Tag Archives: Marvel

#2042: Weapon X

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

WEAPON X

MARVEL LEGENDS (HASBRO)

“The Weapon X program experiments on humans and mutants alike, including Wolverine, who undergoes a brutal process that bonds Adamantium to his skeleton.”

An X-Men line-up is just no good without a Wolverine variant, right?  Even if he’s not actually named Wolverine on the box (well, not the front, anyway; he gets a name drop on the back).  Today’s figure goes back to a rather tried and true Wolverine variation, the Weapon X experiment look.  First appearing in the pages of Marvel Comics Presents in the early ’90s, Logan’s cyber-punk looking gear has been a mainstay of toyline’s ever since Toy Biz’s ’90s X-Men.  And now Hasbro’s brought it back into the Legends fold.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Weapon X is figure 2 in the Caliban Series line-up of Marvel Legends, where he fills the slot of required Wolverine variant.  This marks the second time that this design has seen Legends treatment, following Toy Biz’s offering back in 2004.  The figure stands just under 6 inches tall and has 32 points of articulation.  He follows the trend of rebuilding past Wolverine figures on the 2016 Brown Costume body.  He uses that base, in conjunction with a new head, shins, feet, and an assortment of add-on pieces for all of the gear that’s stuck to him.  As far as base bodies go, it’s really had to do better than this one, especially for Logan, so it’s a solid starting point to be sure.  The standard head has his weird visored helmet sculpted in place, and is a rather impressive piece of work.  The actual head’s detailing is a little on the soft side, but the helmet is definitely top-notch.  The new add-on parts give us all the tubes and gear from the comic, attached at his wrists and waist.  They’re intertwined with his limbs, and not designed for easy removal, but if you’re determined, they’ll come off (I was not particularly determined).  He’s also got a harness on his torso, again not really designed with removal in mind.  They’re all nice and sharply detailed, and the tubes are flexible enough to not really impede his movement, but not so frail as to break if you aren’t careful.  Perhaps the crowning achievement of this figure is the paint, or more specifically, the painted body hair.  That takes commitment and dedication, let me tell you.  Beyond that, he kind of looks a bit bland, but that’s true to form.  Weapon X is packed with an extra un-helmeted head and the leg of the BaF Caliban.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I run hot and cold with this particular Wolverine design.  I had the 5-inch figure as a kid, and always enjoyed that, but I harbored something of a resentment towards the original Legends release, given the abnormally high-pack out numbers of it compared to the likes of Vision and Hawkeye from the same assortment, and the fact that I ended up seeing that damned figure hanging everywhere, taunting me for several months at that time.  Ultimately, though, this is a design that makes for a good toy, and Hasbro translated it well here.  He’s not going to be my go-to Wolverine by any stretch of the imagination, but he’s a good deal of fun.

Weapon X came from All Time Toys, and he’s currently in-stock at their store, here. And, if you’re looking for other toys both old and new, please check out their website and their eBay storefront.

#2041: Beast

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

BEAST

MARVEL LEGENDS (HASBRO)

“One of the original X-Men, Hank McCoy is a Genius whose mutant ability gives him a furry, blue, beast-like appearance.”

Okay, I need to address something real quick:  Hank McCoy’s furry, blue appearance is *not* from his mutant ability.  It’s from an experimental serum he drank that was supposed to enhance his powers.  It unlocked a potential for a beast-like appearance from his genes, but his mutant ability doesn’t make him blue and furry inherently.  This has been today’s lesson of “why the bio’s wrong,” I’ve been your lecturer, Ethan Wilson.  Okay, so now I should probably review the actual figure, and not the blurb on the back of his box.  This is “The Figure in Question” not “The Bio in Question.”  Onto the figure!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Beast is officially figure 1 in the Caliban Series of Marvel Legends (since Gambit didn’t have a BaF piece, and therefore doesn’t technically have a number).  Beast is getting his fifth Legends release, though this one’s the first since the original Toy Biz figure to be sporting his typical blue and furry ape-man appearance, with the interim figures being, in order, a movie figure, a cat-faced figure, and a human figure.  This one draws more direct inspiration from Jim Lee’s Beast, which means he fits with the rest of this assortment (and the general ’90s theme that Hasbro’s been pushing for the X-Men).  The figure stands 7 1/2 inches tall and he has 36 points of articulation.  Beast’s height has been the cause of some frustration amongst the fanbase, since even at his biggest in the ’90s, he was still officially listed as under 6-feet.  That being said, very few artists ever really stuck to that, making this figure’s height a rather similar dilemma to last year’s Thing figure.  Ultimately, I don’t see myself ever having him standing upright next to the rest of the team, so it’s kind of a non-issue, but your mileage may vary.  I should note that he’s more or less the same height as the original TB figure, for what it’s worth.  Despite his larger size, Beast is actually one of the best articulated of the modern Legends, which I count as a definite plus for an acrobatic character.  The sculpt is an all-new one, and it’s actually pretty darn good.  It’s bulky, but not too bulky (which has been a problem with prior Beast figures), and the fur detailing is pretty realistically rendered.  The head is very much Lee-inspired, and with a rather intense expression.  It’s not a bad sculpt, though I’m generally partial to calmer interpretations of the character.  Still, I like it well enough.  Beast’s color work is actually pretty decent.  The base blue is nice and bright, and a good match for the comics appearance.  He’s actually got some solid accent work going on, which adds a nice bit of variety to his furry appearance.  Beast is packed with two pairs of hands, which help with his various acrobatic poses.  In particular, there’s a flat hand for his left hand, which, with some very careful balancing, lets him hold himself aloft with one arm.  Beast also includes the head of the BaF Caliban.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Since I’m not much of a fan of most other interpretations of Beast, I’ve been making use of that old Beast figure for a good long while.  I’ve been hoping for an update, though, if I’m totally honest, I was really hoping for more of a Perez-style Beast.  Of course, with all of the ’90s X-Men stuff we’ve been getting recently, this guy makes a bit more sense, and certainly fits in a little better.  While I’m not super sold on the facial expression, I’m overall quite happy with this figure as a whole.  I’m also really hoping that the fact that he got an all-new sculpt means we’ll be seeing a variety of other Beasts in the near future.

Beast came to me from my friends at All Time Toys.  He’s already sold out, but he should be coming back into stock soon. And, if you’re looking for other toys both old and new, please check out their website and their eBay storefront.

#2040: Gambit

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

GAMBIT

MARVEL LEGENDS (HASBRO)

“Remy LaBeau is an ex-thief from New Orleans with the mutant ability to convert energy and cause objects to explode.”

Alright guys, I hope you’re ready, because we’re about to embark on another week of Marvel Legends reviews.  It’s time for us to once again set our sites on Marvel’s band of merry mutants, the X-Men, whose yearly assortment now looks to have morphed its way into two.  Hasbro also seem to be easing themselves away from trying to keep things more current, as the latest round of figures is purely ’90s X-Men fare.  At the top of the ’90s X-Men heap is Gambit, who may not have been added to the team in the ’90s, but certainly hit the pinnacle of his fame during that time.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Gambit is the first figure in the Caliban Series of Marvel Legends.  He’s this assortment’s non-BaF-piece-sporting double-pack, which, given the fairly devoted fanbase for the character, probably isn’t the worst idea in the world.  This is only Gambit’s second time as a Legend (the first having been way back during the early days of the Toy Biz line), and the first one he’s gotten since Hasbro took over the license way back when.  It’s kind of crazy that its taken this long to finally get another stab at him, but to be fair, the original is one of the few Toy Biz figures to still hold up pretty well.  This guy follows that one’s lead, giving us Gambit in his full-on ’90s look, which, frankly, is the quintessential Gambit look.  Bothering with others seems kind of pointless.  The figure stands 6 1/2 inches tall and he has 32 points of articulation.  Gambit is mostly a new sculpt.  Just the arms and jacket are re-used (the jacket from Nick Fury, and the arms from Punisher, just like with Multiple Man).  The rest of the sculpt is brand-spanking-new, which, I’ll admit, did surprise me a little bit at first.  I was very definitely expecting to see some Bucky Cap show up on this guy, and there’s absolutely none of that featured.  The resultant body is certainly very similar in build, but every piece of it’s full of Gambit-specific detail.  The boots, the belt, the bib, heck, even the pink rectangles on his legs are all sculpted right onto the figure, which makes him a very unique looking figure.  Hasbro certainly could have phoned in the pink rectangles at the very least, but they didn’t, even though that details unlikely to be seen by most people.  Perhaps my only slight bit of contention with the figure is the head sculpt.  Well, not even the whole head, really; the main head, especially the face, is quite nice.  I just don’t like the hair.  It’s too lopsided for my taste.  I’m used to a Gambit with lots of hair bouncing out of his cowl from all angles.  This one’s decidedly to the one side.  I don’t hate it, but it’s off enough to bug me.  Gambit’s paintwork is up to the usual standards of the line, meaning it’s clean, bold, and matches well with his comics appearances.  His stubble is a marked improvement for what we’ve seen from Hasbro, being appropriately subtle and not a horrible mess.  That’s a huge step for them.  Gambit may not have a BaF piece, but he does still get his own assortment of extras, including his staff, a single charged card, and an alternate left hand with three cards in mid-throw attached.  It’s all of the basics you could want from a Gambit, so no complaints there.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

The original Legends Gambit was always one of my very favorite of the Toy Biz figures, and Gambit’s a design I’m fond of, so there was a lot riding on his inevitable re-release.  When it was shown off, I was a bit apprehensive, mostly because of the hair.  In person, there’s just so much I love about this guy, to the point that the hair is really so minor that it doesn’t really affect my opinion of the figure at all.  He’s a very satisfactory upgrade to the original release, and a fantastic start to this line-up.

I got Gambit from my friends at All Time Toys, and he’s currently in-stock at their store, here. And, if you’re looking for other toys both old and new, please check out their website and their eBay storefront.

#2036: Spider-Man & Kraven

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

SPIDER-MAN & KRAVEN

MARVEL LEGENDS (HASBRO)

“Unwittingly bonded with an alien symbiote, Spider-Man has the enhanced strength and abilities he needs to take on his deadly enemy, Kraven the Hunter.”

The last time I reviewed a Kraven figure, I remarked that long-running lines require a somewhat cyclical nature.  Well, uhh, I’m now reviewing a re-release of Kraven from that very line…so, hey, here we are.  Guess we’ve already come back around to him, haven’t we?  I, of course, already had the previous Kraven, but one more certainly couldn’t hurt too much.  Nor could one more of the Spider-Man he’s packed with!

THE FIGURES THEMSELVES

Spider-Man and Kraven are a Target-exclusive Marvel Legends two-pack, clearly patterned after the much-loved “Kraven’s Last Hunt” storyline.  The set started hitting shelves just a few weeks ago, and will hopefully be showing up in plentiful quantities throughout the summer.  Both figures are tweaks of prior figures that have packed up a sizable aftermarket price.

SPIDER-MAN

Spider-Man’s black costume (or at least a cloth copy of it) was central to “Last Hunt,” and is enough of a fan favorite that a re-release of his Sandman Series figure definitely makes sense.  The basic figure is essentially identical.  Same base body and head, and for the most part, the same paint scheme.  The symbol is ever so slightly different, with the head being a little wider.  It’s minor enough that you’d only notice the change with both releases side by side.  The main change-up is the accessories.  They were kind of the let-down of the original release, but this one amends that.  He loses the open gesture hands of the original, but exchanges them for the missing web-pose hands that were sorely missing the last time.  He also gains an alternate unmasked head, which is a re-paint of the unmasked head from the Spidey/MJ pack, now featuring some battle-damage.  Of course, since I still don’t have that, I’m just building a continuing collection of non-standard Parker heads.

KRAVEN

Kraven’s been absent from Legends longer than Spidey’s black costume.  His Rhino Series release was four years ago now, and just predates a lot of collectors getting into the re-launched line, meaning he still goes for a bit of a premium.  His re-release is definitely the main driving force of this set.  Where Spider-Man was a fairly straight re-issue, Kraven is actually quite different from his prior release.  Where that one was his most recent appearance, this one is a classic Kraven.  He gets a new head, right hand, and belt, and swaps out the boots of the last release for more streamlined parts.  The head is by far the best piece; the crazed expression is a perfect recreation of Mike Zeck’s Kraven from “Last Hunt,” and it’s a marked improvement over the more generic sculpt of the last release.  Another marked improvement?  The paint.  It’s sharper, bolder, and just generally better detailed than the last release.  Hasbro’s definitely gotten a lot better at this part of the figures.  Kraven includes the same spear as the prior release, and also adds in a hunting rifle, which is a pretty classic Kraven sort of piece.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Since I have both of the original releases, when this set was originally announced I didn’t know if I’d be picking it up.  The images of the new Kraven head definitely did a lot to sell me on him, but the Spider-Man didn’t look to have much new to offer.  I was out looking for the Endgame Hawkeye and Widow (who I still haven’t found), and came across this set, and upon seeing the unmasked head and webshooter hands was definitely sold.  Both figures included are improvements over their original releases, and I don’t regret grabbing this one at all.

#2026: Captain America & Dum Dum Dugan

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

GOLDEN AGE CAPTAIN AMERICA & DUM DUM DUGAN

MARVEL MINIMATES

Even the Cap gets by with a little help from his friends… though he does occasionally have to borrow those friends from some outside sources.  Such was the case with the Howling Commandos, Nick Fury’s WW2-era unit from the comics, who found themselves merged with Captain America’s WW2-era super team The Invaders for the purposes of The First Avenger, and in turn, found themselves treated to some action figures in the process.

THE FIGURES THEMSELVES

Golden Age Captain America and Dum Dum were one of the two TRU-exclusive sets for the Captain America: The First Avenger assortment of Marvel Minimates.

GOLDEN AGE CAPTAIN AMERICA

On the path to getting his proper Captain America uniform, Cap goes through a few trial stages.  The first of these is Cap’s USO show costume, which is the spitting image of Cap’s classic costume from the comics.  Golden Age Cap is made up of six add-on pieces, all of them re-used.  The gloves and boots are the standard Cap pieces, and the belt was taken from the DC Minimates Series 4 Golden Age Flash (fitting, I suppose).  The mask comes from the First Appearance X-Men set, and while it’s not a terrible piece, it’s not strictly speaking accurate to the source material, where he actually had 3D head wings.  Of course, there was no ready-made piece that would quite match, and it would have certainly been a one-off, so the slight deviation is excusable.  Cap’s paint matches the somewhat sephia-toned coloring of the other Caps in this assortment.  It’s pretty cleanly applied overall, and I like the goony facial expression under the mask.  It’s a different look for Cap, and it helps him stand out a bit more from the other variants.  The blue’s perhaps a touch too light (as it stands, it matches with his standard costume, when it really should be a bit deeper), but that’s a minor change, and he’s at least consistent with the Frontline Captain America in that regard.  Golden Age Cap is packed with his shield (the same one included with Frontline Cap), and a spare hairpiece for a proper unmasked look.  A pointing hand might have been cool, or even some of his accessories from his movie serials he was filming, but he makes out alright.

DUM DUM DUGAN

Dum Dum is possibly the most distinctive of the Howling Commandos, in both the movie and the comics.  His presence here was definitely a sensible one, allowing collectors not only one of Cap’s supporting players, but also a very memorable agent of SHIELD who has had far too few action figures over the years.  Dum Dum is built using two unique add-on pieces; one for his hat/hair, and one for his vest.  The hat is a very distinctive and very important piece for Dugan, and this piece is mostly pretty good, but there’s one slightly annoying flaw to it: it’s lopsided!  It should be symmetrical, but it’s very clearly leaning to the right.  The other details are well-rendered and match the movie, but it’s hard to miss that one issue.  The vest is a decent piece in its own right.  I like that it bulks him up a bit, and the options for storing his shotgun and sidearm are much appreciated.  The paintwork on Dum Dum is respectable.  He’s got a lot of brown going on, but that’s accurate to the movie, so no complaints there.  The face doesn’t have much of a Neal McDonoug likeness, but it’s a pitch-perfect Dugan, so it works well enough for me, especially since it can double as the comics version of the character.  Dum Dum is packed with his shotgun and revolver.  Basic pieces we’ve seen many times before, but still solid pieces nonetheless, and perfect choices for the character.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Like the previously reviewed Gabe Jones and Hydra Flame Trooper, I grabbed these two from a TRU on a road trip with my my family back in 2011.  Golden Age Cap is perhaps the least essential of the three versions of Cap we got for the movie, but he’s a decent enough variant, and certainly more entertaining than all the variants of Wolverine we’ve gotten from his movies.  Dum Dum is a minor but still very important character, who was definitely in need of a figure.  This one, despite one notable flaw, definitely does the character justice, and helps to fill out the SHIELD ranks.

#2022: Thanos

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

THANOS

MARVEL LEGENDS (HASBRO)

“I am inevitable.”

Heads up, there may be some mild spoilers for Avengers: Endgame in today’s review.  If you haven’t seen it, I’m not giving anything major away, but you’ve been warned just the same.

So, how about Endgame?  That was really something.  Captain Marvel gave it a nice lead-in, with all of the money it raked in, but Endgame‘s blowing away…pretty much everything, firmly marching its way to being the biggest movie ever.  But how was the movie, you know, as an actual movie?  Well, if you ask me, it was fantastic.  It was pretty much everything I wanted, and it was a wonderful cap to the previous 21 movies in the MCU.  I was very, very content with this finish.  Thanos is once again a central player in the story, but where Infinity War made Thanos a complex and intriguing figure, Endgame really ramps up his monstrous side.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Thanos is the Build-A-Figure for the first Endgame-themed series of Marvel Legends.  Since he was also the first Build-A-Figure last year, it’s not a huge shock that he got this slot again for the follow-up.  When Thanos’ Infinity War appearance was first revealed, a lot of people were let-down a bit by its very stripped down nature.  While it grew on me after the movie had come and gone, I could definitely understand why some fans were bummed that we didn’t really get the Thanos that we’d been teased with since back in the first Avengers.  Endgame made it a definite point to use a fully armored up appearance, and this figure follows suit.  The figure stands 7 3/4 inches tall and he has 29 points of articulation.  Apart from a lack of waist joint, and a slightly restricted set of shoulder joints, his articulation is pretty much comparable to his prior figure.  Thanos is sporting a mostly new sculpt with only his left hand and the slip-over for his forearm being reused.  This Thanos is just a little smaller than his unarmored appearance, at least in terms of bulk.  In terms of height, he’s actually a touch taller than the preceding figure.  The size change mostly comes into play with the torso, which is just not quite as broad across the shoulder as the prior figure.  Honestly, I’m not sure he’s really any less accurate than the prior figure, and to my eyes, his proportions actually seem a little more balanced this time, so I don’t mind it so much (it’s also nowhere near as pronounced a difference in person as it is in the photos).  Thanos’ sculpt is quite nicely rendered.  The armor appears to be accurate to what I’ve been able to find in way of reference for his film design, and the detailing is nice and crisp.  Under his helmet, there’s an angry grimace that matches the updated head from the Infinity War three-pack release, which seems to suit his more battle-ready appearance this time around.  The figure even manages to avoid the prior figure’s issue with popping apart easily after assembly, which is perhaps the biggest plus in my book.  Now, I do have one slight bone to pick with this figure when it comes to film accuracy, and that’s what’s going on with the left hand.  He’s sporting the Gauntlet, fully powered up and everything, which is…well, it’s just plain not accurate.  Thanos ditches his armor in Infinity War before gaining all of the stones, and by the time he’s armored up again in Endgame, he doesn’t have the Gauntlet in his possession.  In fact, keeping the Gauntlet away from him is a fairly major plot point.  What’s more, the original Gauntlet isn’t seen at all following the film’s opening minutes, so this isn’t the one he’s trying to get to anyway.  The point is, it’s really not accurate.  That being said, Thanos and the Gauntlet are definitely linked, so I can’t entirely fault Hasbro for wanting to include it.  I suppose perhaps the best case would be including an alternate forearm for him, but perhaps that was out of their price range.  Thanos’ paintwork is pretty good overall.  The skintone matches with the three-pack release (which was the more accurate of the two hues), and his face uses the printing style.  The armor is mostly rendered via molded plastic, but what paint is there is well-applied for the most part.  There’s a little slop on the arms, but it’s not as bad as some of the other figures in the series.  Thanos one-ups his prior figure by actually getting his own accessory.  It’s his double-bladed weapon…or at least an early version.  It’s not strictly screen accurate, but it gets the idea across, and it’s nice that it wasn’t left out entirely.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I was a little disappointed with last year’s Thanos Build-A-Figure, and while the three-pack rerelease did a lot to salvage that sculpt, I was still happy to see him get another shot for Endgame.  The armored appearance is certainly more dynamic, and the resultant figure is generally a more solid release, and one that I’m actually pretty happy I assembled.

This set of figures kind of dropped on us quickly, so I didn’t have the same time to soak up the line-up that I’ve had previously, meaning I didn’t so much go into it with much by expectations.  I knew I wanted this Thanos, and I was right on that front, but, aside from the somewhat weak Living Laser figure, I really enjoyed this assortment as a whole.  Hercules tops off the singles as one of Hasbro’s best single releases, Nighthawk and Citizen V are good formula figures, Ronin and Ebony are strong film-accurate releases, and even Cap, in all his inaccurate glory is still a fun figure in his own right.  If you’re interested in getting a set of your own, all seven of the single figures are still in-stock at All Time Toys’ webstore.  And, as always, if you’re looking for other toys both old and new, please check out All Time’s website and their eBay storefront.

#2021: Hercules

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

HERCULES

MARVEL LEGENDS (HASBRO)

“An immortal champion of Olympus, Hercules uses immense strength to battle evil and protect the world.”

Honey, you mean “Hunk-ules!”…wait, sorry, sorry everybody.  Wrong Hercules.  My bad.  Pack it back in, let’s regroup….Although, I do feel the need to point out that both Herculeses in question are owned by Disney, so you can forgive my confusion.  Today’s Hercules is officially of the Marvel branding, introduced by Lee and Kirby during their run on Thor.  He’s been a mainstay of the Marvel Universe since the ’60s, but has actually been a slightly rare occurrence as a toy.  Toy Biz, for all their Marvel stuff they did, never released a single figure of Herc, and even Hasbro’s have been few and far between.  Their first Herc was a Legends release, as part of their very first series, all the way back in 2007, and now their finally replacing him with an update, 12 years later.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Hercules is figure 6 in the first series of Endgame-themed Marvel Legends.  He’s the last of the four comics figures, and also the last single-packed figure in the series.  As a full-fledged Avenger for many years, Herc is definitely the most natural choice of the comic-based figures in the line-up.  Herc is based on his most recent appearances, from around the time of Avengers: No Surrender.  It’s really not too far removed from his classic appearance, with the only prominent change being the addition of pants and boots.  I’m not super crazy about the man-bun, but worse things have happened.  The figrue stands 7 inches tall and he has 34 points of articulation.  Hercules is an all-new sculpt, which was honestly a little bit of a surprise to me, since I’d kind of been expecting the Hyperion body to be trotted out again.  It’s most certainly a pleasant surprise, because this body is much better.  It still maintains that impressive god-like physique, but avoids a lot of the odd proportion issues and especially that “shelf” issue at the front of the torso.  I wouldn’t mind seeing some of these parts become more regular additions to the bigger guys.  Interestingly, both my favorite and least favorite aspects of the sculpt are on the same piece: the head.  The expression on the face is perfect for Herc, the beard is nicely defined, I dig the intricate nature of the head gear, and the flow of the hair is great too…mostly.  But he’s still got that freaking man-bun.  For whatever reason, it just really bugs me.  Not enough to distract from the rest of the awesome sculpt that it’s attached to, but enough to give me slight pause whenever I first pick him up.  The texturing on his boots and pants is on par with most of the MCU level stuff, and I think his harness is the least float-y harness piece yet in modern Legends, which is definitely a step in the right direction for a line that already takes lots of steps in the right direction.  It’s all topped off with a pretty darn solid paint-job.  Some of the paint for this assortment has been a little iffy, so I had my concerns about Herc, but he turned out quite nicely.  Everything is nice and cleanly applied, and he manages to be colorful and eye-catching without being as garish as some of his incarnations have the potential to be.  Hercules is perhaps the best accessorized figure in the line-up, getting a sword and mace (both of which can be stored on his back), plus two sets of hands for both fists and gripping.  A comic figure getting extra hands is always cause for celebration if you ask me.  And, he’s also packed with the head of the Thanos Build-A-Figure, which is now complete!

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

As much flack as it may get, I’ve actually always really loved Hasbro’s original Hercules figure.  He was quite good for the time, and I always felt he did a solid job of capturing the spirit of the character.  Sure, he was looking more and more dated with each updated release, but replacing him would still be a daunting task.  Well, maybe not so much.  This figure’s awesome.  Like, really, really awesome.  I didn’t have much of an opinion of him going in, but he quickly became my favorite figure in the set.  Even if he does have that stupid man-bun…

Hercules was purchased from All Time Toys, and he’s currently in-stock at their store, here.  Go buy him.  Go buy him now. And, if you’re looking for other toys both old and new, please check out their website and their eBay storefront.

#2020: Citizen V

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

CITIZEN V

MARVEL LEGENDS (HASBRO)

“Baron Helmut Zemo adopts the alias Citizen V and leads the heroic Thunderbolts into battle against various villains.”

From the fallout of the dreaded “Heroes Reborn” relaunch of the ’90s, there was actually one notable not-terrible thing to come about: Thunderbolts.  In the wake of the Avengers disappearance, a new super-team arose, and in one of the decade’s most shocking twists, were revealed at the end of their debut hero to not be heroes at all, but rather the Masters of Evil in disguise.  Former Masters of Evil leader and Captain America foe Baron Zemo became the patriotically-themed Citizen V.  And, following up on last year’s Songbird figure, we’ve gotten a Citizen V to go along with her.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Citizen V is figure 5 in the first Endgame-themed series of Marvel Legends.  Given his real identity, he’s not the worst choice in the world for this assortment, even if Zemo’s not actually in Endgame.  I mean, at least he *is* an MCU character, and with the Songbird figure last year, there’s a good precedent.  The figure stands 6 1/4 inches tall and has 32 points of articulation.  Like yesterday’s Nighthawk, Citizen V is built on the Bucky Cap body, which definitely a good choice, given it’s the same body that the basic Zemo was built on as well.  He’s specifically built on the recent Daredevil variant of the body, meaning he has the wrapped hands and laced up boots, which are a good match for Citizen V’s design.  He gets a new head, belt, and cape piece as well, which completes the appearance nicely.  I particularly like the head, which is nice and sleek.  The cape is also a rather nice piece, though the nature of how it’s laid out is rather restricting for his left arm.  Of course, given that his sword hand is his right one, it’s not a huge loss.  I’m willing to sacrifice movement for form on this one.  The paintwork on V is some solid stuff.  I really dig the metallics on the shoulder pads, as well as the accenting on the red sections.  There’s some notable slop on the cape at the edges, which I wish wasn’t quite as obvious, especially given the quality of the rest of paintwork.  It’s really the one downside to an otherwise really strong figure.  Citizen V is packed with his sword, which is a decent enough piece, though he has a little bit of trouble holding it.  Still, a cool piece nonetheless.  He also includes the right leg of the Thanos Build-A-Figure.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

While I didn’t read Thunderbolts back when it was new, I’ve always kind of dug Citizen V’s design and have long thought it would make for a good figure.  I was definitely hoping to see it turn up when we got Songbird last year, and I was happy to see him show up.  He was pretty high on my list for this assortment, and I definitely had high hopes.  The paint on the cape is annoying, but beyond that, I do really like this figure, and I look forward to the possibility of getting more members of the original Thunderbolts.

Citizen V was purchased from All Time Toys, and he’s currently in-stock at their store, here. And, if you’re looking for other toys both old and new, please check out their website and their eBay storefront.

#2019: Nighthawk

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

NIGHTHAWK

MARVEL LEGENDS (HASBRO)

“Originally a member of the Squadron Sinister, the wealthy Kyle Richmond has a change of heart and joins the Defenders.”

In the past, I’ve briefly touched on the Squadron Sinister, Roy Thomas’s Justice League pastiches created in 1969 for an unofficial crossing over of the Avengers and the Justice League.  While the Champions of Angor, the Avengers parody that the Justice League fought in their own book shortly after, weren’t particular successful in any fashion, the Squad was successful enough to get not only their own heroic spin-offs (the Squadron Supreme), but also to have a couple of its original members worked into the mainstream universe proper.  The team’s resident Batman expy, Nighthawk, actually did alright for himself, going on a path of redemption and eventually becoming a mainstay of the second-tier superhero team the Defenders!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Nighthawk..sorry, *Marvel’s* Nighthawk is figure four in the first series of Endgame-themed Marvel Legends.  He’s the second comics-based figure in the assortment, and I guess if I ragged on Living Laser for his spot being questionable, then I have to rag on Nighthawk too, since he’s really more a Defenders character, despite starting off as an Avengers villain.  Despite all that, I can’t really complain too much, since I doubt there are going to be any dedicated Defenders assortments anytime soon.  Plus, we got three other Defenders back during the tie-ins for Age of Ultron, so I’d say there’s some precedent.  Nighthawk is based on his second costume, following his turn to the heroic, which is definitely sensible, since he spent most of his career in variations of this look.  It also further removes him from his Distinguished Competition counterpart, which I’m sure makes the legal department extra happy.  The figure stands 6 1/4 inches tall and he has 32 points of articulation.  Nighthawk returns to the tried and true method of building figures on the Bucky Cap body, even re-using that figure’s buccaneer-style boots.  It’s a good fit for Nighthawk’s stature, and still a very good body, though I imagine it’s nearing its retirement.  The figure gets a new head, hands, and forearms, as well as brand new cape add-on.  The newly sculpted parts are nice and clean, and fit well on the body.  The head is a pretty basic piece.  It’s a guy in a cowl, so there’s not a ton of unique work to do there.  It’s a good adaptation, and I do prefer the streamlined mask design they went with. I appreciate that they actually sculpted the ends of his gloves, rather than just painting them on, and I also dig that they made his claws distinctly different from Wolverine.  The cape is big and bulky, but it’s also really dynamic, and certainly the best interpretation we’ve gotten of it in three dimensions.  I was expecting it to be a lot more cumbersome than it ended up being, so I was pleasantly surprised to be sure.  Nighthawk’s paintwork is clean, bright, and bold, which is pretty much everything you’d hope for.  I definitely like the palette here more than the Marvel Universe figure from a few years back, and the application is overall pretty clean.  I did see some slight variance on the coverage of his logo on the few figures I looked at, but for mine it looks pretty solid.  Nighthawk includes no accessories for himself, which, while slightly sad, isn’t a huge shock.  An unmasked head would be cool, as would some non-clawed hands, but they aren’t the sort of thing you expect to see on a character like Nighthawk.  He does include the right arm of Thanos, as well as Thanos’s bladed weapon.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I’ve been a fan of Nighthawk ever since Kurt Busiek made him a prominent player in his late ’90s Defenders series, and I’ve wanted him in figure form for pretty much just as long.  He and the rest of the secondary Defenders are some of my favorites, and he’s the last one I needed for a true classic Defenders set-up, so I was pretty stoked for his release.  The final figure lives up to my expectations, and I’m happy to have him.  He’s sort of Living Laser’s counterpart in this assortment, another formulaic lower tier character release who’s actually a pretty solid toy.  The difference between the two is that Nighthawk is actually a character/design I wanted, so he resonates just a little bit better with me.

Nighthawk came from my friends at All Time Toys, and he’s currently in-stock at their store, here. And, if you’re looking for other toys both old and new, please check out their website and their eBay storefront.

 

#2018: Living Laser

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

LIVING LASER

MARVEL LEGENDS (HASBRO)

“Driven mad by jealousy, the brilliant research scientist Arthur Parks becomes the villainous Living Laser.”

Man, wasn’t it a huge shock when the Avengers defeated Thanos in Endgame, only to all be instantaneously killed by the Living Laser?  That was a dark turn!  Clearly, this figure is the most timely inclusion ever, just because of that.  What’s this?  Spoilers?  No, not even close.  Living Laser’s not in Endgame at all…whoops, spoilers for all those Arthur Parks fans hoping for a surprise cameo.  I guess you’ll just have to make due with this only vaguely connected figure release.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Living Laser is figure 3 in the first Endgame-themed series of Marvel Legends.  As I touched on in the intro, no, Living Laser is not in the movie, but is instead one of the four comics-based figures in this line-up.  His placement is kind of odd, but I guess no more odd than Grey Gargoyle cropping up in the Captain Marvel series.  He *is* and Avengers villain, so that’s sort of related.  The figure stands just shy of 6 1/4 inches tall and he has 34 points of articulation…in theory.  The head/neck combo messes with the mobility of those joints a little bit.  Living Laser’s had a host of rather differing appearances over the years, but this figure goes for his most recent, which, if I’m being totally honest, isn’t something I’m super thrilled about.  For my money, I’d much rather have gotten Laser’s classic design he was sporting from the ’70s on through the ’90s, as hokey as it may be.  This one’s sleek, but I don’t feel it’s quite as gripping.  But, hey, maybe this is the design others want.  I was buying the figure anyway, so my personal preferences certainly haven’t impacted their sales at all.  The figure’s construction is pretty simple.  He’s got a brand new head, thrown on the ANAD 2099 body, funky add-on bits and all.  Aside from the restriction on the neck movement, it’s actually not a bad combo, since the 2099 body’s a pretty solid one.  It doesn’t make for the most thrilling appearance, but it’s an accurate one.  The new Living Laser design has him in a constant state of energy, which the figure replicates by casting him in clear purple plastic.  There’s some airbrushed accenting on it.  It’s fairly decent, though it rather suddenly disappears when you get to the butterfly joints, which is a little bit jarring, but you can make it work with the right pose.  Living Laser is packed with two of the electric effect pieces, this time in an off-white.  It’s a shame he doesn’t have any alternate hands to replace the fists, but at least he’s not entirely un-accessorized. He also includes the torso of the armored Thanos Build-A-Figure.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

When I initially heard they were making Living Laser, I was excited, because I wanted to add him to my growing ’90s cartoon Iron Man villains roster.  Then I saw the figure, and he’s the wrong design for that, so my desire to have him quickly dwindled.  It’s not the figure’s fault.  This is his most current appearance, so I can’t really fault Hasbro for choosing it, nor can I say that the figure isn’t an accurate recreation.  He’s honestly not a bad figure, but he’s one I just don’t feel much attachment to.

Living Laser came from All Time Toys, and he’s currently in-stock at their store, here. And, if you’re looking for other toys both old and new, please check out their website and their eBay storefront.