Tag Archives: Marvel

#3517: War Machine

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

WAR MACHINE

MARVEL LEGENDS (HASBRO)

“With a new modular Gatling Cannon and enough firepower to take on a legion of enemies, the War Machine — AKA Colonel James ‘Rhodey’ Rhodes — is a true one-man army.”

Hey, do you guys wanna talk about the implications of Secret War‘s big Skrull identity reveal on the events of everything post-Civil War as it pertains to Rhodey?  No?  Yeah, me neither.  Wanna pretend its not a thing until we have no other choice?  I certainly do.  Let’s do that.  But, hey, while we’re on that, can we address that the Civil War era armor design for War Machine is, like, peak War Machine design?  It’s pretty solid, and it’s got a figure, and I’m looking at that now!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

War Machine is part of the 2023 assortment of the Infinity Saga sub-line of Marvel Legends.  He’s one of the three Captain America: Civil War-based figures, which, rather amusing, doesn’t include a Captain America, but *does* does have both Iron Man and War Machine; way to upstage a guy in his own movie, guys.  The figure stands 6 1/2 inches tall and he has 31 points of articulation.  War Machine is a total mold re-use of the original Civil War release, which I looked at when it was repainted as Punisher War Machine.  The only times it was released in standard colors were as a Target-exclusive in a two-pack, and as a Disney Store-exclusive in a four pack, so a single release does make a lot of sense.  It helps that its also a pretty solid sculpt, and it still holds up pretty nicely, apart from a few spots where the articulation is a little bit stiff.  That said, it’s a really good looking sculpt, and very accurate to the source material.  I also found that the guns and baton stayed in place better on this release than my Punisher War Machine, which is a definite plus.  The only area with notable change from the original release is the paint work.  Admittedly, even that’s minor, but this time around the application is a lot sharper and cleaner, and the reds on the eyes and arc reactor now have a fade to white, giving them a bit more depth and realism.  In general, it’s just a much better look, all around.  This release gets the same accessories set-up as all the prior releases of the mold, meaning he includes two sets of hands (in fists and gripping), deployed and stowed versions of the baton and cannon, and the two removable forearm guns.  Its a shame we couldn’t get an unmasked Rhodey head, since there’s not new parts on this one, but it’s not like he’s a light feeling figure.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

My saga of owning this version of War Machine is…well, it’s frustrating, and it’s entirely my own fault.   I passed up on the figure in the two-pack a couple of times, even when I saw it on clearance, which felt silly once they were gone.  Shortly after getting the Punisher version of the mold, I finally managed to track down a loose one…and then I opted to get rid of it when streamlining my collection, since I had the Punisher version and the Endgame armor.  Then I decided to downsize my Punisher figures, and I realized that I wouldn’t have this armor at all, which…well, it was annoying.  But, then they announced this release, and that made things better, especially since this one is just the two-pack figure, but improved.  Definitely my go-to MCU War Machine.

Thanks to my sponsors over at All Time Toys for setting me up with this figure to review.  If you’re looking for cool toys both old and new, please check out their website and their eBay storefront.

#3514: Black Widow

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

BLACK WIDOW

MARVEL LEGENDS (HASBRO)

“Working alongside Captain America, Super Spy Black Widow makes a discovery that hints at a sinister worldwide conspiracy — and must do whatever it takes to counteract it.”

Back in May of 2014, when I reviewed the original Winter Soldier Black Widow, Scarlet Johannson’s live action take on the character was still quite a rarity in the toy world.  She was notably the only member of the original Avengers left out of the initial 6-inch line-up, and even her Winter Soldier figure was a short pack (since it was the days before the more even pack-outs on Legends).  In the almost decade since, that’s certainly changed.  It’s still not quite on par with her male counterparts, but she’s gotten a lot more headway.  And now, they’re even doubling back to that very first look to get the proper Legends treatment.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Black Widow was released the 2023 assortment of the Infinity Saga sub-line of Marvel Legends.  She joins the previously released Cap to make up this assortment’s Winter Soldier portion, and the two of them jointly help the Flashback Winter Soldier in giving us updates to all three of the original Legends tie-ins for the movie.  The figure stands just under 6 inches tall and she has 29 points of articulation.  She remains too tall to truly be a Johannson Widow, but that’s been a consistent issue across the board.  Her articulation scheme has changed compared to the original, as she’s now got double jointed elbows (with swanky pinless construction), and her neck joint is a double ball joint, rather than a single.  These changes are due to the fact that Widow actually gets some new parts, in contrast to Cap’s total re-use.  Her upper torso and arms are new, while the lower torso and legs remain the same.  The new parts are quite nice, and fix some slight issues with proportions and suit detailing on the last mold, as well as improving her movement quite a bit.  Apart from the slight issues with standing, the fact that she’s still got visible pins on the knees, and those dreaded holsters with the permanently molded guns, the re-used parts do at least still look pretty good.  Near as I can tell, the head is also re-used, but its worth noting that the likeness looks *a lot* better this time around.  Widow’s paint work on her original figure was based on concept coloring, while this one is based on what she’s actually wearing in the movie.  In Winter Soldier, she’s notably wearing actual black for most of her gear, and that’s reflected here.  It results in a number of areas actually getting a lot less paint than the last time, but it looks better.  It also helps that the areas that *do* get paint are a lot cleaner this time around.  The face paint in particular is night and day, and it does really look like a different sculpt.  I also really like that they’ve done proper accenting for her hair.  Widow is packed with two sets of hands (fists and gripping), a pair of guns, a pair of widow’s sting effects, and the alternate Avengers-style head like the original had.  The guns aren’t real firearms, or accurate to the movie, but I’m glad she at least gets *something* this time around, rather than the complete lack from last time.  The alt head gets the same paint improvement as the main, which is very nice to see as well.  Of course, we don’t really have the rest of the core Avengers in a style that matches, but that’s hardly this figure’s fault.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Despite my issues with the original release of this costume, I maintained that it was still a pretty good figure, and didn’t really feel the same need for an update that I did with Cap.  I certainly wasn’t opposed to the idea, though, when her name popped up on the list.  I didn’t think that much of her when I got her, and I was prepared to be a bit let-down after Cap…but I really wasn’t.  There are a few small things that I’m still not 100% sold on, but in general, she’s just a solid improvement on the original figure, in ways that I hadn’t even really thought of.  I’m glad she got the new parts, and the extras, and she actually feels like she was worth the price of the upgrade.  Just a good figure.

Thanks to my sponsors over at All Time Toys for setting me up with this figure to review.  If you’re looking for cool toys both old and new, please check out their website and their eBay storefront.

#3512: Captain America

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

CAPTAIN AMERICA

MARVEL LEGENDS (HASBRO)

“Equipped with a streamlined new uniform and his Vibranium shield, Captain America leads a team of covert S.H.I.E.L.D. operatives on clandestine missions into the most dangerous corners of the world.”

During this site’s very first year, I got back into Marvel Legends hardcore for one major reason: Captain America: The Winter Soldier.  That was a pretty crazy shift.  And, as of next April, the movie is a decade old.  It tracks, of course, but, you know, it does still feel a little crazy to me.  Whatever the case, ten years means more toys, right?  It sure does.  In fact, we’re even getting them just a little bit early, so that’s not so bad.  Today, I’m taking a look at our latest update to Cap’s stealth look from the movie.  Oh yeah.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Captain America is part of the 2023 assortment of what has become the ongoing Infinity Saga sub-line of Marvel Legends.  I guess we’re just revisiting it every year now.  I got no problems with that, of course, so let’s do it.  We’re finally getting Cap in a standard release assortment for the line, which I’m always happy to see.  Cap is seen here in his S.T.R.I.K.E. suit from the movie’s opening half, which is patterned on his Commander Rogers gear from the comics.  It’s a very good look, and certainly one of the MCU’s most memorable Cap designs.  The figure stands 6 1/4 inches tall and he has 32 points of articulation.  His articulation is a lot like the Stealth Cap from 2014.  In fact, it’s identical to the articulation on the Stealth Cap from 2014.  Do you know why?  Because this figure is, aside from the head, the Stealth Cap from 2014.  The thing is, I liked the sculpt a lot in 2014, and it was very good in 2014.  But that was a decade ago and Legends has definitely made some advancements since then.  This figure, with his visible pins, somewhat limiting ab-crunch and waist swivel, and kind of scrawny arms, is…well, he’s dated.  Don’t get me wrong; the sculpt was top of the line when it hit, and it’s not completely outmoded in this day and age…but it could be better.  In 2021, we got a totally upgraded Mark III sculpt to replace the old movie figure, and this is serving as an update for a figure that’s almost as old, relatively speaking.  At least a new upper torso would go a long way.  He does at least get the updated helmeted sculpt from the First Ten Years two-pack; that sculpt is at least a very strong one, with a much better Evans likeness than the last release of this body.  This figure’s paint work is, unsurprisingly, very similar to the last one.  It’s a little cleaner this time, and he gets the printed face, as opposed to the rather thick paint from the last one.  In terms of accessories…we run into some issues again.  He’s got an unmasked head and a shield.  I can’t tell if the head is the same sculpt as the First Ten Years one, or not.  If it is, the paint’s not holding up its end, because the likeness doesn’t feel as strong this time.  It also looks a bit large on the body, which doesn’t help the overall scrawniness feeling.  The shield is the updated version from the two-pack, now in the stealth colors.  It’s a fine piece, but it again seems too large compared to the rest of the figure, making him feel a bit small by comparison.  And that’s it on the accessory front.  The last release included a shield and an alternate head as well, but also had a second set of hands, as well as a Build-A-Figure part, and he was $5 cheaper.  Now, I understand rising costs and all, but given that this figure features at most a single new part, it sucks that he can’t at least get extra hands.  We finally got a pair of gripping hands for Cap with the Infinity War update, so the fact that we’re back to him not being able to grip his shield properly so shortly after that is definitely frustrating.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I’ve been waiting for an update to this look for at least five years, and I was very happy to see his name crop up on this list.  And then the figure arrived and…well, it let me down.  It’s very frustrating that after ten years, we don’t actually get an update to this design, and instead get yet another release of a mold that needs to be retired.  This very definitely should have been our chance to finally get a new Cap mold, built from the ground up, rather than continuing to get MCU Caps cobbled together from old parts.  It feels like a real missed opportunity.  Okay, ready for the flip around?  This figure?  I like him.  I know, I tore him to shreds up there, and brought up a ton of issues.  And I stand by those issues.  But, I also acknowledge that, viewed purely on his own, this is still a very good figure.  After getting through my issues with him, I just sort of sat back and took in the figure by himself, with no other figures, and I remembered why I loved this mold in the first place.  I’d still love an actual update (maybe they can do a new one without the shield and helmet and just say it’s him from the beginning of Endgame), but at the end of the day, there are worse things they could have done than re-use these parts.

Thanks to my sponsors over at All Time Toys for setting me up with this figure to review.  If you’re looking for cool toys both old and new, please check out their website and their eBay storefront.

#3509: Space Knight Venom & Mania

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

SPACE KNIGHT VENOM & MANIA

MARVEL LEGENDS (HASBRO)

“To protect high school student Andi Benton, Flash Thompson accidentally bonds his symbiote to her, only learning later that the Venom symbiote had passed on his demonic Hell-Mark to her”

Once Venom’s popularity really started to take off, Marvel began its rather lengthy run of evolving the concept to keep it from getting stale. Eddie Brock himself evolved into an anti-hero, and ultimately lost the symbiote, which was bonded to Mac Gargan, in order to become villainous once more. After Gargan lost the symbiote, the US government passed it on to Flash Thompson, who took on the alias Agent Venom. After joining the Guardians of the Galaxy and visiting the Symbiote’s home planet, Thompson unlocked new abilities, taking on the form of Space Knight Venom. Whilst in possession of the symbiote, Flash also inadvertently created his own sidekick, Mania, who rounds off the pair of figures I’m looking at today!

THE FIGURES THEMSELVES

Space Knight Venom and Mania are a Target-exclusive Marvel Legends two-pack, released in the fall of this year. Venom was previously a Build-A-Figure in 2016, but Mania is an all-new release.

VENOM

Though he may be a re-release, Venom’s the real reason for this set’s existence. The Space Knight Venom series was notoriously hard to find, making him one of the most expensive BAFs to piece together. All but one single release character from the set has seen some form of update since (and I don’t believe people are beating down Hasbro’s door for a new Ashley Barton), making Venom a natural choice for another figure. The figure stands — inches tall and has — points of articulation. The core figure sculpt is the same one used by the Build-A-Figure, which makes sense, since not many people got their hands on it the first time. It helps that it’s a generally pretty decent sculpt. It’s not without some signs of its age, of course. There are still visible pins on the elbows and knees, and some of the articulation is a little bit shaky. I do like how well it merges the comic design with the Legends style, and how unique it is from other Venom figures. There are also a lot of sculpted elements that could have just been painted on, which makes it look even better. The figure’s paint work is functionally the same as the Build-A-Figure. It’s hard to go wrong with black and white detailing that follows the sculpted elements, so it makes sense. There’s a bit of fuzziness around the edges of the white sections, especially where there’s no sculpted lines to act as guides, but the overall appearance is pretty decent. The BaF Venom was without accessories, but this release changes that, giving him an extra head (with more of an “unleashed” appearance), as well as blade attachments for both arms. I’m more a fan of the standard head, but the option is nice, and I definitely dig the attachments.

MANIA

While Flash’s Venom sort of bled out into other areas of the Marvel universe, his sidekick Mania remained fairly contained to Venom-specific stories, so I didn’t read much with her. She’s another take on the female Venom play, with more of Flash’s Agent Venom persona present, I guess. The figure is about 5 1/2 inches tall and she has 29 points of articulation. She appears to be using a variation of the Spider-Girl body, with new limbs sporting the pinless double joints, as well as character-specific pieces for her head, lower arms, boots, and belt. The new parts mesh well with the old, and create a solid approximation of her comics look. It’s an interesting mix of cartoony and realistic, but that’s kind of the character, I suppose. Her paint work is pretty basic overall, with the whole black/white thing. She does get a little more accenting on her gloves and boots, which is pretty fun. Mania includes no accessories of her own, which is a bit of a letdown, but also I don’t know what she should get.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Try as I may, I was never able to get more than a single piece of Space Knight Venom in his original run, which very definitely sucked. I’ve been hoping for some form of rerelease for a while, but it’s been a long wait. I had no need for Mania myself, but I can dig her getting a figure, and this seems like a good way to do it. Venom is very fun, though, and I’m glad I got him, and that also acquiring him was relatively painless. I just preordered the set and they shipped out no problem. Yay for no problem!

 

#3507: Magneto

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

MAGNETO

MARVEL LEGENDS (HASBRO)

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

THE FIGURE ITSELF

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

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

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

Thanks to my sponsors over at All Time Toys for setting me up with this figure to review.  If you’re looking for cool toys both old and new, please check out their website and their eBay storefront.

#3504: Hydra Stomper Series Wrap-Up

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

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

MARVEL LEGENDS (HASBRO)

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

THE FIGURES THEMSELVES

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

WARRIOR GAMORA

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

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

NICK FURY

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

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

YELENA BELOVA

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

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

HYDRA STOMPER

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

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

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

Thanks to my sponsors over at All Time Toys for setting me up with these figures to review.  If you’re looking for cool toys both old and new, please check out their website and their eBay storefront.

#3502: Goliath

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

GOLIATH

MARVEL LEGENDS (HASBRO)

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

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

THE FIGURE ITSELF

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

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

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

Thanks to my sponsors over at All Time Toys for setting me up with this figure to review.  If you’re looking for cool toys both old and new, please check out their website and their eBay storefront.

#3501: Blackbird Jet – Mobile Air Command

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

BLACKBIRD JET — MOBILE AIR COMMAND

X-MEN (TOY BIZ)

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

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

THE VEHICLE ITSELF

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

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

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

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

#3499: Agatha Harkness

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

AGATHA HARKNESS

MARVEL LEGENDS (HASBRO)

“Sorceress Agatha Harkness was rejected by her own coven long ago. In Westview, she pretends to be Wanda and the Vision’s nosy neighbor to learn more about Wanda’s powers.”

Can I just not do the “It was Agatha all along” thing?  It was clever back when the reveal happened, but it feels a bit overplayed now, right?  Cool, so I’m just not doing that.  Agatha Harkness is a character who goes pretty far back at Marvel.  She was created by Stan and Jack while they were still on FF, initially serving as governess for Franklin Richards, before eventually taking over a mentor role for Scarlet Witch, which was the role that would really stick for her.  Her introduction into the MCU changed some things, turning her from an old, decrepit woman to a middle-aged one, and also making her into an antagonistic force, in contrast to her “big good” vibes from the comics.  It was a well-received change, though, and she was certainly a break out character for WandaVision.  It makes it all the more surprising that it’s taken this long for her to finally get figure treatment.  Better late than never, though, right?

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Agatha Harkness is figure 4 in the Hydra Stomper Series of Marvel Legends.  She’s the assortment’s one and only WandaVision figure, making her the fourth in that show’s line-up as well.  She’s based on her fully witched-up look from the end of the show, which makes sense; it’s not like an Agnes figure would be the most thrilling thing.  The figure stands 6 1/4 inches tall and she has 27 points of articulation.  Most of that articulation…well, most of it might as well not be there, honestly.  The neck is largely motionless due to the hair, and the legs *are* motionless thanks to the skirt.  The arms are a bit better, but still very much limited, so in general poses are essentially variants of standing there.  Agatha’s sculpt is mostly new.  Her legs are re-used from the Phoenix body, but you’ll never see them and you’ll never pose them, so it’s kind of moot.  Beyond that, though, it’s unique.  It’s not bad.  The likeness on the head is definitely solid; you can tell who its meant to be without much prompting.  For as limiting as the rest of the sculpt may be to the articulation, it does at least look really nice.  The detailing on her outfit is quite sharp, and there’s a very nice, flow to everything, so she’ll at least look somewhat dynamic while she’s there in a fairly basic standing pose.  Her color work is pretty impressively handled, with a fair amount of accent work, to help sell the smaller details of the sculpt a bit.  There’s one spot of missing paint at the tip of one of her fingers, but otherwise everything is clean and the way it should be.  Agatha is without any accessories for herself, but she gets two heads and the rocketpack for the Hydra Stomper figure.  It’s a shame she didn’t get any magic effects, or possibly the Darkhold.  Just something, anything at all would have been nice.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

As I said in the intro, I was a bit surprised by how long it took to get this figure.  I understand her not being a right out of the gate release, but waiting this long, especially having her beat to market by Jimmy Woo, is shocking.  Ultimately, it’s not a super playable design in figure form, but it does at least look the part.  And, hey, when else are we gonna get an Agatha Harkness figure?

Thanks to my sponsors over at All Time Toys for setting me up with this figure to review.  If you’re looking for cool toys both old and new, please check out their website and their eBay storefront.

#3497: Talos

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

TALOS

MARVEL LEGENDS (HASBRO)

“Talos, a celebrated Skrull warrior, grapples with what it means to be a leader as he finds himself at odds with those closest to him.”

2008’s “Secret Invasion” storyline, which ran through most of the Marvel line for that year, isn’t a favorite of mine.  Coming from an era of moving from one sweeping status quo shift to the next, with no room to breath between, it represents a middle point of me growing very tired with the direction of the Marvel universe.  The MCU’s plan to adapt the crossover into a television miniseries wasn’t one that initially *thrilled* me, but they’ve made me enjoy other stories I didn’t much care for in the comics, so I was hopeful.  Unfortunately, the end results the first time I’ve truly, thoroughly disliked an MCU project from start to…well, technically not finish because I stopped watching after episode 4.  One of the things I was honestly looking forward to the most was lead Skrull Talos, who was my favorite part of Captain Marvel, getting more focus.  While Ben Mendelsohn does the best he can with the material he’s been given, and Talos’s character arc is at least one of the show’s least compromised, it’s still a little bit disappointing.  At the very least, he got an action figure out of the whole thing, so I guess that’s a consolation prize.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Talos is figure 2 in the Hydra Stomper Series of Marvel Legends, which serves as the fourth Disney+ centered assortment of figures.  The line-up is a grab bag of characters from different shows, and Talos is one of two figures from Secret Invasion.  This is Talos’ second Legends figure, after his figure from Captain Marvel.  This one depicts him in his more relaxed civilian garb.  The figure stands 6 1/4 inches tall and he has 29 points of articulation.  He’s using a pretty basic set-up for articulation, overall, but he does notably get a ball-joint at the base of the neck, rather than one of the more typical set-ups for the line.  It’s not a bad set-up, mind you, just different.  Talos is using the jacket and arms from Jimmy Woo, but it appears that everything else is new.  It’s honestly a bit surprising.  Obviously, the head I expected to be new, but the legs are kind of the sort of thing I would have expected to see re-use on.  Not that I’m complaining.  The new head is a marked improvement on the old one; the prior figure was working from preliminary designs, while this one gets the finalized ones, including a really solid likeness of Mendelsohn under all of the prosthesis.  The figure has a second head, based on Talos’ human guise, portrayed by Mendelsohn sans make-up.  It’s another really solid likeness, putting Hasbro’s previous attempts of the actor as Krennic to shame.  The other new parts are more standardized in appearance, but work well in terms of quality.  Talos’ color work is a lot of molded colors, which works well enough.  He gets a ton of detailing on both heads, however, and they look really nice, and very lifelike.  In addition to the aforementioned alternate head, Talos also gets the same hands as the standard, but in peach to match his alternate head, as well as the right leg of the Hydra Stomper Build-A-Figure.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Like I said in the intro, I really liked Talos in Captain Marvel, and while his figure from that movie was passable at the time, it’s not aged incredibly well.  While I didn’t care for the source material, there’s no denying that this Talos is a real improvement to the original, and just a really strong figure in his own right.  The only downside to him is that the new neck connection means that I can’t swap his heads onto the old Talos or Krennic figures to let them benefit from the improved likenesses.

Thanks to my sponsors over at All Time Toys for setting me up with this figure to review.  If you’re looking for cool toys both old and new, please check out their website and their eBay storefront.