Tag Archives: Iron Man

#0547: Hawkeye

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

HAWKEYE

IRON MAN (TOYBIZ)

Countdown to Avengers: Age of Ultron: 9 days remaining.

Okay, we’re very definitely getting into the selection of characters that I consider to be the quintessential Avengers.  And no one gets more quintessential-y than good ol’ Clint Barton, aka Hawkeye!   So, let’s have look at a figure of that guy, shall we?  In fact, let’s look at the very first figure of that guy ever released!  That’ll be nifty!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Hawkeye was released in Series 2 of the 90s Iron Man line, which was done to tie-in with the Iron Man cartoon of the time.  Unsurprisingly, Hawkeye is based upon his appearance in that show, which in turn was based upon the design he had in the comics around the early 90s.  It’s a tweak on his classic design, and it’s not too overly 90s, so it works.  I do miss the buccaneer boots and loincloth, but oh well.  The figure stands roughly 5 inches in height and sports 8 points of articulation, which is actually a little bit below the standard of the time.  The lack of proper arm articulation is certainly odd, what with him being an archer and all, but he actually managed okay, thanks to the pose of his arms.  The figure’s sculpt was wholly original to him.  It’s not bad, especially for the time.  The proportions are generally pretty good.  The hands and feet are a little on the large side, and the shoulders are a little high-set.  He’s also got some ridiculously defined musculature, but to be fair, that’s actually true to the show.  The costume details are pretty well handled, with clean lines and some nice texture work on the purple parts.  The head is pretty much spot on for the character, with just the right amount of cockiness in his expression.  Hawkeye’s paintwork is pretty much on par with other figures from the same time.  It’s simple, but well-done.  The colors are nice and bold, and everything is clean, with no real slop or bleed over.  The eyes are totally white and pupil-less, which is not in keeping with his appearance on the show.  However, given how small they are, it’s likely that pupils would have looked rather goofy here, so it was probably the right call.  Hawkeye included a bow, arrow, quiver, a small knife, and the weird character badge thingy that was included with all of the figures in the first few series.  Of course, my figure has none of these things because silly child Ethan decided to lose them all.  Way to go younger me! [EDIT–But then adult me found them again, and I talked about them in this figure’s Flashback Friday Figure Addendum!]

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

So, I don’t recall the exact circumstances by which I came to own Hawkeye.  I’m fairly certain that he was a gift from my parents.  I know my Dad had a Hawkeye figure first, and that I really liked it, so I’m pretty sure he took note of this and bought me one of my own.  It’s definitely an important piece in my becoming such an Avengers fanatic, I know that much.  Looking back at it, it’s not a perfect figure.  The arms are a weird choice, and he’s held back a little by the fact that he’s in a relatively short-lived costume.  All that said, he’s my first Hawkeye figure, and he’s still my favorite.

#0543: Iron Man

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

IRON MAN

MARVEL LEGENDS (HASBRO)

IronManNeoClassic1

Countdown to Avengers: Age of Ultron: 13 days remaining.

Okay, so it’s time for another Avengers review. Yesterday was Captain America, and today we’ll be taking a look at everyone’s favorite armored Avenger (provided you aren’t a much bigger fan of Black Knight, or War Machine, or Iron Patriot….) Iron Man!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

IronManNeoClassic2Iron Man was released as part of Series 3 of Hasbro’s Return of Marvel Legends. The prior two series had each been centered around a Build-A-Figure and given a designation to match. However, this particular series had no Build-A-Figure, so it was instead titled “Epic Heroes.” Iron Man stands just over 6 inches tall and sports 34 (36?) points of articulation. The figure is based on Iron Man in the armor he was wearing in the comics during the mid-to-late-80s. It’s commonly referred to as his “Neo-Classic” armor, due to it being his return to the traditional red and yellow armor following several years in the Silver Centurion armor. This is actually the 5th action figure that this particular armor has seen, though this is the first, and so far only, time it has been done in the 6 inch scale. Structurally, this figure is technically a new sculpt, but comparing it to the 3 ¾ inch version of this armor from the Iron Man 2 line, this appears mostly to just be a scaled up version of that sculpt. There are a few differences, aside from the obvious thing with the size, such as the different style of mid-torso articulation and a completely different set of boots. This figure is from right around the time that Hasbro really started to up their game in the sculpting department. The sculpt is nice and clean, with great proportions and a great deal of accuracy to the source material. The boots, which are wholly original to this figure, are something of a point of contention amongst fans of this particular armor. The original prototype and the 3 ¾ inch figure both featured more classically styled feet, based on the armor’s initial appearance. However, the final figure features a much bulkier pair of boots, based on later depictions of the armor. They are decently sculpted and certainly make the figure a lot more stable, but it’s not the look a lot of people wanted. The figure’s paint is fairly straight forward. The red parts are red, the yellow parts are, well okay they’re actually gold, but that’s essentially the same thing. Okay, actually it’s not. In fact, I generally prefer a straight yellow, especially on my classic Iron Man armors. But this one doesn’t look terrible, so I’ll let it slide. The red is very nice, though. Also, there are a few spots where the red bleeds over into the gold, but it’s generally the application is pretty clean. Iron Man’s only accessory is a hexagonal-based display stand, which was included with all of the figures in this series.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

When Hasbro kicked off the Return of Marvel Legends, I did my best to avoid it. Their last attempts at Legends before it went on hiatus were pretty lackluster, and I had pretty thoroughly moved on to the smaller Marvel Universe line. I even managed to avoid picking up a single figure from the first two series. Then I saw this guy at my local comic book store. For whatever reason, he called to me, but I remained vigilant. No more Marvel Legends for me! Well, my dad was with me at the time and took note of my interest in the figure. So, a month later I found this guy amongst that year’s Christmas gifts. Because my parents are just that awesome. Truth be told, this may very well be my favorite Iron Man released at this scale. He’s an all-around solid figure, and like the original ToyBiz Legends Iron Man before him, he’s responsible for dragging me (back) into Marvel Legends. Thanks a lot Tony….

#0532: Iron Man – Mark 43

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

IRON MAN – MARK 43

MARVEL LEGENDS INFINITE SERIES

IM43a

When it comes to casting comic book characters for the big screen, it can be difficult to find someone who can properly convey such an important, larger than life character. Often times, things end up toned down, causing a less entertaining end result. Occasionally, those casting directors strike gold, and end up finding someone who is irreplaceably brilliant in a role. That’s what happened with Robert Downey Jr in the role of Tony Stark. That guy is just totally spot on! He’ll be reprising the role for the fifth time in this summer’s Avengers: Age of Ultron, which is, of course, getting its fair share of action figures. So, let’s have a look at a figure of RDJ as Iron Man, shall we? (I need to work on my segues a bit…)

THE FIGURE ITSELF

IM43bIron Man is a part of Series 2 of Hasbro’s Avengers Marvel Legends Infinite Series. He’s the second of three figures in this particular series to be directly from Age of Ultron (following Sunday’s Captain America). From the looks of things, Iron Man will have at least three different looks over the course of the film. This figure is based on the first of those, the Mark 43, which appears to be just a re-decoed version of the Mark 42. The figure stands about 6 inches tall and sports 31 points of articulation. Sculpturally, the Mark 43 is 100% identical to the Mark 42 released in the Iron Man 3 tie-in line. Luckily for you, dear reader, I don’t own the Mark 42, making this one all-new to me! It’s a pretty good sculpt; it looks accurate to the film design, it has pretty good internal proportions, and it’s at least a little bit feasible that there’s a person inside of this armor. The legs could probably stand to be a little thicker, as they seem just a tad thin currently, but that’s minor. The details of the armor are all pretty well handled, and everything seems to line up with where it would be on the “real” armor. One issue of note has to do with movement related to the shoulder pads; if the arms are in an upward position for any decent length of time, the shoulder pads get a little bit warped. Previous Hasbro figures with such a design have usually had articulated shoulder pads in order to prevent such issues, so it’s possible that said joints are just stuck on mine (which is a whole other issue). Paint is one of this figure’s key areas, what with it being a re-paint and all. Fortunately, the Mark 43 ends up with a generally well-handled paintjob. The colors all seem right, and everything is applied to the right areas. Some of the gold areas are a little fuzzy around the edges, but they are generally pretty good. The only real issue I encountered on my figure was a bit of paint rub on his right thigh, where some of the gold rubbed off. It’s a minor issue, but one to keep an eye on if you find them in-store. Another thing that separates the Mark 43 from the 42 is the accessory complement. In addition to the requisite Build-A-Figure piece (Thanos’ left leg, in this case), the Mark 43 also includes an extra head with the faceplate up, revealing Tony’s face. It’s a well-sculpted, well-painted piece, and it actually manages to get a pretty decent RDJ likeness. It’s a really great piece to have, especially given how often IM is presented this way in the movies, and it’s even backwards compatible to the Mark 42 figure!

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Okay, if you’ve read the Cap and Spider-Woman reviews, it really shouldn’t be too hard to figure out where the Mark 43 came from. Mostly, I just wanted this figure for the Thanos piece, but I was interested in the figure at least a little bit. I didn’t actually have a proper Movie-style IM in this scale, and I will admit to liking the 43 design a fair bit. The 42 wasn’t bad, but the colors didn’t jibe with me. Reversing them for the 43 really makes it work. Add in that the figure is actually pretty well executed and the inclusion of that pretty sweet flipped-up faceplate head, and you’ve got a figure that is quite a lot of fun. And he also comes with that Thanos piece!

IM43c

#0501: Iron Man – Space Armor & Ronan the Accuser

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

IRON MAN – SPACE ARMOR & RONAN THE ACCUSER

MARVEL MINIMATES

IM&Ronan1

You know what I’ve missed reviewing? Marvel Minimates. Sure, I’ve reviewed a fair amount of figures from other Minimate lines, and a fair number of other Marvel figures as well, but it’s just not the same! As luck would have it, the latest set of TRU exclusive Marvel Minimates just started hitting stores, so new Marvel Minimates to review! First up, it’s two space-faring ‘mates, Space Armor Iron Man & Ronan the Accuser!

THE FIGURES THEMSELVES

These two comprise one of the four two-packs that make up the 19th Toys R Us exclusive series of Marvel Minimates. These two figures in particular were originally designed for the TRU exclusive Infinity tie-in set, but they weren’t amongst the four chosen for the actual set. It’s nice to see them turn up here.

IRON MAN – SPACE SUIT

IM&Ronan2Like Captain America before him, Iron Man has had quite a few Minimates in the past, but he had yet to join the ranks of the space worthy heroes. Now he’s an official member of the club, with a card and everything. Okay, there’s no card. Or club. It’s more of an “in my mind” sort of thing. Anyway, Iron Man was the other “heavy hitter” from the Infinity poll, so it’s no surprise to see that DST found a spot for him. The figure is roughly 2 ½ inches in height and he has 12 points of articulation. Tony’s had a few space armors over the years, but this ‘mate is based on the most recent one, which has made prominent appearances in the recent Guardians of the Galaxy comics, as well as being Tony’s main look in Infinity. Iron Man is built on the standard Minimate body, with non-standard pieces for the upper arms, hands, and feet, as well as add-ons for the helmet and torso armor. The figure features a fair bit of re-use from previous Iron Men. The upper arms come from the Series 35 Mark V, the hands are from Series 49’s Mark 42, and the feet are from Series 45’s Mark VII. The helmet and chest piece are both new to this figure, and both seem to be pretty great adaptations of the comic design. The re-use pieces are also pretty decent matches to the source material, which is always cool. It’s really awesome to see DST put their tremendous bank of prior IM pieces to good use. Iron Man’s paint is overall pretty good. The base colors are a little sloppy in some places, and it would be nice if the red and gold were just a little bit more distinguished. The biggest issue is one that isn’t apparent when the figure is all armored up. The underlying Stark face is set rather high on the head, resulting in a rather chubby looking Tony, and worst off all, the red paint from the helmet has bled onto the face, resulting in permanent red marks. Fortunately, these issues are hidden by the helmet, and the rest of the figure’s paint, particularly the detail work, looks nice and sharp. Iron Man includes a spare hair piece (re-used from the Series 51 Nova), a blast off base cast in yellow, and a clear display stand.

RONAN THE ACCUSER

IM&Ronan3Now we get to the real star of the set, Ronan the Accuser! This marks Ronan’s second venture into the world of Minimates, but it’s the first comic version of the character. As cool as the movie version was, it’s hard to beat the classic Ronan design. Ronan stands about 2 ½ inches tall, and has 14 points of articulation, although his head is a bit restricted by the hood. Ronan is based on his original comics design, which is the one he’s pretty much stuck with since his creation. It’s a solid piece of design work, and really holds that classic Marvel feel. The figure is built on the standard Minimate body, with add-ons for the hood/shoulder pads, belt/skirt, and glove and boot cuffs. The glove and boot cuffs are re-used from numerous classic Iron Man ‘mates. They’re pretty straightforward pieces, and they are pretty much perfect for Ronan’s look. The hood/shoulder pads and the belt/skirt are both new to this figure. Both pieces are very nicely sculpted and are pretty much spot-on for the character. The impediment of the neck movement by the hood is a little annoying, but I’m not sure how else it could be handled. Ronan features some pretty great paint work. The various greens are all very nicely chosen and all pop in their own way. The detail lines are fantastically handled, and the face in particular is perfect for Ronan. Ronan includes his signature hammer (and the head is right side up this time) and a clear display stand.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I acquired these two from my local TRU, with the assistance of fellow Minimate Multiverse member Ms. Marvel Fan, who was super helpful in making sure I got a set. I’ve been anxiously awaiting this set’s release ever since I picked up the Infinity set, so I’m really happy to finally have them. Iron Man is a little “meh” but he’s not terrible. Ronan, on the other hand, is easily one of my favorite ‘mates in quite some time. He’s just so well done!

IM&Ronan4

#0386: Grey Hulk – Transforming & Iron Man – MK29 Armor

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

GREY HULK – TRANSFORMING & IRON MAN – MK29 ARMOR

MARVEL MINIMATES

So, one of the cool things about the Best Of sub-line of Marvel Minimates is that it’s a great way for Diamond to fix some issues with previously released figures. Figures that were almost there, but just the slightest bit off. They also can offer some much needed updates to important looks of popular characters. Both of these can be seen in today’s set, Grey Hulk and the Mark 29 Iron Man.

THE FIGURES THEMSELVES

Hulk and Iron Man were released as a two-pack in Series 3 of the Best Of Marvel Minimates line. Like yesterday’s set, both characters featured here have had a previous figure in the Best Of line.

GREY HULK – TRANSFORMING

The story of Hulk’s skin color is kind of an interesting one. See, he was originally supposed to be grey (and he is in his first appearance), but the printing standards of 1960s comics weren’t up to the task of consistently printing the color, resulting in Hulk coloring changing a few times in his initial appearance. So, they decided the color had to change, and they went with green, as it was the accidental coloring they liked the best. And so, green became the Hulk’s distinctive color. It’s worth noting that Hulk’s change in palate was never mentioned in the comic itself, but it also came coupled with a slight change in the beast’s personality, which was used by writer Peter David to bring back the original look as a separate personality. As such, Grey Hulk has claimed a place as one of the key looks for the character. The last real Grey Hulk Minimate was released back in Series 7 of the main line (and even then, it was just a rerelease of an exclusive released at the same time as Series 1-4), so he was definitely in need of an update. The figure is a little over 2 ½ inches tall and he sports 12 points of articulation. He makes use of the standard issue Minimate body, with an assortment of “bulk-up” pieces. All of these pieces have seen use on previous Hulks. The torso, upper arms, upper legs, upper legs, and feet are from the series 41 Mega Rage Hulk; the hair is from the TRU exclusive World War Hulk; the torso extender is from Series 27’s Ultimate Hulk; the hands are from Series 45’s Movie Hulk. The torso cover is also a re-use piece, which has seen use on countless figures over the years. This is the best assortment of Hulk pieces available, so DST definitely chose well. The paint on Hulk is pretty great, but perhaps not as exceptional as some of the others in this series. There is a tiny bit of bleed over on the ends of his pants, and the black detail lines seem just the slightest bit muted. Underneath of the torso and waist covers, there are fully detailed pieces, which, with the addition of a spare set of hands and feet, as well as a new head and hair (courtesy of Tomb Raider’s Roth), allow Grey Hulk to be displayed as Bruce Banner, mid-transformation. It doesn’t work quite as well as the previous Series’ fully civilian Bruce, but it still looks pretty cool, and the angry face is a wonderful addition to the range of Banner emotions. In addition to the transformation pieces, Grey Hulk also comes packed with a clear display stand.

IRON MAN – MK29 ARMOR

Sometimes, Diamond, for all their efforts, doesn’t get a figure quite right on the first try. Such was the case with the original TRU release of this armor. The figure featured a unique set of upper legs, but the sockets for the hip joints were too shallow, giving the figure an odd look and making it virtually impossible to keep the legs on. Fortunately, Iron Man’s a popular enough character that a second release wasn’t unwarranted. This figure represents Iron Man’s Mark 29 armor, which is one of the iterations of his Extremis armor from the comics. Not one of my favorite looks, but he did sport this general style of armor for a while, and it’s not too far off from his movie look. The figure is about 2 ½ inches tall and he features 14 points of articulation. The figure makes use of the typical body, with character specific upper arms, as well as add-ons for his helmet, upper torso, belt, gloves and boots. The helmet, upper torso, belt, and boots are from the Iron Man in the 14th TRU exclusive series, and the upper arms and gloves from Series 45’s Iron Man Mark 7. These pieces all mesh very well together and present a nice amalgamation of the various Extremis designs. The only real issue is the feet, which are at just the slightest angle, making the figure fall backwards if he’s not posed correctly. The paint is another dividing factor from the previous release. Where the last one used metallic red and gold, this one goes for a more straight red and yellow. This is a bolder look, and it makes the figure pop a bit more. It also does a nicer job of showcasing the sculpted pieces. All of the paintwork is nice and clean, and the detail lines don’t suffer from the washed-out appearance of those on Hulk. Underneath of the helmet is a Tony Stark face. It’s clearly a modern Tony, and it has just the right amount of self-assuredness. Iron Man includes a spare hairpiece (first used on Series 27’s Ultimate Cap), a flight stand molded in clear orange, and a clear display stand.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Like the other three sets in this series, I picked up Hulk and Iron Man from my local comicbook store, Cosmic Comix. My primary reason for picking up the set was Hulk; for whatever reason, I never picked up the original Grey Hulk. This figure provides an exceptional update to that figure, and brings Grey Hulk up to the same quality as the Green Hulk offered in the previous series. While this Hulk’s Banner look doesn’t excite me the same way as the earlier version, it’s still a fun extra look, and it adds extra value to an already awesome figure. While I’m not the biggest fan of this particular look for Iron Man, this is still a solid figure, and he offers some much needed fixes to the previous version. The third series of Best Of Marvel Minimates is a solid addition to the Minimates line-up.

#0277: Iron Man

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

IRON MAN

MARVEL LEGENDS INFINITE SERIES

IronManSpace1

Groot Week continues today with part five. Like the previous reviews, this figure comes from Hasbro’s most recent round of Marvel Legends Infinite Series, based on the upcoming Guardians of the Galaxy movie. The series includes six regular figures and a Build-A-Figure. I’ve reviewed the four movie figures, and today I’ll do the first of the two comic-themed reviews. The first comic-themed figure is Iron Man, who is effectively the series’ heavy hitter.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

IronManSpaceWilsonIron Man is part of the Guardians of the Galaxy Marvel Legends Infinite Series. He stands about 6 inches tall and features 32 points of articulation (counting the shoulder pads). The figure is based on Iron Man’s space-faring armor from the most recent Guardians of the Galaxy comics, also known as the “Phoenix Killer” armor. It’s certainly a unique design, and its prominent placement with the Guardians makes for a sensible inclusion in the series. The figure is predominantly re-use. He features a new head and shoulder pads on the body of the Bleeding Edge Iron Man from the first series Iron Man 3 Marvel Legends. The Bleeding Edge is one of Hasbro’s better Iron Man sculpts, so it’s a great starting point, and the head offers a different take on the Iron Man helmet. I’m not sure how I feel about the shoulder pads. They stick up pretty high, and almost seem like they’d seem better flipped the other direction. The biggest issue the figure faces, however, is his inability to put his arms all the way down, which is an issue native to the original base figure. It would have been nice if Hasbro had done some re-working to facilitate improved movement, but I can understand the need to save some money on tooling. The paint work is fairly basic. He’s molded in a metallic red and has some simple gold highlights, and a few yellow details painted on. For the most part, everything is applied cleanly with no noticeable slop or bleed over. There are one or two areas of some minor chipping, but they aren’t too noticeable, so it’s not bad. Iron Man is relatively light on the accessories, with only the right leg of Build-A-Figure Groot included. I can’t really think of any accessories that could have been included, so I can’t really fault Hasbro here.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Iron Man was purchased via Amazon, like his series-mates before him. For the most part, I only got Iron Man for the Groot piece, but I have to say, after having him in hand, I like him a whole lot more than I thought I would. The bold colors and the use of one of Hasbro’s best Iron Man bodies make this a really solid figure, and the unique design means he really stands out from the pack. Iron Man is a pretty great that will sadly be overlooked by a lot of people due to being yet another Iron Man.

#0261: Iron Patriot & Extremis Soldier

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

IRON PATRIOT & EXTREMIS SOLDIER

MARVEL MINIMATES

Extremis&Patriot

Minimates represent a large portion of my large collection of action figures, and Marvel Minimates are the backbone of the Minimates brand, so it’s no surprise that Marvel Minimates have a high frequency of review on this site. Add in the fact that the reviews are a little bit easier to write, and also tend to garner a decent sized number of page views, and you’ve got a winning combination.  So, today, I’ll once again being going back to the Minimates well, this time to review Iron Man 3’s Iron Patriot & Extremis Soldier. Let’s jump on in!

THE FIGURES THEMSELVES

Iron Patriot and the Extremis Soldier were released in Marvel Minimates Series 49. The series was a tie-in to Iron Man 3, so it depicted characters from the movie. The set was also released in slightly different packaging in the Toys R Us exclusive Iron Man 3 assortment, making it the easiest to acquire of the movie sets.

IRON PATRIOT

Iron Patriot is the newer, friendlier name for Colonel James Rhodes’s War Machine armor. He’s a pretty pivotal character in the movie, so his inclusion here is a no-brainer. He’s built on the standard Minimate frame, which meads he features 14 points of articulation and stands about 2 ½ inches tall. The figure features ten sculpted additions: helmet, chest plate, shoulders, hands, waist, boots, and shoulder cannon. All of these pieces are new to this figure, although they were shared with his Series-mate the War Machine 2.0. It’s a sensible set of parts to share, given that they’re actually the same armor with a different paint job. The sculpt is pretty decent, though all the add-ons do end up making him look just the slightest bit pudgy. The paint work is pretty good overall, but it’s not as great as other Minimate releases. The detail lines are all nice and clean, but the basic color layout is a bit sloppy, especially in the transitions between silver and the other colors. Underneath of the helmet is a fully detailed Rhodes face, which has a pretty decent Don Cheadle likeness and has nice and clean paint apps. Iron Patriot’s sole accessory is a basic clear display stand, but given the large amount of parts that went into his armor, that’s more than acceptable.

EXTREMIS SOLDIER

The Extremis Soldier doesn’t refer to a single character in Iron Man 3, but rather a whole subset of characters who were suped up on Extremis and working for the big bad. They were key to the final battle of the movie, and Diamond has created a hodge-podge of looks to simulate the soldier in a generic way that allows a collector to have a few in a group. The figure is built on the standard frame, just like Iron Patriot, so he has the same height and articulation. The Extremis soldier incudes a sculpted hairpiece, vest, and holster. All three of these pieces are re-use. The hair originally appeared on Series 24’s Shocker, the holster comes from Series 27’s Nick Fury, and the vest comes from the first version of Trench Mauser from the Expendables line. The pieces offer a pretty good approximation of the kind of stuff the soldiers wore. The paintwork on the Extremis soldier is quite good, better than Iron Patriot for sure. All of the line work is nice and clean, and the Extremis details present on the face, torso, and shoulders looks great. The Extremis Soldier includes a pistol, which we’ve seen a few times before, and a spare blonde hairpiece, originally seen on Series 35’s Happy Hogan, which allows for an alternate look.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Like most of my Minimates purchases, I picked up Iron Patriot and the Extremis Soldier as soon as they were available, which would have been a week or two after the release of Iron Man 3. Although the paint is a little bit sloppy on Patriot, he’s a nice bold design that really stands out on the shelf, and he’s got some really great sculpted pieces. Add in a pretty sweet looking Extremis Soldier who has several potential looks, and you’ve got a set that’s pretty much a winner!

Extremis&PatriotAlt

#0250: Iron Man Mark VII

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

IRON MAN MARK VII

THE AVENGERS (HOT TOYS)

markvii3b

Alright, I’ve gotten to 250 reviews. Amazingly, people are still reading these things. I guess I don’t drone on too much, right? Well, it’s been another 50 reviews, which means it’s time for another “Deluxe Review.”

Once again, the figure is one of those produced by Hot Toys, producers of extremely high-end action figures. They like to pick up the licenses to super hero movies, so it was no surprise to see them pick up the license to The Avengers in 2012. Today I’ll be looking at a version of a character that has been HT’s bread and butter the last few years: Iron Man Mark VII!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

The Mark VII is a part of HT’s Movie Masterpiece Series, number 185 to be specific. He stands a little over 12 inches tall and features 68 points of articulation in his default set up. The figure is based on the Mark VII armor, which is the armor that Tony wears during the final battle in Avengers.

The Mark VII is different from most HT figures in that he is a fully sculpted figure, instead of relying on different materials for a costume. The Mark VII features an entirely new sculpt to accurately reflect the armor’s design in the movie. The sculpt is based on the 3D models of the suit created for the movie, so it should be pretty much spot on. However, there are a few areas that are noticeably off. The wrists are a tad too skinny, as are the elbows, which makes it hard to believe a person is actually inside the suit. Also, the eyes are just a tad too large to be accurate. It’s not terribly noticeable in person, but quite obvious in photos. Their only the slightest bit off, but it makes quite a difference at this scale. Those issues aside, the rest of the figure’s sculpt looks pretty much dead on.

The paintwork on the figure is phenomenal, but is once again different from most HT work. On this figure, it’s absolutely imperative that the paint be exactly on the mark, otherwise the figure won’t have the appropriate machined look to him. HT has pulled this off excellently, with nothing out of place. They’ve even added a few small dings and scratches to make the armor look slightly used. Everything looks really great!

The Mark VII includes a huge selection of accessories, even getting more than the usual HT faire. He features:

  • An unmasked head w/ armored collar
  • 6 interchangeable hands
  • Extra wrist armor for repulsor hands
  • Battle-damaged faceplate
  • Battle-damaged chestplate
  • Interchangeable arms with lasers deployed
  • Battle-damaged shoulder pads
  • 3 interchangeable sets of Thigh armor
  • 2 Wrist rocket launchers
  • 3 interchangeable sets of shoulder mounted armor
  • A display stand

The unmasked head is not unexpected, as it has become the standard for a HT Iron Man release. Robert Downey Jr must have a difficult likeness to capture, as HT has never quite had his look down. This one ends up being a bit off the mark. It’s an odd case where it’s not a bad Tony Stark sculpt, but it has only a vague resemblance to the actor who plays him in the movies. I don’t hate it, but it’s not HT’s finest work. From a technical standpoint, it’s great. There’s some wonderful texture work, and it looks like a real person, just not the one they’re going for. The paint is up to HT’s usual standard, which is certainly nice to see. The collar piece slips fairly easily over the neck and the whole thing attaches to the MVII body without too much trouble.

There are six hands: two fists, two articulated, and two repulsor. All of them look great, and match the rest of the body wonderfully. I like the articulated ones in particular, as they provide the greatest variety of poses. The repulsor hands have been specially sculpted to allow you to depict Iron Man with his hands in blast mode as shown in lots of promotional material, and they have their own set of wrist plates to aid in this effect.

The figure also includes several pieces to allow him to be displayed in a “Battle-Damaged” mode. These pieces range from simple repaints of normal pieces to complete resculpts. They swap out with relative ease, and look pretty good when in place.

The thigh and shoulder armor come in three possible sets: closed, fully deployed, and removed. The closed is what the figure comes wearing, as they depict the default look. The deployed fit well with the Battle-Damaged set-up, for that middle of the battle look, and the removed allow for the figure to be streamlined. All of the pieces swap out pretty easily, though they’ve also included a small tool to help remove the pieces without risk of damage.

Lastly, Tony includes a basic display stand with Mark VII printed on the front and the Avengers logo on the base. It’s a simple piece, but it helps connect him with the rest of the figures from the set.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Like most of my other HT figures, the Mark VII was ordered via Sideshow Toys’ website. I had not initially planned on picking this figure up, as I had intended to make do with my earlier Mech Test Tony Stark from the first Iron Man. However, as I got further into the Avengers line, I realized that the display wouldn’t look right without a proper Iron Man. So, I waited until I was certain I’d have the money and placed a pre-order for the Mark VII. I’m glad I decided to go for it. The figure was definitely on the expensive side, even for a HT figure, but I honestly feel he was worth it. He’s the best version of the character available, and he has a lot of display options to keep things interesting. And the truth is, he is Iron Man…

#0193: Mark I, James Rhodes, & Mark II

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

IRON MAN MARK I, JAMES RHODES, & IRON MAN MARK II

MARVEL MINIMATES

Minimates, Minimates, time to review some Minimates! Yep, it’s more of my favorite line of toys to review, Marvel Minimates. It’s a long running line, with almost 60 main series, plus lots of supplemental boxed sets and exclusives. And I own a very large portion of them, so there’s quite a few for me to review. Today, I’ll be looking at a set from the tie-in series for 2008’s Iron Man. It’s James Rhodes and the Mark I armor, plus the variant Mark II armor.

THE FIGURES THEMSELVES

These guys were released in the 21st series of Marvel Minimates.

IRON MAN MARK I

While stranded in a cave, being held captive by a terrorist cell, Tony Stark builds his first suit of armor, dubbed the Mark I, from scrap parts. That’s right, Tony Stark built it. In a cave. With a box of scraps! The Mark I is built on the standard Minimate body, which means it has 14 points of articulation and stands about 2 ½ inches tall. The figure has 10 sculpted add-on pieces: helmet, chest plate, upper arm covers, lower arm covers, thigh covers, and boots. All of these pieces look great, and have a tremendous amount of detailing. The coolest feature about the figure is what’s underneath of all those pieces: a whole Tony Stark! Add the included hair piece and spare feet, and you get a pitch perfect interpretation of what Tony wore while working on the Mark I. It’s a great touch, and this was one of the very first Minimates to implement such a feature. The paint work is very detailed and quite cleanly applied, especially on the underlying Tony pieces. This is by far my favorite figure in the set, and in fact the whole of series 21.

JAMES RHODES

James Rhodes, or Rhodey as Tony likes to call him, is Tony Stark’s best friend and confidant. This figure is kind of funny now, given that it’s based on Terrance Howard’s ill-fated portrayal of the character, and is in fact wearing the very outfit he has on during the infamous “Next time, baby!” scene. The figure is built on the standard Minimate body with two add-on pieces: hair and jacket. Both pieces were new to this figure, and both are pretty much spot on to how Rhodey looked in the film. The paint work on the figure is pretty nice, with no real slop, and some very nice detail work on the shirt and pants especially. The face isn’t quite Terrance Howard, and it seems like the skin may be a tad too dark, but it’s a valiant attempt. Rhodey included no accessories.

IRON MAN MARK II

After he returns home from captivity, Tony decides to refine the Mark I, and builds the Mark II. It’s a sleeker design, and it’s a bit higher powered. It’s also a really easy repaint for toy companies, given that it’s really just a silver version of the Mark III, the film’s main armor. So, here it is, for pretty much that reason. The figure is on the basic Minimate body, with 6 uniquely sculpted pieces: two-piece helmet, chest piece, gloves and legs. All of these pieces are well sculpted, and look accurate to the movie. Not as impressive as the Mark I, but still pretty good. The paint is fairly basic, being mostly one shade of silver, but they did put all the appropriate rivets on, which is a nice touch. The figure includes a spare set of hands and legs, and a hair piece, to allow a more disassembled look.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I really loved the first Iron Man film, and patiently awaited the release of the tie-in ‘mates. They kept getting pushed back, which was very annoying, but once I had them, they were one of my favorite series of Minimates for a very long time. I still love the Mark I, and all the amazing detail present in that little guy!

#0130: Age of Ultron Minimates

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

CONQUEROR ULTRON, NICK FURY, IRON MAN, & ANGELA

MARVEL MINIMATES

 

I mentioned yesterday that I just got a new shipment of Minimates, so I’m gonna continue looking at those today.

I’ll be going back to old faithful, the Marvel line, this time looking at a boxset based on the recent Marvel crossover “Age of Ultron.”  I won’t go into my thoughts on “Age of Ultron” itself, because I’m trying not to go all nerd-rage-y too often.  Suffice to say, I did not care for it.  But, they made Minimates, and Minimates have the ability to make most things better, so I bought the set.

THE FIGURES THEMSELVES

These guys were released late last year as a 4-pack centered around the aforementioned “Age of Ultron” story.  They’re all based on the looks of certain characters from the series.

CONQUEROR ULTRON

First up, it’s the title character, Ultron.  He’s not actually based on a look from the series itself, but rather from one of the variant covers to the series.  It’s a decent design, so I have no issues with them deciding to use it here.  Ultron is built on the basic body, but thanks to a new set of lower legs and a few other add-ons, he stands roughly 3 inches tall and features 24 points of articulation (The 6 arms really help him there).  Ultron has a buttload of sculpted pieces: head, upper arms, 3 different hand sculpts, torso, upper legs, and lower legs.  The upper arms and one of the sets of hands are shared with the Marvel Now! Iron Man that was released in the 16th Toys R Us wave, but everything is brand new to Ultron.  The amount of new pieces present is impressive.  I had assumed, due to the quantity of sculpted pieces, that Ultron would be a bit more lax on the painted details.  This is definitely not the case.  He’s got a detailed face, both on the Ultron head, and on the translucent red standard head underneath it.  Plus, he’s got full detailing on the torso under the sculpted piece, allowing you to display Ultron in a more classic two-armed state if you so desire.  Ultron’s only accessory is a display stand, which he can’t use due to the new foot sculpt.  I’m willing to be a bit forgiving on that front, given how many add-ons he features.

NICK FURY

Next, it’s Nick Fury, Agent of Shield.  What’s that you say?  He doesn’t look like Samuel L Jackson?  Yeah, this is classic Nick Fury, before the Ultimate Universe recast him in his more SLJ state.  Specifically, this is the look Fury was sporting during the crossover.  It looks to be a “business casual” style SHIELD uniform, with a polo shirt, combat boots and a tactical vest.  I still prefer the basic SHIELD uniform, but this doesn’t look to terrible, and I suppose it does add some variety to the SHIELD line-up.  Fury is built on the usual Minimate body, so he’s got the standard 14 points of articulation, and he stands around 2 ½ inches tall.  Fury features 6 sculpted pieces: hair, vest, gloves, belt, and a holster.  The hair and holster are definitely reused, with the hair hailing from the Tomb Raider line, and the holster first appearing on the Avengers Movie Maria Hill, Fury and Widow figures.  The belt and gloves might be reused, but I can’t say for sure.  The vest is a brand new piece, and it looks really cool, and has the jetpack previously seen on Hope Summers and the Heavy SHIELD Agent attached to it.  Apparently, the jetpack was supposed to be a removable piece, but a mix up at the factory led to it being glued to the vest.  It’s too bad it can’t be removed, but it doesn’t ruin the figure.  The paint detailing is pretty good.  All of the detail lines are nice and sharp, though he does have a fair bit of noticeable slop, particularly around the sleeves and on the hands.  But, the logos all look great, and he even has a fully detailed shirt under the vest.  Fury includes a large gun, a hand gun, a blast base for his jetpack, and a clear display stand.

IRON MAN

Next up, it’s the biggest name in the set, Iron Man.  He’s shown here in his slimmed down armor from the series, which also bears a resemblance to the armor he was sporting towards the end of Matt Fraction’s run on Iron Man.  He’s built on the usual body, so he’s got all the typical stats.  Iron Man is the most basic of the set, with only a single sculpted piece: his helmet.  I think the helmet is a reuse from the Marvel Now Iron Man from TRU wave 16.  Since he’s only got one sculpted piece, the figure mostly relies on paint.  Fortunately, the figure delivers on this front.  All of the paint work is nice and sharp, with none of the slop that was seen on Fury.  Iron Man’s only accessory is a clear display stand.

ANGELA

Last, and very much least in my opinion, it’s Angela.  Angela!  The big, highly kept secret from the end of the series!  Oh boy, I’m so glad that was a thing.  Yeah, I have, like, no interest whatsoever in this character.  But, since she was packed in a set with other figures I wanted, I got her anyway.  So, she’s built on the basic Minimate body, with all the usual stuff.  She’s got 5 sculpted add-ons: hair, one shoulder pad (because kids dig asymmetry!), two separate hand sculpts, and a belt with a sheath.  Near as I can tell, all of these are new pieces.  From a purely technical standpoint, all of its well-handled, with some pretty decent detailing.  The paint on the figure is neither the best nor the worst in the set, which is fine.  Angela includes a newly sculpted sword, and a clear display stand.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I got this set in a recent order from my favorite place to get Minimates, Luke’s Toy Store!  I really only bought this set for the Ultron and the Nick Fury, and after having the set in hand, I pretty much still only got the set for those two.  Ultron is, without a doubt, the star of this set.  I’d be hard pressed to find something I don’t like about that figure.  Fury isn’t quite as good as Ultron, which is due mostly to the sloppy paint that plagues him.  Still, he’s a nice update on the classic Nick Fury, who’s been in dire need of an update for a while now.  Iron Man’s actually not too bad.  I enjoy him more than I thought I would, and he really is well put together.  But, at the end of the day, he’s just another Iron Man variant that is gonna get tossed in a box.  Angela is Angela.  This set has in no way swayed me on the character.  I’m happy for those who wanted her, I guess, but she’s just not for me.