Tag Archives: Groot

#0304: Drax, Groot & Rocket Raccoon

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

DRAX, GROOT & ROCKET RACOON

MARVEL MINIMATES

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Hey, you know how Guardians of the Galaxy was an awesome movie? Were you aware that, being a Marvel movie, it’s guaranteed to get its own assortment of Minimates? Did you know I love Minimates?

Yes, I love Minimates, and I also loved Guardians of the Galaxy. Put those together, and you’ve got a product I just can’t resist. The Minimates for the movie are just starting to hit, and I’ve already begun to pick them up. Today, we’ll be starting off with Drax, Groot & Rocket Raccoon. Wait a second… three minimates? Not two or four? How is this possible? Read and find out…

THE FIGURES THEMSELVES

Drax, Groot & Rocket are one of the overlap sets from Daimond’s two assortments of Guardians of the Galaxy Minimates. They’re included in both the Toys R Us assortment and Marvel Minimates Series 57, which ships to comicbook stores and specialty shops. My set comes from TRU, as the specialty sets haven’t been released just yet.

DRAX

GrootRocketDrax2Amazingly, this isn’t the first Drax Minimate I’ve reviewed here. Way back in review #0162, I took a look at the classic comic version of the character released in the Infinity Gauntlet set. It’s safe to say that was a fairly different take on the character. This version of Drax is based on the movie version, which is in turn based on the character’s more recent design. Drax is more specifically meant to represent Drax from the middle point of the film, after they escape from the Kyln, but before they get matching uniforms. Drax stands about 2 ½ inches tall and features 14 points of articulation. He’s built on the standard Minimate body, and features 4 sculpted add-ons: a bulked up torso, a waist cover, and a pair of big stompy boots. The torso has previously been used on figures such as the Best-Of version of Venom and the waist piece has been used on more figures than I can count. The waist piece works, as Drax is definitely meant to be a thick guy, but I’m not sure about the chest piece. On its own, it’s alright, but coupled with the really skinny arms, it looks very out of place. As far as I can tell, the big stompy boots are new. They’re well sculpted, so that’s good. Drax’s paint work is good from a technical stand point. Everything is clean and there’s no real slop or bleed over. I do wish that his skin were a brighter green and the tattoos were a bit bolder, just so he wasn’t quite so muddled, but it doesn’t look bad, per say, just a bit drab. I guess he’s a Drab Drax… heh heh. Drax comes armed with twin knives and a clear display stand.

GROOT & ROCKET RACCOON

GrootRocketDrax3If there’s one thing everyone can agree on about Guardians of the Galaxy, it’s that these two stole the whole movie. I think Groot in particular surprised a lot of audiences. So, you’re probably thinking “Why are you reviewing both Groot and Rocket at the same time?” Quite simply, it’s because only one of them’s a Minimate. I’ll start with Groot, because he’s actually the figure here. Groot is a little over 2 ½ inches tall and has 14 pointes of articulation. Like Drax, he uses the basic Minimate body, with unique pieces for his head, hands, and feet, as well as a torso extender add-on that’s seen use a few times. The new pieces are all pretty great. My only complaint is that the head has two tabs on the back to allow for Rocket to be propped on Groot’s shoulder. It’s an okay idea in theory, but it’s difficult to get Rocket to stay in place, and it leaves Groot with two rather noticeable tabs sticking out of his head. The paintwork on Groot is really great, and superbly detailed. His bark detailing even continues around the sides of his torso, which is certainly impressive. Groot comes with a clear display stand and Rocket. Rocket is about 1 ½ inches tall and is unarticulated. He has been sculpted to appear as though he has the same 14 points as the typical Minimate. He is sculpted holding a gun in one hand, with his arm outstretched. He’s well sculpted, and his paint isn’t too sloppy. It’d be nice if he could move, but I guess it’s good to have him at least.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

These three were purchased at a TRU not too far from the hotel I was staying at for a local convention. They capped off a pretty awesome night hanging with a few of my friends and Super Awesome Girlfriend. On our drive to dinner, my buddy Tim and I saw the TRU and insisted on going in. I found this set, as well as the exclusive Yondu & Sakaar Trooper and Star Lord & Ronan. I left Star Lord & Ronan there, as it’s a shared set, but I gave in to my impatience on these three. I just had to have Rocket and Groot! All three figures in this set are pretty impressive, even if there are a few small issues. I can’t wait to see how the rest of the main Guardians turn out!

#0297: Groot, Rocket Raccoon & Nova Corps Officer

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

GROOT, ROCKET RACCOON & NOVA CORPS OFFICER

GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY

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Guardians of the Galaxy was a truly awesome movie. I haven’t had a chance to mention that here, so there it is. If you haven’t seen Guardians do yourself a favor and do so as soon as possible. It’s one of those rare films that truly has something for everyone. Captain America may still be my favorite movie of the year, but Guardians is the most fun.

Hasbro’s offering the film’s cast in a few different scales. I’ve already taken a look at the 6 inch scale figures, which offer the most detailed takes on the characters. Sadly, that line is just the main Guardians. If you want to get a larger selection, you need to turn to the 2 ½ inch line. I made my first venture into the line with Groot, Rocket, and a Nova Corps Officer. Let’s see how they turned out!

THE FIGURES THEMSELVES

This trio was released as part of the first, and so far only, series of 2 ½ inch figures. Most of the sets are two packs, but this one is a three-pack due to Rocket’s smaller stature.

GROOT

GrootRocket&NovaWilson1He is Groot. Oh boy is he. Groot is the tallest of the set, at almost 3 inches in height. He also sports 5 points of articulation, which is basic, though not surprising at this scale. There are actually two Groots in this line, with the difference being paint. I think this one’s the less “default” one, for reasons I’ll get to shortly. The sculpt of the figure is pretty good. It’s certainly not as detailed as the larger Marvel Legends Groot, but it does an admirable job with the scale. Groot’s design, being a bit more alien probably lends itself a bit more to the smaller scale. The paint work on Groot is my only real issue with the figure. For the most part, there isn’t much paint. He’s molded in the appropriate brown, with some paint for his eyes. My issue is the thing that makes him a less than standard Groot. For some reason, they’ve thrown some green paint on his right arm, the upper right section of his torso, and the right half of his face. I think it’s meant to represent when he gets a bit more plant-like at certain pints of the movie, but it ends up just looking like lots of green paint.

ROCKET RACCOON

GrootRocket&NovaWilson2Rocket’s kind of an accessory to Groot, I think. He’s the shortest figure (though not quite as short as he should be) at a little over 2 inches and he features no articulation.  Like Groot, there are actually two versions of Rocket in the line. However, the two Rocket figures provide two unique sculpts. This Rocket is the “relaxed” Rocket sculpt. He’s in a neutral standing position, and he features no weapon. He does have an open hand, so I guess he could hold one if you so desired. His sculpt is pretty good for a solid chunk of plastic. He’s got a fair bit of character too him, and he looks overall accurate to the source material. The paint work on Rocket is more intricate than that of Groot. They’ve also avoided taking any strange liberties with the paint, so that’s good, I suppose.

NOVA CORPS OFFICER

GrootRocket&NovaWilson3The army builder of the set is the Nova Corps Officer here. He’s also the first of the figures I’ve looked at so far to be unique to the smaller scale line, and hence, the reason I picked up the set. He’s average height at roughly 2 ½ inches and he features 5 points f articulation. His waist is a separate piece from his torso, but there’s no movement there. NCO (his full name’s hard to type) features an all new sculpt, which is actually quite detailed for the scale. The small area of face that’s visible seems a bit blank, but aside from that, he’s got some amazing sculpted work. NCO is molded in a basic blue, with paint for all the other colors. The torso has some nice work, and the arms aren’t too bad. Sadly, the head has some pretty obvious bleed over around the exposed area of skin, which is a bit distracting. Still, given the scale, it’s forgivable. One thing that is less forgivable is the total lack of any sort of paint on the legs. He clearly has sculpted parts meant to be painted a different color, but they’ve just been left the basic blue.

I should point out that this set included a giant missile launcher (hey, it’s Hasbro’s trademark. They can’t leave it out.) and an accessory-tree of random parts. I’m pretty sure these are all meant to go with NCO, but I can’t tell for sure. Heck, I can’t even totally identify what some of them are…

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

While walking through Toys R Us on my birthday, I came across a rather large Guardians display, and the 2 ½ inch figures were among them. I did NOT buy this set there, because TRU is charging a full $4 more per set than everyone else. Instead, I went to the Target across the street. They only had this one set, but it was actually the one I wanted the most anyway. I like Rocket and Groot, and I definitely wanted a Nova guy, who is so far only available in this line (the minimate is out sometime next month). This set was definitely a trial set for the line, and I must say I’m impressed. For $6 you get three pretty nifty figures in a fun little scale. If you’re willing to splurge a bit, you can even get a few of the vehicles, which seem to be the line’s main purpose.

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#0279: Groot

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

GROOT

MARVEL LEGENDS

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All good things must come to an end. Also, mediocre things and bad things have to come to an end too. Essentially, what I’m saying is that wherever you stand on the quality of the “Groot Week” reviews, today marks the end of said week. Yes, it’s Groot Week Part 7, featuring the main man himself, Groot!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

GrootWilsonGroot was released as the Build-A-Figure for the Guardians of the Galaxy Marvel Legends Infinite Series, who could be assembled by acquiring all of the figures in the series. The figure stands about 8 ½ inches tall and features 28 points of articulation. The figure is based on Groot’s appearance in the movie, though it could easily pass for one of the comicbook interpretations of the character. The sculpt is brand new, which is not a shock with a unique looking character such as Groot. I’m honestly impressed at the level of work put into the new pieces, considering none of them have the potential for re-use. Still, the sculpt looks spot on to the look from the movie, and it’s got some really great detail work. In particular, Groot’s face just looks perfect for the character. It would be easy to write the paint work on Groot off as simple, but the more appropriate word would be “subtle.” While the work isn’t immediately obvious, Groot has quite a bit of detail work that helps make him look like a tree-man instead of a hunk of brown plastic. Groot, like many Build-A-Figures before him, is sans-accessories, essentially being an accessory himself. It’s easy to forgive, given his larger stature and impressive detail work.

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THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Groot, being the Build-A-Figure for the series, was purchased piece-by-piece from Amazon. While the rest of the series has been pretty darn good, Groot was my main reason for buying the set. There was a fair bit of pressure for him to be a good figure, and I have to say, he really delivers on that front. Groot has proved to be my favorite figure in the series by far, and completing him makes up for some of the short comings of a few of the others in the series!

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