal Ronan the Accuser, and bring the entire Kree empire into play.  But it all started with this big, hulking purple and blue robot.  So, what better Build-A-Figure for Kree-centric series of Marvel Legends than said big, hulking, purple and blue robot?

THE FIGURE ITSELF

The Kree Sentry is, unsurprisingly, the build-a-figure for the Kree Sentry Series of Marvel Legends.  This marks the Sentry’s first foray into the world of Legends figures, though it’s the second figure overall, following a Minimate release back in 2012.  The figure stands 8 inches tall and he has 29 points of articulation.  The Sentry is an all-new sculpt, which isn’t a huge shock.  It’s definitely a more modernized take on the Sentry, which, if I’m honest, wouldn’t be my first choice.  I’d really dig a more Kirby-inspired sculpt, but this one hits all of the broad strokes, I suppose.  If nothing else, this one was probably a little easier for Hasbro to articulate, as well as being slightly more balanced in size from piece to piece, thereby making him a little easier to break up amongst the single-release figures in this assortment.  The design on this guy kind of makes me wonder what other figures this guy might possibly be re-used for; I’m guessing Hasbro has *something* in mind.  Anyway, it’s a fairly decent, if perhaps slightly goofy, offering.  His paintwork, or color work as it mostly may be, is fairly eye-catching.  The metallic purple and blue is a nice look.  The only actual paint is on the head, which is nice enough, as it matches with the rest of the look.  The Sentry includes no accessories, but he’s an accessory himself, so that seems fair.  Also, I’m not really sure what else you could have given him, anyway.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

The Kree Sentry’s a rather classic design, and one that hasn’t gotten much toy love.  When this guy was shown off as the Build-A-Figure for this set, I was definitely interested, though, like a lot of the figures in this line-up, I can’t say I *needed* him.  While I would have preferred a more classic take on the character, and I also wouldn’t have minded a slightly larger figure, I’m overall pretty happy with this goofy guy.

This assortment is kind of a middling one for me.  I like the Bomber Jacket Captain Marvel a lot, and I was rather let-down by the Yon-Rogg figure, but the rest of the figures fall firmly into the Journeyman category.  They certainly aren’t bad, but none of them are quite going to break any records.  Still, it’s not a bad set, especially for fans of the movie.  If you’re interested in getting a set of your own, all seven of the single figures are still in-stock at All Time Toys’ webstore.  And, as always, if you’re looking for other toys both old and new, please check out All Time’s website and their eBay storefront.

#1969: Genis-Vell

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

GENIS-VELL

MARVEL LEGENDS (HASBRO)

“Born of a Titanian Eternal, Genis-Vell possesses indomitable strength and uses powerful Nega-Bands to channel incredible energy blasts!”

Marvel has a thing for legacy, and the mantle of Captain Marvel is perhaps one of the most premiere examples of this.  Amusingly enough, the third person to hold the title, Genis-Vell, began his career actually named “Legacy.”  Genis was an interesting exploration of the whole concept, biologically the son of Mar-Vell, but created through engineering, rather than the old-fashioned way.  After inheriting the title in the ’90s, Genis was front and center for a little while, but by the mid-00s, he’d kind of fallen out of fashion again, and was ultimately dispatched by Baron Zemo in Thunderbolts.  Oh how the mighty had fallen.  But, with the Captain Marvel name getting a boost, it seems poor Genis has not been totally forgotten, and he’s received some Legends treatment, courtesy of Hasbro!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Genis-Vell is figure 6 in the Kree Sentry Series of Marvel Legends.  He is the second of the two comic-based figures in the set, but hey, at least he’s actually Captain Marvel-themed…what with being Captain Marvel and all.  Of course, he’s just titled “Genis-Vell” with no mention of holding the title, likely to avoid any brand confusion for people just coming in to the character with the movie.  The figure stands 6 1/2 inches tall and he has 32 points of articulation.  Genis is seen here in his Kree-inspired get-up from the second half of his solo run.  It’s a cool design.  Not *my* personal choice, as I’m partial to his Mar-Vell-inspired costume, but that one was already released by Toy Biz back in the day, so I can understand Hasbro wanting to do something different.  Of course, it does mean that with this figure and Yon-Rogg, we ended up with two kind of similar looking figures in the set, but that was sort of inevitable no matter which way you took him.  The figure is built on the Reaper body (just like Grey Gargoyle, meaning both comic figures in this set are on the same base body), with a new head, shoulder-pads, shoulder strap, holster, and Nega-Bands. The new parts are decent enough.  The head sits a little high on the neck, but with the helmet it’s not super noticeable.  I foresee those Nega-Bands turning up again in the future, especially if Hasbro wants to give us a Mar-Vell update at some point.  Genis’s paintwork is actually a lot like Grey Gargoyle’s, in that the coolest bits aren’t actually painted.  The starfield effect is achieved through flecks of metallic plastic being molded throughout, and it looks quite nice, especially when lit.  The metallic green they’ve gone with is a shade on the dark side, which does mean it blends in a bit with the black of the body.  I think the figure would be a little more striking with a brighter green, allowing those details to stand out a little more.  Of course, the green sections not standing out is kind of a common issue for this design, even in 2D.  Genis is packed with a small gold blaster, as well as the Kree Sentry’s left leg.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I never much followed Genis in his solo exploits, but I liked him in Avengers Forever, so I was definitely hoping to see him show up here.  Of course, this costume wouldn’t have been my first choice (like I said, I never followed his solo exploits), but it makes for a decent toy, I suppose.  Like Gargoyle, this figure is well-executed and a solid addition to the line-up.  That said, I’m still pulling for a pre-crazy Genis at some point.  In the mean time, this one will have to keep my Songbird company.

Genis hails from my friends at All Time Toys.  He’s actually the one figure in the set that they’re currently sold out of, but they still have all the rest.  And, if you’re looking for other toys both old and new, please check out their website and their eBay storefront.

#1968: Grey Gargoyle

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

GREY GARGOYLE

MARVEL LEGENDS (HASBRO)

“Dr. Paul Duval discovers his ability to turn his body to stone and becomes the transmuting mercenary, Grey Gargoyle!”

Amazingly, this is *not* the first time I’ve reviewed a Grey Gargoyle figure for this site.  I say “amazingly” because there actually aren’t that many to chose from.  In fact, his only other straight figure is the ’90s Toy Biz one I’ve already reviewed.  Even more amazing?  I have no particular attachment to the character, and yet, here I am, reviewing both of his figures.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Grey Gargoyle is figure 5 in the Kree Sentry Series of Marvel Legends.  It’s a Captain Marvel-themed series, but Gargoyle is kind of the odd-man out in that regard, being the only figure contained here that has almost no ties to the Captain.  He began as a Thor foe, then moved on to Iron Man, and finally just became a more general Avengers foe, but it’s not like he ever really fought *any* of the Captain Marvels.  My money’s on easy parts re-use being the primary reason for his inclusion here.  The figure stands 6 1/2 inches tall and he has 32 points of articulation.  He’s built on the Reaper body, which seems a decent choice for the character.  I suppose an argument could be made for giving him a more chiseled appearance, but that would require an all-new sculpt, and I don’t think that would have ever been feasible for a character like Gargoyle.  He gets a new head, left hand, feet, and add-on for his cape, as well as Prowler’s belt piece.  The head’s definitely the star piece, with a wonderful maniacal grin, and proper blocky features.  The rest of the new parts are all pretty standard stuff, making for a figure that meets expectations for the line.  Gargoyle’s most interesting feature is really the color work.  It’s not really paintwork, because most of it’s done with the plastic, which is semi-translucent, and features all sorts of little flecks and variations in color.  The end result is a figure that does a respectable job of capturing the look of someone who’s made out of stone. He doesn’t have any accessories of his own, though I can’t really say what he could of come with.  He does still have the head of the Kree Sentry figure, which I’ll be looking at later in the week.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

As I noted when I last reviewed a Grey Gargoyle, I’m not particularly a fan of the character.  I certainly don’t *dislike* him, so I was down for picking up the figure when he was shown off.  While perhaps not the star figure of the assortment, Grey Gargoyle is a solid addition to the line, and does some interesting things with the design.  Now I kind of want to track down a Dreadknight to round out my ’90s Iron Man rogues.

I picked up Grey Gargoyle from my friends at All Time Toys, and he’s still available here.  And, if you’re looking for other toys both old and new, please check out their website and their eBay storefront.

#1967: Yon-Rogg

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

YON-ROGG

MARVEL LEGENDS (HASBRO)

“Leader of the Star Force team, Yon-Rogg is a hero among the Kree and a key asset to the Supreme Intelligence in the war against the Skrulls.”

The number on today’s review could either be very clever, or only marginally related to the contents, depending on how things play out in Captain Marvel.  You see, in December of 1967, we got the first appearance of Kree Captain Mar-Vell, the original Captain Marvel (at least as far as Marvel Comics is concerned.)  What does that have to do with today’s subject, apart from being from the movie of the same title?  Well, nothing as it stands currently, but a lot when the movie’s cast was still being announced.  When Jude Law was cast in the film, it was announced he would be playing Dr. Walter Lawson, the Earth-based secret identity of Mar-Vell.  Law’s blonde-haired-blued-eyed appearance as, well as typically playing heroic roles made him seem to be a natural choice for Mar-Vell.  However, when the trailers hit, and interviews started, and merchandise started being solicited, all of the sudden, Law’s character was the unnamed “Star Force Commander,” with his identity being kept top-secret.  Then, at the begging of February, after a month or two of rumors, Law was confirmed as Yon-Rogg, by this figure, the Minimate, and the Pop.  Despite all of that, there’s still a good deal of confusion about the exact nature of Law’s character, and why the secretive Vell/Rogg switch occurred.  I guess we’ll know more in a matter of hours.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Yon-Rogg is numbered figure 4 in the Kree Sentry Series of Marvel Legends.  He’s the final film-based figure in the line-up.  The figure stands 6 1/4 inches tall and he has 32 points of articulation.  Yon-Rogg is sporting an all-new sculpt, which is…a bit of a mixed bag, really.  Right off the bat, we’re dealing with the fact that this figure is supposed to based on Jude Law’s character, but you wouldn’t really know that by looking at him.  His head is wearing a helmet, which have yet to see Law actually wearing in any of the promotional stuff.  I’m sure he’s going to where it at some point in the film, but it’s clearly not his main appearance.  What’s more, what we can see of his face seems a good deal more generic than a proper Law likeness would be.  The whole head seems a little large when sitting on the rest of the body.  Of course, it’s nothing compared to his feet.  Those things are truly huge, and don’t appear to be remotely in scale with the rest of the figure.  Were they worried he was going to have stability issues?  He’s also got these weirdly large and flat sections of armor on his forearms, which don’t seem to match with the film appearance, and just generally make him feel rather awkward while posing.  Just in general, this is a rather odd looking figure.  I guess the paintwork is a little better; the metallic green certainly looks cool, and it contrasts all right with the black and silver.  There are still a few off spots, where sculpted details are left totally unpainted, but compared to the sculpt, it’s kind of a breath of fresh air.  So, obviously, there’s no extra head for Yon-Rogg, but he does get a small blaster pistol, as well as the torso of the Kree Sentry.  Not a super impressive selection by any stretch, but at this point, I’ve already written the figure off.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Yon-Rogg is a figure I wanted to like.  I’m a sucker for the Kree Soldier look, and when he was originally shown, there was some belief that this might have just been an army builder.  I’d like to say he’d be better that way, but I really can’t.  There are just a lot of flaws to this figure, which hold him back from being as good as he could.  Maybe we’ll get a more proper Yon-Rogg in a two-pack or something.