Tag Archives: Marvel

#3158: Havok

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

HAVOK

MARVEL LEGENDS (HASBRO)

“Alex Summers aka Havok fires super-heated plasma from his hands to devastating effect. A veteran hero and leader, he longs to step out of his older brother Cyclops’ shadow.”

What’s that?  A new Marvel Legends Havok?  Well, don’t mind if I do.  When Havok was first added to Legends under Toy Biz’s tenure in 2006, they opted to put him in his original Neal Adams-designed outfit.  Since then, Hasbro’s given him two additional figures in the line, both covering different designs than the Toy Biz release.  Now, they’re going back to the beginning, with their own go at the original Havok, and, quite frankly, I couldn’t be happier.  Because, you know, Havok.  So, let’s wreak review some Havok!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Havok is figure 2 in the Bonebreaker Series of Marvel Legends.  Obviously, the assortment’s still got a Wolverine and all, but Havok does feel a bit like the headliner…but I’m probably biased on that.  I always feel like Havok’s the headliner.  I mean, he’s Havok.  Top shelf stuff.  This is Havok’s fourth time in Legends form, and his third under the Hasbro banner.  As addressed up above, this Havok is based on the character’s first costume, which he sported for about two decades, before the whole X-line got rebranded and he got his Jim Lee design.  It’s a classic look, and one that many of his designs since have referenced.  Moreover, he’s more or less wearing this costume again in the current run of the X-books.  Yay for relevance!  The figure stands 6 1/4 inches tall and he has 34 points of articulation.  Hasbro’s last two Havoks were built on the Bucky Cap body, but with that body officially being retired, this guy gets moved to a different base.  While there’s an intended replacement in this assortment, it’s not used for Alex.  Instead, he’s built on the 2099 body.  It’s a little smaller than the last base, but as a younger incarnation of the character, it doesn’t feel too out of place.  This also feels like the most direct replacement for the old Bullseye body, which served as the basis of the original Havok Legends figure*.  So, in that respect, it works out pretty well.  He gets an all-new head sculpt and it’s a very strong piece.  It’s a slightly calmer expression than the original Toy Biz release, but it still feels very on-brand for the character, retaining a number of traits from the ’90s Havok head sculpt, even.  The paintwork on this figure is largely pretty basic, but what’s there is really good.  In particular, the energy effect on his “symbol” on his chest is quite believable, and manages to convincingly look like it’s glowing.  I definitely dig it.  Havok is packed with three separate energy effects, all three of them new.  There are two for the wrists, like with the last ones, as well as one that clips into his back.  The wrist ones are a little loose, but I otherwise really like the new pieces, and I’m very seriously tempted to buy so many of this figure just for the effects for my other Havoks.  He’s also packed with two drum pieces for the Bonebreaker Build-A-Figure.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Have I mentioned that I like Havok?  I feel like that may be important.  Unsurprisingly, this figure was my most wanted of the assortment, because I’m always down for a good Havok.  This is a good Havok.  A very good one.  There’s a simplicity to the core figure, in contrast to the complexity of the last Havok, and it works very well.

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.

*It was so direct a replacement, that it was actually used for the most recent Bullseye figure from Hasbro

#3157: Siryn

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

SIRYN

MARVEL LEGENDS (HASBRO)

“Inheriting her mutant sonic scream from her father Banshee and raised by her criminal uncle, Black Tom Cassidy, Theresa Cassidy forges her own heroic path with X-Factor as Siryn!”

Hey, do you know what it’s time for?  Well, another review, obviously, but, more specifically, it’s time for more Marvel Legends.  You know, because there’s new Marvel Legends. So, I gotta review them.  That’s how it goes, guys.  The latest round of figures is X-themed, and its an assortment of veritable oddballs.  I’m all about that.  The first of the oddballs up to bat is our second member of the Cassidy family in recent years, Theresa Cassidy, aka Siryn.  Daughter to Banshee, and long-time X-Force member, Siryn is surprisingly short on toy coverage, with only a single Minimate release to date.  Now, she adds a Legend to that list, adding to the ever-growing X-Force team within the line.  Let’s see how she turned out!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Siryn is figure 1 in the Bonebreaker Series of Marvel Legends, which looks to be this year’s only proper X-assortment.  She’s sporting her classic Banshee-inspired X-Force look from the ’90s, which is probably her most distinctive design, making it a pretty logical choice of costume.  The figure stands a little over 6 inches tall and she has 30 points of articulation.  Her parts are a combination of the prior mid-sized body, with the pinless arms and legs first showcased on Shriek.  She also gets re-used cuff pieces on the wrists and ankles, as well as an all-new head sculpt.  The new head is pretty decent.  There’s a nice dynamic flow to the hair, and the face generally matches the look of the character as she tends to be depicted in the comics.  Notably, unlike a lot of Banshee figures, the head isn’t permanently screaming, which is generally for the best.  It’s certainly less limiting in terms of posing.  Topping things off is her “cape,” which much like Storm, is made from a very thin, almost paper-like cloth.  It’s only printed on one side, and it’s generally kind of cheap looking, but it’s pretty much what I’ve come to expect at this point.  It at least gets the point across, but I’d appreciate at the very least two-sided printing.  The color work on this figure is generally alright; the application on the yellow is a little sloppy, but not terrible.  The face, especially the freckles, is quite nicely rendered, with a very lifelike quality.  It’s definitely the strongest aspect of the figure.  Siryn is packed with two sets of hands (in fists and open gesture poses), as well as half of Bonebreaker’s tank-body.  I’d have liked to have gotten an extra head with the screaming expression, but otherwise, I guess it’s not terrible.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Siryn wound up being the first of these figures that I got a hold of, despite perhaps not being the highest on my list.  That being said, that’s less about her, and more about what else was in the set.  I’m glad to finally have a proper Siryn figure, and this one is a good one.  She’s generally by the numbers, and not without some small set-backs, but I like her.  Now, can we finally get a Banshee update to round out the Cassidy family?  Because it’s getting a little silly at this point.

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

#3156: Street Fight Wolverine & Shingen

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

STREET FIGHT WOLVERINE & SHINGEN YASHIDA

MARVEL MINIMATES

In a line-up that was actually pretty focused and on-point, there was one pack from the tie-in assortment for 2013’s The Wolverine that just seemed…non-essential?  Redundant?  I don’t know exactly.  Though a far cry from the over saturation of the Wolverine: Origins days, today’s pairing of Street Fight Wolverine and Shingen Yashida is a reminder that not every set needs the title character and not every character in the film was strong enough to warrant their own ‘mate.

THE FIGURES THEMSELVES

These two were part of Marvel Minimates Series 52’s The Wolverine tie-in, as well as being the carried over set in the TRU assortment…for…reasons?  I don’t know why this set was carried over, but, well, I think I might be getting ahead of myself.

STREET FIGHT WOLVERINE

Here’s a design that is a definite “points for effort” on the part of the costume designers.  In the original miniseries on which The Wolverine was based, Logan spent most of his time in his then-current brown costume.  The film’s never put Wolverine in anything remotely close to any of his proper costumes, preferring to more often stick him in his civilian gear.  For the climactic battle of The Wolverine, they actually tried to put him into something that recalled his distinctive brown costume, without actually being a “costume.”  So, we get a jacket that kind of mimics the patterns of his uniform.  Not a terrible choice, though perhaps a little too subtle if you ask me.  Wolverine uses add-ons for his hair and jacket, as well as having a set of clawed hands.  The hair and hands are shared with his fellow Wolverines from the movie, but the jacket was actually an all-new piece to this particular figure.  In an assortment with a lot of re-used parts, this one being new was a little bit surprising.  Regardless, it’s a pretty nice piece, and its understandably seen some subsequent re-use since its introduction here.  Wolverine’s paintwork is okay, but not super eye-catching, since it’s just a lot of brown.  We get a more intense facial expression here, which is actually pretty nice, albeit more limited in application than the suited version.  There’s a lot of nice detail work under the jacket, which is always good to see.  He’s also got some detailing on the knees, but I can’t for the life of me figure out what it’s meant to be.  Wolverine is packed with a set of normal hands, alternate bare arms for a look sans-jacket, and a clear display stand.

SHINGEN YASHIDA

Ah, yes, Shingen Yashida.  Who could forget Shingen Yashida?  Me.  I could.  Because I totally had to look this guy up to figure out which guy he was.  For clarification, Shingen is Mariko’s father, played by veteran actor Hiroyuki Sanada in perhaps one of the least forgiving roles in the movie.  The most distinctive thing the character does is suit up in Samurai armor and try to kill Logan.  So, naturally, DST decided to release him in a business suit.  Yeah… Anyway, Shingen has three add-on pieces for his hair, jacket, and tie.  All three pieces are re-used.  The hair is from Civilian Thor, the jacket from “World of the Psychic” Peter Venkman, and the tie from The Spirit.  The suit and tie are perfectly fine generic pieces, but the hair is just flat out wrong for Shingen, whose hair is nowhere near this length or style in the movie.  I understand the need to re-use parts, but certainly there was a more accurate piece available.  The paint on Shingen is alright, but far from thrilling, since he’s mostly shades of grey.  The face has an okay likeness of Hiroyuki Sanada, but not so much of Sanada *as* Shingen, since he’s got facial hair, which Shingen very definitely doesn’t have in the movie.  This only further adds to the confusion of who the heck this guy is supposed to be.  Shingen is packed with a katana and a clear display stand.  The sword, it should be noted, is only used by Shingen during his battle with Wolverine, when he’s wearing the armor, and therefore makes little sense with this version of the character.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Wolverine’s an okay figure, but there’s not much that sets him apart from the plethora of other Wolverine variants we’ve gotten.  Shingen is at best a minor character in The Wolverine, and is really only notable because of the scene where he armors up.  This figure’s choice not to use that design robs him of pretty much all play value and recognizability, and makes the figure a real wasted slot in this assortment.  And, to add insult to injury, he was the only non-Wolverine character to be shared between specialty and TRU, so he was freaking everywhere, just rubbing in how pointless he really was.  I do not like this figure.

#3154: Storm

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

STORM

MARVEL LEGENDS (HASBRO)

“With her weather manipulation powers Storm can summon lightning across the sky, or gentle rain over a parched land.”

Back in June, I looked at the first two figures in Hasbro’s X-Men: The Animated Series-inspired sub-line of Marvel Legends.  They’ve been rather steadily putting up pre-orders for additional figures, and, thanks to the onslaught of everything that was supposed to show up over the course of the next year showing up exactly now, I’ve got another one of them to look at!  Today’s focus is the mistress of weather herself, Storm!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Storm is the fourth figure in Hasbro’s X-Men: The Animated Series sub-line of Marvel Legends.  Between her and the previously released Jubilee, there was also a Mr. Sinister, but I opted to pass on that one in order to focus on just the team.  This marks the fourth of the ’90s-ispired Storms under the Legends branding, spanning both Toy Biz and Hasbro.  As with the prior figures, Storm ships in a VHS-inspired package, to really sell the animation angle.  The figure stands 6 1/4 inches tall and she has 27 points of articulation.  Storm’s construction is largely the same as the prior ’90s Storm figure, meaning she’s on the medium female base body, with the unique torso and upper arms.  She gets an all-new, more animation accurate head sculpt, which is a pretty nice piece.  Seeing as Jubilee was completely without new parts, at least getting the one here is cool.  I was bummed to see that the cape is still that really thin paper-like material, and it’s still rather creased out of the package.  It’s not like it’s worse, or anything, and I guess I wasn’t really expecting it to be better, but a part of me still hoped.  One other thing I noticed about this particular release that bugs me is that the mold appears to be suffering from some degradation, resulting in some serious difficulties keeping the figure standing.  She fell about 10 times during the photo session for the review.  I’m not a huge fan of that.  The paint work on Storm is on par with the other two.  They’ve given her that simulated cel-shading, which still manages to work from most angles.  Also, as a rarity for a Storm figure, she actually gets pupils, which is a fun change.  Storm is packed with an alternate set of hands with electricity effects (re-used from the GSXM Storm).  It’s a bit light compared to the others, I feel; I’d have liked to at least get one extra head, even if it were the same one, just with the pupils whited out.  But, I guess it’s nice to at least get something, right?

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I must confess, I didn’t jump on Storm right away.  The first two figures in the line really got me invested, but Sinsiter cooled things down, so I kind of slept on getting this one.  Adding to that is the fact that I was actually pretty happy with the Retro Storm from a few years back, so I didn’t really need the upgrade in the same way that I did with Wolverine and Jubilee.  That said, once Jean went up for pre-order, I doubled back for Storm, realizing that I would probably want the whole team in a more cohesive style.  I’m glad I went for it.  She’s not as showy as the others, but I like the changes, and I’m looking forward to getting the whole team assembled.

#3151: Wolverine & Mariko

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

WOLVERINE  & MARIKO

MARVEL MINIMATES

The Wolverine’s adaptation of the character’s original solo miniseries brought with it that story’s cast of characters.  Chief among them was Marikio Yashida, who paired off with Logan as one of the film’s chief protagonists.  Naturally, she was paired off with Logan’s main look from the film when it came time for the Minimates.  I’ll be looking at those two today.

THE FIGURES THEMSELVES

This pair was part of the Marvel Minimates specialty Series 52 assortment.  Mariko was only available this way, but Logan was also available as part of the TRU assortment alongside the ninja.

WOLVERINE

The previous Wolverine movie didn’t exactly have a lot of variety to Logan’s looks, but The Wolverine tried to mix things up a little bit by going for a cleaner, more formal appearance for most of the movie.  What begins as his funeral attire turns into his main look for about an hour of the film’s runtime, due to its “on the run” plot.  While the all-black appearance itself isn’t new for super hero films, it still ended up being a pretty unique look for Logan himself.  Logan features sculpted add-ons for his hair, jacket, and tie, as well as a set of clawed hands.  The hair and claws are shared with the other Wolverines in the assortment, the tie comes from The Spirit, and the jacket is Doc Brown’s.  No new pieces for this figure, and yet he’s still pretty much a pitch-perfect match for the movie design.  As far as paint goes, there’s not a ton going on with this guy, since he’s predominantly one color.  There are a few accent likes on his pelvis, indicating the detailing of his waist band.  He’s also got a pretty serviceable Hugh Jackman likeness on his face.  Of the many attempts at Hugh Jackman as Wolverine, I think this one has my favorite face.  Wolverine is packed with an extra set of standard hands for a non-clawed appearance, as well as a clear display stand.  Not super accessory heavy or anything, but it covers the basics.

MARIKO YASHIDA

Unlike a lot of movie-based civilian figures, this is actually not the first Minimate we’ve gotten of Mariko.  A comic version of the character was offered alongside a brown-costumed Wolverine in an SDCC-exclusive pack in 2004. That one was…not great.  This one’s a bit better.  Like Wolverine, Mariko is also wearing her attire from the funeral, meaning she matches up with a large subset of the ‘mates based on the movie.  Mariko is built using add-ons for her hair and skirt, as well as a unique set of forearms.  The hair and skirt were unique to this figure (though the skirt has seen its fair share of subsequent re-use), while the sleeve pieces were shared with Ninja Yukio from the accompanying TRU assortment. All of the parts mesh well together, and the two-pieced nature of her kimono is certainly an improvement on the bulky one-piece thing of the prior Mariko.  The paintwork on Mariko is a little more involved than Logan’s.  She has a decent likeness of actress Tao Okamoto, and I quite like the subtle line-work denoting the details of her torso, as well as the fully detailed feet that you can only just barely see.  Mariko’s only accessory is a clear display stand.  Not terribly exciting, but I’m not sure what else could have been given to her.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

This set was actually one of the ones I most wanted from this assortment, since I really dug that main look for Logan.  I ended up grabbing a full assortment from Luke’s Toy Store back when they were new to make sure I got this one.  As the standard Wolverine of the film, this one was the most sensible variant in the set.  He’s actually a pretty solid little figure, and a different enough take on the character that he won’t feel any where near as redundant as some Wolverines do.  Mariko is a decent civilian addition, and an important enough character in the mythos that I’m glad we got a second go at her.  She may not be the most exciting ‘mate, but she’s still not as bland as some others we’ve seen.

#3145: Quasar

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

QUASAR

MARVEL LEGENDS (HASBRO)

“Donning a pair of Quantum Bands, Wendell Vaughn transforms into Quasar, the Protector of the Universe!”

 Before Marvel really exploded in the ’60s, but after Timely’s real start in the ’40s, the company had this sort of nebulous period in the ’50s (at which point they were operating under the name Atlas), where they just tried a little bit of everything. They still tried at the superhero game every now and again, and one of those attempts was Marvel Boy. Though he didn’t amount to much in his first go-round, he would resurface years later in the pages of Fantastic Four, having suffered a nervous breakdown, and ultimately dying in battle. His power source, the Quantum Bands, would find their way to a new wielder, Wendell Vaughn, aka Quasar. Though never a top tier Marvel character, Quasar had a fair bit to do up through the ’90s, as a notable fixture in Marvel’s cosmic line. He’s never been particularly plentiful on the action figure front, but he did at least get some Legends love in the last year. I’m taking a look at that figure today.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

 

Quasar was a Walgreens-exclusive Marvel Legends release, following last year’s theme of cosmic characters. He has subsequently been offered up for a wider release, which is probably for the best, since he never really showed up much of anywhere on the first time around. The figure stands about 6 1/4 inches tall and he has 32 points of articulation. Quasar is built on the Bucky Cap body, which is pretty much on the eve of its retirement at this point. It’s been given a little bit of a facelift, with a new set of arms, which now have the pinless construction on the elbow joints. He also gets a new head, cape, and Quantum Bands. The head has an impeccable likeness of a younger Robert Redford, which honestly works. It looks like his comics counterpart, but with a touch of realism. The new cape is very clean and sleek, and quite well-balanced. The bands are sharply detailed, and a good match for the in-comics pieces. The color work on this guy is pretty solid. He’s bright and eye catching, and I really like how the star field on the cape turned out. Quasar is packed with two sets of hands (fists and flat handed) and a set of effects pieces to go over his fists.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

 I’ve always wanted a good Quasar figure, and there’s never really been a good option for one. The MU one was all modern, and not my thing, so the classic look here is definitely cool. The Walgreens exclusives haven’t been super easy to get, so I was really glad that he got the wider release. It would be great if, perhaps, it were followed up by, I don’t know, maybe that Nova figure that I also could never find. That would sure be nice.

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

#3144: Captain America

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

CAPTAIN AMERICA

MARVEL LEGENDS (HASBRO)

“When, in 1941, a frail young patriot agreed to be a test case for an experimental “super-soldier” serum, he was transformed into Captain America – the living symbol of freedom. His body is now physically perfect, his courage unmatched and his fighting skills cannot be equaled. Cap joined WWII and helped the allies win the war. After spending the decades following the war in suspended animation, he was revived by the Mighty Avengers, a super hero group this charismatic born leader would eventually command.”

Hey, remember way back, when I was having to space out my Marvel Legends reviews, because, like, there weren’t a ton of them?  Well, I’m not *quite* back to that level, but I’m still kind of needing to space some things.  I mean, it’s been more than two weeks, which feels like a fair bit of time.  Also, last time I left off on a standard Captain America, and this time I’m picking up with a standard Captain America.  You know, for consistency sake.  Back in May, I took my first look at Hasbro’s celebration of Marvel Legends‘ twentieth year, with their fancy updated take on Iron Man.  They’re working to recreate the whole “Series 1” line-up from Toy Biz’s run, so joining up with Iron Man is the aforementioned Captain America!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Captain America is another of the four figures in Series 1 of the “20th Anniversary” sub-line of Marvel Legends.  Though he was the first figure shown off, Cap’s trailing Iron Man and Hulk in his arrival at retail.  As with the whole line-up, Cap’s a Fan Channel-exclusive, so he’s not at big box stores.  It’s a nice change of pace, given that the 80 Years Cap was a Walmart-exclusive.  While Iron Man was a slight deviation in terms of design from the 80 Years figure, Cap is more or less an equivalent update, though this one is without the Alex Ross-inspiration.  He’s a more straight-forward update of the look of the original Legends Cap, which certainly makes a lot of sense for this release.  The figure stands 6 1/2 inches tall and has 32 points of articulation.  From the neck down, this figure’s sculpt is the same as the 80 Years release.  It’s a good, strong sculpt for a classic Cap, and it’s only gotten the one use before, so I like seeing it crop up again.  He gets a brand new masked head sculpt, which is rather different from the last one.  After years with the weird scowl-face, the 80 Years was a step in the right direction.  It was a bit specifically inspired by Ross’s art, which is a little less on the multi-purpose side.  This one, sculpted by Paul Harding, is more general in its design, and it’s very definitely my favorite Hasbro Cap sculpt to date.  Definitely a worthy successor to the original Cap sculpt, and that’s saying quite a bit.  Cap’s color scheme is much brighter on this release than the 80th figure.  I like it.  I like it a lot.  It’s bold and very eye catching, and there’s a ton of really well-rendered accenting, especially on the scale mail.  It really helps the sculpted elements to pop.  Much like Iron Man, Cap is quite well-accessorized.  He gets an unmasked head, a corresponding pulled down mask piece to go over the neck, three sets of hands (fists, open gesture, and a flat/pointing combo), a shoulder harness, his shield, three different styles of effects pieces for the shield, and a display stand with a cardboard backdrop.  The unmasked head matches up well with the masked one, and it’s a pretty solid sculpt in its own right.  I dig that ’80s style hair for Rogers.  The hood piece is kind of loose and floaty, but it serves its purpose well enough.  The hands are all re-used, but they work well, and provide him with a host of cool posing options.  The shoulder harness is a new piece, distinctly different from prior ones.  I like its more simple design.  The shield is at once an improvement on prior pieces, and also the worst thing about the figure.  I really like the larger size of the shield, and I like the effects pieces…in concept.  In practice, it results in three permanent holes in the shield, rendering it rather odd looking when the effects pieces aren’t in place.  So close, and yet so far.  Perhaps a future release will re-work the piece to remove the holes, and then we can have it all.  Cap’s display stand is the same one included with Iron Man, and his backdrop is likewise double sided, with an illustration of the original figure’s stand on one side, and the cover to the issue of Captain America packed in with the Series 1 release.  Yes, unlike Iron Man, Cap’s cover is actually the same one was the original figure.  So, that’s a pretty cool touch.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I liked a lot about the 80th Cap, but I felt like he was just shy of hitting that perfect Cap mark.  I definitely liked the look of this one from its announcement, and I was thrilled when it turned out to *not* be a Walmart exclusive.  It was very definitely my favorite and most anticipated of the Anniversary figures, and it’s been a little bit of a wait, but it was very definitely worth it.  The shield thing is a bit annoying, but that issue aside, this figure’s absolutely fantastic, and undoubtedly the best Legends Cap to grace the line.  I really, really like this 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.

#3131: Captain America

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

CAPTAIN AMERICA

MARVEL LEGENDS (TOY BIZ)

I gave today’s intro a fair bit of thought.  Usually, I like to keep things fairly light and apolitical here on the site, what with it being about toys and all, but I would be lying if I said that wasn’t becoming a harder thing to do these days.  My aim isn’t to offend, or hurt, or throw mud, or anything like that, but even from an apolitical stand-point, there wind up being some lines that get crossed, and it gets pretty hard not to say anything about it.  So, I’m gonna keep being me, and I’m gonna say what I say, and continue to just try to be my best self.  Today is July 4th, a day that’s typically dedicated to celebrating all the great things about America.  For me, on the site at least, that means I get to review another Captain America figure, because that’s how I roll.  This year, things are very much muddied by current events, leaving a lot of people not feeling quite so hot about America, and perhaps a little less proud to be part of this whole venture.  I can definitely feel that, and I think we’ve all got some work we can do to get to a better place together.  I think we can all work towards being our own best selves.  And if you think my best self isn’t going to take the opportunity, in a time of uncertainty, fear, and worry, to review a figure of Steve Rogers, a symbol of hope for all the things that America should be to all the people that call it home, then you’re definitely not one of my regular readers.  When you need some inspiration, a Captain America’s not a bad place to start, right?

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Captain America was released as part of Toy Biz’s “Face Off” spin-off of Marvel Legends, which gave us new versions of the core heroes, facing off against their antagonists.  For his part, Cap was packed alongside Red Skull.  There was also a variant unmasked Cap, which was instead packed with Baron Strucker.  Look, he’s fighting a Nazi either way, right?  This was Toy Biz’s fourth and final version of Cap in their run with Legends, following the original Series 1, the Ultimate, and its more classically-inspired variant.  The figure stands about 6 1/2 inches tall and he has 46 points of articulation.  That hefty articulation count is aided by the addition of separately articulated fingers, something Toy Biz was giving a try later in their run.  They wound up as one of the very first things cut by Hasbro, and, honestly, it’s not a huge shock.  They’re really not much more than a novelty, and they mean he can’t really grip or anything.  It’s the sort of thing that alternate hands are just a far more efficient way of doing finger poses.  Other than that, the articulation is pretty decent from a range of motion standpoint, though perhaps not so much from the appearance angle.  They definitely aren’t super worked into the sculpt’s aesthetics.  Said sculpt was a mix of old and new.  He used the Ultimate Cap as a starting point, with the addition of a more classically-based set of gloves and boots, as well as slightly tweaked versions of the upper torso and head.  This whole sculpt wound up getting up-scaled for Toy Biz’s Marvel Legends Icons line, and it was honestly pretty good for the time.  It’s perhaps not aged quite so well, what with its wonky proportions and the slightly odd shaping of the face.  That said, the texture work, especially on the scaling, is really amazing work, and if nothing else, he’s certainly got a nice style to him.  At the time of release, he was probably one of Toy Biz’s best.  Cap’s paint work is decent enough.  Toy Biz was still tending to go pretty muddy with the colors at this point, but this guy actually gets a fairly bold and clean color scheme.  It works pretty well for the character, and, again, it’s really some of the line’s best work.  Cap is packed with his shield, which is the same as his Series 1 counterpart’s, complete with the cloth straps for placing over his shoulders.  This time, it’s better painted, and I particularly like the black interior; it definitely adds a lot more pop.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Back when this figure was released, I decided to stick with my Series 1 version, rather than trying to upgrade.  Given how difficult it was to get these packs, or really Legends in general, it wasn’t hard to justify.  I always kind of wanted one, but I never got the chance to grab him over the years.  Fortunately for me, he came into to All Time a couple of months ago.  He’s certainly a figure that shows his age, but I still really enjoy him for what he is.

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

#3130: Korg

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

KORG

MARVEL LEGENDS (HASBRO)

“A Kronan warrior on the planet Sakaar, Korg is forced to compete in the Contest of Champions.  When he meets fellow warrior Thor, he allies with the Asgardian to escape Sakaar and defeat Hela.”

Remember on Tuesday, when I was discussing Ragnarok‘s new characters, who were of varying importance and seriousness?  Well, hey, here’s Korg.  Not super important, I suppose, but certainly a good time, thanks to director Taika Waititi’s delightfully charming performance as the character.  He returned as the character for Endgame, and is now coming back once more for Ragnarok‘s sequel, Love and Thunder, which looks to be giving him an enhanced role.  I for one am very much in favor of this, as I absolutely love Korg.  And now I’ve got another Korg action figure.  Let’s see if I love that too.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Korg is the titular Build-A-Figure for the Korg Series of Marvel Legends.  It marks his second time as a Legend, following the Ragnarok version from the two-pack.  This one is based on his upgraded attire from the new movie.  It’s a little more personalized, since he’s not a gladiator anymore.  There’s some fur, and a bit more color to it, making it a little more visually interesting.  The figure stands just shy of 8 inches tall and he has 30 points of articulation.  Korg is built using a number of shared parts from the previous version of Korg.  It’s sensible, what with him being the same character, and the first version being a pretty solid piece of work and all.  This one keeps most of the arms and torso, as well as the feel, with a new set of legs, overlay for the torso, and head.  Generally, it’s a pretty nice selection of new parts, matching well to the quality of the original parts.  The head’s not super different, just with a slightly different expression.  This one’s a little more serious, though still not too serious, because, you know, it’s Korg.  The new legs notably give him actual pants.  That’s a nice improvement for him, I guess.  What’s not so much of an improvement is the hip movement.  He can’t actually get his legs to sit straight down for a standard standing pose; he’s always got to be low-key spreading his legs.  The figure’s color work is fairly decent.  The design allows for a brighter, more eye-catching look than the last one.  The application of the paint is pretty clean, though there’s not a ton going on in the way of accenting, much like with the rest of the assortment.  On the one hand, it’s a bit of a bummer, but on the other, it means there’s not a lot of mismatched shading, as can happen on some Build-A-Figures.  Korg is packed with his mace-thing, which appears to be the same piece as included with the last one, just with a slightly different paint scheme.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I really like Korg, and I really liked the last Korg figure, so I wasn’t certain I needed this figure.  That said, I did like the new design for the character, and I was at least somewhat interested in most of the figures needed to build him.  I was able to snag the part that came with Star-Lord on its own, meaning I had less figures I needed to buy, and making the whole thing just a bit easier.  While there are some slight issues with this figure, I do really like the end result, and he’s another fun Korg figure.

This is a more focused set than previous movie sets, to be sure.  I’m glad that Hasbro’s finally splitting movie and comic into their own things, as I think it allows them to cover more of the core movie stuff without dipping into exclusives and multipacks, which are usually pretty frustrating.  That said, for me personally, I’m hitting a point where I don’t feel as pressed to buy every single new MCU figure any more, given how many versions I have of some of these characters.  This one was an interesting experiment for me.  I think Korg remains my favorite, as I expected.  The two Thors I picked up are both fun, if maybe not much beyond what I was expecting.  Valkyrie and Groot are both figures that exceeded my expectations, and have become my favorite versions of the characters, so that’s pretty cool.  And Gorr…well, he’s just sort of there.  Again, hard to judge without seeing the movie.  With the projected price jumps, this one does feel a bit like a last hurrah for this type of assortment, but we’ll see how things progress.

#3219: Groot

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

GROOT

MARVEL LEGENDS (HASBRO)

“I AM GROOT!”

At the end of Endgame, Thor continued his journey by venturing out with the Guardians of the Galaxy.  Rather unsurprisingly, the Guardians are playing at least some sort of supporting role in Love and Thunder.  From the trailers, it appears the whole team will be along for the ride, but with their third film on the horizon, it doesn’t make quite so much sense to fill an entire Thor line-up with Guardians.  So, Hasbro picked some favorites, including everyone’s favorite walking tree with limited vocabulistics, Groot!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Groot is figure 6 in the Korg Series of Marvel Legends.  Between him and yesterday’s Ravager Thor, there’s also a new Star-Lord, but I opted to skip that one, on the basis that I’ve got a bunch of Star-Lords.  This figure is based on Groot’s “Teen” look.  It’s been given the Legends treatment once before via the Infinity War tie-ins, via the (supposed to be) TRU-exclusive three-pack with Thor and Rocket.  That one had gotten pretty pricey on the aftermarket, and with it looking to be more or less the standard version of the character going forward, it’s a sensible choice for a re-do.  The figure stands 5 1/2 inches tall and he has 25 points of articulation.  He’s using the body from the prior Teen Groot.  It’s not 100% ideal, mostly due to how the arm articulation works, but it could be worse.  Generally, it’s a nice sculpt.  I was never super sold on the head sculpt to the old one, and, hey, would you look at that, it’s the one thing they changed.  The new head is a lot more sharply detailed, and just generally looks like a better match for the animation model from the films.  That chin is much less pronounced, and the leaves and such at the top are much more leaf-like.  The figure’s color work is also a slight improvement.  He’s more in line with the adult Groots from the first movie, being molded in a slightly lighter brown, and with a fainter green detailing.  I think it works a lot better than the prior version.  Groot also gets a slightly better accessory selection, by virtue of not being stuck in a pack with two other figures.  He gets two standard hands, an extra right hand with a trigger finger, two branch-looking effect hands, a blaster rifle, and the torso to the Korg Build-A-Figure.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I was a bit lukewarm on the first Teen Groot.  Being stuck in a big, expensive boxed set, he just didn’t feel worth the price, and I always had some issues with the actual sculpt, especially the head.  I wasn’t initially sure about this release, as I’d expected it would be a pretty straight re-release.  But, I wanted Korg, and the new hands looked fun, so I grabbed him.  While he’s not drastically different, the new head does a lot for the figure, and I’m ultimately much happier with him than I’d expected to be.  This definitely feels like the definitive Teen Groot.  So, they’ll clearly be changing his design entirely for Vol 3, right?

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