Tag Archives: Marvel

#1777: Ant-Man & Stinger

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

ANT-MAN & STINGER

MARVEL LEGENDS (HASBRO)

“Both powered by Pym Particles and able to shrink to the size of an ant, Scott and Cassie Lang have more in common than a family name.”

Though still not quite one of Marvel’s top-tier heroes, there’s no denying that Ant-Man’s gotten a bit more prominent in recent years.  Having two movies under your belt will do that sort of thing for you.  It also translates to a greater action figure presence, but it’s only just recently translated to a better presence for the character’s comics incarnation.

THE FIGURES THEMSELVES

Ant-Man and Stinger were *supposed* to be a TRU-exclusive two-pack, but…well, we all know what happened there.  Had all gone according to plan, it would have been released to coincide with the release of Ant-Man & The Wasp, but, again, we know what happened there.  Ultimately, it was handed off to Entertainment Earth, who took most of the planned TRU-exclusives.

ANT-MAN

It sure has been a while since we got a comics-styled Scott Lang.  The last one was back during the Toy Biz days (and was, in fact, the first Legends Ant-Man).  This one gives us Scott in his most recent costume, from Astonishing Ant-Man.  It’s a nice melding of his prior costumes, and also has a number of elements in common with the movie designs, so I’m definitely a fan.  The figure stands 6 1/4 inches tall and he has 34 points of articulation.  He’s built on the 2099 body, which is really shaping up to be a favorite of mine.  It’s definitely a good match for how Scott’s classically been depicted.  He actually gets a sizable selection of new parts, which includes his head, torso, pelvis, and knees.  The head is a good match for recent depictions of Scott, and includes one of the least silly-looking takes on his helmet in action figure form.  The other pieces add in the armored elements of the costume, which is an improvement over the painted work from prior figures in the line.  Most impressively, his lower torso is also a new piece, just to give him some slight wrinkles at the base of his belt.  Very true to the way this suit is usually depicted, and a really fun little character detail that could have easily been overlooked.  Scott’s paintwork is pretty standard fair for the line.  The colors have a nice contrast and the red in particular is bright and eye-catching.  There’s a little bit of slop on my figure’s shoulders, but nothing super major.  Ant-Man includes no accessories, which is a slight let-down.  An unmasked head would have really been nice.

STINGER

Cassie Lang has never gotten a Legends release before.  She’s gotten one prior figure, which was also in her Stinger identity, although that one was her MC2-incarnation, whereas this figure’s clearly meant to be her more recent turn as Stinger from the main universe.  While I’m happy to finally add Cassie to my Legends collection, and I understand Stinger is her current incarnation, there’s definitely a frustration on my part that after waiting a decade to round out my Young Avengers display, I finally get a Cassie figure, and she’s not in her Stature costume.  Alas, I’ll just have to live with it.  Stinger stands 5 3/4 inches tall and she has 33 points of articulation.  The figure is built on the teen female body, which is not only a pretty decent body, but also a good fit for how Cassie tends to be depicted.  She gets a new head and a slightly tweaked upper torso, and also makes use of the Wasp’s wings.  The head is a solid piece of work, and we get a nice, crisp sculpt on the helmet.  The torso is pretty much just the basic piece, but with the appropriate ports for the wings.  Stinger only has two wings, rather than Wasp’s usual four, so these ones are just the main ones, with the secondary wing pieces removed.  Obviously, it’s an accuracy thing, but it does mean she’s just got empty peg holes where the secondary wings would have plugged in.  That’s sort of frustrating.  Cassie’s paintwork is overall pretty decent, but there’s a slight issue with the purple on the thighs not really matching the rest of the suit.  Don’t do light over dark, guys! Like her father, Cassie doesn’t include any accessories.  Given that she has far less unique pieces, this is even more frustrating.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I was definitely interested in this set when it was shown off, since I quite like Cassie, and I’ve been hoping for a decent update to Scott for a little while.  Scott’s definitely the star here, being a fun costume choice, and a solid set of new pieces on one of Hasbro’s strongest base bodies.  I would have definitely preferred if Cassie had been Stature instead, but I suppose that would be better served to a BaF release at some point down the road.  As is this figure is a decent, if slightly flawed stand-in.

Since Toys R Us obviously wasn’t a viable option, I instead grabbed this set from my friends over at All Time Toys.  If you’d like one of your own, it’s still in-stock here.  And, if you’re looking for other toys, both old and new, please also check out All Time’s full eBay store front, and take a look at their webstore at alltimetoys.com.

#1773: Captain America & Falcon

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

CAPTAIN AMERICA & FALCON

MARVEL MINIMATES

Infinity War saw a lot of familiar faces returning, and by extension so have the accompanying toys.  The Minimates have been split into two main assortments, and by far the most noticeable absence from the first one was the Star-Spangled Man himself, Captain America.  Fortunately, he’s headlining the second assortment, alongside his frequent partner in crime, the Falcon!

THE FIGURES THEMSELVES

Cap and Falcon are part of the second assortment of Infinity War-themed Marvel Minimates.  They’re one of the two sets shared between specialty and Walgreens (and were originally supposed to be offered at Toys R Us).

CAPTAIN AMERICA

Captain America’s got quite a different look this time around, owing a lot to his appearance during his days as Nomad in the comics.  Given the similar thematic elements between the storylines, it’s a well-chosen look, and it aids in filling us in on how things have gone for him since he abandoned the shield at the end of Civil War. Cap’s construction is very similar to his Civil War figures, which is sensible, since it’s the same costume and all.  He uses the shield harness, gloves, and belt from that set-up, and swaps out Ego’s hair for the usual close-cropped fare.  The end result makes for a pretty solid approximation of his design from the movie. Sure, the shape of the buckles on the harness isn’t movie accurate (they should be circular), but that’s an exceedingly minor change that DST is forgiven for overlooking.  In terms of paint, Cap is pretty well-off.  The face is sporting a pretty decent likeness of the bearded Chris Evans, and the rest of the details on the uniform and such are very crisp, and all of the important details are there.  The intent from his missing star insignia is clearly defined, as are all of his pockets and such on his uniform.  It’s a shame his uniform isn’t showing the small rips and tears like in the movie, but that’s another small detail. Cap is packed with an extra set of hands, featuring his replacement Wakandan shields.  They’re a bit on the small side, and it’s kind of difficult to tell the difference between them and the standard hands.  That said, they’re new pieces, and they’re certainly better than nothing.  He also includes the usual clear display stand.

FALCON

Unlike Cap, Falcon’s look for Infinity War is largely unchanged from his prior appearance in Civil War.  However, the Civil War release was exclusive to Toys R Us, so it’s sensible that DST would want to give buyers another chance at the character.  Falcon is built from the same collection of pieces as his Civil War figure (reviewed here).  They worked very well the first time around, and they continue to work here.  As it’s the same costume in-movie, it would be silly for DST to try and recreate these pieces wholesale.  Falcon’s paintwork is also rather similar to his last figure, but there are a few minor differences.  His facial expression has changed slightly, closing his mouth, but still keeping his angrier appearance.  The colors of the costume have also been subdued a bit, which actually brings him a bit more inline with how he appears onscreen, since the Civil War release was using an earlier color scheme.  Sadly, Falcon takes a little bit of hit in the accessories department.  He’s got his flight stand and gets both of his twin guns (as opposed to the single one from last time), but loses the Redwing drone.  It doesn’t get any play in Infinity War, but it’s still a little sad to see him with less extras than before.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Cap’s the undeniable selling point of this set, and he’s a very strong entry.  After getting a lot of very similar looks in the first round of Infinity War ‘mates, this distinctly different looking Cap is definitely a breath of fresh air, and a fun figure in general.  How much you like this FALCON figure is going to be very connected to whether you got the last one.  He’s still a solid release, no doubt, but he doesn’t have much new to offer.

#1771: Big Time Spider-Man & Shadowland Iron Fist

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

BIG TIME SPIDER-MAN & SHADOWLAND IRON FIST

MARVEL MINIMATES

Shadowland is an event I think most of us would like to forget, and most of us kind of have.  However, the event is notable for a few of the good things that came out of it.  Firstly, it led to a hard relaunch of Daredevil, thus giving us Mark Waid’s phenomenal run on the character.  Secondly, it gave us Marvel Minimates Series 38, which, despite its questionable origins, was a pretty exciting assortment, at least at the time.

THE FIGURES THEMSELVES

Shadowland Iron Fist and Big Time Spider-Man were available in both the 38th specialty series and the tenth Toys R Us-exclusive series of Marvel Minimates.

SHADOWLAND IRON FIST

This was only Danny Rand’s second Minimate, hitting shelves a whopping 7 years after the first. By this point, the character had been successfully re-launched by Matt Fraction and David Aja in the pages of Immortal Iron Fist, so a new version was overdue. DST took advantage of his appearance during Shadowland to finally get us Danny’s current (at the time) design.  Iron Fist used add-ons for his mask, sash, and wrapped hands.  The sash was re-used, though not from the original Iron Fist as you might think.  Instead it came from the PX-exclusive Dark Phoenix, which had a much more simplistic piece.  Honestly, I think I’d have preferred the old Iron Fist piece, which had more detailing, but I guess a sash is a sash.  The mask and hands were new to this guy.  The mask actually gives Danny hair and ears, unlike the first one, and is generally just a solid piece (hence why it’s still in use another 7 years later).  The hands, on the other *hand* (heh), I’ve never been much of a fan of.  They’re just oddly shaped, and definitely far too long and skinny.  I think the wraps would have looked better as a painted on detail.  The paintwork on Iron Fist is actually surprisingly dull.  Like, I get wanting to maybe downplay the colorfulness of the costume a little bit, but this always seemed to take it a little far.  It still looks fine, though, and I suppose isn’t too far off from how he looked during the Immortal Iron Fist run.  I’ve always found the face to look a little old for Danny.  I think there are a few too many lines.  With the mask on, he looks decent enough, though.  The one detail that really frustrates me is that his sleeves go all the way down to his wrists.  He had extra unwrapped hands to swap out, but without the exposed skin on his forearms, he just ends up looking wrong.  In addition to those previously mentioned extra hands, Iron Fist also included a hair piece for an unmasked look (re-used from Series 27’s Ultimate Iron Man) and an energy effect piece for his “iron fist.”

BIG TIME SPIDER-MAN

Right around the same time that all that crazy stuff was going on in Daredevil, Dan Slott began his legendary run on Spider-Man, kicking things off with a storyline titled “Big Time,” which finally brought the focus back to Peter Parker’s prowess as an engineer.During the story, he starts building newer, more advanced Spider-suits, including the stealthy suit seen here. Though the suit was rather short-lived, it was a very sleek look, calling back to the fan-favorite symbiote design, as well as throwing in a bit of Tron for good measure, so it had a lasting impression with fans. This would be the first of a handful of figures based on this costume. This Spider-Man, like a lot of Spider-Men, is a completely vanilla ‘mate, making use of no extra add-ons or anything.  It’s nice to get the occasional vanilla ‘mate to remind you of how good the standard body is.  All of the important details are handled via paint, which is handled pretty well overall.  The slight highlights are a very effective way of detailing the all-black suit, and capture Humberto Ramos’ illustrations of the suit well.  My only complaint is the shade of green used; I think something brighter would have popped more against the suit.  It’s not bad as is, but it could be better.  Spidey was packed with a web-line piece.  It’s the same piece used with other Spider-Men, but molded in translucent yellow plastic, which gives it a nice, unique feel.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Iron Fist was a much anticipated figure, but also a somewhat flawed one.  It fixed some of the issues from the first Iron Fist ‘mate, while at the same time introducing new ones of it’s own, making the whole thing a bit of a wash.  The later Best Of version ended up being the one most of us were actually waiting for.  Big Time Spider-Man is one of my favorite Spider-Man designs, and this ‘mate does a pretty exceptional job of translating it into plastic.

#1769: Apocalypse

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

APOCALYPSE

MARVEL LEGENDS (HASBRO)

Huzzah!  Another Series of Marvel Legends is complete, which means it’s time for another Build-A-Figure!  The X-Men have their fair share of exciting foes, but due to the sheer size of the main team’s membership, those foes can get left out, which has kind of been the case with Hasbro’s X-themed Marvel Legends so far.  The Juggernaut Series just had it’s build-a-figure, and last year’s Warlock Series didn’t have any villains at all.  Fortunately, this year’s assortment amends that issue, giving us two single-release villain, and a villainous Build-A-Figure, Apocalypse, who I’ll be looking at today!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Apocalypse is the Build-A-Figure for the Apocalypse Series of Marvel Legends.  I know, huge shock.  This is the third mass-retail X-Men series of Marvel Legends since the Infinite Series relaunch.  This marks Apocalypse’s third time as a Legend and his second time as a Build-A-Figure (though the last one was much larger).  He’s clearly a more classically inspired Apocalypse, although he’s still got a little bit of a modern twist in how some of the details have been carried out.  The figure stands 8 inches tall and he has 32 points of articulation.  Apocalypse is a brand-new sculpt, though given how he’s assembled, He was definitely built with future re-use in mind.  There’s a new base body, with add-ons for the collar, wristbands, shoulder pads , and belt.  He’s also got more unique pieces for his head, hands, and feet.  The overall construction is definitely top-notch, and he’s a great example of the character work Hasbro’s capable of doing even with pieces on a basic body.  The head in particular is a very good replication of the character’s look from the late ’80s/early ’90s, which is about as definitive as you can get for Apocalypse.  If I have one complaint, it’s the tubes that run from his belt to his arms; they’re really long, and they pop out of place a lot.  Of course, they’re totally removable if you don’t like them, and as far as the extra length, I’d say it’s likely Hasbro trying to correct the issues present on Warlock.  In that respect, I have to commend them; at the very least, they’re really trying.  When initially shown off, Apocalypse was sporting a slightly more modern-inspired color scheme, but Hasbro changed that along the line, giving us the more classic appearance we see here.  I personally am very happy for that change, as I think his colors are very striking, especially that slick metallic blue.  Apocalypse includes no accessories, since he’s essentially an accessory himself.  Fear not, though, he’s actually getting an alternate hand attachment, packed in with the upcoming Archangel deluxe release!

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

While I’m at best a moderate fan of Apocalypse (which is why I’ve never owned one of his Legends figures before), I do think he has a pretty slick look, and when this figure was shown off, I was pretty impressed.  As luck would have it, I was also really interested in all of the figures it took to build him, so here he is.  He hasn’t topped Warlock as my favorite Build-A-Figure (I’m doubtful anyone will for at least quite some time), but he’s certainly giving Juggernaut a serious run for his money.  All-in-all, this was a very strong assortment of figures.

#1768: Psylocke

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

PSYLOCKE

MARVEL LEGENDS (HASBRO)

“Betsy Braddock adopts the identity Psylocke, combining mastery of the martial arts with enhanced abilities in telekinesis and telepathy.”

I have reviewed a surprising amount of Psylocke figures for this site.  I mean, more than one would suffice really, but this one will mark the fifth.  How about that?  Interestingly, one of the few Psylocke figures in my collection I *haven’t* yet reviewed is her first Marvel Legends figure.  It’s interesting; she was part of one of my favorite assortments from that line, and is genuinely one of the better female figures Toy Biz released.  Despite all that, she’s never been a favorite of mine, or anyone’s for that matter.  Since the license transferred over to Hasbro, there’s only been one Psylocke figure under the Legends banner, and that was in an SDCC-exclusive pack from 2012.  Fortunately, Hasbro’s offering another take on the character, which I’m looking at today.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Psylocke is the seventh and final figure in the Apocalypse Series of Marvel Legends.  Like her very first Legends release, this one is based on Psylocke’s Jim Lee-designed, post body swap appearance.  While I myself am partial to Betsy’s armored look from the ’80s, there’s no denying that this particular look is the definitive Psylocke, so Hasbro’s choice was certainly a sensible one.  The figure stands 6 1/4 inches tall and she has 27 points of articulation.  Psylocke marks the debut of a new female base body.  A slight surprise, given a lot of people were just expecting her to be on the Moonstone body, which seems like a decent match for Lee’s take on Betsy.  This new body is comparatively a little slimmer, but as a trade off seems to have a better overall range of motion on the joints, and is perhaps a more realistic portrayal of Psylocke than Lee’s.  In particular, I quite like the elbow, which, though only single joints, can get a surprisingly deep bend to them.  Psylocke’s character-specific parts are her head and sash, both of which are decent, but not without flaw.  The head is certainly a respectable offering, but it’s a touch on the generic side.  Also, her hair is parted the opposite direction of the how Psylocke’s usually goes, which is a little odd.  Was this head perhaps initially meant for someone else?  Likewise, the sash is an alright piece, but isn’t really sculpted to flow with the contours of the body the was prior pieces have.  As such, it’s just a very floaty piece, and never really stays in place.  Psylocke’s paint was another area of contention amongst the fan base, though my personal figure wasn’t affected.  Early shipments of this figure had black hair in place of her proper purple locks, which is a pretty major issue.  Fortunately, it seems Hasbro was right on top of it, and Betsy’s correct hair color has been applied for more recent figures.  Beyond the hair snafu, the rest of the paint is actually pretty decent.  The metallic blue used for her costume is definitely a lot of fun, and the overall application is very clean.  Psylocke is packed with a psychic effect that clips onto her face, one of her psychic knives for her left hand, and a psychic Katana with removable psychic energy effects.  It’s all a bit psychic, really.  She also includes the left leg of the Build-A-Figure Apocalypse, which is the final piece to that particular figure.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I’ve never been super, super into Psylocke, but she was prominent in the ’90s, and I was certainly happy to have another go at the character.  In a series full of some serious hits, Psylocke is, admittedly, one of the weaker figures, at least for me.  She’s certainly not a bad figure, and a definite improvement on her Toy Biz variant.  In another assortment, she might have stood out better.  Still, I’m happy to add her to my collection, and I like her more in person than I’d have expected to.

Psylocke was purchased from my friends at All Time Toys.  If you’re interested in purchasing other Legends figures, or are looking for other cool toys both old and new, please check out their website and their eBay Store.

1767: Multiple Man

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

MULTIPLE MAN

MARVEL LEGENDS (HASBRO)

“Not to be duped by duplication, Jamie Madrox uses the ability to clone himself to assign liaisons to travel the world and acquire new skillsets.”

Hey look!  It’s James Franco!  Okay, not quite yet.   And depending on how all the Fox/Marvel stuff shakes out, possibly not at all.  Still, higher chance than that Channing Tatum Gambit movie ever making it out, right? Jamie Madrox, aka the Multiple Man, is one of those fun lower tier Marvel characters who has had quite the history.  His initial appearance had him facing off against the Fantastic Four, and ended with him being put in touch with Charles Xavier, who shipped him off to Muir Island.  He hung around there just mostly being a background character for a decade and a half, before making his way onto the X-Men off-shoot team X-Factor, which was where the character really took off.  He’s maintained a fairly steady fanbase, and believe it or not, has managed to get an action figure in just about every major Marvel scale.  The only one missing was 6-inch, but Hasbro’s been kind enough to fix that this year.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Multiple Man is figure 6 in the Apocalypse Series of Marvel Legends.  This is Jamie’s first Legends release, though he was one of the potential choices in the 2009 Fan’s Choice poll that got us three TRU-exclusive two-packs.  That figure, of course, would have been based on Jamie’s more civilian X-Factor Investigations appearance.  This one instead opts for his ’90s era costume.  I think we can all agree that it was worth the wait to get the actual costume.  The figure stands 6 1/4 inches tall and he has 32 points of articulation.  He’s built on the Bucky Cap body.  Not a huge shock there; Jaime’s never been a particularly bulky guy, and since they went with the spandex look, this one fits it pretty well.  Of course, it wouldn’t be a proper 90s Multiple Man without the trench coat.  I think there was an expectation that this would be an all-new endeavor, but Hasbro opted for some parts re-use…thankfully it’s not a total re-use of the old trench coat body.  That would have been bad.  Instead, he just uses the coat overlay from that figure, paired up with the jacketed arms from the Netflix Punisher.  It’s honestly a much better combo, and goes a long way to salvage that coat piece.  I still feel like we’re going to need a new trench coat body sooner rather than later, but this is a serviceable substitute.  Topping off the frankenstiened body is not one, not two, but three all-new head sculpts.  The first is your standard Multiple Man design, skull cap and all.  He has a more battle-ready expression, teeth-gritted and everything.  The second head is the same as the first, but with a different face, this time more jovial.  This one’s my favorite of the three.  The last one is the most unique, lacking the headgear of the other two, and with a more neutral expression.  This is the sort of head that would probably look more at home on an X-Factor Investigations figure, so one has to wonder if Hasbro is planning a head with this one.  Multiple Man’s paintwork is fairly standard stuff.  The design on his costume doesn’t have quite as much going on under the trench coat as I’d personally like, but in Hasbro’s defense, the artists on X-Factor were never super consistent about his costume design, and tended to just hide most of the spandex under the coat anyway.  Jamie’s primary accessories are the two extra heads, which are fun.  I do sort of wish he’d gotten some extra hands to go along with them, but alas, it was not to be.  He does, however, include the right leg of the Build-A-Figure Apocalypse.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Multiple Man was my most wanted figure from this set, and, as luck would have it, the first figure from the set I was able to get a hold of.  I came across him, and only him, at my local Target.  I’ve always been a fan of Jamie, so I’ve been eagerly awaiting him getting the Legends treatment.  While I would have been happy with the X-Factor Investigations version shown back in ’09, I’m ultimately much happier to have gotten this variant now.  While not a perfect figure, he’s still a ton of fun.  Now I just need to see how many I can track down!

#1766: Storm

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

STORM

MARVEL LEGENDS (HASBRO)

“An affinity for the magical elements make Ororo Munroe the mistress of weather manipulation Storm.”

….”affinity for the magical elements”?  That…that doesn’t seem quite right for Storm.  Her powers aren’t “magical.”  Darn it, Ethan, there you go critiquing bios again.  Knock it off!

Though one of the most prominent X-Men by far, Storm’s had rather a storied history when it comes to action figures, especially Marvel Legends.  In the whole run of the line, she’s only had two prior figures, one during Toy Biz’s tenure, and one during Hasbro’s.  Hasbro’s pulling a head of the game, though, and bringing their number up to a whopping two!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Storm is figure 5 in the Apocalypse Series of Marvel Legends.  Her last Hasbro release was based on her then-current Marvel Now appearance.  This one goes more classic (though exactly how classic the design is has been slightly up for debate), giving us Storm’s punk look from the late ’80s.  The Now figure also had a mohawk, giving us a slight taste of this design, but this one goes full-on.  The figure stands 6 1/4 inches tall to from her feet to the top of her head (the mohawk adds another half an inch) and she has 27 points of articulation.  Storm’s starting point is the casual-wear jeans and a t-shirt body introduced last year for Mary Jane and Jessica Jones.  On top of that, she gets the jacket and glove cuffs from Rogue, as well as a new head, upper torso, boots, and belt.  The base body is a fairly decent starting point for this particular Storm design.  I suppose an argument could be made that Storm should have a slightly larger stature, but I don’t think she’s too far off.  Certainly not as bad as prior Storm offerings.  The borrowed Rogue pieces, though not perfect matches for Storm’s garb from the comics, are close enough to warrant the re-use.  That just leaves the newly sculpted pieces, which are quite nicely rendered.  I was actually a little surprised that the head was an all-new piece, as I’d somewhat expected it to be a re-use from the prior Storm figure.  I was glad to find it was a new piece, as this one takes the decent starting point of the prior sculpt, and adds an additional layer of character, to both the facial expression and the slight tussled nature of the hair.  It’s a good match for her rye personality from the comics at the time she was sporting this look.  To be completely accurate to the comics, she should really have gotten a band on her arm, but that’s a relatively minor detail.  Storm’s paintwork is on par with the usual work we’ve been seeing lately.  The application is all clean, and the all-black costume is quite slick looking.  Oddly, she’s actually gotten a painted detail she didn’t need.  They’ve painted an exposed midriff on her torso, when it should technically be a full shirt, and thereby just be black like the rest of the shirt.  I can’t say I mind the change, though, and it doesn’t seem all that out of place with this particular look.  Storm is packed with a pair of lightning effects (the same ones included with Magneto and Thor; now we’ve got them in a whole array of colors), which technically she wouldn’t have with this costume, what with having lost her powers and all, but it would seem odd to get a Storm figure without them.  She also includes the torso of the Build-A-Figure Apocalypse.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Neither of the last two Storm Legends were particularly easy to get.  I fully intended to grab the last Hasbro figure but, well, that didn’t happen.  I’ve been hoping for another shot at Storm since then.  Storm was another birthday gift from my Super Awesome Fiancee (I guess there was a mohawk theme going on).  While this look isn’t my first choice (I’m still hoping for that First Appearance figure we were teased with back in 2007), I’m happy to have gotten any look at all, really.  She’s a solid figure to be sure.

#1765: Sabretooth

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

SABRETOOTH

MARVEL LEGENDS (HASBRO)

“A skilled assassin armed with sharp, beast-like fangs and claws, Sabretooth is a paid mercenary of evil.”

I can’t believe I’ve never reviewed a Sabretooth figure on this site.  That seems a little nuts, doesn’t it?  As the dark reflection to Wolverine, Victor Creed has hardly been scarce when it comes to toys.  Prominent placement in several cartoons, not to mention two of the X-Men movies, have made him fairly prominent.  Almost makes you forget he wasn’t originally an X-Men villain at all, but instead faced off against Iron Fist in his debut appearance.  Who would have guessed he’d have taken off quite this way?

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Sabretooth is figure 4 in the Apocalypse Series of Marvel Legends.  This marks Sabretooth’s fifth time getting the Legends treatment.  This one follows the original figure’s lead, and presents Sabretooth in his Jim Lee-designed costume from the ’90s.  While I’ve always had a soft spot for his first appearance design, there’s no denying that this is the definitive take on the character, and it’s in keeping with the running sub-theme to the recent X-Men assortments, which have given us quite a few of the Jim Lee designs.  The figure stands 7 inches tall and he has 32 points of articulation.  Like yesterday’s Gladiator figure, Sabretooth is built on the Hyperion body.  Not necessarily the most up-to-date body, but it’s the same one that was used for the last Legends Sabretooth, and it’s at the very least a good match for his general build.  He gets a new head sculpt, tweaked forearms, and an add-on piece for his “mane.” He also makes use of the same clawed hands as his last release (which were also used on Venom).  The head is a fantastic piece, which matches well with the character, and has a very dynamic, very expressive look to it.  The lower jaw is a separate piece, which means its got some slight seams on the edges, but they’re not anywhere near as obvious as I’ve seen from similar construction on other figures.  The mane is a handy piece, because it masks the main issue with the base body, which is that odd torso shelf.  With it in place, it’s hardly an issue, and the piece itself is quite nicely sculpted, matching the head in terms of dynamics (a marked improvement over the rather flat piece from the original Toy Biz figure).  Topping it all off are some solid claw hands and forearms with elbow spikes, which all add-up to a very pointy guy.  Sabretooth is up to the standards we’ve come to expect from Hasbro’s recent crop of Legends.  Application is pretty clean overall, and he’s bright and rather eye-catching and the two-toned nature of his costume has a satisfying contrast to it.  Sabretooth has no extra parts of his own.  While I wouldn’t have minded an extra head or maybe some fists to swap out for the claws, his larger stature prevents him from feeling too light.  He does include the left arm of the Build-A-Figure Apocalypse, which is certainly a plus if you’re looking to build that (which I am).

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Back in the day, I was actually quite a fan of my old Toy Biz Legends Sabretooth.  As the years have gone on, of course, he’s started to look a little out-dated.  Hasbro’s last version wasn’t easy to find, or a variant of the character I was particularly interested in.  So, when this guy showed up in this line-up, I was intrigued, though I’m not sure he was at the top of my list.  I’m pleasantly surprised by this figure.  He’s quite well-handled, and an important version of an important character.  When paired up with this assortment’s Wolverine, he just exudes the best sort of ’90s animated goodness.

Sabretooth was purchased from my friends at All Time Toys and he’s currently available here.  If you’re interested in purchasing other Legends figures, or are looking for other cool toys both old and new, please check out their website and their eBay Store.

#1764: Gladiator

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

GLADIATOR

MARVEL LEGENDS (HASBRO)

“The leader of the Imperial Guard, Gladiator shoots heat beams from his eyes and commands his forces with formidable strength.”

Artist Dave Cockrum, who helped to re-launch the X-Men in their All-New, All-Different incarnation that would pretty much shape the franchise going forward, found his first prominent comics work in the pages of Legion of Super Heroes.  He frequently let some of his Legion work seep into X-Men, and perhaps the most obvious instance of this was the creation of the Shi’ar Imperial Guard, a full-fledged homage to the Legion.  The team’s resident Superman/Superboy stand-in was the Gladiator, who is also the only member of the team who ever seems to get any action figures.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Gladiator is figure 3 in the Apocalypse Series of Marvel Legends.  Previously, he was released as part of 2013’s SDCC-exclusive “Thanos Imperative” boxed-set.  He’s the fourth of the figures in the set to get a wider release, following Star-Lord, Medusa, and Black Bolt.  There are some slight tweaks to this release, which I’ll touch on when I get to the paint section. The figure stands 7 inches tall and he has 32 points of articulation.  Gladiator is built on the Hyperion body, a sensible choice, given their shared status as Superman knock-offs.  His head sculpt and cape are both unique to him.  The head is decent enough.  It’s well scaled to the body, and has some solid detail work, especially on the mohawk.  It’s got a slight case of scowly-Hasbro-face, but it doesn’t bug me nearly as much on Gladiator as it does some of the others.  My only real complaint is that it sits just a touch too high on the neck, but the proper pose hides that well enough.  The cape is actually one of Hasbro’s finest, truth be told.  It sits well on the figure, doesn’t move about too much, and it has a flow that is somewhat dramatic without being too limiting.  The SDCC Gladiator made use of a lot of metallic paints, which are perfectly reasonable choices generally, but for a character like Gladiator, they seemed to needlessly muddy his design.  This new figure instead goes for a flatter and brighter selection of colors, which makes the figure pop a little bit more, especially when placed with the rest of the very colorful set he’s a part of.  If I have one minor nitpick, I’d say I’m a little bummed that this Gladiator is once again without pupils.  While it’s not inaccurate for the character, they would have made this a more decidedly classic take on the character.  Gladiator has no character-specific accessories (I’m not really sure what you could give him), but he does include the head of Apocalypse.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Back when the Thanos Imperative set was released, I actually tried to get one, because I quite liked a number of the characters included.   Gladiator was high on that list, and I was always a little bit bummed I’d missed him.  So, I was actually pretty happy to see him get a re-release.  This guy ended up being a birthday gift from my Super Awesome Fiancee.  While he’s not a perfect figure, and I’ll be glad when the start working the Hyperion body out, there’s a lot I like about this figure.  Now, can I please get more of the Imperial Guard?  Gladiator needs his team!

#1763: Magneto

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

MAGNETO

MARVEL LEGENDS (HASBRO)

“Living up to his namesake, Magneto is a master manipulator of magnetism, controlling and using its energy to defeat his enemies.”

Debuting alongside the team in X-Men #1, Magneto has been by far the most enduring of the X-Men’s foes…or allies…or teammates…or whatever he is this week.  He’s a popular choice for toys as well.  While he doesn’t quite rival Wolverine, he’s certainly giving Cyclops a run for his money.  Sadly, in the realm of Marvel Legends, he’s always seemed to come up short.  His very first Legends release was a hastily re-tooled Iron Man that didn’t quite work right.  This was followed by quite a lengthy waiting period for another, in 2014, which was not only an extremely illusive Toys R Us exclusive, it also wasn’t very good.  That leads us to today’s figure, the beacon of hope that maybe, just maybe, a Legends Magneto might not suck.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Magneto–sorry, Marvel’s Magneto is figure 2 in the Apocalypse Series of Marvel Legends.  Like Colossus before him, Magneto’s source design is a point of contention for some of the fanbase.  A lot of fans were hoping for another stab at his classic togs, but Hasbro has instead opted for a more modern appearance, based on his relatively recent design from the All-New, All-Different re-launch in 2015.  I was myself angling for another classic figure, but I can somewhat understand Hasbro not wanting to release that costume again right away, since it’s only been a few years since the last attempt.  What’s more, this particular design is actually not a bad look for old Magnus, and given Hasbro’s recent track record with the likes of Namor and Taskmaster, it likely serves as a trial run for them to get everything in order for a more proper variant down the line.  Magneto stands 6 1/2 inches tall and he has 32 points of articulation.  The figure is built on the Spider-UK body, a fact I’m quite pleased about.  As soon as I saw that figure, I was hoping Hasbro would have it ear-marked for Magneto, so I’m happy to see they were on the same wavelength.  He gets a new head, forearms, and boots, as well as an add-on for his cape.  The head features the helmet as a separate, non-removable piece, as has become the norm for these guys.  The helmet follows the more streamlined nature of the helmet, which first cropped up in the X-Men: First Class design in 2011.  It sits quite well on his head (which is a surprisingly big win for a 6-inch Magneto figure; none of the others have really gotten that part down), and the underlying face perfectly captures Magneto’s noble streak.  The forearms and boots both capture those little raised ridges that Magneto seems to be really into, as well as meshing well with the existing body.  The cape gave me some pause when I first took the figure out of the box, because it wouldn’t sit flat and seemed oddly malformed.  Upon closer inspection, I realized that the shoulder pads were separate pieces, designed to slide *under* the cape, and one of them had accidentally popped over.  If you look closely at the prototype on the figure’s package you can see that not even Hasbro caught this mix-up.  Once everything’s laying properly, the cape is actually pretty darn awesome, and quite fitting for the character.  If there’s a slight downside to this figure, it’s his paint work.  It’s not *terrible* but the application is noticeably sloppier than on a lot of Hasbro’s other recent releases.  The red paint in particular seems to have some real issues with going on too thinly, leaving the underlying black plastic exposed.  The worst of it’s at the front of the helmet and on his thighs; beyond those points, it’s actually pretty passable overall.  Magneto makes out pretty well in terms of accessories.  He’s got an extra head, sans-helmet, displaying his beautiful Jim Lee-era locks.  While the helmeted head is still my favorite of the two, there’s no denying the quality of this one.  He also includes two different sets of hands.  He’s got basic black fists, as well as open gesture ones that have been molded in translucent purple.  There are some electricity effects to match.  Honestly, I’m a little surprised we didn’t see that swirly effects piece another time, since that’s what Polaris got, but I guess Hasbro was reading the room and sensing that piece’s over-use.  Lastly, Magneto includes the right arm of the Build-A-Figure Apocalypse.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I’m always down for a good Magneto figure, which is why it’s always been so disappointing that he’s never been privy to a good Legends release.  I still searched everywhere for the last one, even despite it’s lower quality, but never could find him, and certainly wasn’t paying a mark-up for him.  So, when this guy was announced, I was pretty excited, even if he’s not quite the version I wanted.  In hand, he’s got some minor flaws, but I’m overall happy with this figure, and glad I finally have a Magneto for my X-Men shelf.